Equipment

Three tips to think about nothing while over the ball

Published

9 years ago

Feb 4, 2017

After delivering a seminar for the PGA of Philadelphia, a gentleman walked up to me and said “Hi, I’m Dr. Howdy Giles. I was Arnold Palmer’s dentist.” Howdy, and I have been friends ever since and he was kind enough to introduce me to the King in April of 2016. On that memorable day, we asked Arnie what he thought about when standing over the ball, and his response was simple.

Nothing.

To condition yourself to think about nothing while standing over the ball, you must be highly disciplined. These three tips provide you with a dose of daily discipline so you can start thinking like a king today.

No. 1. Challenge Yourself Daily

This self-empowering activity is so much fun and highly motivating. Off the course, your Daily Challenge could be as simple as completing a task, starting a task, making that certain phone call or committing to one thing that will take you out of your comfort zone.

On the course, your Daily Challenge might be to visualize every shot, stay positive the entire round or to think about nothing while standing over the ball. Once you determine your Daily Challenge, it takes only 2 seconds to write it down. Writing it down makes you much more committed and self empowers you to achieve it. Every one of our golfers doing the Daily Challenge absolutely loves it, and I know you will too.

No. 2. Crush Your Morning and Evening Routine

If you want to take control of each day, physically change your path to get in and out of bed each day. The reason why is that 95 percent of what you do today is the same as what you did yesterday, which means you are on auto-pilot almost the entire day. By changing how you get in and out of bed, you create the perfect framework for constant improvement because you are in control of the very first thing you do each day, and the very last thing you do.

Total time required to reroute your path in and out of bed is about 1 second.

No. 3. Ask Yourself a Better Question

Did you know the quality of your life is only as good as the quality of the questions you ask yourself? The conversations you have in your mind must be focused on improvement, not on what’s wrong. The danger in asking yourself the wrong questions is that your subconscious mind will provide you with all the right answers to your wrong questions. You know that dreadful feeling of being stuck or frustrated and you have no clue how to improve? The reason why is your communication creates a perpetual road block with no chance for a detour. Asking the wrong questions makes it virtually impossible for you to succeed, in golf and in life.

If you ask yourself why you can’t perform under pressure or why your short game stinks, your subconscious provides you with a host of reasons why. By asking questions that start with “Why is it so easy,” everything changes instantly.

For example, say any of these questions out loud right now and see how they make you feel:

Why is it so easy to make this putt?
Why is it so easy to relax and be totally calm right now?
Why is it so easy to think about nothing standing over the ball?

By constantly asking “why is it so easy,” you will feel more relaxed which equates to lower stress and less anxiety. Lowering your physical and emotional anxiety translates to better golf, and the best part about it is that asking a better question takes about 2 seconds!

In Extreme Ownership by U.S. Navy SEALs Jocko Willink and Leif Babin, they said something at the end that really caught my attention.

Discipline = Freedom

These three simple discipline tips will help you play your best and create freedom in your game, both on and off the course.

To recap:

1. Take the Daily Challenge (2 seconds)
2. Crush Your Morning and Evening Routine (1 second)
3. Ask a Better Question (2 seconds)

Equipment

Interesting clubs at top of bag – GolfWRXers discuss

Published

12 hours ago

Jun 3, 2026

Will Schube

In our forums, users are talking about top of bag setups that are non-traditional or thought-provoking in some way. Original poster @SuperSpurs106 inquired about other members who might use unorthodox set-ups to help with gapping issues or weak spots.

They wrote:

“I currently have a PING G430 driver, TM Qi35 3W and a TM Qi4D 7W. Driver and 7W are fine but can’t get on with my 3W and have always struggling with this club over the years. Thinking of adding a 2H which I know would look odd. Just wondering if anyone else had a weird set up at the top of their bag?”

Our members in the forum have offered up their thoughts and personal experiences with non-traditional top of bag set-ups, and their reasoning for thinking outside of the box to begin with. Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

BowMain42: “Don’t worry about what “looks” odd. If the club does what you need it to do, it’s the right club.”
scooterhd2: “I cant hit 3 woods either. Thats why I roll with a unicorn XL Hibore 2 wood. 400 cc head at 16 degrees of loft and its just a monster 3 wood off the tee. Off the deck, we are playing the f6 baffler. 5 wood at 41.75 inches and its easy to control.”
phizzy30: “I had driver, 3 metal, 2/4 hybrid once upon a time as a higher ss player. 4 hybrid is gone and in place is a driving iron nowadays. I don’t think what you’re proposing is weird in anyway, however the yardage gap might be glaringly huge between driver and 2 hybrid. What is it about your 3 metal that has got you all messed up? You could always go 4 metal with shorter shaft and see if that works.”

Entire Thread: “Interesting clubs at top of bag”

If you aren’t a member, join us in the GolfWRX forums today!

Equipment

Members of the Mini Driver Club – GolfWRXers discuss

Published

12 hours ago

Jun 3, 2026

Will Schube

In our forums, one user has gone searching for fellow users of a mini driver. In a post, @TightFade asked for other mini driver users to chime in with their weapon of choice, the reason for employing a mini, and what club follows it in the bag.

@TightFade asked:

“What mini are you playing? What spot in the bag did it take over? What’s the next club after it? For me: Elyte mini 13.5. Replacing 3w. Next up club looks like it’ll be 5w.”

Our members in the forum have been sharing their own bag setups featuring the mini driver, and the various reasons they purchased one in the first place. Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

RCGA: “Ping G430 Max 12* ‘Thriver.’ Next club is a 4w and 2i (I play a weird course).”
JMB3: “R7 at 12.75 with Diamana BB 63s. 3w replacement. Next Club: Elyte Ti 5w at 17*.”
ColdOkieGolf: “R7 15.5 turned down to 13.5 It replaces the 3w. I found it surprisingly easy to hit off the deck, and it’s very rare that I need or want to hit something beyond 250 from the fairway, so next club is my 7w.”
ChaosTheory: “I’m sub-90 MPH with driver. But I’m able to hit DOD. I have been wanting something like the R7 15.5, so I just ordered one. I have a spot in the bag so nothing has to go. But I could see it replacing my trusty 4 wood, which I never use for approach shots. Just tee shots and lay ups. If I drop the 4 wood, I will turn my 7 wood down to ~20 degrees and will have good gaps. I recently tried a thriver build: 12 degree driver turned to 14, with a heavier 44 inch shaft and added head weight. I hit it great. Very accurate and not overly high, but the problem was that it sometimes went as far as a typical drive. And that’s not what I needed. So I will probably turn the 15.5 up to 16.5 or even 17.5. It’s all theoretical at this point. ?”

Entire Thread: “Members of the Mini Driver Club…Check In.”

If you aren’t a member, join us in the GolfWRX forums today!

Whats in the Bag

Chris Gotterup WITB 2026 (June)

Published

12 hours ago

Jun 3, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

Chris Gotterup had >14 clubs in his bag when photographed prior to the Memorial Tournament.

Drivers: TaylorMade Qi4D (8 degrees), Ping G440 LST (9 degrees @8), Ping G440 LST (7.5 degrees)
Shafts: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Grey 6.5 TX 70 g, Project X HZRDUS T1100 Handcrafted 6.5 TX 70 g, Project X HZRDUS Smoke Grey 6.5 TX 70 g