Create Golfers Academy

noreply@blogger.com (Create Golfers Academy) — Sat, 06 Oct 2018 23:24:00 +0000

If you’re looking to play like “better players,” you have to start doing what better players do... NOW.

I’m not necessarily talking about mechanics. I’m taking about how they got there. The things that everyone can do. Right now.

Like putting in the “reps” needed to elevate your level of play to theirs. And it's not about mindlessly beating balls. That's what I call "golf cardio." Seeing how fast you can hit range balls to work up a sweat and burn some calories. As for improving your game though, it accomplishes very little. I'm suggesting that every practice session should have a goal, a purpose and focusing more on accomplishing your objective more than outcome.

Like going through a consistent preshot routine on every shot. On the course, during practice, during competition. One that best prepares you for the shot at hand.

Like having your equipment in the best condition possible. Sometimes as simple as keeping the grooves clean on your clubs. Or maybe as simple as carrying a towel around with you for everything from wiping the face of your clubs after every shot... to wiping your face on a hot day.

Like not giving yourself a 3-footer, or putting with a wedge because you didn’t want to make the trip back to the cart to get your putter. Don't think to yourself (and please don't tell your playing partners), "I could have made it if I tried." UGH! If that's the case, then TRY and make it! Not “really“ trying won’t make you better.

No. None of these things will make you a better player.

Play like a pro? Play like better players? You can improve your game regardless of what level of player you currently are. But YOU MUST start doing what Pros and better players do .... NOW.

Peace. Love. Golf!

Keep A Golf Journal

noreply@blogger.com (Create Golfers Academy) — Wed, 03 Jan 2018 15:00:00 +0000

New year... new opportunities for improving your golf game. Exciting, isn't it? What I'm not going to do is use this post to talk about importance of goal setting... because you already know that. What I am going to do however, is encourage you to keep a golf journal. I do. Have since February 23rd, 1994. Wow... I can't believe it's been that long! Yet, as I search through my journals to write this post, I can recall the time, place and purpose of all my entries.

So what exactly goes into a golf journal? Well pretty much anything... Anything that will help you improve... help you remember... help inspire you. Examples might be:

After a lesson, jot down notes from the lesson to help you remember what it is that you have to work on, drills, goals, etc....
After a practice session, jot down progress, struggles, impressions, what you practiced on, etc....
After a round of golf, jot down scores, stats, feelings, weather conditions, course conditions, struggles, successes, etc....
At any time, jot down things that inspire you, motivate you, relevant quotes, article clips, etc....
If you're artistic (and I believe everyone is), sketch some ideas, or swing positions, or anything to help you with your journey towards getting better.

Today, purchase a journal (one small enough to fit in your golf bag) and start journaling. Use it as a tool that will assist you with making this year your best golfing year ever!

To encourage you, I'd like to share some personal (and unedited) entries from some of my golf journals. I start a new one every year. Enjoy!

February 23rd, 1994 (my very first one)

"REMEMBER ... Hands don't square clubhead. It's the clubhead squaring that turns the wrists. After impact, the left arm rotates (forearm) the clubhead. It's not the wrists doing the rotating. Rotation comes from the left elbow...."

April 4th, 1996

"During a full drive, the head, shoulders, and upper chest DO 'stay back behind the shot' and never actually sway past the ball before the clubhead strikes it...."

September 7th, 1999

"Faults are caused by trying to force what should be allowed. Grip... Posture... Alignment... Are caused to happen. Backswing... Downswing... Impact... Are allowed to happen."

August 8th, 2002

"'Everyone has the will to win, very few people have the will to PREPARE to win.' ~ Bobby Knight I need to determine the weak areas of my game, work on them, and prepare myself to win!"

February 2nd, 2005

"My right heel should not be lifted off the ground intentionally, but pulled off the ground as a result of good pivot and forward weight shift... and then... No more than necessary. Lifting the heel intentionally accomplishes nothing. Work on this. When I push or lift off my right foot, my right knee goes outside my toe line toward the ball causing power loss."

