In this issue we’ll discuss…

1) Punching It From A Fairway Bunker
2) Pop It Over Trees
3) Question of the Week: Get Back To The Basics To Hit Solid Irons
4) Article – How To Salvage A Bad Round
5) Article – Placement And Putting Are Key At British Open

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1) Punching It From A Fairway Bunker

What do you do if you’re in a fairway bunker, but you’re so close to the hole that a full swing with a short iron rolls off the green? Good question. If the front of the green is clear of obstacles and the lip is small, you can play a punch shot that lands short and then rolls to the pin. This type of shot accomplishes two things: It gets you out of the bunker and it encourages solid contact so you don’t leave the shot short.

Here are six keys to punching one from a fairway bunker:

* Use a 6-, 7-, or 8-iron
* Position the ball back of center
* Take a narrow stance with your weight forward
* Hinge your wrists at the start of the swing
* Focus on making ball first contact
* Keep your wrists firm at impact

Let your distance from the pin determine club selection. With a 6-iron, a bunker punch shot carries about 100 yards and rolls about 50 yards.

Set up with the ball back of center and the shaft leaning forward. Use a narrow stance but shift your weight to your front foot. Your sternum is in front of the ball to create a downward angle of attack.

Hinge your wrists as soon as you start your backswing. Use a narrow arc and cut your backswing when your hands reach hip height. You won’t need more power than this.

Pinch your knees at the top of your backswing and focus on making ball-first contact on the way down. Keep your wrists firm at impact—maintaining the clubshaft angle you created at address. Now swing.

You don’t need a full finish, since you’re just hitting a punch shot. Instead, focus on your backswing, downswing, and impact. With this shot, the ball flies low to the ground and runs to the green.
2) Pop It Over Trees

Laying-up in front of water or punching out from the rough can save you strokes. But some times you have to go for it, like when you’re playing a match and you’re stuck behind a clump of trees. That’s not a good place to be even with a good lie. But knowing how to hit extra-high approach shots pays off here. With a few minor set-up adjustments, you should be able to loft the ball high enough to clear the trees.

Below are five keys to hitting extra-high approach shots:

* Position the ball forward in your stance
* Hinge your wrists early and aggressively
* Stay behind the ball with your body
* Keep your hands even or just behind the clubhead
* Finish extra high with your follow through

The secret to hitting high approach shots is steepness. You must use a more vertical than normal downswing to really hit down on the ball and create the steepness you need to fly the ball high. Here’s how:

Position the ball forward in your stance, toward your front heel. After soling the club, set your hands even with the ball or just behind it, and rotate the clubface open a few degrees to provide extra loft on the shot.

Hinge your wrists early and aggressively in the backswing to attain the steepness you need to get the clubhead up quickly. Hitting down on the ball causes it to rise quickly and fly extra-high.

Keep your body behind the ball on the downswing. You should feel as if your front ear is behind the ball at impact.

Keep your hands even or slightly behind the ball. Getting your hands ahead of the ball—as you do with normal iron shots—delofts the clubface, which will prevent you from making it over the obstacle.

Finish high with your follow-through. Try to bring your hands higher than your front ear on your finish while staying in balance.

While playing it safe on the golf course often pays off, you sometimes have to go for it. When that happens, knowing how to hit an extra-high shot pays off.

=
3) Question of the Week: Get Back To The Basics To Hit Solid Irons

Q.

Dear Jack:

“How do you make solid impact with your irons? I can hit from a 7-iron to a 3-iron and seldom hit the sweet spot.  No matter what club I use there is little variance in the distance the ball travels in the air.

Thanks for your help,
James Neely ”

A.

Thanks for the question, Jim. I suggest you get back to basics:

First, check your ball position. Play short iron shots in the center, middle iron shots an inch forward of that, and longer iron shots another inch forward.

Second, check your set-up. Things like weak left-hand grip, poor posture, and bad aim often prevent solid contact. Study your set-up in a mirror. Make sure it’s solid. If not, change it. Practice your new set up in front of a mirror until it’s ingrained.

Third, check your weight shift. Good iron contact comes from a descending strike. To hit down, your weight must be moving toward the target. Many golfers hang back on their right sides when hitting irons. Also, make sure the knuckles of your left hand are pointing down when making your downswing.

To improve your irons, hit balls with your left hand only. Keep hitting them one-handed until the feeling is ingrained. Also, hit balls with your feet together. It will improve your balance.

If all this doesn’t work, consider taking a golf lesson or two from a teaching pro.

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 – How To Salvage A Bad Round
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/how-to-salvage-a-bad-round.php

5) Article – Placement And Putting Are Key At British Open
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/placement-and-putting-are-key-at-british-open.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.

