Free Golf Tips

"Approach Shots: What it Takes to Master Them."

Basically, your approach shot is your shot onto the green. One of the things I like to say is this, "You know your game is improving when you start fixing more ball marks on the green" - most likely meaning that you hit it on your approach, which is your objective.

Here are a few tips to keep in mind, and then we'll get to the heart of this article.

Aim for the middle of the green, not the flag. Pin placements and greens are getting tougher to stick all the time.

Don't be a sucker and go for a pin that you'll most likely miss, which will leave you in a bunker or some other position which will add strokes to your round.

Focus on alignment, not distance.

Alignment is the key to improving your approach shots.

Most golfers don't practice their alignment too much on the practice range, but they should.
Think about this for a minute. Generally, when you miss the green it is due to alignment, not distance. Chances are, you have your 160 yard club, 150, 140, 130, etc...
And if you hit a less than perfect shot, the ball may go a little further or a little shorter. But even if that happens, most greens are deep enough that you should be on the putting surface if you have selected the club that would leave you in the center of the green.

But...alignment is another story. If you pull the ball, more times than most you really pull the ball, correct?
When your alignment is off, it's usually off by much more than 5-10 yards!

Practice your alignment.

Take your home course for example. I would be willing to bet there's somewhere in the ball park of a 160-yard par 3 on the course. Now picture that hole. What happens if you're 5-10 yards deep or shallow? You're probably still okay, right?
But what happens if you go right or left? That shot, more than likely, has trouble written all over it.

Summary:

Go to the range, and practice your alignment. Always hit to a target.

Free Golf Tips

Play the Ball Further Back In Your Stance…

Did you know that Ben Hogan played ALL of his shots at the same
spot in his stance, from 2 iron up? Well, fact is we will never be
Ben Hogan, but there are lessons to be learned here.

Many of us fail to make good contact on the fairway because of ball
placement relative to our stance. The objective of a good ball
strike is to make contact with the ball while your club is in the
downswing. The perfect divots you see the Pros make are made IN
FRONT of where the ball lies. Which makes sense. You DON'T want to
hit the ground before you hit the ball!! Talk about a loss of
momentum and velocity. Bad.

So, what does this lead us to? The average golfer should play his
low irons in the middle of their stance, and move SLIGHTLY
backwards as you go up a club. Many of us make the mistake of
playing the ball with a 3 or 4 iron off of our left in-step (if you
are a right handed golfer).

If this is new to you, you need to also remember that because the
ball is further back in your stance than normal, it should also be
a tad bit closer to your body.

Try it the next time you are on the course. Remember exactly where
the ball was when you hit it. Adjust your body, not the placement
of the ball relative to the stance, if you miss-hit. When you finally
hit that shot that jumps off your club, you got it right. Practice
that shot until you get it down (Practice doesn't make Perfect,
Perfect Practice makes Perfect).

Bear in mind that your head must be kept down. My favorite method
is too pick out a dimple on the golf ball, and stare at that
through my back and down swing, until my natural momentum lifts my
head up.


Tip of The Week

The key to hitting low, crisp chip shots is keeping your left wrist
(if you are a right hand golfer) straight. Most errant shots occur
because the left wrist bends at impact.
It should remain straight.

By keeping your left wrist solid, the ball will stay on the target
line, and you'll find the ball rolling towards the pin. You do not
have to scoop the ball on a chip shot. Think of it as an extremely
long putt!!!

Free Golf Tips

Greenside Bunkers

The most common mistake weekend players make in the greensidebunker is allowing their lower bodies to get too active. If you shift your weight or make a turn with your lower body, your swing's shape and impact position will never be the same from one swing to the next--you'll never know whether you'll leave the ball in the bunker or skull one 35 yards across the green.

Proper bunker technique requires that you place your weight forward--and leave it there throughout the swing. Here's a great drill to engrain this feeling. Go to a practice bunker and hit 25 bunker shots with your right (for right-handed golfers) heel in the air--only your right toes should be dug into the sand for balance. This will position the majority of your weight forward to begin your swing. If you try to shift your weight back to your right side as you play the shot, you'll feel the pressure in your right toes and you'll have to fight to keep your right heel from lowering into the sand.

It might feel as though you're actually shifting your weight forward in a reverse pivot, but you're not--you're just not used to the feel of the proper bunker technique. As you learn to keep your weight forward and quiet your lower body on these greenside bunker shots, you'll begin to notice the ball flying the same distance and on the same trajectory again and again. Once this happens, you'll start to develop some touch and begin to think about not only getting the ball out, but also about getting it close.

Poor bunker players have a far-too-active lower body. If you make a turn or weight shift, your swing's shape and the club's impact position will change from swing-with inconsistent results. To quiet your lower body bring consistency to your greenside bunker game, practice hitting sand shots with your right heel raised. Your swing's shape and club's impact position will be the same-shot after shot. When you are in a greenside bunker, and you need to get out (like you would need to stay in??), the most common mistake made is taking a half swing, and not following through. Try this: Pretend the ball is lying on a pancake, or sprinkler head. You want to aim FOR THE FRONT EDGE of the 'pancake' that the ball is lying on. DO NOT stop your swing upon contact. FOLLOW THROUGH to get the ball out. By hitting the sand first, and hitting through the ball, you will not 'skull' it. The ball will pop up gently, with the sand, and roll right into the cup (ok maybe not, but it will be much closer). Do you watch pro's, or other good golfers? Wonder why they 'take so much sand' with them? Now you know! Remember, don't hit the ball, hit the front edge of the pancake, and follow through. Let your backswing determine the distance you need to go, not your follow through! And always count to one one thousand before you lift your head.

That will insure that you KEEP YOUR HEAD DOWN!!



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