Mayakoba Classic Nick Flanagan

Nick has been working hard to get off to a good start in his first year on the PGA Tour. He has been close, but only made one cut so far at the Buick in San Diago. This week at the Mayakoba Classic in Cancun Mexico he started with a 5 over 75 and looked to be missing another cut, but then followed up with rounds of 67, 68 and 64 to earn his first top 10 finish for the year. We have been concentrating on his short game by introducing more skills testing in practice. In the picture Nick is practicing the chipping ladder drill, where he must land 3 in a row in each step to progress up the ladder. When he misses a shot he comes back down a step. This adds a similar sort of pressure to the course and better prepares you to focus on the shot at hand and the landing area. Nick is a confidence player and the momentum of this weeks result he will take into the next few weeks with a stronger belief that i am sure will result in some more good events.

International Institute of Golf

Dale Lynch and I have signed an agreement with the Cliffs to set up and operate the International Institute of Golf at the Cliffs at Keowee Springs. This is Dale's and my first academy in the USA. The goal is to set up a holistic academy that encompasses all the services that we created and delivered at the Victorian Institute of Sport. These services will include technique, physical conditioning, mental skill development and strategy training. The Cliffs at Keowee Springs venue on Lake Keowee in South Carolina has a 7200 yard Tom Fazio course and the practice facility that they have created is going to be the most totally complete facilty, where every shot in the game can be learned and practiced. The Cliffs team and Tom Fazio have gone out of their way to create what I think is the best practice facilty in the world. Cliffs touring pros Lucas Glover, Charles Warren and input from Dale Lynch and myself has been taken on board and Tom Fazio has personally dedicated his attention to creating the facilty. In the pictures at the top taken last August you can see that the area for the range had been cleared and the fairway started shaping and on the right last week the entire facilty has now been turfed. The short game area has 3 usga standard geens and the Institute end has another 2 greens, one for putting and another for short game. The Institute building includes a movement room, putting studio, full swing analysis and club fitting, meeting room, offices, bathrooms and everything else we could think of. Dale will be moving to the USA with his family and base himself fulltime at the Springs. I will be regularly visiting for weekend schools and events. The planned opening date for IIG is the first of August this year.