Take Your Game To The Next Level

DEVELOP A PLAN

Tony Finau is one of, if not the longest, drivers on the PGA Tour. But the success and consistency that he has had over the past year as a PGA Tour rookie (six top-25 and two top-10 finishes in his first nine events) has much more to do with him being a complete player than just his length and power. To prepare for the upcoming season, Tony and I discussed in great detail first the strengths of his game and then the areas that we felt he needed to focus some extra attention on. It's very important to know both areas. Tony spends time maintaining his strengths, but also spends a good amount of time on the areas that he wants to improve.

"If only I could putt and chip," but then you find them always on the driving range. Don't be that golfer. Maintain your strengths and give some attention to your weaknesses. Your scores will drop and that will be fun!

WEDGE PLAY

Tony hits some of the highest and softest- landing mid- to long irons on the PGA Tour, which is a huge advantage to access difficult pin locations. But learning to flight his wedges lower has helped to improve his distance control from 135 yards and in. Most golfers attempt to hit a lower wedge shot by putting the ball back several inches behind the middle of their stance, which, in turn, delofts the club significantly. By doing this, though, it makes the clubface much more difficult to aim correctly, causes the angle of attack to be far too steep and encourages very deep divots. Try these simple adjustments to hit a low wedge shot like Tony does.

1. ðKeep your same ball position. Tony puts the ball directly under his sternum. 2. ðGrip down an inch or two. Move closer to the ball the same amount you gripped down. 3. Narrow your stance a little.4. ðPractice hitting wedge shots where you don't let your hands follow through higher than your shoulders. 4. ðPractice hitting wedge shots where you don't let your hands follow through higher than your shoulders.

Make these adjustments, and you'll be able to hit your wedges lower and control your distances more efficiently. The ball will fly shorter in the air because it's on a lower trajectory and your followthrough is shorter. Don't worry about losing a few yards. Remember, the goal on your wedges isn't to hit them far, but to hit them close to the hole.

Refining His Swing

Tony has become extremely efficient with hitting his stock shot, a fade. One of the keys to Tony's golf swing over the past year has been having his arms closer to his body on the downswing. If his arms get too far away from his body at the start of the downswing, as he approaches impact, the arms eventually will have to come back/pull into his body to make contact, causing his path to be excessively out to in. Whether you hit a fade or a draw, this drill that Tony uses can be very helpful, especially for those golfers who struggle with the "over-the-top move."

1. ðGet two alignment sticks and a pool noodle. Push the alignment sticks through one end of the pool noodle about three feet apart. 2. ðPlace the alignment sticks in the ground at about a 45_¡ angle and to where the pool noodle is parallel to your target. 3. ðTake your 6-iron and place the golf ball in between the two alignment sticks and to where at address you'd have anywhere from 3 to 6 inches of space between the noodle and your forearms. 4. ðLearn to swing back and through with your arms, staying close to your body regardless of which shape of shot you prefer.

Another area that Tony and I monitor very closely is his clubface aim at address. Clubface aim is often overlooked, in my opinion, but largely affects what shot you'll be able to hit. Tony uses his SKLZ alignment rods almost daily to ensure his face aim is correct. Tony places one SKLZ alignment rod in the ground about 10 to 15 feet in front of his ball and directly in line with the target. He places another rod just to the left a foot or two. His stock 7-iron fades about 5 yards. To hit the fade with his 7-iron, Tony first aligns his clubface about 5 yards left of the target–his desired starting point. Tony's swingpath is slightly out to in by design, creating his fade. The SKLZ alignment rods create a gate for Tony to hit through and give him feedback as to where his ball is starting. I frequently see players working hard on their feet alignment, but that's actually one of the least important of the alignments. Work on your alignment next time you're at the course in this order of importance: clubface, shoulders, hips and feet.

Tony has worked extremely hard over the past year to get his clubface position and the path of his swing to "match" to hit his fade at the trajectory and spin that he wants. But one of the things that Tony focuses on and that impresses me the most when I watch him hit balls is just how purely and in the center of the clubface he strikes the ball. Centeredness of hit has a big influence on ballflight and ball speed, which I feel is often overlooked, especially with the driver, as they have become bigger and bigger over the years.

To stress the importance of and work on hitting the ball in the center of the face, I have Tony use a driver that's older than he is! As you can see, there isn't a lot of room for error. Tony is long off the tee, no doubt about it. But when he hits that tiny, old steel-shafted driver over 300 yards in the air with ease, it's hard not to be amazed.

On The Course

The stats show that being a rookie on the PGA Tour isn't easy. I believe one of the reasons is playing unfamiliar courses each week that some Tour players have played over 50 times in their careers. One of the major areas of focus for Tony in the past year that has helped him transition so well onto the PGA Tour and have success on all types of courses has been to have at least three tee balls/shots that he can confidently choose from. Not all the courses set up for a bomber or his shape of shot. Some weeks it does, some weeks it doesn't. Tony does a great job of taking what a golf course gives him. Tony has had a top-10 finish hitting only eight drivers the entire week and also a top-10 finish hitting driver off almost every tee. He also knows that hitting a 300-yard 3-wood or 265-yard driving iron off the tee on a tighter hole or to avoid trouble is a great luxury to have and use.

The next time you get to a hole where the fairway is twice as wide where your 3-wood would go off the tee, play back and leave some room for error. Instead of forcing your driver into the narrowest part of the fairway, learn from the pros. You don't always have to hit a driver off the tee.

Swing Sequence

Obviously, I may be a bit biased, but I believe Tony has one of the best and most efficient swings on Tour. His strokes gained tee to green stats suggest the same. The average golfer can learn a lot from Tony's swing.

At the top of his swing, Tony has his weight where he had it at setup–on the balls of the feet. He looks balanced and under control, ready to deliver a big hit. Notice that he doesn't go past parallel or overswing to get his power.

Halfway down, Tony has the club in a great position to hit his power fade. His right arm and elbow are close to his body.

Halfway through his followthrough, Tony has rotated not just his hips, but notice how well his chest is turning and is already facing the target. His lower and upper bodies are working together.

This drive was on the uphill, 508-yard 18th hole at McDowell Mountain Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona, where I'm the Director of Instruction and where Tony spent his offseason preparing for the 2015 season. Tony ended up hitting a gap wedge into the green on his second shot. That's long!

Boyd Summerhays, PGA, is the Director of Instruction at McDowell Mountain Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona. To learn more, visit www.summerhaysgolf.com.