Texas Children's Houston Open

Memorial Park Golf Course



The Loop

How he hit that: Martin Kaymer's new old swing

May 12, 2014

Martin Kaymer's 28-foot par-saving putt on the island 17th Sunday night was the big, obvious choice for "most important" shot of the day, because it let him keep his one-shot lead over Jim Furyk with the treacherous 18th left to play. But it was what Kaymer was able to do Thursday -- when he tied the course record with a 63 -- and off the tee on the last hole Sunday with water threatening down the entire left side of the hole that proved he's back to the form that made him world No. 1 in 2011.

Kaymer's instructor rigged up the simple aid with a piece of elastic and a tennis ball, and the drill is a great one for any player to try. "A lot of players start at address with the space between the elbows at about five or six inches apart, but when they get to the top of the backswing the right elbow flies up and that space becomes 12 or 15 inches," says Parada. "To get down to the ball in a reasonable position to hit it, that gap has to reduce back to what it was, and that's a hard thing to do consistently. The ball drill helps you feel one thing instead of thinking about the geometry of elbow position, swing plane or any or any other part of the physical motion."