In this issue we’ll discuss…

1. Reading Break From Off The Green
2. Achieving A Good Swing Plane
3. Question of the Week – Hitting From a Bare Lie
4. Article – Five Golf Tips From An Old Caddy
5. Article – Fixing Your Game When Things Go Bust (Part II)

Reading Break From Off The Green

Playing from the fringe is trickier than it looks. Unfortunately, some weekend golfers take this shot for granted. Smart players don’t. They approach the shot with the idea not of sinking the shot, but of just getting it close. But dropping one in from off the fringe every so often saves strokes and boosts confidence.

Below are three golf tips for playing the fringe:

1. Play the same amount of break
2. Hitting a low running shot
3. Hitting a high shot onto the green

Next time you’re on the fringe, remember these three scenarios:

* If you’re putting from the fringe (or hitting a low or high shot) that’s going to land on the fringe, play the same amount of break as you would for a putt. Be sure to take into account the direction of the fringe’s grass. If the grass is dark, the grain is against you. It will slow down your ball. If the fringe is shiny, the grain is with you. It will speed up the ball.

* If you’re hitting a low running shot with a low lofted club, a fairway wood, or a hybrid, the amount of break depends on the slope of your landing area. Low shots hit with these clubs travel faster than those hit with wedges. Thus, the slope in the line will affect your ball less, at least until the ball slows down as it approaches the hole.

* If you’re hitting a high shot onto the green with a short iron or wedge, keep in mind that shots with these clubs travel slower than those hit with less lofted irons. That means they’ll be more affected by the slope in the line.

Don’t take the shot from the fringe for granted. Study the break carefully and put a good shot on it. Sinking one from the fringe saves you at least one stroke and sometimes two. It also boosts your confidence.

Achieving A Good Swing Plane

Some experts consider swing plane the most important concept in golf. Others disagree. But one thing is clear: achieving the correct swing plane is critical to solid ballstriking. Staying on plane in golf relates directly to how straight, high, and far you hit the ball.

Below are five keys to a great swing plane:

1. Rotate your upper body against steady hips
2. Retain the triangle formed at takeaway
3. Keep the hands parallel to the target line
4. Maintain the bend in your knees
5. Don’t move the club behind you

To envision a perfect swing plane, imagine a dotted line drawn from the ball through the club shaft and grip. This is your swing plane line. The club should remain on this dotted line on the same plane angle through takeaway until the club shaft is parallel to the ground. From there, the club may move slightly off plane as you complete your backswing. This is natural.

At the top, the transition from backswing to downswing drops the club back on the dotted line so the club approaches the ball on the same plane as before. The rotation of your forearms through impact keeps the club on line well into the finish. While the bend in your knees formed at address creates a solid platform to support your return. Don’t allow the club to get behind you or under the swing plane during your backswing.

Swing Plane Drill:
Grip down on the shaft of a short iron so that the club’s butt end almost touches your belly. As you swing back, maintain the triangle formed by your hands and forearms by keeping the butt end of the club pointing at your belly until the head is just outside your back foot. As you start our downswing the drop your arms so the butt end of the club points away from your belly. This is the correct delivery position.

Do this drill correctly and your clubface will remain square and on plane. As a secondary check make sure the club head lies outside the hands and your top arm sits above your bottom arm.

No one has a perfect swing plane. But good ballstrikers keep the club on plane throughout the key parts of the takeaway and follow-through.

Question of the Week – Hitting From a Bare Lie

Q. Hello Jack, Thank you for all your advice. What are you supposed to do when you’re 50 yards from the pin on a bare lie? I find sand wedge has so much risk (topping/thinning etc.) that it’s just too much trouble. Yet, you’re too far out for a putt/chip. It looks like a sitter at that range — but it seldom is.

Best regards,
Tony

A. Hitting from a bare with a sand wedge is risky. It’s an easy shot to botch, since the ground is less forgiving than the grass. So you want to be as conservative as possible with the shot.

