Entries Tagged as 'Short game'
How To Learn From Your Golf Scorecard
There is one thing about the game of golf: score cards don’t lie. Ok I will agree with you on one point. I have played a number of rounds in my life where I hit the ball very well, putted great and got nothing out of the round.
On the other hand there have been many rounds where I couldn’t find the golf course. I was lucky no one got hurt. However at the end of the day when I added up the score card I was very pleased with the number.
You have to keep in mind that golf is NOT one round. It is a lifetime experience. The only way you are going to improve is to continue to punch holes in your score card and find out what part of your game needs work. That does not happen in one round of golf.
I know you are wondering where you should start. There are a couple of stats that jump out at me. Start with the driver. You have to track every tee shot. Keep a blank score card in your pocket and after every tee shot record whether you hit the fairway or missed to the left or right.
The next statistic that will help you lower your score is did you short side your approach shot? It doesn’t matter if it is the first, second, third or even fourth shot of the hole. Did you short side yourself? The definition of short siding is when you leave your approach shot in a position where you don’t have any green to work with.
Everytime you prepare to approach a green you have to ask yourself the 10 million dollar question. What side is the short side? The safe side might leave you with a 30 yard pitch shot with nothing but a tiny fringe and then the putting green in front of you. The short side might leave you with a 7 yard LOB shot over a bunker with a 12 foot lip and a slope running straight down hill to the hole. You do the math. It doesn’t take many of those a day to ruin a good round of golf.
Lastly, grade your attitude before you tee off, when you make the turn and when you walk off of the golf course. It is a great stat to keep track of. If you can maintain an upbeat and fun attitude your scores will reflect it. I have gone on record for years as saying that I haven’t found a more enjoyable place to spend four hours than a golf course-when I am playing well and having fun. On the other hand it is the most miserable place to be for four hours when you are struggling and not having fun.
Remember, if you use them correctly, score cards don’t lie.
Chunked Wedges to the left…INSTANT CURE
If you can not figure out how to stop chunking your wedge shots to the left and you have tried all of the golf pitching tips in the magazines, I have a lesson for you that will work.
When you hit a really fat pitch shot off to the left there are a few things that happened before and during the swing. Today we are going to discuss the things that took place before you even swung the club back. Your problem began with the address position. When you hit a chunked pitch shot the golf club swung too much from outside to inside in the downswing.
One of the main reasons the club swung too much from the outside is because the golf ball was too far forward in your stance at address. When you place the ball too far out in front of you (across from your left foot), the club head has to swing outside the arc to find the ball. When it swings too far outside the arc the angle is too steep and you wind up swinging the club head straight into the ground.
For the next couple of weeks I want you to try something a little different, I want you to address the golf ball further back in your stance. Try moving it back to the center of your stance for starters.
A couple of things are going to happen when you move the ball back. Number one the clubhead is going to begin to find the correct path, secondly you will begin making ball/turf contact. The golf ball will fly higher and towards the target. No more chunks to the left.
Ball Position Is Critical When Chipping The Golf Ball…
For you to become consist with your chipping you MUST have the golf ball in the center of your stance EVERY TIME. The club head swings up in the backswing and when it returns in the downswing it has to return to the same spot in order for you to make ball turf contact consistently.
One of the ways for your chipping to become more consistent is to learn how to get the golf ball to fly (1/3 of the way) the exact distance every time. If it flies the same distance every time then it will roll (2/3 of the way) every time.
The challenge that many of you face is the ball flies half way to the hole one time, 3/4 of the to the hole the next, 1/3 of the way to the hole the next three times. You don’t know which one is going to show up next. When your chip shots are that inconsistent you wind up with no confidence.
So why the importance of ball position? After you address the golf ball, move 75% of your weight on to your left foot, then move the handle over to center of your body, you are ready to go. Wait one minute. If the ball is too far back in your stance, it will come out very low, won’t fly 1/3 of the way and will wind up running way past the hole. If you address the golf ball too far forward in your stance, the club head will have too much loft at impact, the ball will fly half way to the hole, with way too much backspin.
