I just put together another video for you on swing plane.
With the right swing plane you’ll make solid contact more consistently and hit it further. With the wrong plane you will continue to struggle.
Today’s video is all about knowing what YOUR own swing plane is. Specifically, how to determine it for your own swing and how to get back on track when you start mishitting the ball.
The best part of this 5 minute video is that we go over the proper swing planes for both tall and short players (yes, we all have different planes.)
I’m sure you’ll enjoy this one and will learn a lot. Give it a gander.
I just put together another video for you on swing plane.
With the right swing plane you’ll make solid contact more consistently and hit it further. With the wrong plane you will continue to struggle.
Today’s video is all about knowing what YOUR own swing plane is. Specifically, how to determine it for your own swing and how to get back on track when you start mishitting the ball.
The best part of this 5 minute video is that we go over the proper swing planes for both tall and short players (yes, we all have different planes.)
I’m sure you’ll enjoy this one and will learn a lot. Give it a gander.
1) How To Squat For Power
2) Make The Second Shot Count
3) Question of the Week – Handling Loose Sand Over A Hard Surface
4) Article – Sorting Out The Spin On Golf Balls
5) Article – Crush It Off The Tee 1) How To Squat For Power
There are certain techniques that pro golfers weekend golfers you shouldn’t use. The reason: Weekend golfers lack the athleticism to use them. On the other hand, there are certain techniques that pro golfers make that weekend golfers can—and should—copy. Squatting for power is one. Many pro golfers make this move to add yards to their drives. It’s Tiger Woods signature move and a key reason he’s able to drive the ball a ton.
Here are seven keys to making an effective power squat:
1. Squeeze your shoulder blades
2. Keep your arms near your body
3. Drop your hands straight down
4. Turn your hips to the left
5. Flex the knees slightly
6. Throw your arms past the ball
7. Point your right shoulder at the target
Once your set up, flex your knees slightly and move your weight over the balls of your feet. Then, squeeze your shoulder blades together and relax your neck muscles, encouraging your arms to extend naturally. Keep your arms close to your body as you go into your backswing and rotate your left arm as you near the top.
At the top, keep your torso turned by the same amount as you start to pivot your hips toward the target. This sends your torque sky-high. Flex your knees downward ever so slightly, as if you were going to sit down. Don’t just bend your torso. Now drop your hands straight down like their being pulled by your hips.
As you approach impact, slow down your lower body so your arms can release properly. After impact, “throw” your arms past the ball. This improves your extension and eliminates the instinct to steer the shot. Finish by getting your back shoulder to point at the target, which encourages you to release the club and increases your clubhead speed.
Next time you see your favorite pro on the tee, watch him or her closely. See if he or she makes a power squat to generate those extra yards on their drives. If he or she does, feel free to copy it. It’s one technique you can—and should—copy from the pros. 2) Make The Second Shot Count
Your drive lands in the fairway on a long par 5. You’re in good position, but you need a good second shot to capitalize on your drive. You know you can’t reach the green in two even with your best 3-wood shot; however, your tempted to hit your 3-wood anyway hoping to get as close to the hole as possible. But hitting the 3-wood—an easy club to hit off line—can get you in trouble.
Consider these three questions before hitting it:
1. Is the pin clear?
2. Is the pin protected?
3. What’s your favorite approach club?
Before hitting the 3-wood, check out the pin’s placement. Is it in the center of the green unprotected? If it is, use your 3-wood, but make a controlled swing to a target. Don’t use a wild swing and get yourself in trouble. If you pick a good landing spot and hit it, you’ll have an unobstructed chip to the hole.
If the pin is protected, rethink your strategy. If there’s a bunker or other obstruction between you and the pin, you don’t want to be 20 to 30 yards away. You won’t be far enough away to put backspin on the ball and stop it. So even if you hit a good shot, you’re out of position. Instead, select a shot that leaves you with a full pitching or sand wedge to the green.
If you don’t hit your pitching wedge well, but you’re lights out with another club, like a 9-iron better, pick a landing spot with your second that’s about 120 yards away—a good distance to hit your 9-iron. Focus on that spot when you hit your second shot like it’s the green. You want to hit that shot. If you do, you’ll be hitting your best approach club into the green.
Second shots on long part 5s can present a dilemma. But they don’t have to trouble you. If you lay-up wisely, you can make par or birdie and save yourself strokes. 3) Question of the Week – Handling Loose Sand Over A Hard Surface
Q. Hi, Jack. Is your chipping technique good for sand traps that have no sand only fluff on top, even one close to green? Or, will there be problems getting over the lips? My home course has rocky sand traps. The club just bounces off top of the sand. It’s very hard to get a layer of sand to send the ball out on blast shots.
