Golf Swing Advice For New Golfers

What Is Golf Etiquette?

2011-11-04T08:37:00.001-07:00

Golf Etiquette
The game of golf is unusual in the fact that referees and officials are normally absent when the game is being played, this relies on honesty and integrity by the players to obey the rules and show consideration to other players, sportsmanship and courtesy is the spirit of golf, and this should be emphasized to all new golfers. Etiquette on the golf course is not just for good manners, it is also for safety and this should be remembered at all times.

Distractions
Golf is a game of concentration, so distractions should be avoided. Cell phones should be turned off on the golf course. Raised voices should only be used to warn other players of impending peril. Rustling money or papers, whispering, or removing or replacing golf clubs in the golf bag should be avoided while another player is taking their shot. Unnecessary movements can be a distraction especially if within the peripheral vision of a player taking their shot. Do not stand close to another golfer that is taking a shot or even just practicing, this is not only distracting for the player, it is also dangerous.

Slow Play
Players should never hold up play unnecessarily, sometimes it is unavoidable but care should be taken to avoid holding up golfers behind them. To this end they should endeavor to be ready to take their shot when it is their turn to play. In the normal course of events the golfer whose ball is furthest from the hole is the next player to take their shot. Always wait for the group in front to be out of playing range before taking a shot. If you think that your golf ball has gone out of bounds or is in a water hazard then you should play a provisional ball, if you find your original ball and it is playable, then you simply pick up your provisional ball, however if your ball is lost then you will not have to return to your previous position to retake the shot.

Damage
Players should be careful to replace and repair any divots made by them on the fairway and any pitch marks (indentations) made by the golf ball impacting on the putting green. Sand should be raked after bunker shots to remove any traces of your presence, the rake should be replaced at the side of the bunker, not in the bunker. All damage on a golf course by a golfer should be repaired.

On the Green
Care should be taken not to damage the putting surface of the green, golf bags and golf trolleys should not be on the green. Players should take care to avoid standing on the line of play of another golfers shot, impressions caused by golf shoes on the green can cause the golf ball to roll off line. Casting a shadow on another player or on their putting line or the hole when they are putting can be a distraction and should therefore be avoided.

Golf etiquette is an important part of the game of golf, it should be learned and adhered to at all times.

Avoiding Thin Shot In Golf

2009-12-22T07:46:00.000-08:00

First of all, the thin shot is not always a bad shot. Some of the better golfers even play it intensionally at times, but for most golfers it is a mis-hit, and so avoiding the thin shot in golf can be a priority for some, especially if it is a frequently recurring problem. In any case, at least one swing fault will be a contributory factor, it often goes hand-in-hand with the dreaded golf slice.

So what exactly is a thin shot in golf, apart from being the opposite of a fat shot?

The simplest explanation is when the bottom of the club head, or blade, makes contact too high with the golf ball, usually at the midway point or slightly below. This sends the ball off on a low trajectory which usually ends up traveling further than intended and the direction of the shot is often unpredictable leading to an inconsistent golf swing.

Thin shots are generally caused by players pulling their body up prior to impact, common among golfers that hunch their shoulders forward at address, or releasing the club to early so that the club head gets ahead of the hands before impact.

Having the wrong swing plane can also cause thin shots in golf. Standing too far from the ball can make the golfer hunch their shoulders forward making them have to stretch in order to reach the ball, this produce a flatter swing plane regardless of the golf club used. Standing too upright produces a lot of fault symptoms, normally a slice because the club head will follow an out-to-in swing plane, but a thin shot is also a common result.

Swaying towards your back foot during the back swing and not swaying back during the downswing enough can also cause a thin shot. Just try and avoid swaying all together, it's not necessary and too hard to judge right that it's best not to do it at all. Swaying is not the same thing as the weight transfer towards your back foot on the back swing and towards your front foot on the downswing, this is different from swaying. You can easily improve your golf swing just by eliminating the unwanted swaying motion.

Your shoulders, point too far left or right, at address can also produce thin shots and is often overlooked as a source of this mis-hit.

These are some of the more common things to look out for when you're avoiding thin shot in golf. If you understand the swing faults that cause it you'll have a far better chance of deciding which fault you have to correct and eliminate it for good.

Improve Your Golf With Custom Fitted Clubs

2009-09-28T07:28:00.000-07:00

What do most golfers do when they're having trouble with their golf swing or not getting the results they want?

Well, it’s amazing how many golfers read everything that they need to know about a backswing, downswing, stance, and grip but tend to forget about one very important aspect of their game – club fitting. Listen, if your club doesn't fit you perfectly there is a good chance you are adding loft or flex to the shaft that could create a variety of bad shots.

Let me just get one thing straight before I go any further. If you suck at golf there is no magic way to improve your game and make you a better golfer. There is no custom fitted, top of the line, golf clubs that will do this for you. This is not what I am trying to say. However, if you play a decent game of golf you can greatly benefit from golf club fitting. There is an excellent chance that you will fix many areas of your game such as a slice or hook. Most golfers from beginners to experienced are playing with the wrong equipment and it’s hurting their game significantly.

Customizing your golf club to your grip size could correct that nasty slice or hook almost overnight. While a custom fitted club length will give you a more consistent swing that will also minimize the risks of injury. These are two key factors in the improvements that you can make in your game and, as you already know, a major part of the type of game that you play is consistency.

When you are looking for a club fitting there are a few things that you will want to inquire about before choosing just any club fitter to handle this important task for you. It’s important that you are looking for a good club fitter that will take various factors into consideration. One of the best techniques to finding a reputable club fitter in your area is to visit your local course and talk to the top amateurs. Find out who they are using for their club fittings and repairs.

I have seen numerous players add 20-30 yards almost instantly to their drives by getting fitted for the proper shaft. Just grabbing a stock driver off of the shelf and assuming that, just because it is Nike or Callaway, it should fit your swing. Take the time to get properly fitted and I promise you will see instant results.

The Fade Golf Shot

2009-09-01T12:18:00.000-07:00

The Golf Fade v. The Golf Slice

The fade golf shot is the baby brother of the slice golf shot, and like the slice it starts off heading left (righties) of the target and then curves right back towards the target again. The big difference between the slice and the fade is how much it curves to the right, a slice usually continues curving well off target. The golf slice, being more severe, is never a good golf shot and is regarded as a fault, whereas the golf fade is a very useful shot to have in your armory. Because of the spin imparted on the golf ball it flies higher and lands softer with very little run on the ball making it an excellent approach shot for the green, it also decreases the distance the ball would normally travel so this has to be taken into account.

Jack Nicklaus used the fade golf shot extensively and Lee Trevino is another great golfer that sung the praises of the fade shot, but they are not alone, all tour pros use the fade shot, some more than others, indeed tour pros seldom hit a straight shot, they prefer to get shape into their golf shots which gives them greater control over the golf ball.

Most new or weekend golfers hit fades and slices all the time, with them though, it is a fault because it is unintended and they have no control over the direction or extent of the shot, or even when it happens. However, the techniques to produce the fade are the same, even if the weekend golfers are doing it accidentally.

To produce a fade we need to impart clockwise spin on the golf ball, this is best done by changing the swing plane from in-to-out to an out-to-in one. This is when the club head crosses over the target line during the downswing, it causes the club head to come across the golf ball at impact which causes the ball to spin clockwise. It's important that the club face remains square to the target line at impact to avoid turning the fade into a slice.

The easiest way to do this is to set up as normal but line up feet, hips and shoulders slightly left of the target but keep the club face lined up on the target. You should feel as if you're using a slightly open stance, the rest of your swing remains the same as normal. Some golfers find it helpful to position the golf ball slightly forward in their stance than they normally would, but don't overdo this, the width of a ball or very slightly more should be plenty.

If you find this awkward or difficult to execute correctly then try setting up for a normal straight shot making sure that the club face is aiming directly for the target, then, keeping the club face still, simply realign your body to aim left of the target then take your normal golf swing.

Once you manage to produce the fade golf shot on demand you'll be surprised how often you will use it. But, before you decide to make it your favorite shot get to the driving range and perfect it first. This is not a shot that is kept solely for your driver or as a tee shot, you can use this with almost all of your golf clubs and is most useful as an approach shot to the green. But it does take practice, so practice the golf fade with your irons as well as fairway woods.

Fix Your Inconsistent Golf

2009-08-15T04:47:00.001-07:00

Advice for an Inconsistent Golf Swing

Inconsistency in golf can be caused by several different things, but the two most common contributors to inconsistency in golf is fitness and getting the basics wrong. We're going to concentrate on the getting the golf swing basics right in this post, but that doesn't mean that you should ignore your golf fitness. An increase on flexibility, getting the right golf muscles stronger and working for you, being fit enough to last a full round of golf both physically and mentally is very important to your overall ability and enjoyment of golf, it works wonders when you're trying to improve your golf swing.

So, onto the golf swing and why it's inconsistent. There are lots of reasons for inconsistency in your golf swing, but one of the biggest reasons, and one that's seldom talked about, is that your mind and body get a bit confused at times. For instance, if you suffer from a golf slice, which most of us have at some point, then you'll no doubt have tried compensating for this wayward shot by lining up and aiming your shot down the other side of the fairway. For right-handers, that means aiming down the left side of the fairway and allowing for the slice to pull the shot back into the center. I'll bet it didn't work, your shot probably still curved well off to the right.

The problem is that your brain subconsciously compensates for you all the time, and during the golf swing it will have realigned you for your normal shot. the other problem between our minds and our bodies is that we are seldom doing what we think we are. This is not as unexpected as you might think because we don't actually see ourselves executing the golf swing, it's all in our imagination. We just trust that what we are intending to do is actually happening.

Now, having said all that, the number one biggest reason for an inconsistent golf swing is not getting the basics right. Whether that's because you never learned the basic golf swing in the first place, have forgotten the basic golf swing, or are just stubbornly using the swing that you think is right even when your results tell you different, doesn't really matter. To get any kind of consistency in your golf swing, you have to know and understand the basic golf swing, the most fundamental golf swing that all golf swing styles are based on.

The Simple Swing system was designed to not only teach you the correct swing, but to give you a thorough understanding of the golf swing and the correct thought processes that we need in order to achieve a good consistent golf swing. We are all different in physique and the ways in which we think and analyse, so we need a golf swing that suits our own particular shape, size, and ability.

Some Cures For A Golf Slice

2009-07-28T13:07:00.001-07:00

A Golf Slice Needs A Cure

This is going to sound obvious, if you want to cure a golf slice then you're really trying to hit a straight shot. The problem is, just how do you go about straightening out your golf slice.

Well, here is a list of several things to try, they are all capable of helping you overcome a golf slice, it all depends on what your particular fault is. So, try them all and see which of them has a positive effect on your golf swing and ball flight.

It's important to only try one of these cures at a time, never try more than one of them, and take note of what happens. It's also important to give each one a fair chance, in other words, don't just try each one once. The driving range is the best place to try these out and give each method five to ten balls, if you don't see any significant improvement after hitting ten shots, then move on to the next tip.

Golf Slice Cure No.1

This one, if it works for you, will probably fix a few golf swing faults for you, especially if you get poor distance from your golf shots and it's very simple but don't underestimate it. Simply turn your back foot in, point your toe straight out or even slightly towards the ball, your front foot stays the same as normal. Most golfers seem to splay their feet when lining up to take their shot, the problem with pointing your toes outwards is that it allows your body to sway. It's true that you will find it easier to turn on the backswing, but for some, it allows too much movement.

With your back foot turned slightly inward, it allows you to create more tension in your backswing by restricting how far back you can turn your hips. This will generate more power if everything else in your golf swing is correct. It will also help your golf swing to follow the correct swing plane and prevent an out-to-in swing plane that causes a golf slice.

Golf Slice Cure No.2

If golf slice cure no.1 doesn't work for you, then there's a good chance that the fault lies in your grip. The real problem is likely to be that your hands are turning during the backswing and failing to turn back in the downswing. If you try using a stronger right hand grip (for righties), keep the back of your left hand facing the target, but instead of having both palms facing each other, turn your right slightly more under the grip. This will have the effect of trying to close the club face during the downswing, after all, it's an open club face at impact that is one of the major causes of a golf slice.

Golf Slice Cure No.3

Your hands and arms lagging behind your body, in other words, your body turns faster than your arms during the downswing. This will cause a golf slice. The one-piece takeaway will help you eliminate this fault if you execute it correctly. It's all to do with the triangle formed between your shoulders and your hands at address. If you maintain this triangle during the backswing then you have performed a one-piece takeaway.

To help you with trying this one, it's probably better if you keep your feet together during your golf swing. This helps you to balance properly and encourages you to have a compact swing that will be more likely to be on the right swing plane. It makes it almost impossible to let your body get in front of your arms and hands during the downswing and will help you get the feel of keeping your timing and tempo correct, if you don't, you will lose balance.

If using one of the above golf tips helps to straighten out your golf slice but doesn't cure it entirely, then you can try incorporating one of the other tips as well as the one that helped. Sometimes, using a method of elimination can be a good way to identify a particular fault in your golf swing, it can also be a good way to identify cures for your swing faults as well. The important thing is to be methodical in your approach and don't change more than one thing at a time until you have decided whether each alteration has worked or not.

New Golfers Golf Equipment Tips and Advice

2009-07-05T06:46:00.000-07:00

Does Golf Equipment Affect Your Golfing Skills?

Golf Equipment

Are you blaming your stance, golf swing and technique for your golf miss-hits? The problem may just lie elsewhere. Sometimes your golf equipment simply does not suit your physique or style of golf swing, and it makes no difference how much time and effort you have been spending practicing to improve your golf swing and perfect your game. You still won't achieve your objectives if you're using unsuitable or defective golf clubs, will you?

This might be the right time for you to consider some of the following golf tips regarding the suitability and condition of your golf equipment. For instance, worn grips, or even the wrong size of grips, can make a big difference to your golf swing. You might just cure your golf slice in the process.

Suitable Golf Clubs

If you plan to choose used golf clubs as beginner's golf equipment, scrutinizing them before purchasing is a must. The clubheads, the shafts, and the grips are the golf club parts that should pass inspection first, before deciding whether they are good enough to land a decent spot in your golf equipment cabinet. Another excellent golf tip that will stand you in good stead when choosing used golf clubs, is making sure that the set of used golf clubs you're considering, have set consistency. It will also help a lot if you know the price of new clubs vs. used, and remember that sometimes, buying second hand doesn't always work out to be the cheaper option in the long run.

Golf Club Grips

Here's a golf tip for new golfers that plan to regrip their clubs. Be cautious. This is because the grips are the only contact point between you and your golf club, and it can therefore affect your golf swing and shot. Before carrying out the regripping, know the core grip of the club and your hands grip size. To determine your core size grip, measure the diameter of the butt of the shaft you're going to re-grip. The shaft's diameter should match the grip's core diameter. In determining your hands grip, the available size grips are regular, mid-size, oversize and jumbo. Use only the best re-gripping materials that will provide optimum performance for your golf clubs.

Golf Club Fitting Service

Another golf tip, and good advice, is that using ill-fitted clubs will not do your golf swing any favors at all, and certainly won't help your game. A golfer must consider his or her body type in choosing the best-fitting golf equipment to support and deliver their golf swing efficiently. Too steep, or shallow, angles in carrying out your golf swing may be avoided if you select the most perfect fitting golf equipment available.

Custom golf club fitting makes a better option than just buying new golf clubs. Getting custom fitted golf clubs is a golf tip that can prove to be a very worthwhile investment, remember, they will last you a long time. The uniqueness of each person, unless you are really lucky, makes it almost a necessity to get your new golf clubs fitted. A custom fitting produces golf clubs that specifically suit the height, strength, swing characteristics and clubhead speed of the golfer.

The type of club shaft also helps in predicting whether you'll do good in a game or you won't.

Golf Clubs With Steel Shafts v Graphite Shafts

There's a choice between a steel club shafts and graphite-made club shafts. This golf tip aims to make you realize which type of golf club shaft will benefit your game. It's ver often the case that the steel club shafts are more preferred by professional golfers while graphite shafts have become more popular with women, senior players and, in particular, beginner golfers. Steel shafts are less expensive than graphite shafts though.

Golf Clubs To Suit Your Skill Level

One more piece of golf advice that could help you is that the golf clubs, that are the main content of your golf bag, must suit your skill level. Since various skill levels need variety of different golf clubs, it won't be wise to just use, or bring, any old golf club that is just lying around. And, don't ever forget about the maximum amount of golf clubs that your bag is allowed to hold. You can only bring 14 golf clubs in your bag. No more. Aside from considering your skill level, your mastery of a particular golf club, and your being comfortable with using it, can't be overlooked.

A good combination of the correct golf swing and good choice of golf equipment will better arm you to become the best golfer you ever could be.

Golf Fitness Challenge Reviews

2009-05-19T12:00:00.000-07:00

Golf Fitness Challenge Reviews

With so many different golf fitness programs popping up on the internet, it is difficult to know which to choose. From my perspective, here are the most important things to consider.

-Is the material provided or workout program written by someone with authority on the subject? Obviously, someone who has had experience in training a wide variety of golfers is going to have some experience to draw from. They should be a knowledgeable, experienced expert on golf fitness.

-Is the program doable and reasonable? This might sound like a silly statement until you've actually tried one of these programs through an internet purchase or by reading a book. If the program is too difficult or requires too much time and effort, then how is it ultimately going to benefit me?

-Will I get results from golf fitness that I can see with my game? Again, it is not necessary to restate the obvious, but why go through an entire program if you don't see tangible results.

For anyone who has ever read any books outlining the basic principles of 'how to be successful' whether it be business, golf or life, the principles are the same. They follow along the lines of...set a specific deadline, have a detailed goal in mind, develop a plan....etc.

These are all the reasons I really love the new Golf Fitness Challenge. It is the brainchild of Susan Hill, a professional golf fitness trainer, and Craig Ballanytne, Men's Health magazine expert. By applying the same principles to success, they have outlined a very specific 6 week golf exercise plan to get the body and game of your dreams. Last fall, they actually ran a real life case study on 20 golfers. They ran their program for both male and female golfers over a 6 week period. The age range was 18 to 65. The handicaps ranged from +3 to 31.

I bet you can guess what happened!

Given a hard deadline and some specific tasks, these golfers made some incredible discoveries and some new found improvement - just in time for prime time golf season!

Here is what a few of them had to say based on the real life testimonials.

I really got a lot more flexible. My shoulder turn improved about 30-40% at least. My hip rotation really improved also. I learned that my glutes, hip flexors, and hamstrings had a whole lot more to do with golf than I had ever imagined.

I had never viewed stretching as a way to make my body feel better and or feel more alive. I had always viewed stretching as something to warm up with. The wholeness of stretching improved my wellness feeling immensely. I just feel better now - bottom line.
Michael, Handicap 9.2, Age 62
I found my core strength improved. This was evident in my increased ability to stay stable in my lower body during the backswing and the initial transition move. I have been striking the ball more crisply.

I have experienced greater flexibility in my hip pelvis region. I am hitting the ball higher than I have in quite some time.

Thank you for including me in your program.
Stephen, Handicap 21, Age 59
For golfers looking to finally achieve some specific measurable results with your game, my money and my time will be placed here, Golf Fitness Challenge.

New Golfers How To Fix Your Golf Swing Advice

2009-05-05T06:59:00.000-07:00

Golf Swing Basics

What is golf without a golf swing? It's fundamental to playing the game of golf. What's more, if you want to be any good at golf, you not only need a golf swing, but you need an efficient, consistent and accurate golf swing. You need a swing that shows no signs of the common faults found in most golfers. In other words, you need advice on how to fix your golf swing.

Any golfer, whether a new golfer or a golfer that's more experienced, needs to know the basic golf swing if they wish to get rid of their swing faults and improve their golf swing overall. Without the basics, this just becomes so difficult to accomplish and the vast majority of golfers, especially weekend golfers, never manage to see any great improvements and certainly not very quickly. The golf swing is the single most worked on part of golf. Almost every golfer is more concerned with their swing than any other part of the game.

This is not a new problem, as long as they have been writing about golf advice and tips, the golf swing is the most written about. Unfortunately, not much is ever written about the basic golf swing, they all seem to concentrate on the full professional swing, whichever the current favorite golf swing style happens to be.

Golf Swing Advice, The Grip

To start any golf swing instruction, it seems only natural to begin with the golf grip. It is after all, the very thing that connects us to the golf club and ultimately to the golf ball, so lets begin with this this link golf swing advice, the grip, it explains the golf grip in some detail and gives you some options. As we are all physically different, there is not just one type of grip that will suit everyone, hand size varies quite dramatically between golfers and this alone requires the use of a different style of golf grip.

Golf Swing Advice, The Address

After the golf grip, it would seem to be appropriate to tackle the golf address as it is the basis, the very foundation, for your complete golf swing. Without a solid and well balanced foundation, your golf swing will be full of intermittent faults and mis-hits.