There lies the problem with inconsistent impact and distance control with chipping.
DRILL #1…If you hit thin shots to the right…This one is for you.
I know many of you love to use practice drills that will enable you to FEEL the correct way of making a change. I have used this drill not only for my teaching but I have also used it myself over the years.
Keep one thing in mind. When you hit a shot to the right you either hit the ground behind it OR you catch the ball on the upswing and hit it thin or topped. The reason you hit it thin is because the golf club is traveling too far from the INSIDE and is headed OUTSIDE.
When you swing the golf club on an arc it travels from INSIDE to SQUARE (at impact) back to the INSIDE on the follow through. The other thing you have to keep in mind is the flatter the club face the less divot you will have. When you hit a thin 4 iron (it hurts) you will never see a divot unless you hit the ground behind the ball.
Now, on to the drill. Grab a 7 iron and lay two straight edges on the ground, (one for the target and one for your body line). Lay a towel on the ground about 12 inches behind the ball. When you swing the club back make sure you miss the towel in the backswing and in the downswing.
Another way to think of it is the golf club has to swing UP in the backswing and DOWN in the downswing. When you hit it thin you swing to much UP in the downswing. Start with a 9 iron and progress through your set of clubs.
Topping Your LOB Wedge To The Right…Fix It Now
To many golfers the LOB wedge is not what it is all cracked up to be. They tell me that all they see is disaster. Well, I have to right up front with you. My story behind the LOB wedge is pretty funny. I will cut to the chase. I used my LOB wedge for one year before I competed with it in my bag. I practiced with it, I used it to putt and chip with. I used it EVERY chance I could whether I needed it or not.
Do you get it? It looked more like a CLUB than a GOLF CLUB. As a matter of fact, I bought four of them the first year until I found the one I liked, and I still have it. Now, let me share something with you that will stop you from topping it to the right. It is pretty easy to understand.
If the club head is swinging UP at impact you will top the ball to the right forever. The easiest way to make sure you are going to hit DOWN on it is to address the golf ball FORWARD in your stance (across from your left foot) and put 75% of your weight on your left leg (LEAVE THE WEIGHT THERE FOR THE ENTIRE SWING).
DO NOT TRANSFER YOUR WEIGHT IN THE BACKSWING. Finally, follow through LOWWWWW!!!!
Fix Fat Bunker Shots With These Tips
Re: Fix A Fat Bunker Shot
This ranks up there as one of the most frustrating shots in golf. You hit a perfect iron shot right at the flag, a gust of wind comes up and the ball lands five yards short of the green, right in the middle of a bunker.
Adding insult to injury you hit your bunker shot fat and move the ball three feet. There are a couple of reasons why you leave your bunker shots in the bunker. The single most important reason why you hit your bunker shots fat is because you DON’T TURN THROUGH. The definition of turning through means that the lower half of your body has to turn out of the way as the golf club enters the sand.
Easier said than done. I don’t think so. The one thing you have to continue reminding yourself is that the backswing is VERY vertical and when that club head begins it’s journey in the downswing it is swinging straight into the sand. The club head is entering the sand on such a STEEP angle that you have to TURN THE LOWER HALF out of the way so the club head will come up and out of the sand at impact.
If you don’t turn out of the way the club head will get stuck in the sand and the golf ball will not have any force behind and underneath at impact. That is why you leave it in the bunker. TURN THROUGH.
I’ve put together a downloadable video fix that you can download right to your computer. My Fat Bunker Shot video module is in both the written (ebook) and video (download) so take your pick or get both.
Click Here to find out more!
Backspin
Secrets to Backspin
Secret #10-#11
Were beginning to close in on this backspin thing. Can you feel it? Number 10 and 11 are so closely related that I put them together so you can see the big picture. The angle of impact, length of swing and speed of swing are so important you cannot believe the role they play.
