ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

Short Game Tip – Getting More Feel Before Hitting That Chip Shot!

Junger Woods — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 03:18:01 +0000

If you watch pro golfers on TV carefully, you will notice that sometimes (during the heat of a match/championship), the pro golfer will walk the greens.

This is because he/she is trying to get a “feel” for the greens before hitting their chip shot. Sometimes pros do this for even longer pitch shots such as 90 yards in.

The nature of the game forces the greens to get harder as the day goes by and usually when you see the leaders finish on the last couple holes, that’s usually when the greens are hardest and fastest, especially on windy days.

These little, minute effect of nature can have a great impact on how your ball behaves when you are chipping or pitching to the green.

To get a good feel for the greens, simply walk the green where you will be landing the ball and rolling it to the hole. Then try to get a good “feel” for the greens by feeling the green with your feet.

After getting a good feel for the green, visualize your chip/pitch shot and then hit the darn thing.

You should start doing this more often (although you don’t have to do it everytime) as it will help you predict and hit better short shots around the green.

Also, by walking around the green before you hit the chip shot, you will subconsciously relax yourself and also help your mind get a better “feel” for the shot.

Short game requires more “feel” then anything and your feet need to feel the greens when under the gun. Whether you are hitting that chip shot close to win a nassau bet or the U.S. Open, this little tip will help you win more often than not.

If you don’t believe me just watch the pros walk around the greens before they hit their chip shot and also watch exactly where they are walking.

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

Short Game Tip – Getting More Feel Before Hitting That Chip Shot!

Putting Tips – How to Putt Consistently!

Junger Woods — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 01:11:39 +0000

Last time I showed you some putting secrets of how to roll the putt better by hooking it. Well, today, let me give you couple tips that will help you putt even better.

First, I don’t really care how you grip but your putter should “hang” naturally from your hands. This fixes many putting flaws. When your putter is “hanging” naturally by gravity from your hands, your putting stroke will have consistency.

To do this, simply feel the weight of the putter head and make sure you can feel it “hanging” off your hands and arms right before you begin the putt. You will also find this is easier to achieve if you stand up as tall as you can.

As for the putting grip, I find that the one with your thumbs going down the middle of the shaft works best. Also, I have tried “looser” putting grips where your thumbs are placed diagonally across the putter grip. These are good for light hands but ultimately make you miss short putts, where it counts.

For your putting stroke, make sure it’s a “stroke” back and forth, not a “hit” back and forth or any other fast, jerky movements.

Try to keep your putting clubhead on the ball as long as you can and that is what I mean by “stroking” the golf ball.

When you do this right, you will find you hit more putts solid and they also “feel” right in your hands.

As for the putting rhythm, try to mimic a metronome. Just like an old wall clock that goes back and forth, your putting stroke is the same. No need to get more complicated than “1-and-2″ rhythm.

Remember, when you practice putting, you are striving to achieve a putting stroke that will roll your ball smoothly on the green.

A great way to test your roll is to putt on a humid green when there’s a lot of fog. Try a long putt about 30 feet and see if your golf ball “jumps” or “skips”. If it does, that means you are not doing it right, apply my tips until your golf ball “rolls” smoothly. When you have truly master the art of putting, your golf ball should never “jump” or “skip” on foggy greens.

It’s Friday, I hope y’all have tee times, and I will have more golf tips next week!

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Putting Tips – How to Putt Consistently!

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Putting Secrets – How to “Hook” Your Putts!

Junger Woods — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 17:52:51 +0000

Okay, I am going to let out another cat out of the bag, that is “hooking” your putts.

I’ve been recently noticing that I have been “naturally” hooking my putts, virtually every one of them. This occurred naturally while just trying to make solid contact with the ball.

By the way, I have been making helluva more putts with my new “hook” method.

WHY?

When you put a slight right-to-left spin on the ball while you putt, your ball will roll more true than if you simply hit it normally. I also found that by hooking my putts, I was able to make more left-to-right putts and right-to-left putts.

The only drawback is that you will have to adjust your aiming accordingly, meaning you might want to aim more right for right-to-left putts and play for less break on left-to-right putts.

How to Hook Your Putts

For me, an inside to slightly outside putting stroke is natural since I mainly use my wrists to putt.

I find I putt better with my wrists plus more feel when I let my hands do most of the work.

The inside-out path is natural when you simply use your wrists to putt.

To try my new putting method, simply take the clubhead back, letting it hinge on your wrists. You will find that the path of the putter will automatically go inside.

On the follow-through, simply let the putter clubhead swing through to the target, you will find that the path of the putter will naturally go slightly outside then straight towards the target.

Because this is a natural movement and I am sinking more putts, I decided to stick with it.

When you do this right, you won’t notice any “hooks” with naked eye but you will notice that you can “hook” the ball on right-to-left putts (meaning you have to aim more right) and you will be able to hit those slightly left-to-right putts straight at the cup without compensating for any breaks.

Remember, the “hook” part is ever so slight that it can’t really be seen with the naked eye, it’s a “feel” thing so don’t over do it! (Perhaps like 1-3 degrees of inside-outness…)

If you look at Tiger’s putting, he also “hooks” his putts. (There’s even a golf training tool you can buy here. They call it inside-down-the-line path but it’s really the same thing.)

I’ve also noticed that one of the greatest putters Ben Crenshaw does a similar move in his teaching videos.

Of course, you can also do this without using your wrists only but I don’t know how to teach you that. Perhaps the golf training aid will help although I don’t believe in any training aids because you can’t use it on the golf course.

Anyways, this is really for advanced golfers. If you are not already accomplished putter, perhaps you might want to just try hitting putts straight and keep it simple.

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Putting Secrets – How to “Hook” Your Putts!

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How to Hit the Pop and Run Pitch Shot! [Short Game]

Junger Woods — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 05:17:31 +0000

Today, I was practicing this pop and run pitch shot where your pitch shot flies about 15-20 yards then rolls the rest of the way about additional 5-10 yards. (It’s also called hit-and-run but I like the term “pop and run” since it feels more like I “pop” the ball” rather than “hitting” it)

This shot can be very useful in situations where you have a lot of green to work with yet you still need to fly the ball about 15-20 yards onto the green.

Also, this shot can be useful for uphill lies/greens where the ball tends to die after landing on the green.

Okay, one more thing, this shot can be useful in situations where the green lies left to right, meaning you need to aim left of your pin and also put some nice “hook” spin to the ball. (so it will counter the left-to-right slope on the green)

Anyways, to hit this pop and run pitch shot, it’s not terribly hard nor different from your regular pitch shot.

First, setup to the ball square to your target with the ball about the center of your stance.

Second, let your hands be very “light” like spaghetti as with all short game shots.

Third, take your backswing aggressively inside, you should feel that your wrists are forced to hinge quicker because you take it back on a such flat plane. Yes, it’s okay to be wristy on this shot, just make sure you hands stay super light throughout the shot.

Fourth, follow through inside-out without breaking your wrists.

When you hit hit shot right, you can literally take a really clean hit of the ball and very little turf. It should feel very solid and with lots of overspin. The golf ball should feel like “butter” at impact.

The beauty of this shot can be seen in windy against-the-wind situations where you need to keep the ball strong and also rolling once it hits the green.

I know personally that Tiger (although his MIA right now, perhaps I will have a post on that soon) practices/uses this shot a lot.

It’s hard for you to catch pros hit this shot because the pitch shot is such a small action, subtle changes in the pitch shot can be hard to see with the naked eye.

When hit right with enough force, this shot can also “skip and drop” when hit under dry, normal conditions or against the wind.

Of course, this shot isn’t for the hacker, perhaps for those of you who are already accomplish short game players.

Putting “hook” spin on the ball with small chip/pitch shots can save you a great deal of headache on very fast, sloping greens where just playing along might not be enough. Instead, you might have to “counter” spin the ball to get your ball stopping next to the pin.

On the opposite side, there’s the slice spin chip shot but I am not going to tell you how to do that because most of you already know how to do that. Most pitch shots can have slice spin as soon as you open the clubface.

Of course, you might think you can add “hook” spin simply by closing the clubface but I find that is a lot harder to control than using the inside-out swing method. Anyways, that is why I am telling you how to hit this shot.

I usually use my 60 degree lob wedge to hit this shot but you can use longer club (even a 7-iron) for longer pitch shots such as 50 yards or more.

As always, my tips are meant to help you to experiment with you own short game and develop your own “feel” and shots. In short game, there’s no single right way to hit the same shot. Likewise, I would like you to experiment and see if you can find my method or any other variations thereof helpful for your golf game.

Practice your short game at least 30% of your practice time as having a great short game can help you score under par even if you hit your drives/irons all over the place.

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How to Hit the Pop and Run Pitch Shot! [Short Game]

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Continuous Rhythm, Light Hands!

Junger Woods — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 03:35:26 +0000

Well, my swing has been getting better and better, thanks to continuous rhythm and light hands. Today’s practice was a blast although there was a storm moving here into Northern California. There was only one other guy at the range today and the range was closing rather early at 7pm.

Anyways, today I probably had one of the best swing days of my life (I know I say this often but my swing is getting better and better so…) and here’s some swing keys that helped me do that:

Hover the clubhead at address and feeling the weight of the golf clubhead. This helps you feel the weight of your golf club before you start your golf swing plus you won’t be starting from a completely static position, helping you to get into action. Jack Nicklaus used to do this on all his shots even on putting, I highly suggest you to do this too. It can also be a good pre-swing move, sorta like a push forward with your hands.
At the top of my swing (actually it felt like I couldn’t distinguish between my backswing and downswing), my hands felt “weightless” or very light. Also during transition, it felt so “smooth”, like butter. To accomplish this rhythm, try waving your hands like a music conductor. Oh yeah, that’s the feeling, smooth.

That was about it and I felt like my swing was simply an exaggerated version of my small chip/pitch shots.

Also, one more thing, if you start swinging badly, stop hitting full shots and hit very short 30 yard pitch shots. To hit great 30 yard pitch shots, you will need to lighten your hands a lot and swing very smooth. Once you can hit the ball really solid with your pitch shot rhythm, try it on your full shots.

Well, gotta go, I got a long weekend ahead of me although I still haven’t played a single round this year. Gotta make money first then I should be on my way to PGA Tour baby!

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Continuous Rhythm, Light Hands!

continuous rhythm, light hands

Rooting for James Hahn at Q-School!

Junger Woods — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 19:41:30 +0000

Well, today is the last day of PGA Tour’s Q-school, the Top 25 finishers will qualify to play in the next year’s PGA Tour events.

Of the players at Q-school, I know two guys who I have played with, James Hahn and Scott Gordon.

Well, Scott Gordon isn’t going to make it it looks like but James Hahn is playing quite well, currently at 9 under par, tied for 25th.

He’s on the 16th hole now, if he can make one more birdie, he can surely secure his PGA Tour card for next year.

Let me tell you about this young man James Hahn, he is a very good golfer. James Hahn used to win like every other junior golf tournament he played in when I was a junior golfer.

If he makes it through in couple hours (which I believe he will), I bet he will start winning some PGA Tour events, very talented young man.

Well, crossing my fingers, good luck buddy!

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Rooting for James Hahn at Q-School!

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How to Practice the Driver!

Junger Woods — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 20:12:53 +0000

For most of you, you probably have one shot with your driver, that is trying to hit it long as possible.

Well, let me tell you right off the bat, I can hit at least a dozen different shots with my driver including the full long drive, short knock-down drive, driver off the fairway, low-bullet slice shots around the trees, and the list can go endless.

Because of how the driver is designed, it can be a great weapon to use even off the fairway when there’s a fair amount of wind on the golf course or you are stuck under a low-hanging tree and you need to get the ball down the fairway as far as possible.

Of course, a long iron such as a 2 or 3-iron can also be good for hitting a low-bullet shot but the driver has some better results such as putting less backspin on the ball. In the time you need to roll it more, the driver can come in very handy.

Well, let me just go over couple of these different shots you can practice with your driver so you can make 12 shots out of this driver club, not just one.

Having more weapons in your bag will help you become a scratch or better golfer but only knowing how to hit full shots will limit your potential as a golfer.

1. The Long Drive – I am sure you have this in your bag already, I won’t go much into details other than you should have a super-long drive ready to launch at a long par 5.

2. The Short Drive – At times, there’s a need for you to hit a distance off the tee, something between a driver and a 3-wood. At those times you will want to grip down on the driver a little bit and make a three-quarter swing. This will allow you to hit the ball little bit lower and control it better. This short drive also works well on windy holes where a 3-wood balloon the golf ball in the air too much. Anyways, this is probably more important driver shot than the Long Drive. Look at the pros, even they are using it, especially Anthony Kim, he will grip down on almost every drive for better control and lower ball flight. This isn’t an easy shot by the way if you don’t practice and learn to control your backswing so make sure you practice this before using it on the golf course. (or any of these shots for that matter)

3. The Short Drive Fade and Draw – Learn to really be able to work the ball left-to-right or right-to-left with these short drives, they can come in very handy for those dogleg-lefts and rights.

4. The Long Drive off the Fairway – This will require that you already hit the golf ball pretty solid. This Long Drive off the Fairway can come in handy on super, long par 5s or super, windy conditions where you need to hit the ball far and run it too.

5. The Short Drive off the Fairway – This one is another one to practice for windy conditions and when you need to run the ball more than the 3-wood.

6. The Low-Bullet Shot – This low-bullet shot with the driver is basically same as a short drive off the fairway except you put the ball back in your stance slightly. You won’t have to put the ball back too far back because the loft on the driver is already de-lofted a lot, just make a nice and short swing.

Also practice with different clubface angles. For one, don’t close your clubface but rather open it up gradually and see what kind of results you get.

