Stack & Tilt: When The Wheels Fall off

We've all, I'm sure, had a round where the wheels just seem to fall off. I had that kind of round this Saturday. Admittedly, it was windy, cold and my body just did not seem to be cooperating. On the back nine, out of desperation, I just went back to basics and concentrated on keeping my weight on my left side. It was my only swing thought and it helped pull the round back together.

Today, I decided to just carry that one swing thought to the course no matter what happened. Here was the outcome: (1) no problems with the wind, (2) no fat shots, (3) length off the tee comparable if not better and more accurate than usual, and (4) best score of the season. Maybe Zach Johnson is on to something!

I did have one problem with my irons. Using this swing, the face kept closing (divots point to the right of the pin and the ball flying left of the pin--on a few of the divots I could see that the face was closing down at impact).

I didn't really get the problem under control on the course but I was reminded of comments in the Smash It 3/4 Swing (push "...the palm of the right hand toward the target through impact to prevent the clubface from snapping shut") and Step 5 of the Six Steps to S&T (arms straight, second frame on the right above). Peter Kostis feels that Zach Johnson compensates for the shut clubface with a very strong body rotation.

The shut clubface problem will need more practice and on-course time for me. I will try all these various solutions in addition to opening the clubface a little more on the backswing. But, as is mentioned in the S&T video, if you do nothing else prescribed in the S&T swing, keeping your weight on your left side is the most important key to solid ball contact. When commenting about his solid ball contact in windy conditions at the British Open, Tom Watson said "It's the weight." A cryptic comment, but I think he meant keeping his weight on his left side. I'd love to ask him that question (actually, Tom seems to think control on windy days is a result of grip pressure--worth a try).