COVER STORY: NEW SHORT-GAME SYSTEM
THE NEW WAY TO HIT YOUR TOUR-TESTED AND PROVEN WEDGES BY 40+ PROS! First, the bad news: The technique you’re using on chips and pitches is wrong. You were probably taught the “body-moves-the-club” method that seems sensible but often results in skulls, chunks and poor touch. The good news? A new, scientifically proven short-game system is sweeping the PGA Tour, and it’s easy for you to learn. The Top 100 Teacher who discovered it (above left) shows you the new way to control shots from 40 yards and in, with help from his star pupil Nick Watney. Turn the page to join this short- game revolution and get up and down all day long! ➔
By David DeNunzio Photography by Angus Murray
July 2013 golf.com / GOLF MAGAZINE 109 COVER STORY: NEW SHORT-GAME SYSTEM
a client list most instructors would die for, THE SECRET’S IN Sieckmann toiled in obscurity. DOWNSWING THE SEQUENCE “Part of it stems from living in Omaha,” 575 Chipping Away HIPS Titleist’s 3-D motion-capture data says Sieckmann. “And I never thought I TORSO proves Sieckmann’s system is correct— should market myself or advertise. I was ARMS 20 years after he began teaching it. 431 CLUB After struggling for four years on mini-tours at home and abroad, James Sieckmann turned to teaching— happy teaching the members at Shadow and had an epiphany that’s changing the way pros and amateurs swing when they’re near the green. Ridge and seeing my guys out on Tour In a solid power swing, the hips reach Here’s how our new Top 100 Teacher went from a failed player to the Tour’s hottest short-game guru. when they needed help.” 288 maximum speed first, then pass the Sieckmann’s stock skyrocketed after energy to the torso, then the arms, 2009, when Greg Rose, co-founder of the and finally the hands and clubhead. This 144 uring the 1994 Players Champion- and while a standout at the University of Titleist Performance Institute, asked the “Kinetic Sequence” is undisputed in golf ship, James Sieckmann, then 29, Nebraska, and from PGA teachers—was best wedge player he knew—Pernice—to teaching and research. But in a finesse CLOCKWISE ROTATION CLOCKWISE caddied for his older brother, Tom, wrong. He was certain of it. “I’m not saying help Titleist staffer Ben CraneADDRESS with his swing, the sequence changes, and the a PGA Tour winner. After a valiant I was lied to,” says Sieckmann today, now pitching and bunker game. “I just told graph at left (plotting the rotational Dbut failed attempt to make a dent on the 48. “People just didn’t know. Neither did I.” [Crane] to go see my coach, James Sieck- speed of key body parts on a short-game -144 leaderboards on the Asian Tour, the younger He smiles. “But suddenly I felt like I did.” mann,” says Pernice. swing) proves it. Notice that the club Sieckmann had turned to teaching. He had And now he had a plan to change the way Sieckmann met Crane at the Madison (orange line) moves first and fastest and worked under the tutelage of Dave Pelz at golf is played around the greens. Club in La Quinta, Calif., in January 2010. -288 that the torso (green line] and arms the short-game giant’s schools in Austin Since the 1990s, Sieckmann has contin- They worked on address, plane and espe- (blue line) immediately outpace the hips
and Boca Raton, and was about to become ued to spotlight the subtle technical dif- cially sequence. Crane was following the BACKSWING OF TOP IMPACT (red line) at the start of the downswing— the director of instruction at Shadow Ridge ferences between what golfers are taught chain of events common to full swings: The -431 the opposite of what you do in your C.C. in Omaha, Neb. He’d come to TPC Saw- versus what the best players do on short hips or legs initiate the downswing,0 and0.3 0.5 0.8 1.0 full swing.1.3 Also notice1.5 how the chest1.8 grass to haul his big brother’s bag—and do shots. His research and analysis has formed the arms and club follow. But the method keeps pace with the club, supporting some homework. the backbone of the short-game method Sieckmann created from watching the likes TIME FROM ADDRESS (SECS) its motion instead of slowing down into When not looping that week, Sieck- that’s now used by more than 40 players on of Ballesteros and Floyd reverses that se- impact as it does on power swings. The mann paced