These shots can come in handy where you have to hit it under the tree then slice the heck out of it down the fairway.

Other than these, you might want to keep experimenting with different driver shots. All these shots may seem like a waste of time but will actually help you hit the Long Drive good too because your hands will have to be light and your body will adjust to swing correctly.

Banging Long Drives one after another can be fun but they are usually detrimental to your overall golf swing and rhythm but if you mix your driver practice with all of these different ones I’ve outlined, you will make a much better use out of your driver plus better rhythm in the long run.

Remember, if you practice like everyone else on the range, you will only become like them. (a real good HACKER!)

Learn to be creative and create your own golf shots, that will ultimately be your competitive edge on the golf course when your competitor thinks you are stymied behind a tree, then stick it 2-feet from the pin using the low-bullet slice driver shot.

Bring out the best in yourself, don’t limit capabilities of a golf club to one shot.

Happy golfing!

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

How to Practice the Driver!

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My New Golf Swing – The Weak Grip/Flat Plane Golf Swing!

Junger Woods — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 21:31:39 +0000

Well, I have finally built a new golf swing after tinkering and experimenting with different grips and swing planes. This new golf swing is probably perfect for golfers who are similar build to mine (I am 5′ 9″ 190lbs with modest muscles in my upper body and rather muscular lower body) or you can try it if it works for you too.

Another quirk I have is that I have flat foot, meaning that if I try to swing like non-flat footed people, I simply can’t but I have found using a super, weak grip and a super, flat swing plane, I can hit the ball after ball consistently toward my target and also have a great control over my ball trajectory and distance.

So, here it goes for those of you who want to try a golf swing that I’ve created.

The Grip

The grip starts with my left hand. The left hand grip is actually simply neutral. Just hang your left hand down the shaft naturally, back of your left hand facing the target.

You should see about 2 knuckles, the V formed by your thumb and index finger pointing to your chin or right shoulder. I use the standard left hand grip but the right hand grip is where we make the weak grip. (and the secret sauce behind my swing)

For the right hand, you will place your right hand grip “well weak”, meaning the V formed by the thumb and index finger should point to your left shoulder or slightly beyond.

This mechanism allows me to really prevent turning my right hand over after impact. Rather, I can fully release my right hand at impact, thereby applying extra power to my overall swing speed yet be able to control the golf ball with super accuracy.

I find that traditional golf instruction only teaches the “wrong” way, where the right hand is vulnerable to turn the club over the quickly. Why not set your right hand so it can never turn over so fast? That’s my secret.

Here’s the finished netural left/weak right grip. Ben Hogan used something similar to this, I’ve exaggerated my weak right hand grip more because I hit the ball better that way.

When done right, both your arms should be straight instead of traditional golf instruction where your right elbow is slightly tucked into your body.

I find that you can feel more unison between your hands and arms when using this grip.

Address/Setup

At address, you should stand as tall as possible (like you are standing) and simply bend your knees a bit. The shoulders here are “square” and “parallel” to your target line while the arms may be slightly open due to the super, weak right hand grip.

From the front, you should see that the hands are slightly ahead of the golf clubhead and you should “feel” the triangle formed by your shoulders, arms, and hands. This is the most pivotal part, you need to feel that “triangle”, that is what you turn on the backswing and downswing. (or turning your body)

Backswing

For the backswing, you will simply turn your “triangle” formed at address in-plane. You do not need to consciously cock your hands, they should naturally cock as the result of your body movement. Also, you only need to go as far as your shoulders will turn about 90-100 degrees for control, there’s no need to swing to parallel, that’s only a made-up guideline, there’s no reason why you should swing so far, especially when you consider your elbow angles will go out of control and you will have to re-adjust to compensate on the downswing. Also note, I am turning on a single axis of my upper body, that’s all I need to do.

For the backswing, you will need to imagine a plane formed by your shoulders and the ball and try to turn your “triangle” along that plane. When you do that, you get what you see above.

I’ve intentionally also left out the takeaway, I believe golfers should not focus on the takeaway because it’s only result of the process of getting to the top of the backswing and it will hurt your rhythm if you try to manipulate the takeaway. Rather, think of the backswing as one action from address to the backswing.

All throughout my swing, my hands feel “super” light, tension in your hands will kill your golf swing. It might “look” like I am holding the club hard but in reality, I am holding it light as I can through my swing, even on my downswing.

Transition – The Hip Slide & Turn

Transition is the most important part of your backswing because if you don’t start the downswing with the hips, you will come over the shot, hitting a slice or a pull hook.

From the top of the backswing, I feel like simply “bumping” my hips back to the target, which starts a chain reaction of events like the shoulders, arms, and hands being pulled down to this position. My hands still feel super light and I feel like I am ready to punch someone out.

Because of the super weak grip we’ve implemented here, you can really swing through as hard as you can from here without worry about hooking the ball.

Also, in this part of the swing, I “still” feel the triangle formed earlier at address. (You should be able to feel the unison of your shoulders, arms, and hands throughout the golf swing.)

Impact!

You shouldn’t really practice impact since it’s also result of process but at impact, this is what it should feel like, the hands still ahead of the club.

Follow-Through

After impact, you should really “feel” the triangle formed at address turning. The result is that both of your arms are extended fully.

And as you can see here, the clubhead should be in this position, meaning you are swinging inside-out. Also note, the spine angle has been maintained.

My hand still feel super “light” though. If you body (triangle) does the work, your hands will feel light.

The Finish

After follow-through, feel free to let your body come up so you don’t hurt your back. Although I have seen some golf instruction that teach you to maintain spine angle even through finish, I disagree for longer golfing life.

There’s absolutely no reason for you to maintain spine angle AFTER your follow-through because that will only hurt your back.

Notice how straight my right arm is, this means I’ve extended my right arm as fully as possible through impact and follow-through, this mean full-power and accuracy too.

Players like Annika Sorenstam does this well, even turning their heads at impact.

At the end of your finish, your boday should be balancing nicely on your left foot. I’ve actually “exaggerated” my right arm to be straight but you can actually relax at this point.

See how my body is very upright? This is really great for hitting thousands of golf balls on the range and never hurt your back. I believe the best and simple golf swing is also the one that doesn’t harm your back. With this finish position, I can literally hit 300 golf balls per day without any lower back problems.

Another important thing you can check at the finish is to check how “stable” your right hand grip is.

Another reason why I changed my right hand grip to be super weak is because at finish, my right hand grip still feels super “stable”, whereas a my old neutral right hand grip was slightly “shaky” at best.

Of course, all these swing tips might not help you because you are probably not built like me. I am just demonstrating what has worked for me and a lot of stuff I’ve implemented are those I’ve learned through golf books, instructors, and finally customizing them to my body.

Remember, there IS no perfect golf swing, the perfect golf swing is the one you can hit the ball consistently and easily without breaking your lower back.

I just hope you don’t be scared to try new grips, swing planes, just because your golf instructor tells you otherwise.

Too many golf instructors teach you one golf swing, which is completely wrong and won’t work on everyone.

I’ve found my golf swing and should be refining it soon. And yes, definitely take it for a test drive next year at some mini-tour events.

Happy golfing, and remember, practice makes perfect.

P.S. I should have a video of this new swing soon, see my last video just before I found my new golf swing, which is pretty much the same thing.

Here’s some practice swings:

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Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

My New Golf Swing – The Weak Grip/Flat Plane Golf Swing!

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BlackFriday GolfSmith.com SALE!

Junger Woods — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:15:40 +0000

My favorite online golf store, GolfSmith.com, is having a special BlackFriday sale, get $20 off anything $125 and above or $50 off anything $250 and above.

This is the time to get some deep discounts on the golf clubs or clubmaking parts.

These deals are only valid for BLACK FRIDAY!

Use this link to redeem!

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BlackFriday GolfSmith.com SALE!

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My New Golf Swing(Grip)!

Junger Woods — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 19:29:31 +0000

Oops, well, I am hitting the ball awfully well now, better than ever by actually doing something completely different from traditional golf theories.

For one, now I am using a super weak grip where my right hand shows almost 3 knuckles with my V pointing to beyond my left shoulder. (My shoulders are still square parallel to my target line though and my left hand grip is still neutral.)

While hitting golf balls, I realized that I hit some really solid shots without myself knowing my right hand was super weak. Needless to say, I tried it out this right hand grip “consciously” and the result was fascinating, I could hit a 200-yard target over and over effortlessly within couple feet of each other.

Greg Norman even has a golf grip aid for taking the right hand out of the swing, I figured why not just weaken it completely useless?

What I found out is that my release of the golf club near the impact is more consistent and I never overpower with my right hand like I used to.

There was actually one time where I had a right hand grip with the thumb touching the index finger to render my right hand useless during impact. (that works well too by the way except a bit loose) I simply have a better one now that is secure while letting me hit super-duper consistent shots.

Plus, my swing has been getting flatter than ever but I feel that I have found new source of power through my new golf swing by being able to leverage my body more. (with a flatter swing)

I should have an update with detailed instructions/photos on how to accomplish this swing soon (if you want to try it out).

I think what the golfing world is missing is the ideas of “customization” and “creativity”. If you swung like everyone else, you probably won’t do better than everyone else.

So, I am here to make a new golf swing (or I did), let me share it with ya soon!

One thing I’ve noticed is that my tendency to “hook” so badly has gone away completely every since my super-weak right hand grip change. Plus, now my swing feels easy, I feel more natural, less thinking and more solid shots.

And oh yeah, Happy Thanksgiving! Don’t forget to hit some golf balls b4 you eat some turkey, duh!

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

My New Golf Swing(Grip)!

my new golf swing, new golf grip

How to Properly Warm Up before Practicing/Playing Golf!

Junger Woods — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 23:33:13 +0000

One of the most overlooked facts about golf is that most people believe it’s physically not intensive enough that you need to warm up before practicing/playing.

Actually the opposite is true, a golf swing requires proper functioning of your spine, lower body, shoulders, and the rest of the body.

I probably overlooked this fact too that I didn’t mention it so far on this golf blog but before any golf practice/play, I do a proper warm up for my body by swinging 2-clubs and stretching.

This is simple and common sense for those of you who have played golf for a long time but most amateurs do not warm up before practicing/playing golf.

Especially on cold days if you don’t warm up and stretch beforehand, you have more chances of injuring your lower back, which is critical for good golf.

So, here’s few warm up/stretching exercises you can do (that I do) before hitting any golf shots:

Get 2 of your heaviest clubs (for me it’s my lob and sand wedge) and start swinging very very slowly about 10-20 times until you can feel your body warm a bit.
Next, you can do a bit of stretching. First, I try touching my toes with my hands while standing up. This gets you whole body and hamstrings stretched out well.
Then, I will do some lateral rotations to stretch my spine, do like 5-10 of these. When I do these, I usually hear some nice pops/cracks, which feels good and also prevents your muscles from hardening during practice/play.
Also do some more leg stretching such as holding one of you foot behind you and standing with one leg.

These are just couple warm up/stretching exercises you can do but do them and I assure you, your back will thank you for it.

And one more thought, DON’T SWING THE DRIVER right away!

I usually start with small 50 to 75 yard pitch shots before moving up to full shots and the woods. If you start with the driver, I guarantee you that you are going to ruin your swing.

Of course, that’s for practice. If you are playing, just really try to get yourself warmed up on the practice tee beforehand.

P.S. Even better, if you have a practice green near where you practice shots, try hitting putts/chips before moving to the range. This will help you maintain a good, soft rhythm that will carry to your full shots.

I’ve seen a handful of great players who do this, start with short shots and gradually move up to longer shots. And they have great rhythm.

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

How to Properly Warm Up before Practicing/Playing Golf!

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DIY Parachute Golf Balls to Full Shot Practice!

Junger Woods — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:31:55 +0000

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I’ve seen a handful of golf ball gadgets for short-range practice but these homemade parachute golf balls are the most innovative and ones that could let you feel a real golf ball while not breaking your neighbor’s windows. Brilliant!

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

DIY Parachute Golf Balls to Full Shot Practice!

diy, full shot practice, parachute golf balls

The Right Frame of Mind for Perfecting Your Golf Swing!

Junger Woods — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:15:44 +0000

The other day I told you I have found my swing and that I was going to detail exactly how to accomplish an easy-to-use and simply golf swing.

Well, it turns out the as soon as I tried to find out exactly what I was doing, I kept having more trouble than ever.

I think the right frame of your mind is more important to “perfect” your swing, that is to try not “perfecting” it.

For example, I can hit the ball super solid with my irons, most of them hitting within yards of my target. As soon as I get to my driver or 3 wood, my tendency is to pull 30-yards left of my target.

Now, here’s the question of the day, do you fight it so it will go to your target or just play the 30-yard pull-draw?

You could hit 1,000 balls fighting it or simply play your 30-yard pull-draw so long as it brings you consistent results. (Sometimes, playing your “natural” shots might be the smartest option than fighting it.)

You see, a lot of people depend too much on imaginary lines and alignment to determine where they should be hitting the ball. With golf, that’s only part of the equation to playing well and those lines do not help you on the golf course since a human body was never “designed” to hit a golf ball. Thus, we must always fight our human body angles and make-up some sort of sense to our golf swing. Golf teachers and alike try to devise concrete ways to teach the golf swing but in the end, I feel that those are only “guidelines” and ultimately, every golfer will have different swing based on their human anatomy.

In simple words, there’s a perfect swing for everyone but that cannot apply to everyone else.

Take my human anatomy makeup for example, my left shoulder is higher than my right, which in golf, means that I would have to align slightly more “right” of my target than other normal people with same shoulder height.

That’s only one of the oddities I have, my feet are also “flat-footed”, meaning they stay on the ground more than 99% of the population out there.

