Golf Instruction & Help

Four Quick Fixes To Salvage A Bad Round

jack — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 22:32:04 +0000

“Band-aids” are a necessary part of the game—especially if you want to keep your golf handicap low. Band-aids are quick on-course fixes that correct swing flaws. They’re not permanent solutions. Designed to work only one day, band-aids help you salvage a bad day on the course. They also help tide you over until you can take some golf lessons to correct your problems. Once the round is over, you can consult your teaching pro or review your library of golf tips to see what you should change.

When weekend golfers have a bad day, the cause is often found either in their set-up, their take away, or at the top of their swing. For example, weekend golfers often flex their knees too much when setting up to hit the ball. This can play havoc with your swing. Fixing set up flaws on-course can turn what could become a bad day into a not so bad day. The key is finding the flaw first, as I say in my golf instructions sessions. Once you’ve done that, you can then make the proper adjustments.

Below are the key checkpoints to review on bad days:

Shoulders And Hips
To increase the chance of a solid, on-line shot, you must set up with feet, knees, and shoulder parallel to the target line. It’s easy to allow the shoulders to rotate open at address when you’re having a bad day. Take one of your long irons from your bag and line up the shaft at a target, with the butt end positioned where you would normally place a ball. Align your body parallel to the club. If this position doesn’t feel right, then you may need to work on aim and alignment.

Posture
Posture errors are not only uncomfortable, they are disastrous to your swing. Check your posture to make sure you’re in a balanced and athletic position. Set up to the ball with your feet together and you legs straight. Tilt from your hips allowing your arms to hang naturally from your side, and set the club behind the ball. Next, set your feet apart (about 6 inches) and flex your knees slightly. You should feel balanced. Repeat the drill and make a few swings. Do the same but hit some balls. If you make solid contact this way, this is your drill for the day.

The Takeaway
On bad days there’s a good chance your backswing’s is a little too far inside, forcing an over-the-top, outside-in swing. That’s not good. To regain the sense of what a good take away feels like, set up with the butt of a long iron in your stomach and choke down on the shaft. While maintaining your spine tilt, turn your hips and swing the club back until it reaches about eight o’clock. From there hinge the wrists, so that the club points down the target line. Do this a few times, then hit some balls. If your ball striking improves, do a few of these stomach drills before each shot.

Top Of The Swing
If your swing feels out of control at the top, you may be reverse pivoting or losing control at the top. Neither flaw is good. The fix: Grab two irons and make some swings holding the club together. During these swings make sure your front shoulder turns behind the ball and over your back thigh. If this is hard to do, you may be sliding your hips instead of turning them. Next, assume your set up, take one of the clubs and place it across your chest, and make some mock backswing. If this feels odd, then your pivot was your problem. Continue making mock swings with your eye toward turning your left shoulder behind the ball.

No one wants to have a bad day on the course. But it happens. The key to overcoming bad days—and maintaining a low golf handicap—is determining what needs adjusting and then applying quick on-course fixes. Weekend golfers, as I’ve learned in my golf lessons, tend to form flaws in their postures and backswing a lot. These are the most logical places to start when finding and fixing flaws. If you still can’t get back on track after doing this, then play simple high percentage shots. Afterwards, seek out your teaching pro as soon as possible. He or she will help you correct your swing flaws with some quick golf tips.

Jack Moorehouse is the author of the best-selling book “How To Break 80 And Shoot Like The Pros.” He is NOT a golf pro, rather a working man that has helped thousands of golfers from all seven continents lower their handicap immediately. He has a free weekly newsletter with the latest golf tips, golf lessons and golf instruction.

Golf Tips and Instructions 01/28/10

jack — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 22:30:39 +0000

In this issue we’ll discuss…

1) Pitch It Close Every Time
2) Punch It Out From The Trees
3) Question of the Week – Lag Putting Is Your Best Option On Long Putts
4) Article – Four Quick Fixes To Salvage A Bad Round
5) Article – Five Golf Tips That Help You Set Up For Power

1) Pitch It Close Every Time

Forget about those booming drives. If you can’t pitch it close, you’ll never go low. Ask any pro. But some weekend golfers hit short pitches because they don’t know how to control the distance of their shots. So from 30 yards, they’re vulnerable. If your pitch shots fall short or fly too long, you maybe using the same swing for every pitch or you consider the pitch swing the same as a small full swing. Neither method works.

Below is an alternative to these methods:

1. Set the club early in the backswing
2. Then turn all the way through
3. Hold your finish at backswing height
4. Open the face for high pitches
5. Close the face for lower pitches

The set and hold method encourages consistent contact and consistent distance control—exactly what you need to pitch it close. Follow these steps:

Take the club back as you normally do, but hinge your wrists early in the process. For a 30-yard pitch, that’s about hip high. Once you’ve done that, commit to accelerating through the ball. Not accelerating through the ball is a common pitching mistake. Keep the angle between the clubshaft and your front forearm. Then, use your body to do the rest.

For a high pitch shot, play the ball forward in your stance and open the clubface the appropriate distance. Aim a few feet to the left of your target (right for left-handers).For a lower pitch shot, play the ball toward your back foot and close the clubface down a few degrees. Aim a few feet to the right of your target.

The set and hold technique gives you a consistent, predictable shot. You don’t need to release or use a lot of arms. Practice the shot from about 30 yards out and before you know it, you’ll be pitching it close almost every time.

2) Punch It Out From The Trees

Here’s the situation: You’ve just shanked one deep into the trees. There’s a gap on a line with the green, with just enough room to squeeze through without too much risk. But you’ll need to hit a shot that flies low to avoid the overhanging branches, doesn’t spin so it won’t rise, and releases once it hits the fairway.

Here are five keys to hitting this shot:

1. Select a club you have confidence in
2. Play the ball just back of center
3. Take a short flat backswing
4. Make sure your left wrist faces the ground
5. Finish with the club pointing left of target

Keep one thing in mind when sizing up this shot. The farther the gap is from you, the wider it must be. Otherwise, you won’t make it through. Every yard the ball moves it will go offline.

Select a club you have confidence in. Some players use a long iron. Others, use a hybrid. Use whichever club you can control the best, since you’ll need to stay beneath the overhang. Playing the ball just back of center in your stance will help keep the ball low.

To reduce spin, make a short flat backswing. Keep the shaft below your right shoulder (left for left-handers) when you go back. And try to swing the club a little behind you. To make it run once it hits the fairway, make an aggressive release. The back of your left wrist should face the ground, with the club pointing left of your target (right for right-handers).

Actually, you can use this shot whenever you need to keep the ball low and you want to run it to your target. It’s also an option when you slice everything you hit. It will keep the ball straight and low.

3) Question of the Week – Lag Putting Is Your Best Option On Long Putts

Q. Hi Jack. My question is on controlling long putts. I always seem to leave it way too short and go far too long on these putts, sometimes right over the hole. My normal putt is pretty compact and works out ok for most putts within 10 feet. But I was recently putting for eagle on a par 5, and ended up barely making par. I’m constantly 3-putting or more when I’m over 10 feet. It’s truly frustrating.

Thanks for you input!
Eddie Rosario
Dominican Republic

A. Thanks for the question, Eddie. With a 20- to 40-foot putt, lag putting is your best option. It reduces the chances of three-putting and eliminates the pressure of trying to sink the putt.

Start by stepping off the distance to the hole to get a good idea of how long the putt really is. Then, follow your normal putting routine. When taking your practice strokes, face the target. It gives you a feel for the type of stroke you’ll need for the putt. Standing taller in your stance encourages a long, smooth stroke.

Also, visualize a three-foot ring around the hole. Aim for the ring and take a nice easy stroke. Make sure your follow-through equals your takeaway. Your goal is to get the ball within the three-foot circle, which is easier than trying to sink the putt. This leaves you with a highly makeable putt, if you’re successful.

Speed and distance control are also keys to long putting. Your stroke’s tempo is usually the culprit when speed is off. That’s because the stroke’s pace controls the ball’s speed. Practicing with a metronome helps evens out your stroke in terms of beat and length, which in turn improves pace.

To improve distance control, practice fringe putting. Start at the fringe on one side of the green. Try putting the ball as close to the opposite fringe as possible with out touching it. Also, try putting with your eyes closed. Blind putting forces you to visualize the stroke needed to sink the putt. It also helps speed and distance control. Finally, putt with confidence. It’s the single biggest factor in putting.

If you’ve got a golf question you’d like answered, send an email to us at questions@howtobreak80.com and we’ll review it. I can’t guarantee that we’ll use it but if we do, we’ll make sure to include your name and where you’re from.
If you want to truly discover the secrets of shooting like the Pros and creating a more reliable and consistent swing, check out: http://www.HowToBreak80.com

Also, for past issues of this newsletter and some of my most recent articles, visit our blog at www.HowToBreak80.com/blog

Here are some of my recent articles:

4) Article – Four Quick Fixes To Salvage A Bad Round
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/four-quick-fixes-to-salvage-a-bad-round.php

5) Article – Five Golf Tips That Help You Set Up For Power
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/five-golf-tips-that-help-you-set-up-for-power.php

Until next time,

Go Low!

Jack

P.S. Feel free to share this newsletter with family and friends. If you would like to subscribe to this newsletter, go to http://www.howtobreak80.com/newsletter.htm
About the Author

Jack Moorehouse is the author of the best-selling book “How To Break 80 and Shoot Like the Pros!”. He is NOT a golf pro, rather a working man that has helped thousands of golfers from all seven continents lower their handicaps quickly. His free weekly newsletter goes out to thousands of golfers worldwide and provides the latest golf tips, strategies, techniques and instruction on how to improve your golf game.

The Toughest Shot In Golf

jack — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 19:45:27 +0000

By Jack Moorehouse

Ever wonder what’s the toughest shot in golf? Candidates abound. There’s the restricted swing, the controlled fade, and the feet inside/ball outside fairway bunker shot, as well as the ball in the rough on an upslope, the double breaking putt, and the traditional flop shot. Truth is, every one has his or her own set of tough shots. You may have covered them in golf lessons or read about them in golf tips, but you still can’t hit them. They intimidate you and add strokes to your golf handicap. Below are my candidates for the five toughest shots in golf. See if you agree.