January 16th, 2007

"The ball should be struck prior to the low point of the downswing, even when using the driver. The clubshaft is never normally at right angles to the Plane Line through Impact - it leans forward. Hitting "up" produces duffers and most topped shots." - Golfing Machine

December 9th, 2010

"Work on moving right hip slightly toward target on downswing... Resist the urge to uncoil too quickly from the top of the backswing. This way... body stays coiled a bit longer. Once feeling of weight shifting to center of stance, then uncoil aggressively.... "

September 15th, 2012

"Practice felt too mechanical... just couldn't let myself go. Thoughts of allowing arms and club to drop down not forward helped... along with "feeling" lower body reacting to upper body during backswing. Also... Focusing on hugging chest with left arm on takeaway helped me feel more connected and kept club on plane better...."

June 25th, 2014

"Problem: pulling putts!

Cure: Play my ball position more toward the middle of my stance. This makes my shoulders more square to target line. Putts started on line much better! Now just let putter do the work. Maintain constant grip pressure...."

November 10th, 2016

"I really like feeling as if my right elbow drops down to right hip... then "feel" as if forearm and clubshaft pivot around my right elbow while rotating through with body. Doesn't actually happen this way, but "feels" this way."

January 1st, 2018
"Persevere, Persevere, Persevere.”

Peace, Love, Golf! #PLG

For more great tips or help with your golf game:

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3 Steps For Better Putting

noreply@blogger.com (Create Golfers Academy) — Fri, 10 Nov 2017 15:00:00 +0000

Putting Drill: Place rod on path between ball and hole. Putt ball trying to hit tip of rod.
Great for accuracy and alignment!

Keeping track of the number of putts during a round of golf is at most a basic stat, which may or may not accurately reveal the truth behind your putting.

For example, if your putting stats for a round are not very good (high number of putts), you may think you have to work on your putting, when in actuality the real problem might be that you're not hitting your approach shots close enough to the hole. As a result, you're left with very long putts placing you in two-putt or God forbid, three-putt territory!

On the flip side, if your putting stats for a round are very good (low number of putts), you may think you have mastered the art of putting and are ready to give lessons. However, before you have business cards made, the truth of why your putting stats are good may be that you're missing a lot of greens, causing you to chip or pitch the ball close to the hole... leaving you with short, make-able putts.

THREE STEPS TO BETTER PUTTING

Here's a tool I created that you can use when out on the golf course and during practice.

Step One.

Print out the "Putt Tracking Table" below (or make one yourself) and during a round of golf, track how many putts you make from each of the distances indicated in the table. For example, during an 18-hole round, you may have had five opportunities from 4-5 feet of which you made two of them.

That means you made 40% of your putts in that distance. Do this for each of the distances below.

Putt Tracking Table

Step Two.

Compare your percentages with the target percentages for each distance listed here:

1-3 feet - should make 90% or more
4-5 feet - should make 50-70%
6-10 feet - should make 25-35%
11-15 feet - should make 8-15%
16+ feet - depending on distance, should make 2-5%

Step Three.

Print out another Putt Tracking Table and practice your putting from each of the distances where you fell short of the target percentage goal. When finished, conduct an evaluation from each of the distances.

For example, say you putt 10 balls from the 4-5 feet range making four of them. Your percentage would be 40%. Below the target range of 50-70%. Practice some more and then evaluate again. This time, you make six out of 10 putts. Now your percentage is 60%, which places you in the 50-70% target range which means you've hit your goal. Yay! Repeat the process within each distance and so on.

In Summary

Track the number of putts per round for each of the distances in the table.
Check the percentages you made against the goal percentages in the table.
Practice your putting and when you feel ready, drop "X" number of balls from each distance in table.
Check your percentages. If in the goal range, move on to the next distance. If not, continue practice and evaluating.

Practice this routine often and you'll be on your way to lower scores!

Peace, Love, Golf #PLG

For more great tips or help with your golf game:

Purchase my Twitter Book:

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Chipping: Mini-Version of the Full Swing

noreply@blogger.com (Create Golfers Academy) — Wed, 08 Nov 2017 15:00:00 +0000

Finish With Shirt Buttons Facing Your Target

When I was a junior Golfer, I was taught that in order to hit a good chip shot I must do three things:

Keep my head down until I heard the “thump” of the ball landing on the green.
“Cement” my lower body (which meant prevent any movement).
And think of chipping as a mini-version of the full swing.