the practice area, observing the PGA and LPGA tours, and which he says quence on swings when you’re 40 yards TPI’s motion-capture sequence of a Tour-level lesson? Reverse your swing sequence and recording several players on video- is easily learnable for everyday players (see or less from the green. “Basically, the ➔ short swing validates Sieckmann’s theories. for better touch on short shots. tape. He captured Greg Norman hitting “6 New Ways to Hit Wedge Shots,” p. 112). bunker shots, Raymond Floyd chipping, “The methods I teach are iron-clad,” and short-game savants Corey Pavin and boasts Sieckmann. “They’re born from the Wayne Grady hitting lofted pitches. He also techniques used by some of the greatest recorded two of his brother’s close friends, short-game players in history—what they The 17-year Tour veteran exposes TPI co-founder whose 3-D data THE younger brother James to the best verifies Sieckmann’s finesse W RID who would prove pivotal in his teaching of actually did, not just what they said they DO GE short-game players in the world and sequence 15 years after James SIECKMANN A C H . facilitates several coaching jobs. identifies it using videotape. the short game: Tom Pernice, the one-time did.” He adds, “It’s nearly impossible for S C SOLAR . UCLA star considered a master of the short the average player to copy the full-swing REG ROS SIECKM G E SYSYEM M AN O N game; and Seve Ballesteros, the greatest mobility or sheer power of a Tour player, T greenside shotmaker of his era, if not ever. but he can easily copy the way the best pros The serendipitous N CRANE When Sieckmann reviewed the footage dial it in from inside 40 yards.” genesis of the BE
back home in Omaha—studying it over and Dave Pelz credits Sieckmann’s work ethic hottest short-game The West Omaha course, method on Tour designed by Tom Sieckmann, over, backward and forward—he noticed as one reason for his ascendance. “James allows James to start his something unusual. Ballesteros, Pernice, already had extensive knowledge of how own golf academy in 1994.
Norman—all the top players—were break- to play the game when he worked for our ER M P NIC ing every short-game rule he’d learned. schools,” says Pelz. “But the fact that he TO E ALLES A friend of Tom’s E B TE PGA Tour player introduced Sieckmann, like most of us, was always worked so hard on his own skills gave him V R and the best short- E O to Sieckmann through Pernice told to make a miniature version of his a deep understanding of what it took to im- game player in history. S S and Rose. His success starts full swing and to keep his hands ahead of prove. And he had sincere empathy for the Videoed extensively by an avalanche of elite players James, Seve became SIECKM to the Sieckmann camp. ES A the clubhead, but there was Seve swinging struggles that golfers of all skill levels en- the main model for M N Sieckmann’s short- A N the club past his body with the touch of a dure, an attribute of all top-notch teachers.” J game system. ARLIE W Tom Sieckmann’s closest CH I surgeon. He was told to keep the clubface Tour pal (they finshed 1-2 square on short shots, but there was Pernice uccess, if not celebrity, came in the at the 1985 Q-School as S roomies) becomes James’s h s rotating the face open in his backswing on late 1990s and early 2000s. Per- o o first full-time pro student— r r VE PELZ t P both short and long pitch shots. He was nice made Sieckmann his full-time Short-game expert who DA - e and biggest proponent. Ga h told to keep his head still, but there was short-game coach in 1996 (“I credit coaches both Tom and m to t James. Gives James e Guru Floyd setting open with a flared left foot SJames with prolonging my career because my his first teaching job As a rookie in 1996, becomes and moving his head toward the target. scoring relies so much on short shots,” says and helps cultivate Sieckmann’s second Tour client, ANGUS (3) MURRAY Sieckmann’s critical starting a 17-year association Then a thunderbolt struck Sieckmann. Pernice) and helped his teacher land clients thinking about practice that helps him reach No. 1 in Sieckmann on Tour and at work and the short game. The short-game swing that’s taught as with (from top) Ben Crane, Charley such as Charlie Wi, Skip Kendall, Frank Lick- Total Putting several times.