In this issue we’ll discuss…

1) Out Every Time From Long Bunkers
2) Get Down For A Ball Below Your Feet
3) Question of the Week – Achieving Consistency off the Tee
4) Article – Strengthen Core To Reduce Golf Handicap
5) Article – The 2010 U.S. Open

Jack’s Note: Wow, what a U.S. Open last weekend!  We got so caught up in the excitement we forgot to send out the newlsetter to you guys last week. Sorry folks!

Congratulations to Dennis Lavery for correctly picking the winner of the 2010 U.S. Open (Graeme McDowell).

We will be contacting you Dennis Lavery so you can receive your complimentary DVD’s.  Way to go!

Also, if you’re still struggling with hitting the ball consistently, it could be your swing plane. Go here to watch a video on how to find your perfect swing plane.

Trouble viewing links? Your browser may be the issue. We recommend using the Firefox browser. Click Here To Download. Some email clients also distort links: try to copy and paste web urls directly in your browser, or turn on images for emails.
1) Out Every Time From Long Bunkers

No one likes having a 40-yard bunker shot. But they happen. The keys to getting out of long bunkers are widening your stance for stability, keeping your lower body still, and picking the ball clean from the sand. That sounds easy. But some players struggle with this approach. They tend to dig into the dirt at impact, which can derail the shot. Below is another way to hit this shot.

Here are five keys to hitting this long bunker shot:

* Set up as if you were putting
* Move closer to the ball
* Use a reverse over-lap grip
* Keep more weight on your front foot
* Make a U-shaped swing

The key to making this shot, as we’ve said above, is preventing the club from digging into the sand at impact. If it does, you’ll dissipate the force behind the ball and the ball will probably stay in the bunker. Instead, try this:

Using a sand wedge, set up like you were about to putt. Move closer to the ball and employ a reverse overlap grip. Now make a U-shaped swing controlled by your body turn, not a V-shaped arm-swing.

Keeping your weight on your front foot, make what feels like a long aggressive putt by rocking your shoulders and turning your stomach area. The club should enter the sand just behind the ball and skim through it, not dig into it, giving you the distance you need to hit the green.

This shot is somewhat similar to a putt/chip with an 8-iron from the edge of the green. Mastering this long bunker shot may take a little practice, but once you’ve got it down, you’ll get the ball out every time, saving strokes.
2) Saves Strokes By Hitting Effective Pitches

Want to cut strokes from your scores? Hit pinpoint pitches. Hitting accurate pitches is the key —the kind that hit the green and stop dead right on target. A common mistake when trying to hit pitches is taking the club back low, with straight stiff wrists. This type of swing leads to scooping. Scooping leads to mis-hits. The stiffness in your hands and arms also hurts your sense of feel, hampering accuracy.

Below are five tips on hitting pinpoint pitches:

1. Set up with a slightly open stance
2. Open your clubface.
3. Shift your weight forward.
4. Hinge your wrists in the backswing.
5. Swing hard to generate speed.

Hitting accurate pitches isn’t hard. The secret is creating height and backspin to stop the ball when it hits.

Start by setting up with a slightly open stance and an open clubface. Shift your weight forward and keep it there. A big shift while swing makes it harder to bring the club back to a consistent impact point.

To generate height, hinge your wrists in the backswing and swing hard. The harder you swing, the higher the ball goes—without adding distance to the shot. With height and backspin, the ball stops dead when it hits. Practice this shot on the range until you’ve ingrained it.

Also, spend time on the range moving your hands up and down on the grip in one-inch increments. By gripping down an inch, you can subtract five to eight yards from the shot without changing your swing. Note how the changes affect your yardage. You’ll have to get closer to the ball. But you won’t be changing your swing.

Hitting more effective pitches saves strokes big time. It turns three shots into two and sets the stage for more par putts. Sink a couple of those per round and you’ll quickly lower your scores.
3) Question of the Week – Achieving Consistency off the Tee

Q. Hello, Jack:

I have 4, 5, and 6 hybrids. Seems like I hit them fine on the practice range, but when playing, I have a tendency to hit them off the toe? Any suggestions would help. At times, I am afraid to pull one of these clubs out of the bag.

Thanks,
Russ Breeden

A. Thanks for the question, Russ. Toe hits occur when the arms lose extension through impact.  This often results from a player trying to lift the ball off the ground, pulling the swing path too far inside. To cure the problem, focus on swinging down on the ball and making center-face contact. Also, try swinging the club around your body more.

Here’s a drill that can help:

Stick two tees in the ground, parallel to each other, but about a clubhead length apart. One tee should be closer to you and one farther away. Set up to the tee that’s closer to you, but swing at the one that’s farther away. Try picking the tee out of the ground on your swing. Practice this drill until you can pick the tee out of the ground instinctively

This drill flattens your downswing path, forcing you to extend your arms through impact. The drill also gets you to swing the club around your body more.