All these little things cause the “quirks” in my swing, they are so natural to me and sometimes, I cannot apply every swing technique the top pros use in the world.

No golf pro in the world can tell you exactly the right way you can swing unless they have gone to medical school and examined your whole body thoroughly for any abnormalities.

For most hackers, basic golf tips will help but for those like me who are trying to reach another level from scratch, things I’ve outlined here can make me or kill me.

So what?

You need to try different things to see if you strike the ball more solid and square that might be more “natural” to your anatomy.

Here’s some great ways to find your own golf swing and something I do to find my own golf swing:

First and foremost, you will want to find a golf grip that feels comfortable to you whether that’s weak or strong. Try a weak grip, neutral grip, and a strong grip and see what feels most natural to you. For most of you, a neutral grip will be the best (where the Vs point to your right shoulder). For me, I use a neutral grip with my right hand slightly weaker with the V pointing at my chin or even my left shoulder. This is also because I have a tendency to “flip” with my hands. With a slightly weaker right hand grip, I find I can hit the golf ball super solid and straight. Even Ben Hogan did something along the lines of this. Important part here is to find your “comfortable” grip that lets you hit the ball straight and far. Too many golf pros tell you to use either neutral grip or strong grip, I think that starts a lot of unnatural golf movements.
After you find the grip, try different swing planes. As a general rule of thumb, a strong grip will work best with more vertical swing planes (like Fred Couples) whereas a weak grip will work best with flatter swing planes (like Ben Hogan). These are simply due to human anatomy, so please make sure to follow the guide as using strong grip on flatter plane will probably make you duck-hook every shot while using weak grip with a vertical swing plane will make you banana-slice every shot. Grip and plane always go in sets, you must have the right swing plane for your grip, something most golfers don’t know.
Stance – Try narrow and wide stance, see what feels more comfortable to you. I use a slightly narrower stance for my normal shots because I feel like I am in more balance. You might feel the opposite though, try both and see which one works for you. Remember, a perfect golf swing is the one that feels good to you, not one where you have to manipulate.

These are probably the 3 things you can experiment with to find a better way to strike the golf ball. I just find that there’s too many traditional golf instructions out there but not many mention the fact that everyone has a different human make-up and a golf swing must be “custom-made” for each person.

Well, these are my golf tips for those of you who want to improve your shotmaking, I will regress myself from saying that I have ever found a “method” to swing but rather, there’s a way for you to find it yourself.

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

The Right Frame of Mind for Perfecting Your Golf Swing!

perfecting golf swing, right frame of mind

1 Axis 1 Plane Golf Swing Coming Soon!

Junger Woods — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:40:53 +0000

Recently, I have been hitting the golf ball awfully well and I have developed a new type of golf swing that I termed “1 Axis 1 Plane” golf swing, which basically uses 1 axis and 1 plane.

The golf swing theory is one I have developed while studying pro golfers like Ben Hogan, Tiger Woods, and all those great players out there.

This 1 axis/1 plane golf swing will allow beginners/advanced golfers to hit the golf ball more consistently.

Can you imagine yourself hitting a 150-yard target over and over again for 20 straight balls? This is the golf swing that will do that.

Well, I am just very excited because I have found this method from trial and error through practice but shortly I will post details on how you can develop this simple golf swing too.

Another bonus about this new golf swing is that it puts less strain on your lower back (meaning you will be able to keep using it even if you turn 100) AND you won’t have to bang thousands of balls to keep it consistent.

I have always realized that the best golf swing for an average golfer (and advanced golfers) is the one that uses minimal effort but allows you to hit the ball with near 100% efficiency.

And yes, all free on this blog, I am not going to sell some DVD or e-books like some of those other guys do. (who fill your mind with more junk anyways)

I just feel the golfing world is filled with too much junk such as “keeping the left arm straight” or “keep the head still”. These too common golfing advices often lead to more tension in your golf swing and plus, they don’t actually help on the golf course, where you need to hit well under pressure.

I believe a golf swing should be effortless, pain-free, and best of all, don’t require some ridiculous golfing gadget to get it right.

Is this a new golf swing?

No, it’s not a new golf swing, it’s simply a golf swing theory using the most “simplest” and “efficient” ways to swing a golf club. I just hope it will help you to swing the golf club better with less effort.

Well, I will post some simple exercises and photos on it soon!

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

1 Axis 1 Plane Golf Swing Coming Soon!

1 axis 1 plane golf swing

Today’s Practice – 3 Jumbo Buckets!

Junger Woods — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 06:30:00 +0000

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Well, today was a fun day, I went to the range TWICE. (2 different ones, the first one closed so I had to go to the other one which opens until 9PM) The first time I hit 2 jumbo buckets for about 3 hours.

The second time, I hit 1 jumbo bucket and the range closed. I guess I am addicted to golf again, well…

I think there’s about 150 balls in a jumbo bucket so I hit about 450 golf balls today, which is record for me for this year. When I was a junior about 15 years old, I hit like 1000 balls each day. Then again, quantity isn’t as important as quality in golf so… But it’s just so FUN to bang balls all day long.

If you are just learning to play golf, perhaps it might help to hit lots of balls. If you are already scratch or better and you have found your swing, go play more than practice I guess…

Today, I was trying the same thing I was doing yesterday, building my own golf swing instead of copying someone else.

Today’s swing thoughts that helped me:

For knockdown shots, really let the hands loose and not much lower body is needed. I found I hit better shots when I actually try to let the club swing and gravity rule.

For full shots, I really had to feel like getting my lower body started early, well…

Tomorrow will be another practice day and the day after, I can’t wait to go to the range again although I should be playing the course more often.

By the way, this is the first golf swing I took with my new Canon 7D camera, whad’ya think?

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

Today’s Practice – 3 Jumbo Buckets!

3 jumbo buckets, today's practice

I found my SWING!

Junger Woods — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 06:34:58 +0000

You know, you have one of those days when you find your swing, every swing feels effortless, you can hit every shot at the target. Today was such a day for me, let me share you some insights what I tried to do today.

For one, I haven’t hit balls all week due to me playing with new gadgets such as my new Canon 7D DSLR.

I felt really fresh heading out to the range and even felt a little out of it since it’s been so long (like 3 days) without hitting golf balls.

Last time I was at the range, I remember hitting a lot of balls and trying to hard.

There was a time when I used to swing effortlessly and shoot under par every time I played. Well, today I tried that.

Instead of trying to “perfect” my swing mechanics (and btw, there is no such thing as perfection in golf, pros have only tried to set some guidelines but that is really all, guidelines, no swing guru can tell you how to swing perfectly in reality.), today I simply tried to develop a swing that was more effortless, like how I used to hit the ball.

When you try to swing effortlessly, a great thing happens, you can literally hit ball after ball and you never get tired.

Anyways, this is what it felt like:

First, I relaxed my hands throughout my swing. This allowed me to naturally get into the right positions during the swing without tension creeping in.

Second, I felt like my backswing was like holding a basketball and simply turning to the right. (on my plane created by my spine angle)

I really felt like I was swinging a basketball and not a golf club, meaning it felt like I was using my body.

Third, I simply try to hit the ball as solid as I can without trying to do too much.

When I did these things, something wonderful happened, that is I felt like my head and body was no longer restricted. I didn’t look up but immediately after I hit the ball after impact, I felt like I was coming up on the shot but it felt so “right” and “comfortable”.

Before, I was all trying to keep my spine angle consistent. And you know what happens when you do that, you might hit the ball good but you are putting awful lot of pressure to your lower back plus when you are tired, you tend to slap at the ball with your hands.(especially under pressure)

Instead, I put the pressure off my lower back by simply standing up more after impact.

Let’s just put it this way, I had the best ball striking day this year. I hit 2 jumbo buckets today and I feel like I didn’t even hit balls.

This could help you, perhaps you want to try less next time you practice and let natural instincts take over.

I will have a video soon, I know this will look much better than my last swing video so hopefully tomorrow!

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

I found my SWING!

effortless, i found my swing

Why 99% of Pro Golfers FAIL to Make it to the PGA Tour!

Junger Woods — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:53:45 +0000

During my year-long stint as a mini-tour golfer, I’ve came to realize many things including the reason why 99% of pro golfers out there FAIL to make it to the PGA Tour.

Here’s the top reasons:

1. They run out of money.

2. They don’t have financial back-up to go for a long time.

3. They simply don’t have the talent.

Well, my top 2 reasons are probably the #1 reason why not all of the Top 10 college golf players never even see a day playing at the PGA Tour. Of course, the lucky ones will have all the money in the world but simply lack the talent to make it to the PGA Tour. (For example, they try out the PGA Qualifying school and fail 10 years straight.)

For those who have tried and failed, my advice is to move on with better things in life. As great as life of a pro golfer looks on TV, what you see is only a share of world’s best talent in my opinion. I have seen many great golfers including amateurs and pros that never make it simply they get caught up with life, that of making a living.

To make a living as a mini-tour golfer, you must practically finish somewhere the Top 30, it doesn’t matter which mini tour you play including Canadian Tour, Hooters Tour, Nationwide Tour, and etc…etc…

So, where do these 99% of others go? They simply lose desire to play pro golf or get caught up making a living.

If you have kids who want to grow up to be pros on the PGA or LPGA tour, they better have good financial backup.

On average, you probably need at least $50,000 a year just in expenses for golf equipment, practice/playing fees, and competition entry fees.

Pro competition fees can be pretty hefty and unless you make hundred grand from your day job, I don’t think there’s a way for you to play pro golf competitively.

So what?

Just realize that if you are going to play pro golf, you should have a smart financial plan so you can keep going even if your scores don’t make you money.

It’s a whole different ball game than being an amateur because your life is basically on the line. How well you play determines whether you will eat bread the next day or not.

As for me, I broke my finger and also ran out of money only a year into my mini-tour stint. I didn’t realize how much money I needed until I started making money with pro golf.

Luckily, after 6 years of jumbling my life and starting my own online blogging business, I am glad I can slowly start back at my dreams again, that of playing competitively with the top pros in the world.

Don’t get me wrong, the pros on the PGA Tour are probably the best of the crop but playing on the PGA Tour is a lot easier if you can keep trying and you have some sponsors to back you up. (and also time to practice/play everyday)

And don’t forget, some even make it to the PGA Tour, win a couple tournaments, then fall into thin air.

That’s simply golf, it’s not so predictable, even if you are the best in the world.

I just wonder, whatever happened to some of those golfers I used to know who were so good? Well, they’ve moved on. I am not. Ricky Barnes is one of those who made it btw and I hope Joel Kribel does well soon too, they both got a ton of talent.

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

Why 99% of Pro Golfers FAIL to Make it to the PGA Tour!

fail, make it, pga-tour, pro golfers, why

How to Take Slow Motion Golf Swing Videos!

Junger Woods — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 18:49:04 +0000

I’ve actually noticed bunch of YouTube videos online of these awesome slow motion golf swing videos and noticed that everyone was using selective Casio Exilim series, which can do like up to 6,000 frames per second.

I found that these cameras below will let you take super slow motion golf swing videos:

Casio Exilim EX-FC100 – These go for about $219.95 on Amazon, really good deal for capturing up to 1000 frames per second, which beats most other digital cameras for the price and purpose of taking slow motion golf swing videos.
Casio Exilim FH20 – This is the higher end version that can cost about $550. If you want to use it more than a slow-motion golf swing camera, this might be a good way to invest more and get more out of it.

Here’s some videos showing the capabilities of these Casio Exlim digital cameras:

Slow-motion golf swing with Casio Exilim EX-FC100:

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Slow-motion golf swing with Casio Exilim FH20:

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Of course, I don’t really advice to you analyze your own swing unless you are at least an 8 handicap and have some experience tinkering with your own swing. Otherwise, you might be better off getting a real golf pro to look at your swing.

Also, you can use V1 swing software to analyze your swing.

I should be getting the cheaper EX-FC100 to test it out soon, I need one really bad, technology has gotten so good, it’s unbelievable!

UPDATE: I also found that Casio Exilim EX-FS10 does slow motion golf swing videos too, the cheapest of all at $179.

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

How to Take Slow Motion Golf Swing Videos!

golf swing, how to, Slow Motion, videos

How Navy Seals Mental Psychology can be Applied to Golf!

Junger Woods — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 17:47:10 +0000

Here’s a rather interesting story about how Navy Seals increased their passing rates with some psychology:

With mental rehearsal they were taught to visualize themselves succeeding in their activities and going through the motions. As far as self talk is concerned, the experts in The Brain documentary made the claim that we say 300 to 1000 words to ourselves a minute. By instructing the recruits to speak positively to themselves they could learn how to “override fears” resulting from the amygdala, a primal part of the brain that helps us deal with anxiety. And finally, with arousal control the recruits were taught how to breathe to help mitigate the crippling emotions and fears that some of their tasks encouraged.

Upon reading this paragraph, I immediately thought whether the navy seals were playing golf (or should be playing golf).

Likewise, in golf, you would want to always think positively in your mind and visualize yourself successfully hitting the golf shot.

In other words, you want to see the path of your ball to the green, then the ball dropping in the cup. Then you would want to visualize how you would have to hit the shot with your golf swing. (or putt)

This simple act of visualization is probably like 99% of golf game itself. If you haven’t visualized much, I suggest you start doing so!

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How Navy Seals Mental Psychology can be Applied to Golf!

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How to Hit the Soft Floating Chip/Pitch Shot from the Rough!

Junger Woods — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 07:03:06 +0000

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In this blog post, I will show you how to hit that soft, floating chip/pitch shot from the light/medium rough. This is a shot I practice and use constantly and can be a great par saver.

This method might differ from anything else you have learned in the past but trust me, this is a fail-proof method of hitting a great soft, floating chip/pitch shot from the rough.