Golf Swing Advice, The Take Away

The take away can be problematic for a lot of golfers, so for any golf swing advice, the take away has to be included. The biggest problem with the take away seems to be the transition from being at rest at the address to initiating movement at the start of the take away. It needs to be done correctly or unwanted movements will take place, which can ruin your entire swing.

Golf Swing Advice, The Top Of The Backswing

Once the take away has started, the next transition is at the top of the backswing, a change from movement to being static again. The top of the back swing can be very important for a lot of different reasons, it can also show up some pretty basic swing faults.

Golf Swing Advice, The First Move Down

The next part of this golf swing advice, the first move down, is also the next transition from being static to movement again. It's these changes and how best to initiate them that causes the most problems. When it comes to starting the downswing, there are any number of different ways of doing it, but most of them will completely wreck your swing.

Golf Swing Advice, The Downswing

Once the first move down has been initiated, the rest of the downswing then takes over. This, to most golfers, is the most important part of the golf swing. It's the bit that ends up sending the golf ball off on its way. Get this bit wrong and any of a number of possible bad things can happen.

Golf Swing Advice, From Impact To Finish

Here, we will finish off the golf swing advice, from impact to finish is the last part of your complete golf swing. When you are ready for the next step, how to improve your golf swing for beginners would be the next natural choice.

So, for new golfers, advice on and how to fix your golf swing is a complicated prospect. Mainly because the golf swing itself is far more complicated than it seems, or at least, far more complicated than the tour pros make it look. I hope that this has helped you and your golf swing so that very soon you will see some real improvements in your golf swing and your overall game.

Improve Golf Swing

2009-04-20T11:22:00.001-07:00

Improving Your Golf Swing

Looking for golf swing advice to improve your golf swing is like a hobby for a lot of new golfers. They become almost obsessed with finding the tips or secrets that will propel them from novice to professional overnight. It shouldn't really come as any surprise though, few golfers start off by learning the basic golf swing thoroughly. When you look at how we learn most sports, especially field sports, then it becomes easier to understand. We pick up the necessary skills as youngsters playing around with our pals, any scrap of land or a park will do. Golf is a bit harder to pick up this way, it needs so much extra space completely free of other people. That means there is less of a chance of learning golf in this casual way. So how do you go about improving your golf swing?

First of all, whether you realize it or not, almost every golfer has their own unique and individual golf swing. Even the professional golfers have different golf swings from each other. Which makes improving your golf swing a little more difficult, especially if you are trying to improve by picking up swing tips from watching the pros on the box. Trying to emulate the swing that your favorite tour pro has is the last thing you want to do, maybe once you get your handicap down in the low single figures, you might be able to pick up the odd improvement, but until then, you are just wasting your time. The tour pros use a finely tuned golf swing that they have to constantly work on in order to maintain it at it's optimal level, and even they have bad days with their swing. The difference is that they understand their swing so well that they know what to work on to fix it. If you want to hit longer, straighter drives then stop trying so hard to be an instant professional and find out all you can about your own unique swing.

Golf Swing Styles

Just to make things more complicated, there are also a variety of different golf swing styles to choose from, stack and tilt, single plane, two plane and the classic or modern golf swing, to name just a few. Most golf instructors teach the golf swing style that they have chosen to use themselves, mainly because that is the only one they've studied and know. Most golf schools and academies only teach one golf swing style, and that is where the problem lies. all these different golf swing styles work in their own right. They just wont work for everyone.

As I said, we all have different golf swings, and that's because every golfer is different. There are no two golfers that have the same physique, ability, mental attitude, knowledge or even feelings, and how your feeling affects your golf swing. A one-size-fits-all golf swing does not exist. Even a one-style-fits-all swing doesn't work for everyone. We are all unique and because of this, all our swings will be unique as well. That doesn't mean that there will not be similarities, indeed, the fundamental basics of all golf swing styles are the same.

What Is Your Golf Swing?

Every golfer has their own natural golf swing that is dictated by their physique, ability and skill level. It's this swing that should be tweaked to incorporate the basic golf swing fundamentals in order to improve your golf swing. By taking the time to learn and understand the basic golf swing and your own natural swing and abilities, you will reap the rewards and find that improvements will be rapid, and more importantly, lasting.

If you ask most golfers why they fail to improve, they will most likely say that it's because they don't play or practice often enough. But, the reality is that unless you have the correct knowledge and understanding, practice will make no difference. With the right knowledge and understanding of your swing, practice will be more effective and will make all the difference.

Golf Fundamentals

The game of golf is truly an individual sport, whether we are playing on our own or in a foursome, we are really competing against ourselves and our previous performances. This is one of the many unique qualities of golf, and is one of the reasons that it remains challenging no matter what our skill level is. It's also true that the golf swing has certain fundamentals that form the basis for everyone, at least for the ones who bother to learn them.

As I said, the basics are the same for everyone. However, due to the differences in people’s body shape and size, no two people will ever have the same golf swing. Each person will have to adapt their body movements and coordination to perform a proper golf swing in their own way. Taking the time to develop your own method of playing golf will greatly improve your enjoyment and success at the game, but developing your own golf swing has to be done with the right knowledge so that it is based on the proper fundamentals. Practicing the basic fundamentals of the game until they are ingrained in your muscle memory will lead to consistency in your golf swing, something that all golfers strive for.

Keep Your Head Up

One of the most basic faults that golfers have is in their stance, if you are guilty of this, then you can see an immediate improvement very easily. That is to keep your head still and look straight at the ball with your chin up. The position of your head should be straight in line with your spine, and your chin should be raised to allow your shoulder to turn under it during the backswing. A lot of players, especially beginner golfers, tuck their heads into their chest and look straight down at the golf ball. This, of course, restricts the amount of movement they can have with their swing.

The problem with having your chin too low is that your head will have to move during your swing. Your head can move slightly to the right (righties) when your weight shifts to the right during your backswing, but your eyes should still remain parallel to the ground. In other words, your head should not tilt during your swing.

If you are having difficulty with this, try a few practice swings without hitting a golf ball. keeping your head straight and an eye on the ball try to swing your golf club backwards and forwards while keeping your head still and eyes firmly fixed on the ball. If you detect your head tilting, then raise your chin a little more until your head remains still. Now you know what it should feel like for your head to be in the right position at address.

This is something you will need to practice until you can get into the right position without having to think about it. Once your muscle memory has it locked in, you should have no further trouble with this part of your swing. Remember that your spine should be straight as this is the turning point for your entire swing.

Golf is a Balancing Act

Balance is another part of playing golf that is often overlooked. A lot of the time when a golf ball is mis-hit, it's due to coming off balance during the swing. A bad balance causes all sorts of different golf swing faults at any given time. When you have an inconsistent golf swing, you'll most likely spend most of your time trying to sort out all the golf swing mechanics that you can think of. You'll probably change your grip, buy a new driver, get a new set of golf balls, go for a few lessons from your local pro, everything and anything you can think of.

The last thing that you'll look at is your balance. But it should be the first. Balance is the most important part of the golf swing, without good balance you will never be able to hit the golf ball properly with any consistency.

If you think that balance could be one of your swing problems then try these few things. Try and go through the complete golf swing from address all the way through to the finish as slow as you can, it will do a couple of things. You will find out just how good your balance really is, if your swing has any imbalance in it at all, practicing in this slow motion way will show it up very noticeably. Once you have your balance sorted out, continue to practice in slow motion and work on the mechanics of your swing. It will also give you all the time in the world to see and be aware of every part of your golf swing. You will have the time to analyze your swing in a way that is impossible when you are trying to complete the golf swing at normal speed. It's amazing what you will discover, and how it will sort out a lot of your golf swing problems. When you are happy with your swing and your balance, you can try speeding up your swing again... gradually.

You might also try extending this a stage further by doing your slow motion swing with your feet only a couple of inches apart. This is a great way of improving your balance, it also stops you from trying to hit the ball too hard. Give this a try, especially just before you start a round of golf. It is also an effective form of warm up exercise to begin your game with. When you can complete a full swing at normal speed with your feet close together and not come off balance, then you have cracked it.

Improving your golf swing needn't be difficult, if you keep things, especially your swing, as simple and uncomplicated as possible, you will reap the rewards in consistency and trouble free golf. Then you will be in a good position to start working on increasing the distance of your shots.

Golf Swing Basics V

2009-04-10T07:40:00.001-07:00

Golf and Putting

I think it was Harry Vardon who described the putter as "a thing apart" in one of his books. The thing is that he was, and still is, correct. The putter is different from all your other golf clubs in various ways. It is the only golf club with a flat face, no loft at all. You also use an entirely different golf swing and stance than you do for any other golf club, which calls for different golf swing advice.

Of all the golf swings, the putting swing, or stroke, is the most like a pendulum action. Whether you use one of the newer long handled putters that come up to your chin, or one of the traditional sized ones, the putting stroke is essentially the same. The distance to the club head from the pivot point, or axis of rotation, remains the same throughout the swing, a true pendulum action.

I don't know who said this first, but it's been said so often that it doesn't matter. "Drive for show, putt for dough" is the phrase, and we've all seen and heard it time and time again, it's repeated as often as it is because it sums up the importance of putting in the game of golf. Most golfers concentrate all their efforts in perfecting the drive off the tee. The truth is that you will only have a maximum of one drive per hole and if you discount the shorter holes, the average number of drives is only 15 in a round of golf. The short game is much more important to work on if you want to decrease the total number of shots you have in each game of golf.

The masters of golf can drive a ball from here to eternity, but it all boils down to how many strikes of the ball it takes to put the ball in the hole, not how far you can hit the ball. The long accurate drives don't amount to anything if you're unable to putt accurately and end up taking 3 or 4 putts to sink the ball.

Choosing a putter is important, but using, whatever putter you have, consistently, is more so. I've had the same putter for fifteen years, I know what it feels like in my hands, I know its weight and how that plays into my putts.

Putting takes lots of practice. Typically, as I said, we drive the ball fifteen times in a game, but putt at least double that number. Doesn't it stand that we should practice our putting at least twice as much as driving? If you can't get to the practice green regularly, practice on your carpet at home.

Putting is probably the hardest stroke to play in golf because there is less control over the ball. All the other golf clubs fly the ball through the air. Air doesn't differ very much, sure, wind speed and direction varies, but air is air. On the other hand, when putting, the golf ball never leaves the ground. grass varies to a much higher degree than air does, but it's not all that varies, the putting surface is seldom flat and even if it was, the texture, density and height of grass varies a lot, as well as the direction of growth. Putting isn't so much about accuracy as it is about judgment. The judgment you need can only be learned with practice.

Keep in mind that no ball can make it into the hole if it doesn't have enough power behind the golf ball to get there. Three inches past the hole is better than three inches short of the hole. If it has gone too far then at least there was a chance it might have gone in the hole, but if it's short, then it never had any chance of being sunk. Take the time to get down and look at the path from your ball to the hole, does it slant one way or the other? Is it uphill or downhill?

Balance is everything in golf, The whole golf swing relies heavily on your ability to balance. Putting is no different, balance is essential. Stand with your feet spread for balance and line up the putt. Keep your hands, arms and shoulders completely still, imagine that you are a "bobble head" but you move from just below your chest. Keep your head directly over the ball. Pull your club back, keep your hands, wrists, arms and shoulders steady, the movement comes from your chest. Hit the ball, following it with your club.

The golf swing has been likened to a pendulum motion, but in truth, only the putting stroke has a true pendulum motion where the distance from the pivot point to the end of the pendulum, the putter, is always the same. However, if we look at the driver as an example, the distance from the pivot point to the head of the driver is at it's maximum at address. At the top of the backswing, the head of the driver is much closer to the pivot point, the top of your spine. During the downswing the club head moves outward from the pivot point as well as around it. This allows for the centrifugal effect that adds speed to the club head, this is one of the main reasons why the golf swing advice is different for the putting stroke.

So putting and driving are two extremes in golf in more ways than one. They are common in that they both require a great deal of practice. But, there is greater room for error with your driver than with your putter, if your drive goes a few yards too much to the right or left, it can still be a good shot and you will have lost nothing. If your putt goes a few inches to the right or left, then you have missed and it will have cost you a shot. I think it's obvious which one you really need to practice the most.

Golf Basics I
Golf Basics II
Golf Basics III
Golf Basics IV
Golf Basics V

Golf Swing Basics IV

2009-04-09T06:22:00.000-07:00

Golf and The Short Game

In the last article, Golf Basics III, we discussed the long game, we've all seen the long accurate drives of Tiger Woods. The golf ball flies through the air and lands in the middle of the fairway, 300 yards away. The green-eyed monster of envy consumes us as we wonder if we could ever hope to drive like that. Fortunately, long drives are not the be-all-end-all in the game of golf. Typically, there is only 15 drives, or less, in a game of golf.

Enter the short game. Without good short game skills, all the long drives are for naught. The short game is those shots that get us onto the green from about one hundred and fifty yards in, be it from the fairway, a bunker, the rough or a drop zone and includes chips, sand shots and pitches. There are more short game shots in a round of golf than long game ones. So it makes sense to concentrate even more on your short game than on your long game.

This is where your higher numbered golf clubs would be used, as well as your pitching iron, sand wedge or lob wedge. Most experienced golfers view anything from a seven iron up to be the clubs used in the short game.

Most golf courses have practice areas as well as a driving range. Spend some time working on hitting your golf ball onto the green from different distances. Aim for a ten-foot circle in the center of the green at first. Experiment using your wedges; what works for someone else, might not work for you and your particular golf swing.

The short game uses a different technique than the long game, where you are using a full golf swing, it is a more delicate shot. After you get accustomed to doing this practice consistently, it's time to spend some time in a sand trap, also known as a bunker. Knowing how to get the golf ball out of a sand trap will cut your score. A lot of the short game is more about judgment and feeling the shot rather than taking a full swing as you would do in the long game.

Try planting your feet firmly into the sand, with your left foot turned toward the hole, shuffle them to get them bedded into the sand to give you solid base for your stance. This shuffling also lets you know how soft or hard the sand is, remember that you are not allowed to ground the golf club before your shot. Imagine a 4-inch circle around the ball and try to hit the edge of the circle that is away from the ball, that encourages the club head to go under the ball.

Take lots of sand with your golf ball and swing completely. Don't decelerate at all when, or after, you hit the ball. It should pop up onto the green and stop. This doesn't work unless the sand is very soft and powdery. On hard surfaces, you might need to avoid actually hitting the sand.

As in all aspects of the golf game, only practice will help you to improve, and really is the key to mastering the short game. It's mainly judgment, the mechanics of the golf swing in the short game are less complicated than the long game swing because your swing will generally be shorter. So practice a lot and practice often.

Golf Basics I
Golf Basics II
Golf Basics III
Golf Basics IV
Golf Basics V

Golf Swing Basics III

2009-04-08T13:51:00.000-07:00

Golf and The Long Game

You have many golf clubs in your golf bag, The reason is that each shot in golf will require a specific club to hit the golf ball a certain distance. Generally speaking, the longer the length of the golf club, and the lower the golf club number, the longer the golf ball will travel. The long game refers to your drives (shots off the tee) and fairway shots, everything short of the shots you make to get onto the green, and therefore, reqires different golf swing advice.

Each hole has a different difficulty level, different par and distinctive hazards, so instructing you to use your driver golf club on every tee would be blatantly wrong. Most par 3's, for instance, wouldn't involve the use of a driver.

This is something you will learn over time as you gain more experience and learn the various shots you make with each golf club, the placement of the ball and your personal golf swing. Some golfers get far more distance from any given golf club than others do.

Generally speaking, the lower the club number, the longer and lower your ball will go. A 4-iron shot will travel long and low and will most likely roll, whereas a 9-iron shot will have much more loft, so the ball will fly higher, and go less distance forward both in the air and on the ground.

The tour pros on television make it look so easy, they consistently hit the ball long and straight and never miss-hit the ball making it dribble ten feet, or completely miss the ball. Although they do, at times, have a wayward shot, every golfer does, especially new golfers.

Using the driver is very important to the game, and many hours spent at the driving range will help improve your distance and direction. Experimenting and trying different things, especially with your golf swing, is all part of the game of golf. It's important for you to know exactly what you can do with each of of your golf clubs, not just your driver. The same applies for your setup, like the placement of the golf ball for each of your clubs. For example, moving the golf ball forward or backward in your stance. Take a few lessons, if possible, and learn the proper swing from the beginning.

Mastering the long game helps you get to the point of hitting for the green in fewer strokes, however, as important as the long game is, the short game, hitting for the green and putting, is usually where you will save strokes and lower your handicap. Remember that it takes a long time to learn consistency in golf and it's supposed to be fun!

Golf Basics I
Golf Basics II
Golf Basics III
Golf Basics IV
Golf Basics V

Golf Swing Basics II

2009-04-07T08:27:00.000-07:00

What To Keep In Your Golf Bag

Well, that depends a lot on what type of golf bag you have. Some golf bags are flimsy affairs, cloth ones that can almost be rolled when they are empty, others are sturdy leather bags that not only hold your golf clubs and golf balls, but everything else you can think of as well. We tend to think of golf advice in swing terms alone, but golf advice for equipment can be equally important.

There are many golf bags available, some designed for fashion, some for utility and some that combine both features. There are big bags, bigger bags and bags so big that they would keep everything you need for a long weekend vacation in one of the side pockets!

Generally speaking, you need a golf bag just large enough to hold your golf clubs, some extra golf balls and tees. However, there are a few extra items you might like to consider carrying in your golf bag.

A spare golf glove can come in handy if your other one gets soaks and becomes unplayable.

A pencil and some ball markers can be very useful as would a small knife or pencil sharpener. After all, we do like to keep score, and in competition it is necessary.

If there are a lot of water hazards, then a golf ball retriever can be very a very handy accessory to keep in your golf bag, especially if have many wayward shots.

Depending on your climatic conditions, you might want to consider sunscreen, a large golf umbrella, some waterproofs, you can never tell.

A small towel for cleaning your golf balls and club heads can be very useful at times, as can a spare pair of socks and a spare jumper.

It is also a good idea to have a packet of tissues, a band-aid or two, and if you play courses where insects are a problem, a can of bug repellent comes in very handy.

A small pack of baby wipes come in very handy too, in your bag they get warmed by the heat, so when you get sweaty or a sand trap covered you with sand, a nice warm wipe can be very refreshing.

If you happen to be allergic to bees, hornets or wasps, then some Epipen is an important addition to your bag. If you are also hypoglycemic then you can carry Lifesavers, which have to be replaced several times throughout the year because they tend to melt.

Some of these items are, of course, dependent on weather conditions and would not always be required.

One item that doesn't need to be in your golf bag is your cell phone. If you must carry it, turn off the ringer as a courtesy to other players. If you must use it, be aware of others who might be taking a golf swing or putting their ball. Be considerate!

Having these items in your golf bag should provide everything you will need, even in a minor emergency (like a blister) or a major inconvenience, like a sudden rainstorm. Being prepared makes the game of golf a great deal more fun.

Golf Basics I
Golf Basics II
Golf Basics III
Golf Basics IV
Golf Basics V

Golf Swing Basics I

2009-04-06T13:55:00.000-07:00

The Game of Golf

Golf is a game that almost anyone can play. Age, sex, even skill level makes little difference because of the handicap system employed in the game of golf. The popularity of golf has increased tremendously over the past forty five years, giving us champions like Arnold Palmer, Greg Norman, and Tiger Woods, and world-renowned courses like Pinehurst, Augusta National and the Blue Monster at Doral.

Why has golf become so popular? Partly because of the media coverage that golf gets nowadays and partly because it's the most enjoyable game on earth with a huge range of benefits associated with it. For instance, it's the opportunity to be outside, to get a good whole body workout, network with friends or business colleagues at a leisurely pace, and to play a game that you can never perfect.

Your scorecard, over time, shows your improvement, which keeps you playing again and again. Even just one good shot in a round of golf can all the encouragement a new golfer needs to keep his interest and enthusiasm alive.

Here is a very basic lesson in golf for the person who has no clue about the game.

Golf is played on an eighteen-hole golf course, each hole has its "par", which is the number of tee shots (drives), fairway shots, chips (short hits as you approach the green), and putts that a good golf player should take to finish the hole.

The par number is based on the length and difficulty of the hole. Pars range from 3 to 6. If you get the golf ball in the hole in five shots on a par five hole, you "made par." If it took you six shots, it's called a bogie, if you made it in four, it's a birdie.

There are usually "hazards" of some sort on all the holes. Bodies of water, sand traps, and trees are strategically placed to make the hole more challenging. Beginner golfers should seek to find courses to play that are easier to play, with fewer hazards. However, the hazards are usually placed placed to catch the better golfers out, not the new golfers, the hazards close to the greens are the ones beginner golfers really need to watch out for.

Each player keeps their own score, marking the number of total number of shots for each hole. At the end, each person adds their scores, the lowest number is the winner. Remember, golf is a game of honor, and although cheating is relatively easy, it is frowned upon and you will make few friends by not being honest.

It is important for beginner golfers to not take themselves too seriously. It takes a long time to get good at this game, even though the professionals make it look so easy.