I’d like to share my experiences for each of these tips:

Regarding keeping my head down, jump over to my blog post on that topic by clicking HERE.
By cementing or preventing my lower body from moving, my hands became very active in attempt to “lift” the ball through impact resulting in inconsistent shots.
And number three? This tip confused me, because if my chip shot was to be a mini-version of my full swing, and I was to prevent my lower body from moving… then I was doing my full swing wrong because my lower body definitely moved!

Trying to chip this way made me a mediocre short game player at best because I became to "handsy." My chip shots relied heavily on timing. When my timing was on… I was pretty darn good. But when my timing was off… I chipped like I had boxing gloves on. And I’m not talking one day good, next day bad. I’m talking the same round! I could make a great chip on the first hole, only to blade my chip into a bunker on the third hole!

THE TRUTH

First, the hands don’t need to be active in a chip shot since the loft of the club is designed to get the ball airborne.

And secondly, in a good chip (or pitch shot), the lower body DOES move. While not excessively, it should be allowed to react to the upper body. Watch the lower body action of PGA and LPGA TOUR pros when they’re chipping. Their lower bodies definitely move.

THE FIX

While I don’t advocate a lot of lower body movement, I do like to see my students use their shoulders, chest, and yes… the hips… to move the club forward from downswing to follow-through. This isn’t a “violent” turn… but more of a complete turning of the shoulders, chest, and hips. They rotate together as one big happy family.

To help you with this, next time you’re practicing your chipping and pitching… concentrate on finishing with your shirt buttons toward the target, indicating that you made a full rotation through the shot. And ALLOW you lower body to move with the turn. With this new motion, you may find yourself hitting shots a bit further because of rotating through the shot better. Don’t worry, you’ll soon adjust to the new distance.

Enjoy and let me know how things go for you!

For more great tips or help with your golf game:

Purchase my Twitter Book:

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Peace, Love, Golf! #PLG

Most Popular Golf Tip: Keep Your Head Down

noreply@blogger.com (Create Golfers Academy) — Wed, 01 Nov 2017 15:00:00 +0000

Keep Your Head Down

By far… the most popular “golf tip” amongst amateurs (and unfortunately some golf professionals) that can RUIN YOUR GOLF GAME and possibly cause injury! I hear it at junior clinics from well-meaning parents. I hear it from students during golf lessons. I hear it on the golf course after a poorly struck shot. As the saying goes, “If I had a dollar every time I heard, ‘I lifted my head up’ or ‘I need to keep my head down,’” I’d be a very wealthy man. VERY wealthy!

Trying to keep your head down during the follow-through portion of the golf swing will cause “bad stuff” to happen. Some which may include:

Preventing the body from fully rotating through the hitting zone and finishing the swing
Causing the swing to become more arms-dominated (translated: poor contact and loss of distance)
Placing unnecessary strain on your neck and back which could ultimately lead to injury

Keeping your head down is just bad advice. And here’s a secret I’d like to share with you: I’ve been teaching golf for over 23 years and I have YET to see anyone lift their head up too early! Not one! Nada! ZERO!

I know, you’re probably calling me a heretic for going against one of golf’s greatest “tips.” But try these before you start the fire at the stake:

KEEP YOUR EYE ON THE BALL

Better than keeping your head down, my advice would be “keep your eye on the ball.” Meaning, that when you hit your shot, try tracking the ball with your eyes. You won’t actually be able to on full shots, but this will allow your head to rotate freely with the swing.

FOCUS ON SPINE TILT

Rather than going into a long description here about spine tilt or spine angle, check out my post on the subject by clicking HERE.

ALLOW THE HEAD TO ROTATE WHEN IT WANTS TO

Don’t try lifting your head… don’t try NOT lifting your head. Instead, allow the head to rotate and lift up when it wants to. Your shoulders and body turn will cause the head to rotate so don’t fight it. Go with it. Allow it to happen.

So… don’t keep your head down. Try one (or all) of the tips I provided and be on your way to better shot making while also preventing back and neck injury (Please don’t show your chiropractor this article. She’ll hate me for costing her business).

