Somers Golf

  Last session in the full speed spectrum program was a bit of a disappointment if I'm being honest, as I was pretty far from my best and should have completed it the following day, rather than after a round of golf. However, what it does prove, in my opinion, is that even when I'm not 'on it' I'm still considerably faster than I used to be and that results in me being able to get it out there that bit further. As you can see in the program summary, my peak eSpeed was set in session 23 at 109mph with a distance potential of 303 yards achieved, whilst my quickest swing also came during that set, with a 110mph and 307 yard potential. A few days later I completed the progress check and once again I wasn't at full tilt but still close to my potential with a 96mph Stack / 105mph eSpeed which equates to 292mph. A couple of things worth noting are that I completed the driver swing during that session with the mini driver, not my actual driver, so there's going to b...

Having got back on the horse with session 22 it was time to crank things up a notch for session 23, with records tumbling on the 135g by 5mph, both in terms of the fastest and the set, with a 103 and a 102mph versus the prior 98 and 97mph respectively. But, it's the driver related 195g that really draws the attention, as not only did I hit the magic 100mph Stack / 110mph eSpeed number that I set as my stretch goal when I began stack training, I did it twice in the set. Furthermore, I took the set record up to 99mph, gaining 2mph over the previous best, with the first in the set the one holding down the average. That pushes me over the 300 yard distance potential precipice for the first time too with a 99/109mph tallying 303 yards. So, I still have a little ways to go to be at the average of 110mph / 307 yards distance potential but I don't think it's actually that far off. I felt a lot quicker during this session and I think it's partly due to the stack arranging some o...

  We've got two sessions to digest in this post, with my busy life schedule having impeded my progress a little in the early stages of May. Session 21 was the first in a new phase of the full speed spectrum program and I always find that first session puts me a little out of kilter, as you become so used to the routine in each phase. Nonetheless I did post a new record of 98mph on the 135g weight, although that really would be the highlight of that session, with my speed on the 195g pretty sub-par compared to where I had been. In reality I should have listened to my body and moonwalked right out of the session but I ploughed on regardless, which I hope isn't to the detriment of my improvement long term (it won't be). However, it did crystallise my thoughts on rest, which I heeded with session 22, as I waited until I felt like my back and ankle were in a better place. Six days on from session 21 and I was still feeling a little sore to be honest and my back issues had also l...

  I haven't posted here for ten days as I've had somewhat of a busy schedule to cope with, however, I've maintained my stack schedule as best as I can through that period... Session 17 saw my top line drop a little compared with recent sessions, as recorded a 94mph stack speed which equates to 103mph eSpeed and a 287 yard distance potential. But, that's not the story of that session as I was 4mph quicker with the 95g in a step set, taking the record up to 106mph and managed a set average of 103mph, which is also 2mph quicker than before. Meanwhile, on the 60g step set I achieved a 108mph and a set record of 106mph, with these step sets really starting to pay dividends in terms of sequencing the swing. Moving onto session 18 and you'll see my usual day off between sessions had slipped due to other commitments but I was back to 96/105mph on the stack/eSpeed, which equates to 293 yards distance potential. And, it was a similar story on the other weights, with a record/...

  One of the nice features of the stack app is that it understands you need rest between sessions, with a day off between each session scheduled if you want to stay at a 100% grit score (I always aim to stay at 100% as I want to get as many sessions in as possible). Anyway, I digress, the nice feature is that if you do a speed priming session prior to a round it will then move the session down the line by a further two days, giving your body the reprieve it needs. In my case I did just that ahead of a competition round, in order that I could get loose and limber for the round, especially as I was already a little sore from pushing my body over the previous few days. That said, when it came due for my next session I was playing another competition on that day too. However, with the rest I'd had in between I decided to push on with training before heading out onto the course. I wasn't at my absolute quickest with the 195g, albeit only 1mph short on the average, but I made up for ...

  Not quite up there with the big ole 97mph that I recorded a few sessions ago but I'm still hanging on in there with the 195g with a 95mph average which equates to 290 yard distance potential. However, once again, perhaps it's not all about that driver equivalent number, rather it's about improving on the other weights too, which is precisely what I did in session 15. There was also a couple of other things to consider for this session too, as I started the day with a migraine, which is never good and when I got to the course, the bay I use was sopping wet, as we've had a lot of rain over the last few days. Anyway, I had my grippier wet weather shoes on so I tried to act like it wasn't going to bother me. Over to the records for the session and the first came with the 65g with the step movement and it was a huge gain on the previous best, which I set in session 12, with a 7mph improvement from 101mph to 107mph. The average has also jumped significantly, with a set ...

