Consistency Formula – Own Your Swing

Consistency Formula – Own Your Swing

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By Dr. Ron Cruickshank, Golf Mind Coach & GGA Director, Canada

Technique: Have a Formula for Becoming Consistent

Over the Christmas period, I’ve had several conversations with students about their goals for the coming year concerning their golf game. Without fail, each person eventually came to the conclusion that they desired CONSISTENCY above all else in their game.  They want to show up at the golf course and know they will hit the ball well on any given day.

But why is this their objective? On a surface level I got a lot of different answers to this ‘why’ question. For some, this desire for consistency was connected to their competitive juices (beat their buddies, win the Club Championship, qualify for a certain tournament). For others it was related more to pride, self-mage and a desire to be competent and to be seen as competent by their friends and peers.

Behavioral science research has shown that humans have three primary motivational meta-drivers underlying much of their behavior during their lives.

  1. Autonomy – the desire to be self-directed.
  2. To be engaged in purposeful activities– to make a contribution.
  3. Challenge and Mastery– the hard-wired urge or need to get better at things.

As I reflected on why people want to be more consistent in their golf games, it became clear to me that for most it is deeply connected to their internal drive to achieve mastery in this strange game of hitting a ball on the ground with a stick.  Pretty basic really, people want to get better and become more consistent because they want to. They come up with all kinds of reasons to explain their passion and desire, but I think the same drive would hold true if they took up Tidally-Winks or Bridge.

This understanding puts our motivation in context. The next question is HOW do we achieve mastery? It is not enough to just want to be good. What separates the low handicapper from the high handicapper is not just the strength of DESIRE. One can have great desire and still not be competent. Inconsistency is the result of a lack of correct information and not having a clear formula to achieve mastery.

Formula For Achieving Consistency (Mastery)

To begin let me offer the following formula or process to achieving consistency.

Consistency = Complexity – Simplicity – Practice – Consistency

The formula is to take a complex move (the golf swing) and find the least complicated or simplest method (single plane swing) to achieve mastery (consistency). The logic is based on knowing that the simplest method will always be the easiest to replicate on a consistent basis. (See my notes on Simplicity below). Consistency is promoted and enabled by efficiency.

The formula restated: take what is inherently complex, reduce it to the most basic and simple understanding and then practice that until you become consistent. I call this process of making it simple Crunching Complexity. Reducing the golf swing to simplicity does not mean it isn’t comprehensive or representative of the intricacy in the golf move. What it does mean is that you’ve achieved an effective and efficient way to “embody” the golf swing into a repeatable move. My favorite insight into this view of simplicity is often attributed to Einstein: “Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.”

This formula holds true for all elements of your game from the power swing to putting. Find out what works and reduce the complexity into workable and understandable chunk levels for you. Remember, that in order to make things simple you must crunch the complexity first by making the necessary learning distinctions. Only then can you eliminate the superfluous and focus on what is essential.

Once you have simplified things by eliminating the needless and focusing on the crucial, the path to consistency to quite clear. REPETITION and more REPETITION as you build the correct skill circuits. The result will be consistency.

Notes On Achieving Simplicity: In thinking through the issue of simplicity and why it is important I kept returning to a principle known as Occam’s (or Ockham’s) Razor. This principle is attributed to a 14th-century logician and English Franciscan friar, William of Ockham.

While the interpretations have evolved over the years, my favorite adaptation states that “If you have two equally likely solutions to a problem, choose the simplest.”  A close second is “The explanation requiring the fewest assumptions is most likely to be correct. “

To me, Moe Norman was practicing this kind of principled insight in the way he developed his single plane move. He constantly adapted to what was the simplest solution. He was often quoted as saying. “My swing has the fewest moving parts” and “everything is moving in the same direction, always” and “no twisting or turning in my swing”. When you think about these statements they were his unique way of saying he had taken the complexity out of the swing equation as much as possible and found the simplest way to get the job done.  So KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) and play golf!

So, Ya Wanna Be a Golfing Genius?

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By Dr. Ron Cruickshank, Golf Mind Coach & GGA Director, Canada

Technique:  Applying the Law of Requisite Variety

Early in my professional career as a behavioral scientist I was exposed to the Law of Requisite Variety. The law of requisite variety (also known as the first law of cybernetics – cybernetics is the science of systems and controls in animals, including humans, and machines) states: “in any cybernetic system the element or person in the system with the widest range of behaviors or variability of choice will control the system”. In other words, the system with the most options wins!

We hear his law reflected in our culture with a couple of colloquialisms that surface regularly in our everyday discussions. The first is the popular statement. “The definition of insanity is to keep doing the same thing and expect a different result.”  That is followed up with the next most popular statement. “Hey, if it’s not working, try something different.” This last one is usually prefaced by, ‘’Duh!’