gospel—and that he learned in junior golf, Hoffman and Kevin Chappell. liter, Bob Tway and Duffy Waldorf. Despite RIDGE: SHADOW IMAGES; NATIONAL/GETTY AUGUSTA PERNICE: SIECKMANN, TOM MURRAY; ANGUS CRANE: SIECKMANN, JAMES PELZ, COURTESY SHADOW RIDGE; SEVE: JACQUELINE DUVOISIN/SI; ROSE: COURTESY TITLEIST PERFORMANCE INSTITUTE; WI: ROBERT BECK/SI ➔
110 GOLF MAGAZINE / golf.com July 2013 July 2013 golf.com / GOLF MAGAZINE 111 COVER STORY: NEW SHORT-GAME SYSTEM
6 New OLD WAY Lean Left and OLD WAY “Cut Keep Your Head Still Across the Ball” Ways to Hit NEW WAY Let Energy NEW WAY Trace an 3 Flow Toward the Target 4 On-Plane Swing Path Wedge Shots Good wedge players don’t keep The most efficient way to deliver their head rock-steady. Video the club to the ball on a short From chips to bunker shots evidence proves that they move shot is to swing the clubshaft to 40-yard pitches, here are their head toward the target a few and clubhead on the plane line James Sieckmann’s new inches during the backswing in established by the lie angle at rules for knocking down the what’s essentially a reverse weight address. (Check if you’re doing shift; then they either keep their this by swinging next to a mirror flag with your short shots head still or move it even farther and charting the clubhead’s path forward in the downswing. This in your reflection.) A neutral swing gets energy flowing toward the doesn’t require manipulation if OLD WAY Your Body target—a must for solid contact. the club is delivered on plane. Moves the Club NEW WAY The Club 1 Moves Your Body OLD WAY Swing Your short-game downswing isn’t Square-to-Square an assertive strike propelled by NEW WAY Rotate
ANGUS MURRAY 5 the Clubface your body. It’s little more than Bo Van Pelt is the latest in a long line of letting the clubhead fall back to Tour stars to seek out Sieckmann and Says Sieckmann’s student the ball in a circle—letting gravity As you swing the club back on unlock the new secrets to wedge play. Nick Watney, who went from do the work—and then turning plane, let the clubface rotate your chest to support the motion open. An open clubface lets clubhead moves faster than the arms and 146th to 12th in Scrambling of the club. Your hips are mostly you release the club properly hands in the transition” says Sieckmann. in just one season, “The an afterthought. In fact, you without fear of hitting the ball “And that revelation can be an eye-opener.” shouldn’t turn them until the club left. A released club produces a Crane’s eyes were opened wide. One most important thing I’ve gets back in front of your body. higher shot and allows you month after his session with Sieckmann, learned is that the short- If your hips turn first, as they do to use both the loft and bounce Crane won the 2010 Farmers Insurance on full swings, the club will drop of the club to ensure better Open at Torrey Pines en route to setting a game swing is the direct under plane and the face will stay contact with the ball and ground. career high in season winnings with $2.8 opposite of the long game.” open (which causes those weak million. A week later, Sieckmann met with shots to the right). In other words, Brad Faxon, a famously deft chipper and swing with finesse, not power. putter. Even the eight-time Tour winner was wowed by Sieckmann’s insights. “He of elite short swings, but didn’t fully under- OLD WAY “Hold” knows more about the short game than stand it until I met James,” admits Rose. Your Follow-Through anyone I’ve ever met,” said Faxon. Says Sieckmann’s star pupil, five-time OLD WAY Square NEW WAY Release Stance at Address 6 the Clubhead Soon, Sieckmann’s stable of students Tour winner Nick Watney, “The most im- grew to include Charley Hoffman, Nick portant thing I’ve learned from him is that NEW WAY Open Watney, Camilo Villegas, Kyle Stanley, the short-game swing is the direct opposite 2 Stance at Address Despite what’s often taught, you I.K. Kim, Cameron Tringale, Jeff Overton, of the long game.” Indeed, Watney went shouldn’t “hold” on to your release Bo Van Pelt and some 30 other touring from 146th in Scrambling in 2010 to 12th Set your back foot square to by keeping your hands ahead of professionals. “The floodgates opened for in 2011. “In full swings you want width your target line and flare your the clubhead past impact. Doing him after Ben,” says Titleist’s Rose. and power, but with a wedge you want less front foot with your heels almost this requires tension, and tension width and more finesse, so the sequence touching. Opening up like this destroys your rhythm and feel. ose adds that three-dimensional has to change.” with your chest pointing more In addition, it reduces the computer mapping by the Titleist For his part, Sieckmann now sees his toward the target moves the low effective loft and bounce of Performance Institute suggests years toiling away in Asia—hitting count- point of your swing in front of the the club, sharpening the leading that Sieckmann’s short-swing less bags of numberless balls, all seem- ball, freeing up the clubhead to edge so that it’s more likely to Rphilosophy—“it’s a finesse sequence, not ingly ending in failure—as a stroke of luck. produce crisper contact. stick into the turf (hello, fat shots). a power sequence”—is dead on (see graph, “Because I did everything wrong,” he says,
