GOLF TIPS

Practice your Chipping

September 1, 2015 Posted by Matt

Look at the hole to practice your chipping. A great way to get a feel for chipping accurately is to take the flagstick out and look at the hole while you chip. Set up to the ball as you would normally do, with your weight on your front foot, but look at the hole. Chip the ball while keeping your eyes on the target. You will be surprised that after a few strokes, you will become very accurate. Start with twenty-foot chips and try to make them drop in the hole. Your eyes will help you to both judge distance and accuracy. Try different distances and see if your success continues. After a while, go back to your normal way of chipping and you should have a greater sense for the shot.

Golf Tip – Blind Golf Shot

August 31, 2015 Posted by Matt

What should you do if you have a blind golf shot? Many courses will feature holes in which you have to hit a shot to a target that you cannot see. This is a blind golf shot. To make this shot easier, be careful to get the correct distance to the target. Then go to a point where you can see the target and your ball. Find some marker such as a tree or bush that will serve as a good aiming point for you. If you are near the green but cannot see the hole, you may ask a fellow player to held the flagstick up high for you.

Average Golfer vs Good Golfer

August 30, 2015 Posted by Matt

The difference between an average golfer and a good golfer is how they approach the game after a bad round. The average player will feel angry and defeated. The good player will analyze the round and figure out what can be learned from the bad round. A good golfer will try to figure out if they need to change to improve their game for the next round. Do they need to change their strategy, choose different clubs, use finesse when putting instead of trying to force putts, or many other things in the game. If you are an average golfer who just accepts a bad day as what you deserve, consider looking back at your round and asking “what can I do differently the next time?”.

Putting Method

August 29, 2015 Posted by Matt

The modern professionals almost all use the same putting method. They use their shoulders to tilt their arms and hands back and through to putt the ball. Think of the tips of your shoulders and your hands on the putter as making a triangle. Simply try to move the triangle back and forth without flipping the hands and you will make a solid, simplified putting stroke. Using this method takes the hands and wrists of the putting stroke and allows you to become much more consistent by having a stroke that repeats itself time after time.

Golf Joke – Divots

August 27, 2015 Posted by Matt

Violators are subject to assisting the maintenance crew for one week…Be sure to replace your divots!

Do Not Freeze

August 25, 2015 Posted by Matt

Do not freeze, please. Occasionally, you will play with someone who gets over a shot or a putt and then remains perfectly still for what seems an eternity. While it may only be thirty seconds to a minute, this frozen position is never a good sign. During that time, the player is probably running swing thoughts or checklists through his mind and creating anxiety and doubt. Also, by remaining still, tension will build in the muscles so that they will feel rigid once the swing begins. Once you are ready to play, step into the shot, get balanced, take a little waggle to feel the club, and pull the trigger. By keeping moving, you stay relaxed and loose and ready to perform an athletic move.

Golf Joke – Depressed

August 25, 2015 Posted by Matt

Unfortunately I get depressed multiple times a round!

Ball Down the Line

August 24, 2015 Posted by Matt

The club does not chase the ball down the line. A common misconception is that after impact you should keep the club head moving straight down the line to your target. This is a difficult move to do and will almost always lead to a slice or push to the right. As yo swing through impact, your right arm rolls over your left in what is called a release. The club itself moves to the left as your left arm remains in contact with your body through the release and then lifts up only during the follow-through.

Look at Your Hands

August 23, 2015 Posted by Matt

Do a wrist check to see where the problem lies. To see if you are in a bad position at the top of your swing, simply swing to the top and take a look at your hands. In a good swing position, your left hand will be flat and the right hand will be under the shaft. If your wrists are cupped with your knuckles bending forward, you have the face open and will likely hit a slice. If your wrists are bowed in the other direction, your face is closed and you will hit a hook. A simple check could help you hit the ball straighter.

Putting Distance

August 22, 2015 Posted by Matt

Set your putting distance by the length of your stroke. To be able to hit your putts at different distances, it is easier to make a longer back and through swing rather than trying to simply hit the ball harder or easier. You can use your back foot to measure how far back you should swing your putter as a means of creating a simple way to judge your distance. If you take a normal stroke that goes back to your back toe and produces a thirty-foot putt, then you have a point of reference for all of your long putts. Go beyond your toe for longer putts and short of your toe for shorter distances.