  Switching things up again this week, with a solo post for session 14 in the full speed spectrum program, as I think it's worth showing the direct comparison with session 13. Once again it was a 5 set session with two sets at 220g's acting as the bread in a two step set sandwich, one at 80g and one at 20g. Interestingly, the 20g is the lowest weight you can have on the stack and it's the first time I've swung with so little on there. It's also the first time I've been over the 110 mark, I believe, with a 112mph being the highest achieved in that set. As always, there was a low effort thrown in there, where I just didn't time up things in the kinetic chain correctly, which obviously has a bearing on the average. The good thing about having the same weight in set 1 and 4 is that you have a target in mind too, as I'm pretty much always going to be slower out of the gate in that first set but it's nice to see another 3mph gain between the two set averag...

Decided it's probably best to start pairing some of my blog posts together, as you might have noticed, as progress is starting to become a little more difficult, at least on the 195g. Furthermore, it's worth noting that both of these sessions were done after a round, as they were scheduled competitions and fell on the day of my training. Also, I've been wanting to try out different solutions to see how my body reacts in those situations but I think it's fair to say that doing speed training after 18 and 16 holes respectively didn't work out on this occasion. Again, that's probably because I'm looking at the fact I haven't pushed the needle forward on the 195g but as you can see there's still plenty of infill happening with the other weights, as in session 9 I had new records on the 80g and 205g, whilst improving on my previous best set record on the 205g by 3mph. Today was a similar story, with a new record of 91mph on the 225g and a new set record a...

  So, I had to take another break from Stacking as I was away for a few days and decided to use the return to form option once again, just to ease back into things. The thing with the return to form session compared with the current phase of the full speed spectrum program is that the swings are full speed, rather than max, meaning they're going to come off as a little slower and that's ok with me. Dipping just below 100mph out the gates, essentially at on course speed is fine with me, as it still gives me a distance potential north of 260 yards. Anyway, a couple of days later and it was time to get back into the swing of things, fully and it wasn't a bad session by any means, I just didn't feel like I was ever going to reach out and touch the absolute top numbers and again, that's fine, sometimes you just aren't going to be at your best. Two more days followed and it was time for session 8 in the program - same drill, five sets all at max, with the exception of...

Two more sessions in the book on the stack before I have to take another short break from the program, as I'm going away for a few days. Both sessions saw me continue to average 93mph with the 195g, equalling 102mph eSpeed and a distance potential of 283 yards. And whilst I'm not shifting the needle in a meaningful way with the 195g there's still progress elsewhere, which will eventually bleed its way toward the main metrics. Hitting 94mph in the first two reps of set 5 in session 6 I thought I was going to move things forward but dropped off by trying to go faster. I know this because I swung three more times afterwards and hit 94 all three times - next time eh.. 😂 Anyway, once I'm back from this break I'm going to smash it out of the park...

  Third session in the full speed spectrum program and the last portion of this phase (which I hadn't realised was so short), meaning we'll be faced with a new challenge in the next session, which we'll get to shortly. I was enjoying the full, full, max, max scenario but, it's clear to see that whilst I've maintained well over those last three sessions I haven't really pushed on either. I've averaged 90mph on the 195g weight in all three sessions which as I've noted before is a good few mph quicker than my full (on course) swing. The good thing, whilst not gaining any ground, is that I feel as if I I'd be able to maintain that swing consistency throughout a round, rather than maybe having peaks and troughs throughout.  As mentioned already, the next session see's me moving into a new phase and what appears to be a very interesting one (lower right, above). As not only is it a five set routine, the first three sets have plenty of reps at weight on...

  Nothing major to report back after today's Full Speed Spectrum session, other than I'm holding tight at that 92mph Stack speed / 100mph eSpeed number, which gives us around 280 yards in distance potential. I feel like this full / full, then max / max set routine works out better for me in terms of being able to get to the 195g at the end of the session feeling like I can push. A 98 average on the 120g is also level with my best during the foundation program too. There's still more to come!

  Here we go then, onto the second stack program in my search for more speed and as I mentioned in the previous post, I have moved onto the full speed spectrum program. I'm going to cover something going forward too, as it might seem like my speed has suddenly jumped up and that's because it has. However, there's a reason for this - driver shaft length. During the course of the foundation program I had the stack system set at my mini driver length, as that's what was in the bag when I started the program. I can't remember exactly when but at a fairly early stage in the program I got hold of a stiff Fujikura Ventus shaft for the limited colourway Cobra XB head I'd had for some time, meaning the shaft length between the two was 43.75 for the Original One mini driver and 45.5 for the Cobra. This has a bearing on the calculations used to estimate eSpeed and distance potential in the stack app, so I decided to stick with the mini for that program. However, I've s...

  I'm 6 or so weeks into speed training with the Stack System and as we know I have made gains with driver, both in the stack sessions and out on the course. But, it was time to validate that with some data and so I performed the progress check, which is the same program as the original baseline. I've put those two sessions side-by-side in the images above and we can see the results speak for themselves across the board - 5mph quicker with driver, 9mph quicker with the 195kg, 5mph up on the 280kg, 4mph up on the 145g, 6mph on the 95g, 2mph on the trail arm and 5mph on the lead arm. These are all averages set with full swings, which whilst you all know I've gained much more (15mph) those swings were based on max intent, so are not really a far comparison, they're just there as a means to help increase my ceiling. As we can see 5mph out on course has the potential to increase distance by 29 yards, which is not only a healthy gain, it's something I think I'm actual...