Also, you might be interested to learn that I have devised my own method by applying a lot of stuff here and there I’ve learned from other pros.

Short game can be limitless in the number of ways you can hit different shots and this one is specifically geared towards “simpleness” and easy enough for any weekend golfer to repeat it with little practice.

Basically, this is a short game shot that’s really a chip shot and a pitch shot since you will hit the ball soft and higher than normal, but still need to get some roll after the ball hits the ground.

The basic method of hitting this soft, floating chip/pitch shot is to open your clubface (this would depend on how high you want to hit it) and simply using a “mini version” of your full swing.

There’s couple of things you need to do and that is to take a square stance, just like a full shot, you DON”T NEED TO OPEN YOUR STANCE AT ALL.

I find that you can actually hit these little pitch shots more consistently if you setup square to the ball. Also, make sure to hit DOWN on the ball and THROUGH the ball. Don’t be afraid to hit this shot, you need to be confident.

One more thing, you want to try to hit about 1/4 inch behind the ball and let the clubface “bounce” off the grass.

For the shot, I recommend either a lob wedge or sand wedge. (Btw, I used a 60 degree lob wedge in the video.)

Before you hit the shot, make sure to “visualize” exactly how the ball will fly (its trajectory) and where it will land on the green. (read the green too so you know how the ball will roll after landing)

The greatest part about this shot is that you don’t have to change your swing at all or learn a new pitching technique.

Make sure to keep your hands super “light”, barely on the grip and let your arms feel like “spaghetti”.

Light hands are essential to every shot in the short game. Ask any pro in the world and they will tell you light hands equal great feel.

Remember, short game is about creativity and imagination, don’t be afraid to experiment and make your own chip/pitch shots.

I assure you, if you get good at this shot, you will be making a lot more pars on the course. I find this shot more useful than hit and run chip shots. (which are useful too but not as used often in my experience and much easier)

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How to Hit the Soft Floating Chip/Pitch Shot from the Rough!

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How To Make Toddler Golf Clubs!

Junger Woods — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 23:09:47 +0000

Today, I will show you how to make custom-fit (custom length) golf clubs for your toddler/kids.

Whether your toddler is a 12 month year old who’s 1.5 feet tall or a 3 year old 2.5 feet tall, making custom-fit golf clubs can dramatically improve chances of your child playing better golf.

The problem is that most of toddler/junior golf clubs bought off the rack at the retail stores or online are too long for these young, aspiring golfers.

If you want your child to be as good as Tiger Woods or to simply enjoy golf at an early age, it’s vital that you either cut junior golf clubs to fit their height or make toddler golf clubs from scratch as I am showing you in this blog post.

For one, most 2 year olds already possess enough muscle strength to hit a golf ball except there’s no golf clubs made for them!

By making these custom-length golf clubs, your child will be able to get a head start on golf, perhaps play better than you by the time they reach 9.

One of my friend’s daughters is trying to play golf and my friend has asked some advice so I’ve decided to make this 7-iron and driver for her.

And yes, plastic golf clubs would work too but real golf clubs would be ideal if the toddler wants to start improving his/her game from day one.

So, here it goes, this is actually my first attempt at making junior golf clubs and I haven’t done clubmaking in 10 years so I am a bit rusty. But bear with me as I get the job done.

First, you will need some of the most basic golf clubmaking tools listed here:

Epoxy – You can get any regular epoxy at your local hardware store. Golfsmith and other golf clubmaking stores sell these golf epoxies but they are pretty much the same thing so you don’t need to spend extra $5 on them, just get it for cheaper at Home Depot. I got mine for like $5 at Home Depot btw.

Sand Paper – You will need some sand paper to prep the shaft so you can epoxy your clubhead to it. If you have machine tools, that might work too but for the purposes of saving money too, you can just use some plain sand paper.

Shaft Cutting Tool – You can use a fine-blade saw or a machine tool to cut your shaft. If you don’t have them, the other best way is to get one of these golf shaft cutting tools. I have had mine for over 10 years and they are great for cutting golf shafts plus they don’t take up much room if you live in a small apartment. ($9.99 at Golfsmith)
*Note – You can get the Chop Saw, which might be better if you are making a whole set of clubs.

Junior Clubheads – For starters, you can probably start with any junior golf clubhead. I went with a Snake Eyes Junior 7-iron($8.99) and a driver($17.99). (There’s even cheaper ones too over at GolfSmith, check it out here.)

Junior Golf Grips – Junior golf grips are slightly smaller than regular grips and you will need these. I got the Junior Tour Velvet grips ($1.79 each) but there’s other choices as well.

Double-sided Grip Tape – You need a double-sided grip tape so you can stick the golf grip onto the golf shaft. For this, I highly recommend the water-activated grip tape which requires no toxic solvents and easy to apply with plain water and a bit of soap. Traditionally, you had to use toxic solvent plus a double-sided tape, which is faster to install but bad for our environment. (plus costs more for the solvent).

Ferrules (optional) - For a finished look, you will want to get some ferrules. The ferrules are different for irons($2.99 for dozen) and woods($2.49 for dozen). But these are optional, they don’t really do anything but add to the overall “look” and do not affect the perfomance of your toddler golf clubs.

Standard sizes for iron ferrules are .370″ in diameter and wood ferrules are .335″ in diameter. If you get special shafts you might need a custom ferrule but for most golf clubs, these sizes are standard, even for adult golf clubs. There’s more styles of ferrules to choose from here but make a note that you get the right sized ferrules.

You might also want to consider getting a Ferrule installer if you want ferrule installation to be quicker/easier.

Total Cost

Total cost per club should be pretty cheap $20 per iron and about $30 per wood, still cheaper than buying off the racks. Plus, the golf tools you buy can be used over and over for future clubmaking, not a bad investment at all. I’ve also used the minimal number of tools here as I don’t like having big tools or spending too much money on them. (yet at least)

Not only are it’s a great skill to learn but as your toddler grows up, you will be able to provide them with custom shafts, which they will need if they are going to take golf to the next level.

How to Find the Right Length for Fitting the Golf Shaft

Before making the golf clubs, you will want to find out exactly the length your toddler needs to hit the ball optimally.

Measure out how long your golf club should be by setting the shaft on your toddler child. Then, make a mark with a permanent marker. As a rough guide, try to get about 50 degrees from the ground to the child’s hands. Where their hands end on the shaft should be where you should mark the golf club.

Don’t worry if you do it the wrong first time, you can always cut the shaft and put a new grip if you make it too long.

Just don’t make it too short, then you will have to install a new shaft so…

How to Cut the Golf Shaft

Obviously, if you have a power tool or get the Chop Saw, you can easily cut the shaft but if you get the shaft cutting tool, you can follow these directions.

Simply set the shaft to the shaft cutting tool in the middle groove then adjust the knob so it fits tightly.

Rotate the shaft once and tighten the knob a 1/4 of a turn, then keep repeating until the shaft if cut.

You should get a nicely cut shaft like here:
And save the leftover shaft for later as it can be used as a ferrule installation tool.

Video 1 of shaft cutting:

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How to Install the Ferrule (Optional)

If you’ve decided to install the ferrules, there’s some extra steps to do, otherwise you can skip this step.

*Note – If you bought the Ferrule Installer, follow directions for that, it should be MUCH easier/faster. I am just showing you my hack without spending extra $10.

First, fit your clubhead to the tip of your shaft snuggly. Then make a mark with a permanent marker where your clubhead ends on the shaft. This will be where the ferrule must stop.

Next, apply some oil or WD40 to the tip of the shaft so you can easily slide your ferrule in.

Next, put the ferrule on the tip of the shaft. If it get stuck just bang it softly couple times until the ferrule goes in.

You should get to this point where the ferrule is about here. If the ferrule is stuck, don’t worry, we will use the leftover shaft piece from earlier to bang it down a bit.

Using the leftover shaft piece (you can also cut it even shorter so it’s easier to use), then place it on the ferrule.

Use a hammer to bang the ferrule down the shaft. Don’t hammer too hard, just a little tap at a time.

If you go too far down and it gets stuck for good, you might want to try bang it down the opposite way but use something plastic to wedge it on the other side 45 degrees. (Watch my wood installation video as I get it down too far.)

Don’t try to get it all the way to your mark btw, you can get it almost there, then fit your clubhead and start banging the clubhead until it pushed the ferrule in place.

How to Install/Epoxy the Clubhead to the Shaft!

Next, once you are done getting the ferrule in place, let’s prep up the shaft for installing the clubhead.

Take a small piece of sand paper and sand the shaft until it’s nicely “sanded”. Of course, if you have a sand belt and machine tools, use that too.

The shaft tip is now ready for epoxying the clubhead on:

Next, squeeze out some epoxy and mix it with a toothpick.

Once mixed, apply the epoxy mix to the tip of the shaft.

Now slide the clubhead down the tip of the shaft and you should be done, make sure to wipe off any excess epoxy with a cloth. Don’t use paper towel as it will get stuck on the club and make an ugly mess.

Depending on the epoxy you got, it might take couple minutes before the epoxy settles. You can carefully install the grip right away or wait couple minutes to make sure the clubhead doesn’t move.

Video of Ferrule Installation:

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How to Install the Golf Grip!

Yey, you are almost done and installing golf grip is one of the easiest jobs so this might also be helpful if you have old golf grips and you want to install new grips.

First, you willl want to measure out and mark where you want to stick the double-sided grip tape on the shaft.

Take the end of the shaft and place the junior golf grip side-by-side. Mark with a permanent marker where the grip ends on the shaft.

Put the grip tape on the shaft and take off the unsticky sticker thingee.
*Note – You can also do double or triple layers of the grip tape if you’ve cut the shaft a LOT or you simply want a larger grip.

Next, get the golf grip and cover the hole at the butt end of the grip with a ball marker or a golf tee like this:

Then put a small bit of soap, I used regular handwashing dish soap here.

Fill the grip with warm water and shake it so you get soapy mix.

Now, pour that water over the double-sided grip tape you applied to your shaft.

Put the grip on the shaft now, noting that the logo(or whatever mark you want on the grip) is aligned with the leading edge of the clubface. (or parallel to it)

Once the grip is all the way in, you can pull the ball marker (or golf tee) out, you should hear a nice “swoosh”!

You can also adjust the grip once it’s on the shaft, you have approximately 30 minutes before the soap water starts drying off so make your adjustments here.

After everything is done, set the golf clubs against a wall for at least 12 hours before testing it out on the course.

If you are in a hurry, you could go out to the range in couple hours but probably best idea to let the epoxy cure enough and the grip to dry off completely.

Video of how to install the golf grip:

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You should get something like these two clubs:

Congrats! After making a couple of these clubs, it shoudn’t take you longer than 5 minutes to make a golf club.

As you can see, golf club making is relatively easy and you can save a lot of money too in the process.

Even if you don’t use this guide, I am sure you have friends who are avid golfers and perhaps you can tell your friends about it. Thanks!

Here’s more videos for reference:

How to Install a Toddler’s Golf Club – Wood Driver:

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How To Make Toddler Golf Clubs!

baby golf clubs, golf club making, Golf Clubs, how to, kids golf clubs, make, todder's golf clubs

How to Practice at the Driving Range!

Junger Woods — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 08:52:18 +0000

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Here’s a video I shot today of me hitting a 6-iron knockdown shot to a target about 165 yards out.

From just a look, it might look like I am not doing much but if you look carefully, here’s what’s going through my mind on each shot.

Before each shot, I take 1-2 practice swings visualizing how I will hit the ball, even the trajectory of my ball.

Once I am ready, I will take a look at my target.

Then, I will make an imaginary line from target to my ball and pick a spot about 2 feet out from the ball, that’s where I will align the clubface.

After aligning the clubface, I will take my stance parallel to my target line. (You will see I am aligned perfectly parallel to the yellow target on each shot.)

Then I align all of my body parts such as shoulders and hips again “parallel” to my target line.

Then I take a waggle.

After hovering my clubhead over the ball (or taking just enough weight off it) I will start the swing with my whole body.

Once I reach the top, I will start the downswing with my hips then follow through with my whole body.

One thing I am not doing today I realized after taping is that I am not using my lower body through the shot, my right foot should stay to the ground more after impact.

Well, this shows how many things you should be focusing on before you even hit a practice shot, I am just telling you.

Btw, my cheap tripod fell off during the middle of the video, I didn’t realize until end of the practice, sorry.

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How to Practice at the Driving Range!

driving-range, how to, practice

Ben Hogan’s Swing Plane, Tiger Wood’s Swing Plane – What you should Really Know about Swing Planes!

Junger Woods — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:04:57 +0000

Here’s something that could be helpful for those of you who think there’s a perfect plane to a golf swing.

The simple answer, is that there is no perfect plane in a golf swing. For one, Hogan claims in his book that the reason he used the swing plane concept was to get his backswing in a “consistent slot” but not an effort to say there’s such thing as a perfect plane.

Also, as you can notice in the pictures below, depending on your height and build, your swing plane may be flatter or more upright than the standard so there’s no use in trying to copy your favorite pro’s swing plane unless you are exactly the same height and build.

You can easily see that Tiger’s legs are noticeably longer than his upper body length compared to Ben Hogan. Because of this, Tiger’s swing is naturally more upright than Ben Hogan’s. Also, Tiger is 6′ 2″ while Ben Hogan is 5′ 8″.

These vast difference in physical makeup prove that there’s no such thing as a perfect plane for any golfer.

The swing plane I used in swing analysis was to simply have a reference point of how the golfer is swinging but in the recent months, I’ve began to realize that it’s not the most important factor in a good golf swing.

I’ve seen a ton of great swings that are far from golf norms, some way too flat or some way too upright.