Some players consider driver off the deck the toughest shot in golf. Many golfers never use this shot. The just read about it in golf tips. But in the right situation, it can help. The problem is your driver has the least amount of loft, so it’s hard getting the ball in the air. If you hit up on the ball, you’ll probably mis-hit. The only way to get the ball in the air is to cut the shot. Play the ball off your front heel and aim 15 yards left of your target (right for left-handers). Then swing across the ball, instead of down on it. Feel like you’re pulling your right hand toward you’re left hip on the way down.

The Plugged Bunker Lie
Other players consider the plugged bunker lie the toughest shot in golf. It’s certainly a candidate. Since you’re ball is buried in the sand, you can’t hit the typical sand blast you learned in golf lessons. There’s too much sand. Instead, come down hard into the impact zone. You should feel like you’re jamming the heel of the club into the bunker with the toe pointed at the sky. If you keep your hands low to the ground through impact, you’ll create an explosion big enough to unplug the ball and escape the bunker.

Then there’s the severe downslope from the rough. The hill’s slope moves the bottom of your swing arc back, making it easy to catch the ball fat or thin. The rough compounds any errors you make. Set your body level with the lie by tilting your torso to the left (right for left-handers) until your front shoulder sits lower than your back shoulder. Now swing. Don’t hang back to fight the pull of gravity. Doing that moves your swing arc back even farther and makes missing the ball a real possibility. This shot isn’t always addressed in golf instruction sessions, but it’s so tough maybe it should be.

One of Two Bunker Shots
For my money, the toughest shot in golf comes down to one of two shots. The bunker blast from a downhill lie is one. You have to hit the ball high to get it out of the bunker, which is difficult because the slope negates the club’s loft. The secret to hitting this shot is to take a wider stance than normal for balance and then align your shoulders with the slope. Now open your clubface and make your normal bunker swing. Don’t try to swing too hard or get under the ball too much. The ball will come out lower and with extra roll.

My other candidate for the toughest shot in golf is the feet outside, ball inside bunker shot. This is one tough shot, not only for weekend golfers but also for pro players. Almost anything can happen. Spread your feet wider than shoulder width and position the ball just inside your front foot. Also, bend your knees and rear end down more, so you can get down to the ball. Hinge your wrists quickly when you swing and keep your body quiet for balance. The steeper the slope the more the ball will go right (left for left-handers).

What matters here isn’t which shot is the toughest, but how you handle a tough shot. Don’t let it intimidate you. When it does, you tense up and forget the keys to hitting the shot correctly. Next time you face a tough shot, relax. Run through the keys you learned in golf lessons or read about in golf tips, and then swing away. And remember, you don’t always have to put the ball a foot from the cup. Be realistic with your expectations. You’ll conquer more tough shots that way and knock strokes off your golf handicap in the process.

Designing The Perfect Golf Swing

jack — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 19:44:32 +0000

By Jack Moorehouse

Most of us bring our A games to the course about 10 percent of the time. The rest of the time we bring our B, C, or D games. Sometimes, we even bring our F games. This variation in games is based on inconsistency. We’re inconsistent because most of us learn our swings through trial and error, not by taking private golf lessons or attending group golf instruction sessions. As a result, our swings are a hodgepodge of adjustments that make consistency elusive and kill our golf handicaps.

But what if you could design the perfect golf swing—one that encourages consistency. What would it look like? Of course, it would have to be flexible, so it could be adjusted to your body type and to your other attributes, like flexibility and height. But the swing would still contain certain key elements that would promote consistency. Not long ago I read an article by a noted golf instructor who addressed this issue. Her are the elements of his perfect swing.

Fade Over Draw
The ideal shot shape is the fade. We’re not talking slice. A fade curves just at the end of its flight, falling softly to the right only a few feet. A slice has a much more violent curve to it. It starts curving much earlier because it has so much sidespin. The advantage here, according to the instructor, is that a fade is easier to hit under pressure. You can hold onto your release a little longer and still get a decent shot. That compensates for our natural tendency to hold onto the club a little longer under pressure.

Low To High
The average golfer plays the swing from high to low. In other words, before the golfer’s hands drop down into the slot of the swing, his shoulder and chest spin out toward the ball. This early upper body rotation forces a steep, cut-across path. Other golfers do the opposite. They go from low to high, keeping their backs to the rotation while the hands drop toward the back foot. It’s not until the hands drop to waist high that the majority of rotation takes place. It’s this “late” turn that carries the hands into a good position.

Passive Over Active
Timing, as I tell students in my golf lessons, is a poor foundation on which to build your swing. But that’s what happens when your hands are active instead of passive in the swing. Active hands try to open or close the clubface. Passive hands don’t try to manipulate the club at all. With a passive release, the hands are responders, not initiators. It’s the lower body that sets up the release of the angles of power, removing the need for conscious timing. Thus, there’s no need to time the release because the move is timed for you by the correct use of your lower body—a much easier process under pressure.

Right Before Left
There are three “miss patterns” in golf: (1) You know exactly where the ball is going; (2) you know where the ball isn’t going (Jack Nicklaus used this pattern); and (3) you’re unsure where the ball is going (majority of golfers). The first two you can count on. The third has a variable miss pattern—both right and left. So you don’t know where the ball is going. Right misses (left for left-handed golfers) are soft. They hang in the air. When you’re not playing well, you can go all day missing to the right.

Thin Before Fat
You can miss a ball either fat or thin. With a thin shot, the club contacts the ball at its equator. This is a better miss pattern because the ball goes almost as far as a normal shot, while the side spin provides a sliver of control when it lands. Fat shots, where the club hits the ground, are to be avoided at all costs. They not only cause major distance loss, but they also mess with your confidence. The pro’s thinking makes sense. Personally, I still favor the draw over the fade, if the draw is your natural shot. If the fade is your natural shot, then go with that. You’re more likely to revert to your natural shot under pressure anyway. But overall the approach is conducive to creating consistency in your swing. Once you have a consistent swing, you’re sure to knock strokes off your golf handicap.

Golf Tips and Instructions 01/22/10

jack — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 18:36:18 +0000

In this issue we’ll discuss…

Add Ten Yards To Your Irons
How To Make A Restricted Swing Shot
Question of the Week – Eliminating The Reverse Pivot
Article – Designing The Perfect Golf Swing
Article – The Toughest Shot In Golf

1) Add Ten Yards To Your Irons

How well do you hit your irons? If you rarely take a good divot, chunk the longer clubs or hit them thin, and/or leave your approach shots short, you’re leaking power. Swinging harder only drains more power from your swing. That’s because your arms outrace your body, the true seat of power in a golf swing. You must plug those power leaks in your iron swing to add yards to your swing:

Here are six keys to plugging those power leaks:

Maintain your head behind the ball
Assume a powerful back arm position
Keep the shaft is ahead club at impact
Keep hips and arms are in the same place
Make sure the back of your front hand faces the target
Transfer your weight to your forward foot

The key to hitting power irons is to arrive at impact with a descending blow. Unfortunately, some golfers swings are so flat, they can’t return the iron squarely to the ball at impact.

Here’s a drill that teaches you to generate good clubface-to-ball contact with your irons:

Stick an umbrella in the ground. Next, place a ball on the ground so that when you take your stance the heel of your back foot is about two feet from the umbrella. Swing back. If the club hits the umbrella, your swing is too flat. Take numerous practice swings until you’re sure you’ll miss the umbrella on the way up. Before you hit balls, move the umbrella back six to ten inches, so you won’t hit it on the way back down. But use it as a reminder. Move it back to its original position when practicing.

If your backswing path is flat, you can’t return the club squarely to the ball. You’ll hit weak irons no matter how fast or hard you swing. Work on the drills like the one described above to ingrained its fundamentals and plug the power leaks. Making solid contact consistently adds yards to your irons and cuts strokes from your scores.

2) How To Make A Restricted Swing Shot

You can hit a shot in the woods even on the best of days. When that happens, chances are good you’ve lost your ball, but not always. If you do find your ball, it may be lodged tightly up against the base of a tree. While you can make a full backswing, you can’t follow-through without slamming into the trunk. Knowing how to make a restricted swing can save you and your club.

Below are five keys to this shot:

Take a shoulder-width stance
Play the ball toward the middle
Hinge your wrist quickly
Power the club down with your arms
Pull back at impact

The secret to making this shot is not to slow your swing down, but to maintain your normal speed and take a smaller swing. That way you can pull your club back at impact.

Select a mid- or short iron for the shot. (A shorter club is easier to control and doesn’t travel as fast as a long iron.) Take a shoulder width stance, play the ball as close to the middle of your stance as possible. But if you must play the ball forward, that’s okay. Just place more weight on your front foot.

Take the club back by hinging your wrists quickly. Swing your hands back to hip height, then power the club down with your arms. Pull the club back the moment you make contact with the ball, almost as if the club were rebounding from the ball. Try to take a steep divot.

Many golfers slow their swings with this lie. That leads to mis-hits. Maintain your swing speed, take a shorter swing, and pull the club back at impact. This will save your hands and your club. If all goes well, you’ll find yourself back on the fairway in good position.

3) Question of the Week – Eliminating The Reverse Pivot

Q. Hi, Jack, Lately, I can’t seem to hit the ball with a lot of power. My friends tell me I’m making a reverse pivot when I swing. Can you tell me what that is and how to correct?

Marion Luig
Charlotte, NC

A. Thanks for the question, Marion. A reverse pivot results from poor weight transfer. Normally, you transfer weight to your back foot when swinging, then onto your front foot during the follow-through. With a reverse pivot, you do the opposite. This flaw constricts the proper turning of your body, costing you power and accuracy.

The reverse pivot stems from many things, including an obsession with keeping your head down and/or your left arm (right for left-handers) rigidly straight. Allowing your head to turn to the right (left for left-handers) slightly as you turn back helps. It encourages your spine to rotate and gets your weight moving in the right direction. Allowing your arm to bend slightly is okay, too.

This simple drill helps eliminate a reverse pivot: Adopt your address position. Place the club across the back of your shoulders. Make a slow turn, as if you were going to hit the ball. Set up and do it again. The club encourages you to move your head and spine a little as you turn. It also encourages better balance.

Do this drill as often as you can until you’ve ingrained the feeling. Try to remember the feeling when you go to the range or to the course. With practice, you’ll make solid contact and drive the ball.

