If you’re like most golfers, saving strokes is key. Employing good swing mechanics is one way to do it. Another is using the latest club technology. Thanks to new club technology, the average golfer hits the ball straighter and longer than ever. But hitting the ball straight and long, doesn’t guarantee low scores. You also must plan each shot carefully so you can avoid hitting into trouble.

Planning each shot requires you to think. If you’re not thinking on the course, you’re not really playing golf. In fact, on-course thinking can save you several strokes per round, maybe more. Those extra shots boost your golf handicap. So you want to avoid adding more strokes to your handicap than you need to.

Below are five golf tips gleaned from our golf instruction sessions that will not only get you to think on the course, but also lower your scores and golf handicap.

1. Allow for a margin of error

No one hits the ball perfectly on every shot. Always allow for a margin of error. Following this advice does more than cut strokes from your scores. It builds confidence, enabling you to start making more aggressive swings while staying within yourself. Also, if you have a water hazard on the left and open spaces on the right, choose the open spaces. Even if you pull it, you won’t go into the water.

2. Use more loft

Loft is a good thing, we tell players in our golf instruction sessions, because backspin fights off sidespin. The more loft you have on your driver, the less your ball curves left and right. That lets you hit more fairways. Many drivers feature a loft of 10.5 degrees. Instead, switch to a driver with a loft of 12 or 13 degrees. You’ll lose distance in the process, but you’ll hit more fairways.

3. Stay within yourself

Veteran golfers hate playing it safe. So do many of the players taking our golf lessons. But you must stay within yourself to shoot low scores. Sure, making an aggressive shot feels good when you pull it off. But staying within yourself cuts strokes from your scores and your golf handicap. Also, always keep the percentages of making a shot in mind. If you can’t make a shot seven out of ten times, try another shot.

4.  Think twice about risky shots

When given the opportunity to choose between an aggressive “go for it” play and laying back and playing safe, play it safe. Sure it feels good when you pull off that aggressive shot. But be honest with yourself. If your chances of making the shot are low, choose another one. Remember your goal is shooting low scores, not making great shots. Most times playing to a safe spot generally leads to a lower score anyway. The choice is yours.

5.  Go for the center of the green

Just because you can see the flag doesn’t mean you should go for it. In fact, many golfers would probably shoot lower scores if there were no flags on the green. Take the flags away and most golfers will shoot for the center of the green. If the flag is protected by water and sand, you can’t afford to mis-hit the shot. Doing so could cost you big time, so why take the chance.

Perfecting your mechanics is a good way to cut strokes from your scores. So is using the latest golf club technology. But when you fail to think on the course, you’re usually cost yourself strokes. The five golf tips we provided above encourage you to think on the course. These golf tips will also help you cut strokes from your scores and lower your golf handicap without swinging a club.

While putting is the fastest way to cut strokes from your golf handicap, chipping is the best way. Good chipping turns three shots into two. It also leaves the ball close to the hole for an easy putt. The closer you are to the hole, the more likely you are to sink the putt. In fact, where you putt from determines how well you putt.

But to be a good chipper, you need to make solid contact consistently. To guarantee that you do that, you must execute the fundamentals correctly. Below are five keys to chip-ping as explained in our golf tips newsletter.

1. Choke down on the grip
2. Play the ball back in your stance
3. Make a crisp downward blow
4. Keep your right wrist bent through impact
5. Make a sweeping motion

Gripping down on the club provides better control. Playing the ball back in your stance encourages a crisp downward strike. And keeping your right wrist bent through impact, which help produce a downward angle of attack as well as a smooth brushing motion of the clubhead.

Practice Makes Perfect

When practicing chip shots, try combining chipping and putting, as teachers often do in golf lessons. This simulates what you do on the course. You don’t hit 15 chips in a row when playing. Instead, you chip then putt. It’s critical that you ingrain this chip/putt se-quence or you may have problems when playing. And concentrate on every chip and putt, just like you’d do during a round.

Below is a game you can play to make chipping practice more fun. There’s also a drill below that you can do, along with some golf tips, to make chipping practice more pro-ductive.

Chipping For Dollars

This chipping game probably isn’t used much in golf lessons, but it really tests your chipping and putting abilities.

Place three clubs behind and around the hole. The clubs should create an arc with the hole in the middle and in front. The clubs should be touching each other. You can vary the distance to the hole depending on how difficult you want to make it. Using any chip shot you want, chip nine balls as close to the hole as possible. After chipping the balls, remove the clubs. Every ball represents a hole. If you make your first putt on any ball that didn’t touch a club, that’s a par. If you hole out while chipping, that’s a birdie. Putt all the balls out with a two-putt maximum. If you two putt, add a stroke to your score. Also, add a stroke for any balls that touched the clubs. Keep score and challenge yourself every time you play. You can even play this goal with a friend. Lowest score wins.