Take a lesson or two at the onset, it will help you develop a proper swing and help you get off to a good start. You are looking for a consistent golf swing that produces a straight shot. Most golfers have difficulty with this, mainly because of a lack of the correct technique and because they try too hard. Golf is game of control and good technique.

Remember that golf is just a game. Have fun and look at the big picture, you're outside and you're not at work!

Golf Basics I
Golf Basics II
Golf Basics III
Golf Basics IV
Golf Basics V

What is the purpose of golf?

2009-04-03T06:48:00.001-07:00

Game of Golf

Golf is one of the most popular playing field sports in the world! Apart from the major tour events, it is not really much of a spectator sport. Therefore most golfers participate in the game of golf by playing the game. This is just another of the unique aspects of golf, some other interesting details of the game of golf might include the following.

One of golf's most appealing concepts is the sheer range of people that can take part in it, together with the ability of almost all ages, sexes and skills, to play and even compete. There are few sports, especially field sports, that can boast of this ability.

Golf, a Field Sport

The variety of golf course design makes golf unique among field sports. There are no set areas or designs of a golf course. The layout, atmosphere, to mention nothing of level of difficulty, is entirely different for each golf course. Facilities vary as well, but most golf clubs, at the very least, supply the essential amenities needed to for the comfort and enjoyment of its members and clientele. This variety makes traveling to other golf courses, sometimes just for the change and sometimes for competition, a common practice.

Golf can be played as often as is liked, there is no need for a competing side, this is another side of the game that sets is apart from most others. Golf can be played ,and enjoyed, by only one player. It is obviously a friendlier experience when more are playing together, indeed many new friendships are struck on the golf course.

Golf Competition

What about competition? Obviously one golfer on their own makes competition a little more difficult, but, because of the handicap system that is employed in the game of golf, it allows golfers of vastly different capabilities to compete very well. Another fairly unique quality of golf is that there is seldom an official or referee involved. It is essentially a game of trust and honor. Honesty and etiquette form a major part of the game of golf.

Like most sports, taking part in a game of golf is a good form of physical activity and therefore exercise. Unlike most other sports, all age groups can benefit from the exercise involved. Having said that, all forms of physique and fitness levels are capable of playing golf and getting the same degree of enjoyment from it.

There are not many field sports that afford the opportunity of socializing while taking part in a game. Golf is exceptional in this respect. Indeed, socializing is one of the most enjoyable parts of playing golf. We're not just talking of the nineteenth hole once the game is complete, but during the actual game itself. Some people even manage to conduct business while playing a game of golf.

Golf and the Family

It can even be used for spending quality fun time between members of the family. Parents and children can enjoy this fun aspect of golf at the same time as enjoying everything else that golf has to offer. This makes golf, not just ideal for weekend activities, but also for golf vacations. When a few members of the same family enjoy playing golf, what could be more ideal than a golf trip.

Golf competes well with other sports as a form of relaxation. The setting of most golf courses offers a perfect environment that encourages relaxation. This, coupled with the relatively unhurried way that golf is played, being surrounded by nature in all its glory and friends or acquaintances is relaxation personified, a perfect way to forget your problems.

Earning Money from Golf

It is also a popular avenue for making money. What a way to earn a living? Millions of people worldwide owe their livelihood to the wonderful game of golf. From golf equipment manufacturers and suppliers to golf professionals and lets not forget all the wonderful ground staff that keep these golf courses in their superb condition, or the staff that attend our needs in the club house.

With all there is going for golf, it would be difficult to imagine a sport or hobby better equipped than our favorite game. There is just one more aspect to the game of golf that needs to addressed, excuse the pun.

Is all just one huge frustration?

I know that most golfers find it frustrating at times. But the fact that no-one ever manages to master this game is one of its many attributes. The challenges of raising your skill level at golf will always be one of its more endearing qualities. Even the top tour pros can never admit to truly conquering all the vagaries of golf. It is not just a physical game, it is an mental game of such subtleties that it seldom is mastered.

If you do not yet play golf, or are thinking of taking it up, then let it be known that golf is not the greatest game in the world for nothing. I've outlined a few of the benefits and enjoyments of playing the game of golf, there are more as every golfer has own unique way of approaching this game, so come on, (sorry, this is going to be another pun)... join the club.

Get a Better Golf Swing

2009-03-30T08:44:00.000-07:00

A Better Golf Swing

Inconsistent Golf Swing

Have you been searching for something, anything, that will help you get a better golf swing?

Some tip or gadget that will improve your game overnight?

The one secret that will ignite your golfing abilities and make you the envy of all your buddies?

Maybe you have an inconsistent golf swing, or you suffer from the dreaded slice or hook problem, and want to fix it.

Well, you've come to the right place. I'm going to tell you the secret, the same one that around 80% of golfers have been searching for their entire golfing lives.

The secret that will help them get a better golf swing.

Actually it's no secret, if you have read any of my other posts, you will find it difficult not to have come across it already.

Okay, so I didn't say it was a secret before, but I'm saying it now and I feel justified in doing so because most golfers don't seem to know it. Or, maybe they think it is too hard a way to improve their golf swing and simply give it a miss.

Maybe they don't want to know it, or don't recognize it when they see it. In any case, it remains largely ignored in full view of everyone.

Oh yes, the secret, you want to know what it is, how to get a better golf swing. Well... come closer... the secret to why you never manage to improve at golf is.... you don't understand the basic golf swing!

It's simple, and it's true. Most golfers learn a more complicated swing than the basic golf swing is, hence the reason they find it so hard to master.

Measure your Golf Skills

You see, your golfing skills come down to a very basic and simple equation.

Your golf skills are equal to your knowledge of the basic golf swing plus your knowledge of the rest of the game of golf, for instance, course management. I don't mean how to manage a golf course from a business point of view, but how to use the features of the golf course in order to play better golf.

This lack of knowledge of the basic golf swing is true for almost every weekend golfer, especially those with high handicaps.

If you seldom break 100, then you know very little about the basic golf swing.

If you're still struggling to break 80, then, at least, you know something of the basic golf swing.

The point is that the more you improve your understanding of the basic golf swing, the better your golf swing will become and the more your golf swing will improve. And, just as an added benefit, the more you will enjoy your game.

The big problem is, how do you go about learning the basic golf swing?

Golf Instruction

Most golf instructors only teach their own particular swing, they don't give any understanding of the golf swing outside of their chosen golf swing style. Sometimes this makes no difference because their golf swing actually suits you... But, that is rare.

There are a variety of golf swing styles available... stack and tilt, single plane golf swing, two plane and the classic golf swing, to name just a few.

Most golf instructors learn one of these, and study every minute detail of the swing style they have chosen.

Some golf schools only teach one swing method, and that is where the problem lies. all these different golf swings work in their own right. They just won't work for everyone.

Every golfer is different. There are no two golfers with the same in physique, ability, mental attitude, knowledge or even feelings. A one-size-fits-all golf swing does not exist.

Your Golf Swing

Every golfer has their own natural golf swing, it's this golf swing that should be tweaked to incorporate the basic golf swing fundamentals and get a better and more consistent golf swing.

By understanding the basic golf swing and your own natural golf swing and abilities, improvements will be rapid, and more importantly, lasting.

If you ask most golfers why they fail to improve their golf swing, they will most likely say that it's because they don't practice often enough. Or, they don't play often enough, or they haven't had enough lessons.

The truth is, unless you have the right knowledge, practice will make no difference. With the correct knowledge, then practice will make all the difference because you will be practicing the right things.

The bottom line?..

If you want to get a better golf swing, find one of the 10 - 20% of golf instructors that are able to teach you the fundamental golf swing, and show you how to incorporate it into your own individual and natural golf swing.

Which Golf Swing Is Best

2009-03-29T08:57:00.000-07:00

The Best Golf Swing

The short answer, whatever one works for you! Which golf swing is the best depends on so many individual things, your physique, fitness, golf skills, mindset and what your natural golf swing is already like.

You may think that all the tour pros use the same professional golf swing or classic golf swing, but the truth is that they all use different golf swings, some more so than others. And they're the tour pros, if only one swing worked, they would use it.

There are different golf swings that are taught by golf professionals throughout the world, single plane swings, two plane swings, stack and tilt, natural golf swing, and many others. It depends on which golf swing your particular golf instructor teaches.

The one thing they all have in common is that they are marketed. Each one of them has their own devotees and non-believers, books, dvd's, there are even golf schools set up to teach just one method or style of golf swing.

Take the stack and tilt golf swing method for instance, the body tilts towards the target at the top of the swing. This is considered a bad golf swing fault by some golf instructors, they call it the reverse pivot in golf, something to be avoided.

Golf instructors tend to learn, and study in minute detail, one particular style of golf swing. This becomes the only one they teach, in fact, the only one they can teach. However, all the different golf swings actually work well in their own right. They are all used in one way or another by a tour pro.

The problem is not with the different golf swing styles, but the differences between individual golfers. A swing that suit one golfers, wont necessarily work well for another one. All golfers are different, to expect them all to be equally capable of using the same golf swing, is just madness.

Most golf instructors, in the range of 80 - 90%, teach their own particular golf swing. Whether that's by affiliation to a particular one, or because it's the only one they know how to teach, is irrelevant. They should be adapting your golf swing to work for you, not adapting you to their swing. If they are trying to fix your inconsistent golf swing by giving you a totally different swing, then they are wrong.

I'm sure you've tried completely changing your golf swing at some time, most golfers have. The swing they use isn't working and applying all the tweaks they can think of doesn't help either. So, they try a different swing altogether. It may, or may not work, But even if it does work, over time they will find that their old swing naturally drifts back in.

That's because their physiology and mindset is comfortable with their own natural swing.

So, which golf swing is the best? The truth is, for you, your golf swing is the best, don't abandon your golf swing, find one of the 10 - 20% of golf instructors that are capable of giving you the lessons and advice that you deserve, the correct way to give your swing the fundamentals to build on.

Do Golf Swing Tips Work

2009-03-28T12:18:00.000-07:00

Golf Swing Tips

When golfers are having trouble with their golf swing, they tend to try a variety of different methods to fix their problem. There are many golfers that buy new clubs in the hope of fixing their golf swing problems. Does this work? Sometimes. Most golfers don't bother getting their clubs measured for them, so a new golf club, or complete set of golf clubs, may indeed help them, especially if they do fit them better.

There are two golf clubs sold more than any other, the driver and the putter. This tends to tell it's own story. When golfers have trouble with their swing, it shows up more on the tee with their driver. Being the longest club, it is the hardest to control. There is one problem with this approach though, it will not correct any golf swing faults that you have. Unless your swing is up to scratch with the rest of your clubs, then a new driver is not going to help you.

In fact, if your golf swing is faulty, then purchasing new golf equipment isn't going to make much difference, it might be more prudent to purchase some golf lessons instead, or give a Golf Swing Trainer a try.

Reading up on golf swing tips from magazines, books and the internet is probably the most popular way of fixing golf swing faults. The question is, do they do any good? Can you learn from them and sort out all your golf swing faults?

The answer is not as straight forward as you might first think. It all depends on how well you know and understand your present golf swing. Most golfers, especially new golfers or weekend golfers who play once a week at most, don't know their golf swing well enough for reading up on golf tips to work. they don't have the golf fundamentals to work from.

It's like every other skill, you need the basics right first in order to build on them and progress. However, having said that, some golf swing tips can be very detailed and comprehensive, plus some of them, at least, attempt to teach the basic golf swing.

If you know and understand your golf swing well, then golf tips are a great bonus. This is mainly because you know, even before you try them, whether they will help you solve your particular problem, and they may give you a fresh perspective, a new way of looking at it.

Unless you fully understand your golf swing, then you are in danger of changing the wrong things, for instance, you may find a tip for altering your grip to get rid of a golf slice problem, when in fact it's your golf swing plane that is actually at fault.

The other, and perhaps the biggest, problem with golf tips is that you are in danger of changing too many things almost in a random fashion and this will most likely destroy your golf swing completely. It is good practice to change only one small thing at a time when you are working on your golf swing. This is because not all golf swing tips that you try will work for your particular setup. If you change only one thing and it doesn't work, then you are immediately aware of it. If, on the other hand, you've changed half a dozen things and they don't work, then you are none the wiser.

The first step is always to understand the golf swing you already have. Golf swing tips can work to help you improve your golf game, but only if you have a thorough grounding in the basics first. It is also possible for golf swing tips to give you a temporary fix which will only serve to confuse you when it stops working. This temporary effect is because your underlying golf swing is not sound. You have to work on each fundamental part of your golf swing, one piece at a time, this will help you to form the correct basics that will stand you in good stead well into the future.

How To Get The Golf Stance and Golf Swing Right

2009-03-23T06:59:00.000-07:00

How to get the golf stance and golf swing right is the purpose of this post. A bad stance will make the golf swing almost impossible. A good stance and a bad swing is less likely to happen. So improve your golf swing by making your sure your stance is right.

Have you ever noticed that a lot of golfers are hunched over when they are addressing the golf ball? Their shoulders are bent forward and their back is rounded. This is a fundamental mistake that leads to inconsistency in their golf swing.

The golf swing pivots around a central axis, the spine. If your back is not straight, then neither is your spine. Which means that the axis, instead of just rotating, is actually moving out of line while it turns. It also means that the shoulders have to readjust in order to execute the back swing. Everything is now out of position. It will also affect your balance, which is crucial during the golf swing.

With the shoulders forward, arms extended, and the back curved, it is not surprising that the golf swing will be inconsistent. It is very difficult, if not impossible, to achieve the correct swing plane unless a good athletic stance is adopted at address.

To begin, you should stand straight, shoulders back, but don't force them back, and head up looking straight ahead. This is the best starting point for getting into the correct address position.

You need to try and maintain this back, shoulder and head position.

Flex your knees and bend forward from the hips, not the waist. Concentrate on maintaining your back, shoulder and head positions in relation to each other, you should feel your bum moving back as you bend forward, if you don't, you are not bending properly from the hips.

When you look down at the golf ball, don't bend your head down, if your chin is touching your chest, or nearly touching it, then your head has dipped down.

If you are in the right position, your shoulders will be able to turn freely without changing their relationship to your spine. This is important, because your back swing is best initiated by turning your shoulders. Your hands, arms and shoulders should maintain the triangle they formed at address.

Some people initiate the back swing by moving the club head first, this is okay as long as the actual rotation of the upper body is controlled with the shoulders, not arms or hands or golf club.

The same is true for the downswing. Start it by turning your shoulders. Your arms, hands, and golf club are just along for the ride, they should not be forcing your golf swing, let your shoulders do the work here. That way there is less room for error, and less to go out of line during the down swing and through impact.

Try and maintain your spine angle throughout your swing, from address all the way through the impact zone.

A straight spine is crucial if you want a consistent golf swing. It may seem unnatural or uncomfortable at first, but persevere and you will be rewarded.

If you find your shoulders coming forward during the down swing, then you are trying to hit the golf ball too hard, you are using your arms and hands to give you power in your shot. If you need greater distance, think speed not power.

Club head speed through the impact zone determines the distance your shot will achieve, assuming you are making correct contact with club head and ball. Your timing to unhinge your wrists during the down swing will do more to determine the speed than your arms and hands will. If you unhinge (uncock) your wrists too early, you will not be reaching maximum speed at the right time, you will likely be decelerating through impact instead of accelerating.

Hopefully you now know how to get the golf stance and golf swing right. A good golf swing follows on naturally from a good stance, you are more likely to get into the correct swing plane and your balance will be better. All this increases your chance of hitting a good golf shot.

New Golfers Introduction To The Game Of Golf And Your Golf Swing

2009-03-22T14:53:00.000-07:00

Golf, an Introduction

Welcome to the greatest game on Earth. If you don't believe me, look at the statistics:

These results are courtesy of a Google search "how many registered golfers are there in the world?"

"According to Sports Marketing Surveys, there are 61.1 million golfers
worldwide; 6.9 million in Europe, 13.6 million in Asia, 1.7 million in
Australasia, 1 million in South America and 500 000 in South Africa.
There are 37.1 million in the US alone."
source: Business Report, 9/28/2003
http://www.busrep.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=244889

"How many golfers are there in the U.S.?
There are 26.2 million golfers in the United States. A golfer is
defined as anyone ages 18 and above who played at least one regulation
round of golf in the past 12 months. 36.7 million Americans are golf
participants, defined as anyone ages 5 and above who either played a
round of golf or visited a golf practice facility."
source: National Golf Foundation
http://www.ngf.org/cgi/whofaq.asp

Not only are these figures impressive but either sex can play golf at almost any age and still manage to compete. You can play a game of golf on your own or in groups. Once you're a member of a golf course, you can play as often as you like. Depending on which part of the world you live, you may even have access to municipal golf courses (ones that are run by local authorities). You can play golf in almost every country in the world.

It's a game that very few, if any, ever manage to master. There are so many different parts to golf and all of them affect the outcome. The golf swing itself is a complicated series of movements that require excellent balance throughout the swing, and trying to improve a golf swing is number one objective of most golfers. You have to know each golf club and what distances you can manage from each one, they all handle a bit differently. The lie of the golf ball can have a dramatic influence on the shot. Taking a shot on the side of an incline with the golf ball above or below the level of your feet, uphill shots and downhill shots, they all make the swing and the ball flight that bit different, and there is no end to the golf swing advice you can have.

Then there are bunker (sand trap) shots, chips, bump and runs and we haven't even touched on the mental aspect of the game yet or even choosing which golf clubs you are going to use, there is a huge variety of different makes and designs of golf clubs to choose from.

There are no two golf courses the same, they all vary in length and degree of difficulty. You get golf courses that are flat, golf courses that are built on the side of a hill and everything in between, there are sea-side courses called golf links, the original golf course was a golf links. The whole design of golf courses vary, bunkers, trees , the fairway, the rough, water hazards, the permutations are endless.

The Rules of Golf are not complicated but have to be learned and adhered to. As does Golf Etiquette, golf is sportsmanship game where you are really playing with your honesty and integrity, you are also expected to be mannerly, for instance, if you are playing slower than the golf group behind you, you are expected to let them play through so you are not holding up play. Distracting others on the course when they are playing is also frowned upon.

As I said already, the golf swing is a complicated series of movements and it would take a lot more than one post to describe it to you, but it can be broken down into several constituent parts, like the following:

Golf Grip
Address
Take Away
Back Swing
Top of Back Swing
First Move
Down Swing
Impact Zone
Follow Through

You can click this link, Golf Swing for more on the mechanics of the golf swing. After all, isn't that what it's all about?

As you are a new golfer, I'd like to give you one tip. Never try to hit the golf ball hard! You will most likely just end up with a golf slice, where the golf ball starts of straight then spins off wildly to the right (right handers), the golf slice is the most common bad shot in golf.

The harder you try and hit the golf ball, the worse your shot will get. Power in golf comes from the speed of the golf club head as it passes through the impact zone, nothing else.

If you can take this on board right from the start of your golfing life, then you will already be streets ahead of most other golfers out there. This is one of the most common mistakes that golfers, and in particular new golfers, make. Don't be one of them.

The golf swing should always be controlled. There is never any need, or benefit, to rushing your golf swing, the faster you swing the bigger the chance of losing your balance, even if it is only a slight imbalance, it will affect your shot in a bad way.

If you take up golf, you will find it a challenging and rewarding game. If you continue to play for the rest of your life, you'll still find it a challenge. It is also a very sociable game that contributes to the sheer enjoyment you will have.

These are just some of the reasons that I started this post by calling it the greatest game on Earth. Golf.

Driving On The Golf Course

2009-03-18T12:28:00.000-07:00

The Golf drive

Driving on the golf course is all about getting your golf swing sorted out. If you want to have a good drive, a straight shot with reasonable distance, then you need to have a solid consistent golf swing.

The golf swing can be broken down into 7 component parts, the grip, address, takeaway, top of the backswing, first move, downswing, and from impact to finish.

It is important that you understand your golf swing. Without knowing each and every aspect of your swing, it is nearly impossible for you to adjust small parts of your golf swing when faults creep in.

Understanding your golf swing and how to produce the golf swing is the aim of this post. Because improving your golf swing is a lengthy topic to discuss, one post is either going to be extremely long or it will have to split up into smaller chunks. What I have done here is to split it up into 7 separate posts. My hope is twofold, that it will be easier to digest in these smaller posts and, if you are only having trouble with one part of your golf swing, that you can find the relevant post in an easier way.

The Golf Grip

It would seem a natural place to start, it is , after all, the foundation of the golf swing. It is what connects you to the golf club and getting the grip right is essential.
Golf Grip

The Address

If the grip is the foundation of the golf swing, the address is your foundation. Balance is everything in golf and that can never be overstated. Without good balance you will never be able to get a solid consistent golf swing. A part of the address which is seldom mentioned, is to get your balance right, the rest is to set you up in the right position to be able to make the best golf swing that you can.
The Address

The Takeaway

This is when you start ptting the swing into motion, you have to get this right.
The Takeaway

The Top Of The Backswing

This can be critical if you want to maxixmize your golf swing and generate control, speed and accuracy.
The Top Of The Backswing

The First Move

This is where the backswing changes and becomes the downswing. A lot of golfers seem to have trouble with this change in direction.
First Move

The Downswing

Where we generate speed and acceleration. The swing plane has to right here or some really wayward shots can result.
The Downswing

From Impact To The Finish

The last flourish of the golf swing, can you do it with style?
From Impact To Finish

I hope that breaking the golf swing down in this way has been helpful to you. I also hope that it has helped help you to understand what you are trying to achieve and how to go about it. The golf swing is a complicated set of movements that use your whole body to accomplish it. It also involves hand and eye coordination and balance. The game of golf is a constant challenge, enjoy it.