===================================================
If you want to truly discover the secrets of shooting like the Pros and creating a more reliable and consistent swing, check out: http://www.HowToBreak80.com

Also, for past issues of this newsletter and some of my most recent articles, visit our blog at www.HowToBreak80.com/blog

Here are some of my recent articles:

4) Article – Designing The Perfect Golf Swing
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/designing-the-perfect-golf-swing.php

5) Article – The Toughest Shot In Golf
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/the-toughest-shot-in-golf.php

Until next time,

Go Low!

Jack

P.S. Feel free to share this newsletter with family and friends. If you would like to subscribe to this newsletter, go to http://www.howtobreak80.com/newsletter.htm
About the Author

Jack Moorehouse is the author of the best-selling book “How To Break 80 and Shoot Like the Pros!”. He is NOT a golf pro, rather a working man that has helped thousands of golfers from all seven continents lower their handicaps quickly. His free weekly newsletter goes out to thousands of golfers worldwide and provides the latest golf tips, strategies, techniques and instruction on how to improve your golf game.

Golf Tips and Instructions 01/13/10

jack — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 21:32:38 +0000

In this issue we’ll discuss…

1) Hit It Sweet From The Start
2) Recovering From Trouble
3) Question of the Week – Controlling Your Short-Game Backswing
4) Article – Hit It Longer And Straighter
5) Article – Take The Guess Work Out Of Pitching

1) Hit It Sweet From The Start

If you’re like many golfers, you can’t always get to the range before playing. Your schedule just doesn’t permit it. So you tend to feel stiff at the start of a round. And even when you do make the range, you may still feel tight on the first hole. Nonetheless, you hit a good first drive. You’re about 170 yards from the hole and in the fairway. Now what? Will you be able to hit an iron to the green? Below is an exercise that will prep you for the iron shot.

Here are the five keys to this exercise:

Take your address position

Cock the club head straight up

Take the club back by bending your wrists

Check for wrinkles in your wrist

Go back to address and swing

The exercise warms up your wrist hinge. If you hinge your wrists properly during your takeaway, chances are good you’ll start your swing smoothly.

Take your regular address position with your iron of choice. Cock the clubhead straight up and down until the shaft is just short of horizontal. Take the club back by bending your right wrist and bowing your left until the shaft is parrellel left of your target line (right for right-handers). (You should see wrinkles across the back of your right wrist.) Go back to your address position and hit the ball. Try to get your wrists in the same position as you did above.

The exercise takes only a few seconds, so you should be able execute it quickly before swinging. You can probably run through it while the other guys are hitting. If it’s done correctly, the exercise improves your rhythm and helps you hit it sweet from the start.

2) Recovering From Trouble

If you’re like some weekend golfers, you’re struggling to get rid of a slice. So why would you want to know how to hit one on-demand? That’s easy. It can save you strokes and help you make more pars. Let’s say you drive one off the right into the woods. Instead of punching out like you normally do, leaving you miles from the green, slicing it hard right gets your ball rolling on the fairway and puts you back in business.

Below are five keys to hitting a hard right-to-left slice:

1. Aim your body about 20 yards left of target
2. Point your club about 10 yards right of toe line
3. Turn your hands well to the left on the grip
4. Make your normal swing
5. Hold the clubface open through impact

To hit a hard slice when in trouble, you must make adjustments. At address, aim your body 20 yards left of target, point the clubface 10 yards to the right of your toe line, and turn your hands well to the left on your grip (right for left-handers). These adjustments add loft to your shot. To hit the ball your normal 7-iron distance, use your 4-iron.

Make your normal swing, but hold the clubface open through impact. When you block the clubface’s rotation like this, you create a glancing blow that puts sidespin on the ball. You know you’ve done it right if your clubface points to the sky in your follow-through.

This shot can get you out of trouble, but you must keep two things in mind. First, check your stance. The ball jumps hard right on contact, so you have to be angled correctly. Second, check the trees. This shot takes off much higher than your usual punch out, so look for overhanging branches.

Slicing off the tee is bad. But slicing from the trees can help you get back on track after a bad shot and save more pars.

3) Question of the Week – Controlling Your Short-Game Backswing

Q. Hi, Jack, I have a major problem controlling my backswing when I’m chipping or pitching. I can’t stop going back. When I do keep it short, I hit the ball so soft it just goes a little forward and in the wrong direction. Is there practice drill I can do to stop going back too far?

Thanking you in advance for your response.

Marie Holleran

A. Thanks, Marie. Dave Peltz is a short game guru. He has worked with many Tour players. and written several books on the short game. When it comes to pitching, he has his students do this: Visualize a clock in your heads, with 12:00 at the top. Take the club back to 7:30 for a short pitch. Take the club back to9:00 for a medium pitch. And take the club back to10:30 on a full pitch. Work on this in practice until you’ve ingrained the three swings.

Here’s a recommendation for chips: Put a ball where you normally position it for a chip shot. Put your golf bag (or something else) about a foot or so behind the ball. Practice your chipping. Take the club back almost as far as the bag, and then come forward. If you hit your bag on the way back, you’ve gone back too far.

When you chip, use this swing for all your shots. For distance, change clubs depending on the chip’s length. Use longer irons for longer chips and shorter irons for shorter chips. This approach simplifies your chipping decision.

Also, for past issues of this newsletter and some of my most recent articles, visit our blog at www.HowToBreak80.com/blog

Here are some of my recent articles:

4) Article – Hit It Longer And Straighter
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/hit-it-longer-and-straighter.php

5) Article – Take The Guess Work Out Of Pitching
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/take-the-guess-work-out-of-pitching.php

Until next time,

Go Low!

Jack

P.S. Feel free to share this newsletter with family and friends. If you would like to subscribe to this newsletter, go to http://www.howtobreak80.com/newsletter.htm
About the Author

Golf Tips On The Iron Swing

jack — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 21:29:31 +0000

Bombing one off the tee is sexy. There’s nothing like seeing a shot take off straight down the fairway, hang up in the air for what seems like an eternity, and hit the ground some 300 yards away. It’s a beautiful sight. But what good is a 300-yard drive if you can’t hit an accurate approach shot? It’s no good. Accurate approach shots lead to shorter putts, better scores, and lower golf handicaps.

The key to hitting accurate approach shots is executing the fundamentals during your iron swing—setup, takeaway, backswing/downswing, impact, and finish. How you execute the fundamentals during these phases determine how well you hit an iron. Some professionals that give golf instruction sessions include the transition from backswing to downswing as a separate phase. Making a smooth transition from your backswing to your downswing is critical. But in the interest of space, we’ve included it as part of the backswing.

Setup
There’s no reason not to start with a good setup. Flex at the knees, stand firmly on the balls of your feet, bend from your hips not your back, adopt a straight (but not rigid) back, and balance your weight evenly over both feet. Think “rock and roll” to remind you that feet serve as a rock through your backswing and roll through your downswing. And don’t overlook ball position. It’s never farther back than your sternum or farther forward than your left armpit.

Takeaway
It’s critical that you make a good takeaway. Watch golfers who have low golf handicaps. Most will have good takeaways. Some teachers use the 2-8-12-rule in their golf lessons. During the first two inches of your takeaway, take the club straight back. From the second inch to the eighth inch, take the club back some more, but don’t break your wrists. This is a natural continuation of your takeaway. From the eighth inch to the twelfth inch, start breaking your wrist. At this point, the club should be parallel to the ground and the target line. In the rough, you’ll need a slightly steeper takeaway.

Backswing
Shifting your weight to your back foot is crucial in your backswing. It enables you to make a good coil and prevents you from making a reverse pivot. So keep until your weight shifts to your back foot. Keep your hands away from your body. At the top of the swing, a straight left arm is ideal but a slightly bent elbow is also acceptable. Your head should be behind the ball.

Make a smooth transition to the downswing. From this position, you’re ready to turn toward the target. Allow your hands to drop underneath your head as you begin shifting toward your front foot. The club should be directly over your rear shoulder. You should be approaching the ball with a descending blow.

Impact
This is the moment of truth—as I tell students who attend my golf lessons. Good golfers know that at impact they need to achieve a “stacked” position to make solid contact. This position includes a full release of the wrists, a straight left arm (right for left-handers), most of your weight transferred to the front foot, and your hips open. Contrary to popular belief, the impact position isn’t the same as the setup position. With longer irons, allow for a slower wrist cock. This widens your swing and provides the flatter arc these clubs require.

Finish
Your finish tells you a lot about what’s going on during your swing. The correct finish ends with the bodyweight primarily on the front foot, the club behind you, and your head, chest, and belt buckle facing the target. You also should be balanced and able to hold that position indefinitely. From your finish position, you can tell two things: (1) if the majority of your weight has successfully shifted to your front foot, and (2) if your body has fully rotated without excessive sliding through the downswing, which will produce mis-hits.

Driving the ball is indeed sexy. But it’s only one phase of golf. If you’re serious about improving, you must master your irons, too. A 300-yard drive is worthless if you don’t follow up with an accurate approach shot. Use the golf tips we’ve provided above to hone your iron swing. It will help you hit more greens in regulation and chop strokes off your golf handicap.

Manufacturers Make Strides In Golf Shoes

jack — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 18:50:00 +0000

Good golf shoes are critical to playing well. They stabilize you, provide leverage against the turf, supply traction and protection, keep your feet dry, and provide comfort during a round of golf. It’s hard to hit with power or accuracy when you’re slipping and sliding all over the place, or your feet hurt because of your footwear. More importantly, golf shoes help you manage weight transfer during your swing. Technically, it’s called weight management in golf instruction sessions, and it’s a big part of a swing’s success.

Weight management, as I’ve explained in my golf tips, is the science of how you transfer weight from one foot to the other when swinging a club. Technically, it’s how you transfer your center of gravity in relation to the toe and heel of each foot as well as where your weight is at impact. When it comes to swing, proper weight management is critical. It enables you to hit the ball farther and straighter more consistently. It also is a key to chopping strokes off your golf handicap.

Cutting Edge Designs Featured
Today’s golf shoes feature cutting edge designs—the kind of designs once reserved for hiking boots, climbing shoes, and running and walking shoes. Golf manufacturers have spent countless hours applying technological advancements, like dual-pod soles, variable-flex shoe shanks, and multi-density blends of thermoplastic urethane, to designs to create golf shoes that help you transfer weight to the correct regions of your foot during the swing.

For example, many of today’s top shoe models feature two-pod soles. It’s one reason why they are more expensive than other models. Why are two-pod soles important—because the soles are bridged together by a cradle that cups the foot’s arch for better weight displacement toward the ball and heel of each foot. For golfers, this means improved weight movement, leading to a balanced, more powerful swing.

