THE PERFECT SWING
TEE THE TARGET -- NOT THE BALL
SLICING: WHAT CAUSES IT & HOW TO CORRECT IT
THOUGHTS BY THE BEST PUTTERS EVER
BASIC PUTTING
CHIPPING, PITCHING, BUNKER PLAY AND PUTTING
More to come!

CHECK THE GRIP

In the title of this tip, I am not referring to the type of grip you are using -- overlap, interlock, etc. I am talking about the grip itself. In my 28 years of teaching students of all levels, I have found that making the needed adjustments concerning grip type and grip size gives you the best chance of realizing improvement very quickly. If the grip is too small and slippery, you will tend to hold on much too tight, creating a host of swing problems. If using what are considered standard size grips by most manufacturers, chances are their grips are too small. Be on the lookout for this ongoing potential for trouble

THE 50/50 FEELING TO GOOD BALANCE

Canadian golf legend George Knudson dedicated an entire instructional booklet to the importance of good balance. All good players and top instructors agree that without balance throughout the swing (both physical and emotional) you have no chance of producing good shots consistently.

For good static balance, I suggest feeling your body weight is 50/50 back to front (heel to toe), and 50/50 side to side (front foot to back foot). Assuming you have a correct spine angle at address, your weight back to front will tend to favor the balls of your feet-which is why you need not over emphasize this sensation. Conversely, if you over emphasize weight on your heels, you may lose your spine angle, and this will throw you out of balance to the rear.

The 50/50 feeling side to side is very easy to achieve, because it is, indeed, "just a feeling." In reality, if you have your upper body positioned properly behind the ball, your body weight will naturally follow, meaning your weight will favor your back foot.

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UNDERSTANDING ALIGNMENT

Poor alignment is the single most destructive area for players of all levels, when it comes to taking the game from the practice range to the golf course. This means alignment is extremely important for you as a beginner -- so don't put it on "the back burner" of your learning priorities.

There are two main elements to be considered when lining up a golf shot. First and foremost is the target line (the line that the golf club is actually on. Secondly -- the stance line, also known as the body line. Both are important, but the stance line must always be determined first by the target line if the stance line is to have any true meaning.

ACCURACY FIRST, THEN DISTANCE

What is the easiest shot in golf that all beginners can properly execute? It's the "gimme" putt. As the distance between the cup and the ball becomes greater, the tougher it is to make a shot. Start Small. Beginning with this idea in mind, you will see that when honing your golf skills it makes sense to start with smaller swings, then build up to the full swing.

This is the reason why a person just learning the sport will learn and teach the body the correct motions iin developing an accurate and powerful swing by starting with the short swing. Trying to learn the full swing first makes it much more difficult to learn the correct muscle coordination that the full swing requires. Learning to hit for distance and then accuracy is putting the cart before the horse. It works the other way around. Ultimately, accuracy will create distance.

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STROKE THE BALL, DON'T HIT IT

Often the difference between a strong, powerful swing and a misguided hack is the tendency to hit, rather than stroke, the ball. The difference can be seen when examining a short putt, when it is easy to stroke the ball. Hitting is not an option for a short putt, which makes it the easiest shot in golf. No desire to hit the ball allows a stroking, swinging motion. Perfect this technique for short-distance shots and you will find increasing accuracy and distance with your long shots as well.

SWING THROUGH

One very effective drill in perfecting your swing is to let the ball 'get in your way' as you swing toward the target. In other words, you let the ball get hit because it was sitting there in the way of your swing, not because you were swinging at it. This drill shows why many people have better practice swings than actual swings where a ball is involved. Without a ball it is easier to swing through, yet this is the very motion that is needed when perfecting your swing.

A key in helping correct this tendency is to learn how to separate the optical eye from the 'mind's eye'. The optical eye sees where the ball is sitting, while the mind's eye sees the ball sailing toward its target. Remember, the ball is not the target, so the key is to avoid being tricked by your optical eye. Instead, let your mind's eye swing to your target, which is the fairway or the green. This is not to say that you don't look at the ball at all, but rather to stress that there is a great difference between looking at the ball and concentrating on it.

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TEE IT HIGH TO HIT IT LOW

The title of this teaching tip may sound somewhat contradictory, so allow me to explain. Have you ever had a student ask for help with his driver because he or she is typically skying the ball? If you haven't as of yet, I assure you it's only a matter of time. All too often people make the mistake of assuming their ball flight is too high because they have too much loft on the driver. When this is the case, the first thing you should do is inspect the top of the driver head for signs of paint or scratches.

In most cases this part of the club will be a mess! The most common tendency for the average golfer is to swing excessively downward with a driver causing the ball to pop up. Remember this is a reactionary sport -- meaning whatever the club does, the ball will tend to do the opposite. By having your student tee the ball high you will immediately give him the optical indication of the need to swing more level to perhaps slightly up at the ball. To further reinforce this, I tell my students to swing at an angle which will leave the tee in the ground after the ball is struck.

