447: The Wicked Smart Mailbag Pt. 2: Answering 10 Listener Q's

November 25, 2025·38 min·3 clips

Bryce Cope's simple tip about club positioning transformed Michael's ball-striking in just weeks.

This episode of Wicked Smart Golf is a mailbag Q&A where host Michael Leonard answers ten listener-submitted questions about golf improvement, mental game, and life balance. Leonard, a golfer and author focused on strategy over swing mechanics, shares personal updates and practical advice drawn from his own experiences and past podcast guests. He begins by emphasizing the perpetual importance of fundamentals, referencing PGA Tour coaches and a specific tip from instructor Bryce Cope about aligning the club's butt end with a belt loop. Leonard discusses his use of the Tour Tempo app for swing rhythm and shares a green-reading strategy from his book, which includes a drill from Dr. Joseph Parent involving a phone to practice break. A question about balancing golf with a non-golfing spouse leads Leonard to explain his philosophy of intentional scheduling and narrowing his social circle to focus on family, business, fitness, and golf. For mental cues, he highlights the power of pre-shot routines and clear target selection, crediting insights from Dr. Izzy Justice's book "Your Brain Swings Every Club." Leonard recounts his own 2024 driver slump, detailing how a cracked clubhead, poor tempo, and a strong grip contributed to his issues, which he resolved by reviewing old swing videos and refocusing on fundamentals. He connects confidence to discipline and goal-setting, referencing advice from guest James Berry about seeking guidance only from those you'd trade places with. Regarding tournament etiquette for newcomers, Leonard identifies three key annoyances: lack of situational awareness, slow play, and excessive whining about course conditions. To reduce driver dispersion, he suggests a practice drill from James Berry that involves aiming at progressively narrower targets between two trees on a range. The most surprising insight is Leonard's admission that he intentionally reduced his friend group by about 85% over seven years to prioritize his core focuses. He reveals that even after a strong year, he experienced pre-tournament doubts about being the "worst golfer ever," which he managed through journaling. A memorable technical tip involves using the shadow of your phone on a putting green to train yourself to play more break on putts. Leonard shares the personal detail of recently adopting a seven-year-old corgi named Fiona after the loss of his previous dog, Munchie. The tone is casual, conversational, and confessional, as Leonard blends instructional advice with personal anecdotes and life updates. The style is educational and motivational, framed around direct listener questions without a rigid interview structure. This episode would appeal to amateur golfers seeking practical, non-technical strategies to lower their scores and navigate the mental challenges of the game. Listeners interested in balancing golf with other life responsibilities would find the scheduling and relationship advice particularly useful. Those who prefer highly produced, narrative-driven podcasts or are solely interested in professional tour news might want to skip this more informal, advice-focused installment.

As heard by us

A survey-driven mailbag that keeps the focus on clear targets, repeatable routines, and steady course management.

Michael Leonard leans on a survey-driven mailbag to make a plain case for better golf without asking anyone to rebuild a swing. The episode starts with pre-shot routine and target choice, then widens into course management through Decade Golf.

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Why you'd press play

You want practical golf advice you can use before your next tee time, without changing your swing.

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