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| Golf Tips from Club Golf Network |
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1. Keep Your Eye On The Ball
It's one of the oldest, most obvious principles in sports — and one of the easiest to forget in golf. A recent lesson reminded me that when I take my eye off the ball, eager to see the result of my swing, I almost always pull my shot to the left. Simply by focusing on the ball all the way through my swing, my shots straighten up. Give it a try and see if it works for you.
2. Stay Connected
Swing your body and arms as one. Don't give in to the temptation to really give the ball a good whack — it results in a bad shot more often that not. Many golfers have said they'd give up distance for accuracy, but we as a group can't seem to overcome the desire to smack the ball as hard as possible. Those primal urges tend to ruin our swings, so instead of thinking about hitting it long, focus on keeping your body moving as a unit: arms, torso, hips, legs all moving as one. Remember the Big Easy Ernie Els: A swing that looks slow does not produce a slow-moving ball.
3. Use Your Pecs
You want to use the big muscles for the golf swing rather than the smaller muscles in your arms. By keeping your upper arms tight across your chest during your swing, you help lessen the tendency to swing at the ball with your arms, and activate the large chest and back muscles into your swing. For right-handers, keeping the upper left arm tight on the backswing and the upper right arm tight on the downswing will not only help you stay connected but will also introduce you to the sweet spot more often.
4. Mark It Like Tiger Does
Take a tip from Tiger Woods and always mark your ball the same way every time, except when you've had to move your mark. Tiger always marks his ball with a coin, heads up, the top of the head on the coin towards the hole. However, if he has to move his mark off his playing partner's line, he marks the coin tails up. That way, he's got a visual reminder that he needs to replace his mark before putting out the hole.
5. Tee It High and Let It Fly
Instead of the using the standard tee height (center of ball flush with top of club) when hitting your driver, try elevating the ball another eigth- to quarter-inch or so. The added elevation will result in a higher ball flight and greater distance. Most driver sweet spots are top-center of the club face, and elevating the ball a bit helps you hit them more often.
6. Take Practice Swings
Most amateurs just walk up to the ball and swing away. Watch the pros (and low-handicappers) and you'll see that they never take a swing or putt without taking at least one practice swing. The purpose of the swing is to try to find the feel of the shot you want to hit so you can make the same swing when you've addressed the ball. The key is to make the same swing — not harder, not faster, just do the same thing again.
7. Own Your Shots
When you hit a bad shot, accept it. Once you've hit the ball you have no control over where it goes so, while you may not be pleased with the result, there is absolutely nothing you can do about it. And even a perfect shot can get an unlucky bounce. It makes no sense to spend time and energy complaining or griping about the outcome of your swing, and doing so keeps you thinking about the past rather than focusing on the shot at hand. So, let the shot go, accept what has happened, and focus on making your best swing on the next shot.
8. Swing Into Spring
When coming back to the game after winter, particularly if you haven't played in a few months, don't overdo it and think you can get it all back in a single session at the driving range. Your body needs time to adjust back to swinging the club, but fortunately your muscles will remember what you've taught them over the prior season. Take note of how many balls you hit before you start to lose focus, and limit your initial practice sessions to that number. After four or five sessions at the range, gradually increase the number of balls you hit each time. If you hit a few bad shots, take a short break to refocus before hitting any more. If you tend to lose your swing during the off-season, write down a few key notes or swing thoughts in the fall and stick them in your bag so you can remind yourself of them the next time you are at the range.
9. Spend Time Working On Your Short Game
While the temptation to hit driver after driver can be strong, don't neglect practicing your short game. Statistically speaking, you will hit at most 14 shots with your driver during a round. Approach shots account for about another 14. That means only 28 of your shots during a round of golf are distance shots. Even if you two putt every hole for 36 putts, all those shots sum up to 64. Subtract that from your typical score, and a golfer who regularly shoots 90 will have 26 short game shots, which means that nearly a third of the shots in your round are short shots. Spend the time to practice your chips and pitches, and you can save several strokes just by getting the ball closer to the hole, which will decrease your number of putts and save you strokes.