Spikes Have Gone High-Tech
Spikes are another area where manufacturers have made great strides. Once, metal spikes were all the rage, but alternative spikes quickly replaced them. Alternative spikes didn’t last long, since they did little more than prevent you from slipping and sliding on dry grass. Today, spikes have gone high-tech. They not only provide superior traction and comfort, they also allow you to aim where you need traction the most.

Then, there are spikeless golf shoes. Spikeless shoes, which resemble track and running shoes more than ever, provide traction-integrated soles. Thanks to this innovation, these shoes are more practical and comfortable than spiked shoes for a lot of golfers. Spikeless shoes offer several advantages in addition to good weight management. Their spikes don’t have to be replaced and they don’t need to be removed right after the round. Nevertheless, they give the same traction as with spiked shoes.

Ventilation is just as important to playing well as good traction. Manufacturers have made significant improvements here also. Many offer golf shoes with advanced designs that let the foot breathe while keeping the toe, heel, and bottom of the foot dry. Some shoes use a high-tech metal mesh to keep feet cool and comfortable as well as dry and clean.

For golfers that love hot weather, there are shoes that breathe from not only the top but also the bottom. These shoes afford the utmost in ventilation and comfort while still retaining structure, stability, and gripping action. These shoes aren’t your best bet on rainy days. But if you play on a day when it’s blistering hot, these shoes keep your feet cool and dry.

Great Strides In Insoles
Insoles are a fourth area where manufacturers have made great strides. Today’s insoles are not only removable, they’re also designed to levy superior support, comfort, durability, and ventilation using a series of perforations, canals, and mixed materials. Some insoles vary in thickness, allowing golfers to customize the way each shoe feels. Other insoles mold and conform to the foot’s shape.

Golf shoes are vital to playing well. They provide traction, comfort, protection, and leverage. More importantly, they enable you to transfer your weight properly during your swing. Proper weight management is one secret to hitting the ball farther and straighter more consistently. Doing that can help you slice strokes off your golf handicap.

Increased Power Helps You Attack The Greens

jack — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 23:06:28 +0000

Power alone can’t shave strokes off your golf handicap. But power combined with accuracy can. Together, they can put you in great position to attack the green in regulation. The more greens you hit in regulation, the better your chances of making pars and birdies. If you can squeeze out another 20 to 30 yards off the tee while still maintaining accuracy, you’ll dramatically increase your chances of reducing your golf handicap.

But weekend golfers often try to create power the wrong way—by either swinging their arms faster or firing their hands at the ball. This approach sacrifices accuracy for distance. If you swing your arms faster or fire your hands at the ball, you may get more distance but you’ll probably miss the fairway. So how do you increase distance off the tee without sacrificing accuracy? That’s easy—engage the four key elements of power that weekend golfers too often ignore—tempo, stability, torque, and a dynamic lower body.

Maintain Tempo
Everything starts with tempo. Sometimes a tight fairway or menacing bunker tempts you to change your swing. Resist that temptation. Abandoning the basics seldom works. That’s why golf lessons emphasize them. The basics are the key to hitting the ball longer and straighter because they produce solid contact. If you want make solid contact you must maintain good tempo. Unfortunately, weekend golfers abandon tempo when trying to hit bombs. The result is a lot of fast, jerky swings that deliver poor contact. Savvy golfers keep tempo in mind whenever they’re on the tee.

Good golfers also concentrate on maintaining a solid base. Keeping your rear knee flexed as you take the club to the top is the secret to achieving accuracy and power off the tee. This move helps you shift your body weight to the right side so that it rests on the inside of your right foot (left foot for left-handed golfers) during the backswing. It also helps prevent you from executing a reverse pivot and allows you to make a powerful move back to the front side in the downswing. Without a solid base from which to hit, you’ll leak power and curb accuracy.

Create A Wide Arc
In addition to maintaining good tempo and a solid base, you’ll need a wide arc width on the tee. It creates the torque you need to hit it longer. If you want more distance off the tee, you must create a wider backswing than normal without disrupting your tempo. You can do this by maintaining a solid—but not locked— rear arm. This move creates maximum arc width. Folding both elbows at the top, which you see golfers do a lot in golf lessons, creates a narrower arc width and a significant loss of power. That’s because it forces you to pull the club too far inside on the takeaway, robbing the backswing of the arc width needed to generate more power.

Drive Your Weight
The last of the four basics for generating distance and accuracy—and perhaps the most important—is an active lower body. You must drive your weight toward the target on the downswing, if you want to hit longer, straighter drives. You want to feel like your throwing your legs at the target, while actually staying steady. This move is also known as making a power shift. Failing to do this short-circuits your power, resulting in a weak tee shot.

To check your weight shift, take your address with a driver. Then, tee a second ball just inside your back ankle. Make your normal swing, moving your weight away from the target going back and toward it coming down. If you transfer your weight correctly, your back angle will roll inward on the downswing, knocking the second ball off the tee. If you leave the ball on the tee, you know you haven’t made a good power shift, leaving yards on the table.

Using your lower body to generate more distance is a forgotten power fundamental. It’s one of those golf tips that really pay off if executed properly. When combined with the other three power elements—tempo, stability, and torque—you can add an extra 20 to 30 yards to your drives. That enables you to power the ball over menacing fairway bunkers or cut corners on doglegs and still find the fairway. In addition, it increases your chances of hitting more greens in regulation. Hitting more greens in regulation will result in making more pars and birdies and lowering your golf handicap.

Golf Tips and Instruction 01/06/10

jack — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 18:41:16 +0000

In this issue we’ll discuss…

1) One-Handed Drill Improves Chipping
2) Set Up On Top To Hit Crisp Pitches
3) Question of the Week – Overswinging Can Cause You To Slice
4) Article – Manufacturers Make Strides In Golf Shoes
5) Article – Golf Tips On The Iron Swing

Jack’s Note: Looking to get more distance from your shots? A sound fitness and stretching routine can make all the difference as I said earlier this week via email.

Also, totally off-topic here folks but I’m a bit of a movie buff and am a member at a movie review site called AllTopMovies.com. This week they are giving away a free Sony Blu Ray player, no strings attached. They do this a few times per year so if you want to get your hands on a fancy new Blu Ray player for zilch, check them out.

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1) One-Handed Drill Improves Chipping
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Many golfers play chip shots all wrong. Instead of executing a nice rhythmic swing, they stiff-arm the shot. That results in cupping the left wrist (for right-handed players) and scooping at the ball—the most common chipping mistake among weekend golfers. But the one-handed drill used by many PGA and LPGA pros improves your motion back and through.

Six keys to chipping it close:

* Grip down on club
* Aim for a spot on green
* Hinge your wrist at takeaway
* Have your hands lead in the hitting zone
* Keep wrists firm through impact
* Follow through on the shot

The key to a good chip shot is to hinge your wrists slightly during your takeaway and strike down on the ball crisply in the downswing. To ensure ball-then-turf contact, return your hands and arms to where they were at address, keep the wrists firm through impact, and maintain them that way during follow-through. Stay relaxed and loose throughout the shot.

The one-handed drill hones your chipping stroke. And it’s easy to do. Take several balls with you and spread them around the green. Pick out as many different lies as you can. Try to create realistic scenarios. Now, hit the balls one-handed with your right hand (left hand for left-handers). Make sure you pick out a spot on the green before swinging. You want the ball to hit that spot and roll to the hole like a putt.

The one-handed drill teaches you to execute a smooth takeaway and a rhythmic backswing. Keep the right elbow pointed at your right hip throughout. And add a little knee action to create an accelerating forward swing.

Hone your chipping stroke with this drill, then practice using two hands. Improve your chipping and you’ll become a force on the course.

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2) Set Up On Top To Hit Crisp Pitches
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Weekend golfers tend to hit pitch shots fat or thin. These golfers believe pitches are hit on the upswing. So they play the ball forward in their stances and place their weight on their back feet. This promotes a sweeping motion. That’s wrong. If you want to hit crisp pitches, you must hit the ball with a descending blow. That gets the ball rolling up the clubface, creating backspin. Setting up correctly encourages a descending blow.

Below are five keys to setting up for a pitch shot:

1. Narrow your feet in your stance
2. Play the ball in the middle or the back
3. Lean the hands toward the target
4. Shift your weight to your front foot
5. Aim for ball-first, turf-second contact

Hitting a good pitch begins with the setup. Narrow your feet, position the ball in the middle or back of your stance, and lean toward the front leg. Lean your hands toward the target as well. This position places your head on top of the ball at address. It also promotes a downward angle of attack, facilitating ball-first, turf-second contact.

To assure a proper setup when playing, assume your normal stance. Then remove your left hand (right for left-handers) from the grip and place the hand behind your front knee. This forces you to lean toward your front leg and helps get your head on top of the ball. You should feel as if 70 percent of your weight is on your front foot. Return your left hand to the grip, but keep the position intact otherwise. Now you’re set up to hit down on the ball.

To hit a high pitch that lands softly, play the ball towards the middle of your stance. To hit a low running pitch, play the ball opposite your back foot. Whatever pitch shot you decide to hit, always remember that the key to hitting a good crisp pitch shot is in the setup.

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3) Question of the Week – Overswinging Can Cause You To Slice
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Q. Hi, Jack, Why can’t I control where my ball goes when I attempt a full swing. I send it off on a slice every time.

When I swing at three-quarters, I ht the ball down the centre of the fairway and achieve reasonable distances (200metres). But as soon as I wind up for a full swing “whammo.” I’m all over the place.

Any idea on what causes me to slice and how to correct it?

Cheers,
Norm Beddis
New Zealand

A. Thanks for the question, Norm. It sounds like you’re trying to hit the ball too hard, in which case you’re either losing control of your swing or losing the natural width radius of your backswing arc—in which case your right arm (left arm for left-handers) isn’t working correctly.

Many PGA pros swing the club 75 percent to 80 percent as hard as they can. That way they’re not losing the natural radius of their backswing arcs. Never try to do more than you can do. It usually ends badly.

The split-grip drill is useful in training your backswing. Split your hands a few inches apart on the grip, then swing the club back and push your right arm away to form a 90 percent angle at the elbow. This move determines the natural radius of your backswing arc.

Once you’re familiar with the sensation of a shorter backswing, go back to your normal grip. Try to recapture the same feeling as when you hit balls with the split grip. That’s a good formula for achieving swing consistency.

