Like a pro armed with a free read, Arjun did what he was supposed to do, stepped up to his putt and holed his Titleist for the win. According to David Pelz, touring pros are 50% from 6 feet, but when they have the read, the percentage skyrockets. To read more David Pelz stats, consider buying Dave Pelz's Putting Bible. It is full of ah-hah tidbits.

Congratulations Arjun Atwal, so while your fellow competitor rubbed the green your way, you put yourself in the best position to win all week long, controlling what you could.

What makes this situation unique is that the crowd was standing in the bunker and trampled it down beyond all recognition. Thus just like everyone else, Dustin assumed it was just a junky piece of turf.

The Committee has the authority to invoke rule 1-4 and in equity rule that under the circumstances this particular penalty would not apply. However, my guess is that since it is the PGA championship and run by the PGA, everyone was too busy patting themselves on the back over a great tournament and when the time came for a tough decision they were ill-prepared to make a good one. As expected, the stodgy always err on the conservative side which was unfortunate for Johnson.

When the rules don't align with common sense, there is a problem. In this case, the rules disappointed golf and cost Dustin Johnson dearly as well as robbing golf fans of what was lining up to be one of the greatest golf tournaments in recent history.

What a year in golf!!! The guard is changing and it is exciting to see the young guns to the front. Therefore, while I may be pronouncing the transition to soon, I feel comfortable saying the next generations golfers have arrived.

Westwood's calf is hurt, Phils body is attacking his tendons, Els hasn't had the same fire in years, Toms is good but hasn't been near the top, Goosen seems to lurk but not lead, and golf seems to be the last thing on Tiger's mind as it probably should be.

So this bunch has too much baggage and I'm taken the young bucks who have some swagger. Sign me up for some Fowler, Overton, Mahan, McIlroy and... well I'll take one vet named Harrington. Only cause I have to believe the old guard will have one representative on the board. Attack young guns and put those vets on their heels.

When your grips on your clubs are too slick, the forearm muscles and hands tighten to avoid losing control of the golf club. This tightening, reduces flow and clubhead speed as well as your natural athletic ability. If you don't tighten your grip, then the golf club slips and it usually equals a bad shot. Even worse, it can slip out of your hand and hit your buddies or land in a pond. Change em before they affect your game.

How much does it cost to get golf clubs re-gripped?

Figure $8-$12 per club. The typical set has 14 clubs, so 112-168. I have 16 clubs and rotate the 60 degree wedge and 5 wood in and out of play depending on the course I am playing. Bottom Line, think twice before buying used clubs online or from a buddy when the first thing you have to do is buy $125 worth of grips to get them playable. You are better off emailing us and getting a brand new starter set, bag and lifetime warranty, all for under $500.

When should I change your golf grips?

It depends on how much golf you play...

1) Once a year - Change the grips only when they get really slick and lose all their tack. Consider washing the grips with soapy water and a brush to remove the sunscreen and dirt. That should help liven up the tack. Once that doesn't work anymore, swap those babies out. If you play once a year, there is no need to spend $100-150 on grips if you are spending $60 on golf annually. Unless you dislike your money, that dog won't hunt.

2) Golf Often - Change your grips coming into every golf season. April or May for Northern Folk. Then if you don't play a ton, then should be good til the end of the season. Periodically check and change the grips on the clubs you use the most. The Driver, Wedge and Putter typically wear down the fastest. Also if you always practice with your 7 iron, then change that grip too.

3) Diehard Golfer -

I recommend regripping your golf clubs at the beginning of every season. Then change them every 3 months. Some clubs like the 4 iron may not need to be swapped out every time, but your core golf clubs should get some fresh rubber on them. While your at it, why don't you take the time and get your grips fit by a PGA professional. If you are going to spend this much time at the course, you might as well have the right grip on your golf club.

Hope this helps!!! By the way, my favorite grip is still the Golf Pride Tour Wrap Round with an extra wrap of tape.