Golf Practice in Slow Motion

2009-03-06T12:33:00.000-08:00

Practice Golf

What are the merits of trying golf practice in slow motion? Well, it's all about getting your practice sessions to be effective. We have all gone to the driving range and hit a couple of buckets of balls until our backs or arms or legs got sore and we give up.

This is not effective golf practice though, it's just going through the motions. This is the way to end up with a golf slice or hook.

One of the biggest improvements you can make to your golf swing is... balance. A lot of the time that the golf ball is mis-hit, it's due to coming off balance during the swing.It shows up all sorts of different faults at any given time.

Golfers with an inconsistent golf swing, spend most of their time trying to sort out all the golf swing mechanics that they can think of. They change their grip, buy a new driver, get a new set of golf balls, go for a few lessons from the local pro and generally change everything they can think of.

The last thing that they consider when trying to improve their golf swing is their balance. But it should be the first. Balance is arguably the most important part of the golf swing, without good balance you would never be able to hit the golf ball at all.

That brings us to golf practice in slow motion. I you try and go through the complete golf swing from address all the way through to the finish as slow as you can, it will do two things.

First, you will find out just how good your balance really is, if your swing has any imbalance in it at all, practicing in slow motion will show it up very noticeably. Once you have your balance sorted out, continue to practice in slow motion and work on the mechanics of your swing.

Second, it will give all the time in the world to see and be aware of every part of your golf swing. You will have the time to analyze your swing that is impossible when you are trying to complete the golf swing at normal speed.

It's amazing what you will discover, and how it will sort out a lot of your golf swing problems. When you are happy with your swing and your balance, you can try speeding up your swing again... gradually.

Now, I'm obviously not talking about playing on the golf course in slow motion, just when you have some time to practice, you can even do the golf practice in slow motion thing in your back yard. You don't need a golf ball, just a golf club and some free time. You never know, you might even cure your golf slice.

Inconsistent Golf Swing

2009-01-26T07:41:00.000-08:00

Consistency in Golf

Are you having problems with your golf swing? Are you finding it hard getting rid of your golf slice? Is your golf swing inconsistent in the quality of shots that you have. Do you want to fix your inconsistent golf swing?

A golf slice is one of the most common faults in the game of golf. I know that it doesn't help you much knowing that, but it should help put your golf problem in perspective. The trouble is, most golfers with this problem continue to struggle with their golf slice for years, they never manage to cure it because it can be an intermittent fault.

I'm sure that you have changed your golf swing a hundred times and each time it seems to cure your slice... for a while, but your golf slice always returns, and when you try the same "cure" again, it fails to work the second time around, so you search for golf instruction, the next cure.

It's just a vicious circle, I know this because there are so many golfers, and not just new golfers, that have this recurring problem. I bet you feel like you are going round in circles most of the time. You just can't have any real confidence in your swing. Sometimes it works great, but the next tee shot is a real disaster. You need some basic golf swing advice, especially if you want to correct a golf slice. You need to improve your golf swing technique.

Your real problem is that you don't have a good enough basic understanding of your golf swing. Without this understanding you will find it really difficult to get any kind of consistency in your swing.

The Simple Swing system was designed to not only teach you the correct swing, but to give you a thorough understanding of the golf swing and the correct thought processes that we need in order to achieve a good consistent swing. We are all different in physique and the ways in which we think and analyze, so we need a golf swing that suits our own particular shape, size, and ability.

It's also possible that you're just getting into the wrong swing plane, this can be caused by trying to hit the ball too hard. There are a few other ways of getting into the wrong swing plane, but overhitting seems to be the most common, and it is also a common cause of inconsistency in your golf swing.

If you reserve your copy of The Simple Swing system at this link, you will also get a special trial of their brand new Apprentice Program, plus 8 free bonuses worth at least $220, and also a 60 day no risk guarantee and cure your inconsistent golf swing.

Enjoy!

3 Golf Swing Tips

2009-01-23T05:50:00.000-08:00

Golf swing

Here are three golf swing tips that help a lot of golfers that are struggling with their golf swing, and not just new golfers either.

Most new golfers struggle with getting into the correct position at address, and because of this, they fail to to get their golf club in the right swing plane during their backswing. They also have trouble with producing a good swing tempo. As a result, they end up swinging their club a little erratically and with no inconsistency.

Let's deal with the correct position at address first.

1. If you start off with your golf club, hips, arms, shoulders and head in the positions they will be in at impact, then you will be putting yourself in the best address position and give yourself the best chance of using the correct swing plane.

2. Don't take a full backswing. During the backswing, when your leading arm is parallel with the ground, make sure that the butt end of your golf club is pointing straight at the target line, the target line is the straight line that runs from the target through the golf ball and on past you. You will be on the correct swing plane. This will help if you are trying to correct a golf slice.

Now for the tempo.

3. Hold a couple of golf clubs together and perform a short golf swing. The backswing should be no further than your leading arm being parallel with the ground, and likewise, your forward swing should be no further than your trailing arm being parallel with the ground. Now, take five to ten swings without stopping between each swing. Don't force the swing, just let the weight of the clubs determine the tempo. This is a good tempo to use when you finally take a swing at the golf ball.

These are simple tips, but don't dismiss them out of hand. They work surprisingly well at fixing a number of golf swing faults, especially for new golfers. The simple golf swing is your best answer to a consistent golf swing, not just because it is easily learned and understood, but also because it is repeatable and gives you the best chance of a consistent golf swing every time.

From Impact To The Finish

2009-01-22T06:14:00.000-08:00

From Impact to Finish and all of the Moves In-Between

The one thing you have to keep in mind is from the top of the backswing to the finish is a non-stop fluid motion. When the golf club starts down there is no slowing down or stopping of the club head. Many things take place during the downswing and they all have to be in sync with one another to make for solid impact.

Ninety-five percent of the final part of the golf swing (moment of impact to finish) is a result of you swinging the golf club from the address position to the top of the golf swing correctly. If you get the golf club in the correct position at the top of the backswing, you will up your chances of hitting a solid golf shot and correct a golf slice.

Let's take some time and discuss what takes place from the moment of impact to the finish. I will break it down into two sections. First, what happens to the golf club and secondly, what happens to the body.

At the very moment of impact, the clubface should be one or two degrees closed.

1. Clubface 2 Degrees Closed

The clubface was square at address and as the golf club swings back to the top of the backswing, the clubface rolled open. As the golf club swings back down, the clubface has to swing back to square.

It will begin to roll closed and continues to close until the toe is pointing up, when the shaft is pointing parallel to the target line. As the arms and hands swing the club from the parallel position up to the finish, the club continues to close.

2. Clubface Continuing to Close to Finish

Let me share something with you right now. If I asked you what you think you have to do to hit the golf ball further I am afraid your first response will be the same as most of the golfing world. Swing harder. Yes, that is a start, however; the clubhead speed must be properly applied.

The ability to have the clubhead make solid contact with the golf ball with maximum speed is the combination of the golf club, arms, and hands moving in concert with the upper and lower body. This combination is referred to in golf as "timing". Simply put, the most abused word in golf. Everybody uses it and not too many people know how to do it.

What the Body does from Impact to Finish
At the moment of impact the knees are in the same position as impact. Yes, the left knee moved away from the golf ball towards the center of your stance.

Now your left knee is moving back to its original position.

3. Left Knee Returns to Address Position

At this moment the left hip has moved towards the target an inch or two and is turning back and out of the way. As the arms and hands pass the middle of the right leg, the right knee will begin to move parallel to the target line and the right heel is beginning to turn up.

4. Right Knee is Moving Parallel

When the club reaches the point after impact where it is parallel to the ground and pointing parallel to the target line, the left hip is behind you, the left knee is almost fully extended and the right knee has passed where the golf ball was on the ground. At this position, the body is moving at maximum speed and it will soon begin to slow down as it approaches the finish.

When the golf club passes through the 9:00 position the upper body will begin to straighten out with the right shoulder turning to the top and the shoulders will soon become level to the ground.

From the moment of impact, the top of your belt must remain level to the ground all the way until you have reached the finish. The shoulders will react the same way from the moment of impact all the way to the finish. The feeling you want is for the right shoulder to remain an inch higher and when turning to the finish, level to the ground.

When the golf club and your body has stopped turning your right heel is pointing toward the sky, your right knee is pointing to a parallel line with your target, your belt buckle will point towards the target and level to the ground, your body is tall and the shoulders are level to the ground. If your upper body is facing left of the target that is acceptable.

The simple golf swing is your answer to a consistent golf swingt, not just because it is easily learned and understood, but also because it is repeatable and gives you the best chance of a consistent golf swing every time.

Golf Swing Advice, The Downswing

2009-01-21T03:52:00.000-08:00

Starting the Downswing in Golf

As the right arm begins to unfold and the left hip moves one or two inches towards the target before it begins to turn out of the way, the downswing is in full swing mode. In other words the game is on. No holding back, no stopping and no bailing out. There is no turning back.

As the force of the arms swinging down the lower part of the body is moving out of the way. There are some very important moves that have to take place for a solid shot with maximum clubhead speed.

The speed of the arms and hands and the tension in the lower body is what creates the clubhead speed you are in search of.

When the hands pass your belt buckle during the downswing, the right knee will begin to move down the intended line and the right heel will come up off of the ground. At the same time, the body is moving parallel to the target line and the left knee is about to become involved.

1. Body is Moving Parallel to the Target Line

The purpose of the left knee at this moment is to distribute the force from the downswing and maintain a strong foundation for a solid finish. The left leg must straighten out 90% of its maximum, it can not over extend.

2. Left Knee Returns to Address Position

Snapping the left knee or overextending it can cause injury. If you snap the knee too soon it will also weaken the foundation and the downswing will not have any stability.

As the golf club starts down it must remain on the same path it went back on. The path is a slight arc going back down into the back of the golf ball. The only way you can remain on this path is to start the right arm first and then the rest of the body can follow. If the right shoulder starts first in the downswing the golf club will have a tendency to swing outside the arc too much and if the left hip starts first in the downswing the golf club will have a tendency to start inside the arc too much.

The golf club has to stay on this correct path until impact. The combination of the left hip turning back out of the way and the right shoulder following the arms will enable the golf club to stay on the correct path. At any time if there is a change in direction of the body, the club will come off of the path, this is bad especially if you are trying to correct a golf swing.

At impact the left arm is long, the left arm has turned out of way, and your bottom half has moved back towards the address position. The right arm is now long (speed of downswing has made the right arm longer than at address), the right shoulder and head are slightly behind the golf ball, and your right heel is off of the ground.

Two Feet Before Impact
At the top of the backswing the clubface is open and as it begins to swing down, the face has to start closing immediately. The closing of the clubface is a long process that has to happen during the entire down swing. The clubface can not square up at the bottom of the hit. If you try to square the clubface up at impact, you have to be extremely quick and strong.

The only case where you can "take more time" squaring the clubface in the golf swing is if you hook the ball. Getting the face back to square is not a quick flick of the arms and hands either. Remember, it is a long process that starts at the top of the backswing.

By the time the shaft reaches your right knee, the clubface has to be square or close to it. You only have three more feet for the face to be one or two degrees closed and it is moving at 75-115 mph. If the face is open more than this amount, the ball is slicing to the right. A golf slice.

Clubhead Closing 2 Feet Before Impact

There have been a million words written on the couple of feet before impact and I know that the absolute death of the downswing lies in the last couple of feet. If you have started the downswing with the right shoulder or left hip, this will be a very difficult way to improve your game.

I do not believe the masses have the strength or the need to swing the body first in the downswing. Their arms simply cannot keep up.

Making sure the golf club is swinging on the arc is the first and foremost part of the downswing. If you can swing the golf club on the arc with maximum clubhead speed, you will head down the road of success with your golf game. The body compliments the arms swinging the club; it is not the opposite.

When you addressed the golf club, your right hand was even or slightly under the left hand. As the golf club begins to swing back, the left hand is slightly on top of the right. At the top of the backswing, the left hand is on top of the right, and now the golf club begins to swing down and as the club approaches the golf ball the right hand will roll over the left near and at impact. From that moment on, the right hand will be on top of the left.

Before Impact Right Arm about to Roll Over Left Arm

After Impact Right Arm Rolls

Over Left Arm
The roll I just mentioned is referred to as the "release." This is yet another golf word that has had a million words written about. The release takes place just before impact and will insure a clubface that is slightly closed.

Another topic that comes up in this part of the golf swing is "timing." The timing aspect of the game is when the body works in concert with the arms and hands. When the left hip turns out of the way at the moment the right hand rolls the clubface closed at impact, this is what is referred to as perfect timing.

Let there be no misunderstanding, it is certainly easier to write about timing the golf club correctly than to actually do it. The easy way out is to instruct students to hit one million golf balls, and that ought to do it. One million golf shots divided by 50 years is twenty thousand golf shots a year. I can not say I have hit 20 thousand golf shots a year, I can say I have averaged 10 thousand and my timing is not always exactly how I would prefer.

On the flip side, if you are not swinging the golf club back and down on the correct path with the correct posture and aim, you can hit 2 million shots and your timing is NOT going to be in any different place than if you hit 200 shots a year.

The simple golf swing is the full and best explanation of the golf swing, not just because it is easily learned and understood, but also because it is more repeatable and gives you the best chance of how to perform the golf swing correctly every time.

How To Perform The Perfect Golf Swing Every Time

2009-01-20T05:25:00.000-08:00

The Perfect Golf Swing

How to perform the perfect golf swing is what most golfers spend their entire golfing life trying to achieve and never get there. How to perform the perfect golf swing every time is just mind boggling for them.

Most golfers when they do get a good golf swing going, even if it is, mostly, consistent, beat themselves up whenever they have a bad shot. Why? Even the great Tiger Woods has a bad shot now and then, and the same can be said for all the top golf professionals as well.

Perfection all the time is not something that man can achieve, we are just not capable of it. However, we are capable of learning how to perform the perfect golf swing and being able to produce it a lot of the time. This should help correct a golf slice.

Once we have a good golf swing, the one thing that lets us down and prevents us from repeating this swing all the time, is concentration. We lose concentration too easily. Again, we are just not capable of maintaining complete concentration all of the time. There are too many things competing for our attention, even on the golf course. Birds whistling, a plane passing overhead, other golfers, and the list goes on. The golf swing used by most golfers is just too complicated, it requires too much concentration.

The point here is, don't be surprised when you are less than perfect, whatever mistake you have made is already done, it's in the past and there is nothing you can do to change it. You have to learn to put it behind you and not let it effect your next. shot.

Now, to the perfect golf swing. As with most things in life, the simple answer is usually the best answer. So forget the complicated golf swing and go instead for the simple golf swing, when you break down the golf swing and get rid of all the unnecessary complications from it, then reconstruct it with a simple set of repeatable and easily learned movements, you end up with the simple golf swing.

The simple golf swing is the perfect golf swing, not just because it is easily learned and understood, but also because it is more repeatable and gives you the best chance of how to perform the perfect golf swing every time.

Golf Swing Advice, The Top of the Backswing

2009-01-19T10:17:00.000-08:00

Golf, The Backswing And The Moving Parts

On The Way to The Top of The Backswing

As the golf club leaves the 9:00 position, it has to continue on the arc until you reach the top of the backswing. There are a number of moving parts that must be in place during this journey. First and foremost the right shoulder must continue to turn.

The right shoulder can not stop or change directions. If the right shoulder stops or tilts up, the golf club will swing up too much. If the right shoulder turns too much the golf club will not go up.

Right Shoulder Quit Turning

Right Shoulder Turned Too Much

Correct

As the right shoulder continues to turn in the backswing, the right hip must not follow it. The right hip has to resist turning so you can develop resistance. If you develop resistance in the backswing with the bottom half of your body, you will build up tension and that is where the ability to develop clubhead speed comes from.

As the right shoulder continues to turn level to the ground, the left knee will continue to turn more towards the golf ball. You have to make sure you do not allow the right knee to pass the golf ball.

As the right shoulder continues to turn, the left shoulder will move from the address position towards the golf ball. As the right shoulder continues to turn, your head will move slightly to the right (away from the golf ball). Your head will move a couple of inches as a result of the right shoulder turning out of the way. The head does not slide back and away from the golf ball with the lower body.

During this process the right knee never moves.

1. Right Leg Does Not Move

During the entire backswing, the left arm has remained long, not rigid. The right arm will begin to fold after the golf club leaves the 9:00 position. The reason the left arm remains long is to provide you with plenty of width in the backswing. Width in the backswing is the reason you can develop clubhead speed. If the left arm remains long you can swing the clubhead on the arc, and by swinging it on the arc you will be able to build clubhead speed in the downswing.

Arriving at the Top of The Backswing

When the golf club arrives at the top of the backswing there are four parts that have to be in the correct place. The first thing that is extremely important is for the golf club to be pointing towards the target or slightly left of the target. Now what does this mean? When you address the golf ball, the ball is on what we refer to as the "intended ball flight line", and your feet are parallel to that line. At the top of the backswing the shaft has to aim parallel to your heel line or parallel left of the target.

Important Stops Along the Way to The Top of The Backswing

Getting to the top of the backswing is no easy feat. Now that you have reached the top let's check to make sure all of the moving parts are in the correct place. Your checklist should start at the bottom of your feet and go all the way to the top of your head.

At the address position the weight is evenly distributed between both feet.

2. Weight Evenly Distributed

The arms and hands start the golf club back in a one-piece-take-away which includes the right shoulder turning.

3. One Piece Take-Away

As the right shoulder continues to turn, the left knee will turn slightly towards the center of your body.

4. Left Knee Turning Towards Right Knee

Don't forget, the right knee never leaves its original position. As the top half of your body is turning, the right knee must remain in the exact same position. When you are addressing the golf ball, the right knee has a slight flex. During the back swing, the right knee can not slide backwards nor can it straighten out and it can not flex more. The right knee is the foundation of the backswing, it takes on all of the force of the right shoulder turning and the hips resisting from turning. The right knee has to maintain this rock solid foundation so you can continue to turn the top half of your body against the bottom half.

When the golf club has reached the top of the backswing, the right knee will be there to support the upper golf club, arms, hands and upper body. If there is one part of the body that has to be in the correct position at the top of the backswing, it is the right knee. The function of the right knee is not only the foundation of the backswing. In the next section you are going to find out the value of the right knee in the downswing as well.

Now, visit Simple Golf Swing for the most complete set of golf lessons you can get! Have a look and see all that you get when you purchase Simple Swing, you'll be 'over the moon'.

Golf Swing Advice, The Take Away

2009-01-18T05:49:00.000-08:00

Golf and the Take Away

Standing to the Handle
As you address the golf ball there are some critical parts of the setup that must be in place before you start the backswing.

If you look down and see the grip-end of the golf club across from your belt buckle there is a good chance you have MOST of the critical parts in place.

1. Across from Belt Buckle

Having the grip-end of the golf club across from your belt buckle assures you of having your head in the correct position, not tilted too far to the left side or the right side of the golf ball. The second part is your spine is probably in the correct position, if the grip end is pointing towards you chin, your spine is too long. If the grip end is pointing lower than your belt buckle, your spine is bent over too much. Lastly, the most crucial part is the golf club is soled on the ground with the correct amount of loft.

The golf club being soled correctly on the ground is the sure guarantee that you are in the correct set-up for your golf swing, after you confirm all the positions that we discussed above.

The Key to Starting the Golf Club Back
One of the top five most asked questions in the past 25 years has been, “What starts the backswing?” The answer is a bit complex, so grab your Hi-Liter and let’s get started.

When you are ready to start the backswing, the clubhead, shaft, your hands, arms and right shoulder move in ONE PIECE at the exact same time.

The clubhead starts back on an arc (we will get to that in the next section). The right shoulder starts turning backwards.

2. One Piece Take-away

3. Right Shoulder Turns as Arm Swings Club

The take-away is one piece all the way until it arrives at the 9:00 o’clock position (we will get to that in two sections).

As you start back, both knees are flexed and during the backswing- the right knee NEVER changes positions. It does not flex more, nor does it straighten out and it does not slide back away from the target.

The left knee also plays a major role in the backswing. It does not move towards the line of flight and it does not straighten out. As the golf club starts back, the left knee moves towards the right knee as a RESULT of the upper body turning and the lower body resisting this turn. The left knee never passes the golf ball in the backswing.

The Correct Path in the Backswing

As the golf club starts back away from the golf ball the club head must swing back on an arc which is inside the straight line to the target.