Humans tend to generalize their experiences. In fact, this ability to generalize is thought to be one of our strongest evolved capabilities, because it means we can do one activity (like taking a shower, walking across the street, shaking hands) without having to think our way through the event each time. The capacity saves time, generally, makes us more effective and allows us to think about more important things.

However, this feature of our mind also has a downside. The negative is that once we generalize we don’t tend to question our behavior any longer. In fact, if we meet with resistance or failure the most often seen human response is to keep doing the same thing, only do it with more force or determination. In other words, we don’t question our generalizations (now a belief). Rather, we just keep hammering away rather than recognizing that our actions are failing to get the desired result.

To make this point, when giving a talk I will often make the statement that ‘”we humans are dumber than rats.” That always quiets the room.  For proof I ask them how many times a rat will go down the dead end of a maze if there is no cheese? The answer is ONCE. I then ask how many people in the room will keep making the same mistake over and over? Again, the room gets very quiet when people get the implication that to produce superior results, we must constantly observe our outcomes and have the behavioral flexibility to change our actions when we don’t achieve the desired results.

I consider Moe Norman an admirable example of behavioral flexibility in practice, leading to becoming a golfing genius. In the book A Feeling of Greatness, by Tim O’Connor, Moe described his process of hitting balls until his muscles would ache. He would pay attention to his stiffness and soreness and modify his swing to free up the flow of his swing. What genius!  Rather than be succumbed by traditional thought Moe relied on observable distinctions and modified accordingly.

The genius Moe demonstrated was his constant attention to the outcome and making new DISTINCTIONS about what he was doing. If what he was doing didn’t work, he would change it, modify it and test it. At some point he concluded his move was the most efficient he could make it and then he focused on building his brain’s skill circuits by doing millions of repetitions, such that he couldn’t do it wrong. Moe called this, ‘making it stronger, making it stronger’. He succeeded and is recognized the world over as a true golfing genius.

What is necessary to be a genius? You must acquire more distinctions about a given subject than most people. Do you want to be a genius? Go learn more about the subject than others do and integrate that information by building skills circuits through constant repetition of proper practice and movement. This holds true for all sports and all subjects as far as I can tell. Genius can be learned and earned; it is not just the province of a superior mind.

On The Golf Channel the other day I was watching Gary Player talk about bunker play. He described going out every day as a young pro in South Africa and hitting balls from the trap with a wedge, but also with every other club in the bag. He practiced getting out of the bunker with all his clubs, and during this time he made thousands of distinctions about the sand, the lies, the texture, his grip, stance & swing path. He described learning the balls reaction to certain types of lies and how over time he built supreme confidence in his bunker play such that he never feared to go into the bunker. This resulted in a distinct competitive advantage. He sagely noted, “This allowed me to go for tight pins others would avoid because they feared the sand.”

The Law of Requisite Variety states the system with the most options wins. My translation of that is that if you have more distinctions and learning you have more options, hence your probability of success improves dramatically. Couple this acquisition of distinctions with a willingness to modify what you are doing and you too can become a golfing genius. Remember: Give yourself a chance!

Simplicity Is Crunched Complexity

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By Dr. Ron Cruickshank, Golf Mind Coach & GGA Director, Canada

Technique: Getting To Simplicity

In my former life as a business executive, I was having dinner with a renowned captain of industry in Chicago. There were four of us at the dinner table and after some small talk he suggested a word game that would help us get to know each other. The two other guests at the table seemed quite apprehensive, fearing this kind of revealing intimacy and unsure how to deal with it. As a behavioral scientist by professional training I was intrigued (I know, the stereotype can be accurate at times). The learning from this simple game made it an immediate favorite of mine and I’ve used it for years to break the ice with new associates and soon to be friends.

Our host called the game Essence and it went like this. First, define the context of the question. In this game it was business and leadership, but it could also be life, parenting, family, marriage, business, golf or any other subject you want to explore.

Second, you pose the question in the following manner. In the world of business/leadership (or golf) what is the one single word that most clearly defines what is important about this subject for you? Not two words, not a phrase – ONE WORD!

This is a difficult process for most people because it forces one to take a mélange of thoughts/feelings and beliefs about a subject and find one word that is equivalent. Not an easy task on a good day for most of us. Our inherent desire is to expand, make distinctions and clarify. In this game, not allowed until later.

In this experience, our host asked each of us to write our one word down after a couple of minutes of reflection. Then, he asked us to go around the table and tell the others what our word was after he led by example and told us his (cooperation).