Thanks,
Norm
A. Thanks, Norm. Hitting from loose sand over a hard surface is tricky. If you dig down too deeply with the clubface, you’ll hit the hard underbelly. That slows the clubhead down and causes you to leave the ball in the bunker.
Here how to approach this shot systematically:
* Determine the sand’s hardness by testing it with your shoes. This tells you if the sand is hard-packed, just firm, soft with a thin crust, or soft with a hard underbelly.
* If the sand is firm, replace the sand wedge with a pitching wedge. It digs in and under the ball better than a sand wedge, preventing skulling. Also, set up a little wider than normal. Make a low sweeping takeaway. And hit down briskly an inch behind the ball
* If the sand is hard-packed, like Norm’s, play the ball as you would from hard dirt. Square the blade of pitching wedge, position the ball back in your stance, and set the hands ahead of the ball. Pick it cleanly from the surface.
* If the sand has a thin crust, play the shot as a typical bunker shot. Use a sand wedge, especially if the sand is deep and powdery.
Don’t let bunker shots get to you. Most have a slight margin for error. Attack them confidently. Getting out of them in one regularly will shave strokes from your scores and golf handicap.
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
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.
All golfers want to improve. Those serious about doing so take golf lessons from professionals or study golf tips offered in books, magazines, and newsletters, like mine. Usually, the golf lessons and golf tips focus on swing flaws. Refining your swing to eliminate flaws is a great way to improve ballstriking. Understanding how club design dictates the quality of impact is also a great way to improve ballstriking. In fact, it may be just as good, if not better than, working at eliminating swing flaws.
When we discuss club design, we usually talk clubhead size or shaft materials. These can affect your ballstriking and shot distance. But here we want to discuss a different aspect of club design. A club has three key design features:
* shaft lean toward target,
* significant lie (or shaft lean toward body),
* center of gravity
These features exist in every club, even your putter. They contain secrets on how to swing your drivers, wedges, and irons to improve your ballstriking, if we interpret them correctly. In other words, if we look at the features closely, we’ll see how they dictate proper golf swing mechanics.
Shaft Lean Toward Target
Shaft lean is the first, and possibly the most important, club design feature to consider. If you sole a club properly in your normal address position, you’ll see that the club sits on an angle where the handle leans slightly toward the target. The angle is important. It represents the angle at which the club must be delivered to the ball at impact to create optimal pressure. This pressure compresses a ball to a portion of its original size when hit, just like a racquet does with a tennis ball does when it’s hit or a wall does when rubber is thrown against it.
Effective ball compression causes the ball to spring off a clubface at maximum velocity. The only way to effectively compress the golf ball—and produce crisp, clean shots—is to deliver a forward leaning shaft at impact, whether you’re swinging a driver, iron, or wedge. This leads to maximum distance. A backward leaning shaft, on the other hand, doesn’t achieve maximum distance because it lacks the pressure needed to compress the ball enough to maximize impact.
Using A Backward Leaning Shaft
Most golfers present a backward leaning shaft at impact, where the club’s handle leans away from the target instead of toward it. A backward leaning shaft reduces the compression being delivered to the ball, leading to poor contact, poor direction, and a serious loss of distance. But you can learn to deliver a forward-leaning shaft with few simple chipping and pitching drills:
Begin by using a sand wedge. Place the ball well back in your stance to play a chip shot. The shaft should lean forward so that the handle is positioned in front of the clubhead, with your hands in front of your left pant pleat. Using your arms and shoulders only, swing the club back and through. Make sure you lead the handle of the club through the impact area. Hold the finish. The shaft should line up with your left arm and the ball should pop in the air. You’ve just hit a chip.
Next, widen your stance. Place the ball in the center of your feet. Make the same swing as before, but add some wrist hinge on your backswing. This will carry the ball a little further. Make sure to lead with the handle through impact as before. Continue to the same follow through position as the chip. You’ve just hit a pitch and run.
Keep Impact Attitude in Mind Finally, hit some shots with your full swing, while keeping the same “impact attitude” in mind, as you have for the previous shots. You should notice a big difference in the quality of contact you get from this swing.
Forward-shaft lean is one of three key club design features. These features point the way to efficient swings when examined closely. Forward-shaft lean encourages you to swing the ball with a forward-leaning shaft at impact just like you’re taught in golf instruction sessions and like how the clubmakers designed the club to be swung. If you want improved ballstriking, you must strike the ball with the impact attitude designed into the club. If you do, you’ll hit longer, straighter shots that will help take strokes off your golf handicap.
