This is the fourth in a series of articles on the Natural Swing. The previous articles provided golf tips on the swing’s fundamental principles, its starting form, and its backswing. Here, we examine the completion of the swing, providing a short golf lesson on what advocates of the Natural Swing call the “unloading” of the swing, and the finishing form.

Proponents of the Natural Swing conceive of the backswing as a “loading” motion. This idea differentiates it from the traditional swing. Unlike that, which divides the activity into discrete parts, the Natural Swing sees the swing as a loading and an unloading of energy, a seamless moving from one phase to another. The term loading, according to the Naturalists, implies energy and commitment, as well as something vigorous and energizing.

With the Natural Swing, the backswing gathers and stores energy, accomplished by transferring your weight to your back foot while rotating the body around your trunk. While you seem to complete these motions in unison, you actually start them by shifting your weight to your back foot. The upper body and shoulders follow, without a sense of urgency. The motion feels relaxed and comfortable. And the “picking up” of the club, which often ruins balance and compromises arc and plane, disappears.

The Downswing Motion
The Naturalists conceive of the loading (backswing) and unloading (downswing) of the swing as one motion. But we divide it into parts for instructional purposes. For the Naturalists, you begin the unloading of the power stored in your swing before completing the loading phase.

In transferring your weight during the loading phase, your front foot may or may not have come off the ground to a slight degree, depending on your flexibility. Now. as the golfer transfers weight to the downloading phase, the left foot returns to the ground, taking the weight off the body. Following the stabilization of the front foot is the front knee, hips, shoulders, arms, hands, and clubhead.

As the stabilization occurs, a natural event takes place without any effort on your part. The clubhead lags behind your feet and body—a natural reaction to centrifugal force. We call this clubhead delay or clubhead lag. It’s an involuntary result to the force putting the clubhead in motion.

Your right arm straightens during the unloading phase from its folded position during loading. Your weight transfer to the finished from while in balance and with full extension ensures that this occurs. You are allowing the arc of the swing to be maximized. Again, this happens naturally, without you having to think about it or do anything.

At Impact and Beyond
Other good things happen naturally as a result of the transfer of weight. First, the wrists are put into a maximum cocked position. At impact, the arms are full extended. The hands and arms return to their natural position, square to the target line. And the right elbow for right-handers—left elbow for left-handers—returns to a fully extend position.

Beyond impact, the front elbow folds midway to the finishing position while the back elbow extends forward. Eventually, the back elbow folds at completion of the swing, setting you up for the finishing form.

The unloading motion is a responsive act to what has come before. It’s a natural result of what you originally began in the loading phase. If what you’ve done there is correct, the unloading motion and its individual actions will be correct. It’s a matter of trust.

The Finishing Form
If there’s one point at which the traditional swing and the Natural Swing intersect, it’s at the finishing form. Both swings emphasize the importance of the finishing form, which includes four key elements:

* Natural height
* Facing the target
* Position of wrists/hands
* In balance

The finishing form is one in which you face the target at your natural, full height. Your body faces the target. There’s a natural flex in your knees, and your back foot, having shifted forward due to the weight transfer to your front foot, has come up. Your wrists and hands are in front of and close to your chest. Above all, you are in balance.

In addition, both swings emphasize the importance of evaluating your swing after it’s completed. Are you in balance? Are you at your natural height? Are you facing the target? How you finish, as I’ve pointed out in my golf tips, is a key indicator of the quality of your swing. If you finish with the correct form, chances are good you’ve had a quality swing, whether you’ve used the traditional swing or the Natural Swing.

This article completes the discussion on the basics of the Natural Swing, which sees the swing is seen as a result of naturally occurring body motions. In our last article we will examine some of the misconceptions of the swing as seen from the perspective of the Natural Swing.

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 handicap immediately. He has a free weekly newsletter with the latest golf tips, golf lessons and golf instruction.

One player who took golf lessons from me likes to tell about the time she played at Furnace Creek Golf Course in Death Valley—the hottest place in North America, which once set a record of 134 degrees. She started at 11:00 am and played through the afternoon, all 18 holes. It reached 108 degrees, she said, but the wind-heat factor made it feel like 120 degrees. That’s probably why they named the course Furnace Creek.