Also, for past issues of this newsletter and some of my most recent articles, visit our blog at www.HowToBreak80.com/blog

Here are some of my recent articles:

4) Article – Manufacturers Make Strides In Golf Shoes
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/manufacturers-make-strides-in-golf-shoes.php

5) Article – Golf Tips On The Iron Swing
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/golf-tips-on-the-iron-swing.php

Until next time,

Go Low!

Jack

P.S. Feel free to share this newsletter with family and friends. If you would like to subscribe to this newsletter, go to http://www.howtobreak80.com/newsletter.htm

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About the Author
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Jack Moorehouse is the author of the best-selling book “How To Break 80 and Shoot Like the Pros!”. He is NOT a golf pro, rather a working man that has helped thousands of golfers from all seven continents lower their handicaps quickly. His free weekly newsletter goes out to thousands of golfers worldwide and provides the latest golf tips, strategies, techniques and instruction on how to improve your golf game.

Curing Swing Flaws Helps Reduce Golf Handicaps

jack — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 23:04:08 +0000

Consistency is key to achieving a low golf handicap. If you play well for long stretches, you’ll reduce your handicap. If you play poorly for long stretches, you’ll increase your golf handicap. But playing well for long periods is a challenge. When your swing is in tune, you’ll need to practice and play a lot to keep it that way. When your swing is out of tune, you’ll need to know why it’s out of tune and how to improve it. But correcting swing flaws can take awhile. So unless you can afford golf lessons whenever your swing goes south, you’ll have to be your own swing doctor.

One area where consistency is imperative is off the tee. Good drives key low scores. To diagnose a swing flaw in the tee box, play a few “practice” rounds first. Note the characteristics of your drives. The characteristics will tell you where your swing flaws are. Once you’ve identified them, you can apply the right cures to resurrect your swing. To help you get started in this process, we’ve detailed four swing/ballflight indicators below that tell you what’s wrong with your swing. Use these golf tips wisely and you’ll reduce your handicap without having to attend golf instruction sessions.

High Ballooning Slice
If you’re hitting a high ballooning slice, your club is approaching the ball from outside the target line and moving across it. The angle of your descent into the ball is too steep. So even if your clubface is square at impact, your ball will fly to the right, thanks to the sidespin imparted to the ball. To cure this flaw, you need to set up correctly. Make sure your grip is correct, your hips and shoulders are square, and your head is behind the ball. Also, make sure your body is tilted away from the target and your hands are just inside the pleat of your front pant leg. From this viewpoint, the club may look too closed, but it’s not.

Tailing Ballflight
In this case your ball starts out well with good distance, but then drifts off line with either a fade or hook. The problem is not the club path or plane. It’s with your grip and clubface at impact. To cure this flaw, you must square your clubface at impact and fit your hands to your natural ball flight. If you naturally hit a fade, make sure the Vs in your hands are pointing to your back shoulder. For hooks, a slightly weaker grip, where the V in your left hand (right, for left-handers) points just to the right of the sternum and the V of your right hand (left, for left-handers) points at your back shoulder, reducing your chances of hitting a snap hook.

The Pop-Up
A pop-up is caused by an excessive weight shift forward and a club that approaches the ball from a very steep angle. This delofts the club and makes the topline of the club its leading edge instead of the other way around. Hence, the ball pops straight up. That’s most embarrassing. To cure this flaw, make sure your setup encourages a longer, bigger backswing arc, which shallows out your swing plane and reduces the steepness of your downswing. This will also ensure the proper weight shift. Golfers who pop up tend not to shift their weight to the back foot, resulting in either a pop-up or a reverse pivot.

The Pull Hook
If you’re hitting a pull hook, your club is approaching the ball from outside the target line inward from a setup that’s too open. Instead of having an open or square clubface at impact, as with a slice, your clubface is closed shut. Square up your stance and use a weaker grip, which will help prevent you from over-rotating the clubface. In addition, adjust you left hand (right-hand for left-handers) grip so the V is pointing toward your sternum, instead of having both Vs pointing to your back shoulder. Unfortunately, the pull hook signals a bigger problem—swinging too much from outside the target line across to inside the target line. Ultimately, you’ll want to get your club moving inside out.

The golf tips explained above will get you started diagnosing your swing. Once you discover what your swing flaws are using the ballflight characteristic of your shots, you can then apply the cure. Eliminating your swing flaws goes a long way to improving consistency off the tee. That in turn will help you reduce your golf handicap without having to take golf lessons.

Golf Tips and Instructions 12/30/09

jack — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 23:03:43 +0000

In this issue we’ll discuss…

1) Knowing How To Hit It Low Saves Strokes
2) Playing Offense From Fairway Sand
3) Question of the Week – The Basics Of The Bunker Blast
4) Article – Curing Swing Flaws Helps Reduce Golf Handicaps
5) Article – Increased Power Helps You Attack The Greens

1) Knowing How To Hit It Low Saves Strokes

Controlling ballflight trajectory saves strokes. Knowing how to hit it high or low when you need to enables you to escape from tight spots that could pile up strokes—like when you need to hit out of the woods or go over trees. It also expands shots to your game, like lob pitches, knockdowns, and recovery shots. The more shots you have in your arsenal the better your ability to save par when the chances of making bogey or double-bogey loom large.

Here are six factors to controlling ballflight:

* Ball back
* Weight forward
* Shoulders level
* Hands forward
* Swing slow
* Finish low

To control ballflight trajectory, you need to make changes to your set-up and your swing. To hit it low, for example, position the ball back in your stance, anywhere from dead center to the heel of your rear foot, shift your weight to your front foot, and lean your hands and the club’s shaft forward. Keep your shoulders level as well. If you focus on a spot on the ground, you’ll automatically keep your shoulders level.

These changes to your setup tend de-loft the clubface and ensure a descending swing into the ball. But you also have to change your swing to keep the ball low. Use a slower swing with an even pendulum like rhythm, lowering the ball’s spin rate and preventing it from shooting up. Also, keep your finish low. Try holding the club below your waistline after impact.

Sooner or later you’ll have a lie where you’ll need to keep the ball low, like when you’re in the woods. When you do, knowing how to hit it low will come in handy. Knowing how to control ballflight trajectory increases your chances of making par. It also enables you to get more creative when you have a lie that could cost you stokes.
2) Playing Offense From Fairway Sand

There’s nothing wrong with playing it safe from a fairway bunker. If you’re playing poorly, it’s probably the smart play. Instead of going for the green, take a 7- or 8- iron and punch it out to a safe spot on the fairway and set yourself up for your next shot. Playing defense like this can save you from making a double bogey or worse. But on days you’re playing well, you may have to go for it from the bunker. If you do, you’ll need to adjust your set-up accordingly.

Below are six keys to taking on a fairway bunker:

* Use a half to full club more
* Play the ball toward the middle
* Set up a little closer to the ball
* Dig your feet into the sand
* Choke down a similar amount
* Stay level throughout the shot

The key to playing aggressively from a fairway bunker is to set up a little closer to the ball than normal. Doing so makes you to stand a little taller than usual and helps you clip the ball from its lie without taking much sand. It’s what great bunker players like Jack Nicklaus and Mark O’Meara do with this lie.

In addition, use a half- to a full club more than normal, play the ball toward the middle of your stance, which encourages ball-first contact, and dig your feet into the sand while choking down a similar amount. Stay level throughout the shot. The ball comes out lower than normal because you’re trying to hit it a little thin. If you take too much sand, you won’t hit it well.

There’s nothing wrong with playing defensive from a fairway bunker — especially when you’re playing poorly. But on days you’re playing well, you may decide to go for it. If you do, keep our six keys in mind.
3) Question of the Week – The Basics Of The Bunker Blast

Q. Hi, Jack, I hear so many different ways to hit out of sand. Can you give me a basic set up and routine for sand, middle of stance, etc.

Thanks.
Eddie McKallen

A. Thanks, Eddie. Blasting out of a greenside bunker is easy, if you use the right technique. The key is holding the clubface open through impact. If you close it, you’ll mis-hit the shot, costing you strokes.

Here are five keys to the standard bunker set up:

* Open your clubface
* Position the ball slightly forward
* Keep your body open to the target
* Rotate your palm open (reverse release)
* Swing the club along your bodyline

To escape a greenside bunker, you need to swing the club on an outside-to-in path, with the clubhead held open through impact. This enables the club to slide under the ball and throws it up and out of the sand, settling the ball softly on the green.

To hold the clubface open, rotate your right palm open (left palm for left-handers) as you start to move toward the ball. Continue rotating it open as your club slides through the sand and under the ball. It’s what’s known as a reverse release.

And don’t stop when you hit the sand. Keep accelerating through the swing to a full finish. If you don’t, you won’t get the ball over the bunker’s lip. Decelerating your club at impact is among the most common errors committed by weekend players in greenside bunkers.

Also, for past issues of this newsletter and some of my most recent articles, visit our blog at www.HowToBreak80.com/blog

Here are some of my recent articles:

4) Article – Curing Swing Flaws Helps Reduce Golf Handicaps
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/curing-swing-flaws-helps-reduce-golf-handicaps.php

5) Article – Increased Power Helps You Attack The Greens
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/increased-power-helps-you-attack-the-greens.php

Until next time,

Go Low!

Jack

P.S. Feel free to share this newsletter with family and friends. If you would like to subscribe to this newsletter, go to http://www.howtobreak80.com/newsletter.htm
About the Author

Five Golf Tips On Buying Balls

jack — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:44:41 +0000

By Jack Moorehouse

Gift certificates to a sports store or golf warehouse are great gift ideas. It gives the golfer in your life a chance to buy something useful for his game, like a dozen golf balls. Great golf balls exist in every price range. But you must find a ball that fits your game for it to work—whether you have a high golf handicap or a single digit golf handicap. When it comes to golf balls, the right one can contribute as much to your game as your clubs, as I’ve said in my golf tips newsletter. Below are some tips on choosing the right ball:

Be Realistic and Practical
Golfers often buy Pro V1 or MC Lady balls just because they make them feel like real players. That’s not wise or practical. Your goal when buying balls is to find one that’s compatible with your game, course, and budget. Key factors to consider are distance, feel, and spin. Distance alone is the most expensive. Expect to pay more for combinations of the three. But ball companies are always offering specials. Take ‘em up on these offers. Be realistic. Be practical. Be smart.