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 handicap immediately. He has a free weekly newsletter with the latest golf tips, golf lessons and golf instruction.
1) How To Drain 15-Footers
2) Knock It Close From Ultra-Short Range
3) Question of the Week – Dropping It Close From A Long Distance Bunker
4) Article – Use Forward-Shaft Lean To Hit Crisp, Clean Shots
5) Article – Curing Your Putting Woes
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1) How To Drain 15-Footers
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Alignment is a precursor to your shot. If you’re not aligned properly in the box or on the fairway, you’ll be away with your shot. The same holds true in putting—especially when it comes to mid-range putts. If your putterface points open just a degree left or right of your intended target on a 15-footer, you’ll miss the hole by three inches. If you want to drain more 15-footers, aligning yourself to the hole is key.
Below are six keys to a dead on alignment method:
1. Hold your putter with your dominant hand
2. Stand behind the ball with your putter
3. Walk to the ball holding your putter in one hand
4. Set the putter behind the ball
5. Keep your eyes on your line the entire time
6. Turn your eyes down to the ball
If your read is right, you have a good chance of draining mid-range putts. The best way to make sure your read is right is by aligning yourself with the hole.
Start by taking the putter in your dominant hand. Then walk behind the ball to determine your line. Make sure you’re directly behind the ball. Now walk to the hole, holding the putter in your hand. Keep your eyes on your line. Set your putter behind the ball and point the face at the target.
Keeping your eyes on your line, take your stance and place your other hand on the grip. Once you’re settled in, turn your eyes down. Look at the hole to identify distance and pull the trigger. Once you set the putter down, don’t re-aim it. You’re already aligned it dead straight.
Practice this method a few times to you nail it down. Once you do, it will help you drain more 15-footers.
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2) Knock It Close From Ultra-Short Range
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Normally, you shouldn’t break the game’s basics. But sometimes you find yourself in a situation where you must—such as when you have a decent lie in a greenside bunker and the hole is up close. If you can’t hit the ball high from the bunker, it will be hard to drop it close using your standard bunker shot. Instead, try this alternative.
Below are 7 keys to this shot:
1. Set up square to your target
2. Play the ball forward in your stance
3. Tilt your upper body away from target
4. Aim for an inch behind the ball
5. Keep your weight back at impact
6. Allow the club to pass under your hands
In this situation your standard bunker shot calls for you to hit a cut shot. This won’t work here. Instead, grab your lob wedge from the bag and set up square to the target, with the clubface pointing to your landing spot. Position the ball off your front heel and tilt your body away from the target.
In addition, aim for a spot an inch behind the ball and keep your weight back as the club enters the sand. You should feel like you’re slapping the club against the sand under the ball.
As you swing the clubhead past your hands, don’t slap it to the left (right, if your left-handed). Your right hand should flip under your left, so that the club points straight up in your follow-through, not back behind you. The ball should come out high, like a flop shot, and drop near the hole.
Normally, you shouldn’t disregard the fundamentals. But sometimes, you must. Hitting a flop shot from a bunker is one of those times. This shot is worth trying if your bunker shots barely clear the bunker’s front lip, or you take too much sand when using a sand wedge and leave the ball in the bunker.
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3) Question of the Week – Dropping It Close From A Long Distance Bunker
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Q. Hi, there. I’m have so many problems hitting out of the sand from about 50 to 80 yards out. They never seem to stick for me on the green. But as soon as I get up close, you’d think I was I pro. Please help it’s driving me crazy.
Thanks again
Dan Borse
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
A. Thanks for the question, Dan. Don’t feel too bad about not being good at this shot. It isn’t easy. But there is a technique that should give you a better chance of hitting the green and sticking.
First, use your 9-iron on this shot. It gives you the extra distance you need to hit the green.
Take your normal stance. Set your clubface slightly open at address, but square it like you usually do. Pull your feet in closer together, but don’t dig them into the sand too much, just a little. This will produces a shallower divot when you swing and gets the club and the ball moving faster down the target line.
When you swing, turn through the shot, just like you do with a normal iron shot. You’ll need extra body with this shot, so keep everything moving—body, arms, and club—to a full finish.
And keep your back heel down. You won’t have a solid stance with this shot, so keeping your heel down helps stability. And don’t try pivoting on your back heel. You’ll lose your balance.
These adjustments, combined with extra body behind the ball, should land you on the green and leave you in position to complete the up and down.
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
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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.
