Yet more to be absorbed

Less is More!

This week's lesson is entitled, "How to Maximize your Distance by Hitting Triples instead of Home Runs " and it's a great overall theory to build your entire swing around. Keep this in the back of your head at all times while you are on the course, and remind yourself of it before every shot. The result will be increased distance and straighter shots because you'll be releasing your hands through the ball better.

Background Info :

Many recreational golfers struggle with slices, blocks, and inconsistency because they don't know how to release their hands through the ball correctly. By "releasing your hands through the ball", I am describing the act of maximizing your club head speed at the moment of impact, and eliminating the "outside-in" movement that creates a slice.

How You Will Benefit:

1. You'll learn an easy way of "getting your hands through the ball"
2. You'll be increasing the speed of the club head through the impact zone
3. You will ensure that the club head is square at impact (which will reduce any slice that you have)

What To Do:

Step 1: Create the "X"

This means that on the follow through, you need to focus on making your forearms cross. This will ensure that your hands have released through the ball correctly. Here's an illustration of what I am talking about.

Notice the "X" that is created after impact and where the shaft of the club is pointed. Practice getting in this position. Practice creating that "X" after impact.

It will be easy to understand the alterative by paying attention to where the club is pointed, which I will explain in the next step.

Step 2: Finish at Third Base

Focus on pointing the club down the third base line on your follow through. In relation to where my feet are pointed in the picture at left, the club is pointed down the third base line. This is what we want.

Many golfers finish their swing with the club straight up in the air, or even pointed down the first base line in relation to their feet. Try that once, and you will feel the extreme "outside-in" movement that produces a slice. This is nothing more than a habit that can be easily broken. The Simple Golf Swing goes over this step in much more detail.

Summary:

So when you are on the tee next time, focus on just 2 things. Make the "X" and "finish at third". That's it. Swinging easy should already be grooved into your swing from the last tip I sent. Focus on these 2 tips, and you should be on your way to consistently staying out of trouble with your driver, which is the first step to scoring better.

Create backspin

Honestly, the first thing that you need to realize about creating backspin is that it's a very tough shot to accomplish, let alone control.

The second thing that you should realize is that there are very few situations where this shot is actually needed.

In my opinion, the best shot to master is an approach shot that bounces once, and then stops on a dime. This shot is not easy to accomplish either, but is more realistic and much more effective in the vast majority of cases.

So I'll get in to the basics of this shot now, but please realize that an entire book could be written on this subject, and it would still be very hard to incorporate into a recreational game.

Here are the basic conditions that must be met before the shot even occurs. If these factors are not in place, don't try to create backspin.

1. Conditions must be completely dry - (the club face, and the ball included)
2. You must be on the fairway - (grass can't get in between the club and the ball)
3. Green's have to be very nicely kept - (very short)

Now, let me clarify. Those are the conditions that must be met before the shot even occurs. So hopefully, you are beginning to see just how difficult this shot is and why it doesn't come highly recommended from someone who focuses on making golf simple.

I was thinking of ways to describe the action necessary to create backspin, and I came to the conclusion that the best analogy is one of placing spin on the cue ball in billiards.

Side Note: They say that good pool players are also good putters. So if you want to sharpen your putting skills, I would advise learning billiards as well. It will help you to develop steady hands, "learn to see the line", and it will also teach you alot about spin.

In Pool, to create backspin you have to hit downward on the cue ball with a significant amount of force. Notice that players chalk up before hitting a shot requiring a lot of spin (dry). They also go at the ball with a very steep angle. And they hit the lower portion of the ball.

All of this is necessary in golf as well. The ultimate goal is to "pinch" the ball between your club and the fairway. You must take a downward blow at the ball, you must add a fair amount of velocity to your swing speed, and you must make clean contact with the lower portion of the ball. It is all of these factors combined that make this shot so tough to complete with any accuracy.

It's also essential to have a new ball (preferably a high spin/soft-cover ball), and a newer (clean) club that has some of the grip left on the face. As the ball compresses into the grooves on the face of the club, backspin is created.

Correct Backswing

Now, I need to take a moment to explain the significance of this position and what it will do for your game.

1. By making sure that the club is at the 9 o'clock position in the first place will correct any fault that you have as far as picking the club up too fast, or not picking it up at all. This will ensure that you have completed the one-peice takeaway correctly.
2. By making sure that the shaft is parallel to your feet line at 9 o'clock, you will ensure that you're bring the club back on the correct path. This will ensure that you are not too far inside or too far outside. It will also ensure that you're getting a good shoulder turn which will add power to your swing.
3. By making sure the toe is in the air, you are ensuring that you're rotating the clubface correctly around the shaft of the club. The club should not swing straight back and straight through. The clubface needs to open on the backswing, and close in the downswing. This move provides power and consistency to the golf swing.

So... by getting to this one position, we're correcting many mistakes that you may be experiencing in your golf swing... Coming too far inside, too far outside, not rotating correctly around the shaft, etc...

Practice getting to this simple position, and your game should improve dramatically.

Joke Day

"Golf, golf! Harry, I'd drop dead if you ever spent a Sunday at home!"
"Trying to bribe me?"


"Father, is it a sin in the eyes of the lord to play golf on Sunday?"
"The way you play, my son, it's a sin any day."


In the immortal words of Lisle Trauts:
"Give me my golf clubs, the fresh air and a beautiful partner.... and you can keep my clubs and the fresh air."


"Just got a brand new set of clubs for my wife."
"Excellent trade."


"Let's stop at the clubhouse and pick up a fifth for golf."
"You mean a fourth."
"No, I'm thirsty."


"Funny golf socks you're wearing, one yellow and the other green."
"what's funny?" Got another pair just like 'em at home."


"How come your husband bought you that fancy new golf bag?"
"Caught him fooling around with the maid."
"How dreadful! Did you fire her?"
"No, I need some new clubs, too."