What made this meaningful for me was an instant recognition that you can’t do this exercise without a true reference to your core values about a subject. In ESSENCE, you had to ponder and decide what was most important. What is clear to me is that SIMPLICITY is CRUNCHED COMPLEXITY. You take a complex issue and boil down your thoughts into a simple perspective.  You crunch the complexity into a viable word, image or symbol that lets you manipulate the idea with greater dexterity.

True simplicity is a form of efficiency that is designed to produce effortless understanding or action. In no place is this truer then the game of golf, and in particular the single plane swing of Moe Norman. What Moe did was take a complex physical task and reduce it to the most efficient mechanically leveraged swing ever seen. What is the demonstrable proof? He could consistently produce the same swing with superior results over and over, day after day.

Ask yourself, what is the single thought or word that is most important to you in golf? Use this idea to your own advantage in your golf game; examine the best model of simplicity you can find. We believe that model is Moe Norman and our teaching methods are designed to allow you to get a clear and SIMPLE understanding of how to reach impact in the most efficient manner. This approach will get support your improvement more than any Jedi mind tricks I know.

The same objective of simplicity holds for any training or training aid you use and the criteria for adopting a training model or a training aid should be that it supports you quickly, simply and efficiently achieving the feeling of the movement.

Samuel Clemens of Mark Twain fame was famously quoted as saying in a letter to a friend. “I must apologize for writing such a long letter, I didn’t have time to write a short one.” Good things do come in small packages, so stay focused on getting to the most direct, economical and simple path to solid impact.

Give Yourself the Best Chance in your “Scoring” Part of the Game

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Hello Everyone, I thought I’d write a little about wedges, spin and the importance of having a good wedge game.

I know it’s the off-season or winter season for many, and most probably aren’t thinking about their wedge game this time of year, but with the new “groove rule” and all the questions/talk we are getting about wedges and the wedge game – thought I’d give a little information to help everyone.

First – as most of you have read from me before – the wedge game is a CRITICAL part of the golf game. When I am talking about wedges, I am basically talking about anything inside 100 yards for most.  (For some will be a little further, for some a little shorter). This is a part/large part of the “scoring” part of the game.

Second – Again – as most of you have heard me say before – no one should have an advantage over you in this part of the game. Meaning – it is not a strength issue, but rather a practice/technique, etc… issue. In other words, you can have a GREAT wedge game as long as you work on it properly and have the proper equipment to give you the best chance.

Third – You need to make sure your equipment allows you to maximize your wedge game. As I have come to find out, it seems a majority of golfers don’t understand wedges, how they can work for them and how to use them…

So, let’s talk about wedges and hopefully working with your equipment can help improve your game, or at least, give you the best chance to score your best.

  1. I believe you should carry the maximum amount of wedges “your bag” will let you carry. Meaning – as you can only carry 14 clubs – I would recommend carrying at least 3 wedges (including your pitching wedge). If possible, carry 4. (Pitching, Gap, Sand and Lob). Reason – the more wedges you carry the better your yardages will be between the wedges.  In other words, you will less gap in yardages between the wedges the more you carry.
  2. Different wedges are made to use for different shots. Let’s talk about the sand wedge first (typically 54 to 56 degrees).
    Most sand wedges have at least 10 degrees of bounce or more. The Bounce is the angle on the sole from the back of the club to the front. Every club in your bag has a little bounce, the sand wedge has increased bounce (typically 2 to 3 times as much) to help you keep the club from digging in the sand (soft surface) too much. Meaning, it is a very good bunker/sand or medium to high grass club, but not so good at hitting short shots from “tight” (minimal grass) or hard lies. The added bounce on the club will make the club skip/bounce on hard ground and will cause blade/thin type shots. Most see this when hitting chips/or shot shots off of tight lies. It is not recommending to chip or pitch with a sand wedge from tight/hard lies.
  3. The lob wedge (typically 58* +) is a great wedge for high pitch/lob type shots.  Reason – appropriate bounce, added loft and typically a little “wider” sole. Most lob wedges have a slightly wider sole which will help the lob wedge slide across the ground and get more weight on the ball to help get the ball up fast.
  4. It is recommending to have steel shafts in your wedges (gap, sand and lob).  Reason – you want the added weight in the clubs. These clubs are the shortest clubs in the bag (besides putter) and are often hit with 1/2 shots, out of rough, out of sand, etc. etc…  The added weight is a big advantage when hitting the clubs in these situations.  Makes it easier to hit out of rough, sand, etc. Don’t have to swing so hard, club head will get through grass, sand much easier with added weight. Graphite is a great material to protect the body when the club is being swung fast and allows you to hit the club further. No needed with the wedges – wedges are “control” type clubs – the added weight in steel is STRONGLY recommended in the wedges.