The bottom line is, you need to build a consistent golf swing, not a swing that depends on lines drawn on the computer.

If you can hit a 200 yard target with a 4-iron 10 out of 10 times and you have what I think the worst swing in golf, I will not tell you to change your swing.

However, you can’t do that and your head is filled with swing mechanics garbage, perhaps I will tell you to focus on golf swing basics.

Golf swing basics consist of your grip, body action, and starting your downswing with your hips followed by your upper body. In simpler terms, the more you can build a “consistent” swing, however you do it, it will work. But you can’t really get consistency by building a perfect swing, there is no such thing. Everyone has their own quirks and personal touch.

I’ve fiddled with a high-speed digital camera for about 10 years, trying to perfect my swing. Sometimes I try to copy Tiger’s or Ben’s but none of those things ever seemed to bring consistency. I threw my high-speed camera away and started building a golf swing I felt was more natural and right to me and I think I am on my way to a more consistent golf swing.

Don’t copy but learn and apply the basic fundamentals, that’s what they did too.

Lastly, a “swing plane” does help me “visualize” a consistent path for my backswing and that is really its real purpose so I can get consistent results. If you keep drawing lines on your golf swing video/photos, it ain’t gonna help you with your golf swing. Your swing might look “great” but underlying performance probably won’t improve at all.

Find a swing plane that works for you, find the one that you hit the best, crisp shots with both irons and woods. Then stick with that swing plane. It’s that simple. And I could really care less if you swung like Jim Furyk or Ben Hogan if you can hit the ball good.

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Ben Hogan’s Swing Plane, Tiger Wood’s Swing Plane – What you should Really Know about Swing Planes!

Ben Hogan, swing plane, Tiger Woods

I use Ben Hogan’s Grip!

Junger Woods — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 06:57:45 +0000

Because I tend to hook a lot, I’ve recently switched my grip from normal (where both Vs point to your right armpit) to a slightly different one where the right hand “V” points to your neck as seen above. (This is the one Ben Hogan used back in the day because he was a wild hooker.)

This would be considered slightly “weak” grip as it will promote more of a fade shot but I’ve had some good results with it so I am sticking with it for now.

Btw, your grip will dictate your swing so if you have a weak grip, you might hit the ball better with a flatter swing whereas with a strong grip, you hit the ball better with an upright swing.

For example, Freddy Couples has one of the strongest grips on Tour, he has a very upright swing. I can’t think of anyone using a “weak” grip, perhaps Vijay Singh?

Well grip is your life for a golf swing, without the right grip for your swing, you can’t hit the ball good.

So practice your grip daily, 10 minutes a day, hold an invisible golf club or hold one while you watch TV.

Grip, is everything.

I am getting that new Canon 7D camera soon so hopefully I will have some better shots of golf basics starting next week, happy golfin’!

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I use Ben Hogan’s Grip!

ben hogan's grip, Golf Grip

My 7-Iron Knock-Down Shot!

Junger Woods — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 06:11:02 +0000

Here’s an update on my re-entrance to pro circuit. My latest swing…

Because I forgot to bring my HD camera, I took it with my SD750 then had to rotate the video 270 degrees when I got home, causing the video to get shorter and wider. OOps.

Anyways, setup looks okay.

I’ve actually been working on a new “flatter” plane but this is fine.

At the top, you might notice my club “looks” to be laid off but it’s not because I am actually not swinging full. The camera angle also messes things up a bit as I took it from the bench they had instead of using a tripod.

This looks good, this is where you transfer your weight to the left, turn the left hips out of the way and let your upper body follow.

Sorry folks about the bad video, I am getting a Canon DSLR 7d next week so should have a better video of my swing.

Btw, I am hitting the ball marvelous, I am actually not trying to watch myself in videos, I think it looks horrible. :p

Video of my latest swing:

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I don’t know why though but I’ve been getting a really nice “smack” sound when I hit the ball now, well, it’s a good thing I think…

Hahaha, check out some of these comments on YouTube (when I was playing golf like once a year), these guys must have no balls, I will take on any of them on the real course. :p

Also check out my swing from about the same spot almost 2 years ago. (FYI, I was swinging over the top….mostly because I didn’t practice much…)

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My 7-Iron Knock-Down Shot!

7-iron, Knock down shot

Feeling of “Light Hands” at the Top of Your Backswing!

Junger Woods — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 22:31:39 +0000

One fo the best swing thoughts that have worked for me regardless of how I am swinging over the years is “lights hands” at the top of your backswing.

Having “light hands” at the top of your backswing can help you do one very important thing right. By having your hands light at the top of your backswing, you will easily be able to start the downswing with your lower body instead of jerking it with the hands or the arms. You will probably have more clubhead speed too because your arms are not inhibited by your hands being too “tight”.

Being too “tight” with your hands is one of the worst things you can do in golf although that might be the right way to swing a baseball bat.

So next time, try this simple tip, feel as if your hands are barely holding the golf club at the top of your backswing. All the things I’ve been mentioning about swinging with your body, the hip slide/turn and starting the swing with the lower body, this simple tip will help you accomplish that.

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Feeling of “Light Hands” at the Top of Your Backswing!

feeling, light hands, top of backswing

How to Break Bad Spells(Holes) During a Round!

Junger Woods — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 22:27:54 +0000

You probably can remember at least a dozen times when you or a pro golfer on TV is playing incredibly well until one hole, he/she starts melting down, making bogeys, doubles, and worse.

This bogey-train is a bad spell put on you by exception of no one except yourself. What I mean is that this “bad” break, is really all in your head when you start messing up one hole, then following with another and another and so on.

These bad spells are probably one of the leading causes of high golf scores including the pros.

For one, you need to be able to control your emotions, not just physically but inward, within yourself. In other words, you need to learn how to not beat yourself on the golf course as the only thing standing between great golf and bad golf isn’t your nearest competitor but just your tiny, weeny brain.

Okay, j/k, perhaps your brain is big but that doesn’t mean you have learned how to control your emotions.

The emotional control I am talking about is the one that is near “normal” state, not too happy and not too sad (or angry).

These demons in your brain are the ones you will need to beat if you have a bad hole.

A simple way Jack Nicklaus used to do (as said in one of his books) is to focus sharply on the next shot after hitting a bad shot instead of dwelling on it. This works pretty well and I have additional tips for breaking your bad spells. That is to really be nonchalant or “don’t care” whether you hit it great of bad on all your shots. Freddy Couples does this well, you should watch him play golf next time on the golf course. I don’t think Tiger does as well on this andi think he could actually play even better if he could control his emotions better.

Whateever you do, if you get a bogey or worse on a hole, make sure you make par or better on the next hole. It’s about breaking your bad patterns in golf. You will always have some bad holes in golf, even if you shoot 66, but you will have to learn to spring back from those on the hole right after to maximize your scoring abilities and limit the effects of psychological negativity.

Another tip is to take a deep breath after a bad hole, then really “visualize” what you need to do to create a miracle comeback hole. A lot of times, these simple visualizations will do more than expected. I have done things like triple-bogeying the 15th hole then I imagined myself birding out 16, 17, and the 18th hole which I promptly did and ended up 2nd for a tournament I’ve played in.

You see, your mind is everything in golf and lots of other sports. You will see that when you can control your mind and emtions better, you will play better golf.

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How to Break Bad Spells(Holes) During a Round!

bad holes, bad spells, break, during a round, how to

A Good(Perfect) Swing is only a small fraction of the Real Game!

Junger Woods — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 22:18:47 +0000

I might emphasize a lot of swing mechanics on this blog as of lately but I don’t want you to get the wrong idea that just because your swing is perfect, you should expect/think you will score better on the course.

Golf is really mostly a mental game, just like driving a race car is. The moment you lose focus for 1 to 2 seconds might cost you a tournament or even a skins game.

For example, if you played video game golf, you would have absolutely no reason to complain that your swing is bad other than your hand-eye coordication with the game controller is bad.

Trust me, video game golf, such as Wii Sports that comes with a golf game, can be helpful in learning the mental game of golf, where you must score more with your brain than your swing.

Once you reach scratch golfer status, more and more of the golf game will become a mental game for you, where you must beat yourself to keep making great scores one after another. But this certainly doesn’t involve just a perfect swing. A perfect swing can really only get you from point A to B when there’s no variation in elevation and wind but in reality, you will have to use your brains more to adjust your swing according to the environment.

That’s why I don’t want you to just work on your swing to hit the ball straight. Instead, when working at the range, try to hit different shots, just like on the real course. If the wind blows from right to left on that certain you are practicing, practice aiming 10-20 yards right of the target and working with the wind to land near your target. These simple practices will pay off big when you actually have to deal with it on the real golf course, just don’t wait though as practice makes perfect.

Also, practice your putting often and your short game. No major championship winner won without an amazing putting and shortgame. Even Tiger, never hits that many greens in regulations, it’s usually his amazingly out-of-reality short game shots that win him tournaments.

You can score 66 with a bad swing and a good short game but you cannot with a good swing and a bad short game. 150 yard 8-iron full shot counts as much as your 30-yard chip shot. Remember these tips the next time you practice and divide up your time among practicing various different shots, putting, short game, and of course, Wii Golf always helps to sharpen your mental game without hitting the real golf course. I have actually been messing with Wii Tiger Woods 2010, let me tell you some results of what I think.

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A Good(Perfect) Swing is only a small fraction of the Real Game!

good swing, perfect swing, the real game

Golf Book Review – Ben Hogan’s Five Lessons – The Modern Fundamentals of Golf!

Junger Woods — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 21:20:28 +0000

Even with Tiger winning so many majors and Jack Nicklaus having accomplished so much, there’s still only one “best striker” of the golf ball in my mind, Ben Hogan.

What’s amazing about Ben Hogan is not that his swing is perfect (which it is and most modern golf instruction have derived from Ben Hogan’s concepts, this very book), his car got hit by a big rig on a foggy day and he was paralyzed from the waist down! Well, he came back somehow and was able to walk again AND he won more majors after that.

If you get into such a serious injury and still be able to win major golf championships, that certainly is a miracle.

Not all Ben Hogan’s concepts are valid as golf equipment has changed over the years but most of the core concepts are very valuable and if you haven’t read this book, you are not a real golfer.

Really, what do Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods have in common? I bet they got Ben Hogan’s Five Lessons of Golf somewhere in their house.

Look at all the shots Tiger is hitting, all those knockdown shots? Well, they are Ben Hogan’s shots, really.

I bought my copy when I was 9 years old, that’s 20 years ago. The pages are sorta ripped but I still read it at least once a month, it’s very entertaining to me to read it over and over again.

Get your copy on Amazon, this is a book every golfer should have if they consider themselves real golfers.

P.S. This is like the “bible” of golf, seriously. No one else in the world has written a book detailing the mechanics of swing the correct way decades before slow-motion digital cameras were available.

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Golf Book Review – Ben Hogan’s Five Lessons – The Modern Fundamentals of Golf!

ben hogan's five lessons, Golf Book Review

Golf Book Review – Advanced Golf by Greg Norman!

Junger Woods — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 06:08:45 +0000

If you want to get your game to another level, one of the MUST READ golf instructional books is Advanced Golf by Greg Norman. Before Tiger Woods came into golf, Greg Norman was the #1 golfer in the world. Well, Greg Norman might have failed in a lot of majors but I don’t think it’s his game that caused that rather something “mental”. Regardless of how he came up short at majors, he’s still regarded as one of the best golfers ever lived along with Jack Nicklaus and Ben Hogan. At least in my book he is still one of my golfing heroes.

I grew up watching Greg Norman beat virtually everyone and I betcha Tiger Woods has this very book in his bookshelf somewhere, probably autographed by Greg himself. I know for a fact that Tiger looked up to Greg Norman and learned a lot from him before he became the #1 golfer in the world.

Anyways, if you are going to get this book, make sure to get the hardcover version as it will last you longer, I still have my same book I bought back in 1995, still good as new after 14 years.

Let me tell you a little bit about the book though, it’s a great book because Greg Norman features his iron swing and driver techniques in detail, especially made for those golfers who are trying hard to break 90, 80, or become a scratch golfer.

This book was also written while Greg Norman was taking lessons from Butch Harmon. (and Tiger started taking lessons from Butch before he started winning everything…)

FYI, Tiger Woods started golf when he was 2, Greg Norman started when he was 15 years old! If you count how many years it took Greg Norman to win a professional tournament versus how long it took Tiger, you will get what I mean how talented Greg Norman is. If Greg only started golf a bit earlier, we would never find out.

Anyways, this book is definitely a classic and I am sure it will be a classic for years to come. If you are a hardcore golfer, this is a MUST to have in your bookshelf.

Get it on Amazon here, and make sure to get the HARDCOVER if you are hardcore golfer! (there’s an option for that)

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Golf Book Review – Advanced Golf by Greg Norman!

advanced golf, by Greg Norman, Golf Book Review

How to Learn and Master the Hip Slide and Turn!

Junger Woods — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:25:23 +0000

Last time I mentioned how you must start your downswing with your lower body in order to hit the golf ball from the inside out.

Well, one of the ways to mastering your downswing with a lower body start is to master the “hip slide” and turn.

First, watch this video as Ben Hogan himself shows you how to do this:

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Let me re-cap what Hogan is trying to teach you here.

Try doing this as an exercise for mastering the hip slide and turn.

First, get to the top of the backswing like Hogan is doing here:

Then from there, initiate your downswing by turning and sliding your hips towards the target and the rest of your body such as shoulders and arms, should simply follow the action of your lower body. Really “feel” the pulling of the upper body by the lower body when you do this. And also try to do it in a “smooth” and fluid motion, jerkiness won’t help at all.

Another thought, try to really imagine your club coming from the inside-out angle, this will help you to promote an inside-out swing, something we want in an ideal golf swing.