Buy For Your Home Course
Golfers should by balls based on which course you play the most. If you need to work the ball, buy a spin ball. If you need to hit it long, buy a distance ball. To decide between distance and control, try this experiment from Bob Toski, the famed golf instructor:

Every time you miss a fairway, move your shot back 15 yards and place it on the fairway. Now compare scores. You will probably find that you did much better than you normally do. The exercise may show you that there’s more to a good golf ball than it’s distance potential.

Trial And Error Is Best
You’ll never really know which ball works best until you actually try them. Here’s a systematic way to do that:

Hit 10 shots each with different balls to determine trajectory, carry, and distance after they land. If possible, ask a pro to help you find a ball you can launch at optimum angle. Now hit five shots with your long and mid irons. Check trajectory and the spin you get on the greens. Now hit a variety of scoring shots from 100 yards in—shots with a lot of spin, bump-and-runs, and pitches. Here you want to check your ability to hit scoring shots with these balls.

Narrow your choices down to two or three balls. Then try each for a few weeks. See which provides the best result. That’s your ball.

Spin Essentials
You don’t have to understand how balls are made. But it helps to know something about what the dimples do. You need dimples on a golf ball to get it airborne. No dimples, no lift. It’s that simple. Dimples add “drag” to a ball. But adding too many dimples to a golf ball doesn’t help either. Diminishing returns come at about 500 dimples. The minimum number of dimples on a golf ball is about 300, with optimum performance at about 350 to 450 dimples per ball. Try golf balls with different dimple designs to find one that gives your shots a good lift.

Take Care Of Your Golf Balls
Some players are diligent about taking care of their clubs, but not so diligent about taking care of their golf balls. While golf balls are more durable than ever, you still must take care of them, as I tell students who take my golf lessons. Leaving balls in your trunk on a scorching hot day is not taking good care of them. Store your ball at normal room temperatures, away from the furnace if possible, is a good way to take care of balls. If you have to err on one side, better to let them get cold than hot,

These golf tips on buying balls will help you narrow down your choice. While you may not want to spend your paycheck on golf balls, you also don’t want to buy “pond” balls or X-outs either. Some are fine. But most aren’t. Instead, buy new golf balls that help chop strokes off your golf handicap and provide value for your money. It’s the only way to roll.

Five Equipment Myths: Fact Or Fiction

jack — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 20:44:36 +0000

By Jack Moorehouse

Good equipment helps you cut strokes from your golf handicap. Bad equipment helps you add strokes to your golf handicap. This is why smart golfers learn as much as they can about clubs, balls, and other golf equipment before buying. Knowing what your buying helps you choose the right equipment. Unfortunately, many equipment myths exist. These myths cover many areas. More importantly, they can prevent you from buying equipment that can transform your game. Below we debunk five long-standing equipment myths. Debunking them helps you determine fact from fiction when buying golf equipment.

Myth #1: Less Loft Equals Longer Drives
Golfers once used drivers with lower lofts to generate more distance off the tee. These players often opted for drivers with 7-to-8-degree lofts. But with today’s shaft, clubhead, and ball technology, you can buy drivers with higher lofts and still hit the ball a long way. You can find the correct loft by determining how you ascend through the impact zone. If you have a steep swing, a lower loft helps. If you have more of a sweeping swing, a higher loft works best. Drivers with 9 to 11 degree lofts—combined with low spin balls and the right shaft—are sometimes better able to produce the optimal high-lunch ball flight needed for longer drives. Good technique refined through taking golf lessons and reading golf tips also help.

Myth #2: Stiffer Shafts Mean More Distance
Golfers with faster swing tempo may benefit from using more flexible shafts. The key is how you load the shaft. The transition from backswing to downswing loads the shaft, then unloads it at impact. If you have a short, quick backswing and a slow downswing, you may not want a flexible shaft. It may flex too much in the backswing and not unload properly in the downswing. On the other hand, if you have a slow backswing but a quick, powerful downswing, you may want a more flexible shaft. It may help you better load the shaft during the backswing and unload it at impact. So when deciding on shafts think both flex and load, as I’ve often mentioned in my golf instruction sessions.

Myth #3: Premium Balls are Good For All
Golfers appreciate high quality equipment. But not every golfer should use premium golf balls, like the Pro V1 or MC Lady. Often, premium golf balls have firm inner cores. To get the most from these balls, you have to have the kind of clubhead speed that can compress the ball’s hard inner core. In other words, you have to have the kind of clubhead speed that pros, like Ernie Els, Phil Mickelson, and Vijay Singh, have. Some lower priced balls may perform better for weekend golfers. These balls feature firm or soft outer layers with softer cores to help slower swingers better compress the ball for longer distance. If you’re a fast swinger, try soft covers with firm cores. If you’re moderate to slow swinger, try a soft-core model.

Myth #4: Larger Heads Have Larger Sweet Spots
Unfortunately for golfers with high golf handicaps, manufacturers can’t expand the sweet spot on a club. That’s because the sweet spot isn’t really an area, but a pinpoint on the clubface where center of gravity is optimized. But club manufacturers can expand the area of forgiveness around the sweet spot by increasing perimeter weighting and back weight and by using variable face thickness—elements made possible by increased head volume. Normally, that’s good. But sometimes it’s not. Since the sweet spot is so small, a smaller headed driver may help you improver your ability to hit the sweet spot more often. In other words, for some increased forgiveness encourages off-center hits.

Myth #5: Forged Clubs Are Hard To Hit
Until recently, forged clubs came only with blade-style designs. Making anything but a blade-style design using the forging process was difficult. Blade-style clubheads are harder to hit than other designs. But today’s high-tech forging methods enable manufacturers to produce designs offering more forgiveness and more feel—just right for golfers with low, medium, or high golf handicaps. Forged metals typically are softer than cast metals, making them better suited for fitting purposes. What’s more, some argue that the forging process also produces a greater consistency in weight and density as opposed to cast metals.

To achieve a low golf handicap on today’s courses, you need to get the most out of your equipment. Hopefully, this article provided some valuable golf tips. So don’t let myths like those examined above keep you from buying equipment that can help your game. Just make sure you get as much information from technical experts as you can before buying. The information will help you separate fact from fiction.

Golf Tips and Instructions 12/17/09

jack — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 23:32:05 +0000

In this issue we’ll discuss…

Use This Grip On Short Putts
Chipping From Thick Greenside Rough
Question of the Week – Use This Drill To Improve Your Chipping
Article – Five Equipment Myths: Fact Or Fiction
Article – Five Golf Tips On Buying Balls

Use This Grip On Short Putts

Bad things happen when we decelerate the clubhead on either a swing or a putt. Acceleration in golf is the increasing speed at which the clubhead moves through the ball. It’s important for both full shots and short putts. So if you’re missing a lot of short putts, you may be failing to accelerate the putter through the stroke. It’s a habit many develop from time to time. Using an alternative putting grip is an option to prevent this habit from hurting your putting.

Key these five tips in mind when using this putting grip:

Keep your hands ahead of the ball
Adopt a left-hand low grip
Minimize excessive wrist movement
Follow through on the putt
Hold the finish for a couple of seconds

The left-hand low grip (right hand for left-handed golfers) has helped many golfers accelerate through short putts. Using this grip keeps your hands from releasing too much. It also keeps the putterface facing the hole, even after contact with the ball, and encourages acceleration through the stroke.

Acceleration Drill
Find a hole on the practice green that permits you to set up for a flat straight putt. Place a sand wedge perpendicular to the line of the putt, so the face is down and the thinner part of the shaft lies across the putt’s line. The shaft should lie just on the cup’s edge.

From the distance of three feet, putt the ball to the hole with sufficient speed so that the ball hits the shaft, pops into the air, and falls into the hole. If you decelerate the putterhead through the stroke, you’ll generate insufficient speed to overcome the shaft in front of the hole. But smooth acceleration produces enough speed to hole the putt over the shaft.

Make this drill part of your normal practice routine. It teaches you to accelerate through putts and boosts confidence on short putts critical to good scoring. If you’re really brave, try this drill on short break putts as well.
2) Chipping From Thick Greenside Rough

Some golfers like to hit a normal chip shot from thick greenside rough. That’s a hard shot to pull off, even for veteran golfers. The problem is the grass. It can twist the club’s hosel as the clubhead cuts through it, which makes controlling the shot difficult. On a delicate shot like this, you need optimum control. Otherwise, it can cost you strokes. Here’s another way to play it:

Below are five keys to hitting a shot from really thick greenside rough:

Use a sand wedge
Open your stance
Play the ball back
Pick a landing spot
Make a steep swing

Smart golfers know the benefits of being creative around the green. Instead of relying on a single short-game shot, they learn different shots around the green and let the situation dictate the shot. A short chip from greenside rough is one situation where it pays to have mastered different shots around the green.

Start by selecting a more-lofted club than normal. The club of choice is the sand wedge, but you could also use a lob wedge. The key with these clubs is the “bounce” on the clubface’s bottom. The bounce enables the club to cut through the snarled grass without getting entangled. Clubs with less bounce lack this capability.

In addition open your stance slightly to allow your hands to clear and play the ball back in your stance. Before hitting, pick out a landing spot on the green. Now make a steep aggressive swing. The ball pops out of the grass, bounces a couple of times on the green, and rolls to the pin.

Chipping from thick greenside rough is a challenge. But if you master the shot, you can turn three or more shots into two. Just remember that a club with more loft provides more margin for error.

3) Question of the Week – Use This Drill To Improve Your Chipping

Q. Hi, Jack, I somehow developed a case of what I call “chipping yips.”. I’ll be 20 feet (or less) off the green, put my weight to the left, keep my hands ahead of the ball, and wind up scooping my right hand under it, which shank’s the ball right. Any chance I can lose this bad habit?

Tom Wells.

A. Thanks, Tom. Golfers sometimes lose the feel of a good chipping stroke. This leads to bad habits, like trying to scoop the ball instead of hitting down on the ball. Scooping forces you to collapse your left arm and wrist (right arm and wrist for left-handers) at impact. You need a stiff left wrist at impact to hit a good chip. Below is a simple drill that teaches you to make a good chipping stroke by keeping a stiff left wrist at impact:

Start by sticking a pen or pencil under a watchband on your left wrist. This automatically flattens your left wrist at impact. Now practice hitting chip shots. Make sure to brush the grass after hitting the ball with a slight downward stroke. This may be a new feel for you, so stick with the drill even if the initial results aren’t as good as you’d like. Eventually, you’ll ingrain the feel for the stroke. Now take the pencil or pen out and chip some more balls using the same stroke.