Try writing left handed...

Try putting your watch on your other wrist...

These are habits and they are a beautiful thing when they are what you want. When they are not what you want, then they can be quite vexing. It takes 20-21 days to break a bad habit and involving 1500 repetitions. How many bad habits do you have? Multiply that times 1500 reps or 20-21 days and that is how long it will take to fix your golf swing. Most golf students take one lesson and then never practice. Then the next lesson they think they should magically be better... negative! Not going to happen! Reps, good coaching , and time will lead to breakthroughs. The process for changing bad habits is simple.

1) Recognize a change is needed

2) Take action-focus and make the change

3) Realize the change is going to take time.

90% of the mechanical skills in golf are acquired over a habitual period of time.

Make sure the change is meaningful, don't change your swing just cause Jim Hardy wrote some fancy new book. Ask yourself, why am I changing my swing? What will this bring to my game? Just cause the swing works for some flatbelly in west Texas doesn't mean you can even sniff performing the action.

A good teaching pro will get you on track faster/better all the while ensuring the habits you develop are positive to your scorecard experience. Maximize your practice time, get a PGA pro. Don't have one? Email me at contactus@glenellyngolf.com and I will personally find you one.

Other golfers to have shot 59 on the PGA Tour include...

59 Paul Goydos 2010, TPC Deere Run in Silvis, IL.

59 David Duval 1999, PGA West, La Quinta, Calif

59 Al Geiberger 1977, Colonial Country Club, Memphis, Tenn

59 Chip Beck 1991, Sunrise Golf Club, Las Vegas

Ryo Ishikawa shot a 58 on the Japan Tour in 2010

By the way, Annika Sorenstam's vision of a perfect round is a 54. A birdie a hole! Step back over Rotella, who said "Golf is Not a Game of Perfect"?

How do you say Graeme, it's simple... US Open Champ. At the race track, they call this type of horse a stalker. Graeme McDowell wins the 2010 US Open Championship finishing at Even par with a final round 74. While everyone else was busy doing the moonwalk, McDowell managed to limit the bleeding to a level that allowed for a victory. Tiger, Phil, and Ernie were all within striking distance, but none could get any momentum.

The low round on Sunday was 68. Kuchar, Van Pelt, and Curtis shot these numbers from far enough back where one would think they were relaxed enough to enter "the zone". None really had much too lose and a lot to gain. Kuchar's 68 landed him a tie for 6th and an nice top 10 finish in a major. Well Done Matt!

The next major is THE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP at St. Andrews Golf Links from July 15 -July 18.

Why not? Tiger Woods is the most talented golfer on this planet and he is certainly in a fog. As my old pro Gene used to say, "It doesn't take long to warm up talent." So just because Tiger's head is messier than the Gulf of Mexico, it doesn't mean that he can't win the US Open. Now the odds of a victory are certainly lowered. However, the beauty with Tiger is that he can win tournaments with his B and C+ games. Lately we have seen his D game and let me tell you; I would take his D game 8 days a week and love it! So are the odds better that Tiger stays playing his D game or that he wins the US Open? I think it is a 50 / 50 and my money is on the Tiger to roar.

As for Fowler, what an exciting and refreshing young player! However, as my pops used to say, if you are going to dress like that, you had better have some serious game like the late great Payne Stewart. Fowler had 3 days of great golf, then the 73 and orange crushed him. However Puma must be pumped as their youthful golf apparel finally got some attention nationally. Don't feel too badly for Fowler as he will collect $648,000 for his 2nd place performance.

It's raining on your only day to play golf. The nerve of Mother Nature! Who does she think she is? Fear not my diehard golfers; the only reason you ever have to stop playing golf is because of lightning. If you hear Thunder or Lightning, head for safety ASAP and live to play another day.

How do you play your best golf in the rain? Simply put, preparation is the key.