previous page). “We had data on hundreds “I know what’s right.” n ANGUS MURRAY ➔
112 GOLF MAGAZINE / golf.com July 2013 July 2013 golf.com / GOLF MAGAZINE 113 COVER STORY: NEW SHORT-GAME SYSTEM FINESSE ON TOUR James Sieckmann’s Full-Time Tour Students Nick Watney 12th in Scrambling (2011) Bo Van Pelt How to Groove a Finesse Swing Short and Sweet +57 spots in Proximity to Pin from 50–75 Hit chips with one arm to feel the correct sequence of moves in your short-shot downswing Steal Nick Watney’s greenside secrets in this frame-by-frame lesson Yards since 2012 Ben Crane 6th in Scrambling (2013) Charley Hoffman n a power swing, the way you mentally by moving the club first, says, “is to have soft +117 spots in Sand If you can hit solid chips you want to generate approach both swings. before his body. Think and relaxed arms that Saves since 2012 using only your right arm, as much speed According to of it as a gentle casting swing the club past Tom Pernice then you have the feel for I 1st in Putting, 11th the finesse sequence found as possible—loft Sieckmann, the role motion or, in our Top your lower body while in all great short swings. in Sand Saves (2013 and bounce are of your lower body 100 Teacher’s words, your chest smoothly Champions Tour) unimportant. “In a on short shots is to “letting gravity be your rotates toward the Charlie Wi finesse swing,” says provide stability and friend.” You can see target at the same 3rd in Scrambling (2013) Sieckmann, “you want balance. You don’t use it how Watney’s hips don’t pace.” If you hit your Jeff Overton to control speed and to create power. Notice really turn until after 5-iron this way, the +81 spots in use loft and bounce how Nick Watney, a the club gets back in ball would go nowhere. Scrambling since 2011 as assets.” There’s a Sieckmann student front of his body. “Essentially,” he says, Kevin Chappell 6th in Sand Saves (2013) change in mechanics since 2010, initiates his “The feeling you’re “great wedge players I.K. Kim as well as a switch in downward movement after,” Sieckmann are weak on purpose.” 17th in Sand Saves, 4th CLUBHEAD FOLLOWED SUPPORTED in Putting (2012 LPGA) GOES FIRST BY THE BY THE CHEST RIGHT ARM AND HIPS Cameron Tringale 16th in Sand Saves (2013) Other Pro Students (past and present) Justin Rose Brad Faxon Tom Purtzer Alex Rocha David Toms Peter Jacobsen James Driscoll Juli Inkster Tim Herron ANGUS MURRAY Camilo Villegas Kyle Stanley he new way to part.” In other words, impact. Continue to Nicholas Thompson Lexi Thompson hit wedge shots you must swing in swing your right arm Skip Kendall comes down to the proper clubhead- past your body and Duffy Waldorf T Chris Tidland changing the sequence leading-the-body smoothly accelerate Charlie Beljan in your downswing so motion or you’ll the clubhead past your Matt Harmon that the club moves hit fat or thin shots. As hands. You’ll know you Jason Knutzon faster than your arms you perform this drill, did it correctly if, at the Richard Lee in the transition, focus on the following: finish, the grip points Steve Lowery John Rollins then learning how to at your belly and the Danielle Kang support the movement 1 Get the clubhead face is slightly open. Candie Kung of the club with your moving first. The club Frank Lickliter Grant Waite arms and chest. To do accelerates first and 3 Place your left hand Joe Durant this, try hitting shots fastest, followed by on the grip while Bob Tway with only your right arm your arms, chest and, holding your finish. Kevin Stadler Scott McCarron (or your left, if you’re finally, your hips. (Yes, In order to fit your left Olin Browne
a southpaw). “I know this sequence is the hand on the handle, ANGUS MURRAY D.J. Trahan it sounds simplistic,” exact opposite of what you’ll have to fold your Sang-Moon Bae Doug Barron says Sieckmann, you use in full swings.) left elbow and cup Lee Porter “but it’s a powerful your left wrist (look “My biggest mistake is getting too much of my long-game swing drill.” Why? “Hitting 2 Turn your chest for wrinkles on the in my short-game swing. Only when I learned to swing narrow DIGITAL BONUS solid shots this way through impact. This back of your left wrist). Learn more about James Sieckmann’s automatically creates supports the release These are key moves and steep with the right sequence did I learn that my short six wedge secrets at the correct sequence of the club and ensures to correctly release the ANGUS MURRAY golf.com/instruction Add your left hand to the handle at game could become a reliable scoring weapon.”—Nick Watney and in the tablet editions in your swing, without that you don’t stop clubhead and optimize the end of the drill for a more realistic of Golf Magazine. any thinking on your your arm swing at loft and bounce. feel of the proper swing and finish.
114 GOLF MAGAZINE / golf.com July 2013 July 2013 golf.com / GOLF MAGAZINE 115