In this issue we’ll discuss…

1) Achieving Power and Accuracy Off The Tee
2) Improving Your Shoulder Turn
3) Question of the Week – Ball Position
4) Article – Five Great Moments In Golf
5) Article – Untangling Your Swing

Jack’s Note:

1) Achieving Power and Accuracy Off The Tee
Every golfer wants power and accuracy off the tee. But those two things aren’t always compatible. Usually, golfers achieve one at the expense of the other. When they try really cranking one, they often belt it deep into the rough. When they try pinpointing one down the fairway, they usually drive it 20 or 30 yards shorter than they want. But you can solve the power versus accuracy dilemma, if you know how.

Below are five tips to generate power and accuracy off the tee.

* Swing at a controlled pace
* Clear your hips faster
* Allow your back heel to lift
* Extend the club down the target line
* Turn your head toward the target

If want power and accuracy off the tee, try this: First, get your swing under control. Instead of whaling away at the ball, swing at 75 percent. Focus instead on striking the ball solidly.

Second, clear your hips faster. Rotating them at the start of the downswing lets your arms fire powerfully through impact. But be careful! Speeding up your hips too much throws your swing off.

Third, let your back heel come off the ground. This helps you make a full downswing. Of course, if you can make a full downswing without lifting your heel, that’s fine, too. Just remember that Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson both let their heels lift up quite a bit.

Fourth, extend the club down the target line. Visualize yourself shaking hands with the target. Some players like to flip their hands through impact to get more clubhead speed. This move almost never works.

Fifth, turn your head toward the target. You want the clubhead to release naturally. To do that, you must allow your head to turn. When you hang your head back, you often hook the ball. Keep everything moving together. Turn your head and eyes with the club.

Work on ingraining these five tips. You’ll hit the ball farther and straighter off the tee, and solve the power versus accuracy dilemma.

2) Improving Your Shoulder Turn
Making a full shoulder turn promotes good ball striking. But many weekend golfers suffer from “Early Turn Syndrome.” ETS occurs when your hips and/or shoulders start rotating before your arms reach the swing’s apex. This flaw breaks the link between your arms and body, short-circuiting power. To drive the ball long and straight, make a full rotation.

Here are fives keys to making a full rotation:

1. Widen your stance slightly
2. Settle your weight on your back foot
3. Lift your chin away from body
4. Stretch out in the takeaway
5. Brace knees to support coiling

The back side of your body controls your turn. It slows the rotation of your knees, hips, and shoulders, and restricts the amount of early turn you can make. It also causes your arms and your club to move in ”sync” with your body. Your trunk’s big muscles then complete the backswing motion in tandem with your arms.

To cure ERS, take a slightly wider stance, settle your weight on your back foot, and lift your chin away from your body, creating room to turn your front shoulder underneath. Extending your arms in the takeaway pulls the left shoulder underneath, stretching the muscles on the front side as the body coils. Bracing your knees supports your body coil in the backswing.

Drill
Many golfers suffer from ETS because they lack a reference for how a full shoulder turn feels. The drill below helps with top-of-the-backswing and finish problems.

Take your setup with a 5-iron. Rest the shaft on your back shoulder. Turn so your back faces the target, with the club still on your shoulders. Now raise your hands in the air so your front arm is extended. That’s the position you want at the top of the turn. Do the opposite to feel a full follow through. Take your setup. Rest the 5-iron on your front shoulder. Turn your chest so it faces the target. Now raise your hands and extend the back arm. There’s your finish.

Practice these position a few times. Try to repeat them when you swing and you’ll eliminate early turn syndrome.

3) Question of the Week – Ball Position

Q. Hi Jack, You said this to Gary:

Ball positioning also impacts swing path. If the ball is too far back for a right-handed golfer, the clubhead moves on an in-to-out swing path, sending it to the target’s right. If the ball is too far forward, the clubhead moves on an out-to-in swing path, sending the ball to the target’s left. (Vice versa for a lefty).

Now this has me confused. I always thought an in-to-out swing path would send the ball drawing left, and out to in sends it to the right. When I try to fade a ball from a tee shot, I open up my stance a little, aim a little to the left, try to swing along my foot line, and put the ball back a little to ensure that my club face has not yet fully closed to square at impact. All that seems to work, but have I got this all wrong or something?

My confusion to one side, I too like your articles, although I think the mind is more the issue for me. I know I can play 9 holes in par as I have done it, but I cannot pull it off for a full 18 hole round. Do you have any solutions to this?

Cheers
Julian Long
Auckland, New Zealand.

A. Thanks for the questions, Julian. What you say about hitting a draw and a fade is correct—if the ball is in the right position. But remember I said to Gary, “If the ball is too far back….” or “If the ball is too far forward….” Those words are key—and why ball position is so critical.

If the ball is too far back and you have an in-to-out swing path, the clubhead never gets a chance to become closed before it meets the ball. Move the ball up two inches and the clubhead has a chance to become closed, producing a draw. If you move the ball too far forward and have an out-to-in swing path, the clubhead closes too much and you hit the ball left. Move the ball back two inches and the clubhead never has a chance to close too much, producing a fade. Try it out on the range.

As for your second question, you can’t focus on golf for all 18 holes. Your mind needs to rest. Try thinking about something other than golf between holes and between shots—what a nice day it is, how great your wife looked this morning, and so on. Then when it comes time to hit your shot, apply your full attention to doing it.

When it comes time to hit, try employing what experts call “soft focus.” Here’s how Br. Bob Rotella, noted sports psychologist, describes soft focus: “As Padraig begins his pre-shot routine, his mind is clear. He’s thinking about only one thing: his target. But his focus does not cause his jaw to jut out or knuckles to go white. It’s not grinding. It’s not that intense. Because he already knows that he’ll accept whatever happens to his shot, he’s relaxed

To defeat mental lapses, develop a mental routine and a physical routine before hitting. Use the concept of soft focus as the foundation for the mental routine. Use your pre-shot routine as the foundation for the physical. Think of things other than golf between holes and shots. Then turn your attention to what you have to do when it’s time to hit.
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.

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/newsletter02182009.html

Here are some of my recent articles:

4) Article – Five Great Moments In Golf
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/five-great-moments-in-golf.html

5) Article – Untangling Your Swing
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/untangling-your-swing.html

Until next time,

Go Low!

Jack

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About the Author
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.

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