Last – let’s talk about spin. We all want to create spin on our wedges. Without spin, it is very difficult to get the ball close to the hole. Most won’t be able to create spin to stop the ball completely, but everyone can and should create spin to slow the ball down which helps get it close to the hole.

The primary variables of spin are angle of attack/speed, club type, and ball type. The more speed, the more spin you can create.  The softer (or more layers) the golf ball, the more spin you will create. Finally, the softer the metal of the club, the more spin you will/can create.

Another important variable and the one that is changing is the grooves on the wedges. The current groove (pre 2010) can create more spin then the one’s the USGA are requiring in the upcoming years.  (2014 for USGA amateur events, 2024 for everyone).

To make a “long story short” it is recommending everyone carry wedges that give them their best advantage in their scoring part of the game.

The recommended wedges are those that are a “forged” (soft metal) type, steel shafted, with pre-2010 grooves (maximum spin grooves).

Reason I bring all this up, is these wedges that will give you the maximum advantage around the green in your “scoring” game is quickly disappearing. Most major manufacturers are no longer going to produce the wedges with the pre-2010 grooves after the end of this year. Meaning – if you are considering getting some of these wedges – get them NOW – they are literally going to be gone in a few days….

If you have any additional questions about the wedges, groove rules, etc… please don’t hesitate to give us a call or email anytime.

If you would like to order new/additional wedges give us a call. All wedges need to be custom built to the golfer’s specifications – absolutely critical to have a proper fit.

Remember – Always Practice with a Purpose.

Also, Remember – A little improvement every time you practice adds up to a lot of improvement over time.

Are you a One-Percenter??

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I attend a group called Strategic Coach – an organization to help assist entrepreneurs on making progress, expanding their businesses and building value in our perspective industries. Strategic Coach is about businesses and people, just like you and me, making a better world buy creating valuable companies and most of all valuable products that SERVE people. For what use is a business if it does not serve? I love the organization. I inspire me and my business to do and be better.  It also provides a fresh outlook at goals and progresses each quarter. It has become my way of refreshing my outlook at the golf business.

The “Coach” as we call it, consists of various business owners from numerous types of businesses. From accountants to restaurant owners and of course, a golf instructor. The “Coach” is a way of entrepreneurs helping each other.

While no business is easy, I am amused at how many people look at their business as “tough”. This especially holds true for the golf business. But in our coaching class, one thing is amazingly obvious. There are standouts – no matter how difficult their business is. And most of the Coach participants are standouts – these are people who take the extra steps, go the extra mile and believe in themselves. So much so that they invest substantial amounts of time and money to get do whatever they can to succeed. The “Coach” is about the successful people becoming more successful. It is about people helping themselves, expanding their awareness and developing their potential and then helping others.

It is the subject of “developing potential” that I want to explore – or what I want you to explore. What we have found in the “Coach” is that all of us, no matter what business we are in, have a 1-percent club. The 1-percent club is those of us, whether accountants or golfers, that exceed beyond the “average”. You know who I am talking about. These are the guys and gals that, while everyone is sleeping in bed, they are going to the gym, or hitting an extra 50 putts before dark. But what I have found, is that these 1-percenters have a particular mindset that sets them apart. This mindset allows them to see the world differently and because of it, expand their own worlds.

Without sounding too abstract, doesn’t it make sense that we are all a product of our decisions and thoughts – because we act upon these thoughts?

Let me take this concept directly to your golf game because, usually during a golf season, I see many of the 1-percenters at my golf schools. To put it another way, I don’t see the 99-percenters because they would never come to a golf school. Why? Because the 99 percenters don’t understand the importance of instruction or taking extra steps to achieve a goal.  So to better define the 1-percenters, let me start by defining the 99 percenters with one main attribute that they all seem to have in common – they complain about not being better than they currently are.

Why do I find complaining so interesting.  Because it’s not that the 1-percenters don’t complain. The difference is that the 1-percenters complain and then do something about it.  The 99-percenters don’t. I have found that one of the main differences between the 1-percenters and 99-percenters is simply taking action. The 1 percenters are always taking action. They are doers and changers. If something doesn’t work, they try again and again and again. The 99 percenters might try but then, if it doesn’t work the first time, they quit – complain and then blame someone or something for their failure.

I see every year – during schools as I watch students improve and progress. Just being at the school is a good start toward the 1-percent club however, it is the follow-through that gets you the merit badges. What do I mean by follow through? Follow through is what happens after the school in the following months and years.