Putt Until You Drop

Sinking more putts, we tell students in golf lessons, is a great way to pare your golf han-dicap. It also relieves the pressure on your other shots. Here’s a drill that will help you hole more short to medium range putts:

Go around the hole placing tees a step a part. The tees should be about four feet from the hole. Make eight stations. Place each tee about four feet from the hole. Begin anywhere you want. Try to make four putts in a row. Concentrate on alignment and speed. Every time you make four putts, start over. Don’t quit until you can make two sets of four at every station. Once you’ve conquered the four-foot range, move back a foot and do the drill again. Continue dropping back until you get to the 10-foot range.

Putting from all directions forces you to work on right-to-left and left-to-right breaks in your putting. When putting, release the club freely through impact. Also, make sure your elbows are slightly bent and your wrists solid. Maintaining these positions creates repea-tability in your stroke.

Playing games, doing drills, and reading golf tips in magazines are all great ways to im-prove your putting and chipping. They also help make practice fun. But you have to make sure you have a clear idea of what you want to accomplish before starting practice. Im-prove your chipping and putting and you’ll chop strokes off your golf handicap and build confidence in your game.

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How To Break 80 Newsletter
September 09, 2011
"The Web's Most Popular Golf Improvement Newsletter"
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In this issue we'll discuss...

1) Tip: Keep It Low Like The Pros
2) Tip: Glove Secrets
3) Drill: Ten Minutes To A Perfect Stroke
4) Article: How To Hit A Fairway Wood
5) Article: Stick It Close To Score Well

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1) Keep It Low Like The Pros
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Pitching it close saves strokes. The closer your ball is to the hole after a pitch shot, the easier the putt. Many weekend golfers often try to pitch the ball way up in the air and let it drop close to the ball. But if you watch the pros hit pitches, you’ll see that they keep the ball lower to better control the shot. So while you still must know how to pitch it high, your standard pitch should be a low shot that releases and rolls.

Below are five keys to keeping it low like the pros:

1. Adopt a parallel or slightly open stance
2. Position the ball slightly back
3. Set the shaft leaning forward
4. Maintain a forward shaft through the swing
5. Shift left (or right) on the downswing

The secret to keeping it close is to set the sole at address and keep it there throughout the swing. Weekend golfers often try to add loft to the shot, which isn’t necessary and can cause them to hit it fat or thin. If you need loft, change clubs.

Start by adopting a slightly open stance, with your feet about 14-15 inches apart. Any-thing closer hurts your balance. Stand fairly tall in the shot, with your knees slightly flexed, and hold the club lightly in your hands.

Position the ball from the middle of your stance to slightly back and lean the shaft for-ward. Maintain it leaning forward throughout the swing. Begin your wrist cock as soon as you start your takeaway.

Shift left on the downswing. Use just enough lower body motion during the swing to keep your body parts synchronized. Keep the club in the swing plane until you stand up for your finish.

Pitching it close saves strokes. Keeping the ball low on the pitch shot provides better con-trol than pitching it high. It also eliminates the fear of hitting it fat or thin. Follow our swing keys to make solid contact on standard pitches.

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2) Glove Secrets
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The first thing most students learn in golf lessons is the grip. That comes as no surprise. If your grip is off, your swing will probably be off. You’ll tend to slice, hook, and otherwise mishit the ball. That’s because your hands are the prime mover of the shaft and the controller of the clubface. If your hands aren’t doing their job, you’ll know about it. How can you tell if your grip is correct? Check your the wear patterns on your glove.

Below are the three most common wear patterns:

1. Worn-out palm
2. Thumb tear
3. Index finger wear

A worn-out palm is the most common wear pattern. It’s caused by holding the club in the palm instead of beneath the heel pad of the thumb and fingers. Holding the club in your palm leads to a slice or a lack of distance. To correct this flaw, hold a ruler in your glove hand. Cradle it in your fingers. Feel the heel pad of your glove resting on top of the ruler? That’s how your grip should feel.

A thumb tear is usually caused by one of two things. One is poor thumb placement. The other is incorrect pressure applied between the thumb and handle, resulting in a loss of club control. To correct this flaw, adopt a short-thumb grip, where the thumb is cinched up and pinched against the top of your forefinger.