To avoid a mis-hit, use a 9-iron instead of a sand wedge. A 9-iron has a sharp leading edge, which cuts through the back of the ball, but offers less risk than the sand wedge. Also, use more of a chopping motion when you swing. Aim for the lower half of the ball when you swing. You want to hit the ball cleanly off the ground.

Otherwise, you don’t need to make many other adjustments. Take your normal stance, put your weight on the front foot, position the ball toward the back of your stance, and place your hands in front of the ball.

You must practice the shot to perfect it. Pick a spot about 50 yards from the green with a hardpan lie. Take the setup described above except with no ball. Practice by sticking the club in the ground using an up-and-down motion, instead of a back-and-forth one. After taking several practice swings, drop a ball on the hardpan and hit away using the same motion.

Repeat this sequence until you hit clean shots regularly. Don’t worry about distance or accuracy in the beginning. It will come as you master the shot.

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:

Article – Five Golf Tips From An Old Caddy

Article - Fixing Your Game When Things Go Bust (Part II)

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…

Save Strokes from Hillside Lies
Hitting the 3-Wood High Or Low
Question of the Week – Conquering Those Long Bunker Shots
Article – Four Keys To A Perfect Swing
Article – Become A Lights Out Putter With A Practice Routine

Save Strokes from Hillside Lies

Golfers botch hillside lies for two reasons: They either fail to make solid contact on or lose their balance during the shot. The reason: With sidehill and downhill lies, you tend to lean into the hill as you swing. The result: an inconsistent array of fat and thin shots. But if you make clean contact on hillside lies, you’ll hit it straighter and save strokes.

Below are four keys to making clean contact with hillside lies:

• Adjust your club selection
• Adjust your ball position
• Flare your downhill foot
• Make your normal shot

The key to this shot is making sure your shoulders match the hill’s slope, which you can do with a simple adjustment of your front foot.

Start by choosing your club. An uphill lie adds loft to your club. Use a less lofted club. A downhill lie subtracts loft from your club. Use a more lofted club.

Adjust your ball position as well. For an uphill lie, play the ball forward an inch or two. For a downhill lie, play the ball in the middle of your stance or slightly back.

Finally, match your shoulders to the slope without losing your balance. Do this by flaring your front foot about 45 degrees. Then swing normally.

Your flared foot evens out your stance and puts the ball at the bottom of your swing. This keeps you from slamming your clubhead into the hill or the center of your ball. A flared foot also gives you more freedom of movement in your backswing and makes you feel balanced while swinging.

Don’t let hillside lies throw you. Make solid contact by (1) adjusting your club selection and ball position, and (2) matching your shoulders to the slope by flaring your front foot. Learn to make clean contact on hillside lies and odds are you’ll eliminate those extra shots that pad your scores.

Hitting the 3-Wood High Or Low

One course I play has two different types of par 5s. Both greens are reachable from the fairway in two with a 3-wood. But on one you must go over a small pond to reach the green. On the other you have nothing but fairway between you and the green. On the first you want to hit a high shot that falls softly on the green. On the second you want to hit a low shot that runs to the green.

Here are five keys to hitting the 3-wood from a tight fairway lie:

• Play the ball back in your stance
• Sweep the ball off the turf
• Hit with a descending blow
• Shift your weight to the front side
• Swing through the ball

The key to hitting different shots with the 3-wood is to adjust your stance, not your swing, to achieve the lofts you need. In fact, it’s almost always better adjust your stance than change your swing.

For the high shot over the water, play the ball a little more forward in your stance and drop your hands slightly at address. Also place a bit more weight over your back foot by tilting your spine away from your target. These adjustments position you perfectly to sweep the ball off the turf while adding loft to your clubface.

To play a shot with a lower, more piercing trajectory, do the opposite. Position the ball where you’d play a mid-iron and set more weight on your forward leg. These adjustments de-loft the club at impact and produce the lower ball flight you need to run the ball to the green.