1. Adjust your expectations. Rain golf is more challenging, but that is why we play the game, for a good challenge. With the greens softening up, it is actually easier to hold greens with your approach shots!
2. Buy an umbrella! When the first drop hits you, its God's fault, the second drop is your fault.
3. Wear your cap. It will shield your face from drops and allow you to see what is ahead of you.
4. Have a rain jacket handy. I personally don't own rain pants, because if it is raining that hard, then I am probably not still playing. Plus they are bulky in the bag. However, rain pants are essential for cool and wet golf, so pack them for your golf trips to Ireland.
5. Get a dry towel and keep it that way as long as possible. Hang your dry towel off of the inside spokes of your umbrella.
6. Keep spare gloves in the bag in a zip lock bag.
7. Too lazy to keep your towel dry and use an umbrella then buy a pair of Footjoy Rain Gloves and keep them in your bag. The wetter the better for these gloves and the club will never slip. They are awesome!!!
8. Avoid Winn grips in rain and sweaty conditions... they are awesome for good weather, but lack tack when you need it most. I advise the New Decade by Golf Pride.
9. When the turf is really soggy, grip down on your club a half inch. It is okay to hit it thin, but a fat shot oh so painful to the scorecard. Thin wins in this scenario.
10. It's all about carry. When the ground is wet, roll disappears. Thus, plan your game according to your carry distances. You don't know your carry distances? Head to the range and figure it out fast.
11. Play golf courses like the Village Links of Glen Ellyn that offer exceptional rain check policies, ensuring your green fees will not be wasted.

If you are even considering golfing in the rain, then I am already a fan of yours. Go ahead and tee it! Odds are the course will be wide open and you can cruise around the golf course in record time.

Welcome golfers. This blog is intended to serve as a forum to educate and entertain you as you journey through your golf career. Throughout the course of the year, we will have several guest bloggers. The creative whit of guest blogger Metz Jeffries will surely entertain as I will be focusing on instructional topics. We not only hope you enjoy the articles that follow, we hope they will improve your golf game!

Donald McKenzie, PGA

The grip is golf is so important because it affects everything else down the line, even the muscles that are firing. Furthermore, if you have a consistent and fundamentally sound grip, then you are more apt to refine your swing with trial and error. If your grip is unsound or inconsistent, you'll have the variety pack of feedback that would take a NASA scientist to figure out.

So have you ever had a lesson on the grip? If not, get one today! It'll take a half hour with a pro and then 2-3 weeks of 5 minutes of practice per day until it becomes ingrained.

Call or Email today to schedule your grip lesson.

contactus@glenellyngolf.com

The European Team proved to be too much for the Americans to handle. Surely the home turf advantage was huge and the weather served as the perfect advantage to the home team.

While the American team plays courses typically ideal and consistent course conditions, this Ryder Cup featured a course setup more favorable to the Euros with slower green speeds and typical British conditions, rainy.

Credit the home team for holding serve. Colin Montgomery did a fine job coordinating his matches and won the trophy. The American Team tried to rally on Monday, but it was too little too late. In the end a 1/2 point made all the difference in the world and Graeme McDowell played great in sealing the fate of the US team.

The next stop: 2012 Ryder Cup will be located at Medinah Country Club, Medinah, IL

#10 - Putt, Putt and Putt. Goto a local carpet store, purchase a piece of 10x15 Augusta National Carpet (I love the Speed). Throw it in your basement and putt back and forth while watching TV instead of sitting on the couch like a potato. You'll be surprised how confident your stroke will be come spring time!!!

For lesson information, goto the Lesson Request page.

#9 Get Fit!

Hey Chi Chi, here's a no brainer, lay off the twinkies and triple decker hamburgers with a side of chili fries. Believe it or not spring is only 5 months away! Find a gym, buy a membership and then use it. Keep it simple. Focus mostly on cardio and sprinkle in some weights to build elasticity, strength and endurance. Light weights not heavy ones. You're not Arnold Schwarzenegger so stop trying to lift like him. I like working out Monday Wednesday and Friday. Figure out a plan that works for you and do it, in the spring your scorecard will thank you.

