1/? A thread...Why am I right about certain aspects of strategy, even understanding it better than Nicklaus? Far too often players of past generations hold their playing background out as an appeal to their authority. I did not play on the PGA Tour, why?

2/? I didn't specialize in golf until high school which left my true playing experience far behind my peers. I then transferred schools after my freshmen yr & had to sit out 1.5 yrs. I then played spring my 3rd yr & fall my 4th b4 breaking my leg in Feb my redshirt jr yr
3/? After breaking my leg I didn't touch my clubs for almost 18 months. I got a job in real estate in Dallas after graduating & played golf on my bday (July 4) at Gleneagles in Plano & shot 68. I stewed all night watching fireworks & dreamt of professional golf.
4/? The right blend of emotion from fireworks w/friends, a great round of golf that day, & the perfect amt of beers & I decided I was going to quit & play professional golf. I won my 1st mini tour event six weeks later with 67-68. Following yr I traveled the Hooters Tour w/...
5/? Chad Campbell & Chris Riley & knew I had the physical skills they did but I only won twice on that Tour while Chad won damn near every week. I attributed it to my being an over the top hothead. Truly world class basket case. This is b/c I was a perfectionist & couldn't...
6/? accept a bad shot which is why I focus on patience so much within the DECADE App. Golf attracts perfectionist & I'm not a unicorn so I know others face the same issue. While that was my main issue, my lack of playing experience was likely even more of an issue...
7/? as I had absolutely no idea about strategy. In hindsight -totally clueless. I think my results over the last 2 yrs even while playing ZERO golf & being 47 support the fact that I am/could have been a world class player. This is why the appeal to authority "I won on Tour"...
8/? has no impact on me. I know I could play w/the 50-100 money list players of the 1980-90's Tour. I know exactly what is & isn't possible w/any given golf shot. Most importantly, I've studied more golf shots in ShotLink than any other person on the planet, guaranteed...
9/? As a result, if you're a former Tour player you need to bring data to me supporting an idea, not "I took the game farther than you did". I can tell you things that Hogan, Nicklaus, & even Tiger got wrong. Overall they played the game BRILLIANTLY but there are holes in it 2...
10/? I simply can't believe the success young players are having on Tour, most of which have a some background in DECADE, but the old guard simply dislikes me so much they will set aside all intellectual integrity solely to try to make me look bad, it's impressive...
11/? To be able to say "feel vs real" w/regards to mechanics but not also see that same premise applies to the math & strategy of the game is impressively unobjective. The advent of ShotLink is VERY SIMILAR to hole card cameras in poker & the INCREDIBLE rush to youth...
12/? Aspiring poker players can now play more hands in a month that Doyle Brunson could play in YEARS. Hole card cams allow them to see how players ACTUALLY PLAYED a hand vs how they say they played a hand. I've used ShotLink to show how players approach situations...
13/? not how they say they approached them. We can also use VERY BASIC expectation math to solve the problem of picking a target w/the lowest possible scoring avg. From there the more disciplined you are with applying the math the lower your scoring avg, it's VERY BASIC....
14/? So, yes, I know more than Jack Nicklaus did about the strategy of the game, AND, it's ok to say that, I have access to more information than he did. Knowledge is cumulative, meaning all generations build upon the prior. It's why we have iPhones & Romans didn't...
15/? Former Tour players CAN MAKE GREAT INSTRUCTORS!!! BUT they must do the work to remove their prior biases that are based in feels & learn what is real. If they do not do that then they could very well be horrific instructors. That's up to them...
16/? Will they continue to appeal to authority as a past Tour player or will they humble themselves a tad to see what they could've done better? Some like Ogrin do a great job trying to keep learning, others let petty personal disagreements cloud every fiber of judgment they have
17/17 tl/dr Being a former Tour player is an amazing accomplishment & can be used to make an amazing instructor. It however does not give you carte blanche to be the all-knowing & sit atop the mountain w/o doing the work to understand the MODERN GAME & opportunities data provides

More from Sport

When thinking about who to play in DM for Leeds the word "role" is important. Let's have a think about the role:


A lot of people think Struijk isn't good enough in the build-up phase. Well, what does the DM do in build-up?

Here's a passing network from last season:


As you can see, Phillips' role in the Championship last season was largely facilitating build up in the wide area (on the left interestingly).

Per Wyscout, Phillips is putting up a figure of 7.03 long passes per 90 minutes and completes around 59%. Last season he was making 6.94 long passes per 90 mins at around 52%.

Per dribbles he's putting up similar numbers across both seasons (between 1 and 1.5 p90) and per duels he's putting up the same number (20 p90).

All of this suggests his role hasn't changed much over the last couple of seasons.

You May Also Like

1/ Here’s a list of conversational frameworks I’ve picked up that have been helpful.

Please add your own.

2/ The Magic Question: "What would need to be true for you


3/ On evaluating where someone’s head is at regarding a topic they are being wishy-washy about or delaying.

“Gun to the head—what would you decide now?”

“Fast forward 6 months after your sabbatical--how would you decide: what criteria is most important to you?”

4/ Other Q’s re: decisions:

“Putting aside a list of pros/cons, what’s the *one* reason you’re doing this?” “Why is that the most important reason?”

“What’s end-game here?”

“What does success look like in a world where you pick that path?”

5/ When listening, after empathizing, and wanting to help them make their own decisions without imposing your world view:

“What would the best version of yourself do”?