After working with this mental image for a few swings, I think you will find your student enjoying some degree of success. I once saw Jack Nicklaus give a clinic years ago at the Inverarry Country Club in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Jack hit 12 tee shots of various trajectories from high to low. Not once was the tee knocked out of the ground and in all cases he elected to leave the height of the tee the same -- he had the ball teed high.

An effective optical aid you may want to use would be another golf tee other than the one the ball is teed upon. Note in the illustration, the tee is angled in the level to sightly upward position in relation to the ground. By placing the secondary tee across from the ball being struck, the student can set for himself the path the clubhead must be on in order to strike the ball with a solid, level blow.

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THE PERFECT SWING

Most golf instructors, with few exceptions, will agree that the perfect golf swing is a myth. All you have to do is look at the variety of different swings on the PGA and LPGA tour each weekend on television. The swings may look different but they have some common elements. First, they all start with good basics: Grip, Aim and Setup. Most importantly, the swing repeats itself every time.

There are players who have success on tour with funny looking swings. It is because the swings repeat each time from constant practice. Also, they have confidence that their swing will work. The golf swing can be simple but is often complicated by too much thinking. A good golf swing starts with good rhythm. You can?t make a good forward swing unless you take your time going back to set up proper rhythm and motion. A swing that is too fast back, usually has the club and body working against each other and helps create poor shots.

The object of the golf swing is to create speed on the downswing -- not the back swing. A fast backswing will create bad motion and a hands dominated swing that will be hard to repeat. Take the club away slow for better motion and rhythm. Because the backswing sets up the downswing, we will discuss it first. A good backswing starts with the arms -- not the hands. You don?t want to pick the club up at takeaway. You want to draw it away in a one-piece motion. As the club starts back, the left shoulder and hips should turn naturally to allow weight to transfer to the right side.

The hands should begin to set at waist high. As the club continues to the top, the shoulders should continue to turn. At the top it is important to have the hands set but not broken down. Overswinging at the top will create negative club speed and inconsistent swings. Now that we've talked about the backswing, let's talk about the downswing. The object of the downswing is to return the clubhead to the ball with maximum controllable speed. Just as too fast of a backswing is no good, too hard of a downswing can also cause bad golf shots.

There are many theories on what should start the downswing. I find that most players who think about pulling with their left arm from the top will create a more consistent swing with all body parts working together. Many players from watching the tour players tend to try to lead the downswing with the left side, and as a result slide ahead of the ball at impact causing weak slicing shots. To complete the swing you must have a good finish.

The finish in the golf swing, unlike in baseball, needs to be high, not left. We find most beginners find it more natural to finish low and left causing topped shots and difficult to get the ball airborne. The clubface needs to stay square for several inches after impact to create proper flight on the ball. Also, in the finish the weight that you transferred to the right side in the backswing now must transfer to the left side. With a good finish your right knee should face the target, right foot up so all spikes are visible, and hands high close to your left ear.

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TEE THE TARGET -- NOT THE BALL

Swing into a better golf game, but don't try to put your swing on the ball. Let the ball get in the way of your swing as you swing away from the target and then swing toward the target. In other words, you let the ball get hit because it was sitting there. It got in the path of your swing.

This is a good example of why people's practice swings are often better than their swings for real. Without a ball, they swing projecting through the ball. When it is there, they swing at the ball. One of the keys to correcting this problem is to understand not only how the proper body actions work, but also -- and just as important -- how to separate the optic eye from the 'mind's eye'. The optic eye sees where the ball is sitting. The 'mind's eye' sees the ball traveling to the target. Remember, the ball is not our target, so we shouldn't let the optic eye con us into hitting it.

Let the 'mind's eye' swing to your target, which is the fairway or the green. I stress the word target because I feel there has been a tendency in some quarters of instruction to place too much emphasis upon looking at the ball. Frankly, you should look at the ball, but there is a great difference in looking at it and concentrating on it. Project to the target, not the ball. I will give you a perfect example of this. I have taught several golfers who have lost their vision.

They obviously can't see the ball, so we have developed a program that has brought exciting results. I believe these prove without a doubt that once you have positioned yourself over the ball with the proper stance, you have in fact measured yourself to the ball. Your head/eyes stay centered only for balance. When your mind is focusing on where the ball sits, it can limit your ability to make the proper swing. When your projection is positive -- as it is when your 'mind's eye' is on the target -- it will encourage you to make the necessary and proper body motions.

You have already been practicing them with your teacher or on your own. Remember, the target is not where the ball sits; it is where you want it to go. There is a direct link between the strength of your projection and the strength of your physical swing. I believe 'target' is an important word in the game of golf, and perhaps the most neclected. I leave you with this thought: "What the mind conceives, the body can achieve."

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SLICING: WHAT CAUSES IT & HOW TO CORRECT IT

Four of the main causes of slicing are:

- hands too tight on the club - reverse weight shift - poor shoulder turn - taking club away outside

If your grip is too tight your hands can?t rotate at impact, causing face to be open. So release the grip. If your shoulders don`t turn and your weight doesn`t shift to the right at top of swing, your body will be ahead of the ball and the club will open at impact. Taking club outside at takeaway will cause outside-in swing plane, causing ball to spin in slicing manner. Make sure club is moving inside at takeaway to help prevent slice. Aiming left at address will not cure slice -- it will only cause more left-to-right spin.

