"The Web's Most Popular Golf Improvement Newsletter"

In this issue we'll discuss...

1) Pinpoint Your Aim For Increased Accuracy
2) Stop Overturning For Straighter Drives
3) Question of the Week - Eliminating Pulled Putts
4) Article - Three Drills To Improve Your Touch
5) Article - Building A Better Golf Swing
1) Pinpoint Your Aim For Increased Accuracy

Many golfers use the imaginary line between tee markers to align their drives. Usually, that’s right on target, but not always. Tee boxes can fool you. They don’t always point to the best spot on the fairway to hit your ball. In fact, some tee boxes are intentionally set to create trouble. It’s what course designers do to increase the shot’s visual difficulty. What you need is an alternative way to align your drive.

Below is a three-step technique for increasing accuracy off the tee:

1. Aim for a small spot down the fairway
2. Aim for an intermediate target
3. Aim for a target a few feet from the ball

Rather than trusting to tee markers, check out the hole’s shape. Locate the area on the fairway you think is the best spot for a second shot. Make this your target area. If you’re not sure about a good spot, work backwards from the green and pick out where you want to take your approach shot into the green.

Having chosen a good landing spot, get even smaller. Pick out an area in this spot you want to hit. It could be a dark patch of grass or a small brown patch of fairway. Just make sure it’s in the landing zone.

Having chosen a landing spot, pick out an intermediate target to the spot. Use the top of tree, a jutting branch, or anything that gives you a good line to your smaller target. This will ensure that even if you miss your target area, you’ll still make the fairway for your approach shot.

Finally, pick out a target within a few feet of your ball. Take you address position, aim for the closest target, and swing a way.

Don’t be fooled by the tee boxes and tee markers. Use the method described above to increase driving accuracy.
2) Stop Overturning For Straighter Drives

Everyone knows a big turn produces power. More power generally translates to better approach shots when team with good accuracy. But you must avoid overswinging when trying to generate more power. That spells trouble. Overturning pushes your head toward the target and out in front of the ball, causing you to miss-hit. So while you want to make the biggest turn possible, avoid overturning.

Here are five tips to help you stop overturning

* Start with your head behind the ball
* Let your shoulders lead your arms
* Finish your backswing when you stop turning
* Let your body unwind through impact
* End with your head behind the ball

You can stop yourself from overturning by keeping your arms in check. Start with your head behind the ball at address. As you swing back, allow your shoulders to lead your turn away from the target. When your shoulders have turned as far as they can, don’t swing your arms any more.

The key is finishing your backswing as soon as your body stops turning. If your arms continue to swing back after the turn is complete, you will force your head out of position, creating a power leak.

But allowing your shoulders to control your arms keeps your head behind the ball, where it should be, and you’ll be able to turn as far as your body allows. This enables your body to unwind at impact, allowing you to make the most of your backswing in the form of extra power.

If you’ve lost some flexibility over the years, you may not be able to turn as much you once could. To increase your flexibility, try this drill:

Stick a club behind your back parallel to the ground. Hold the club in place with your arms and turn your body as far as you can to the right. Turn back to center. Then turn your body as far as you can to the left. Then turn back to the center.

Do this drill religiously and you’ll improve both your flexibility and your turn, increasing your power.
3) Question of the Week - Eliminating Pulled Putts

Q. Hi Jack,Is it just practice or are there ways to ensure your putts go on the line you would like? I am getting to the green in three or less, but I still make a mess of the putts! Even from in close (3 feet). I don't have the confidence to "go for it" because I pull it left too often and miss. I think it’s using the wrists in the final event, so is there a way to ensure the rotation of the shoulders, if you think that’s the problem?

Thank you for the helpful tips,
John Inman
Aylesbury, UK

A. Thanks for the question, John. It sounds like you’re not squaring yourself at setup. It’s essential to good putting. The direction your putterface points at address determines where the ball goes. A closed putterface at address, if you’re right-handed, causes you to miss left. An open putterface at address, if you’re right-handed, causes you to miss right. Use the lines created by the putter alignment aid on your putter, plus the heel and toe sections of the blade, to square yourself to the target line.

Also, work on developing good rhythm. All great putters have it. To develop good rhythm, make a fluid transition from your backstroke to your forward stroke. You want to almost pause your putter at the end of your backswing, then smoothly accelerate through the ball. Also, match the length of your backstroke to that of your forward stroke. Do these two things and you’ll achieve right ball speed without jerking your hands forward or slowing down through impact.

Square up at address and you’ll stop missing those pesky three footers. Draining more of these short putts builds trust and confidence in your stroke for longer putts. Trust and confidence are essential to good putting.

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

Here are some of my recent articles:

4) Article - Three Drills To Improve Your Touch
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/three-drills-to-improve-your-touch.php

5) Article - Building A Better Golf Swing
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/building-a-better-golf-swing.php

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.

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 22nd, 2010 at 3:58 pm and is filed under Golf Newsletters. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.