
I'm a strong believer that when you have confidence in your driver, it makes the rest of the game easier. The same can be said for the short game. I feel over the last 12 months, I've become a much improved short game player and even better all around driver of the golf ball. If you've ever talked to me about golf, I feel that the short game is most important aspect and should be practiced longer and I live by this rule. When I get time to practice, I generally spend one hour on my long game, and 2 hours on my short game. I only hit 14 drives in my practice. My short game practice is very random, hitting different clubs, in different lies, to different targets. I'm never static in my short game practice. If I miss 10 greens in a round, I will never get the same lie twice. Something will be different, and we need to know how to adapt. So the question is.... HOW DID MY DRIVER BECOME MY BIGGEST WEAPON????
Answer: Because my short game is sooo damn good. I currently use the Titleist 910D2 9.5 with a stock Diamana Kai'li stiff shaft with adjustments set on C4. I am so confident these days with my ability to get the ball up and down, my hands don't grip the driver as tight. I also, have counter weights in all my clubs, and find with my driver it's been a great secret to more fairways. The first event I played with my new driver was the PGA of Ontario Championship last year at Barrie Country Club. I hit 28/32 fairways and 25 of the 28 were drivers. I finished 2nd only two shots behind and give most of the credit to my accuracy off the tee.
In the end, my driver has become my greatest weapon due to confidence. I haven't changed anything in my swing, I just worked harder at getting the ball into the hole. This created a feeling of confidence that filtered into my long game. When you have confidence with both your short game and long game, you will have very little pressure on your approach game. I never worry if I miss a fairway or green in regulation. I don't dwell on the "why it happened", I actually get excited about the challenge I will face. I love the reaction of people when I hit fairway after fairway or get my ball up and down from the nastiest, slickest, trickiest spot possible.
Jack Nicklaus always said "If I striped my drive down the pipe, It set up the rest of the game." Driving the ball consistent is very important. I'm so excited to have a new weapon in the bag and will be interesting to see where it leads me.