Now, after you get to the point where your clubhead reaches about the hip level, you can start releasing your upper body and the club somewhat towards the right of your target.

After you try this in slow motion couple times, go ahead and try hitting a golf ball in full speed. Now, this is the most important part of mastering the hip turn and the slide, learn how to “time” your upper body release just like when you throw a baseball pitch. With proper timing of your release after the hip turn and slide, you will be able to hit the ball accurately towards your target.

Another good exercise is to try different timings such as try releasing your upper body a bit early for right-to-left shots (draws) and a bit late for left-to-right shots (fade).

FYI, Ben Hogan used to release a bit late so he can hit slight fades as his nemesis was hitting bad hooks earlier in his career.

You can also vary how “far” your slide your hips forward to control the flight. A word of caution when you do this, you need to still keep your body in balance and the easiest way to do this is to keep your upper body “up” while” you swing.

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How to Learn and Master the Hip Slide and Turn!

hip slide, hip turn, how to, learn, master

How to Change Your Golf Swing On the Golf Course!

Junger Woods — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 05:38:24 +0000

One of the most tragedies you will face in golf is when you try to “change” your golf swing on the golf course because you are mishitting shots left and right.

I know this blog post is labeled, “How to change your golf swing on the golf course”, but that is actually the LAST thing you will ever want to do.

The best way to actually change your golf swing without changing it (really) is to SLOW DOWN your backswing.

That’s right, 99% of amateurs swing too fast when playing on the real golf course because it’s human nature.

The next time you hook or slice your drive OB, I want you to take a deep breath. Then, without changing your swing, simply slow down your backswing about one pace.

When you slow down your backswing, you essentially swing down your whole swing.

Part of mysteries in golf is that your heart beat simply beats faster when playing real golf. Hence, without you knowing, you subconsciously swing a tad faster than you did at the driving range. (when you hit those perfect shots)

If you hit 3 shots in a row really bad even after slowing down your swing, I would say even then do not try to change your swing on the golf course. Instead, play that error whether it’s a 50 yard slice or hook. (As I did outline in my free E-book by the way, highly recommended for those of you who haven’t.)

Remember, when you slow down your body, your heart beat slows down too. Other than that, try to slow down everything else you do including walking.

Breathing deep 4 counts in and 4 counts out also helps, something a lot of the tour guys actually do including Paul Azinger. (who mentioned this was one of his most breaking techniques to make it to the PGA Tour in his book Zinger. By the way, Paul Azinger is one of my all-time golfing heroes, he’s also probably the Tour’s only golfer with super-closed clubface at the top, everyone said that wouldn’t stand under pressure. Paul Azinger won enough PGA Tour events to prove otherwise.)

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How to Change Your Golf Swing On the Golf Course!

change, how to, on the course, your golf swing

How to Control Distance and Trajectory of Your Iron Shots!

Junger Woods — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 21:07:09 +0000

This one is pretty simple but learning how to control distance of your iron shots is one of the most effective ways to control your distance and also trajectory.

For example, you have 150 yards to the pin from the fairway. If you hit your 7-iron 150 yards with a full swing, that’d be good to use on a sunny day with absolutely no wind.

On the other hand, let’s say there’s a heavy 20MPH wind going against you on the 150 yard shot. You could possibly hit another club and hit your 6-iron with a full shot or hit the 6 or 5-iron with a half swing, which will result in lower trajectory and your shot won’t be affected by the wind.

Most of the time, I choose to go with the latter, choosing a much lower-numbered club and hit it with either 3/4 or 1/2 swing. This is usually called a “knock-down” shot and it’s imperative that you learn how to do this if you want too be a good all-around player.

For example, if you play in super-windy areas like Texas, you don’t have a choice but to deal with 30+MPH winds on a daily basis. You need to hit the ball lower but hitting a full shot won’t help you do that.

Although you could put the ball back in your stance and make a full swing at it, because you are still swinging “full”, the amount of backspin put on the ball will be too much and affected too much by the wind.

So, you need to learn to control the distance and trajectory of your iron shots.

How to do this?

Very simple actually, just take a shorter backswing. But you will need to practice often on the range in order to “control” precisely.

Next time you go out on the range, don’t simply bang full-swings, see if you can hit the same target with different clubs, with different length of backswings.

If you have not tried doing this before, I assure you, you will won’t be too accurate, so practice makes perfect.

For example, when I go to the range, I will hit to a 150 yard target with my 8-iron. (with a full swing) Then, I will take a 7-iron and also hit it 150 yards but with shorter backswing, which results in lower trajectory. I will also take a 6-iron and take even short backswing. Usually, I go about up to 3 clubs down before I move on to my next target.

This is not only great practice for your overall “feel” for distance and trajectory, now you potentially made new arsenal of shots in your golf bag. Instead of just having 1 full shot from each club, you potentially now have multiple uses with each club.

Having more weapons in your golf bag means more ways you can attack the pin on the golf course. Also, let’s say you have an approach shot with a tree hanging over about 30 yards out, perhaps this isn’t even a challenge to you because you have a shot in your bag with the right distance and trajectory to hit it under the tree and still get to the green.

Another great use for length of your backswing is as a swing thought. Instead of filling your mind with too many things, simply think of the “length” of you backswing when hitting a golf ball on the course. This will allow you to really be able to focus on one thing, that of controlling your distance.

The rest of the swing should be pretty easy and automatic if you have been practicing your fundamentals and needless to say, the less you think about your golf swing on the course, the better you play.

Well, keep practicing different lengths and trajectories by simply limiting how far you swing back.

Happy golfin!

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How to Control Distance and Trajectory of Your Iron Shots!

distance, how to control, iron shots, trajectory

How to Practice Putting!

Junger Woods — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 05:38:18 +0000

Practice makes perfect in golf and so is putting, probably the most important part of the game. Whether you hit a 350 yard drive or 2 feet putt, they are counted the same.

If you can putt, you can turn a round that could be a bad 75 into an incredible 65. Or even a bad 95 into 85.

Putting does not simply depend on luck although sometimes you can get lucky and hole putts even if you miss hit it or misread it.

But for all purposes of playing better golf, you will need to practice putting.

Now, to play better golf, you need to also learn “how” to practice putting.

A lot of amateurs just throw a bunch of balls on the putting green and start hitting putts but you can do so much of that. It might improve your “feel” on the putting green but that’s not the best way to practice.

Let me tell you how I get ready for pro tournaments.

I do actually throw about 3 balls on the putting green and start putting away. But I do that to get a “feel” for the green. Once you have practiced enough of that, you need to really focus on pressure putting.

One of the easiest ways to do this is to take just one golf ball and play a 9-hole round of putting game with yourself at the end of those “random” putting practices.

For example, today at the end of putting practice, I played (with myself) a 9-hole round of putting game where par is 2 for each hole. You can pick random distances like 5, 20, or even 100 feet putts. The goal is to score, of course, under par. Luckily, today I came on top and scored 2 under for my imaginary competition.

Every time you practice putts, I want you to start playing these mini-games to put pressure on yourself. Keep score of your mini-games and over the long run, you should be improving, perhaps even 1-putting every hole. (although very hard to do)

These simple putting practice tips will go a long way to help your golf game. Whether you are a weekend warrior or aspiring junior golfer, playing games on the putting green will allow you to perform on the golf course too.

Of course, if you happen to be with friends, make sure you bet some money and play games together. (and take their money DUH!)

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How to Practice Putting!

how to, practice, Putting

Swing Tip – How to Swing with Your Body!

Junger Woods — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 14:22:59 +0000

Last time I mentioned how you should be starting your downswing with the lower body. Well, the next step is to learning to swing with your body.

To do this, when you swing, you want to feel like every part of your body is moving “together”.

For example, when I swing my best, I feel that my belly button, legs, shoulders, arms, and hands are all moving together. This will feel together but in reality, your upper body will always be moving faster because they are on the most outer side of your centrifugal force.

There’s a very simple exercise you can do with a ball, perhaps a basketball or a medicine ball. (or even a basket)

Simply hold a basketball and turn the basketball to the right using your body, meaning your belly, shoulders, arms, and hands. You should be able to turn the basketball using the large muscles in your body. Your hands actually do nothing in the process except hold the ball.

Then turn the ball to the left using your body.

This is actually a great exercise also to build golf muscles if you use a medicine ball or a ball with some weight to it. (I used to use a bowling ball to do this too.)

Here’s some screenshots of how to do it right:
(Please don’t mind my outfit, this is my daily casual wear while I blog at home so…)

(At address)

(Turn to the right, if you use your body to turn to the right, both of your hands would be facing 90 degrees away from your starting position. Now, this is crucial that you get it right. If you don’t do it right, you are not using your body to turn so hence beats the point of this exercise.)

(Turn back to the left like you are shaking hands with someone on the left.)

Doing this exercise 10 minutes daily can help you swing the golf club more with your body. The “feel” of this exercise is exactly how you should swing the golf club with your body, not with your hands or arms only.

By the way, you don’t have to do a full swing with this exercise, just focus on the body turn and really feeling BOTH of your shoulders turning. A lot of hackers and amateurs don’t turn BOTH of their shoulder, causing all kinds of havoc like banana slices and hooks. Plus, you LOSE a lot of your power if you don’t turn both of your shoulders.

Also try to really feel that your “belly button” is controlling the turn of your body. When you use heavier weight, that will also help build the correct abdominal golf muscles.

And lastly but not least, GO SLOW, the point of this exercise is to use your body, if you go fast, you will inevitably end up using your arms or hands, something we don’t want in our golf swings.

Also if you don’t have a ball to do it, you can use an imaginary ball. Perhaps you are at work and you want to practice swinging with your body.

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

Swing Tip – How to Swing with Your Body!

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How to Develop a Pre-Shot Routine!

Junger Woods — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 18:55:03 +0000

One of the single most important aspects of being able to play good golf is that you have a developed pre-shot routine that’s consistent. Whether you are hitting a driver, iron, or even putting, you need to develop a consistent pre-shot routine so you can put your swing/putts on automatic pilot.

Why?

Golf is a game where your ultimate enemy is distraction or “bad” thoughts while making a stroke, by having a solid pre-shot routine, you will eliminate most of those distractions while making each shot almost second-nature or automatic.

If you look at the top golfers in this world, virtually every one of them have developed a pre-shot routine that’s consistent down to the amount of time. For example, you might notice that Tiger Woods takes 40 seconds to hit a golf tee shot from teeing up the ball to actually hitting the shot, it will never vary by more than couple seconds in the same round.

I’ve seen great players over in Asia while I played there for couple months long time ago, they didn’t have any pre-shot routine. When I showed them, they thought I had a “personality” like all the American players. LMAO, I think they were focusing too much on golf technique, not on the mental side of it.

Anyways, those players I met probably will never reach their full potential because they have never developed a “sound” pre-shot routine.

Before I tell you how to develop a good pre-shot routine, let’s take a quick look at Tiger’s.

For about the last couple years, Tiger’s pre-shot routine hasn’t changed except his number of waggles have been reduced to mostly one. (But waggles, you can keep doing until you feel comfortable with the shot, the point of waggles. And yes, Sergio Garcia does way too many.)

(Left: Tiger Woods on Tee at 2007 Masters, Right: Tiger Woods on Tee at 2009 Masters)

1) First, Tiger tees up.

2) Then he backs away about 5 feet behind the ball then does “exactly” TWO practice swings. This number can vary on the individual but I think 1 to 2 practice swings is the best. I do just 1 practice swing usually unless it’s a special shot.

3) Then he gets right behind the ball lining himself (his eyes) on the imaginary line created by the target and the ball. He then picks out a spot about 2-3 feet in front of the ball where he can align his golf club to it. This is something virtually every pro does, lining up from the behind. Jack Nicklaus is probably the most famous for starting to do this but this is the best way to align your tee shots and longer shots, your eyes simply work best from behind the ball.

4) Tiger then steps up to the ball, gets comfortable, takes a look at the target, then does 1-3 waggles. In 2007, he did 3 waggles. In 2009 now, I believe he’s only doing 1 waggle. Also don’t forget that when Tiger lines up to the ball, he sets his clubhead first then sets his stance. This might be hard to notice as he does it very subtle but that’s what he’s doing.

5) After 2 waggles, he turns on the automatic pilot and BAM, on goes his muscle memory executing his swing that he has been practicing for countless hours.

You can also see the video here:

2007:

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2009:

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As you can see in Tiger’s pre-shot routine, it’s very important that you develop on consistent and sound pre-shot routine.

A pre-shot routine doesn’t have to be like Tiger’s at all but you must include couple key points:

Have a “key” point that strikes your brain as “starting” your pre-shot routine. This could be as simple as teeing up your ball or even touch your cap slightly. This mental key will go a long ways to making your pre-shot routine virtually “automatic” every time you do it.
Practice swings – It’s a good idea to take 1 or 2 practice swings, they don’t have to be full swings (why waste your energy?) but small miniture swings of the real swing that can make you comfortable and confident. Of course, some pros don’t even to a single practice swing. This is fine too if it works for you.
Alignment – Aligning your golf ball to the target is very important. The best way for long shots is to do it from the behind and pick out a spot (such as a leaf) 2-3 feet in front of your ball. But if you have keen eyes and you can do it while standing next to the ball, by all means go ahead.
Setting up to the ball – I usually begin with my feet close together, then align my golf clubhead to my spot, then open my stance parallel to my target line. Of course, this can vary depending on how you like it but make sure you do the same thing every time.
Waggle – The waggle is perhaps another important key aspect of your swing, think of it as your “feel” for the shot. Of course, you don’t need to waggle if you don’t want to but try to develop something similar to that such as moving your lower body subtly from left to right or anything that can take some tension off your hands and body. Think of waggle as your last “pre-swing” before the real thing.
Hitting to ball – What Jack Nicklaus used to do is actually “hover” his golf clubhead slightly above ground so the weight is never set down fully to the ground. (or take some weight off without the clubhead actually being airborne) This is actually what a lot of pros do now too. I think it’s a good idea because you never start from a completely static position. Jack Nicklaus did this on all his shots including his putts. I believe Tiger does this too. By the way, for Drivers and woods, this hovering actually might be airborne right next to the ball.

