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How To Break 80 Newsletter

March 29, 2006

“The Web’s Most Popular Golf Improvement Newsletter”
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In this issue we’ll discuss…

1) How To Avoid Hitting Fat Shots
2) Grip Pressure 

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1) How To Avoid Hitting Fat Shots
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Nothing’s more embarrassing than hitting a shot fat. The cause is usually an excessively V-shaped swing, the result of standing up during the shot to see the ball through impact. A tight lie, a rushed backswing, or the desire to lift or scoop the ball out of a lie also contribute to a fat shot.

Remember these 5 points to avoid hitting a shot fat:

• Ball position determines impact point
• The club’s loft gets the ball airborne
• Sweep the ball away with woods
• Irons need a descending blow
• Complete the back swing

First, ball position—up for a wood, back for an iron—determines the swing’s impact point. With a wood you sweep the ball away with an ascending blow. You want to hit the ball just past the lowest point of the swing arc. With an iron you strike the ball with a descending blow. You want to hit the ball just before the lowest point of the arc.

Next, loft determines trajectory. There’s no need to try to scoop the ball out of a lie or get under it. If you strike the ball properly, the clubhead’s loft sends the ball skyward. Just focus on hitting the ball at the right impact point and taking a complete backswing.

Now, visualize a U-shaped swing, with a pronounced “flat spot” through impact. With a wood, place a tee in the ground with no ball just opposite your left foot. Then try “picking” the tee out of the ground with your club. With an iron, take your normal stance and ground the club. Then try creating a shallow divot just past where you ground the iron. Concentrate on executing a complete backswing with both drills.

The above two drills improve rhythm and ball striking. They also ensure that you hit the ball at the right impact point in your swing, curing you of taking an excessively V- shaped swing. Practice them to eliminate fat shots.

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2) Grip Pressure
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Grip pressure affects your swing more than you realize. Too light and you lose control of the club. Too tight and you slow clubhead speed. Putting, driving, or chipping, grip pressure is a factor, which is what I stress in my golf tips. So how much grip pressure is enough? It depends on what you’re doing.

If you’re putting, grip pressure is a matter of personal choice. No one grip pressure is ideal. Some prefer one grip pressure. Others prefer another. It’s what gives you the best “feel.” You can hold the club as lightly as Ben Crenshaw or as tightly as Tom Watson and still putt well. The one thing you can’t do when putting is change grip pressure in the middle of your swing.

If you’re taking a full swing, grip pressure is light but not tight. You need some pressure to control the club during your swing but not so much you “strangle” the club in the process. Hold the club lightly as possible, but with enough pressure to maintain a good hold on the club, especially in the last three fingers of the top hand and the middle two fingers of the bottom hand.

I teach players in my golf lessons how to use grip pressure to control ball flight. If you want to hit a draw, tighten the grip of your left hand, enabling your right hand to take over at the bottom of the swing and closing the clubface. If you want to hit a fade, tighten the grip on your right hand, letting your left hand take over at the bottom of your swing and opening the clubface.

If you practice your grip regularly, you can develop a feel for grip pressure. Keep a club around the house for practicing your grip. Just feeling the club in your hands helps you feel the difference in grip pressure, so you’ll know the difference between a tight and a relaxed grip the next time you’re on the course.

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

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

Until next time, Go Low!

Jack
 
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