4a. Correct Arc

4b. Correct Arc

If the golf club travels outside in the backswing during the golf swing, the right shoulder will tilt up in the backswing and the golf club will swing vertical to the ground in the downswing. If the golf club travels too much to the inside of the arc in the backswing, the golf club will travel too level to the golf ball in the downswing. If the golf club swings too straight back you will have a tendency to hit the ball in the heel of the club at impact.

Too Much Outside

Too Much Inside

Too Straight Back

When the golf club travels back on the correct path the combination of the arms and hands will be able to swing the golf club back to the correct position at the top of the backswing as long as the right shoulder turns out of the way.

From Address to the 9:00 Position
When the shaft of the golf club is level to the ground and parallel to your intended target line- we refer to that position as 9 o’clock.

The first check-point in the backswing is the 9:00 o'clock position.

5. First Check-Point is the 9 O'Clock Position

When you reach 9 o'clock, you are half-way back and this is a great time to stop and take a look around, as long as you know what you are looking for. The first thing you want to take a look at- is the golf club in the exact correct position? The club should be parallel to your target line and level to the ground. The second part to take a look at- is the right shoulder turning and not tilting? It is very difficult to get to 9 o'clock with a tilted right shoulder.

Right Shoulder Tilted Too Much

Right Shoulder Turned Too Level

If the right shoulder is tilting up the golf club will most likely be outside the path and pointed up. If the right shoulder turns too much in the backswing the golf club will swing around you too much. If you are in the correct position, it is time to head back to the top of the backswing.

From 9:00 to the Top

From the 9 o'clock position the golf club must continue up on an arc.

6a. From 9 to the Top

6b. From 9 to the Top

This can only happen if you continue to turn the right shoulder out of the way. As the right shoulder turns out of the way, the arms, hands and golf club will continue to swing inside, however, after the golf club passes the 9 o'clock position, it will have to swing up. This combination is what I believe is the most difficult part of the backswing.

You can not stop turning the shoulder. If you do stop turning the golf club will start to swing up to much. If you continue to swing the golf club around with the shoulders the golf club will swing too much around.

The proper combination is when the shoulders turn and the golf club swings up. When you reach the top of the backswing with this combination you will be in position to swing the golf club down on the correct path and with clubhead speed.

Shoulders Stop Turning, Club Swings Up

7. Shoulders Turning Correctly

Now, visit Simple Golf Swing for the most complete set of golf lessons you can get! Have a look and see all that you get when you purchase Simple Swing, you'll be 'over the moon'.

Golf Swing Advice, The First Move Down

2009-01-17T10:54:00.000-08:00

Golf, The First Move Down

The Secret of the Golf Swing is the First Move Down
Now you are ready to start the downswing. You have arrived safely at the top and now you need to return to the bottom in one piece.

When you are ready to start the downswing, the very first move is for the right arm to begin to straighten out and return to the exact same position it started in. The right arm has to start to come unhinged as soon as you begin the downswing.

1a. Right Arm Begins to Straighten

1b. Right Arm Unhinges

1c. Right Arm Straight

Many people have written about this topic. As a matter of fact, it seems like every time anyone goes near this subject, the entire golf world throws the four letter word "cast" at you. The terms "cast" or "casting the golf club" were used in the 60's and have escalated to the point where if you mention any other way of swinging the golf club down other than "pulling on the handle" or creating drag and creating a tight angle with your arms, the golf world is ready to pounce on you.

The good news, bad news is the terms "pulling on the handle" and "creating a tight angle" have kept me very busy for the past 25 years. If you are trying to practice the above mentioned phrases, I feel very confident you'll end up hitting too many shots to the right. The ability to hit a golf ball squarely with the correct timing has more to do with how many hours you can dedicate to the game than it does with how hard you can pull on the handle of the golf club.

Your ability to create clubhead speed lies in the speed you can swing your hands, arms and golf club not in how fast you can pull the grip end of the golf club. Clubhead speed is created from you generating width in the right arm on its journey back to the golf ball.

Swinging just the hands, arms and golf club back to the golf ball with maximum clubhead speed independent of the lower and upper body is not the answer either. Swinging the golf club back to the golf ball on the correct path with maximum clubhead speed is the combination of the hands, arms and golf club swinging in conjunction with the lower body moving out of the way and the upper body turning back towards the target. The upper and lower body CANNOT swing independent of each other.

As the right arm begins to unhinge:

The left hip moves one or two inches towards the target

2. Left Hip Moves Towards Target

Then the left hip should start to turn out of the way so the hands, arms, and golf club can have a place to swing to after impact.

3. Left Hip Turns Out of the Way

How to Start the Golf Club Down
As you begin the downswing there are many parts that you must follow in order for you to swing the clubhead back on the correct path with maximum amount of speed. By now you know the right arm must begin to unfold first and then the left hip moves one or two inches towards the target and then it turns back and out of the way.

As the right arm begins to unfold the left arm must remain long during this entire time.

4. Left Arm Long

Your left arm should NOT be rigid and locked, but long and relaxed.
When you moved the golf club back to the top of the backswing it swung back on an arc. The arc was slightly inside a straight line away from the target. The club has to swing inside and up on the arc. When the club passed 9:00 it has to start swinging up.

When you swung it up, the right shoulder turned back and out of the way, now as you swing the golf club back down, the right shoulder has to stay back as long as possible so the club can swing back down on the arc.

The golf club has to swing back down on the same path it went up on.

5. Arc in Downswing

What happens next? For the first couple of feet in the downswing, not much happens- then it all starts to go. As the left hip moves out of the way, the left knee will begin to head back towards its address position.

When the clubhead gets halfway back to the golf ball, the right knee will begin to turn towards the target and your weight will start to move from the right side back to the middle of your stance.

6. Right Knee Turns Towards Target

Now, visit Simple Golf Swing for the most complete set of golf lessons you can get! Have a look and see all that you get when you purchase Simple Swing, you'll be 'over the moon'.

Golf Swing Advice, The Address

2009-01-16T05:12:00.000-08:00

Golf The Address

The Feet
As we move through the address position section I want you to wrap your head around the idea that we are going to construct a building. The building is four to six feet tall and not very wide. Of course I am referring to the human body. The first place you would start is the foundation, so let's talk about the feet first. Let's see how far apart they are supposed to be and exactly where we place the weight once we get the feet planted.

The feet have to support the upper body and once the golf club, the arms, and the body get moving in the downswing there is a lot of force that the foundation has to support.

The feet have to be just slightly further apart than shoulder width. This distance is far enough apart to maintain a solid base.

1. Slightly More Than Shoulder Width

As the club begins to build up speed and the left hip makes the first move down the target line before it turns backward, the width of the stance will hold up just fine. If you have a tendency to lose your balance, your stance might be too narrow.

Too Narrow

After impact the golf club swings back around your body and up towards your left shoulder. As the golf club comes to the end of the golf swing your weight has moved from the right side over to the left side. The width of your feet will accommodate this move. Your weight needs to be evenly distributed between your toes and heels.

The Knees
From the feet we are going to move up the building to the knees. The knees have played a huge role in most sports- golf is no exception. The knees are going to come into play in two different parts of the golf swing.

The first part is the address position.

As you address the golf ball your knees will have a slight flex in them.

2. Knees are Slightly Fixed

You are NOT going to 'sit' on your knees and they are NOT locked straight.

For a long time instructors taught students to have the feeling you were 'sitting' on a bar stool. I always believed we should have been teaching people to feel as though you were 'leaning' back on a stool. The last thing you would ever want to do is sit in golf. Sitting will cause the golf club to swing too level to the ground in the downswing, and you will have a tendency to hit the ground behind the golf ball.

Straight

Sitting

Before you start to 'straighten' your knees to a 'locked' position, which is just as wrong as sitting, let me give you a bit of advice. The knee position is what I refer to as 'slightly' flexed. Because we are all different heights, I cannot give you an exact degree you should flex your knees- however; if you simply relax your knees, you will find the correct amount of bend on your own.

The second roll the knees play in the swing is when the golf club is in motion. As the golf club swings back, the single most important thing for you to remember is the RIGHT knee never ever moves from the original position. If you think of the two knee caps as head lights shining in front of you as you drive along a road, you might make some twists and turns but the headlights are always in front of you. As you start the backswing the right knee does not slide, bend or straighten out- it stays very quiet and solid during the entire backswing.

Both knees must remain flexed during the entire backswing and until impact.

The Hips
If your chin is in the correct position, and your spine is long (don't worry we'll talk about these shortly), and your knees are flexed the correct amount, the golf club will not sole correctly on the ground until you tilt or bend over from the hips. You do NOT want to bend at the waist. You ALWAYS want to bend from the hips. The difference is if you bend at the waist your spine will bend (not good).

If you bend at the hips you can maintain the spine angle and sole the club on the ground correctly.

3. Bend at the Hips

If you do not bend at the hips, you will not be able to sole the golf club correctly.

When you bend over from the hips you have to make sure you do not straighten out or lock your knees. When you bend at the hips you have to pay close attention to making sure you do not bend at the bottom of the spine.

Not Tilted

Tilted Too Much

The hips play another role not related to their position

Your hips must be parallel to the line of the golf ball flight at address.

4. Parallel to the Line of the Ball Flight

If your hips are open at address you will have a tendency to open the hips too soon in the downswing. The clubface will be open at impact and the golf ball will start right. If your hips are closed at address the golf club will swing too much from the inside in the downswing and the golf ball will either start right or you will struggle with a quick hook left.

Open

Closed

At address the hips are parallel to the ball flight line. As the golf club swings back down from the top, the first move from the top is for the left hip to move an inch or two parallel to the target line and then the left hip should begin to turn backwards out of the way so the golf club can swing back to the inside after impact.

When you arrive at the finish of the golf swing your belt and shoulders should be level to the ground. Your belt buckle will aim at the intended target and your hips are level to the ground.

The Shoulders
The shoulders play three major roles in the golf swing. The first two roles are static and the third is a moving role. In the address position the shoulders compliment the spine angle.

If the shoulders are opened up and back at address the spine angle will be in the correct position as long as the chin is up.

5. Shoulders Back

If the shoulders are rounded the spine will be bent over too much.

Rounded

The second role the shoulders play is they must be parallel to your intended line you want the golf ball to travel on. When you look down your toes, knees, hips and shoulders must be in line with each other. Parallel means they have to be on the same line going to the left of where you want the golf ball to start. If the shoulders are aiming to the right of the target the golf club will start too much inside the correct path in the backswing. If they are aiming to the left of the target the golf club will start too much to the outside in the backswing. For the golf club to start back on the correct path the shoulders must be parallel from the start.

The shoulders play yet another role in the backswing. As the clubhead, shaft, hands, arms and (shoulders) start moving backwards, the right shoulder has to move out of the way to give the hands, arms and golf club a place to swing to at the top of the backswing. The right shoulder does not slide back. Instead, rotates around your body.

The shoulders play a huge role in distance and direction. The shoulders have to turn as much as possible in the backswing. Once your back is facing the target (this for the 30ish and under crowd) or as much of a turn as possible, you will be in position to swing the club down with maximum club head speed.

The Spine
The spine has taken on an all important part in the golf swing in the past 10 years. Not many words were written about the spine and its role in the golf swing until then.

If the spine stays long during the backswing, not rigid, you can make a much bigger turn.

6. Long Spine During Backswing

If your spine is curved at address the shoulders will have a tendency to tilt and not turn. In the downswing the shoulders will have a tendency to turn on top of the golf ball instead of moving under. If the shoulders can move under, the golf club will stay on the path in the downswing (producing an inside to out swing). As the golf club swings back the right shoulder has to turn to allow the golf club to swing up, if the spine is too long the club will swing around too much and not up enough.

Bent Over

Too Long

There is yet another role the spine plays in the golf swing. At the top of the backswing the spine supports the upper body, the golf club, the arms and most importantly the speed at which we swing the golf club. If the spine maintains its length in the backswing, you will be able to swing the arms at a greater speed in the downswing.

The golf club is at its maximum speed as it nears the golf ball and the spine is supporting the frame of the golf swing - your upper body. As the club head passes the impact zone the spine is at its most vulnerable position and from that point to the finish is when the spine is taking a real beating (physically).

Maintaining the correct spine angle will play a major role in club head speed and, the direction the club actually swings (swing path). The spine maintains the same angle from address to one foot past impact and it is critical that it starts from the correct position.

If you are in the correct posture at address no changes are necessary.

If you are standing too tall at address, bending at the hips will solve this problem. If you are bent over too much at the top of the spine or your shoulders are too curved, you will have to take a very serious look into changing your spine angle. Opening your shoulders and lifting your chin will be a great place to start.

The Chin
After you address the golf ball there is a check-list of things you need to go through to make sure you are ready to take off. I am not going to tell you the position of the chin is the most important- however, it ranks up there for sure. The chin controls what happens to the shoulders in the backswing.

If the chin is down in your chest at address, the shoulders will have a tendency to pop up in the backswing. The right shoulder will NOT turn out of the way to make room for the arms to swing around. If you continue to leave your chin down in your chest you might have some success with the shorter clubs, but the long clubs will be very difficult to hit. You can get away with the arms swinging up and down with the short clubs, you might not be so lucky with the longer clubs.

If you have a tendency to top your shots or hit thin, your chin might be up too much.

Too Down

Too Up

If the chin is down in your chest at address, the shoulders will have a tendency to pop up in the backswing. The right shoulder will NOT turn out of the way to make room for the arms to swing around. If you continue to leave your chin down in your chest you might have some success with the shorter clubs, but the long clubs will be very difficult to hit. You can get away with the arms swinging up and down with the short clubs, you might not be so lucky with the longer clubs.

If you have a tendency to top your shots or hit thin, your chin might be up too much.

So now you want to know how much you should lift your chin up. I have some advice that is not the answer of all answers, but it is a wonderful starting point.

Lift your chin up just enough to get your fist under your chin and touch your throat.

7. Use Fist as a Guide

Correct

When you start experimenting with this new position you will want to start with a club you like to hit. You will know right away if the correction is going to help you or not. Give it a chance. If you top a lot of shots, you have lifted the chin up too much. The first few shots you might want to start with half a fist so you can ease into it. Keep in mind it is an extension of your spine. You might have to bend over at the hips another inch or two; this will compliment the chin position.

Now, visit Simple Golf Swing for the most complete set of golf lessons you can get! Have a look and see all that you get when you purchase Simple Swing, you'll be 'over the moon'.

Golf Swing Advice, The Golf Grip

2009-01-14T04:44:00.000-08:00

The Grip of Golf

Left Hand
When you pick up a golf club your hands are the only part of your body that touch the club.For many years the hands (grip) have often been referred to as the steering wheel of the golf swing. I don't believe this could be more true. Gripping the golf club correctly makes playing this game of golf a much better experience.

Gripping the golf club at first glance does not seem like a very difficult thing to do, however, it can take a lot of trial and error to figure out the correct grip for you. This is a very interesting aspect to the game of golf. Gripping the golf club is a VERY INDIVIDUAL thing for everyone that plays golf. There are no two grips alike. You can only find what works for you through hitting golf balls. I can and will guide you, but ultimately, results on the golf course speak louder than me.

Place the golf club up in your left hand, the golf club goes across the left palm- from the base of the forefinger to the pad above the pinky.

Now, hold the handle steady with your left fingers and wrap your palm around the top of the grip.

The grip does more to effect actual ball flight than anything else in the game. That's why we've started with the grip. It's the foundation of the swing, and a quick fix for those of you that have undesirable golf ball flight patterns.

The more you grip the golf club in the fingers, the faster you can swing the golf club and the quicker the clubface will close. If you grip the golf club further up in the palm, the slower the golf club will travel and the longer it takes for the clubface to close. If you are slicing the golf ball, you will want to move the grip more into the fingers (the base of the fingers), if you are hooking the golf ball, you will want to move the grip more into the palm area (higher up in the left hand).

Right Hand
Now that the left hand is in place you are going to place the right hand on the golf club.

With your right hand on the side of your right leg, slowly bring it towards the bottom of the golf club.

The right hand will be placed on the golf club more in the fingers than the palm. You will simply fold the right hand around the fingers of the left.

BOTH PALMS MUST ALWAYS FACE EACH OTHER. It is not a difficult thing to do but it is mandatory, no gray area.

3. Bring your Right Hand Towards the Bottom of your Left Hand

4. Fold your Right Hand Around the Fingers of the Left Hand

5. Both Palms MUST Face Each Other

Congratulations, you have now GRIPPED the golf club. But hold on a second, there is a good chance this is not the correct grip for you, so you will have to experiment. However, I have given you a great starting point. The placement of the hands on the golf club controls what the clubface will do during the golf swing and ultimately what the clubface will look like at impact.

In the next section I will show you some variations of the grip that will help you find the one that works best for you.

**SPECIAL NOTE Most golf clubs either have a "ladies" grip or a "men's" grip on the golf club. If you have small hands it is very important to make sure you have your clubs gripped with a ladies grip, it doesn't matter if you own men's clubs. If you have large hands you should have your clubs gripped with men's grips. There are a couple more options, if your hands are really small you can have "junior" grips placed on your clubs or if you have x-large hands or arthritis you can have "jumbo" grips placed on your clubs. The grip size also effects ball flight. Large grips tend to make a person fade the ball and small grips tend to make a person draw the ball.**

Grip Variations
There are multiple ways to grip a golf club. Although it sounds overwhelming, it truly is not. Once you begin to experiment you will eliminate four or five of them instantly. I will give you a guide to get you started on the right track.

Interlocking Grip

Overlapping Grip

For starters, if you have small hands and fingers, the interlocking grip will probably work best for you. It helps you wrap your fingers and palm around the grip handle.

On the other hand, if you have large hands, the overlapping grip will probably work best for you.

The above-mentioned grips are the proper way to hold a club- however there are three different ways you can apply them to the golf club.

Weak

Neutral

Strong

You can grip the golf club in a weak position (no knuckles of the left hand showing), neutral (one knuckle of the left hand showing) or the strong position (2 or 3 knuckles of the left hand showing).

During your experimenting, if the golf ball has a tendency to curve to the right, a golf slice, you will want to move BOTH hands to the right (strong). When you move the hands make sure you do it slowly. If the golf ball has a tendency to curve to the left, you will want to move BOTH hands slowly to the left (weak). Now, if the golf ball is flying without a curve, you have the correct grip for you. DO NOT EXPERIMENT WITH ANY OTHER GRIP.

Grip Pressure
OK, you have found the correct grip for you. There is one last item we need to deal with. The amount of pressure you apply to the club plays a major role in how you swing the golf club. The tighter you grip the golf club the slower your arms will swing and the longer the clubface will take to release in the downswing (causing a slice). This is a good thing if you HOOK the golf ball. This will definitely stop the ball from curving from right to left. On the other hand if you have problems SLICING the golf ball this amount of grip pressure will make the ball slice more.

If you are struggling with slicing the golf ball, you will have to hold the golf club like you were holding a baby's hand. Gently, the lighter you grip the golf club the faster the club will swing and the quicker the club will release in the downswing. If you do not have any problems with the ball curving, you have found the correct amount of grip pressure.

Now, visit Simple Swing for the most complete set of golf lessons you can get! Have a look and see all that you get when you purchase Simple Swing, you'll be 'over the moon'.

Golf Swing Plane And Tempo Drill

2009-01-11T06:29:00.000-08:00

Golf Swing Plane

New golfers have a tendency towards problems with their golf swing. This is not surprising given that the golf swing is so complicated, but there are two areas in particular that seems to give the most trouble, and that's getting their golf swing on the correct swing plane and getting a good tempo into their golf swing. They seem to concentrate more on producing power than they do on rhythm and control. This usually results in a dreadfully inconsistent golf swing and a bad golf slice or golf hook.

Their biggest problem is that they never get to feel what a good golf swing is like. New golfers try to emulate the golf professionals swing instead of building their golf swing up to that level, they try and start off with the tour pros golf swing and then wonder why they are making all their mistakes. Even new golfers who take lessons can't seem to help themselves from falling into this same trap. The result is usually that they are left trying to correct a golf slice.

However, it is not just new golfers that run into difficulties with their golf swing, most golfers will 'lose their swing' from time to time. It happens for all kinds of reasons, even just tiredness can do it. What we all need is something we can use to reground our golf swing when it gets out of kilter. Simplify things by using a single plane golf swing.

I have a drill that I've used for a good number of years, and it works surprisingly well considering it's simplicity. Whenever my golf swing breaks down or I've had a lay off from golf for any length of time, I use this drill to get my golf swing back into its groove and it works wonders with new golfers to give them the feel for the golf swing and the rhythm and tempo that they should have.

The Golf Swing Plane and Tempo Drill

This drill is very simple, but it gets your swing on the correct swing plane and works very well on your tempo.

The first thing to do is decide on a target line, the aim is make sure that the club head never crosses this line, either before impact or after impact.

Take a back swing and stop when your leading arm is parallel with the ground, make sure that the butt end of your golf club is pointing to the target line.

