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How To Break 80 Newsletter

August 17, 2006

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

1) Controlling Distance When Pitching
2) Overcoming Excessive Leg Drive

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1) Controlling Distance When Pitching
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It’s impossible to overstate the importance of pitching. It’s crucial to scoring well on a course. Accurate pitching helps produce birdies on short par-4s and par-5s, and helps save pars when your approach shot misses.

But even good players occasionally find these shots troublesome. Poor distance control is usually the culprit, the most common cause of which is traceable to the arms and body moving independently of one another. This lapse in technique inevitably costs the player unnecessary strokes.

Here are five keys to improving distance control when pitching:

• Adopt the proper set up
• Choke down on the grip
• Place your weight on your left side
• Take compact swings
• Vary the speed of your body turn

Increasing or decreasing the rotational speed of your trunk is the key to controlling the distance of pitches. First, adopt the proper set-up for a pitch shot. Remember to open up your left side (for right-handers) slightly, so the club can clear your hips. Choke down on the grip for extra control. The shorter the club, the easier it is for you to control.

With your weight mainly on your left side, take compact swings. Vary the speed of your body turn as you hit the ball. On a 20-yard pitch, think of moving your body 20 percent of what a full swing would be. On a 30-yard pitch, think of moving your body 30 percent. The idea is to tie the distance of the shot to how fast you turn your body. The longer the shot, the faster you move your body.

Try practicing the “body-controlled method” with a towel tucked between your upper arms and chest to keep the arms and chest in unison. And vary the length of your shots when practicing, so that you will learn how fast to move your body to hit the ball the desired distance.

Practice this drill whenever you can and you’ll be making pitch shots like a pro.

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2) Overcoming Excessive Leg Drive
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There’s a well-worn adage in golf that often causes major problems for recreational golfers: “Drive your legs for power.”

The notion that your legs are a power source is correct, up to a point. But their role is subtler than that. In addition to supplying power, your legs provide stability and balance. In other words, they provide the essential resistance in your swing that enables you to wind and unwind your trunk effectively. That’s where the real power comes from.

Problems arise when your legs drive too hard toward the target in the downswing, known as sliding. As the lower body drives, the upper body will be left too far behind the ball, placing strain on the lower back. It also places more emphasis on your arms and hands, which have to play catch up. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don’t.

Players who drive to hard with their legs often finish in the reverse “C” position, we often see in old photos of golfers.

To hit the ball solidly (and consistently), you need to hit into what we call a firm left side. In other words, for the position you achieve at impact to be effective, the left side of your body must be firm enough to both support and resist the release of the clubhead as the trunk unwinds.

So how do you eliminate sliding? Here’s a simple drill I use in my golf lessons:

The Left-Foot Drill
Place a ball on the tee, then take your normal stance. Once you’re set, turn your left foot (for right-handers) slightly inwards, then hit. Turing your left foot inward will be awkward at first, but it eliminates any tendency to slide through impact and encourages a better rotation of your upper body against the resistance of a braced left leg through the hitting area.

As a final check, place an umbrella in the ground outside your left foot at address. If you can swing to the finish without knocking the umbrella over, you’ve obviously eliminated any sliding of the left side.

Try this drill the next time you’re on the practice tee. The end result should be a much more efficient release of the torque you create in your back swing, which in turn will be reflected in the higher quality shots you hit.
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Question of the Week
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From Jack, South Africa

Developing an In-to-Out Path

Q. Thanks for the interesting information, tips, and instruction in your newsletter. I’m a right-hander and I tend to swing the club on an out-to-in path, fading the ball on good days and cutting and pulling it on bad ones. My ball striking is very good, though. What drill can you recommend that can put me on an in-to-out path, so I can draw the ball?

A. Knowing how to hit a draw, like knowing how to hit a fade, is invaluable. A draw comes in handy when there’s a bunker, tree, or other obstacle between you and the pin or when you need to curve the ball—in this case from right to left—for whatever reason. A draw also rolls more when it hits the grown.

Try this drill to learn how to hit a draw. Next time you are at the practice range, imagine the ground as a clock face, with 12 o’clock pointing directly at the target. Move the ball back a little in your stance, if you’re using a wood or long iron. Then, focus on hitting the ball at the seven o’clock position to produce a draw. Practicing this drill teaches you to swing on an in-to-out swing path.

If you’re not comfortable with that drill, you can practice hitting the ball off the side of a hill that slopes toward you. That will also help you learn to swing the ball on an in-to-out path. Keep practicing until you’ve ingrained the swing path in your memory. Then carry it over to the course.

If you’ve got a golf question you’d like answered, send an email to us at questions@howtobreak80.com and we’ll review it. I can’t guarantee that we’ll use it but if we do, we’ll make sure to include your name and where you’re from.
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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

Until next time, Go Low!

Jack

P.S. Feel free to share this newsletter with family and friends. If you would like to subscribe to this newsletter, send a blank email
to break80ezine@aweber.com
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About the Author
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Jack Moorehouse is the author of the best-selling book “How To Break 80 and Shoot Like the Pros!“. He is NOT a golf pro, rather a working man that has helped thousands of golfers from all seven continents lower their handicaps quickly. His award-winning free weekly newsletter goes out to thousands of golfers worldwide and provides the latest golf tips, strategies, techniques and instruction on how to improve your golf game.

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