Adjusting your stance to achieve a different shot with the 3-wood is the preferred option when you need different ball flights from the same club. It’s both safer and easier to execute this move than changing your swing.

Question of the Week – Conquering Those Long Bunker Shots

Q. Hi Jack, I get out of greenside bunkers fairly easily, but the longer bunker shots are a problem. What do you suggest for a 25- to 50-foot bunker shot?

Robert K Mokros
Spring Hill, Florida

A. Thanks for the question, Robert. The goal with a long bunker shot is to hit the ball high and drop it softly on the green.

Using a normal set-up, position the ball just inside your front heel, open your stance slightly, and grip down on the club, applying light to moderate pressure. Point the clubface at the target and the shaft’s butt at your stomach.

As you start back, cup the back of your left wrist (right wrist for lefties). This adds loft to the clubface. On the way down, maintain the cup of the left for a long as possible. Feel as if you’re pulling down with the left arm. Then lock the back of the left wrist, allowing the clubface to slide through sand without it closing.

Finally, let your hands and wrist fall together as the body weight shifts to the outside of the front foot. Keep your head behind the ball by trying to peek under it at impact.

You’ll need a lot of backspin with this shot. So use a wide arc during your backswing by keeping your hands as far from your shoulders as possible. Also, use an inside-to-square-to-inside swing path.

Execute the golf tips explained above and you’ll hit a long bunker shot that drops softly on the green.

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

To view this newsletter online, please visit:
http://www.howtobreak80.com/newsletter09232009.php

Here are some of my recent articles:
Article – Four Keys To A Perfect Swing

Article – Become A Lights Out Putter With A Practice Routine

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…

Slide and Turn For Distance
Sticking It With A Hybrid
Question of the Week – Increasing Driving Accuracy
Article – Five Keys For A Simple Swing
Article – A Simple Plan To Improve Your Short Game

Jack’s Note: Golf’s playoffs are finally here… the Fedex Cup. I am personally nota huge fan of it because I think the real trophies are the four majors. But I will say it keeps the season interesting.

How much is a good golf lesson worth? It really depends on how bad you want to improve I guess. And now we have a way you can get seven of those priceless lessons for about half of what a normal lesson would cost.

Slide and Turn For Distance

To really drive the ball, you must make a full shoulder turn. By doing so you assure proper weight transfer and boost the chances of swinging on the correct plane. Both things lead to increased distance. But if you’re going to drive the ball, you also must employ your hips properly.

Below are the five keys to employing your hips properly:

• Make a smooth transition
• Start down with your hips
• Slide hips slightly toward the target
• Shift weight to front foot
• Return front foot to ground

To hit for power, you must retain the front-side tension built up in the backswing. Ultimately, the tension creates the clubhead speed needed to drive the ball. To retain that tension at the start of the downswing, you must move forward with your hips, slide them slightly toward the target, and then uncoil them back to the left. In other words, slide then turn your hips at the same time.

Also, as you start forward, shift your weight onto your front foot, and return your front heel, pulled up on the backswing, to the ground. During the hip slide-turn, keep your arms and shoulders in the same position they were in at the top of the swing. You can feel the tension of the backswing coil as you complete this sequence.

The best players actually start forward with the hips before the upper body has quite completed the backswing. But that requires perfect timing, so it’s best that weekend golfers slide then turn to start the downswing. Below is a drill that helps improve your shoulder turn:

Get a driver or an iron and take your normal stance. Tuck a golf ball under your back armpit. Now swing the club. If you move your arms without turning properly, the ball drops out. If you execute the turn properly, the ball remains in your armpit throughout the backswing.

This drill teaches you to keep your arms from separating during the backswing. From there, it’s just a matter of following the sequence described above. If you do that, you should start getting additional distance from your drives.