Execute a down swing and stop your follow through when your trailing arm is parallel with the ground, again, make sure that the butt end of your golf club is pointing to the target line. This should be like a mirror image of the back swing.

Now just keep swinging your golf club between these two points and concentrate on the club head and the rhythm of your golf swing. Try and remember to keep your hips as quiet as possible, you don't want any unnecessary body movement that you wouldn't have during a normal golf swing.

Now take another club and do the same routine swinging both clubs together, I find that two mid irons are best for this, people with big hands will naturally find this easier to do, but even golfers with small hands can do it, the extra weight almost forces you into the correct tempo.

After a few minutes of this, try lengthening your swing a small bit at a time. There is no need to try and complete a full swing, in fact, you shouldn't go any further than shoulder height.

If you do a couple of minutes a day using this technique you will find that your golf swing will benefit in all sorts of ways. Happy golfing.

Single Plane Golf Swing

2009-01-09T11:42:00.000-08:00

Golf Swing Plane and Golf Styles

Modern Golf Swing

The modern golf swing starts off at address in a position that is different to the one you want to be in at impact. This means that at least two different swing planes are being used throughout the complete golf swing. This confuses new golfers, especially when they are looking for golf swing tips, The more complicated the golf swing, the more confused they become.

This difference in swing planes means that a lot of some complicated re-adjustments have to take place in order to get the golf club head into the correct position at the impact zone.

Natural Golf Swing

Moe Norman utilized and made popular, the natural golf swing. The main difference between the two swing methods is that in the natural golf swing only one swing plane is used throughout the golf swing, as compared to multi swing planes in the modern golf swing.

Only using one swing plane throughout, has several advantages. It is easier and more natural to get the club head into the correct position at impact because, at impact your position is identical to the position you started off with at address. If you start off your golf swing on the same plane as you end up on, then there is less complication in the complete swing and therefore less to go wrong. The golf swing itself becomes much simpler. There is no "slot" to drop your arms into during the downswing, and no need for one. Which means that you will probably not have to figure out how to correct a golf slice.

Golf Address

With the modern, or conventional golf swing, the player takes a relatively narrow stance with the hands positioned straight down from the shoulders and the hands behind the club head. The natural golf swing calls for the setup position to be the same as at impact, with the arms extended in front of you instead of straight down and the hands in front of the club head.

Because, using the natural golf swing, the address position is the same as the impact position, there is no need for any swing corrections to take place. The club head can stay on the same plane throughout the golf swing and will therefore result in a more consistent and solid strike of the golf ball.

The modern golf swing, in the hands of the amateur, encourages a golf slice. The tendency is for the club head to cross over the target line during the down swing and end up on an 'out-to-in' swing path, hence the slice. You can visit - New Golfers: Golf Slice - for a fuller explanation of the golf slice.

You can visit - Natural Golf Swing - for a thorough explanation of the natural golf swing and Moe Norman, it includes a few golf swing videos as well.

New Golfers, How To Use The Target Line Effectively

2008-12-14T06:51:00.000-08:00

Golf and the Target Line

New golfers need to know how to use the target line effectively, even more experienced golfers don't consider the target line enough. They fail to realize that the target line can be used for more than just lining up your shot.

Most new golfers stand behind the golf ball and line up the direction they want the ball to go, if this is on the tee, then it is usually in a very general way and direction. They aim for the direction of the flag and fail to pick out the exact spot on the fairway that they want the ball to land. I will get more into picking a specific target later, for now I'll concentrate on the various ways that the target line can be used to help the new golfer.

How to pick a target line

The target line in golf is an imaginary line drawn through the golf ball all the way to the target, on the tee this becomes a very long line. When you are addressing the golf ball, the target line relies on your peripheral vision to be able to concentrate on it and line up your stance and shot effectively. The way round this is to pick out a spot that is on the target line but much closer to you, this can be anything, from a leaf to a dark spot on the grass, anything at all, it does not matter as long as you pick out something.

Now that you have your spot picked out, at address, you will be able to be more aware of it while you are looking at the golf ball. Because you can now visualize the target line easier, you can use it in various ways and new golfers can learn how to use the target line effectively.

Lining up your stance

You want to line your body up parallel to the target line, however, most golf instruction seems to be that you line your feet up parallel to the target line, and miss the most important bit of all. New golfers take note, it is your shoulders that are important to line up with the target line, not your feet, concentrate much more on your shoulders. Have a look at How To Hit The Golf Ball Straight for a deeper explanation.

The golf club face

While at address, you can use the target line to make sure that the face of the golf club is square to this line, unless the club face is square to this line at impact, the golf ball will not fly in a straight line.

Straight golf shot

You can use the target line to ensure that your golf swing is going to give you a straight shot, and it is simply this. if, during the downswing, the club head crosses over the target line, you will not get a straight shot. If the club head crosses over the line before impact, you will get a fade or golf slice. If, on the other hand, the club head crosses over the target line after impact you will get a draw or golf hook. This, of course, is presuming that the club head is square to the target line at impact.

Specific targets

The need to pick out a specific target to aim for, especially on the tee box, seems to be ignored and badly understood by new golfers. If you just pick out a general direction that you want the golf ball to travel, you severely restrict how much progress you will make at the game of golf.

The more precise you are when choosing a target to aim for, the less room for error you are allowing yourself. The advantages are that you will be less likely to have wayward shots if you are aiming for a smaller target, your mind concentrates more and your subconscious is more likely to ignore any hazards that would normally put you off. By being more precise, you also become more accurate overall in your golf shots, you will be more critical of yourself when you miss your target. Your drive may very well be straight, but if it lands 30 yards longer or shorter than the target you were aiming for, then you will be less likely to accept it as being a good shot.

If you are trying to correct a golf slice, then learn to use the target line effectively.

To sum up, new golfers need to learn how to use the target line effectively and to be more precise when choosing where they want their golf ball to land.

Golf and the Axis of Power

2008-12-11T06:36:00.000-08:00

Power in Golf

To understand where the power is generated in golf, you first have to understand the golf swing you are using. There are a number of different golf swings used by golfers today, for instance, new golfers tend to use their arms and hands to generate power, it is also a common method with high handicappers too. Playing this way will just leave you having to correct a golf slice problem.

Rotation

The initial power is to be found in the rotation of the body. If you were to strike the golf ball along a straight line, the golf club head would not be able to travel very far, a couple of feet before and after the ball, if you wanted to keep the club moving along a straight line and increase the distance the club head traveled, you would have to physically move yourself and your club head along this line, either by walking or running. The only other way to increase the distance that the club head travels without moving your position is to rotate the golf club head around your body. This increased distance allows the club head to build up more speed. Power in golf is the speed of the club head moving through the impact zone, it is not like hitting something with a hammer, purely speed.

Arms and Hands

New golfers fail to understand the physics of the golf swing and, in an effort to get the golf ball to travel further, they try and supplement the rotational speed, which is not very fast, by using their arms and hands to supply more power at impact. This throws their whole golf swing out of balance and produces uncontrolled and inconsistent golf shots, a very bad golf slice is usually the result. There are some golfers with this swing, who use a short back swing to try and gain more control and consistency, and in doing so, their attempt cuts down the amount of rotation, and therefore speed, and they end up using their arms and hands even more. However, golfers that have powerful forearms seem to manage reasonably well with this technique.

Golf and the Axis

The axis should be centered round the spine, this is the basis for all golf swings, it gives stability and, if performed correctly, it also gives consistency and accuracy in the golf swing. I'm talking here about the accuracy of your club head hitting the ball, not the accuracy of your shot, if you have a stable axis of rotation and good balance, then the club head will be in a good position to strike the golf ball. Because of the 'coiling' motion of the backswing around the axis, a centrifugal force is exerted on the club head during the downswing.

Golf and the Centrifugal Effect

The modern golf swing that the tour pros use, relies heavily on the force that throws things out from a rotating body, the centrifugal effect. Golfers can use the extra force exerted by the centrifugal effect to increase the speed of the club head through the impact zone. When you are at address, the club head is at it's fullest distance from the axis of rotation (your spine), at the top of the backswing the club head is much closer to this axis. New golfers, and high handicap golfers, generally start the down swing with the club head moving outward from the axis, and by the time their left arm (for righty's) is parallel with the ground, the club head is almost at it's fullest extent. In other words, most of the centrifugal effect has already taken place, well before the impact zone.

Modern Golf Swing

The wrist hinge is where the centrifugal effect is controlled, the more the wrists are hinged at the top of the backswing, the greater this effect will be, if executed correctly. The longer you can maintain the wrist hinge during the downswing the longer the club head will stay close to the axis of rotation. The wrist hinge should be intact, at least, until the left arm is parallel with the ground, centrifugal effect will naturally start the club head on its outward path without consciously unhinging (uncocking) your wrists. This will keep the club head accelerating through the impact zone, the tour pros, and other long hitters, give an extra 'hit' at impact by using their hands and wrists at the last moment.

Golf Swing

There is a lot more to the golf swing than just generating power, and a thorough knowledge of the basic golf swing is a must for new golfers, or any golfer that is experiencing problems with their swing, you can read more of the golf basics here - "Why The Golf Basics Are So Important". If you are aware of what is happening during your swing, and what you are trying to achieve with it, then you will have a much better understanding of the control that is needed in the game of golf, it will also help you in another part of golf, the part they call the mind game.

What Golf Clubs Should I Use

2008-12-09T14:15:00.000-08:00

Golf Club Choices

New golfers have a tough time ahead of them, and not just in learning the game of golf, but also in choosing their golf equipment. Golf is a game that has been played for centuries, so it should come as no surprise that all areas of golf have evolved in that time. Everything, from the golf course, golf shoes, golf apparel, golf balls, even golf gadgets have changed and none more so than the golf clubs we use to send the golf ball on it's way to being sunk in the hole. Arguably, a golf course, golf shoes, golf balls and golf clubs are all that is necessary in order to play golf, our focus here will be on the golf equipment, specifically, the golf clubs themselves.

All golf clubs have the same basic make-up, a tapering shaft with a grip fitted on the fat end and a head fitted to the thin end, and there, the sameness of golf clubs end. Apart from the putter which has a flat face, all other golf clubs have a lofted face on the head of the club, the amount of loft changes with each subsequent club in the golf club set. So what golf clubs should I use?

Today, a standard set of golf clubs normally consist of:

1 x 1 wood normally referred to as the "driver"
1 x 3 wood
1 x 5 wood
7 x irons (numbered 3 to 9)
1 x pitching wedge
1 x putter

The Rules of Golf dictate a maximum of 14 golf clubs in your golf bag, the other two clubs, if carried at all, is a personal choice with every golfer having their own favorites. By the way, the above list is of course optional, you can carry whatever range of golf clubs that you prefer, and as few, there is no requirement to carry all of them, the only rule is a maximum of 14 clubs, there is no minimum.

The higher the number of the golf club, the more lofted the face is. Loft is the angle of the face of the golf club, the bigger the loft, the higher the golf ball will fly and the less distance it will travel. A driver will produce a lower flight trajectory than a 3 or 5 wood and the same is true for the irons.

Not all drivers have the same degree of loft and new golfers would be well advised to use a driver with a minimum of 10 degrees, they would be far better using a 12 degree driver. The reason is that the more loft there is in a golf club the more forgiving that club is when a less than perfect swing is used. For example, it is far more common and easier to produce a golf slice using a 10 (or less) degree driver than a 12 (or more) degree driver. New golfers might well leave their driver at home until they have built a solid and consistent golf swing using the easier, more lofted, golf clubs.

As a general guide, for distance of 200 yards and less, the irons would be used and for distances over 200 yards, the woods would be used. The driver is generally only used from the tee box, it is not an easy club to use from the fairway, the 3 or 5 wood would be used in preference. Have a look at How To Hit The Golf Ball Straight.

The choice of which iron to use for any particular distance comes down to experience, some golfers get great distance from their irons and others find it more difficult to get the same length of shot, so it is important that you get to know what distance you can expect each of your irons to reach, but regardless, the closer you get to the green, the higher numbered club you would normally use. This is not a hard and fast rule though, for instance, a 7 iron is often used to produce what they call a 'bump and run' shot from fairly close to the green, this would obviously have to be played much gentler than a full shot with a 7 iron normally would.

A pitching wedge is more lofted than the 9 iron, the ball will fly higher and will run less when it lands, it is often used to get the ball up in the air to fly over hazards like sand bunkers (also known as sand traps). There are other more lofted clubs not mentioned so far, the sand wedge for instance, is more lofted than the than the pitching wedge and has a thinner blade to help the club cut through the sand when you have landed in a bunker. There are various lob wedges that are more lofted still and some golfers carry an assortment of wedges with them in favor of other clubs that they seldom use.

There is another point that is probably worth making and that has to do with your budget for buying golf equipment. As you know, playing golf is expensive and the costs just start with buying the right golf equipment. In addition, golf course charges or green fees are high and accumulate over time. Plus, you need appropriate clothing, a golf bag, golf balls, and golf shoes. The list goes on. However, there is one beginner mistake that many new golfers make, and that is to go out and buy a complete set of new golf clubs, before they really understand the game and their strengths and weaknesses. From this website, you should have learned that success in golf is largely the result of the technique and has much less to do with the quality or expensiveness of your golf equipment. Therefore, a modest suggestion is that you could buy some Used Golf Clubs when you start out and are learning the game. Once you know what you are doing, you can then buy a full and brand new set of golf clubs that is appropriate to your needs. At that point you could either resell your used golf clubs, or you could give them to someone else who is starting out with golf. They could learn with your used golf clubs, before they, in turn, buy a set of new golf clubs.

I hope that this has gone some way in answering your question, "what golf clubs should I use?" There is a huge choice of different makes of golf clubs, although the Rules of Golf place restrictions on golf club design, the makers of golf clubs have their own designs within the rules and you also have a choice of shaft length and flexibility, weight, grips, etc., and trying them out and getting unbiased advice when you are buying your clubs is highly recommended.

Classic Golf Swing, Why

2008-12-04T08:57:00.000-08:00

Classic Golf Swing

Just about every golfer you have ever seen, on the TV, on the golf course, at the driving range where ever you see them, they are using the classic golf swing. The big question is, do they need to? An even better question might be, are they justified in even attempting to use the classic golf swing?

If you take the point of view that the classic golf swing is only for the pros, especially the tour pros, then certain things begin to make more sense. For instance, 90 percent of golfers never break 100, around 80 percent of golfers have a golf slice problem, tour pros have golf swing coaches and back injuries are a common problem with a lot of golfers, even the pros can suffer from back problems. All these things put into question the general use of the classic golf swing.

The problem with the classic golf swing is that it is a very complicated series of movements that rely very heavily on timing as well as an understanding of the whole golf swing that, quite frankly, the vast majority of golfers have only a vague idea of. There is simply too much to go wrong, almost any single part of the golf swing, if done incorrectly, can make a huge difference to the outcome.

Most golfers just don't have the time and energy, or money, to put into learning and maintaining the classic golf swing. Try to correct a golf slice problem using the classic swing and you'll understand. Have a look at How To Hit The Golf Ball Straight.

Furthermore, the full range of movement, using the correct technique, having a good rhythm, solid golf swing consistency, accurate timing and correct posture all call for a dedicated concentration that few golfers have, not because they don't possess the ability, it's just that life gets in the way. The pros have mental coaches to help with the mental game of golf, concentration and motivation, they have learned techniques that allow them to control the classic golf swing.

It is not just a case of finding a natural and comfortable swing that you can repeat over and over again, if it was, we would all be good golfers and a golf slice or golf hook would be a thing of the past. The truth is that most golfers already have a golf swing that they do repeat time and time again. It just happens to be an incorrect swing with faults that keep giving them the same problems, and most of it is because they are trying to emulate the classic golf swing.

If you fall into this category then stop beating yourself up about not improving and do something about it. Stop using the classic golf swing and try something else instead. You can get your golf handicap into single figures quickly and easily by using your head and a much less "professional" golf swing, try this article Can I Cure My Golf Slice for some more information about an alternative golf swing.

Can I Cure My Golf Slice?

2008-11-30T07:59:00.000-08:00

The Golf Slice Problem

This is a very often asked question, especially from new golfers, a golf slice is the most common fault in the game of golf. Golfers with this fault very often suffer from it for years, if not their whole golfing lives and their long term successes in curing it are few and far between. There are many other faults in golf, some of them contribute to producing a golf slice. Here's a quote from "The Gist Of Golf" by Harry Vardon:

"All the good shots in the game (all, at any rate,
except the putt, which is a thing apart) are founded
on the principle of the body turning on a pivot
instead of swaying back and then lunging forward
at the ball. ' That pivot is the waist. ' No
doubt everybody who has made the slightest study
of golf appreciates this piece of orthodoxy, but
the number of people who disregard it, even though
they realise its importance, constitute about half the
golfing world. Why do they fail to observe the first
law of the true swing?"

Printed in 1922, Harry Vardon was referring to the late 1800's and early 1900's, it can be seen that the faults today are pretty much the same and just as widespread as they were in those times.

Most golfers, including new golfers, who are struggling to correct a golf slice problem, are only doing a couple of things wrong and, mostly, they are simple things to correct. There is no need for new golfers, or indeed even more experienced golfers, to struggle with a slice problem, it is correctable, why they find it so difficult to cure is because of faulty expectations of what they should be able to achieve with their present swing.

You can see amateur golfers every day on the golf course making essentially the same mistakes. They have seen their peers making 250 yard to 350 yard drives and expect to be able to do the same. They try and accomplish this by utilizing the full golf swing that they see every other golfer making, even if they do not yet have the skill to perform the full swing correctly, they also assume that they have to hit the ball harder to make it go further. Have a look at How To Hit The Golf Ball Straight.

The longer the backswing, the more room there is to go out of line and get the golf swing plane all wrong. The same is true when we try and hit the ball hard, the harder we swing at the ball, the more out of line our swing gets, using a full swing coupled with hitting the ball hard only produces wild and erratic shots and total inconsistency.

A half back swing is more than enough to get the golf ball to travel over 200 yards with a driver if done correctly, and, as a bonus, will lead to excellent golf swing consistency. You should address the ball with both hands parallel, the back of the left hand facing the flag and the back of the right hand facing in the opposite direction, the left wrist should remain flat (forearm and back of hand should form a straight line) throughout the backswing until impact is made.

Make the backswing by turning your shoulders until your left arm is parallel to the ground with the butt (grip end) of the driver pointing directly at the golf ball, this puts you in the correct swing plane. Initiate the down swing by, again, turning your shoulders, the acceleration should gradually build up through impact and delay un-cocking your wrists. The follow through should end up with your right arm parallel to the ground, try and avoid a full follow through at this stage, this should prevent you from trying to hit the golf ball hard.

You can practice this half swing without a ball, just swinging back and forward concentrating on the left arm parallel to the ground at the top of the back swing and the right arm parallel to the ground at the top of the follow through, remembering that the butt of the club should point at the golf ball at the top of the (shortened) back swing and un-cock the wrists as late as possible. This should ingrain the feeling of the swing into your muscle memory, an important thing to accomplish.

When you have this done correctly, you can proceed a stage further. When your left arm is parallel to the ground during the backswing, instead of having the butt end of the club point to the ball, cock your wrists a little more and have the butt point further back on the target line, try straight across from your back foot. Try and keep the tempo the same on the downswing. This will increase the arc distance that the club head will travel and will allow a greater speed for the club head through the impact zone.

If you continue in this way, working systematically towards a fuller swing, you will find, quite easily, how far you can go before your golf swing breaks down. Once you lose that straight predictable shot, you will know that you have gone too far, simply return to the swing where everything worked well and practice that a bit longer. Don't rush this process, allow it to happen naturally over a number of weeks, or even months.

To answer the question at the top of this article, "Can I cure my golf slice?" Yes, you can, and if you follow the above method it should get rid of all the little faults that combine to give you the golf slice in the first place, practice it for a while and your whole swing will begin to fall into place. Once you have confidence and consistency, you can try lengthening your swing very gradually, but get the basic golf swing right first.

How To Hit The Golf Ball Straight

2008-11-17T05:22:00.000-08:00

Hitting a straight Golf Shot

How to hit the golf ball straight is probably the most sought after skill in the game of golf, especially for new golfers. Everything from an unintentional draw or fade to a wicked hook or slice, is caused by only one thing. The face of the golf club is not square at impact. This causes side spin on the ball and a curved shot to the left or right, depending on which direction the side spin is, will be the result. If your club head is traveling along the target line at impact, and the club face is square to the target line, then you will hit a straight shot in the direction of the target line. That's all there is to it.

I've written before on how to cure a golf slice or golf hook, but some golfers, especially new golfers, get a bit confused. Sometimes their golf swing produces shots that go way to the left or right without any curvature on the shot, they are really good straight shots that end up in the rough or the trees and not in the middle of the fairway, and they wonder why this should happen. They are used to producing the dreaded golf slice or hook and can't figure why one should go straight but fly off left or right with no curvature in the shot.

I'll be talking about right-handed golfers from here on, sorry lefties but I'm sure you are used to sorting this out by now. If you take an imaginary straight line from the spot you are aiming at, through the ball, and all the way back to the horizon on your right, we will just call this the "target line".