This proven drill works. Use it whenever you find yourself trying to scoop the ball on a chip. And remember, a good chip turns three or more strokes into two.

Also, for past issues of this newsletter and some of my most recent articles, visit our blog at www.HowToBreak80.com/blog

Here are some of my recent articles:

4) Article – Five Equipment Myths: Fact Or Fiction
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/five-equiptment-myths-fact-or-fiction.php

5) Article – Five Golf Tips On Buying Balls
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/five-golf-tips-on-buying-balls.php

Until next time,

Go Low!

Jack

P.S. Feel free to share this newsletter with family and friends. If you would like to subscribe to this newsletter, go to http://www.howtobreak80.com/newsletter.htm
About the Author

Golf Tips and Instruction 12/11/09

jack — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 14:00:33 +0000

In this issue we’ll discuss…

1) Sink More Putts By Being Aggressive
2) Hitting The Flop Shot When You Must
3) Question of the Week – Keeping The Left Arm Straight
4) Article – Five Deadly Sins Of Buying Equipment
5) Article – Five Shots That Will Transform Your Game

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1) Sink More Putts By Being Aggressive
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If you watch the pros putt long enough, you’ll notice their putting and playing styles often match. Take Aaron Baddeley. He reveals his personality in his putting style. Aaron is naturally aggressive. He makes quick decisions. He walks quickly. And he has an up-tempo swing. He also has a snappy putting style, which may be one reason he’s so successful on the greens.

Five advantages to an aggressive putting style:

1. Helps eliminate negative thoughts
2. Enhances ballstriking
3. Assures a confident stroke
4. Gives the ball a chance to go in
5. Contributes to consistency

Baddeley doesn’t take long to putt. Once he grounds his putter, he takes one last look at his line, then putts. You can count four from the time he grounds the putter to the time he strokes the ball. He follows this routine every time.

Aaron’s routine has advantages. It eliminates time for negative thoughts to creep in. It helps him hit the ball solidly on the intended line. It guarantees the ball is always struck confidently. It builds consistency, since he does the same thing every time. And it gives the ball a chance to go in on every putt, since he seldom leaves a putt short.

Of course, there are times when Aaron putts too quickly. But so far, his style seems to be working well for him. One of the tour’s young guns, he’s considered one of the game’s best putters.

Another tip you may want to keep in mind is to match your putter with your stroke. Use a straight back-and-through stroke with a face-balanced putter. But use a more arcing stroke with a heel-shafted model.

Aaron’s quick-count putting style isn’t for everyone. But if you’re putting isn’t what you want it to be, try copying his. You may be surprised how well it works.

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2) Hitting The Flop Shot When You Must
===================================================
Your ball stops in front of a deep greenside bunker. The green is elevated about 10 feet above your ball. The pin is close to the green’s edge. The putting surface slopes away from the hole. You need a high spinning shot that carries the bunker, but lands softly by the pin and stops quickly. You need a flop shot.

Below are five keys to hitting a flop shop

* Stand taller and closer to ball
* Open the clubface wide
* Use a weaker grip than normal
* Hinge the wrists on the backswing
* Accelerate through the ball

You’d be surprised how many good players can’t hit a flop shot. But that’s no reason why you shouldn’t. It’s a good shot to have in your arsenal.

A well executed flop shot requires four things—a big swing to get the ball up in the air, an open clubface at address so the club doesn’t dig in, and a proper swing plane angle to assure proper ball/turf contact, as well as correctly hinged wrists to hit the bottom of the ball.

But the key to this shot is the setup. Two tips to help with getting the set up right are stand taller and closer to the ball and open the clubface first, then grip the club. Standing taller and closer creates the proper angle of approach to the ball. Opening the clubface first guarantees an open clubface at impact.

It sounds easy. But poor execution isn’t uncommon. So be careful. Make sure you have a lie that lets you get under the ball and that you take a practice swing. Both help in executing the shot the way you want.

=====================================================
3) Question of the Week – Keeping The Left Arm Straight
=====================================================
Q. Hi Jack, How do you keep you left arm straight when using your driver? I hit my driver okay by reducing my backswing but have the tendency now and then to over swing causing my arm to bend.

Regards,
James

A. Thanks, James. A good way to remember to keep your left arm straight (right arm for left-handers) is to visualize a friend or playing partner standing well behind you on the tee. Then imagine trying to touch that person with your driver on the way up and back down. Also, at the top, your left arm should be comfortably straight, not rigid. This visualization will help you achieve good width on your backswing.

Another tip on achieving good backswing width is to get your right elbow (left elbow for left-handers) to work in such a way that as it folds, it forms a right angle —or “L” shape at the top of your swing.

The Split Hands drill is a good way to train your self to achieve a proper backswing. Split your hands a few inches apart on a grip. Then swing the club back and push your right arm away to form a 90-degree angle at the elbow. That’s the backswing your want. Once you get the feel for this backswing, go back to your regular grip. But try to remember how the backswing felt during the drill.

Also, for past issues of this newsletter and some of my most recent articles, visit our blog at www.HowToBreak80.com/blog

Here are some of my recent articles:

4) Article – Five Deadly Sins Of Buying Equipment
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/five-deadly-sins-of-buying-equipment.php

5) Article – Five Shots That Will Transform Your Game
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/five-shots-that-will-transform-your-game.php

Until next time,

Go Low!

Jack

P.S. Feel free to share this newsletter with family and friends. If you would like to subscribe to this newsletter, go to http://www.howtobreak80.com/newsletter.htm

Controlling Trajectories Helps Lower Golf Handicap

jack — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 20:29:28 +0000

Learning to control trajectory is a powerful, stroke-saving skill. It can get you out of many trouble spots when you need to the most, like when you need to punch out from a clump of trees. It even leaves you with an easily makeable putt when pitching to the green. Controlling trajectory can turn two, or even three, strokes into one. More importantly, it can help cut strokes from your golf handicap.

Your club has two lofts—as students often learn in golf lessons. One is the “built-in” loft. It’s created by the clubface’s angle when the shaft is perpendicular to the ground. This is the loft the club was designed with. The other loft is the club’s “effective” loft. This is the loft created at impact. Thus, you can use the same club to generate high or low shots—but only if you can control the loft. If you hit the ball consistently high or low, take a golf tip from me: Learn to change directories. Sooner or later, you’ll need one of those shots.

Here’s how to change shot trajectories:

Low Trajectory
Every golfer should learn to hit a shot with low trajectory. It’s ideal on tight lies or bare dirt. It’s also ideal when buried in rough, punching out from the trees, or in a strong wind. It offers minimal risk. Even bad shots can turn out okay because the ball keeps rolling. With this shot, the ball has more backspin than normal, so you can learn to make it stop short on some shots. This type of shot is often taught in golf instruction sessions.

Start by positioning the ball back, in line with your back ear. Your hands should be close to your front thigh. If right-handed, that’s your left thigh. If left-handed, that’s your right thigh. Your hands should be in front of the ball not only at set-up but also at impact. Your weight should be leaning forward. This set-up insures a downward blow, causing the club to pinch the ball against the dirt.

Medium Trajectory
This is the least used trajectory. It’s ideal for medium to light rough, normal fairway conditions, and if there’s no obstacle to go over. It offers minimal to moderate risk. It’s not nearly as easy to make solid contact with this shot as it is when hitting a low trajectory shot. The swing is more like a sweeping motion.

Position the ball in the middle of your stance, in line with your belt buckle. Keep your hands under your belt buckle, but leaning slightly forward. Lean the shaft forward a bit, which helps promote solid contact. Distribute your weight evenly over booth feet, instead of favoring your front foot. With this swing, you’ll still hit down on the ball but take less divot, unlike the trapping feel of the low trajectory shot.

High Trajectory
Often taught in golf lessons, this shot requires a lot of practice. But it’s a great tool. Use it when the ball is resting on a cushion of grass, when you need altitude quickly. The risk here is high. There’s not much room for error here. It’s not always easy to slide the club under the ball while leaning the shaft back.

Position the ball forward, in line with the left ear. Place the hands slightly back of center. Be careful. If the hands are too far back, you risk hitting a low, skulled shot.. Your weight should be slightly open. Aim left of the target, if you’re right-handed. Aim right of target, if you’re left-handed. Open the clubface as well. The lie is critical with this shot. Don’t fall in love with this shot. It can cost you strokes, as I tell students in my golf instruction sessions, if you mis hit it too often.

Confidence in hitting shots with different trajectories is crucial. So practice the shots described above until you’ve mastered them. The effort will pay off. Learning to control the trajectory of your shots leaves you in good position to hit your next shot and saves strokes. If you’re serious about whittling strokes from your golf handicap, learn to control trajectory. Knowing how to control shot trajectory is a powerful weapon.

Use Lead Tape To Square Clubface At Impact

jack — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 20:27:19 +0000

Golfers are always looking for ways to improve. Adding weight to a golf club is a time- tested way to do it. The extra weight usually comes in the form of lead tape. The concept behind this method is simple. When applied properly, lead tape adds extra weight behind the sweet spot. The weight provides extra distance with woods and irons. Lead tape also helps square the clubface at impact. But you have to apply the lead tape to the right spots for the method to work. Otherwise, it leads to bad shots, adding strokes to your golf handicap.

Adding lead tape to a club isn’t a new golf tip. It’s been way to add weight to a club for many years. But it’s not used as much as it was in the past. In fact, the topic is seldom mentioned in golf instruction sessions. That’s because today’s manufacturers build clubs with weighted sweet spots already. So there’s no need to add lead tape. You just need to learn how to hit the club. But using and older set of clubs or if you’re looking to gain some extra distance, adding lead tape to your clubs may help. If this is the case, it’s easy to do.

Benefits of Lead Tape
Players with low golf handicaps tend to use lead tape more than players with golf handicaps. By adding tape to the club’s back, you can alter how the clubface squares to the ball at impact. How the club squares at impact decides how much the ball curves near the end of its flight. You can also add tape also increase the height of your shots. Some players use lead tape to fix that one club that just doesn’t feel right.