Peace. Love. Golf!

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3 Practice Strategies That Will Improve Your Golf Game

noreply@blogger.com (Create Golfers Academy) — Thu, 19 Oct 2017 16:00:00 +0000

Many golfers visit the practice facilities with the intentions of improving their games. But many practice sessions become disjointed or have no clear purpose, which end in frustration and result in little or no improvement.

Here are three routines that will help you get the most out of your practice sessions:

1. GAME IMPROVEMENT PRACTICE

As the name suggests, use this type of practice routine when working on a new position, technique or "fix." It consists of drills, exercises, and/or specific routines that will assist with incorporating the new position, technique or fix into your game.

During this type of practice session it's imperative that you focus on the "Objective," rather than the "Outcome." An example of an objective might be setting the wrists earlier during the backswing, rather than the outcome of landing balls within a 15-foot radius using a 7-iron. If you are outcome oriented, you will eventually give up on your practice objective, resulting in little or no improvement.

Also, unless you're specifically working on target related objectives, don't concern yourself too much with whether or not you're hitting your target. That type of practice happens in the next routine I'll share with you.

And oh yeah. Don't try to improve several things during one practice session. Choose one thing to work on and get good at it before moving to the next one.

2. MAINTENANCE PRACTICE

You've worked hard on making changes to your game. Now... it's about repetitive practice to make those changes "stick." It's about doing a bazillion and one "reps" of swings, putts, chip shots, etc... so that the drills you've been working on become part of your game without having to "think" about them. It's about replacing bad habits with good ones.

For example, "feel" that half-swing drill you've been working on as part of your full swing. "Incorporate" that distance control drill into your putting stroke. "Imagine" clipping that tee in the ground during your chip stroke.

Now is also the time you want to be target fixated. A typical one-hour maintenance practice session for me may look like:

10-15 minutes reviewing/executing the drill I've been working on during my Game Improvement Practice.
35-45 minutes incorporating the drill into my swing/stroke/chip shot while aiming at a target.
10-15 minutes of target practice without any swing thoughts of what I've been working on. It's called, "trusting it."

If you're struggling with hitting targets or old habits are still present, go back to the Game Improvement Practice routine. Chances are, you'll be bouncing back and between the two.

3. WARM UP PRACTICE

It's game time. You've made the necessary changes. You've practiced them relentlessly. Now it's time to take it to the golf course!

Arrive at the golf course about 45-60 minutes prior to your tee time. After gearing up and checking in, head to the practice facility to "warm up."

A warm up practice routine could look something like:

10 minutes of stretching.
Hit chip/pitch shots to targets.
Hit lazy, tension free full swings before hitting balls at your normal tempo. Work up and down the bag (example: wedge, 8-iron, 5-iron, hybrid, driver, 6-iron, 9-iron, sand wedge. Again, always with specific targets and only a few shots with each club. Don't get stuck on one club trying to "fix" the shot.
With about 10-15 minutes left, head to the putting green warm up by practicing putts of different lengths and breaks. Finish with making some very short putts as a confidence boost.

WARNING!

DO NOT USE the warm up practice session as a Game Improvement or Maintenance practice session. It should be about limbering up for that epic round your about to have. Play the game you brought with you which means if you're fading the ball during the warm up, then play for the fade on the golf course.

Again, incorporate all three and your game will improve and you'll have more fun on the golf course. Let me know how it goes!!

Peace... Love... Golf!

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Five Steps to Better Golf

noreply@blogger.com (Create Golfers Academy) — Mon, 16 Oct 2017 19:00:00 +0000

If you're looking to improve, but you're not, let me be blunt (only because I love you guys). What you're doing isn't working. You need a new plan. And now for the good news. I'm here to help! Here are five steps to get you started.

FIRST STEP:

Fall in LOVE with the process! You have to WANT to be a better golfer more than being a golfer! Right? I mean, you're already a golfer! Establish where you are today and where you want to be, then fill in the necessary steps that will get you your desired result! Establishing a plan will get you on the practice facility to work on your swing, make putts, practice short game, and hit hundreds of shots out of the sand. LOVE to WANT to practice!