Most golfers love playing in warm weather, judging by those taking my golf lessons. The heat makes them perspire just enough. It does their stretching for them. And it reverses age-related yardage loss. It makes their joints feel like they once did, enabling them to make a more complete shoulder turn just as my golf tips advise. But playing in blistering heat, whether on a golf course in the Southwest or a really hot day near your home, can be dangerous. It can threaten your health and your life.

Dehydration and Hyponatremia
Dehydration and hyponatremia (water intoxication) are two physical conditions to guard against when it’s hot. Dehydration occurs when golfers fail to “rehydrate” themselves (drink water). Early symptoms of dehydration are low urination and loss of thirst. These symptoms can quickly progress to extreme fatigue and nausea. To prevent dehydration, make certain you rehydrate yourself with water-based beverages at every tee. Drink some before teeing off. Make it part of your pre-shot routine, so you won’t forget to do it on every hole.

Hyponatremia is another physical condition to guard against when playing in hot weather. Hyponatremia is not as common as dehydration, but it can happen anywhere and at anytime. The key symptom is excessive urination. Although you’re drinking plenty of water, it “goes right through you” and you have to urinate excessively. Water intoxication is caused by loss of electrolytes due to drinking too much fluid without taking in any salts. To replenish your body’s electrolytes, make certain you either eat salty foods as you play or you drink “sports drinks” (for example, Gatorade) that contain salt and other electrolytes.

Hypothermia and Heat Stroke
Hypothermia and heat stroke— the most severe forms of heat illness—are other conditions to guard against. Heat stroke is life threatening. It comes from extreme exposure to the sun and occurs when a person doesn’t sweat enough to lower his or her body temperature. When this natural “cooling system” fails, heat builds up to a dangerous level. Symptoms include headaches, dizziness, disorientation, sluggishness, high body temperature, rapid heartbeat, and hallucination.

If you suspect someone is suffering from heat stroke, get him or her to the hospital as quickly as possible. Severe heat illness is nothing to fool around with. If you suspect someone is suffering more from hypothermia and/or dehydration than anything else, sit the golfer down in a cool spot, make him or her drink water, and swab the player with wet towels, refreshed as often as possible. Often, you can even use a shower to cool players off.

Golf Tips on Combating the Heat
Drinking water is the best way of combating dehydration and heat illnesses. Take some in liquid form and frozen. Most clubs won’t let you take alcoholic drinks on the course, but they will allow you to take your own water. Keep in mind that I said water is the best way of combating dehydration and heat illnesses, not beer or Bloody Marys, both of which have alcohol. Alcohol dehydrates you, and that’s the last thing you want to do when on the course.

Also, wear a hat, loose fitting clothing, and sunglasses. Take periodic drink breaks, bring a wet towel, and try to avoid the mid-day sun. Use a cart with a roof on hot days. Soak wristbands in cold water before wearing them. And use sunscreen. If you have a cell phone, bring it in case of an emergency. To dry golf gloves, Velcro them to your cart. The summer adds hours to the day in the morning and the evening. Both are good times to play. On really hot days, be careful whatever time you play.

Playing in the warm weather on a well-kept course is great, especially if there is a cool breeze blowing. But you can’t always play on these days. So if you decide to play on an extremely hot day, follow the golf tips I’ve mentioned above. Take all necessary precautions. Trying to lower your golf handicap at the expense of your health isn’t worth it.

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 handicap immediately. He has a free weekly newsletter with the latest golf tips, golf lessons and golf instruction.

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How To Break 80 Newsletter

July 25, 2007

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

1) Par-3 Planning
2) Five Keys To More Powerful Drives
3) Question of the Week – Hitting A Draw
4) Article – Beating the Heat On a Course
5) Article – The Natural Swing: Completing the Swing

Jack’s Note: Congrats to George Crider for picking Padraig Harrington as the winner of the British Open. We’ve been in touch with George and he will be receiving one of our new DVD’s. Can you believe no one else even picked Padraig? George must have psychic powers. Anyway, it was a great tourney and finish. I was pulling for Sergio big time but he couldn’t close and did not deserve to win. Good to see a European finally win the event after an 8 year drought.

Also, if you didn’t have a chance to get our latest Draw DVD, we just recieved a new shipment. Go here to get your copy now.