Sticking It With A Hybrid

For those who watched the final round of the PGA Championship, the shot of the day was Y.E Yang’s chip-in for an eagle. It gave him a one shot lead over Tiger Woods, which Yang never lost. But an equally critical shot was Yang’s second shot on the 18th—a hybrid draw to within 12 feet of the pin. That shot was just as important and dramatic as the chip-in because it sealed the win. It’s a great shot to be able to hit on command. Let’s review the shot’s keys:.

Below are six keys to hitting the hybrid draw:

• Adopt a closed stance
• Hood the clubface
• Follow an inside path
• Hit down, not up
• Stop short of parallel
• Turn the hands over

You have to make some minor adjustments to hit a good hybrid draw. Begin by setting up with the ball slightly back in a closed stance. To ensure a low, right-to-left ball flight (for right-handers), hood the clubface by turning its toe toward the target. To hit a higher, hybrid draw, position the clubface square to the ball, and put a little more weight on your back foot. Also, move the ball slightly forward.

When swinging, concentrate on taking the club back inside. Pull the club back as usual, but stop well short of parallel on your backswing. Once you get to the top, swing down, as if you were hitting an iron off the fairway. Turn your hands over on the way through the ball, with the right hand eventually resting on the left. Also, maintain the slight bend that occurs in your right wrist all the way through impact.

Of course, you’ll need to practice a hybrid draw to ingrain the feeling of hitting one solidly. But once you get the hang of it, you’ll be able to hit the hybrid draw on command. It’s a good safe shot to have in your bag of tricks.

Question of the Week – Increasing Driving Accuracy

Q. Hi Jack, My main problem with my woods is a fade. Occasionally, I hit a slice with my woods. The driver is the worst. My 3-wood is the better of the woods, at 60-70% accuracy. With my irons I usually reach the greens in regulation. I have broken my handicap in my last three rounds and used metals for no more that five strokes. Currently playing off 23 my goal is to reach 10. This will require more accuracy with my drivers. Any suggestions?

Regards
Geoff Dening

A. Thanks, Geoff. Accuracy is about balance, control, and rhythm. So when it comes to my students, I generally tell them: Keep your swing on plane, maintain good rhythm, and control your clubface. Don’t lift your right heel (for right-handed golfers) too high. Don’t pin your right elbow to your body. And feel your right shoulder hit your chin as you make contact with the ball.”

If I had to give mental tips, I would keep the five tips below in mind the next time you have to hit the fairway:

• Don’t assume your going to hit a perfect shot
• Relax. Don’t allow tension to creep into your set-up
• Tee up on the side of trouble to guard against a bad shot
• Aim for a clear definite target within reach
• Don’t worry about distance. Accuracy is the priority.

Keeping these mental tips in mind and using proper swing mechanics will help improve your accuracy.

Here’s a drill used by Davis Love III to improve accuracy. His father taught it to him when the son was young. The father had young Davis work on hitting 125 yards shots and then 150-yard shots while taking a full driver swing. Once Davis learned this, he progressed to 175, 200, and 250 yards. The drill lengthens your swing arc, helps develop great control, and creates a heightened sense of rhythm.

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

To view this newsletter online, please visit:
http://www.howtobreak80.com/newsletter08262009.php

Here are some of my recent articles:
Article – Five Keys For A Simple Swing

Article – A Simple Plan To Improve Your Short Game

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…

Hitting A Long Explosion Shot
Hitting A Flop Shot From Bare Ground
Question of the Week – Hitting A Ball Above Your Feet
Article – Which Shot Hits The Spot?
Article – Swing Keys Help Trim Golf Handicap

Hitting A Long Explosion Shot

A greenside bunker 20 to 30 yards from the pin isn’t where you want to be with an approach shot or a drive. But even the best of us find ourselves there occasionally. The long explosion shot from a distant bunker is one of the hardest shots for weekend golfers to make, if not the hardest.