Get your golf clubs fit!

My guess is your golf bag is a collection of 80's, 90's and 00's memorabilia. While your devotion to the old school is admirable, I would rather have a bag that works together and covers all gap while using latest knowledge in technology. Furthermore, if you have clubs with all different weights and flexes, guess what, your swing has to change to accommodate that variance. Why would you want to add and extra complication to this game of golf. What is swing-weight? Why is total weight so important? How many wraps of tape should be on my clubs after a re-grip? What is the best length for you? How often should you have your lofts/lies checked? The answers can be found by visiting your local PGA professional or contacting us. Start now, get your bag fit, and start 2011 with a bang!!

Evaluate what happened in 2010. Let's be realistic here, the less honest you are about your game, the longer you'll be stuck in the labyrinth of bad golf.

1. Where were you strong?
2. Where were you weak?
3. When were you confident?
4. When were you shaking in your boots?
5. What is your favorite club? Why?
6. How far did you really hit your clubs? Are there any gaps we can close?
7. Did you play better in AM or PM?
8. Did you play better on front nine or back nine?
9. What distance do you play and at what length does your game get stressed?
10. What was your scoring average in each month? Any reasons?
11. How often did you 3 putt? What caused it short putting or lag putting?

Go through these questions and they will lead to more questions. Hopefully as you interrogate your inner golfer you will find some answers. When you find an opportunity for improvement, write it down and make it a goal. Now attack!

Visualize. Sit down for 10 minutes, close your eyes, and visualize making 10 foot putts. If your wife hassles you, tell her it is your swing doctor's orders! This sounds silly but in the summer when you start draining putts from all over the world, you will thank me.

Rest, Rest, and Rest.

Listen up and get better. It's winter put down the sticks, take your significant other to dinner, walk the dog, change the oil in the car. Basically, rest your body and more importantly your mind. I recommend 1 month golf-free. Some time off, totally off, will allow your mind to come back with a more intesified focus to break thru the next scoring barrier. Time off will also prevent and chronic overuse injuries. So rest, drink scotch, do whatever floats your boat, just step away from the game a bit to come back with a bigger fire.

Course Management 101

Are you playing golf or are you hitting a white ball and chasing it and hitting it again? Good scores are no accident and require some level of planning and sound decision making. I am sure you are capable of making good decisions should you know what the choices are. Pick up a good book, I like Butch Harmon's stuff and read it. You don't have to read 20 books. Go to the bookstore and scan a few. Pick one you like and roll with it. Ride that horse til it bucks ya and then try another course management style that works.

Don't have time to read. Consider a playing lesson. Please though put on your learning cap, and listen. A playing lesson is not meant to be a pro watching you golf or you watching the pro golf, it should be the pro analyzing your options, decisions, and actual on course performance to tailor a strategy to best suit your scorecard.

This game of golf is a game against yourself and your own potential. To reach your potential, you have got to have a plan!

Alright Chi-Chi, don't have a routine? Get one this winter. Watch some tape of your favorite player and guess what you are going to find? They have a routine. However odd it may be or normal, they repeat the same pre-shot routine before every golf shot. Full swing routine's may vary a tad from a putting routine or bunker routine. Whatever it is make it short and sweet and repeat. If it is too long, not only will you freeze yourself, none of your golfing buddies will ever want to play with you, because you are too slow.

Come up with a draft this winter, try to ingrain it and refine it as necessary until you are happy. Once you have it repeat it over and over and over and over again. 42,000 repetitions and you should be good to go!!!

A solid routine combats pressure situations and allows for better scoring as it intensifies your focus on the task at hand while allowing your mind to temporarily check out and the body take over. Having a routine is a significant factor in the scoring game.