An index-finer wear pattern indicates a poor connection between a player’s hands. It’s caused by an overlapping grip, where the dominant hand’s pinkie finger digs into the glove hand’s knuckle. To correct this flaw, extend your finger farther into the gap that separates the knuckles on your glove hand. Or, use an interlocking grip.

Your grip is key to a good swing. When your grip is off, your swing is off. Check the wear patterns on your glove to see how you’re gripping the club. If you’re gripping the club incorrectly, adjust your grip for longer straighter shots.

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3) Ten Minutes To A Perfect Stroke
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You can fix many putting flaws by simply unifying your motion. Good putters get their shoulders, torso, and hands to work as one. That’s not easy. It takes concentration and practice to achieve it. The following drill links your shoulders to your chest:

Place the grip of your sand wedge underneath your left armpit (right armpit for left-handers). Grip your putter and set up to the ball so that the shaft of your putter and the shaft of your sand wedge are parallel. The shaft of your sand wedge should rest lightly on your left forearm. Now make your stroke. Take care to keep the shafts the same distance away from each other and parallel from start to finish. Practice without a ball. Then putt a ball.

This drill promotes a unifying motion and solid contact. If you tend to jab at putts with a lot of hand action instead of stroke smoothly through them, the shafts will cross. Linking your shoulders to your chest brings you that much closer to a perfect putting stroke.

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

Here are some of my recent articles:

4) Article: How To Hit A Fairway Wood

...students tend to choose hybrids over fairway woods in key situations from the fairway and the rough....

5) Article: Stick It Close To Score Well

...to score well from 100 yards and in, you must stick it close. That turns three strokes into two...

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

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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.

Want to know the secret to scoring well? It’s simple. Play well from 100 yards and in. Take a look at the pros. They may miss the fairway or hit a wayward 3-wood, but they’re deadly from 100 yards in. This is golf’s scoring zone. It’s where the rubber meets the road.  If you’re serious about chopping strokes off your golf handicap—and maybe break 90 or 80 in the process—master play from 100 yards and in.

But to score well from 100 yards and in, you must stick it close. That turns three strokes into two. Do this often enough and you’ll find yourself penciling in more pars and birdies on your card—maybe even an eagle of two. How do you stick shots close? Let’s start with hitting low, medium, and high pitch shots. The key to nailing these pitches is your setup mechanics. That’s why we emphasize them in golf instruction sessions. Below are some golf tips on hitting these three shots.

Hitting A Low Pitch

Low pitches are ideal for uphill shots, shots to a back pin, or shots needing roll. The shot travels straight and low, hits and rolls. The clubs of choice for a low pitch is a 9-iron or a pitching wedge. These clubs have less bounce, are easier to hit crisply, and generate backspin to get the ball rolling. Avoid the sand wedge, especially with a tight lie. The sand wedge’s bounce can cause you to scuff the ground behind the ball.

To hit low pitches, adjust your setup so everything is parallel to the target. This means aiming your shoulders two to three feet left of target (right for left-handers), and your feet another foot or so to the left. By squaring up like this, you’re more likely to hit the ball flush and get the ball to travel low.  Stand closer to the ball, play it back in your stance, and limit wrist rotation. Lean the shaft toward the target and keep it that way throughout the shot.

Hitting A Medium Pitch

Medium pitches are great for middle pin placements. They fly somewhat higher than low pitches, but have some roll. The club of choice for medium pitches is the sand wedge. But gap or lob wedges work well, too. In fact, we encourage students in golf lessons to experiment. Practice with all three until you get a good feel for the height and roll each club produces.

When setting up, open up your stance but keep the clubface square to the target. Also narrow your stance to steepen your angle into the ball. Opening your stance sometimes makes it hard to find the “middle” ball position. But play the ball directly below your sternum, and no matter how far you open your stance, the ball is still in the middle. Hit this shot about three quarters of the way to the hole and let it roll the rest of the way.

Hitting It High

The lob is great for tight pins. This shot is dicey, which is why we encourage students in golf instruction session to practice it first. High pitches call for an accelerating and descending blow, which some golfers have a hard time pulling off.

Start by narrowing and opening your feet and shoulders. Then open your clubface so it’s facing the target. Grip the club with the clubface open first before setting up. How far do you open the clubface? Trial and error tells you. Also, play the ball forward in your stance and stand a little further away from the ball. If you really want to pop it up, lean the shaft away from the target slightly.

The swing for all three pitches is basically the same. Keep your hands in front of the ball through impact and limit the hands’ release after contact to promote better spin and directional control. Setup mechanics are the secret to pitching it close. Nail those with the help of our golf tips and you’ll shave strokes off your golf handicap.