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1) Par-3 Planning
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The stakes are higher on par 3s than par 4s or 5s, when playing a course, Hit the ball well on a par 3 and you can birdie the hole. Hit the ball poorly and you’re staring at a bogie, double bogie, or maybe even worse, a triple bogey.

But many pars 3s are harder than they seem. Many are guarded by hazards that can cost you strokes if you hit into them. If you’re older and you can still play well, but you’ve lost some flexibility—and hence some distance—you need to be careful when playing par 3s as well.

Here are 5 tips on playing par 3s:

* Use a tee
* Use a divot hole
* Use one more club
* Take an easy swing
* Aim for the fat part of the green

Start by using a tee when hitting from the box. Even if the tee is no higher than the turf, it improves clubface-to-ball contact. It also lessens the chance of catching the grass between the club and the ball. Use a divot hole to align your clubface, and then align your body to the clubface.

Most hazards on par 3s are between you and the green. Take one more club than your instincts tell you. With the extra club you can make a nice relaxed swing and know that the ball will get enough distance to clear trouble. Taking an extra club is ideal for senior players who many not be as strong as they once were.

Finally, aim for the fat part of the green. With hazards guarding the green, aim for the part of the green that gives you the largest margin for error. Chances are good you’ll end up in good shape if you do.

Remember, it doesn’t take much to turn a birdie into a bogie or double bogie. So stay focused when hitting from the tee box and you’ll increase your chances of making a birdie and lowering your scores.

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2) Five Keys To More Powerful Drives
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Every drive has an optimum launch angle at which the ball must be struck for a great drive. If the clubhead travels parallel to the ground at impact you will achieve the optimum launch angle. Too often, however, in striving for power, players hit a ball at a bad launch angle, short-circuiting power and skewing the ball’s direction. If you want to drive the ball farther, you must achieve the optimum launch angle.

Here are 5 keys to achieving the optimum launch angle off the tee:

* Focus on technique/swing speed
* Use a neutral grip
* Employ a balanced address
* Achieve correct swing plane
* Feel the flatness in the swing

The right swing speed determines the right launch angle. Different speeds produce different launch angles, all things being equal. During practice focus on creating a swing that allows you to not only generate the greatest possible swing speed, but also make solid contact at the right launch angle, time after time after time.

A neutral grip returns the club squarely to the ball without any undue manipulation, providing a better chance of achieving the optimum launch angle. Your position at address has a lot to do with your position at impact. A balanced address increases your chances of hitting the ball at the angle you develop at address.

A correct swing plane is crucial for making solid contact and hitting long, straight drives at the proper launch angle. A marked flatness in the swing when it reaches the bottom of the swing allows a player to make solid contact while using the club’s loft to achieve the ideal launch angle.

The Chair Drill
The chair drill teaches you the feel of the right launch angle off the tee. Position the chair with the seat facing in the opposite direction of the target. Assume your address position. Now turn away from the chair as if you were taking your backswing. Then swing down, hitting the chair’s back with the palm of your right hand, if your right- handed, or your left hand, if you’re left-handed. That’s the launch angle you should be working toward.

The chair drill has two benefits. It ingrains the feel of achieving solid impact with the proper launch angle and making a good turn away from the ball. Work on the drill whenever you can and your driving will improve.

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3) Question of the Week – Hitting A Draw
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Q. Hi, Jack: Generally, when I hit my driver it has a slight fade. Everything else in the bag has a slight draw. To correct the fade, I use a strong grip, close my stance, aim the clubhead to a 1 o’clock position, and stand close to the ball instead of being hunched over. Tempo is slow on the backswing as is accelerating through impact (I try to swing easy). Any thoughts on how I can get it to draw?

Garrett Hartsuyker

A. Thanks, Garrett: The secret to hitting a draw is sidespin. The draw follows an in-to-out path, so for a right-hander you need to build up air on the ball’s right side, pushing the ball left. A closed stance and a closed clubface at impact produce the correct sidespin.

Here are 6 keys to hitting a draw:

* Adopt a closed stance
* Use a stronger grip
* Follow an inside track
* Aim right at the top of the swing
* Strike the ground at 7 o’clock
* Release the club through impact

The clubhead follows an inside track (inside the target line) on the takeaway and backswing. The club points to the right of the target at the top of the backswing. How far right depends on how much of a hook you want to play. Feel the toe of the club pass the heel, as you release your hands.

