What’s the difference between you and a great putter? It just might be the Quiet Eye. In putting as well as in other hand-eye-target skills, the Quiet Eye is emerging as a key indicator of optimal focus and concentration. It’s this focus and concentration, research shows, that sets the good putter apart from the poor one. Fortunately, achieving this focus and concentration is a skill that can be taught in golf lessons or learned on one’s own and can help drive down a player’s golf handicap.

Usually, we attribute the difference between a good putter and a poor putter to mechanics. Good mechanics produces good putting. Bad mechanics produces bad putting. Good mechanics are what most golf lessons and golf tips emphasize. And that’s fine. You can’t be a superior putter if your mechanics are wrong. But mechanics aside, what else makes one golfer a better putter than another? Research shows that focus and concentration is the difference, underscoring the importance of the Quiet Eye.

The Quiet Eye
Simply put, the Quiet Eye occurs when your gaze remains absolutely still on the ball just before and as the stroke is performed. Two key elements in the Quiet Eye are location and duration. Research shows that golfers who putt well focus on either the back or the top of the ball. Which is better? Both locations improve accuracy, but a weight of evidence now favors the back of the ball. As for duration, good putters have a Quiet Eye duration of two or three seconds on average. Less skilled player held their gaze steady for one or two seconds on average.

Why is the Quiet Eye so critical when you putt? Your hands are controlled by your brain, which gets valuable information from your eyes. As you putt, your brain must organize 100 billion neurons. Your gaze keeps these neural networks informed. They in turn control both your hands and body when putting. But these networks stay organized for only a short period, creating a window of opportunity that must be used when it’s at its most optimal: This is the Quiet Eye period.

Unfortunately, the Quiet Eye is the first thing to go when under stress. It moves with the stroke. When you choke, the billion cells in your brain lose their effectiveness in solving the putt’s slope, curvature, distance, and location problems. Even hours of golf instruction sessions and practice focused on mechanics may not be able to save you when the pressure is on. On the other hand, developing proper mechanics builds confidence—another key element in putting. But confidence may not be as critical to putting accuracy as the Quiet Eye.

Developing the Quiet Eye
Routine Research shows that an average golfer using a pre-shot routine based on the Quiet Eye sinks more putts than when not using the routine—whether the routine is learned in golf lessons or self-taught. Visualization is a key element of this routine.

Focus on the hole
Once your putterhead is set behind the ball, pick a specific location on the hole where you want the ball to go, like a blade of grass or a small feature on the cup’s front lip.

“See” the ball go in
Look at this location for about two seconds. Visualize the ball going into the hole.

Scan from the hole to the ball
Smoothly shift your gaze without interruption from the target to the back of the ball. Your gaze should move efficiently and calmly.

Eye on the ball
Fixate on the back of the ball. Imagine just the right contact of the putterhead on the ball. Picture a line through this contact point to your spot on the hole.

Stay steady
Maintain a Quiet Eye on the one spot on the back of the ball from the backstroke through contact. Don’t peek! Take a look at your ball going in the hole only after putting.

The Quiet Eye may be an objective measure of “being in the Zone,” according to some experts. This idea of being in the Zone, or in the “flow,” as some athletes say, has been around for a long time. But until now, there has been little scientific evidence that the Zone exists—let alone can be measured. Developing the Quite Eye technique might not only help you access the zone when putting, it might also help you achieve better putting accuracy, knocking strokes off your golf handicap.

For more about the Quiet Eye, see the Quiet Eye Web site (http://quieteyesolutions.com) or the Web site of Dr. Joan Vickers (http://www.kin.ucalgary.ca/nml) , a leading researcher in this area.

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.

We all know that hitting the ball properly and as far as possible are very important if we want to score as low as possible.

But did you know that there is one part of the golf swing that can REALLY RUIN your game if not done correctly? See, there’s one thing that can ROB your swing of precious distance and proper ball contact and it can be really frustrating trying to figure it out.

So, I’ve made a short five minute video that shows you exactly what this miscue is and how to avoid it.

Yes, this is part of our latest Seniors DVD but in fairness to those who are not seniors, this same concept and instruction applies so it would be beneficial to see this eye-opening video. It’s just that this issue is more prevalent in seniors but trust me, there are still a great majority of us who commit this mistake, regardless of age.

Make sure to watch the entire video because some of the best drills and explanations are toward the end.