The tee drill is a simple but effective. It will eliminate toe hits and save you strokes—and probably some embarrassment in the process.

Also, when you’re on the course or the range, visualize two balls and try hitting the outside one.

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 – Strengthen Core To Reduce Golf Handicap
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/strengthen-core-to-reduce-golf-handicap.php

5) Article – The 2010 U.S. Open
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/2010-us-open.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

In this issue we’ll discuss…

1) Set Up To Crush It Off The Tee
2) Hitting A Chip With Side Spin
3) Drill of the Week #2: Running Start Drill
4) Article – Using Technology To Lower Golf Handicaps
5) Article – Consistency: The Key To Lower Golf Handicaps

Trouble viewing links? Your browser may be the issue. We recommend using the Firefox browser. Click Here To Download. Some email clients also distort links: try to copy and paste web urls directly in your browser, or turn on images for emails.
1) Set Up To Crush It Off The Tee

If you’re not hitting the sweet spot on the clubface, you’re probably not driving the ball well. One reason why you could be missing the sweet spot is that your head is over your back knee at address. This might not seem like much, but it affects everything else in your swing. The most efficient—and fastest— swing rotation occurs when your lower body is stable. You can only achieve this by being centered and balanced at address.

Below are seven keys to a power-laden setup:

1. Widen your stance at address
2. Shift more weight on your right side
3. Keep your chin up to allow for the turn
4. Make a full 90-degree shoulder turn
5. Hover the club head above the ground
6. Sense your right forearm crossing over left
7. Finish high and in balance with your swing

A balanced, centered position starts at address. A good setup allows you to make a good turn away from the target, yet still remain behind the ball at the top of your swing, with your weight over your back foot.

But it’s not uncommon for a golfer to create extra side bend at address by moving his head over his back knee. This imbalance ends in a setup that results in (1) a slice causing-reverse pivot at the top and (2) too much “hang-back” at impact.

Since your right hand (left for lefties) is below your left hand on the grip, tilt your back shoulder down the same amount. You want to feel as if you’re on top of the ball, with your head just slightly back of center. If you tilt too far back, you throw your entire swing off.

We all want to drive the ball longer off the tee. Hitting driver/8-iron into the green beats hitting driver/4-iron into the green every time. But you must be centered and balanced at address to do this. If you are, you’re in great position to hit a bomb.
2) Hitting A Chip With Side Spin

On tough courses it’s not uncommon to find a pin tucked tight to the green’s edge. Chipping on a green like this is a challenge. If you mishit the shot, you’ll probably add strokes to your score. A sidespin to the ball is another way to chip it close. But some golfers try to make dramatic swing changes to add sidespin. That’s hard to do. Here’s an easier and simpler way to make this shot.

Here are five keys to hitting a chip with sidespin:

* Stand closer to the ball
* Aim where you want it to curve
* Let the club go outside going back
* Turn your chest coming thru
* Pull your hands through to your pocket

If you want to curve the chip away from you, stand closer to the ball than normal. Aim your toe line/body line where you want the ball to start. Aim the clubface where you want the ball to curve. Let the club go outside a little going back. Then turn your chest coming through. Feel as if you’re pulling your left hand to the pocket nearest the target.

If you want to curve the ball toward you, set up farther away from the ball. Pull the club inside. And roll the toe over through impact. This shot has less backspin and rolls out.

Putting cut spin on a chip is like hitting a fade or a draw. When you want to hit a fade or a draw, you aim your feet and body where you want the ball to start. You aim your clubface in the direction you want the ball to curve. Then you make a normal swing.

Knowing how to hit a chip with cut spin helps with a pin cut tight to the edge of the green. The shot gives you another option to knock it close.
3) Drill of the Week: Running Start Drill

This putting drill promotes a smooth and level stroke by teaching you to keep the putter low to the ground going back. That way it’s delivered into the ball level. A level stroke helps you strike the ball at its equator, facilitating good roll.

The Drill:

When practicing putting, place the putterhead about four inches behind the ball, instead of directly behind it. Then putt. This promotes a low takeaway. You may also hold the putterhead slightly off the ground. This alleviates tension and promotes a big-muscle-controlled swing. When putting, you want to take your hands out of the equation as much as possible.

Try this drill next time you’re on the practice green, if your stroke isn’t as level or as smooth as you’d like.

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 – Using Technology to Lower Golf Handicaps
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/using-technology-to-lower-golf-handicaps.php

5) Article – Consistency: The Key To Lower Golf Handicaps
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/consistency-the-key-to-lower-golf-handicaps.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.

