Greetings Golfers,

Brandt Snedeker shot 59 yesterday in the first round of the Wyndham Championship. It was the 10th time someone has shot in the 50s on the PGA Tour. And Snedeker is the 9th man to do it. Yes … that means someone has done it twice – Jim Furyk. In fact, Furyk is the only one to have shot 58.

Think about it … a 59 … and a 58!

The other day I was listening to Hank Haney talking about why Tiger was so wild with the driver last week at the PGA Championship. Haney said that Tiger has always been wild with the driver and that it’s a mental thing. Hmmm. Then Haney said that Tiger doesn’t want to play like Jim Furyk … Tiger wants to hit it LONG.

Tiger is not one of the 9 guys to have shot 59 or lower.

Obviously Tiger has a better record than Furyk. But what if Tiger drove it as straight as Furyk? Is Tiger’s obsession with length the reason he hits the driver wild? What about last week’s PGA champion Brooks Koepka? He hits it long and STRAIGHT. Why can’t Tiger do that? And why didn’t he do that?

Jim Furyk is famous for his loopy swing. He takes it almost straight back … and then reroutes on the downswing. It might look funny … but it’s very effective. Furyk definitely gets the club into “the slot” on the downswing. What I mean is that Furyk never comes “over the top” … he always hits from the inside.

I think that Tiger has always come a shade “over the top”. And it shows up with the driver. You can come “over the the top” with an iron or fairway wood because you’re hitting down and trapping the ball – it can stay straight. But sweeping a flat-faced driver off a tee needs to come from the inside. Haney also talked about how Tiger hates to hit it left with a driver … yeah, because he pulls it left – not draws it left … at least not from the right. Think about it – he blocks it right or pulls it left … that’s “over the top”.

Hogan hit a power fade … but he did it coming from the inside. Koepka and Dustin Johnson hit power fades with a closed face at the top of their backswings. Then they just hold on through impact … and the face slightly opens through impact and they get that power fade. You have to be VERY strong and flexible to do that. Can Tiger do that move? I wouldn’t bet on it. I’d rather see him opt for a hair less length and hit more of an inside-out draw.

Tiger’s not a youngster anymore. His comeback is amazing. But he needs to hit more fairways. And he needs a swing that is easier on his body.

By the way, Snedeker played a right-to-left draw yesterday for his 59.

Cheers,

Tom Abts

GM and Head Golf Professional

tabts@deerrungolf.com