Enjoy!

Jack

P.S. This video tip is part of the brand new Seniors DVD which we recently launched. Learn how to play the best golf of your life with this unique and proven system.

Match play is a somewhat unique golf format. It requires a mental approach that’s completely different from stroke play. It requires toughness, patience, experience, and competitiveness. And it requires paying close attention to what your opponent is doing. What’s more, match play doesn’t always favor the players with the best golf handicaps. It’s quite easy for a golfer with a low golf handicap to lose to a player with a high one.

But match play is a highly popular format. Many golf leagues use it. Many tournaments do as well. So if you’ve never played this golf format, rest assured you probably will. Done right, match play is a lot of fun, especially if you’re on a team. It also provides some variety from stroke play. And it gives you a different perspective on your game. Obviously, you have to approach it differently than you do stroke play.

Below we describe five popular match play strategies. They’re time-tested strategies that work. Keep them in mind whenever you play match play.

Form A Game Plan
To win, you must form a game plan—and stick to it. This is a key golf tip on match play. Don’t let your opponent dictate play. Take control of it early and try to keep it throughout the match. Size up your opponent and the golf course. Disregard golf handicaps when doing this because they don’t mean much in match play. Then, decide how to play each hole based on your capabilities. In formulating your game plan, keep one thing in mind: pars win matches.

Apply Pressure Whenever You Can.
Among the keys to winning at match play is applying pressure. It can cause opponents to make mistakes or take bad swings. So apply pressure whenever you can. For example, if your opponent hits a good drive and you can afford to sacrifice a little distance, try to hit just short of him. That way you can apply pressure by hitting it close. This is an excellent strategy to employ on the closing holes. Making him/her press even a little bit in an effort to match your shots often results in a poor swings.

Control The Match’s Tempo
Controlling tempo is another way to apply pressure to your opponent. If he/she is hyper and fidgety and likes to play quickly, take the opposite approach. Play at a moderate speed, especially if you make a mistake, like skulling one out of a greenside bunker when your opponent is on the green. Take your time raking the bunker and walking to your ball. It allows you to simmer down and it gives him some time to think about his putt. Controlling tempo isn’t always easy. I know. I once had a student taking golf lessons that couldn’t sit still. It was all I could do to slow myself down when playing with him. Just be careful that you don’t unduly delay the game.

Control Your Opponent’s Putting
Putting is just as important in match play as it is in stroke play, if not more important. Concede short putts early but not late in the match. Don’t give your opponent the opportunity to practice any shot that might help him or her later on. This is an old golf tip that works. If your opponent isn’t used to putting short ones, it will be that much harder for them at crunch time.

Know When To Gamble
Know when to gamble and when not to. If you’re down 2 with 3 to play and your opponents plunks one a foot from the hole, it’s obviously no time to lay up. The trick is to recognize those times when it’s absolutely necessary to gamble, when gambling is worth the risk. As you play this format more, you’ll learn when these times occur. Keep them in mind. It may help you in the future.

Match play isn’t about you and the course in a quest for the lowest golf handicap you can achieve. It’s a contest about you against the golf course AND an opponent. That added element makes match play challenging and fun.

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.

In this issue we’ll discuss…

1. Throw Away Those Bunker Problems
2. Five Equipment Tips From The Pros
3. Question of the Week – Making Captain Hook Walk The Plank
4. Article – Sink More Putts With The Quiet Eye
5. Article – Five Match Play Strategies That Work

Throw Away Those Bunker Problems

The biggest obstacle to getting out of bunkers isn’t always physical. Sometimes it’s psychological. Many golfers execute the mechanics of a bunker shot perfectly. But after a bad shot or two, they become too tentative with their swings. That, in turn, causes them to mis-hit the shot, which costs them strokes.

Below are six tips to keep in mind when hitting from a bunker:

• Open the clubface
• Form the grip
• Choke down on the club
• Open the stance
• Aim right of stance
• Dig a solid foundation

The mechanics of bunker shots are straightforward. Start by opening the clubface first and then gripping the club. This ensures that the clubface stays open throughout the swing. Many weekend golfers do the opposite.

Also, choke down on the club to improve control and compensate for digging your feet into the sand. Digging your feet in tells you how soft the sand is and how the club will react when it enters the sand. Digging your feet in also provides a solid foundation, so you won’t slip when swinging.

