Before I talk about this week’s Honda winner, Y.E. Yang, I wanted to comment about something I saw at the previous week’s Mayakoba Golf Classic at Riviera Maya – Cancun. I happened to be working that event for Golf Channel, and watched in awe as eventual winner Mark Wilson sank one big putt after another in the middle of his final round. He made a 20-footer for par on No. 8, a 25-footer for birdie on No. 9, another 20-footer for par on 10, and an 8-footer for par on 11. For the week, Wilson averaged 27.8 putts per round and 1.667 putts per GIR, ranking 4th overall.
 
Wilson, a two-time winner on the PGA Tour, has a magnificent tempo to his stroke, and he just so happens to putt with his left hand low. I don’t think this is a coincidence. Let me explain. When you putt left-hand low, it naturally forces more weight onto your front foot, providing better stability. It also helps square your shoulders at address so the putterhead travels more down the line through the stroke, instead of cutting across the ball. You almost never see a left-hand low putter with their shoulders open. What I also like about this technique is that it promotes a steadier head throughout the stroke and puts more forward lean on the shaft, so the ball rolls truer (end over end) coming off the face.
 
Do I recommend that everyone switch to left-hand low? No. You've got to go with what gives you the best results. But before you switch to a belly putter or long putter make sure you try this method first. Players with good technique generally have outstanding tempo, and putting left-hand low promotes the proper technique.

Nursing a one-shot lead on the 72nd hole of regulation in Sunday’s Honda Classic, Y.E. Yang laid up on the par-5 but still faced a nail-biting approach shot into a green surrounded by water. Yang hit his approach farther from the flag than he intended, but still found dry land and two-putted from 50 feet for his first victory on the PGA Tour.
 
Water is everywhere on PGA National’s Champion Course (26 water hazards in all), and will make even the best players in the world a little squeamish. More often than not, however, they manage to keep the ball safe. The average golfer does not. The mere presence of water is hazardous to their health. Here are a few tips designed to keep your ball dry:
 
No. 1, remove the word “don’t” from your vocabulary. If your last thought before taking the club back is, “I don’t want to go left” or “I don’t want to miss short,” then guess what, you’re probably going to wind up left or short, and in the drink. Acknowledge the possibility that you “can” hit a good shot, and go about the business of executing that shot. Always make your last thought a positive one.
 
Secondly, pick the highest target you can. The farther up a tree you look the less likely you are to see water. If the flag is the highest target you can shoot for, focus on the top of the stick, not the bottom. When you’re on the driving range, make it a practice to pick out high targets.
 
And finally, make sure you complete both sides of your swing. Most nervous swings result in an incomplete backswing or follow-through and a wet ball. Swing back and through all the way and you have a much better chance of making solid contact.

Another thought on Ogilvy’s swing: He does not take a divot with his irons; the clubhead skims the turf. This contrasts to say, Tiger Woods, and most other PGA Tour players, who cut a nice-sized pelt with their irons. Ogilvy picks the ball fairly clean because he plays from an open-clubface position at the top of his backswing. In order for him to hit the ball straight, he has to shallow out his path on the downswing. That shallow path is what creates little to no divot.
 
Most amateurs who play from an open-face position slice the ball, because their downswing path is too steep and from the outside and they can’t square the face. A more shallow approach will promote a freer release and less sidespin.

Geoff Ogilvy certainly took a step up in class when he captured his second WGC-Accenture Match Play championship in four years on Sunday. No longer can the 31-year-old Australian be considered an after thought at The Masters or any of the majors, because when you mention the elite players in the game behind Tiger Woods, he’s right in the mix. The guy has tremendous tempo and poise, an unbelievable short game (which was evident at Winged Foot a few years back), and he can putt.
 
He also flights his irons very high, which is what allows him to hold the greens and is why I think he’ll be a contender at Augusta. In order to hit the ball high, Ogilvy gets the shaft of the club to follow through high after impact. His elbows fold and his wrists rehinge very quickly, which throws the ball up in the air on a higher trajectory. Try it the next time you need to produce a high approach shot. As you swing through impact, focus on following through high with the shaft perpendicular to the ground. This will encourage the left elbow to fold and your wrists to hinge upward, adding loft to the club and producing a shot that flies higher and lands softer.

What a roller-coaster ride of a week it was for Phil Mickelson! After an opening-round 63, Lefty yo-yoed back and forth with rounds of 72, 62 and 72 on the weekend, avoiding a near-collapse on Sunday with two late birdies to rally past Steve Stricker and win the Northern Trust Open. The inconsistency we witnessed from Mickelson was typical of a player undergoing significant changes in their golf swing. We saw times when Mickelson was confident and hitting fairways, and other times when he wasn’t so comfortable and spraying the ball all over Riviera. We even saw these variations mid-round on Sunday, when Mickelson seemed to figure out what was ailing his swing with a few holes to go.
 