In all, I am sure you can develop a sound pre-shot routine by following my guidelines stated here. Try to practice your pre-shot routine on the driving range, not on every ball but mix it up like every 10 balls. Even better, play an imaginary golf course on the driving range and go through your pre-shot routine on every shot while playing that golf course.

Well, gotta go now, I need to get some practice myself.

Remember, a sound and consistent pre-shot routine is essential winning a skins game or even the U.S. Open.

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

How to Develop a Pre-Shot Routine!

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Swing Tip – How To Start the Downswing with Your Lower Body!

Junger Woods — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 05:19:13 +0000

Today I hit the ball fairly, radically rad and great. I’ve probably never hit the ball so crisp. Another point is that now I can actually control the trajectory of my golf ball better.

To be able to do all those, you will need to learn how to start your downswing with your lower body. This is one of the crucial golf swing movements you will need to learn if you want to hit the ball super crisp.

What is “super crisp”?

That’s when you smack that golf ball right in the sweetspot of your golf club and you can “feel” the solidarity of your hit. It feels so good, I can probably say it’s better than sex.

Besides that, you ball flight won’t be affected as much by wind or anything for that matter and for people watching this super crisp hit from the side, you will certainly hear a nice “swoosh” sound as the golf ball takes off straight to its apex and looks as if it drops straight down, lifelessly.

Sounds like something you want to learn?

Well, I’ve got the secret for you, you need to be able to hit the golf ball from the inside-out and to do that, really, you need to learn how to start the downswing with your lower body as Ben Hogan said about a thousand times in his book Five Lessons (very good book by the way, most of my golfing theory comes straight from that book.)

How to “feel” your lower body starting the downswing?

To feel your lower body starting the downswing, here’s a simple exercise I actually do.

First, swing your golf club to the top slowly. After you reach the top of the backswing, pause slightly. Then, start the downswing by rotating your lower body(and also a bit of weight transfer to the left foot), specifically the hips to your left and let your shoulder, arms, and hands follow that rotation, all in that order with the lower body always leading the downswing.

I know it sounds slightly confusing but go grab a golf club and try it.

Now, keep rotating those hips and the rest of your upper body *SLOWLY* until you reach the point where your golf clubhead is about waist height. Your hands and the golf club should form a 90 degree angle, this is called “LAG”. If not, make sure there’s 90 degree angle. This should happen naturally if you lead your downswing with your hips. If you didn’t, ultimately you won’t have the “LAG” and that means you broke something in the process. Do this until you can get it right.

Now when your golf clubhead is at about waist height, you no longer need to lead the downswing with the hips because it will probably impossible as your upper body starts catching up near impact. At this point try to feel that “ALL” of your lower body (hips) AND the upper body and turning simultaneously together and SWINGING OUT towards the right field. (Like I told you here on swinging the golf club inside-out.)

When you do this right, you should feel some kind of “torque” on the golf club as you downswing. This is caused by your lower body starting/leading the downswing.

Do all the above steps until you can get all the parts I outlined right and you get a good feel for it. Start with a slow swing then steadily increase the speed of your golf swing.

Keep practicing until you can record in your muscle memory.

Now, don’t think about anything and just hit the golf ball normally. Your muscle memory should “automatically” start your downswing with your lower body. If your body doesn’t keep practicing in slow motion after each ball hit on the driving range until you “get” it.

Once you master this method of starting your downswing with your lower body, you should be able to hit the ball straighter, further, and also be able to control the ball better.

The greatest part about swinging like this is that once you master it, you can hit the ball as hard as you want AND your ball will go even straighter/longer.

Of course, this is something I learned from Ben Hogan’s Five Lessons. He doesn’t outline every step but I have added some exercises that can help you feel what he’s trying to teach in his book.

After I started doing this instinctively through practice, I began to realize how much better I can fade/draw the ball while I could also control the trajectory better.

There, I just told you the secret to hitting that golf ball like a pro, now go practice.

Btw, my golfing career is coming along now, I am hitting the ball better than ever, my putting is superb with my new method of using mostly hands. (I will have a blog post on how to putt like a pro soon.)

Good luck on improving your swing and don’t give up after 100 swing, try at least 10,000 more swings.

(Image Credit) – Click to Enlarge – Watch carefully how Ben Hogan leads his downswing with his lower body and look at that big LAG he’s generating!

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

Swing Tip – How To Start the Downswing with Your Lower Body!

Ben Hogan, downswing, how to, lower body, start, swing tip

The Golf Club Umbrella!

Junger Woods — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 23:08:21 +0000

Here’s a rather interesting “Golf Club Umbrella” that I’d love to use it during rainy season. Not only does it keep you from getting wet, you can also use it to practice your golf swing(or even hit a golf ball for that matter) whenever you are away from golf. Brilliant idea. (via 7gadgets)

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

The Golf Club Umbrella!

golf club umbrella, golf umbrella

Banana Bunker is a Perfect Banana Keeper for Golfers!

Junger Woods — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 05:30:50 +0000

As I have mentioned before on what you should eat during a round of golf, bananas are one of the best foods to eat. Well, the problem is, sometimes your bananas in the golf bag can get crushed, causing all kinds of havoc if you leave other things in your golf bag too.

There’s a perfect solution for that, Banana Bunkers. I might actually get a couple of these so I can always have my bananas in perfect shape, ready for tournament golf.

The Banana Bunker is a flexible, plastic device that prevents your bananas from being bruised.
It fits almost any size banana due to its innovative design featuring open end caps (to allow thin ends to stick out) and a flexible and detachable mid-section.

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Btw, my tournament golf preparation is coming slowly, I have never stopped touching a golf club for 4 days straight now!

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

Banana Bunker is a Perfect Banana Keeper for Golfers!

banana bunker, golfers, keeper, perfect

Tiger’s Swing at 2009 PGA HD!

Junger Woods — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 07:34:14 +0000

Here’s a good shot of Tiger’s swing at the 2009 PGA. Although he lost, there’s plenty here to see.

I can see why he lost, his head is dipping like 3-5 inches on the downswing instead of the usual 1-2 inches. That’s not going to help him hit the ball perfect.

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Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

Tiger’s Swing at 2009 PGA HD!

Tiger's Swing

I am starting to Play Pro Tournaments AGAIN!

Junger Woods — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 04:40:09 +0000

Well, after years of not playing competitively, I’ve finally decided to take a shot at the PGA Tour again. My goals for this year is to play at least 2 Pepsi Tour tournaments before the year is over. I know that’s not whole lot of competitive golf but heck, I gotta start playing somewhere!

Next year, my goals are to enter couple Nationwide PGA Tour Monday qualifying events hopefully around my neighborhood in Northern California.

I will also be trying to qualify for U.S. Open next year, wish me luck to make it to the Open baby!

Anyways, my swing is looking really good, I’ve simplified it enough where I don’t have to practice much to keep my swing in shape. (although I have desire to hit at least 300 balls everyday)

I haven’t really played much, maybe 5 rounds total in the last 2 years but it shouldn’t take me too long shooting 60s again.

I realize I am getting older but my swing is more stable and mature. My thoughts on golf has naturally improved due to age. Maybe that is why before Tiger’s era, pros didn’t start winning majors until they were in their 30s.

Wish me luck and I will try to keep updating the blog although I will get very busy now focusing only on one thing, winning the U.S. Open! (hahaha, that will take me years but heck, it’s a good goal)

Today, I hit the ball GREAT just like 2 days ago.

Here’s couple swing thoughts I was using to hit laser-accurate iron shots and super-long 350 yard drives:

For short shots, be very loose, light hands, and make a very smooth swing.

Also, swing inside-out and try to keep that swing in motion before you start looking up where your ball is going. This doesn’t mean your head stays down, just keep your spine angle consistent until after impact, that’s the key to crisp, iron shots.

For extra, super-long 350 yard drives, I’ve developed a new method of creating “super-lag” with my woods. Basically, you start turning your lower body quickly right as you are reaching the top of your backswing, this creates a “super-lag”, plus you will be able to square the ball easily with the added amount of clubhead speed generated. I find that a nice 15-yard draw is generated with this method or a straight shot. Before using this method and just hitting the ball hard with my driver in the past, I experienced a lot of blocks to the right.

Well, that’s all for today, I will be gone golfing!

P.S. I will also be ordering some custom golf wear I can wear to tournaments to show off my golf blog. PLUS, I will be interviewing couple of my old golf pro friends at Pepsi Tour, sorta like reality show for aspiring pro golfers. (You will get to see what they are thinking, where they are going, and who knows, some of these guys DO make it to the PGA TOUR eventually so that’d be interesting stuff to watch.)

My first tournament here at Boundary Oaks Golf Course in Walnut Creek, pray for me! (although I think it will take me at least 3 tournaments before I start playing well…)

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

I am starting to Play Pro Tournaments AGAIN!

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Golf Course Strategy – How to Determine Which Side of the Fairway!

Junger Woods — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 03:58:01 +0000

You can easily improve your golf scores simply by thinking better. In this session, I will show you how to determine which side of the fairway to “target” from the tee.

It’s a pretty simple and common sense fact but perhaps you don’t know. And if you don’t know, this will definitely cut some strokes off your next round.

Also, this golf strategy tip can work on golf video games. (Yes, you can practice this golf strategy without even being on a real golf course!)

As you can see in the above diagram (sorry, I made it real quick with Photoshop), there’s two red circles. Each of them represent a “side” of the fairway.

Depending on where the pin is on the green, you can increase your chances of getting the ball nearer the pin by hitting the ball at the “right side” of the fairway.

For the example above, you will want to hit your tee shot to the left side of the fairway more room to “roll” your ball on the green.

As you can see, B angle has clearly more room for you to land the ball whereas A angle will not be as big. (Now, mind my diagram, in real life situations on the golf course, these distances can become drastically bigger/shorter. But you get the idea.)

When I used to play tournament golf, I do this on every hole, determining which side of the fairway I should land my tee shot on. Especially on dog-leg lefts and rights, this simple golf strategy could determine whether you get to the green on your second shot or not.

Of course, there’s many other factors to consider when determining which side of the fairway you should aim for but one thing is for sure, you will “always” have to choose a side.

Don’t just try to hit the ball in the middle of the fairway.

Usually, you will find more trouble on one side than other such as OB stakes, water hazards, and even trees. Also, always setup your tee shot near the side of the trouble. For example, if there’s OB on the right side, setup your tee ball on the right side of the tee so you have more room for error (better angle). I see a lot of hackers and amateurs who do the opposite and ultimately end up in trouble. (then they cuss at themselves for that when in fact they didn’t give themselves the best chance)

Do factor all that and try to find the best spot to land your tee shot for your 2nd shot.

Golf is really about setting up yourself right for your approach shot, whether that’s from 250 yards or 100 yards.

Sometimes, on some courses, you will find a better angle and approach if you hit your tee shot onto another fairway. (And yes, please do that, it’s not illegal.)

Well, this is just my 2 cents and I hope it cuts some strokes off your golf game by thinking about “course strategy” the next time you play.

Remember, as a rule of thumb, if the pin is on the right side of the green, setup your approach shot to the left side of the fairway. If the pin is on the left side of the green, setup your approach shot to the right side of the fairway. If there’s water hazard in front of the green, this tip will help greatly in increasing your chances of landing your ball on the green or avoiding water at the worst.

P.S. Golf is about playing smart, not just hitting the ball. The better you get at golf, the more these tips will make sense to you.

Here’s a video re-cap of today’s course strategy tips:

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Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

Golf Course Strategy – How to Determine Which Side of the Fairway!

Golf Course Strategy

Golf Tips – How to Swing That Golf Ball From Inside Out!

Junger Woods — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 03:15:34 +0000

Oops, I have been sorta out of golf world last couple months. Btw, I have a pretty good view of the 3rd hole of the President’s Cup from my 12th floor apartment which is nice. I’ve noticed that everyone pretty much follows Tiger. Any groups before and after Tiger had noticeably less people following.

Onto golf tips for today…

In golf, one of the best ways to swing a golf club is to swing from the inside out. This also means that you will strike the inside half of the ball, not the outside.

Why do you need to swing inside out?

You can still score good if you swing outside-in but that’s not the most efficient way of hitting a golf ball. The way our human bodies are created and the angle at which we hit the golf ball, you will hit the golf ball straighter and farther if you “swing” from inside-out.

Also, another benefit from swinging inside-out is that you will be able to control the ball better whether you want to hit a fade or draw. Naturally, you will be able to hit a slight draw with added distance and a fade if you open the clubface a bit.

Who swings inside out?

Practically all top pro golfers in the world swing inside out including Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, or practically 99% of PGA Tour pros. Of course, you never want to exaggerate this action either, which will cause you to hit the golf ball to the right. Or in golfing terms, block it out to the right. (For example, Greg Norman used to hit too much inside-out, causing wild blocks under pressure.)

When someone (such as a Tour pro) swings inside out, you can tell by both of his/her arms stretching fully (or fully extended) about a foot after impact. This usually guarantees that you swung inside-out.

How to Swing Inside Out

To swing the golf club inside-out, you will really need to focus on swinging about 20-50 yards right of your target.

