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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.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 14th, 2011 at 12:38 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.