As we entered the new year, I decided to attack this challenge by building out a phased plan (I know this is a lot but I am hopeful this ends with a better routine and a much lower handicap). With 24 weeks between me and the solstice, I broke my training into 4 phases: Routine, Fitness, Golf, and Improvement.

Routine Phase:

During the routine phase (first 6 weeks), the goal is to workout daily and get my mind/body into a rhythm. Workouts will consist of walking/running, lifting, stretching, and some cross training. Ideally, coming out of these 6 weeks, I am ready to do daily harder workouts.

Fitness Phase:

With the weather likely to still be unpredictable, the fitness phase is really focused on improving endurance, strength and flexibility. The workouts will continue to include cardio but the lifting will start to become more dynamic in nature. This is to prepare my body for swinging as opposed to just being stronger.

Golf Phase:

The golf phase is pretty simple to picture, we are going to be swinging a club frequently (hopefully 3x per week at a range/course) plus working on each element of the game. The goal is to transition the enhanced fitness into more distance and consistency.

Improvement Phase:

This is where we piece it all together and reassess what is needed. An increased focus on the elements of the game that are still struggling plus on walking. During these 6 weeks, the goal is to get 12 rounds of golf in (including at least 1 36 hole day).

1/20/2024

I’ve always been a data person… so, when I got into the solstice, I wanted to take a hard look at my golf game and what was going to be needed to walk 72 holes. I broke what was needed into 4 categories: Golf, Fitness (strength/flexibility), Endurance, and Mental. In each of these categories, I tried to assess my ability on a scale of 1-10 (and to be brutally honest)… Ideally, by the summer, all of these will be at least a 6… Here is what I came up with:

Golf:

Driver - 3/10… Over the past couple of months my distance has improved (hitting 260-270), however, the control is still not there. I still have a tendency to slice right. In addition, I’m currently swinging too hard. That is fine for 1 round, but I’ve got to find the same distance with an easier swing for the solstice.

Woods/Hybrids/Driving Iron - 4/10… My 5 wood off the deck is consistent and has good shape. My 3 wood is entirely untested and unlikely to be in the bag. The shape on the hybrids is the biggest concern here.

Irons - 5/10… 5-Gap are likely my biggest strength. Fairly consistent with good distance. Need to work on controlling the flight here to make sure I can get the ball to stop on the greens at Bandon.

Wedges - 4/10…. My most improved clubs over the past 12 months. When at the right distance, the swing is really good… Unfortunately, shorter distances are my weakness.

Putter - 4/10… I am a decent reader of putts but my tempo and switching courses has led to a lot of 3 putts.

Fitness:

Strength - 2/10… Not going to sugar coat it… Over the years, I’ve gotten lazier when it comes to working out. Part of this quest will have to involve hitting the gym a lot. Hopefully to gain club head speed.

Flexibility - 0/10… I was the least flexible athlete at my college (all 4 years). I have never been a huge fan of stretching but that is about to change. In order to make it through this without an injury and increase club head speed, I have to become more flexible.

Endurance:

Walking - 5/10… I’ve broken endurance into 2 categories. For the solstice, it will likely be 25-30 miles of walking. Right now, I feel confident walking 10…

Standing - 3/10… One of the biggest challenges is being on your feet all day. My current job involves sitting, so I’ve got to start standing at work to prepare my feet.

Mental:

Mental- 2/10… When it comes to endurance, I have a lot of confidence… But… When it comes to keeping my head in the round, that’s where I struggle.

Conclusions:

Over the next 5 months, I’ve got a ton of work to do on every aspect of my game. I feel like doing the honest assessment will help me game plan on how to get better at each aspect (not just go to the course and play a round).