  It's been a couple of days since my last stack session as I reflect on what has been just over a months worth of speed training. I've put the last two sessions together in this blog, because I'm busy with work and didn't have time to focus on them individually. And, whilst neither really offered the level of performance I've become accustomed to, I do think that the performance in these sessions broadly speaks to something close to the speed I'm currently gaming, rather than my outright max. It is altogether frustrating that I didn't break the 100mph barrier come the end of the program too but that just means I have a very achievable short term goal as I move into the next stage of my speed training, which we'll see what I'm given once I complete the progress check. Now, whilst I've been able to keep my grit score high during the foundation program, my next issue comes with the progress check, as it's asking me to complete that today (two d...

  My sixteenth stack session in the foundation program was at 240g, 80g and 195g, all at max intent and whilst I didn't break through any major milestones, it does feel as if over the course of the last few sessions I've found a level. I say that because my deviation is much tighter with the 195g at the end of each set... Set 10 - 97mph Set 11 - 98mph Set 12 - 95mph Set 13 - 99mph Set 14 - 96mph Set 15 - 99pmh Set 16 - 98mph And, as you can see from the session numbers themselves there's only a couple of outliers - the 81mph in set 1 and the 98mph in set 3, everything else is really pretty tight. Once again I'll press home the point about this all transferring to the course too, as both my longest drives and averages are well up on where they have been, even when I've been playing into some pretty strong headwinds.

  Today's stack session saw a return to my top speed - 99mph in the 195g weight category, with my sessions becoming more closely aligned again, just as they were at the start of the foundation program. It'll be nice to nudge the bar over that 100mph barrier but it's safe to say that will happen, it's just a case of when (I mean, it technically already has, as the figures are calculated based on my mini driver, not driver shaft length). In the meantime I'm still finding speed in the other weight categories, with a new set record achieved on both attempts at the 120g today. The 101mph swings that I got in both of those sets is also my highest single at 120g and with three at 100 in that second set at that weight I was quite pleased. I'm also making some tweaks with my swing at the moment which I think the stack should help ingrain, as it seems to help with organising your swing, especially at the higher weights. Let's keep pushing.

  Stack session 14 was the last in phase 3 of the program and saw the use of 240g, 80g and 195g all at max intent. The two 90mph speeds either side of the 93 and 94mph swings in the 195g set didn't see me push the needle in terms of overall gains but, there were gains on the 240g and 80g sets. Not only was this visible in the reps, with a 88mph and 105mph respectively, the set averages were up to 87mph and 104mph, both of which were significant gains. I've noticed that if I become a little more mobile (small jumps up and down on the spot) as the rest period comes to a close before starting a new set I can get moving more quickly. This along with constantly trying to widen my backswing arc without swaying too much off centre seems to be providing a recipe for improvement. And, whilst I've said it before, the gains aren't just showing up in stack sessions, I'm definitely longer off the tee. Now, some of this comes down to course conditions improving but, most of it is...

My thirteenth stack session and the penultimate in phase 3 of the foundation program led to further gains and yet another 1mph in stack speed / eSpeed. I averaged 86mph on the 255g weight in set 1, with a couple of 87mph swings thrown in there. Then it was onto the 95g sets, first of those sets saw me average 100mph with a couple of 103’s in the mix, whilst the second set saw me average 103 (a new set record) with a 105mph swing amongst the batch. As I got onto the 195g set it felt like I could maybe be a little quicker, as proved to be the case with two at 95mph and an average of 94mph. This puts my gain over the course of the foundation program to 15mph and a potential distance increase of 45 yards. I followed the stack session up with eighteen holes and shot another great round of 80, albeit without the clearer cut birdie and par shouts I've had of late. We had an easterly wind and this clearly made life tougher on the way out, as it was into our faces all the way. It was a good...

  Stack session 12 was a similar session to #11, albeit with the weights in each of the first three sets a little different when compared with last time out. And, whilst I was a few mph off my best in the final set there were some glimpses of extra speed shown throughout the course of the first three sets. Set 1 saw a PB on the 235g with an 85, which is also the new set record for that weight. Meanwhile, I hit 103 on the 80g twice in the second set. I followed the session up with another eighteen hole round and have finally broken 80 whilst in company of another member, which also means that card has gone in for handicap and will likely see me drop pretty close to a 12.0 It was a great round with a 79 carded, with 2 birdies and 5 pars BUT with a lost ball off the tee on 16 and two 3 putts, let alone two duff chips that I can recall and a topped 3 wood on 8, I know there's still plenty left in the tank. There's lots more to come!..