I know it is probably the last thing you want to do, but if you want to improve your golf game you need to Practice Your Weaknesses.  Certainly it’s much more fun to go to the range and hit your favorite shots. You know, the ones you are really good at?  However, if you really want to lower your golf scores than you need to strengthen the areas of your game where you lose most of your strokes.

So which shots cause you the most problems? Is it your chipping, pitching, putting or your drives?  When you head to the practice area, focus most of your practice time on the areas you want to improve.

Most importantly, consider taking a lesson from a PGA Pro. They will help you maximize your practice time.

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When you hit your chip or pitch shots you want to maintain firm wrists throughout the shot.  Often times, amateurs will take this concept to the extreme and they hold their writs too firm.  You want to be sure your wrists do not break down so you avoid flipping your hands at the ball.  Instead of keeping your hands rigid, you should use a light grip.  Make an easy swing and let the club pass your hands after contact as you normally do.  Your swing should feel natural instead of forced.

Head to the practice area and practice this shot if you want to lower your scores.

September 29, 2016 Posted by Matt

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Golfing Great Arnold Palmer

Passes Away at Age 87

Arnold Palmer was a true legend of the game of golf.  He was an inspiration to many golfers throughout the world and he will be missed by all of us who love the game.

A true ambassador of the sport, Arnie left a lasting impression on everyone from PGA professionals to the average golfer throughout the world. From young to old, he has touched us all, for which we are grateful.

Throughout his career, he had 4 Green Jackets, 1 U.S. Open title, 2 Open Championships, 6 Ryder Cup teams and 62 PGA Tour wins.

As we say goodbye to a true competitor of the sport, here are some of my favorite Arnold Palmer quotes:

Thank you for all the memories.

September 25, 2016 Posted by Matt

Most golfers who have a lower handicaps visualize or “See the Shot” in their minds before they hit the ball.  Visualization allows you to mentally prepare to hit the shot you want to hit.  Once you’ve mentally prepared yourself for the shot, commit to it and just hit it!  If you are picturing a shot that’s going in the water guess where it’s likely to go? Right in the water.  So during practice, stand behind the ball, visualize the shot, hold the image in your mind, then step up to the ball and hit it.  There’s a great chance if you practice this way you will improve your scores.

September 17, 2016 Posted by Matt

When you get into trouble, punch it out.  One of the hardest shots in golf is to hit a recovery shot to get the ball back in play. Especially when you may have to hit the ball sideways or backwards.  Let’s face it, it stinks! Your goal should be to get the ball back in play as fast as possible.

For example, let’s say you end up in the trees.  To head towards safe ground, you want to punch it out low to stay under all the branches.  Make sure you lower your front shoulder and play the ball back in your stance.  Next step is to hit down on the ball and hold your finish low to the ground.  And most importantly, keep your head still at impact.

Finally, pick a specific target on the fairway.  Just hitting the ball without a target identified may result in more trouble instead of getting you out of trouble!

September 12, 2016 Posted by Matt

If you are putting on fast greens, make the ball fall in on its last rotation. It’s especially important if you have a downhill putt. You want the ball to have the best chance to go in the hole in as many ways possible.  A ball that is just barely moving has a chance to drop into the hole if it catches the lip.  If you hit the ball with too much speed, unless you hit the ball dead center the ball will likely spin out of the hole.  When you are on fast greens, use light grip pressure and think about dying the ball into the hole.

September 4, 2016 Posted by Matt

Perfect lies are far and few between when you are on the golf course.  So when you are on the driving range, why do you only practice shots from a perfect lie? Since there are a wide variety of lies on the golf course, try practicing various types of shots while you are on the driving range.  Practice hitting out of divots or off of hard pan.  Try hitting off an uphill or downhill lie.

Also, if you’re playing in southwest Florida, try hitting off of pine straw or coquina sand to get a sense of how the ball will react from those surfaces.

Bottom Line:

Although perfect lies would be ideal, if you practice come of these tough shots you will improve your game.

About Matt Klinowski

August 26, 2016 Posted by Matt

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Try experimenting with grip pressure when you are putting.  Every golfer is different so there is no one ideal amount of pressure you should use during your putting.  Start by hitting putts with a light grip and gradually increase the pressure in small amounts.  You will know when you find your ideal grip pressure when you start feeling comfortable and make solid contact during your putting stroke.  You should also experiment on different types of greens with different grip pressures.  If the greens are really slow.  Often times when greens are slow and you are using a light grip pressure your putts will come up just short.  So try to increasing your pressure and you will find you will make more putts.  Likewise, if you are on really fast greens, ease up a bit on your grip pressure.

About Matt Klinowski

August 25, 2016 Posted by Matt

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If you have correct posture at setup you will set yourself up for a good golf swing.  When you have proper posture, you will be able to stay on balance throughout your swing.  Go find a picture of a PGA touring pro and look at their posture at address.  Then, set up as if you are going to hit a shot in front of a full length mirror.  What do you see?  Try copying the golf pros posture and see how it feels.

Now Fix it:

Head to the driving range and hit some golf shots with your new posture.  You should see an improvement immediately.

August 15, 2016 Posted by Matt

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If you have a slight pull to your putts on almost every putt, then try playing the ball slightly right of the hole.  Or you can try playing the ball off the toe of your putter.  If you try either of these two options, the ball should roll straight or a bit to the right.  The result will be more putts going in the hole!

Bottom Line:

When you are consistently missing putts to the left or the right during your round of golf, you need to make adjustments to fix the problem for the day.  Then consider getting a putting lesson from a PGA professional to get your putting stroke back on track.

August 12, 2016 Posted by Matt

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