SECOND STEP:

This one is pretty obvious but I have to say it anyway... DO YOUR HOMEWORK (Translated: Do Purposeful Practice). When faced with the terror of playing in your member/guest, the club championship, or a round of golf with "smack talking" friends on the weekend, you can either stress about it and "hope" for a lucky day on the golf course... or you can get yourself ready. Best way to eliminate self-doubt about your abilities? Put in the time at getting better! And not the day before.

THIRD STEP:

Once you've spent time on the practice facility honing your skills... throw them away. Yup! When it's time to play golf, the golf course is no place to be over analyzing, over complicating, or trying something new. That's sure golf death. The reason you've been practicing so hard is so that your new game just "happens" on the golf course. In other words, practice on the practice facility and play golf on the golf course! Trust it!

FOURTH STEP:

You are capable of much more than you think. Most people don't get better and just "settle" for the way they play. But that's... just... not... true. Everyone (as in EVERYONE) has the potential to be better. This is why so many golfers fail at improving. Without a plan, it's easy to give up and say, "I guess I just can't kick this habit." But that's not YOU! I know it's not.

FIFTH STEP:

Another obvious one (and probably should be the FIRST STEP), TAKE ACTION! Everything you've accomplished in your life is because of taking action. You're playing golf today because one day in your past you didn't just "think" you'd like to start playing golf. No... you're playing golf today because you took action. You found an instructor, a golf course, a friend to play with, purchased equipment, read books, etc... and here you are: a GOLFER.

One last thing I suggest, let's call it Step 5.5. Purchase a JOURNAL that can fit in your golf bag (mobile devices work ok... but I opt for paper). In the first few pages, write out your plan and then sign it. Kind of a contract with yourself. Then every time you practice or play golf, write down what you did, how you did, what to work on next time, and any important observations. Then date each entry.

Keep me posted on how you're doing. I LOVE hearing from my friends around the world!

If I can help in any way... click HERE to find out about my personalized online video instruction! I also offer an ebook with hundreds of "tweet-sized" golf tips for only $5 USD. Delivered right to your email. Click HERE.

Thank YOU!

Peace... Love... Golf!!

Ted

Golf Swing: Lighter Grip Pressure for Better Impact

noreply@blogger.com (Create Golfers Academy) — Sat, 14 Oct 2017 00:36:00 +0000

When the hands hold the golf club too tightly in effort to control it or add power, they add tension to the arms and shoulders, which in turn produces the opposite... slower clubhead speed and inconsistent shots.

For a more efficient golf swing, focus on keeping the hands passive throughout the swing. This creates clubhead lag (clubhead trails behind hands) until the moment of impact when the club automatically releases and in essence “whips” out and “impacts” the ball with incredible “thrust.”

To illustrate… imagine a line of ice skaters holding hands. If the inside skater starts to rotate… the outside skater in the line is “whipped” around at tremendous speed… basically holding on for dear life! If something got in her way while being whipped around… YIKES!

Think of the golf swing in the same way. Your body… is the inside ice skater. Your clubhead is the outside skater. And the arms, hands, and clubshaft are like the skaters who connect the two together. When the body rotates… the clubhead gets whipped around, “impacting” the ball with great speed and power.

YOUR TURN: A drill I prescribe to my students is known as the “float load drill" (I’ve attached a video of me demonstrating the drill below). It’s called “float load” because during the transition from backswing to downswing… the clubhead “floats” a bit before changing direction.

HERE'S HOW: Using a mid-iron, set up as if you’re going to hit a full shot. Release the tension of the hands to a grip pressure of about a “3-4” on a scale of “1-10” where “1” is loose and “10” is death grip! Now execute a 50 yard (about 45 meters) pitch shot and focus on maintaining a constant “3-4” grip pressure throughout the entire pitch.

Allow the club to collide with the ball. Think of the ball just getting in the way of the club’s path. Resist the urge to “push” the clubhead back to the ball. Trust it! The clubhead will find it!

When watching the video below… notice how the angle between my arms and clubshaft decreases on the way down toward the ball… NOT on the backswing. The club is really lagging behind the hands. An indicator that I’m holding the club lightly.