Create your Practice Schedule.

Build a Tournament Schedule and arrange your practice to peak for those times.

Whether you play golf like Tiger Woods or like Johnny Awful, tournament golf will give you a true measure of your game and ability. How do you know if you have gotten better if you never truly measure your skill as defined by performance in tournaments? And I am not talking about handicap tournaments. I am talking about you versus old man par. No one cares what your net is. What did you shoot?

Take a look at the year 2011, sign up for a tourney a month and maybe more as you near the late summer club championship season or high school golf tryout season. Start as soon as your weather allows. In Chicago, April is probably the time to start.

Got your tourney schedule set? Good, now plan your rests and practice sessions accordingly. A good practice schedule will be balanced, to address all aspects of the game. It should be reasonable to follow. Don't get so ambitious that you can't realistically follow the plan. Sometimes less is more. Make sure to allot time for the wildcard of the week. Each week you will probably have a different trouble area, so use your brain and address it before it demolishes your psyche.

If you need help setting a practice schedule, call a PGA Professional, discuss your tournament schedule, goals, and draft up a plan. What is holding you back?

#1 - Commit Yourself to Better Golf

Half-hearted efforts to game improvement will not be rewarded. Your current game is your comfort zone. To improve beyond your comfort zone, we need intensified effort. Once you have a break-thru, you'll have developed a new comfort zone. Maintaining your game is easy. Regressing is easy. Raising your golf game a notch takes a plan and some commitment. Some people get better by accident, but more get better when they have committed to their game plan.

Commit to a tournament schedule.

Commit to a practice schedule.

Commit to better golf.

Finally Commit to each individual shot you take. Whether you succeed or fail, you have yourself to thank.

In short, get a fresh grip, get more distance and control!  Check out the new Golf Pride VDR grips, they are pretty sweet. 

It doesn't matter where you get your handicap card, just that you have one.  You will need it to play in any serious tournament, and you'll need a minimum of 5 rounds to get an index 

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Personally, I think the heat is an advantage.  First, it is real easy to get limber.  Second, the golf ball flies further.  Finally, if you are in good condition, your opponents/ fellow competitors’ scores should falter if they have been neglecting their conditioning.  ***Playing golf in extreme heat is not for everyone, and you should certainly check with your doctor if you have any concerns/health conditions.  This is general advice for those who have already deemed the weather safe for themselves. 

Tip 1 - Hydrate early and often.  Drink water, water and more water.

Tip 2 - Throw some ice under your cap, whether in a Ziploc bag or just in there.  Either way it will feel great. 

Tip 3 - When possible, run your wrists under cold water and splash cold water on your neck. 

Tip 4 - Pick a light colored out fit with breathable technology.  White shirts are just cooler.  Think White Hat, White Shirt, Khaki pants (shorts if you can get away with them). 

Tip 5 - Have your caddy have a dry towel and a wet one.  If you are only carrying one towel... go 1/4 wet, 3/4 dry.  It doesn't make sense right?  The point is, with your sweaty paws, you'll want to dry your hands frequently. 

Tip 6 - Bring extra gloves in your bag... I like to keep a zip lock bag full of extra gloves, so as soon as I start to sweat thru one, I switch. 

Tip 7 - Lose the slick Winn grips and be sure to have a grip with some cord in it.  I prefer Golf Pride's New Decade line.  These are helpful for rain and sweat.  A little friction never hurt anyone, and will toughen up your hands.

Tip 8 - Stand in the shade as much as possible.  Sounds simple, but you'd be surprised how many times people just stand in the sun for no good reason.  

Tip 9 - Adjust your expectations.  Your opponents will most likely trip up down the stretch as the heat wears them down.... so be persistent and finish the round with long term expectations. 

Tip 10 - Rehydrate once in the clubhouse... probably a good idea to skip the adult beverages for a while and throw back a couple H2Os.   