Let’s talk about angle first. The golf club can enter the back of the golf ball on three different angles, shallow, steep or neutral. You can impart backspin with all three angles. What is important for you to understand is that the angle that creates the most backspin is the one that matches the club face with the ball the cleanest. The most natural thing to think is the angle that is the steepest will impart the most backspin. That could not be the furthest from the truth. If you make contact with a steep angle and catch a little bit of turf between you and the ball, the ball will not have any backspin on it at all. One last thought on a steep angle, if the club head arrives too steep it takes the loft off of the clubface and the golf ball will probably have topspin instead of backspin.
On the other hand. You can impart a lot of backspin on a ball with a shallow swing. There are two major problems. If the fairway is mowed really low it is very difficult to get the club head underneath the golf ball without sculling the ball. If there is room for a club head the golf ball will have backspin on it.
Let’s continue on with the speed and length of the swing. The golf club has to be moving at a high rate of speed for maximum backspin. The slower the club head speed the less amount of friction will be created when the ball contacts the clubface. As far as the length of the swing is concerned it is a shorter backswing and longer follow through that will create more backspin than a longer and often times SLOWER downswing.
In a nutshell you have to work on a shorter and faster swing that makes a clean impact.
Join me tomorrow with a lesson on high shots over trouble.
Golfingly yours,
Bobby
Start Making More 3-Footers
DISTANCE CONTROL FROM THREE FEET IS ESENTIAL
The final two are dedicated to distance control. A good putter does not mind having a 30-foot putt uphill on the first hole and then a 15-foot putt straight downhill on the second hole. We can constantly make adjustments throughout the round for our distance control. Let me share with you the two secrets why. #1. It does not matter whether we have a three foot putt or a 30 foot putt, our stroke is ALWAYS the same. Our stroke is 1/3 back and 2/3 through. Of course it is always relavent to the distance we have to roll the golf ball. Shorter in the backswing and longer in the through swing. The second reason is we make contact with the sweet spot of the putter. The combination of a shorter backswing + longer follow through + solid impact=consistent distance control.
This is exactly where you begin to struggle. Most amateur golfers have a longer backswing+shorter follow through+off center impact=inconsistent distance control. I will take it a step further. Great putters develop distance control in putting with a short backswing and a longer follow through. The reason they do this is to maintain a smoother stroke through impact.
If the putter head is moving faster in the downswing it is easier to control impact on the face of the putter. On the other hand if the putter head is slowing down as it arrives at the golf ball there is potential for off center hits. There is yet another challenge with a putter head that is loosing speed at impact. It is nearly impossible to develop consistent distance control when the putter is striking the golf ball as it is slowing down instead of speeding up.
The number one problem amateurs face with 3-foot putts is inconsistent impact. Not all 3-foot putts are straight however you have to hit them with authority. When you hit a short putt you have to be committed to the line and strike it with conviction. If at any moment you slow the putter down the putt will not stay on line. Lastly, it is nearly impossible to have consistent touch with a putter that is slowing down. You will strike one putt to firm and the next one to soft.
STRAIGHT BACK + STRAIGHT THROUGH + EXCELERATING CLUB HEAD + SOLID IMPACT=1 PUTT INSIDE 3 FEET…
Join me tomorrow for a lesson on how to stop hitting your chip shots thin-topped-and to the right.
Golfingly yours,
Bobby
Start Making More 3-Footers, Cont.
STOP PUSHING THE SHORT ONES
Today we are going to have a lesson on how to stop pushing your putts. The putter has to swing straight back and straight through during the stroke. Many amateur golfers swing the putter back too much INSIDE the correct path in the backswing and then they swing the putter outside the correct path in the downswing. When you return the putter face too much from the inside at impact the face is aiming to the right of your target. When that happens you will push your puttts. This is a very difficult mistake to correct because you can’t feel when you do it incorrectly. On short putts there is no room for even the slightest mistake. Correction: Stand next to a baseboard at home or in the office and check out your backswing. You can also lay a club down on the ground on the putting green and see if your swinging the putter straight back and straight through. No more pushing putts.
Join me tomorrow with the distance control part of making 3-footers.
Golfingly yours,
Bobby