Video your float drill often and check to see if it looks the same as mine.

Once you've hit a bazillion (and one) float load drills with some consistency... it's time for full shots. Hit golf balls off tees at about 50% of your swing speed while focusing on maintaining a light grip pressure on the club. Feel the release of the club into the ball at impact. Slowly start building your swing speed to about 85% and eventually work on hitting the ball without using a tee.

Before every round of golf, hit at least six float load drills as part of your warm up. And when practicing… alternate between float load drills and full swings. Eventually you will create a more repeatable golf swing that will produce consistency in your game.

For more great tips or help with your golf game:

Purchase my Twitter Book:

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Purchase a Personalized Video Golf Lesson:

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Peace… Love… Golf!

Ted

Chipping: Get the Ball Closer to the Hole with the "Chip-Putt"

noreply@blogger.com (Create Golfers Academy) — Tue, 10 Oct 2017 19:00:00 +0000

Just off the green? Can't putt because too much uneven terrain between your ball and the green? Then try the "Chip Putt" and get your ball close to the hole! Watch this short *video to learn how:

For more great tips or help with your golf game:

Purchase my Twitter Book:

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Purchase a Personalized Video Golf Lesson:

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Peace, Love, Golf!

Ted

*Since the filming of this video, I am no longer at Orange County National Golf Center and Lodge and instead work for the PGA Of America as the Director of Golf Program Development.

Game Improvement: Getting the Most out of Your Practice Sessions

noreply@blogger.com (Create Golfers Academy) — Fri, 06 Oct 2017 19:00:00 +0000

This weekend… I took some time and observed Golfers on the practice range. Ugh! The majority of them just "whacked" at balls with no apparent purpose! And the putting green was no different! One Golfer dropped five balls and proceeded to "putt" them without ever looking at the hole or to pause long enough to see where the balls were going. This went on for about 15 minutes. Ugh Redux!!

Mindlessly hitting balls is NOT "Practice." I call it, "exercising." Specifically cardio training... lots of reps in a short amount of time.

Practicing should be about solving problems. Fixing the weaknesses and defects in your golf game caused by poor technique or form which in turn cause poor golf scores.

To get the most out of your practice sessions, I'd like to share several practice ideas that I use with my children, Grayson and Madison Rose… both great golfers!

KEEP A JOURNAL

Both carry practice/lesson journals in their in their bags. They write down anything we've worked on or they've worked on. Could be a thought, feeling, drill, idea, quote, etc… Don't trust that you'll remember everything... write it down because paper (or mobile devices if you prefer) never forgets!

CONSISTENT PRACTICE

Grayson and Madison Rose practice daily… not once a week. They practice about six days a week. The practice session duration each day varies according to other activities… but continuity is key to the continued development of their skills. In the excellent (must read!) book, The Little Book of Talent: 52 Tips for Improving Your Skills, by Daniel Coyle, he writes:

"With deep practice, small daily practice “snacks” are more effective than once-a-week practice binges. The reason has to do with the way our brains grow—incrementally, a little each day, even as we sleep. Daily practice, even for five minutes, nourishes this process, while more occasional practice forces your brain to play catch-up. Or, as the music-education pioneer Shinichi Suzuki puts it, “Practice on the days that you eat.”

ONLY WORK ON ONE OR TWO THINGS PER SESSION

Both Grayson and Madison Rose practice only one or two things each session. That's it! For example… during a recent putting practice, Grayson worked on drills for tempo and putter path, while Madison Rose worked on drills for proper setup and light grip pressure. They both spent an hour and a half making putts that were no more than four feet long and used a chalk line for accuracy. That's it!

QUALITY… NOT QUANTITY

Grayson and Madison Rose use most of their practice time by practicing with purpose. They/We decide what needs to be worked on and that becomes the focus. This way they don't waste any time in their practice session and they don’t have to spend countless hours on the range (although at times they do). By being efficient and focused they become better golfers AND it frees them up to still have a life!! Remember... the purpose of practicing is to improve... not get bored, angry or defeated. Therefore, clarity and having a goal are keys to good practice.