Making swing changes is a process, and it takes time. Swing coach Butch Harmon is trying to get Mickelson to set up with his hips and shoulders more square to the target at address, so he’s less likely to spin them open at impact. That’s why you often see that big pull-hook of Mickelson’s or a weak slice, because his path gets too out-to-in. Mickelson wants to hit a release cut, and the more he’s able to delay his hips and shoulders—especially his shoulders--on the downswing, the easier it is for him to execute that shot. If those shoulders open too quickly, he has to try and save the shot with his hands and that leads to some big misses.
 
One thing I really like about Butch is that he fixes things in the preswing, before the club starts moving. That’s a good tip for the average golfer. Most people assume their swing is at fault when something goes wrong, instead of taking the time to see if they’re in the correct positions at address. If you’re struggling with a slice or a severe out-to-in path, as Mickelson has on occasion, make sure your shoulders are parallel to your feet, knees and hips at address, and the ball is opposite your lead armpit. (Many amateurs play the ball too far forward, which encourages the shoulders to be open at impact.) Also make sure to place your right hand on the club from underneath the shaft, which promotes a stronger grip.
 
One final thought for any slicers out there: To keep your shoulders from spinning open, swing your back to the target and keep it facing the target for as long as possible on the downswing. The longer you keep your back to the target, the more likely you are to swing the clubhead on the correct path (inside-out) and release the club.

Like everyone else, I was thrilled to death to learn of Tiger’s decision yesterday that he would be playing in next week’s WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. Was I surprised he picked the match play event for his return from knee surgery? Not really. He does have a relationship with title sponsor Accenture, but Tiger is clearly much smarter than that. I mean, when has the guy ever made a bad decision?
 
I think it was more a case of Tiger being ready to play again in his mind. The WGC event will be a little less grueling initially (which is not to say it can’t become grueling later on if he winds up playing seven matches), because you’re not always having to play out every match or hole. He could win his first match Wednesday in 14 holes. The other thing is that if he does make it all the way to Sunday and win, it’s like playing two tournaments. Add that to Doral and Bay Hill and he’ll be well-prepped heading into Augusta.
 
A lot of people have asked me if I think Tiger will have to make any adjustments to his swing to take the pressure off his surgically repaired left knee, or if he’ll be the same player after his nine-month hiatus from competition. First of all, you can’t make the assumption that he has to radically change anything in his swing. He could have hurt his knee a lot of different ways (the report is he tore his ACL running in the summer of 2007), not just playing golf. Also, Tiger made sure he took enough time to get his knee rehabbed, and then get his game in shape. I worked with a guy, Sean Cain, who had a similar surgery and once his knee was rehabbed, he was out playing golf again. He didn’t care what he shot, he was just happy to be on the course. Tiger’s knee could have been fully healed three months ago, but he took his time and made sure his game was ready.
 
Will he win next week? Why not? The thing about Tiger is that he’s always over-performing. He ALWAYS makes the putt on No. 18. What would make anyone think that he wouldn’t over-perform next week? It wouldn’t be surprised if he won his first four tournaments out.
 
The guy is a beast and I think he’s going to continue to play like a beast. I think he’s been playing these guys with a bum knee for a lot longer than people think. This guy is just a phenomenal athlete—not just a great golfer, but a tremendous athlete.

Forty years ago, being tall was viewed as a big disadvantage on the PGA Tour because players didn’t have access to club-fitting systems; they had to adjust to their clubs. Players had to manufacture a swing to create the preferred trajectory or ball flight they desired. Nowadays, manufacturers can accommodate the swings of all players, whether they stand 5-foot-8 or 6-foot-4, like this weekend’s AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am champion Dustin Johnson.
 
Players such as Johnson, Davis Love III, Phil Mickelson and Bubba Watson now hold an advantage because of their height, especially off the tee, since they can make the clubhead travel on a longer, wider arc. Since it travels a greater distance, there’s more time to make the club go faster. That’s why Johnson is able to generate ball speeds of 190 miles per hour.
 
Most tall golfers I know can’t dream of producing that kind of clubhead speed and power because they’re not properly fitted for their clubs. In most cases, they’re buying their clubs off the rack. Tall people everywhere: If you want to hit longer shots with greater consistency then you MUST go see your local PGA professional and get fit for a set of clubs (and that includes your driver!). The second you have to accommodate the club to your height and swing, you lose your advantage.
 
When you address the ball, you should be able to stand tall with your back relatively straight and your arms relaxed, hanging under your shoulders. If you find that you have to bend over a lot to reach the ball, or your arms are outstretched and stiff, then your clubs are too short for you. Once you’re fit into a set of clubs that suits your height and swing, then you’ll be able to get that extra width and distance you’ve been expecting.

Having watched Michelle Wie this weekend, I see a notable improvement in her posture from the previous few years. She’s standing much taller at address, which allows her to swing her arms on a higher, more efficient plane. There’s much more freedom and athleticism to her swing than before, which leads to more control – she’s not having to manipulate the club as much on the downswing – consistency and clubhead speed. Michelle’s posture had become too bent over in recent years and, as a result, the club would often get trapped behind her. She had to work twice as hard to get her arms and the club back on plane on the downswing. Now, with her posture taller again (think “back straight” at address), Wie can swing her arms freely again and generate the kind of power that once awed us all when she was a 13-year-old.