Open your stance by pointing your feet, hips, and shoulders left of the target line (right of the target line for left-handers). Aim the clubface right of your stance, placing it in line with the target. Then, swing away.

Here’s where weekend golfers often mess up. Afraid of mis-hitting the shot, they take a half-hearted swing and either skull the shot or hit it fat. To prevent this, imagine yourself picking up a handful of sand and then throwing it back over your shoulders at the finish.

Visualizing this commits you fully to the shot, improves the shape of your swing, and allows your sand wedge to glide evenly through the sand, splashing the ball out softly on the green.

Don’t let bunker shots intimidate you. Adjust your stance to the type of sand in the bunker. Then, commit fully to the shot using the sand-tossing image. You’ll get out in one every time.

Five Equipment Tips From The Pros

How important is confidence to your game? Most experts say it’s a critical to playing well. Usually, you can boost confidence by practicing. But sometimes you can boost confidence by finding a club that feels just right. Since that’s hard to do, you may be forced to tailor your existing clubs to improve feel.

Below are five equipment tips employed by the pros to improve feel:

1. Shrink the putter grip
2. Tip the club’s shaft
3. Change shafts completely
4. Counterbalance the club
5. Check the driver’s clubface

Good putting requires a good touch. That’s especially true on the Tour, where the greens are fast and slick. To enhance feel, the pros will often fit their putters with thinner grips. Better feel can only improve your putting, not harm it.

Tipping refers to how a shaft is cut before being placed in the club head. Most times, players who shorten their clubs cut from the grip’s end. But for extra stiffness and increased control, the pros cut their shafts from where it’s inserted into the clubhead.

Today, shaft options exist for nearly every kind of player. If you want to imitate the pros, change your shafts to high-performance ones. Better yet, get fitted for your clubs by a clubfitter.

Counterbalancing a club adds weight away from the clubhead. That shifts the club’s balance point more toward the shaft’s middle, providing a more balanced feel. Look for counterbalanced shafts when buying clubs. Or, add lead tape.

Tour players carry drivers with either square faces or faces that are a few degrees open. These types of faces help prevent big hooks. Consider making the change if hooking is a major problem. But be careful, they also produce a lower ballflight.

Making equipment changes won’t guarantee you’ll shoot par next time you play. But it can boost your confidence. And confidence is vital to playing well, so anything that boosts it is worth considering.

Question of the Week – Making Captain Hook Walk The Plank

Q. Hello Jack, I’ve been playing golf for two or so years and have been trying hard to apply as many golf tips (plenty from you!) to my game as I can. I very rarely slice the ball, but instead I hook/draw the ball too often without getting the ball in the air (mostly from the fairway).

Thanks
Mark Piper

A. Thanks for the question, Mark. Fixing a hook can be just as hard for some as correcting a slice is for others. To correct a hook, you must adjust your swing and then practice the new swing until it’s ingrained.

Basically, there are three ways to fix a hook:

Use a slicer’s grip
Hooking is sometimes due to excessive hand and wrist rotation through the downswing. So instead of hitting the ball with a squared clubface, you hit it with a closed one. If that’s why you hook, the cure is to adopt a slicer’s grip. At address, instead of having the two folds in your hands between both thumbs and index fingers pointing to the right shoulder (right-handers), point both folds more toward your sternum. The change prevents a too closed clubface at impact and encourages you to get more of your body into your swing.

Turn and burn
You may also be hooking because you fail to turn your body during your swing. When the body fails to turn, the clubface closes too fast, causing the ball to hook. To cure this problem, speed up your turn to the target. Increasing your body’s rate of rotation delays the closing of the clubface, eliminating the hook.

Equipment Changes
A third way to fix a hook is to through equipment changes. You could fatten your grips, making it more difficult for you to over-rotate your hands and hook the ball. Or, you might try shortening the shafts on your club. The shorter shafts make you stand a little more upright. You may lose some distance by doing this, but it’s better being on the fairway short than out of bounds long.
Any of these three approaches will correct your hook. The trick is discovering which one works for you. When you do, practice until it becomes second nature.

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

To view this newsletter online, please visit:
http://www.howtobreak80.com/newsletter10212009.php

Here are some of my recent articles:

Article- Sink More Putts With The Quiet Eye

Article - Five Match Play Strategies That Work

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, go to http://www.howtobreak80.com/newsletter.htm

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.