I have known John Mason, aka thegolfmason.com, for many years now and have enjoyed his impressive ability to develop amazing young players and help them to grow into remarkable young men and women. John has coached his PGA Jr League teams to two National Championships and received numerous awards for developing young players by the Professional Golfers Association of America. Recently I sat down with him to pick his brain about the difference between developing young golfers versus older dogs like myself. I found this to be very candid and enlightening. I hope you do as well.

Joe – “John, the first thing I would like to know is the difference between the information you give to your younger golfers as opposed to the older ones like myself, apart from the obvious physical aging issues that we deal with?”

John – “Well Joe, it has been my experience that most older golfers are more set in their ways and it’s my job to figure out how to improve their golf games with what they have. As you know, this is not always easy, so most of the information I give to them is based on increasing their cause-and-effect awareness so they can self-correct. Younger students, on the other hand, are much more eager to learn the “correct” way, even though we all know that there are many ways to swing a golf club (just look at the different swings on tour), so I give them my interpretation of the “correct” way. Their information is much more “basic” oriented. I have always believed the first lesson anyone receives is the most important one, because everything that comes after that is built on this first block in the foundation of their golf game”.

Joe – “Very interesting. I noticed that you mentioned “basic” for the younger ones, what do you mean by that and what are your “basics?”

John – “My basics for the full swing have always been a neutral grip, an athletic set-up with good posture and aligning the shoulders parallel left of the intended start line. I came up with these by observing the better players I played with, watching the touring professionals at various events and experiencing my own trial and error experiments. My basics for the short game are the same as the full swing plus learning all the shots required to get the ball in the hole in as few strokes as possible. Since most older golfers are not interested in making drastic changes or learning new tricks, I accept that and do my best to help them lower their scores with what they have.” I also emphasize the need to practice putting, chipping and pitching at every practice session, since the average 15 to 20 handicapper hits only about 5 greens per round in regulation.

Joe – “Wonderful answer, John, simple and to the point. Lastly, why do you feel you have had so much success as a coach?”

John – “Well, I believe playing the sport you coach is a pre-requisite. Not necessarily at a champions level, but enough to be familiar with the intricacies of playing tournament golf. I have been doing that for a very long time and have experienced winning and losing, which has given me insights into the mind of a tournament player. I also believe that coaching requires motivational skills, which I learned by reading books such as “The Strategy Concepts of Bill Belichick” and “Be Quick – But Don’t Hurry” with Coach John Wooden. Working with young people who are interested in learning is so much fun for me and I remind them often of Coach Wooden’s famous words “Success is peace of mind that is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best”.

For more information on John Mason, PGA Director of Instruction at Encinitas Ranch Golf Course, go to www.thegolfmason.com

The post An Interview with a Successful Golf Coach appeared first on The Golf Mason.

I am asked all the time what I feel are the most important things to work on in the golf swing and my reply has always been rhythm, tempo and timing. It is interesting how these three important principles are not talked about much these days, with all the technological and scientific explanations, but in my day they were high on all instructor lists.

Similar to the importance that sleep, diet and exercise have on good health, these three essential components are basically the glue of any golf swing. To me; tempo is the time from takeaway to impact, rhythm is the matching of arms to body in sequence and timing is squaring the club face at impact, which just happens to be a by-product of great rhythm and tempo.

I use various methods to help students find what works for them, a metronome and music being examples. If you need help finding your rhythm call me anytime at 760-473-8483.

For those of you who have not watched Fred Couples swing, I highly recommend going on YouTube and watching a clip (see below) – probably the best visual I can remember since watching a Sam Snead video.

The post Weekly Golf Tip – August 9, 2020 appeared first on The Golf Mason.

This weeks tip is what I call the “Magic Move”, a term I borrowed from Harvey Penick. Notice how all three players in the attached photo sequences return their right elbows back to their right side at the start of their downswing, a move that ensures the arms and club will not be thrown out and over the downswing plane.

The first sequence is Moe Normon, a renowned ball striker from Canada, who is much older than the other two and whose body much less agile. Second photos are of Nick Faldo, 6’4” and not an extremely long hitter. Last is Tiger Woods at a young age, very fast hips and extremely long hitter in his day.

So regardless of your body type or club speed, practicing this move will help improve your accuracy and consistency.

The post Weekly Golf Tip – July 26, 2020 appeared first on The Golf Mason.

Finding a Golf Instructor Who Fits

Golf is a wonderful game for many reasons, so the first thing you should do is find an instructor who meets your priorities. If your wish is to have fun, find an instructor who is funny and outgoing. If location and time are important to you, choose one close to your home or office so you can practice regularly. If your goal is to someday be a scratch golfer, then find a “scratch instructor”.