When "out-to-in" and "in-to-out" swing paths are discussed, new golfers in particular tend to get a bit lost, Ill try my best to explain this as it is a really crucial concept in the game of golf to get right. During the downswing, if the club head crosses over the target line, it will produce an out-to-in swing path, if the club head does not cross the line until after impact with the ball then an in-to-out swing path is being used. The club head should never fully cross the "target line", at any point, in the normal golf swing.

When you are at address, the golf club head is square to the golf ball along the target line, as we draw the club back during the backswing, the club head never fully crosses this line, it comes back on the inside and at the top of the backswing it is well inside this target line. During the downswing, the club head should return to the address position with the club face square to the ball at impact without fully crossing over the target line. This will give a straight shot down the target line towards the spot you were aiming at.

If, during the downswing, the head of the club crosses over the target line this will produce an out-to-in swing path. Now, the squareness of the club head is all important, if it remains square to the target line, the club head will come across the ball and will not make square contact, this will impart side spin on the golf ball and a golf slice will result. If the club face is square to the out-to-in swing path, then the club head will make square contact with the ball and a straight shot will result, but not in the direction of the target line, it will be a straight shot off to the left in the direction of the out-to-in swing path.

An in-to-out swing path follows the same logic, if the club face is square to the "target line" at impact, it is moving across the ball and will produce a hook or draw. If the club face is square to the in-to-out swing path it will produce a straight shot off to the right in the direction of the in-to-out swing path.

I hope this clears up a few things about swing paths and straight shots for new golfers. The important thing about the golf swing here is the squareness of the club head at impact, if the club head makes square contact with the golf ball, you will get a straight shot, it's that simple and is how to hit the golf ball straight. So now you should have no more problems trying to correct a golf slice.

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When To Practice The Golf Swing

2008-11-05T04:03:00.000-08:00

Practicing Golf

What new golfers need when they are starting out, more than anything else, is good quality golf lessons on golf, some basic advice, especially of the golf swing. The next essential element is quality practice. The game of golf is as much a mental game as it is a physical one, and both of these can be served well by practice, but only if it is done correctly. Instead of improving your golf swing, ineffective or incorrect practicing can ingrain faults into your swing and make your overall skill worse off.

We have two different types of memory, one where we consciously remember things in our brains and the other which is simply muscle memory, and like every other sport, golf relies heavily on muscle memory. Repetition is the key to muscle memory, the more often we do something physical the more automatic it becomes, our muscles begin to remember the precise movements we have been repeating. This is normally advantageous to us, learning to play a musical instrument would be impossible without it, those intricate fluid movements that are learned over time would, instead, be like our first attempts - all the time.

Muscle memory, however, causes as many problems as it solves. As far as the golf swing goes, it is a very technical series of physical movements, as easy as it looks, it is not easy to get right, the golf swing is difficult to master. If we practice when our golf swing is not producing the correct results then we are feeding our muscle memory the wrong information, our muscles don't know any better, they simply remember movements that we repeat over and over again. The correct way to practice the golf swing is to repeat the swing when it is right, when we have a good swing. If you are trying to correct a golf slice, then don't take another practice swing just after producing a slice or any other swing fault.

You often see too many golfers who, when they have played a bad shot, immediately take a practice swing or two, just think about that for a minute. What do you think is the outcome of practicing a bad shot? The more we repeat it the more our muscles remember it. It is clearly the wrong time to practice, the repetition of practice should be kept for when we have produced a good shot and not a bad one. Remember this one, it's really important, especially if you want to improve your golf swing.

Take your bad shots philosophically and just shrug them off, the more importance you give a bad shot in your mind, the more likely you are to produce one, repetition comes in all shapes and sizes, and worrying about a bad shot can be very repetitive, so try not to over-emphasize a bad shot in your mind and certainly, never practice one, it is a huge mistake and one that is easily avoided. Remember the old saying, "Be careful what you wish for?" Well, worrying about producing any particular swing fault is much the same as wishing for it to happen, your mind has a habit of trying to give you what you want.

There is a time to practice and a time to leave well alone, recognizing which is which is the key to understanding when practicing will be helpful and when it will be detrimental. It seems natural to practice a bad shot because we think that extra swing or two is correcting the swing fault, but this is the opposite to what is happening in reality. When we take those extra swings, invariably they are identical to the one that produced the bad shot in the first place.

So, when you have a good shot, practice what you did to achieve it, as often as you like and remember, if you have a bad shot, walk away from it, practicing then would be wrong. Also, bear in mind, this is just as true for more experienced golfers as it is for new golfers, keep your muscle memory for the good shots.

Why The Golf Swing Basics Are So Important

2008-10-27T06:46:00.000-07:00

The Importance of the Basic Golf Swing

Golf is one of those games that we need to understand its basic simplicity before we can get to grips with the more complex side of it that the pros use. Most golfers, especially new golfers, seem to bypass the basics altogether and jump right into trying to emulate their peers and, as a result, they have nothing to fall back on when things go wrong, that is why the golf swing basics are so important.

Practice is also something that is in short supply for most golfers and, because of this, they never get the correct golf swing ingrained into their muscle memory. This leaves them in an awkward position of having to relearn their swing every time they go out for a round of golf.

Humans, being what they are, get round this by settling into a natural and comfortable stance and swing and in their own mind they think, falsely, it is the same one that the pros use. After a few outings, or perhaps a lot of outings, this natural and comfortable way of playing becomes the normal, even though it does not work for them. One of the biggest problems is that it seems to work some of the time, so they think they are on the right track and just need to practice more.

This "up and down" way of playing golf encourages the golfer to try changes in their golf swing to try and get the "secret" that will give them a straight and reliable shot on a consistent basis. But, having failed to learn the basics in the first place, the consistency in their golf swing that they are looking for is almost impossible to achieve.

What happens next is a common experience for most golfers, not just those that are new golfers and just starting out, they begin reading magazines, buying books, watching the televised tournaments, taking lessons from their local golf pro and, generally, trying to make up for the lack of simple basic knowledge and experience that, once learned, can always be returned to in times of need.

The problem with these means of correction is that they give you the advice to achieve the professional golf swing and not the basics. The tournament golf professionals know the basics better than anybody, but they no longer use the basic swing, they have adapted the golf swing in order to optimize their performance and put them in a different league than the rest of us, and this is the reason why trying to learn the "professional" golf swing is so wrong for us.

The "professional" golf swing is balanced on a knife edge, it is optimized so much that it is very difficult to maintain and it has to constantly be tweaked with very slight and subtle changes in order to keep it working. The tour pros have swing coaches to help them with this, they also practice a lot more than we do, up to 5 or 6 hours most days. Do you realize now why the professional golf swing is not the one that most golfers should be striving for?

The basic golf swing, when learned correctly, has far fewer moving parts to it, it produces a straight shot with a reasonable distance for each golf club. It is also far more forgiving when we get our stance, or our grip, or direction a little wrong. Most importantly, it gives us that consistency that we need, a method that we can return to in order to sort out the problems we have introduced when we try the various optimizations that we can't help trying. It also helps us correct a golf slice or hook.

Knowing the golf basics will give you less frustration, a lot more fun, and will give you something tangible to tweak and adjust and play around with without destroying your game in any way. I know a couple of golfers who don't try and optimize their swing at all, they play with the basics and, along with good golf course management and a good mental approach, their golf handicaps are in single figures.

I'm in the middle of writing some articles to thoroughly explain why the golf basics are so important, I'll put them up on New Golfers as soon as I've finished them. In the meantime, if you want to cure your golf slice this should get you going. Remember, above all else, golf is a game and is supposed to be fun as well as challenging, when you are having fun you are relaxed and
positive... the perfect way to play golf.

Golf, Some Basic Swing Advice

2008-10-27T05:06:00.000-07:00

Basic Golf Swing Advice

Golf, some basic advice is essential, especially for new golfers, if they don't get the golf swing basics right they will struggle for a long time, maybe even for years. The game of golf is a bit like chess, you have to constantly analyze your moves and your position, in the case of golf, that means, in a general sense, analyzing your golf swing and your course management skills.

This, believe it or not, is one of the many enjoyable parts of our favorite game, too many golfers get their enjoyment only from a good result which leads them to feeling frustrated most of the time.

The pros, at least the top pros, all have help from a lot of different sources, eg. swing coach, mental coach, golf coarse analysts, and of course not forgetting their caddy who does a lot more than just carry their golf equipment for them.

Most of us, however, have to rely on nothing more than ourselves and maybe a few lessons from the local golf pro now and again, so getting to know our own swing and adapting what we have is imperative and a good golf professional will help us achieve this when we do get a golf lesson.

Our local pro is not with us when we are on the golf course playing golf, so his advice on correcting our golf swing faults is not available when we most need it. This is why we have to be able to analyze our own golf swing and get to know each and every part of it, especially if you are trying to correct a golf slice or hook.

As far as our golf swing goes, it's the basics that we struggle to get right, if we don't know the fundamentals then we have nothing to rely on when things go wrong, that fundamental method that we know works every time and gives us a straight shot, no heroics, no great distance, but something that we know will produce a certain outcome.

In order to get the golf basics right, we have to be aware of our golf swing, the path it is taking, and whether the golf club face is square at impact. Getting our stance right is less important, an open or closed stance should not matter if the swing trajectory and club face is right, it is still possible to produce an accurate and straight shot, the only part of our stance we need to get right is what they call the athletic stance, straight back, chin up, bend from the hips. Apart from these, it's your own personal golf swing that you have to work with.

When most golfers are preparing for a shot, they take a couple of practice swings and concentrate on... what?

Usually, a lot of things like, are they lined up right, is the club head just skimming the grass at the right spot, is their left arm straight..., and a whole collection of other things. What they should be concentrating on is their golf swing, they should be aware of what the golf club is doing during it's complete journey from being at rest all the way through the back swing until it returns to the impact zone. Not just the trajectory of the golf club, but also what is happening to the golf club face.

Once we stand up to the ball, get our balance right and take a look at the green, trust in your own natural ability that you will be lined up correctly, you really don't have to worry about that, our brains are well capable of doing this automatically.

So next time your on the golf course or at the driving range, trust your mind to control the things it can and concentrate instead on what your golf swing is doing, once you get proficient at that, the basics will become obvious and, more to the point, you will understand them and be able to return to them whenever you need to, and remember that with golf, some basic advice and the fundamentals of the game of golf is what is really important for new golfers too.

Golf Swing Advice, The Golf Draw

2008-10-25T12:55:00.000-07:00

Draw v Slice

In the game of golf a draw is the result of imparting top-right-hand spin on the golf ball, it is the tee shot that the long hitters aim for because it tends to travel further. Thanks to the top spin it will fly further and when the ball lands it should bounce and roll forward. If you're serious about improving your golf swing, the ability to hit a draw shot is essential.

Compare this with a fade or golf slice that puts bottom-left-hand spin on the ball, it does not fly as far nor does it bounce and roll as far either.

If you suffer from the dreaded slice, then producing a golf draw will clearly correct your golf slice as well as add distance to your shots. Have a look at How To Hit The Golf Ball Straight.

The Draw

So how do we go about imparting top-right-hand spin on the golf ball? It's not as intuitive or as natural as producing a golf slice, all you have to do for a slice is get the club head to come across the ball at impact, an out-to-in swing plane will accomplish this, so also will letting your body get ahead of your hands in the downswing.

That would mean that an in-to-out swing plane at impact should give the desired results, if, and only if, your body does not get ahead of your hands.

To stop this happening, you have to keep the relationship and position of your hands, arms (left arm for right-handers), and shoulders intact throughout the swing until impact is made with the golf ball. The triangle made with your hands and shoulders should be maintained, this is, of course, basic to a good golf swing anyway.

The best results are obtained when you concentrate on turning your shoulders during the back swing, and not your golf club or arms and hands, this is also true of the downswing.

Too upright a back swing must also be avoided as this tends to produce an out-to-in swing plane. Think of the swing plane for your driver as being flatter, more around your body.

Having the club head slightly closed at impact should also produce a draw, be careful to not overdo it though, a hook is never a nice shot, it is just as disastrous as a slice.

Golf, The Effortless Way

2008-10-21T13:47:00.000-07:00

Play Golf With Little Effort

I'm going to show you that playing golf the effortless way, is not only the way to get the most fun out of golf, but also the best way of getting results. None of you reading this article is a pro, much less one of the top pros, you're probably not even a low handicapper, maybe even a new golfer so lets get things into perspective first. Have a look at Golfers Biggest Mistake.

If you are like the other 80% of golfers, and certainly most new golfers, and play once a week or less during the season and aspire to get your golf handicap into single figures or maybe even just break 100, then you are going to have to stop trying to emulate the tournament pros. They play a different game from the rest of us, they practice daily and have coaches for every facet of their game, so, if you want to improve your golf swing technique, leave them alone and stop analyzing their swing and every other part of their game.

It is more important to have a straight shot and know where the ball is going to land than to be able to hit the ball the maximum distance for each club you use, it's also important to conserve energy so that you can finish the round comfortably without any strain or undue tiredness. Playing golf the effortless way, or put the other way, playing golf with too much effort is the most overlooked fault that most golfers have.

If you are always trying to hit the golf ball as if it was fired from a canon, then you are using far too much energy, your accuracy will be off and possibly end up trying to correct a golf slice or hook, your distance will be off as sometimes you will get it just right and hit it long and, more often than not you wont hit it right and get much less distance from your shot, or worse, just flunk the shot entirely.

The pros have spent a long time, and put a lot of effort, into optimizing their swing. The point is that they had a solid swing to build on, they had all the golf swing basics working and ingrained in their muscle memory before they built it up to the professional swing they have today. It's those basic principles that we have to concentrate on first and the most important of them is to get rid of all the variable bits of the golf swing that can cause problems.

The first thing you have to do is play a short backswing, the longer the backswing the more room there is for your swing to be on the wrong plane and the easier it is for you to go out of balance. There is no need for a full backswing, that would come under the heading of optimizing, at this stage a full follow through would be more beneficial than a full back swing.

Secondly, speed. There is a great tendency for high handicappers to swing too quickly, both the back swing and the forward swing. Again, there is no need for any great speed and the faster you swing the more your timing will be out and your balance will be affected.

Finally, power. Hitting the golf ball hard is never a good golf shot, golf just does not work that way. Power is produced by the speed of the club head as it passes through the impact zone and not by how hard you hit the ball, and speed is something that can best be worked on once the basic golf swing is mastered.

To sum up, concentrate on two things, balance and taking an easy effortless swing. You'll be surprised just how straight, far and consistently you hit the ball by paying attention to just these two elements of your game. With this new found consistency comes a confidence and real enjoyment, once you can predict where the ball will land, you can bring course management into your play and make a real difference to your score.

So, go on, give it a try, play golf the effortless way.

New Golfers Beware

2008-10-16T05:28:00.000-07:00

The New Golfer

New golfers really should beware, golf is one of the most addictive sports on the planet, it is also one of the most infuriating. You will never master golf, even the tour pros, good as they are, have not mastered it, they have golf swing coaches and golf mental coaches, they have to constantly practice and hone their golf skills, and are always trying to improve their golf swing.

Apart from your annual golf fees, playing golf can be quite expensive, there is always some new piece of golf equipment that you will need:

a new golf driver
a new golf putter
new golf wedges
a new golf bag
new golf waterproofs
new golf balls
new golf shoes
new set of golf clubs

If you can think of a piece of golf equipment, at some point you will want to buy it or replace it.

Then there are the golf lessons, golf tuition is necessary if you want to gain a consistent golf swing, for new golfers, golf lessons are indispensable, especially in the very beginning. The golf tour pros make it look too easy, you have to remember, golf is their livelihood, they have spent a lot of time and money to make it look this easy.

Golf is not just expensive, it is extremely time consuming as well, you won't get much change out of five hours just for one round of golf and often it will be even more. By the time you get to the golf course, get ready to play, even if there is no queue at the first tee, play the game, get showered and changed, then get home again (presuming there is no social interaction after the game), five hours is quite conservative.

Having said all that, golf is a game that can last you a lifetime, well into your retirement years. New golfers can start as early as five or six years old.

Players of vastly different capabilities can play together and still manage to compete.

The fact that you will never master golf is one of the game's many charms, it will always be challenging, even you are playing alone, speaking of which, it is one of the few games you can play on your own.

Golf is a sociable game, there is plenty of time to get to know the people you are playing with, they may, on occasions, be strangers at the start of the game, but by the end, they no longer will be, and if they are already your friends, what could be better?

Fresh air and exercise surrounded by nature and pleasant landscapes and views, enjoyable company and, arguably, the greatest game on Earth. So as I said above, let new golfers beware.

If you haven't already, you might want to read this article "New Golfers - Start Here", or have a look at Golfers Biggest Mistake.

To your golfing enjoyment.

Golf Swing Advice, Power in Golf 2

2008-10-11T04:07:00.000-07:00

The Power in The Golf Swing

The Golf Swing

As I hinted at in "Power in Golf", there is no need to to take a full swing in order to generate clubhead speed in golf. New golfers have difficulty with this and throw all their power into the shot, especially when using the driver off the tee.

If you haven't already, you may want to read Improve Your Golf Swing.

Most golfers, in their attempt to increase distance in their golf shots, apply more power, and when they see little improvement, apply even more power until their golf swing breaks down and they start having wild shots, probably a bad golf slice, and most golfers find trying to correct a golf slice one of the hardest things to do.

The golf swing should always be controlled, it should have a nice easy tempo, it is technique that adds distance to the golf shot, never power. The idea of powerful shots producing greater distance seems to be one of the more intuitive, but false, beliefs that are so common in golf. It is easy for the golfer, especially the new golfer, to believe this, after all, it is logical, hit the ball harder and it will go further. Depending on the golf equipment you have, getting some better golf equipment may be beneficial and help you get increased distance, but that all depends on the golf equipment you are already using.

Technique is far more important than physical strength in the golf swing, if the face of the golf club connects correctly with the golf ball, a good shot is the result, that is what golf clubs are designed for. To produce more distance the clubhead has to move through the impact zone faster. It is all to do with accuracy and speed. New golfers should concentrate on making good accurate contact with the ball and forget about distance. Have a look at Golf and the Axis of Power.

Accuracy is required to produce a well flighted golf shot and increased speed to produce greater distance. The confusion seems to be in the method of increasing the speed of the clubhead through the impact zone. It is not done by using a more powerful swing, it is the speed of uncoiling the body and uncocking of the wrists. This has to be done in a controlled fashion. The downswing is started slowly and initiated by turning the shoulders, the arms and hands just follow along, concentrate on moving your shoulders, and accelerating the turning of the body, this will return the club head to the ball. Uncocking the wrists should be left until the last second, the later this is done, the more speed will be produced.

A common fault by old and new golfers is uncocking the wrists way too early in the downswing, this is known as casting, a bad golf swing fault, if you uncock your wrists at the start of the backswing (the worst scenario) there will little speed in the clubhead as it passes through the impact zone, and there will be no acceleration.

The objective is to have the clubhead accelerating through the impact zone, this is important, the clubhead should be accelerating as it hits the ball.

New golfers should not be using a full golf swing, a short backswing and a full follow-through is much better, it is easier to control, the swing plane has less of an effect if it is not quite right, and it will assist in returning the clubface to the golf ball correctly. It also makes it easier to achieve the late uncocking of the wrists and helps to reduce the possibility of casting.

The basic golf swing in golf is the one with the least moving parts in it and has little to do with power in golf. The less movement, the less there is to go wrong.

When we introduce more movement into the golf swing there is a greater chance for things to go out of control, that's when we start to see all the golf swing faults appear. This is so true for new golfers.

Golf Swing Advice, Power in Golf
Golf And The Axis Of Power Swing Advice
To your golfing success and enjoyment.

To your golf enjoyment!

The Mental Game Of Golf

2008-10-09T10:34:00.000-07:00

Golf, The Game Of Two Heads

The mental game of golf is a game of two heads, the golf club head and your own head, and it's the link between these two heads that is the real game of golf. What is more important is that golf can be a game of two minds, the one you imagine you are playing and the one you are actually playing. Seldom are they the same.

Even worse is the indecision that can happen in your own mind, you can start your golf swing with one plan in mind and just after you start the downswing your plan suddenly changes, this is done without the desire to change your mind, it happens in an instant and there is nothing you can do to about it, and it is too late to stop the shot.

A simple thing like a hazard can instigate this change in thinking, you suddenly become more aware of it, or doubt your ability to avoid it. A sudden stray thought or a loss in confidence can cause it too, whatever the cause, the outcome is usually the same, the result is normally a bad shot.

It's also a hard one to deal with, it doesn't happen all the time. It's intermittent nature means that you are seldom prepared for it, it's not your golf swing or stance that you can change to cure it, and it's not your golf equipment either, it's a mental thing and one that you have to practice hard to stop it. Routine is a great way to avoid these moments, repeating the same things before we initiate our golf swing has the tendency to boost our confidence.