And yes, this will go completely against your natural instincts, which is try to swing towards the target. By the way, even when you swing towards the target, you are in essence swinging a bit inside-out, just so you know. But what I am preaching here is that you actually want to swing 20-50 yards right of your actual target to really achieve a “true” inside-out swing. Now, there’s a range of about 20-50 yards since every club would be slightly different. For example, hitting a sand wedge, 50 yards right of your target would suffice. Likewise, 50 yards right of your target would work for something like a 3-wood.

If you are already a chronic slicer, you will have to work much harder, probably even change your backswing to swing inside-out. If you do suffer from banana slices, do not worry as I will tell you how to fix that too.

For chronic slicers to swing inside out, (and those of you who simply cannot swing inside out) you will want to focus on getting your backswing on the “inside”, around your body more. Most likely, you might be trying to swing “too vertical”. Remember, golf requires you to swing “diagonally” and “around” your body.

There are some pros like Jim Furyk who literally “defies” law of physics with a super vertical backswing but heck, that’s Jim Furyk, there’s not many people in this world who can swing like him.

*Note – If you have been playing golf more than 10 years with your super-vertical backswing, you might actually be okay to keep that so long as you swing inside-out on the downswing. (that’s something for veterans)

On the other hand, if you swing flat (around your body) and you are hitting that banana slice, you are probably just not swinging inside-out when you hit the golf ball. Again, you will want to focus on hitting slightly right of your target.

As Harvey Penick says in his book Little Red Book, “Swing to the right field.” Sorta like baseball, you want to swing towards the right field.

For left-handers, that’s opposite what I’ve said here. (Everything opposite for left-handers.)

How to Check if you are swinging Inside Out

It’s very easy to check if you are swinging inside out, you don’t even need a camera. (Actually, it’s harder to tell with a camera)

Make sure you have a wet towel in hand.

First, clean your clubs with a golf cleaning tool and your wet towel. Make sure to completely dry your golf club face, otherwise the golf ball will not leave an imprint after you hit the ball.

Second, hit the ball.

Third, check your clubface. If the golf ball leaves an imprint on the inside part of your clubface (near the hosel), then you have most likely hit the ball from inside-out. If the imprint is on the outside of the clubface (near the toe), then you have most likely hit the ball from outside-in.

I probably do this like everytime I practice, that is to check my clubface to see where I am hitting the ball. (You can also check out this little golf LED gadget I made that you make for like 5 bucks. Here’s another golf gadget that can help you tell swing plane too.)

Advanced Players: You can even keep checking to see how “consistently” you hit the ball by checking the regularity of your ball imprints on the clubface. For example, if you looked at Vijay Singh’s golf clubs, you will find that his “sweetspot” probably has worn out on the exact pin-point spot.

Another tip I can give you to hit the ball inside-out is to keep your head down during the downswing and “behind” the ball. This will ensure that you hit the ball from inside-out.

For advanced players, you can also try to keep your spine angle consistent through the downswing, which will also help you hit the ball more accurately and from the inside out.

Well, those are the tips I gave you on hitting the ball inside-out. As always, don’t over do it. But most of you probably will have trouble doing it so…

P.S. I am starting to get my golf game around, as always. I am hitting the ball super consistently, one of those secrets (even though I hit like 100 balls a month now) is that I swing inside-out. Also, I don’t really clutter my mind with too many thoughts. What’s probably more important than swinging inside out is to “adapt” your golf swing so you can hit consistent shots whether that’s a fade or a draw. Why am I telling you how to hit the ball from inside out? Well, if you do have time to waste and you want to get better in the long term, you will probably want to learn how to do that. If you are just a weekend warrior and you never want to get better, ignore everything I said here, just keep playin’)

Happy golfin’~

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

Golf Tips – How to Swing That Golf Ball From Inside Out!

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Tom Watson’s Explanation on the Secret to Consistent Golf Swing!

Junger Woods — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 03:36:25 +0000

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Well, I might have analyzed hundreds of golf swings in my life but perhaps Tom Watson’s explanation on secret to a consistent golf swing will help you more with his simple wisdom, “keep your spine angle consisten and turn around it.”

And this has everything to do with keeping your clubhead and body parts on-plane. The golf swing plane only exists as a result of this spine angle.

I think this advice will help you more because it’s so simple and it’s coming from Tom Watson.

Watch the video and learn!

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

Tom Watson’s Explanation on the Secret to Consistent Golf Swing!

body parts, clubhead, consistent golf swing, Golf Swing Plane, golf swings, metacafe, simple wisdom, spine angle, Tom Watson, watsons

How to Hit Those Short Chip/Pitch Shots out of Medium/Tough Rough!

Junger Woods — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 03:25:35 +0000

(Image Credit)

Today I practiced 20-50 yard pitch shots at my favorite public course Harding Park with my 60 degree wedge. Since Harding Park will be hosting the 2009 President’s Cup this year in October, the greenskeeper was growing the grass like mad.

Anyways, those long rough conditions allowed me to practice those tough shots and here’s simple tips next time you see some of those medium to high length rough:

Set up to the ball with your clubface open, anywhere from 5 to 45 degrees depending on how high you want to hit your pitch shot.
Set up with most of your weight on the left side of your body and keep it there during the whole pitch shot.
Try to hit slightly behind the ball. The long rough will actually act as cushion and add a little “bounce” to your shot, meaning you actually want to hit a little behind it to hit the ball consistently. You want to hit about 1/4 to 1/8 inch behind the ball but no more than 1/4 inch, otherwise you will end up flopping the pitch shot. Just make sure to keep your eyes 1/4 inch behind the ball and try to hit that spot, not the ball. This will ensure you don’t “skull” the ball while you will get a consistent results out of any medium to long-sized rough.
Make sure to keep your pitch swing nice and smooth, free flowing while keeping your hands super light.
Make sure your follow-through is much longer than your backswing to ensure acceleration through the pitch shot.

Now, apply these tips next time you go out to the practice green. I tend to like to spend a lot of time around the greens, not much of a ball-banger anymore (I used to be). But I can assure you that when you can hit well and consistently close to the hole out of these medium to long-sized grass, you will definitely play better next time you play a good course like Harding Park.

Of course, hitting behind the ball only applies to 1 inches of grass(rough) or longer. Anything shorter, you can keep your weight evenly distributed and focus on the front of the ball itself. (otherwise you will flub it for sure)

These shots are not easy but they are really fun if you master them and you will have a great advantage over your playing partners, especially if they are not accustomed to hitting those pitch shots within 3 feet circle like you do.

Have fun practicing and I should have some more tips on various different pitch shots. (And yes, practicing with 1-ball can help greatly to these shots as you will learn to manipulate your 60 degree wedges better.)

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How to Hit Those Short Chip/Pitch Shots out of Medium/Tough Rough!

backswing, bounce, grass, greens, greenskeeper, harding park, pitch shots, rough conditions, rough set, skull

Weekend Warriors – How to Hit the Ball More Consistently!

Junger Woods — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 23:05:48 +0000

Most of us don’t have the time that it takes to perfect a golf swing nor maintain it. For those weekend warriors, here’s couple swing tips that have actually worked for me:

Don’t fight your swing, whether you hit a draw or fade on that day, just play that shot.
Keep your swing smooth but make sure your followthrough is longer than your backswing. This makes sure you accelerate through the golf ball without over-swinging. This is probably the best tip for keeping your ball flight consistent even if you hardly practice.
Keeping your ball flight consistent, whether that’s a slice or hook, comes first. If you can hit the ball with a consistent ball flight, you don’t have to hit the ball straight and still score good. I’ve seen hundreds of scratch golfers who have bad swings but they have consistent ball flights.
Don’t ever try to “correct” your swing, just go with the flow and work with your flawed swing. Again, consistency rules over straight shots. Even pro golfers don’t try to hit the ball straight. Jack Nicklaus and Fred Couple hit fades all through major championships, you should pick a side too.
Practice more short game and putting, that’s where your advantage is or even Tiger’s for that matter, not in the 300+ yard driver. Although it’d be good to hit it 300+ yards off the tee, that’s the last thing that’s gonna help you score near par.

I’ve been playing golf for over 20+ years now and more I realize that perfecting your golf swing has more to do with scoring bad than trying to work with what you already have.

Even me, I have less time to practice than before since I have to run my online publishing business. I score better when I try to find ways to keep my swing more consistent by doing less.

Less is more, especially in golf. No matter how many personal golf lessons you get, it’s probably worthless if you change your swing everytime you go out on the golf course. Stop tinkering and start playing golf.

Here’s a simple exercise if you tend to end up in vicious cycle of trying to fix your swing.

1. Don’t practice on the range anymore.

2. Don’t try to fix your swing on the golf course.

3. Keep playing more golf and try to work on your golf strategy to fit your ball flight.

4. keep doing 1 to 3 until your ball flight is consistent and you have find a working golf course strategy.

5. If you must, fix your swing once every 3 months.

Happy golfing!

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

Weekend Warriors – How to Hit the Ball More Consistently!

backswing, ball flight, consistency rules, flights, golf swing, golf-ball, hook, jack nicklaus, scratch golfers, short game, straight shots, swings, tiger, weekend warriors

How to Swing Better by Not Being Perfect!

Junger Woods — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 18:59:52 +0000

Sometimes, perfection can be the root of all evil things in a golf swing. A lot of times when I was playing competitively on a daily basis, I would try to perfect my golf swing by banging 10 buckets of balls. I would have probably done better if I just relaxed more and focused more on my short game and putting.

Golf is a game that requires great mental focus, it’s a not a game where the best golf swing mechanics win tournaments. Rather, golfers with ability to turn the golf course into their friend wins as evidenced by Y.E. Yang’s win over Tiger last weekend.

That said, I hit balls for the first time in about 3 months yesterday and boy, I hit the ball really, really good.

Here’s something I tried to do yesterday:

I tried to not be perfect, simply relax my hands and let my body do the work.
My swing though consisted of “keep it smooth” like Fred Couples.
Worked on specific shots that would help me on the golf course like fading the ball (which is my strength) and odd shots that could get me out of trouble.

In all, yesterday’s practice at the driving range might have helped me whole lot more than me simply banging a lot of balls mindlessly one after another.

The key to great golf is keeping your golf swing consistent. The only way an average golfer who rarely practices to keep their golf swing consistent is to keep their swing thoughts simple.

Golf has so many parts to master but unless you are a professional golfer with all the time in the world, you are not going to master it.

Forget “fixing” your swing and try simply “scoring” with your current golf swing. Whatever your bad shots are, a nasty hook or banana slice, you can still “score” well by adjusting to your weaknesses and using them as strengths.

I’ve seen it a gazillion times where a golfer with a really weird swing will win over a golfer who has a perfect swing. Most of the time, the golfer with a really weird swing has an incredible short game and a knack for putting since he/she is hitting the ball all over the place. The golfer with perfect swing usually never performs under pressure because he/she simply does not know how to deal with trouble under pressure.

Anyways, I will be heading over to the course more often before this summer ends and looks like they got the tent set up at Harding Park for the President’s Cup 2009 this year. (I have an incredible view of the 12th hole at Harding Park from my 12th floor apartment!)

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

How to Swing Better by Not Being Perfect!

banana, best golf, buckets, daily basis, driving-range, evil things, Fred Couples, gazillion times, golf course, golf swing mechanics, golfers, great golf, knack, mental focus, professional golfer, putting golf, short game, swing thoughts, time in the world, whole lot

Golf Tip – How To Eat Right While Playing Golf!

Junger Woods — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 23:55:53 +0000

This is sorta important what, “what you eat, what you become.”

It’s true. In golf, you need to eat right while playing golf because it’s going to seriously affect how well you play, especially when under the gun such as tournament pressure or even skins game.

First of all, do NOT eat a full meal right before you tee off. That will most likely cause you to be a little bloated and will certainly take couple holes before your stomach digests all the food. By then, you probably have lost couple strokes you could have saved by not eating so much.

On the bright side, you can eat a lot of healthy snacks while playing golf such as banana or any type of “fruits” that contain natural sugar. Try to stay away from coffee or anything with too much sugar as you can get “high” off the caffeine and sugar.

Watch the best pro golfers play on TV, rarely do you see them eating a snickers bar but they will be eating a lot of bananas.

I’ve probably read 10 golf books already on tournament golf nutrition and they all pretty much say the same things, eat lots of fruit that will keep your mental state level.

Now these are advices for people who want to score better on the golf course, if you do not care about playing your best, you can ignore my advice.

What about the meal the night before a big tournament?

I have gone through many of these myself, I try to stick with high-carb meals as they can help you the next day.

My favorite meal is actually spaghetti, eating a lot of spaghetti the night before can surely help you the next day to keep going longer.

Lastly, don’t forget to drink LOTS of water while playing golf, especially if it’s a sunny day.

I have personally experienced “cramps” during a the high school state tournament before, that was simply due to not drinking enough water and eating bananas. Bananas can help prevent cramps on a hot day because they contain potassium. Take my advice and make sure to pack your golf bag with enough water and bananas for your next important golf tournament.

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

Golf Tip – How To Eat Right While Playing Golf!

bananas, cramps, eat right, golf course, golf nutrition, golf tips, healthy snacks, hot day, how to, natural sugar, potassium, pro golfers, snickers bar, spaghetti, strokes

The Most Incredible Stymie Hole-In-One by Leif Olson!

Junger Woods — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 20:27:05 +0000

This is probably the most incredible “stymie” hole-in-one by Leif Olson at the Canadian Open last week. This is as close as you get to a “bank shot” in golf.

WOW, that’s all I can say.

Download latest version of Flash to view video!.

Click Here to View in Full Screen Mode

Post from: ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

The Most Incredible Stymie Hole-In-One by Leif Olson!

hole in one, leif olson

ProgolferDigest - The Golf Blog by Junger Woods

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