We’re talking process
July 3, 2026
At the June 21 press conference following Wyndham Clark’s 2026 U.S. Open triumph, a reporter asked about the phrase “good process” Clark’s caddie said before every shot. TV broadcast microphones had often picked it up during the round.
Clark said, “My process is picking the correct club, trusting that club, being assertive, having my intermediate target, and then pull the trigger, and have it be very kind of simple and lack of clutter in my brain. So, every time he reminded me that I get back into the shot rather than maybe the moment or that I just made a bogey or someone else made birdies. So, it gets me back into, hey, this is what I do to hit a good shot.”
The caddie triggered Clark’s pre-shot routine, whose elements are otherwise familiar to and recommended by experienced golfers.
The only difference is that Clark’s caddie initiated the process. We can use a similar trigger phrase in our minds – where no one else can hear it, and we are our own caddie.
Warmup sticks
Mimi Rhodes and her caddie at the ShopRite
I watched Mimi Rhodes of Bath, England warm up with a pair of alignment sticks before her May 31 start at the 2026 ShopRite LPGA powered by Wakefern.
She set them in a cross pattern with her feet straddling the perpendicular stick, the horizontal one about two feet from her toes, and the ball set about 2 inches from the perpendicular stick’s end. Most of Rhodes’ iron shots were clean picks – she took almost no turf, and she kept her feet in the same spot as she hit.
Rhodes kept both sticks in place for iron and hybrid shots, removing the perpendicular one when she hit her fairway woods and driver. She hit her 3-woods with a tight-little draw. Her driver tended to be either dead straight or a tight draw of four to five yards at most.
Amateurs should try this with their own sticks.
Hollerback going to U.S. Junior Amateur
Jake Hollerback
Congratulations to Jake Hollerback of Sussex Central High School for earning the chance to play the U.S. Junior Amateur at Saucon Valley CC in Bethlehem, PA.
The 2025 DIAA boys’ champion shot a 2-under-par 70 June 28 in a qualifying round at New Jersey National Golf Club in Basking Ridge.
His second-place finish put him in the Junior Amateur, scheduled for July 20-25.
Shot Scope
With thousands of products displayed throughout the 1 million square feet of the 2026 PGA Show convention floor, it is normally a challenge to pick out which one caused the most buzz.
Not this time. Shot Scope’s LM1 portable launch monitor was a clear buzz-maker.
Shot Scope account manager Ryan Grant said proudly, “It’s the talk of the show,” when we met at the Scottish company’s booth.
He wasn’t bragging. I interviewed him late Thursday afternoon when the Show crowd typically thins out, but not where we stood.
The LM1 launched formally in late March and provides useful shot tracking information in an inexpensive package. Grant said it measures five parameters with no more than a 2% error rate – ball speed, club speed, carry distance, total distance, and the smash factor, which measures how close your club impact was to being dead center perfect.
For experienced golfers, their clubs’ carry distance number is highly useful, both for club gapping and course management.
Set up is straightforward. Place the device about five feet from the ball and looking down the line. The data it collects can be downloaded to the Shot Scope app for further analysis.
The LM1 is designed for indoor or outdoor use, rated as rain-ready in case of an unexpected shower.
The price is attractive at only $199.99 SRP. Grant said there are no subscription fees to add to ownership costs over time. Access to Shot Scope’s app is also free.
Your friendly neighborhood club professional would want to see additional parameters from a more complex device to fine tune either instruction or club fitting. As a baseline measuring device, however, and especially for the price, the LM1 is a great entry point to learn how a launch monitor can help your game.
Local club competition results
The Mulligan’s Pointe Ladies played a 5 Clubs game June 30.
Susan Brady won the first division, with M. L. York in second and Karen Feuchtenberger in third.
Janece Hausch won the second division, followed by Donna Dolce in second and Chris Bielanda in third.
The Kings Creek CC 9-Hole LGA League played a 2 Best Balls of 4 game June 25.
Chris Piasecki, Yona Zucker, Jennifer Liner, and Marie Murray won the first flight. Marni Goldberg, Patricia Magee, and Allison Kaye finished second.
Darci Whitehead, Kara Bourdreau, Terri O’Hara, and Juanita Wilson won the second flight. Sandy Neverett, Deborah Chase, Tracy Gordon, and Donna Romer took the second spot.
The Kings Creek CC 18-Hole LGA League played their 2 Best Balls of 4 game the same day.
Diane Herndon, Judy Wetzel, Donal Renninger, and Ana Ditel won first place. Wendy Bunce, Donna Deely, Cynthia Robinson, and Maggie Whall finished second.