The golf professionals call it a pre-shot routine, and each pro will advise you to follow a different one depending on what their favorite one is. The truth is that whatever one you use does not really matter, what matters most is that you find a pre-shot routine that suits you and you use it before every shot.

Another helpful routine to lessen the occurrence is to have the same golf swing thoughts for every shot. Again, it does not matter what these swing thoughts are, the important bit is to have them. Concentrating on having a smooth, rhythmical, controlled and precise golf swing will leave less room for these changes of mind to take place, just remember to always do it.

There is an awful lot more to the mental game of golf, entire books have been written on the subject, and they don't all agree with each other, however, in my experience, having a pre-shot routine and having the same golf swing thoughts for every shot eliminates a lot of the faults caused by the mind aspect of the game.

Have a look at Golf and the Axis of Power.

Golf Swing Advice, The Golf Slice

2008-10-08T13:18:00.000-07:00

Golf Swing Fault Advice

When we're talking about golf and swing faults, there is one fault that stands head and shoulders above all the rest, although technically it's not a swing fault but the result of a swing fault, we won't go splitting hairs about it, it makes it a bit easier to explain this way. A golf slice is easily the most common swing fault in golf, all golfers, and new golfers in particular, will, at some time, have to deal with it. Most commonly, it happens on the tee with a driver, but almost any golf club (except the putter) can produce a golf slice, if this sounds like you then you need to improve your golf swing.

There are many ways to produce a golf slice, I'll explain how to do it here just in case you want to experience one, just kidding, although a slice has a baby brother called a fade shot in golf which is a very useful shot to have in your armoury. The first way of producing a slice is by getting the golf club on the wrong swing plane during the downswing. The tendency is to take a backswing using the correct swing plane but getting out of line during the downswing and getting into an outside-to-in swing plane. This causes the club to come across the golf ball at impact and impart a lot of side spin.

The second way to produce a golf slice is for the club to impact the ball with the clubface in an open position (the toe of the club is behind the shaft or heal of the club), this has the same effect as an out-to-in swing plane, it imparts side spin on the ball. Have a look at How To Hit The Golf Ball Straight.

I said there are many ways to produce a slice but I've only named two. That's true, these are the two causes of a slice, but there are many ways to produce these two golf swing faults, either singly or both at the same time which gives a really bad golf slice, most golfers find trying to correct a golf slice very difficult and can spend years without getting to the root cause of it.

If your swing plane is too upright, and everything else is correct, then the club will follow an out-to-in swing plane on the downswing. This is an easy one to correct, it is usually a fault that occurs only with the driver and happens because the shaft of the driver is longer than the other woods. You need to stand a little further from the ball and make the swing more around yourself, it follows a little shallower path than the other woods.

Your grip can cause you to slice, a strong grip is when your hands are behind the club, a week grip is when your hands are, surprise surprise, when your hands are in front of the club, it's the week grip that can cause the problem, during the down swing your hands re-align to the perpendicular, this opens the face of the club and, hey presto, a golf slice. Various other combinations can cause this as well, a week left hand grip and a strong right hand grip can cause all sorts of problems, mainly because most of us have one hand stronger (in actual strength) than the other and when your hands are badly aligned the stronger hand tends to take over.

The best way to grip the golf club is with your hands parallel to each other, that is, with your palms exactly facing each other and both of them perpendicular to the ground. This helps your hands to work together, and the centrifugal effect of the down swing encourages your stronger hand into the perpendicular position anyway, so it is generally better to start off this way.

The most common cause of the golf slice is over hitting the ball, or trying to hit too hard. On the golf course it is precision and balance that is required, not power. Speed of the club head through the impact zone determines distance, again, not power. New golfers seem to have trouble with this concept.

When you hit too hard it causes your body to get ahead of your hands during the downswing. It also causes you to slide your hips forward, it puts your club in an out-to-in swing plane. Put all this together and your body in front of your hands causes the face of the club to open, a slice. The out-to-in swing plane causes the club face to come across the ball, a slice. Both together, a wild golf slice.

The cure of the golf slice, in this case, is to have a controlled swing, accelerating the club head through the impact zone, concentrate on hitting the golf ball correctly and let the golf club do the work it was designed to do. If your driver is the only golf club causing your slice then perhaps your basic golf swing is not yet ready for the driver, keep it in your golf bag for a while and use your 3 wood, it will go further than the sliced shot will and it will, more than likely, produce a straighter shot. Also bear in mind that a 10.5 degree (or less) driver is a less forgiving club than a 12 degree driver, maybe just changing to a more lofted driver will help to cure your golf slice.

Concentrating on keeping your right elbow (right-handers) close to your body throughout the golf swing, especially the downswing, helps to promote an in-to-out swing path, and a slightly closed stance has also been known to help some players say goodbye to their golf slice problem.

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An Instant Golf Slice Cure!

Golfers Biggest Mistake

2008-10-07T07:50:00.000-07:00

Basic Golf Swing Mistakes

If you're trying to improve your golf swing then make sure you're not making the golfers biggest mistake, and it does not matter whether they are new golfers or they have been playing for years, it's hitting the golf ball too hard, they put so much effort into hitting the ball that numerous errors creep into their golf swing. This is caused, mainly, by lack of control, the harder they try and hit the ball, the less control there is in their swing.

Golf is a game of finesse, not brute force, and a lot of golfers forget this. They put too much emphasis on increasing the distance they can make the ball travel instead of concentrating on control and accuracy.

When they try to hit the golf ball hard they use their arms and hands to generate the power, this makes their swing unsynchronized, their body usually gets ahead of their hands and results in a wild shot, a golf slice. That is why it is experienced or new golfer's biggest mistake. Timing is crucial in golf, golf clubs are designed to to do the work for golfers, all they have to do is deliver the club head to the golf ball correctly. A good controlled and accurate strike produces far better shots and greater distance than an all out blast at the ball will ever achieve, and more than likely will save you from having to correct a golf slice fault.

The power in golf does not come from hitting the ball hard, it comes from club head speed through the impact zone. The correct way of thinking of generating distance in a golf shot is to concentrate on club head speed, NOT power. Further, it's the turning motion of the body and the un-cocking of the wrists that generate the speed of the club head, not the arms and hands. The speed of the club head should be an accelerating speed, not a sudden burst of energy, the downswing should start relatively slowly and continue to accelerate all the way through the impact zone. It should be initiated with the turning of the shoulders, not a downswing of the hands. This is really important.

Thighs, hips, abdominal and lower back muscles are the ones that contribute most to the unwinding of the body during the downswing, the triangle formed between both shoulders and the hands at the address should be the same when the club head strikes the ball, if they try to hit too hard, this relationship between hands and shoulders is difficult to maintain, it also makes the body sway slightly as it turns and changes the the swing plane from an inside-out plane to an outside-in plane, this also produces a slice.

There are just too many complications introduced (unnecessarily) when they try to pull off one these monstrous shots, every golfers biggest mistake, stay away from it, stay in control of your golf swing and the golf club and you will get results that keep improving. Be patient, calm, cool and collected and enjoy playing the greatest game on Earth.

Advert:
An Instant Golf Slice Cure!

New Golfers Golf Swing Advice for Power in Golf
New Golfers Golf Swing Advice for Power in Golf 2
The Axis of Power in Golf

New Golfers are a Blast

2008-10-06T07:13:00.000-07:00

New Golfers

When it comes to golf swing faults, no-one finds it harder to fix these faults than new golfers, This article attempts to shed some light on the subject and give some basic golf swing advice to help them.

New Golfers have a very varied experience of learning golf, some have a hard time of it, especially if they are young teenagers. They are full of enthusiasm and energy, they take that off to the golf course with them and expect to be good players after a few games. They watched the tour pros on the television and know exactly what to do. Maybe their father or older siblings have given them a few pointers in the back garden. Maybe they've gone to the driving range, perhaps even had a few golf lessons, but it's their energy and enthusiasm that really stands out.

Where ever they choose to play or practice golf, they'll fill their golf bag with their golf clubs of choice (especially including their driver), maybe a golf glove, a few tee pegs, some golf balls,their new golf shoes and off they go. The first thing they will do is whip out their driver and try and blast the ball as far as they can. They don't understand where the power in golf comes from.

If they are on the driving range, this full swing attack on the golf ball will continue, regardless of the club they are using, if they are lucky and have a good golf instructor with them, he will try and temper this full frontal assault and give them some form of control. Even if they have recourse to a teacher of any sort, as soon as the the teacher is gone it will be back to trying to murder that ball. Youthful enthusiasm and loads of energy, it's wonderful really, but it usually leaves them trying to correct a golf slice fault. Have a look at Golfers Biggest Mistake.

If the new golfer is a bit older, late teens or early twenties, we see a whole different approach to learning. There is thought and analysis going into it this time, a much more measured and controlled amount of energy, the enthusiasm will still be there, but it will no longer take over to the same extent. The need for golf instruction will be paramount and eagerly sought, these new golfers have something more than energy and enthusiasm, they have ambition.

They see themselves as potential tour pros, even if they don't have the burning desire to become one, they see their potential of becoming as good as one, and why not, their youthful confidence is colossal. These golfers will also have a love affair with their driver, it would seem that it's the most important club in their bag, it's wonderful really.

Then there is the new golfer that is a bit more mature, he, or she, decides to take up golf for different reasons, probably as a form of relaxation, a hobby, a way of getting some more exercise and fresh air, companionship, there are loads of different reasons. They know they are not going to become a tour pro (they've left it too late, and probably have no desire to become one either), so their approach is different again. They may, or may not, seek out a golf coach, if they do, they will probably only have few lessons to get the basics, then they will get on with just enjoying the game.

Improving will be a gradual and lengthy process, there is no rush, and unless extremely competitive by nature, there will be no real goal in site, just something to enjoy. Their love affair with the driver will be a short lived one, they will probably give up on it and use something like a three wood, three hundred yard drives won't even enter there heads, it's wonderful really.

At the end of the day, the game of golf isn't the most played sport in the world for nothing, people of all ages can play and enjoy it. If they are playing to their handicap, they can all compete with each other and have the same chance of winning. It takes a while for new golfers to realize this though, but when they do, their love affair with the driver ceases to be as important and they start playing golf, the real game, the one we play for enjoyment.

New Golfers Mistakes
New Golfers and the Target Line
New Golfers Guide to the Game of Golf

Golf Swing Advice, Power in Golf

2008-10-04T06:18:00.000-07:00

Basic Golf Swing

This article will try to give some golf swing advice about achieving power in golf by highlighting the basic golf swing, the fundamental golf swing that all the other golf swing styles are built on.

The basic golf swing in golf is the one with the least moving parts in it and has little to do with power in golf. The less movement, the less there is to go wrong. When we introduce more movement into the golf swing there is a greater chance for things to go out of control, that's when we start to:

slice
hook
push
pull
fade
draw
shank
sky shot
top the ball

or even miss it altogether, and generally get a lack of consistency so you need to improve your golf swing.

Most golfers try to hit the golf ball too hard. Believe me, a good golf swing has nothing to do with hitting the ball hard, everything goes wrong when you do this, including your balance, and the odd time you do manage to achieve a good shot, it's just luck. You must strive to hit the golf ball correctly, the club must always be in your control, try to think of it as a measured amount of power. If you don't, you will more than likely end up having to correct a golf slice fault. Have a look at Golf and the Axis of Power.

Golf Equipment

Trust in your golf equipment, golf clubs are designed to lift the ball into the air (excluding the putter) and make the ball travel an appropriate distance for the golf club in use. All it takes is for the club head to strike the golf ball correctly, nothing else. Yes, everyone will get different distances for the same club, but that depends solely on how fast the golf club head is moving through the impact zone. NOT how hard you have hit the ball.

Golf Power

That brings us to the reason for this post, where to get the power from. Bear in mind all that has been said above and remember that power must be measured, you don't just go for an all out blast, always stay in control.

Power is the wrong word to use, speed is far more appropriate, club head speed to be more precise. The pros take a full swing with a full body turn, they use hips, thighs and abdominal muscles (NOT shoulders, arms and hands), to achieve maximum rotational speed of the body, this turning motion starts slowly and builds up to maximum as the body returns to the position it had at address (not exactly true but will do for the moment), the point being that it is a gradual acceleration, not a sudden burst. Club head speed is given a further boost by the un-cocking of the wrists through the impact zone. This late boost of speed is where the real power comes from in golf and should have an accelerating effect as well. The whole lot put together should result in the club head accelerating through the impact zone.

Enjoying Golf

That's the theory, putting it into practice is another story (or should I say, another post). It's also the reason why the tour pros make money playing golf whereas it costs us money to play the same game. Which brings me to the point, game is the operative word here, we play this game of golf for fun and enjoyment, too many golfers just find it frustrating too much of the time, the reason for this is simple, they've stopped treating it like a game and started looking on it as an achievement and, as a result, play outside their capabilities. This will always result in inconsistent play. Patience is what is required, learn the basic golf swing and improvement will happen, but a controlled improvement, there is no single magic bullet that will suddenly change you into a pro overnight, your techniques have to improve as a whole in order for you to stay in control.

Remember, golf is a game of the head as much as it is a physical game, confidence is everything, playing within your own limits is a confidence booster, anything else and doubts will creep in, your concentration will wander, your lack of consistency will feed the doubts and your confidence will disappear, and once it's gone... well, you'll struggle to get it back again... until you start playing within your limits and control your use of the power in golf.

Golf Swing Advice, Power in Golf 2
Golf And The Axis Of Power Swing Advice

To your golfing success and enjoyment.

New Golfers - Start Here

2008-09-29T11:23:00.000-07:00

New Golfers Golf Swing Advice

This is the first post, and therefore the first piece of advice on the New Golfers blog. This site is primarily for new golfers just starting out and also for more experienced golfers trying to learn about golf and about different ways of correcting golf swing faults and learning the basics of golf, the most wonderful game in the world.

I live in the West Coast of Ireland, but was born and raised in the West Coast of Scotland. I am not a professional golfer and never have been, just an enthusiastic amateur golfer who has been where you are now and struggled for years to understand the vagaries of playing golf.

Golf Advice

There are a lot of myths surrounding golf that has a tendency to confuse new golfers, and in particular, the cures for many of the various faults that new and experienced golfers alike pick up along the way. Everyone, it seems, has helpful advice for you. Whether the advice works or not is a moot point. If it works then isn't your friend a golfing genius? If it does not work, then, obviously, you are applying it wrong, or not trying hard enough, or some other mundane excuse. Whatever the reason, it's your fault, it's never the advice that's wrong.

The truth is, we are all different, different golf swings, different builds, different strengths and weaknesses, different golf equipment, we also think differently. It should be no surprise to find that our golf swing faults may require different solutions too.

Here's a strange thing I've noticed...

...most golfers describe their game in terms of their faults:

"I usually...
golf slice
golf hook
golf push shot
golf pull shot
golf fade
golf draw
golf lack of consistency
golf top the ball shot".

or "I have...

golf fat shots
golf thin shots
golf weak shots
golf shanks
golf sky shots
golf no distance.

Isn't this strange?

This, of course, is the wrong way to think of your game. Focusing on your faults tends to make them worse, Golf is a mental game more than anything else, our head is our greatest asset or our greatest enemy, doubts and concerns robs us of our ability to concentrate on our golf swing, ball flight, athletic golf stance, and a multitude of other things, the very things that we should be thinking of (at least, according to the pros.)

The real point is, whatever golf fault you have, try not to dwell on it, it never helps.

Happily, almost all golf faults are fairly easily cured, more on the cure later.

Sadly, this is not the impression you get when you ask for advice. How many times is golf equipment mentioned as well as your golf swing?

Golf Basics

Let me ask you a question. What do you think is the most common mistake that most golfers make?

You can argue with me all you want, most golfers do, but it doesn't change the fact that the vast majority of new golfers fail to do just one thing.

Learn the basics! Especially the basic golf swing.

Oh, I know, a lot of you started out by taking lessons from the local pro, or friend, or relative, whatever. I've yet to find anyone that was taught the simple basics of the golf swing.

The basic golf swing is the fundamental swing that works, it is not optimized in any way, it does not produce any astounding results and does not give you a professional looking golf swing or golf score. What it does give you, is confidence, a swing that you can always reproduce, one that gives you a straight, repeatable and consistent shot, a basic golf swing that just...works.

Every new golfer's swing, in fact everyone's swing, gets out of kilter at some time, even the tour pros have trouble at times (although, for different reasons than ours,) and being able to switch to our basic golf swing when we run into difficulties is a real confidence builder, remember golf is a head game and confidence is essential.

It's not difficult, and it's not rocket science either, but new golfers fail to get to grips with the basics and then wonder why they have no consistency, lack distance, mysteriously get a golf slice or hook, or any of the other golf swing faults mentioned above. Indeed, they go on to struggle for years, trying to get golf tips to fix their golf swing, buying the latest and greatest golf equipment, taking golf lessons, when all they need is a grounding in the basic golf swing. The basics, in anything, is what is used to build on, to improve and optimize, the golf swing is no different.

Golf Swing Faults

Most golf swing faults happen when we are trying to achieve something we are not yet ready for, the worst offender is trying to increase distance well beyond our current capabilities, but trying to reproduce the golf swing that our favorite tour pro has, probably Tiger Woods or Ernie Els, is a close second for wrecking our golf swing and we need something basic to return to when this happens, unfortunately, most of us just keep struggling on trying to tweak this new swing into something miraculous.

One of the problems, and it should never be underestimated, is that we don't have the golf swing we think we have. We imagine that we have the same swing as the pros, but the reality is that we don't come close to the pros, we don't even have the movements and coordination that we imagine we have. Don't feel too bad, even the pros have this failing, you can see that in action when they teach you to do something that they themselves do, but when you watch them, they clearly don't do what they teach.

Told you, it's a head game, and this is just another aspect of it.

Golf Swing Coach

This is also one of the reasons that the pros have golf swing coaches, they can't see themselves and need these coaches to help them achieve the desired swing. We don't have that luxury, so when someone tells us what we should be doing, we happily go off and try it, at least in our heads we imagine that is what we are doing. So even if the instruction is correct, the chance of following it as described is pretty slim. "How to correct my golf swing" is one of the most sought-after tutorials in golf, the very top one is "How to cure my golf slice." In most cases the fundamental cause is over-hitting, as simple as that.

The golf swing is about control, and not power.

It starts with a proper stance, and then the golf grip before you ever get to the golf swing itself, and that can be broken down into several different facets. Another often overlooked, but fundamental, problem is balance, you will never have a working golf swing without it and it can't be stressed enough.

Oops, this post is getting a bit long now, I'll get into more specific information for new golfers in the next post. Have a look at Golfers Biggest Mistake.

To your golfing success and enjoyment.

Golf Swing Advice For New Golfers

What Is Golf Etiquette?

Avoiding Thin Shot In Golf

Improve Your Golf With Custom Fitted Clubs

The Fade Golf Shot

The Golf Fade v. The Golf Slice

Fix Your Inconsistent Golf

Advice for an Inconsistent Golf Swing

Some Cures For A Golf Slice

A Golf Slice Needs A Cure

Golf Slice Cure No.1

Golf Slice Cure No.2

Golf Slice Cure No.3

New Golfers Golf Equipment Tips and Advice

Does Golf Equipment Affect Your Golfing Skills?

Golf Equipment

Suitable Golf Clubs

Golf Club Grips

Golf Club Fitting Service

Golf Clubs With Steel Shafts v Graphite Shafts

Golf Clubs To Suit Your Skill Level

Golf Fitness Challenge Reviews

New Golfers How To Fix Your Golf Swing Advice

Golf Swing Basics

Golf Swing Advice, The Grip

Golf Swing Advice, The Address

Golf Swing Advice, The Take Away

Golf Swing Advice, The Top Of The Backswing

Golf Swing Advice, The First Move Down

Golf Swing Advice, The Downswing

Golf Swing Advice, From Impact To Finish

Improve Golf Swing

Improving Your Golf Swing

Golf Swing Styles

What Is Your Golf Swing?

Golf Fundamentals

Keep Your Head Up

Golf is a Balancing Act

Golf Swing Basics V

Golf and Putting

Related Posts

Golf Swing Basics IV

Golf and The Short Game

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Golf Swing Basics III

Golf and The Long Game

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Golf Swing Basics II

What To Keep In Your Golf Bag

Related Posts

Golf Swing Basics I

The Game of Golf

Related Posts

What is the purpose of golf?

Game of Golf

Golf, a Field Sport

Golf Competition

Golf and the Family

Earning Money from Golf

Is all just one huge frustration?

Get a Better Golf Swing

A Better Golf Swing

Inconsistent Golf Swing

Measure your Golf Skills

Golf Instruction

Your Golf Swing

Which Golf Swing Is Best

The Best Golf Swing

Do Golf Swing Tips Work

Golf Swing Tips

How To Get The Golf Stance and Golf Swing Right

New Golfers Introduction To The Game Of Golf And Your Golf Swing

Golf, an Introduction

Driving On The Golf Course

The Golf drive

The Golf Grip

The Address

The Takeaway

The Top Of The Backswing

The First Move