FEEDBACK

Grayson and Madison are constantly asking me during their practice, "Like this?" or "How did that look?" or "Was that any better?" They are seeking feedback to make sure they're on the right track to improvement. Nothing worse then spending an intense practice session only to realize you've been practicing wrong. You need feedback. From a teacher. From a trusted KNOWLEDGEABLE friend. From your phone's camera/video. From a mirror. From what the ball is doing. Ultimately from your golf score!

MAKE IT FUN!

Grayson and Madison Rose work very, very hard on their games. They push themselves to improve and are intense during practice. They do drills that require focused effort and hard work but they finish each practice/lesson session with some type of game, skill challenge, or a few holes of golf on the course. Oftentimes I compete with them and play for "dots," bragging rights, score, etc… Lots (as in LOTS) of "smack talk" goes on!

So keep it fun. Reward yourself with some type of fun activity after the hard work you’ve put in. After all… golf is a game… and games were meant to be fun!!

For more great tips or help with your golf game:

Purchase my Twitter Book:

Click Here

Purchase a Personalized Video Golf Lesson:

Click Here

Peace… Love… Golf!

Ted

Golf Swing: How to Maintain the Spine Angle

noreply@blogger.com (Create Golfers Academy) — Wed, 04 Oct 2017 19:00:00 +0000

My daughter Madison Rose has been working hard on her downswing move. She's been focusing on maintaining her spine angle during impact by keeping her hips back. Something that all great ball strikers do during the downswing through impact position (See Rory McIlroy beneath Madison's images).

In addition to maintaining the spine angle, keeping the hips back helps prevent early release of club, keeps the upper and lower body in sync, helps eliminate thin shots, and creates good ball compression.

YOUR TURN: If you're having trouble maintaining your spine angle during the golf swing... try this.

Stick an alignment rod into the ground behind you (See where line is drawn on the images above).
Without a ball, practice the backswing and downswing through to impact very slowly and deliberately while keeping your butt cheeks against the rod. Concentrate on the feel.
Remove the rod and hit balls (use a mid-iron) while imagining that your butt is up against an imaginary wall (or imaginary rod) during backswing/downswing to impact and beyond.
Alternate between the drill and hitting shots until you can execute it repeatedly.
Video yourself. Evaluate. Repeat!

Drop me a line and let me know how it goes!

Also, for more great tips or help with your golf game:

Purchase my Twitter Book:

Click Here

Purchase a Personalized Video Golf Lesson:

Click Here

Peace... Love... Golf!

Ted

Golf Swing: Drop the Bucket for More Power

noreply@blogger.com (Create Golfers Academy) — Mon, 02 Oct 2017 19:00:00 +0000

A common problem with golfers (often found in juniors) is, that in effort to create power they rotate their hips too soon (termed: "Spinning Out") during the downswing. This can cause a multitude of problems including:

Loss of power (Because the power gets used up too soon)
Blocked shots (Ball goes right for right-handed golfers)
The right arm elbow gets "stuck" behind the right hip (for right-handed golfers).

My daughter Madison Rose used to have this problem, but has overcome it by working with the "Bucket Drill." Now her upper and lower body work much more in sync which allows her to deliver maximum power when the golf club reaches the ball. Here's how she did it.

Using a mid-iron, she addresses the ball with a range basket between her knees. Open side of the basket toward the ball.

After taking her backswing, she begins the downswing by moving her left knee toward the target while keeping the right knee stationary. This causes the bucket to drop, giving the appearance that she's "squatting" which is seen in the swings of many TOUR professionals.

This move prevents the hips from spinning out too soon and assists the upper and lower body to work in sync, causing power to be reserved for when it matters most... when the club reaches the ball.

She finishes to a half or full swing position allowing her right knee to get pulled into the finish position and holds a well-balanced finish until the ball lands.

The Result? A powerful move which gains her more distance with less effort. Not only is this good for her ball striking, but medicinally it's easier on her body.

If you suffer from spinning out too soon, give this drill a try. Do it often and be patient. Video tape your swing with the bucket drill and then again without it. Keep working on it until the two look similar. I know YOU can do it! The end results will be well worth the effort you put in.

Leave a comment on how it works for you!

Peace... Love... Golf!

Ted