When practicing, imagine the ground as a clock face, with 12 o’clock pointing directly at the target. Focus on hitting the ball at the 4 o’clock position to produce a draw. Hitting the ball at that position put you on the right swing path.

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

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

To view this newsletter online, please visit:
http://www.howtobreak80.com/newsletter07252007.html

Here are some of my recent articles:

4) Article – Beating the Heat On a Course
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/heat.html

5) Article – The Natural Swing: Completing the Swing
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/nsfinishing.html

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 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.

The 2007 British Open will be played at Carnoustie Championship Course. For four days fans will see the world’s greatest golfers tested by one of the toughest links courses in Scotland, if not the toughest. Links courses aren’t as popular in the United States as they are in Scotland, which means you may never have played one. But if you have, you know that you must adopt a different style of play to score well on the course and keep your golf handicap down.

A links golf course, as I’ve explained in my golf tips, is the oldest style golf course. It was first developed in Scotland. The word comes from the Scottish language and refers to both an area of coastal sand dunes and sometimes open parkland. Many links courses – though not all – are located in coastal areas, on sandy soil, often amid dunes, with few water hazards and few if any trees. Links courses reflect the nature of the scenery where the sport originated, and the fact that only limited resources were available to golf course architects at the time. Earth moving had to be done by hand, so it was minimized.

Challenges of A Links Course
Uneven fairways, thick rough, and small deep bunkers known as “pot bunkers” characterize links courses. Many links courses are frequently windy, affecting the style
of play required. Since many links courses consist of an “outward” nine in one direction along the coast, and an “inward” nine that returns in the opposite direction, players often have to cope with opposite wind patterns in each half of their round.

Playing a links course is demanding. You’re often exposed to extreme weather conditions and usually play in winds far stronger than you experience inland, so you need to keep most shots low and/or on a line. A links course may look flat and featureless from a distance, but once you start playing you’ll discover the ground is a mass of humps and hollows. Many tee shots are semi-blind.

Hard, fast-running fairways cause unpredictable bounces. Your ball shoots forward on the first bounce, while the same shot pitching into a hump stops quickly. Occasionally, a ball flying in the middle of the fairway kicks into the rough. The short grass and closely mown fairways on a links course remove some of the fear of mid-range approach shots. But a crisply struck iron generates a great deal of backspin because very little grass comes between the clubface and the ball at impact.

Take Advantage of the Wind
The wind is almost always a factor on a links course. Use it to your advantage. With a tailwind you should hit the ball higher to gain maximum distance on the shot. With a head wind it’s difficult to put enough backspin on the ball to pitch and stop it neatly on the green. Also, forget the distance you usually hit a ball because the wind drastically alters your normal club selection. Take less club, swing smoothly, and let the wind carry the ball well short of the green and expect plenty of run on the shot. Crosswinds force you to aim way off line and allow the ball to be blown back on target.

Wind Also Affects the Short Game
The wind also affects the short game on a links course. A low pitch and run is safer when playing in the wind than a high lob, as I’ve explained in my golf tips. A 7-iron is the ideal club for the shot. Bunkers are hard to spot in the humps and hollows of a links course and devilishly difficult to escape from. Don’t take risks – it’s fine to sacrifice distance particularly if it keeps you on the fairway.

When you land in a fairway bunker it’s unlikely you’ll have a direct route to the green. Concentrate on making sure your next shot isn’t from the same spot. The powdery fine sand is perfect for the high splash shot. Open your stance and keep the clubface open. Swing long and smooth on an out-to-in path. Huge sandy dunes are punishing hazards that surround many fairways and greens. The thick, wiry grass doesn’t let go of your ball easily.

Putting o a links course is no easy task, either. A long putt on a large sloping links green often takes two or three different breaks. It’s important to study the green’s slope carefully. Look at a putt along the ball-to-target line and then from the side on to give you a better perspective. Wind also affects the ball’s roll. Occasionally, a long putt drops, but you should never be disappointed to get down in two strokes

Playing a links course for the first time is exciting. But you need to adjust your game to make up for the differences in a links style course and to set realistic goals for yourself. If you try to be too aggressive, your scores—and your golf handicap—will suffer.

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 handicap immediately. He has a free weekly newsletter with the latest golf tips, golf lessons and golf instruction.