This may sound obvious, but if you are not seeing the results you had in mind, maybe you and are headed in the wrong direction. Go to the range and hit 10 balls. If you are not able to hit any of the balls well you may need to change what you are doing. If you hit 4 out of the 10 well you just need more repetition. If you hit 8 out of 10 well you need to start playing in tournaments. Of course, defining “well” will need to be set first because beauty is always in the eye of the beholder.

I think of myself as a scratch instructor because I played the game at the highest level and feel that I know what it takes to play there. One of my strengths is the ability to identify vigor in a student’s game and design drills specifically for individual weaknesses. If you are looking for direction, stop by Encinitas Ranch any time and we can chat or email me at thegolfmason@roadrunner.com.

The post Weekly Golf Tip – July 19, 2020 appeared first on The Golf Mason.

Diminishing Returns

Water is very good for you, but drink too much and you will drown. Information is the same; the right amount at the right time and you will be very productive, too much and confusion will soon set in. If you are confused about your golf game maybe you need to re-set your mind. The first step is clearing the mind – getting rid of everything and starting over. Not easy to do but possible. Contact me anytime to get started.

The post Weekly Golf Tip – July 5, 2020 appeared first on The Golf Mason.

Chip It Closer

The post Weekly Golf Tip – June 28, 2020 appeared first on The Golf Mason.

In my mind, one of the beauties of the game of golf is the tradition of sportsmanship and integrity. Sportsmanship is the fair and generous behavior or treatment of others and integrity is the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles, both wonderful traits I feel are being lost in today’s society.

Etiquette in golf is being courteous to your fellow players, giving them space to do their work and congratulating them on a job well done. It sounds like great advice for life as well, don’t you think?

Next time you visit your local golf course for a round of golf please remember to conduct yourself in a gentlemanly or ladylike manner, the game of golf and the people you are with will appreciate it. This does not mean we can not have fun, on the contrary, a good laugh at a futile attempt to hit a golf ball in the air is part of the game.

The post Weekly Golf Tip – June 21, 2020 appeared first on The Golf Mason.

Which is the more important club in your bag – the wedge or the driver? I hear this debate all the time and to me, this is a trick question. On the one hand, the driver is the club that gets you into position to use the wedge. On the other hand, the wedge is the club that gets you close to the hole so you have a good chance at birdie.

One thing I don’t hear mentioned is the length of each swing. I have used Tiger Woods as my model, notice how long the top of his swing is with the driver and how controlled it is with the wedge. This is something you may wish to work on because the driver hits the ball farther whereas the wedge is more of a distance control club.

The post Weekly Golf Tip – June 14, 2020 appeared first on The Golf Mason.

OK, we are now back playing golf, most courses and practice facilities are open and I am back teaching at Encinitas Ranch. However, we are all not back to our old normal yet, maybe there will be a new normal. Whatever happens, I am sure golf will survive and the tips will keep flowing.

I believe this pandemic may have given some of us an opportunity to start fresh, clear the noise that was in our head before the corona. Do some research, find a golf instructor who keeps it simple and makes sense to you.

This is your chance to improve your basics: grip, set up, aim, putting, chipping, bunker shots, driving – 2020 could be the year to start over, or as the famous teaching pro Harvey Penick from Austin, Texas once said “Your next shot is a new experience. It might be the best shot you ever hit in your life”. So let’s get out there and find out, you never know until you try.

The post Weekly Golf Tip – June 7, 2020 appeared first on The Golf Mason.

In golf, we are constantly confronted with decisions: should I chip or putt, should I lay up or go for it, should I order the burger at the turn or just get a piece of fruit? One decision that you should have made a long time ago is whether to release the club face at impact or hold onto it. Not sure? Ok, let me explain.

There is much more to the term “release” than many think, but for simplicity I am going to focus on the wrists. For the release, the wrists will “hinge” on the takeaway and then “unhinge” at impact. For the “hold on”, the wrists will “hinge” on the takeaway and then hold onto, or not unhinge, the wrists at impact. The “release” opens and closes the club face during the swing whereas the “hold on” keeps the club face square or closed the entire time. Holding on through impact takes much more hand and arm strength, so I would discourage this style unless your club head speed is over 110 mph.

Decide which one of these you prefer and stick with it, changing back and forth will be extremely detrimental to your timing and consistency. The examples are Dustin Johnson “holding on” and Rory McIlroy “releasing”, notice the impact zone.

The post Weekly Golf Tip – May 24, 2020 appeared first on The Golf Mason.