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THOUGHTS ON PUTTING BY THE BEST PUTTERS EVER

Bobby Locke, a South African who won 6 of the 13 U.S professional tournaments in which he competed in 1947, was regarded by his peers as the finest putter who ever played professional golf. Billy Casper said of him: "In Locke's hands the putter was a magic wand that waifs balls into the cup from anywhere." Lloyd Mangrum claimed: "That blankety blank Locke was able to hole a putt over 60 feet of peanut brittle -- I never saw anything equal to it." Gary Player has said that: "To compare anyone of his era to Locke as a putter, is like comparing a donkey to a race horse." With credentials like these I would be very remiss indeed not to include

Mr. Locke's thoughts on putting & style:

" My putting mechanics are designed to produce an element of top spin to the ball so that it will stay on course all the way to the hole."

" I take the club back very low, and to the inside of the target line, with the face of my club slightly hooded throughout the swing."

" I try to keep my head steady throughout the stroke, but feel that I create the correct path and energy through a slight hip rotation."

" I am very aware of the weight of the putter throughout the swing, and to promote this feel I hold the club very softly at its end."

" Mechanically, I attempt never to allow independent hand action into the shot. I try to keep the same relationship from my left elbow to the head of my putter, throughout both back & forward swings."

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BASIC PUTTING

STANCE:
Your stance should normally be the narrowest of any shot that you play. (I'd recommend the outside of your feet be no wider than your hips.) Your stance should also be taken near enough the ball so that you can produce a stroke which is straight back from, and straight through to the hole for putts of nominal length, while not so close as to have a tendency to force the clubhead to the outside of your target line on the backswing. (If they dropped a ball from the bridge of their nose, most good putters would want it to land on their target line.) The feet should be turned open, closed, or square, relative to how those adjustments affect your swing's path, with the right foot primarily responsible for your ability to follow-through correctly. Most, although not all, good players address the ball so that their weight is balanced slightly toward the inside of their left heel.

BALL POSITION:
I recommend that you play your ball somewhere between the center of your stance and the left instep. This allows both the path and the clubhead to square up to the target prior to impact, and it allows any approach angle to level out enough to promote a good follow through. (Sweeping type strokes are probably better positioned left, while a tapping type action might tend to be positioned more toward the center.)

GRIP:
I hate the word grip, and the implications it holds for most people. What you want is to lightly "place" your hands on the club in such a way that it's easy for you to swing the clubhead squarely toward the target. For simplicity's sake I'd recommend using a very light version of your normal grip, with the exception that the little finger of your right hand be on the club rather than overlapped, or interlocked. Be sure that in closing your fingers you don't force the club into some angle of lie, of loft, other than its designed one.

STROKE:
Your object in all of this is of course to strike the ball with the clubhead so that it rolls surely and truly to the target. This will be best accomplished by accelerating the clubhead through your point of balance (not your hands, elbows, or the grip of the club), and fine tuning the components of your basics until this acceleration occurs down the intended line, with a clubface which is square to it.

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CHIPPING, PITCHING, BUNKER PLAY AND PUTTING

In a round of golf, 70% of your shots are hit from 120 yards or closer. Every one who plays golf does not possess the physical ability to hit 250 yard drives, but does have the ability to hit the ball 120 yards. To be a good short game player you must practice. Unlike the full swing, the short game is more artistry than mechanics. The object is to get the ball in the hole in the least number of strokes, not to look pretty doing it.

The short game includes pitching, chipping, bunker play and putting. Chipping and Pitching: Many golfers confuse chipping and pitching as the same. They are not. Pitching has more air time than ground time; a chip has less air time than ground time. Many players use one or the other all the time.

When should you chip or pitch? A chip should be used when the ball is near the green but cannot be putted. The pitch is used when you have to loft a ball over a bunker, or the grass is too deep to chip it out. A mistake many players have is that they always chip with the same club. Vary your club selection depending on the distance of the chip. Remember: Always practice a shot before you use it on the course, and use your imagination.

Bunker Play: Many golfers are defeated before they attempt a sand shot because they fear them. Make bunkers your friend, not an enemy. With proper technique and practice I guarantee you will enjoy being in the sand instead of heavy rough. When in a bunker you must: - establish firm footing - take open stance - open the clubface - weight distributed more to the left side - swing the club back and through the same distance - hit the sand 2 inches behind the ball - don`t let the clubface close - accelerate through the ball Remember: Sand is your ally, not your foe.

Putting: If you have ever watched golf on TV, you have seen many different putting styles. If you have seen Mike Hulbert, you have even seen one-handed putting. I would not recommend this for anyone, but the point is to do whatever feels comfortable and enables you to get the ball in the hole consistently.

However, there are some fundamentals that will help you to consistently putt well: - eye over the ball - set the putter square to the target - keep body motion limited - accelerate through the ball - be comfortable - hit the ball in the sweet spot of the putter. To be a good putter you must feel you can putt. Be confident. Negative thoughts will hurt your putting.

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