The key is to make sure you place the lead correctly on the back of the club so that you get the optimum benefit from it. For example, a driver’s center of gravity is typically located toward the back of the clubhead, down low and slightly toward the toe, which is where you want to add the tape to launch the ball higher. To raise the trajectory of your irons, apply a few strips to the base of the club’s back. Start by adding a couple of one- inch strips, and monitor the effects.

To enhance a draw or reduce a fade, add tape to the club’s heel. Adding weight there helps the clubface rotate through impact. The larger the club head, the harder it is to square at impact. That’s why many of today’s oversized clubheads feature extra heel weighting. Conversely, adding lead tape to your driver’s toe helps reduce draw spin, providing a straighter shot.

Lead tape is available in rolls from golf retailers or golf Web sites. If you buy it in roll form, simply cut the piece you need and stick it to club head. You can also buy it in strips properly sized for use on golf clubs. One strip weighs from .7 to 1.5 grams. Some players even use lead tape on their putters, especially if they tend to leave putts short. Adding lead tape gives putts an extra bit of weight that will take it to the hole.

Of course, some feel using lead tape is unfair. It now only alters a club’s specifications, it also adds something to the club it doesn’t really have. Some players don’t mind a golfer using it practice or when taking golf lessons, but frown upon it in play. They consider it cheating. Ultimately, the question is whether the lead tape is really necessary. Why not use the club is. If you lack distance, improve your swing or ballstriking.

You may have read golf tips in sports magazines that advocate using lead tape on your clubs to help control your shots. Lead tape isn’t a cure-all. It won’t straighten out a bad slice or a wicked draw. But players with low golf handicaps who hit shots that start straight then cure slightly at the end can use it to refine their ball flights. That in turn will help cut strokes from your golf handicap.

The Lost Ball Rule: Not As Simple As It Seems

jack — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 22:53:48 +0000

Deciding if your ball is lost is easy. You can’t find it. Deciding what to do about it, on the other hand, isn’t so easy. It’s a complex decision more critical than many golfers think. Choose wrong and it can hurt. It may not cost you strokes on your golf handicap, but if you’re playing in a match or a tournament, you could lose the hole, the match, or the tournament. So make sure you clearly understand the rule and its effects.

Few golf instructions sessions cover golf rules. But you can brush up on them by reading the USGA rulebook. Here’s what it says on lost balls: USGA Rule 27—Ball Lost or Out of Bounds; Provisional Ball—governs lost balls. Unfortunately, to fully understand this rule, you may also have to refer to USGA Rules 14, 20, 25, 26, and 28. And even then you may not clearly understand all the rule’s ramifications.

Stroke & Distance Violation
A lost ball is a stroke and distance violation. If you know your ball is lost or has gone out of bounds, you must hit a ball from the same spot and take a stroke. From the tee you can tee it up again. Through the green you can drop within one club length and from the putting surface you can place it. Of course, it you hit your ball out of bounds from the green, think seriously about taking golf lessons or reading more golf tips.

The USGA gives you five minutes to find your ball. If you can’t find it after that time, the ball is lost. If you find it after five minutes and five seconds, the ball is still lost. Playing the ball costs you two strokes. In addition, you have to go back to where you first played the ball, take another stroke, and hit again.

That’s straightforward and easily understandable. But a problem occurs when you don’t know if your ball is lost. In deciding if it is, you must consider where it’s lost. Is it lost in water or a regular hazard, in ground under repair, on or in a moveable or immoveable obstruction, or if a squirrel scampered off with it. These circumstances are covered under a different USGA Rule.

Provisional Ball Option
If you think your ball is lost or out of bounds, you can hit a provisional ball. Provisional means temporary or conditional. This is your ball until and/or unless you find your original ball. Before hitting, you must declare your intention to play a provisional ball. Fail to do so and your provisional becomes your ball, even if you find the original ball.

You can continue to play the provisional ball up to where your first ball was lost. If you play your ball from this point on or a point nearer the hole, your first ball is considered lost. You hole out with the provisional ball—and the penalty.

If your ball is lost in a water hazard or a lateral water hazard, however, you must proceed under USGA Rule 26-1. Under this rule it’s to your advantage if the ball is lost in a water hazard because you don’t have to observe the rule’s distance penalty. The stroke penalty, however, is still in effect.

Abnormal Ground Conditions
Distance and stroke penalties are avoided, if there’s evidence that your ball is lost in abnormal ground conditions. In that case drop the ball within a club length of the point where the ball entered the hazard and hit. If a squirrel or other “outside agency” makes off with your ball, you can invoke USGA Rule 18-1 Ball Moved by Outside Agency. No penalty incurs.

By now your head is probably spinning. A lost ball does that to you. But if you play competitively, have a clear idea of what the rule says and how it’s applied. If you don’t, find out. Read the USGA rulebook, take golf lessons on them, or study golf tips explaining them. Knowing the rules won’t cut your golf handicap, but it can save the hole and/or help win a match. Playing by the rules also makes the game more challenging.

Golf Tips and Instruction 12/02/09

jack — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 20:15:46 +0000

In this issue we’ll discuss…

Avoid Plumb Putting To Drain More Putts
Going With The Grain
Question of the Week – Stop Topping Your Ball
Article – Use Lead Tape To Square Clubface At Impact
Article – Controlling Trajectories Helps Lower Golf Handicap

Avoid Plumb Putting To Drain More Putts

Instructors don’t always agree on golf mechanics. But one thing they do agree on is not exaggerating the arc of your putting stroke. Exaggerating the arc often leads to what some call “plumb putting. It’s a flaw recreational golfers are prone to when they “overcook” or exaggerate the putting arc.

A good putting stroke moves on a slight arc—with the putterhead tracing a path slightly inside the target line on the way back and then again after impact. That’s your ideal putting arc. But sometimes golfers pull the putting stroke too far inside by exaggerating their stroke. That spells trouble.

If you pull the putterhead too far inside on the way back, you must save the stroke with your hands. They shove the putterhead out on the way back. As a result, the face gets held open and you miss putts short and to the right (left for left-handed players).

This is called plumb putting. If you hung a plumb line from your hands, you’d want the putting stroke to stay away from that line on the backstroke. Instead make a gentle arc, and don’t let your wrists arch or the putterhead “get tall.” Your stroke will be smoother and more reliable:

The following drill helps improve your putting stroke:

Place two golf balls on the green. Set them up so there’s just enough room for your putter to swing through them freely. Practice with out a ball for several minutes. Your goal is to move your putterhead through the two balls without touching either one. If you hit the inside ball, you’ve pulled the putterhead inside. If you hit the outside ball, you’re looping out. In both cases, you must adjust your stance, head position, grip pressure, and shoulder alignment to generate the proper arc. Now use a ball in the drill. Start with short putts, then move out gradually to about 20 feet.

Don’t let plumb putting cost you strokes. Develop a good putting stroke and you’ll sink more putts.
Going With The Grain

Nutrition counts in golf. So that hot dog and candy bar you grab at the turn may not be the wisest snack choices. You may need a “higher grade of fuel” to ignite your play on the back nine, so grains are a much better—and healthier— snack choice than the hot do and candy bar. They give you the energy, endurance, and concentration you need to play well.

Here are six healthy snacks to pack in your bag:

Whole grain granola bar
Freshly popped popcorn
Whole grain crackers
Baked tortilla chips
Whole grain muffin
Turkey sandwich (whole grain bread)

Carbohydrates fuel the body. They turn into sugar, which is converted to energy. All carbohydrates, however, are not equal. When it comes to energy and endurance as well as your health, complex carbohydrates, like whole grains, top the snack list. They’ll give you what you need to finish strong.

Whole grains include whole wheat bread, oats, popcorn, and brown rice. They are better food choices because they contain all three parts of the grain: the bran, endosperm, and germ, the combination of which provides unique health benefits.

Typically, whole grains are high in fiber, vitamins, minerals, and plant nutrition. These nutrients are essential to life. Compared to whole refined grains, whole grains are digested faster and converted into blood sugar more slowly. The slower process provides a gradual and sustained release of energy to help you reach the 18th green. It’s why whole grains are recommended as the foundation of a healthy diet.

Don’t underestimate how important good nutrition is on the course. Next time you’re playing a round and you feel your stomach growl, reach for a whole grain snack. It’s healthier and more satisfying than hot dog and candy bar…and a great way to go low.

Question of the Week – Stop Topping Your Ball

Q. I have a number of problems with my swing, but the one that really hurts my game is my mid irons. I always top the ball. When using irons from the 7-iron through the SW wedge I don’t have any problem. It is only with my 4-, 5- and 6-iron. Instead of hitting a nice high shot with these clubs, I’m usually looking at the ball rolling down the fairway. Is there a drill that I can practice over the winter that will help me with this problem?

Sonny

A. Thanks for the question, Sonny. From your question, it sounds like you’re trying to “scoop” the ball, rather than compress it against the turf when using these irons. The key to hitting these irons is being on your front side at impact. That means you may have to make some slight adjustments to your swing.

Take your regular address then shift your weight to your back leg. Ideally, your back hip should be over your back heel. This move tilts your shoulders upwards slightly and away from the target. Next, take the club back slowly. Stretch out your arms in your backswing as much as possible and keep your back heel planted. Keep your weight on your backside.

Now swing down on the ball. With your back side stretched taught at the top of your backswing, you’re in position to deliver the club powerfully to the ball, compressing it and adding spin.

To get the feel of this stretching move, use a Theraband, which you can get at most sporting goods stores. Place the band around the instep of your front foot and the fingers of your left hand (right, if you’re left-handed). The Theraband adds resistance as you swing to the top, the kind of resistance you should feel when swinging.

If you hit your longer irons thin, focus on compressing the ball. It’s the key to hitting solid longer irons consistently. You might also consider getting a hybrid for your 3-, 4-, and 5-irons. Hybrids are easier to hit and provide the same yardage as these longer irons.

Also, for past issues of this newsletter and some of my most recent articles, visit our blog at www.HowToBreak80.com/blog

Here are some of my recent articles:

Article – Use Lead Tape To Square Clubface At Impact
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/use-lead-tape-to-square-clubface-at-impact.php

Article – Controlling Trajectories Helps Lower Golf Handicap
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/controlling-trajectories-helps-lower-golf-handicap.php

Until next time,

Go Low!

Jack

P.S. Feel free to share this newsletter with family and friends. If you would like to subscribe to this newsletter, go to http://www.howtobreak80.com/newsletter.htm
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