Be safe and have fun in the heat!  Please wear white and make some birdies.

Either way, this is Tiger's first tournament back and I am sure with his short game's potential, 2012 should be the year of the Tiger.  For his sake and the fans sake, I certainly hope that is the case because I do know one thing, golf is just more fun to watch when the Tiger's, Jack's, & Norman's of the world are in the mix.  Practice up Tiger, golf needs the player in you. 

In the playoff, my favorite moment was Bradley sticking it tight on 16 immediately after watching Dufner almost hole it out.  It was like poker... "I'll see your 6 footer and raise you a 3 footer".  This birdie-par turnabout turned out to be the difference maker and amrgin of victory.  Major credit goes to Dufner for being 1 of 4 guys to birdie 18 all day and he did it in the playoff when he absolutley needed it.  Unfortuate for him, it was too late as Bradley was on autopilot and playing some serious good golf.  2 putts = 1 par and a PGA championship. 

Making this victory extra sweet is the fact that Keegan's dad is a PGA member.  I wonder who is happier, father or son?

The Major Championship season is finished, your 2011 Major Champions are...

• 2011 Masters Champion- Charl Schwartzel $1,440,000  
• 2011 US Open Champion- Rory McIlroy $1,440,000
• 2011 Open Championship- Darren Clarke $1,452,078 
• 2011 PGA Champion- Keegan Bradley $1,445,000

Every golfer has a comfort zone (i.e. shooting 85-90).  Well guess what, it takes a serious intensified effort to lower your golf scores to the 80-84 zone.  Once you are in your new scoring zone, it is easier to maintain your new scoring level.  Here is the Takeaway: this winter don’t let your golf game regress!  Go to the golf dome and stay sharp.  If you choose to let your game rust up, next summer all of your effort will be used to climb back up to the 80-84 range instead to going for the 76-79 zone.  It is common sense.  However, 99% of golfers will shelf the clubs for the winter and then ponder why they never get any better.  This winter make the change.  Maintain your golf game.  When spring gets here, grab a bucket of range balls and take your game to the next level!!!  If you’re stuck, call me or your PGA Pro and let’s get a game plan.

Move over rover, that winning cat is back.  Tiger Woods actually won again and in Tiger-esque fashion.  Tiger didn’t melt the competition into submission but made 2 clutch putts down the stretch to pull ahead of red hot Zack Johnson.  And how do you think the crowd reacted to Tiger’s win?  Were they politely clapping?  No they went crazy!  The crowd was loud.

Okay, the crystal ball is out!!  My Top 5 Pre-Season Picks for the 2012 Golf calendar are as follows…  

1)      Tiger Woods – Experience, a nasty short game, and a desire to dominate again will have him remain a fixture at the top of the leaderboard as long as he stays healthy.

2)      Luke Donald – Let’s face it, Luke’s golf game is consistent and I don’t think he gets enough credit for his putting.  He may not win a ton, but he is going to be in the mix a lot.  The win against Webb Simpson, when he needed it, says a lot about Luke.   

3)      Dustin Johnson – He is long and can get super-hot.  Now that he has had some time to reflect, I think he’ll get a Major this year. 

4)      Phil Mickelson- Who’s better than Lefty in the spring?  I’ll take Lefty from January thru June, July he’s yours, then I’ll pick him back up again in August-September.  Hey everyone deserves a month off and he’s a family man. 

5)      Rory McIlroy- Sometimes I think he is so good that even if he plays bad, he’ll accidentally win a few.  It doesn’t take long to warm up talent and Rory has lots as well as youth on his side.  The youth-factor helps on the recovery.  I think he’ll get 3 wins worldwide minimum. 

6)      *1^st Alternate - Keegan Bradley- Normally I don’t like picking first time major winners in their next season.  Usually they are so worn out from their newfound celebrity that they spend 12 months underachieving.  My gut tells me Bradley will be different. 

Did I miss any?  Let me know what you think!