Below are six tips for hitting a long explosion shot:

1. Close your stance instead of opening
2. Widen your stance a couple of inches
3. Work your feet firmly into the ground
4. Concentrate on just skimming the sand
5. Rotate the clubface open to closed

The keys to this shot are two adjustments in your stance. Since you want to make a long accelerating swing, you need a firm foundation. Widening your stance helps. So does working your feet into the ground. But don’t work them in so much that you can’t move them. In addition, close your stance. Your feet should be parallel. That lengthens your swing and makes it easier to bring the club into the ball from inside the line of play.

Use your sand wedge for this shot and focus on just skimming the sand as you go through the ball. Also, rotate the clubface from open to closed on the downswing, which you can do by turning your right hand over your left through impact. Incorporating these adjustments into your stance helps you hit an accurate shot.

We can’t stop ourselves from landing in a bunker 20 to 30 yards from the green. No one can. But good golfers get out in one. Hitting a long explosion shot will help you do that, keep your scores in check, and trim strokes from your golf handicap.

Hitting A Flop Shot From Bare Ground

Phil Mickelson hits accurate flop shots from difficult lies—including bare ground. Hitting a flop shot from bare ground is a challenge. It’s also risky. If you mis-hit it, it can cost you strokes big time. That’s why golfers stay away from hitting a flop shot from this type of lie. But when you have to do it, a flop shot from bare ground can help turn three strokes into two.

Below are six keys to hitting a flop shop from bare ground:

1. Use a lob wedge with minimal bounce
2. Keep the shaft vertical or leaning away
3. Swing your arms to the left (right for left-handers)
4. Swing longer for higher shots
5. Keep legs quiet throughout the shot
6. Complete your follow-through

The secret to hitting a flop shot from bare ground is the wedge’s sole. Use a lob wedge with a sole that has minimal bounce—especially in the heel. Bounce is the flange on the club’s sole that extends below the leading edge. To hit a good shot, you must use the bounce effectively.

Also, keep the shaft vertical or slightly leaning away from the target, which means your hands will be even with or slightly behind the ball. Keeping the shaft vertical exposes the club’s bounce and enables its leading edge to slide under the ball. You want the trailing edge to go into the ground.

And keep your legs quiet from start to finish. On the follow-through, swing your arms to the left (right for right-handers). This prevents the club from de lofting and bouncing off the ground and into the ball. Remember, the longer your swing the higher the ball goes. But it travels only slightly farther.

This approach to hitting a flop shot works for any lie. Of course, there’s no flop shot approach that’s fail-safe. That’s why you need to be judicious about when you use it. But if you’re going to use it, make sure you commit to the shot before swinging.

Question of the Week – Hitting A Ball Above Your Feet

Q. Dear Jack, My question is, whenever I have a shot where my feet are lower than the ball I tend to take more dirt than I would like to, loosing all power and distance.

Help?
Judy Siblock
Northern Ontario, Canada

A. Thanks for the question, Judy. Hitting a ball above your feet is simply a matter of making a few adjustments.

Three things can happen when you don’t make the right adjustments. First, since the ball automatically moves left to right, you’ll pull the shot out of bounds. Second, on shots above your feet, you can shift your upper body forward during the swing and come into the ball at a lower than normal, hitting the ball fat. Third, you can lose your balance and pop out of you stance, resulting in a weak slice.

To hit a ball above your feet, adjust your stance so you’re aiming right of the flagstick, which compensates for the tendency to pull the ball left. Center your weight above your arches feet, not on the balls of your feet, which helps you swing along the slope and stay in balance throughout the shot. And keep your posture constant so you can maintain the same spine angle you set at address through impact. You can also choking down on the club.

Make these adjustments next time you have this type of lie and you’ll hit the ball solidly.

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

Here are some of my recent articles:

Which Shot Hits The Spot?

Swing Keys Help Trim Golf Handicap

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.