Here is something that the 1-percenters know that the 99-percenters don’t.

Progress takes time

This is the toughest thing for golfers to accept. But here’s the problem: Golf swing progress should be measured by a technique not ball-striking results.

I have heard professionals say it numerous times – that you should improve in every lesson but this depends on what you call improvement. Personally, I have never seen anyone change their golf swing in ONE lesson. While I have seen dramatic progress the goal of a lesson is to get the proper feelings of what is correct.  Then you can go train.

To Train means to repeat feelings.

My love for teaching comes from helping people feel what is correct – and watching their light bulbs go off. Then, after training the feelings, results come in a huge way. I sometimes don’t get to see the ball-striking results but seeing the changes in student’s feelings during a school is what keeps me teaching.

As in my coaching class, we all strive to be in the 1-percent club. Or at least we would like to think that we are.  The question we must ask ourselves can be honest, is whether we deserve to be in the 1-percent club. Ben Hogan, when asked to give a lesson to a friend of mine said “no”.  He said “dig it out of the dirt”. Obviously, Hogan considered himself a member of the club. Digging it out of the dirt was Hogan’s way of saying that you have to work for it and when you do, it pays off.

We are heading into 2011 looking back at 2010 in our rear-view mirrors.  Can you honestly say that you were a 1-percenter las year.  No matter whether you answer yes or no, all you have is now, today. So what will you do today that can get you into the 1-percent club tomorrow.  I don’t know about you but I’m making a list of goals.  I’m headed for the 1-percent club. Why? Because I don’t really like complaining.

You want Secrets? or the Truth?

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When I produced the Single Plane Solution in Aprils of this year (2010), I was designing the cover and wrote ‘The Secrets of the World’s Greatest Ball-striker”. The funny thing is, that I don’t believe that there are any secrets. In one sense, I like the word secret because it tells me that there is something I can discover – something I can learn. On the other hand, the word secret can also make thing sound like the one holding them is unworldly or inhuman. Moe’s secrets, in my opinion, are not really secrets at all, – they are really the truth. But isn’t the truth sometimes hard to discover? And would discovering some unknown truths – be a secret? So, did Moe know something that no-one else knew. Did Moe “know” a secret?

Personally, I doubt Moe “knew” that what he was doing had any real biomechanical advantages other than the results it produced. I believe Moe, through hard work and the way he viewed the world, was able to “discover” an anatomically perfect way to swing the golf club. So, how exactly did he do this?

I can only speculate that there were a number of factors in play. First, he was not a conventional thinker. And because of this, he was able to try things that others may not have tried. Second, I am sure he liked being alone hitting golf balls. His solitude allowed him to spend hours upon hours hitting balls alone. In this time, he was focused on hitting the target. Because of this focus, he was “tuned-in” to the target thus finding the best way to get the club to impact and to the target – simultaneously.  He was very intuitive. This means he paid attention to his feelings and what caused what in his practice. These factors allowed Moe to discover feelings of body and club movement that allowed him to perfect swing plane, impact and ball-striking. It is no wonder he called his swing “The Feeling of Greatness” and not “The Swing of Greatness”.

It is Moe’s intuitiveness toward his feelings that intrigued me. As a matter of fact, when I practiced and played with Moe, his feelings are what he used to communicate instruction. There was very little technical information. One time, I asked him about a particular movement, and instead of telling me about it, he grabbed me to physically show me. Moe knew, that he could not tell me what needed to be shown.  Now, after over 15 years of teaching, and learning from such books as “The Talent Code” by Daniel Coyle, I have a much better understanding of the importance of feelings. As a matter of fact, I am convinced that the only way we learn is through feelings. Now, think about this for just a moments.  This has very important implications.

Many instructors understanding the learning model to include auditory, visual and kinesthetic components. And while all of these components can be useful as far as communicating I do not believe that they can equally create golf swing learning, the only one that you can physically learn is by doing. Nike has it right, you have to “just do it”.

Many times, students are afraid to train incorrectly. While I always support perfect learning, it is also important to understand and I always tell students that all doing is learning. As a matter of fact, incorrect doing is still learning. It is still useful to some degree. For example, if you have a strong grip and you continue to hook the ball, you are learning that a strong grip causes a hook. The problem with most students, however, is that they don’t know that they have a strong grip. Therefore, they try to stop hooking it without changing their grip position. This is where most problems occur.

What I have found is that a great learning environment is a combination of visual and kinesthetic where you can match perception and reality – ultimately matching feelings with the visual consequences. This is a true shortcut to the learning process. Which will be my discussion for the next webinar and blog. Until then, stay warm and practice so you feel it.

LEARN

THE

SWING

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