January 10, 2016 Posted by Matt

Play smarter and you can save several shots per round.  Play one shot at a time.  First, concentrate on getting your tee shot on the fairway, even if it means putting your driver back in your bag.  If you get into trouble, get your ball back into play instead of taking a risky shot.  Don’t flirt with danger such as water hazards and out of bounds, play away from trouble. If you have a tough pitch shot and the pin is close to you, get your ball onto the green and take your chances putting instead of trying to hit a difficult shot to get it close to the hole.  It is better to play smarter and end up with a bogey instead of a double or triple bogey.

January 8, 2016 Posted by Matt

Your swing should be tension free from the very moment you step up to the ball.  Many times you will see players stand perfectly still over the ball and then start their backswing with a quick jerk.  The result is usually a poor shot.  You want to feel loose and smooth when you make your swing.  One way to make your swing tension free is to start with a little waggle of the club, tap your toes to feel ground under you, or make a slight forward press to begin the swing.  If you remain static for a long time over the ball, tension will build in your muscles.  Watch some videos of golf pros and you will notice how they stay tension free when they address the ball and begin their swing.

December 29, 2015 Posted by Matt

Your setup for a sand shot should be different from a shot from the grass.  When near the green, players often set up to a bunker shot the same way they would a shot from the grass.  When you are in the bunker if you place your hands in front of the ball so the shaft angles backwards, chances are you are going to chunk the shot.  In the bunker place your hands so they are even with the ball or slightly behind the ball.  This will allow the sole of your club to slide under the ball rather than dig deep into the sand.  Your right hand should control a sand shot and when you are in the grass, your left hand should control the shot.  Adjust your setup accordingly and you will improve your short game around the green and post lower scores.

December 27, 2015 Posted by Matt

One of the hardest shots in golf is the long bunker shot.  If you are 40 or 50 yards to the pin from a bunker, do not use your sand wedge.  If you do, in most cases you are likely to come up short.  Use a gap or pitching wedge for this shot.  Open the clubface slightly to help create some bounce.  Make your normal sand shot and hit the sand a couple of inches behind the ball.  The ball should land with enough spin to stop quickly.  Practice using different lofted clubs to hit this type of long bunker shot until you are comfortable with the distances each club produces and you will improve your bunker game.

December 26, 2015 Posted by Matt

You should consider a driver with more loft if you are having trouble hooking or slicing your tee shot.  When you hit a hook or a slice there will be a lot of side spin on the ball.  A higher lofted driver will add more backspin to the ball and your drives should go straighter.  Even touring pros are moving away from the lower lofted drivers and moving towards drivers with a ten-degree or eleven-degree loft.  Consider more loft in your driver and you’ll end up in the fairway off the tee more often.

December 24, 2015 Posted by Matt

Where should my weight be in a good golf swing?  Good players have their weight on their front sides and have a smooth weight shift as they come into contact with the ball.  By having your weight on your front foot, the club will remain on plain you you will have greater swing speed as you hit the ball.  If you feel like you are hanging on your back foot, you can try this drill to learn how a proper weight shift feels.  During practice, place your feet together and place the ball opposite your front foot.  Reach back to the top of your swing, take a step toward the target with your front foot, and then swing down and through the ball.  Start slowly until you get your timing down.  Then go back to your normal stance and hit more golf balls.  You should notice you are making a better weight shift and better contact with the ball.

December 23, 2015 Posted by Matt

Why do you come up short on uphill putts?  Studies of golfers of all skill levels have shown that almost 90 percent of uphill putts come up short of the hole.  Uphill putts will be slower than you think.  Often the grain of the grass flows towards you which slows down your putt even more than you would originally expect.  When you are putting uphill, try to picture the hole about one foot behind the actual hole.  Aim for the imaginary hole and judge your distance to that hole as your guide. Since you’ll need to hit the putt harder to get it to the hole, it will also mean you’re going to hit through a portion of the break.  Play for less break, and plan to hit it past the the hole if you miss.  You will make more of these uphill putts with this method.

December 22, 2015 Posted by Matt

Make sure you know how to play pitch or chip shot when you are hitting into a tiered green.  If the pin is located on the upper tier in the back of the green, you will want to play a club with less loft and play a bump and run shot.  You’ll want to keep the ball low and get it on the green as quickly as possible so it runs to the hole like a putt would.  If the higher tier of the green is close to you and the pin is on the lower tier, you will want to hit a high pitch shot so it lands softly and just rolls to the crest of the slope and then down towards the hole.  If you try to hit a low chip on a tiered green where the pin is on the low tier it will run way past the whole.

December 21, 2015 Posted by Matt

Your goal should be to get out of trouble as fast as possible when you find yourself in a tough spot on the golf course.  If you hit a tee shot into the trees, your first thought should be to look for the easiest way to get the ball back on the fairway.  As much as we would like to think we could hit a Bubba Watson hook shot from deep in the woods that curves around and lands perfectly on the green our chances of actually doing so are almost zero.  At this point you should be playing for a bogey.  The alternative is trying to hit a “hero” shot through a narrow opening in the woods that ultimately hits a tree and puts you in a worse situation.  Then you’re looking at double or triple bogey.  Get your ball back on the fairway as fast as possible, even if that means you have to hit the ball slightly backwards and then try to salvage a par but be happy with a boggy.  Play smart and get out of trouble quickly and you will minimize the number of blow up holes you have and start to consistently shoot lower scores.

December 20, 2015 Posted by Matt

Before you hit your bunker shots, read the sand.  If your ball lands in a sand trap, you will need to pay attention to what kind of sand is in the bunker throughout the golf course.  As you enter the bunker and take your stance, you can get a good idea of the texture of the sand.  If the sand is thick, heavy or firm you will be able to take a more aggressive swing since your club head will glide under the ball and lift the golf ball out with a fair amount of spin.  If the sand is soft and fluffy, your best bet is to chunk the ball out of the bunker by hitting down hard behind the ball and pushing it out with the sand.  The ball will land on the green and run a good deal.  If you try a normal bunker shot in fluffy sand, you will risk sticking the club deep into the sand and leaving the ball in the bunker.  If you read the sand before you hit your bunker shots and adapt to the conditions you will improve your sand game and reduce your scores.