In this issue we’ll discuss…

1) Hitting Longer Clubs From Fairway Sand
2) Simple Drill Cures Slice, Adds Power
3) Question of the Week: Achieving Consistency Off The Tee
4) Article – Five Golf Tips That Will Improve Your Game
5) Article – Knowing Wedges Can Lower Golf Handicaps

Trouble viewing links? Your browser may be the issue. We recommend using the Firefox browser. Click Here To Download. Some email clients also distort links: try to copy and paste web urls directly in your browser, or turn on images for emails.
1) Hitting Longer Clubs From Fairway Sand

Playing from a fairway bunker can be tough for people who are not long hitters. These players need to play long par 5s and par 4s carefully. A weak shot from fairway sand can take you right out of the hole and cost you strokes in the process. But developing the ability to hit longer clubs and long-iron hybrids from the sand can keep you in these holes.

Below are seven keys to hitting longer clubs from fairway sand:

* Dig your feet into the sand
* Tilt your front foot inward as a brace
* Choke down on the club half an inch
* Play the ball just inside your left heel
* Stand slightly straighter at the knees
* Take the club back three-quarters length
* Try to pick the ball clean from the sand

You need a good lie and a low front lip before trying this shot. If you have both, follow these steps:

Dig your feet into the ground just enough to create stability, and tilt the sole of your front foot inward to brace yourself and prevent swaying. Don’t dig in as much as you would with a greenside bunker. You just need to go down enough to make sure you don’t slip when you swing.

Choke down on the club half an inch and play the ball about an inch inside your front heel. Stand slightly straighter at the knees and waist to make it easier to pick the ball cleanly from the sand.

Keep your takeaway low and your back-swing three-quarter length. Sweep the clubhead through the ball while keeping your head and your spine angle still until well into your follow-through.

Above all, don’t overswing. You don’t need a miracle shot here, just something that provides some distance, hits the fairway, and keeps you in the hole.
2) Simple Drill Cures Slice, Adds Power

Many golfers hit weak slices off the tee because they turn their upper and lower bodies in unison during the downswing. That’s not good. Your downswing isn’t a single movement but a chain of events: You move your lower body first, and then you move your upper body. Your arms and clubhead bring up the rear. It’s the same movement you use to throw a ball. The drill below teaches you the right sequence of movements.

Below are the key steps to the drill:

1. Use a 9-iron for the drill
2. Put your feet together in your stance
3. Lift your front leg when taking the club away
4. Step toward the target and plant your front leg
5. Complete your swing

This drill helps you feel when your backswing ends and when your downswing begins, key points many golfers ignore when swinging. Here’s the drill:

Use a 9-iron tee and up a ball. Then, place your feet together with the ball in the middle of your stance and the club about two feet in front of the ball and off the ground. As you take the club back, lift your front leg off the grown. When your left arm is parallel, step toward the target and complete the swing.

As you lift your front leg, you’ll feel your back tilting away from the target. When you finally plant your foot, your upper boy will be back as your lower body starts to shift forward to complete the swing. This is a powerful position that helps create straighter shots and more torque in your swing. More torque means more power.

Try this drill several times. Once you’ve ingrained the right sequence of movements in your downswing, take your normal 9-iron address position and hit balls. It may take some practice, but you’ll get the feel for it and be a little closer to eliminating your slice.
3) Question of the Week: Achieving Consistency Off The Tee

Q.

Hello, Jack:

I have trouble being consistent with my driver. Sometimes the ball swings right at the end of the flight. So I change my stance and the hook comes into affect. I just can’t get it right. Can you help me with this?

Regards,
Trevor Coote
Brisbane, Australia

A.

Thanks for the question, Trevor. It’s hard to tell from your description exactly what you’re doing wrong. But one thing is clear. Your clubface isn’t square to the ball at impact, resulting in pulls, slices, and other bad shots. Failing to square your clubface often stems from a faulty takeaway. Below is a drill that can help.

Take your stance. Set the clubface behind the ball. Take the club back and stop halfway through your backswing. As you start your takeaway, think about working the clubface into a toe-up position. After stopping, turn your body to face the club. Then drop the clubhead straight down. If you executed your takeaway correctly, the clubface will be dead square. Just knowing what this feels like helps you employ the right physical movements to make this happen in your swing.

When all else fails, consider hitting other clubs off the tee. The 3-wood and 5-wood are shorter and easier to hit straight than the driver. They won’t give you the same distance as the driver, but they’ll help keep you out of trouble.

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 – Five Golf Tips That Will Improve Your Game
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/five-golf-tips-that-will-improve-your-game.php

5) Article – Knowing Wedges Can Lower Golf Handicaps
http://www.howtobreak80.com/articles/knowing-wedges-can-lower-golf-handicaps.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