10. Take Golf Lessons
If you're serious about improving your play, taking lessons from a pro is the best way to improve your game immediately and in the long run. Objective observers can see things in your swing that you can't, and golf pros know how to fix your problems. Whenever possible, stick to the same golf pro for all your lessons. Over time, the golf pro will learn your swing tendencies, the issues you keep having with your swing, and will know what needs to be changed to fix them. Oftentimes, it is a simple fix such as grip position or swing speed that merely need to be adjusted to improve your game. In addition, often pros will give their repeat customers discounted rates on lessons over the long term.
11. Hit The Gym
Today's professional players have realized the benefit of lifting weights and strength training in the gym. The images of the overweight, cigar-smoking pro are nearly gone and the new generations of players recognize the importance of being fit to play better golf. Forget about becoming "muscle bound" — not only is that a myth, but it's one that would take years to even come close to. If you want to add distance to your drives and subsequent shots, going to the gym is arguably the easiest way to accomplish that goal. Regularly lifting weights and getting stronger is quite possibly the easiest way to add 20 yards to your drives. If you don't currently work out, be sure you're in good health and check with your physician before beginning any workout program. Start slowly and work up to more strenuous exercise over a few weeks, and soon you'll be knocking it further than ever.
12. Better Putting
If you've got a putt of 20 feet or more, don't expect to make it. A lot of amateurs expect to make every putt instead of focusing on getting it close to the hole so they don't take more than two putts to hole out. With shorter distances, trust your initial read — unless it's a tricky putt. In that case, take the time to look at the putt from several angles, not just from behind your ball, you will get a better picture of how the putt will roll. If the grain appears shiny, it's going with the putt, which will make it roll faster. If the grain is dull, it will slow the putt. And remember that grass always grows toward the sun, so no matter the shape of the green, putts that are in lined up with the sun will roll faster than others.
13. Remain In The Present
To quote Franco from The Gumball Rally (as he teaches the first rule in Italian driving): "What's-a behind me is not important." The past is the past, and without a time machine on hand, it cannot be changed. Focus on the task at hand. Whatever the shot, whatever the putt, give it your full attention. How many golfers have been on a birdie streak, only to see it ruined by thoughts of "If I keep going like this, I could shoot X"? Learn from the past and plan for the future, but remain focused on the present. The shot at hand is the most important shot of the day, give it your full attention and watch your game improve.
14. Pitching From Deep Rough
When the ball is buried in deep rough, say with an inch or two of grass growing higher than the top of the ball, play it like a bunker shot. Open your club face and swing three times harder or take a longer club. For example, if your shot is 20 yards and you're hitting sand wedge, take a 60-yard swing. The deep rough slows the ball down substantially, not to mention it tries to close your club face by grabbing the hosel. Opening the face and taking a bigger swing will compensate for the conditions.
15. Use The Clock To Control Your Wedge Distance
Think of your backswing as the hour hand moving around a clock. Say you hit a full wedge 90 yards and your backswing goes to 11 o'clock. Shortening your backswing to the 9 o'clock position will cause the ball to travel about 60 yards; choke down on the grip and take your backswing to the 7 o'clock position will result in a shot of about 30 yards. Spend some time on the practice range getting the feel for the shots and finding your groove, and you'll be controlling your wedge distance much better.
16. Sacrifice Distance For The Fairway
On courses with punishing rough, be willing to give up some distance to hit a shot you know will end up in the fairway. On many holes, a shot from the rough has a greatly decreased chance of staying on the green. It's often much easier to hit a longer shot from the short stuff more accurately than a shorter shot from the rough, mainly because it's much harder to control a shot out of the rough. When you must hit from the rough, take an extra club and plan on landing the ball short of the target so it will release and roll close. If you're having difficulty with your driver, hit a shorter club off the tee.
17. Get Approach Shots Pin High
Regardless of distance from the cup, the majority of putts are simpler when they end up pin-high. You've hit the correct distance, and your chances of two-putting at most are greatly improved when the ball is even with the cup. Being pin-high also makes reading the putt easier, so do what you can on your approach shot to ensure you ball travels the proper distance to end up even with the cup.
18. Mark Your Score Right Away
Do it before you leave the green so you don't forget. There's nothing worse than finishing the round only to discover you've missed a hole or that your card and your playing partner's card don't match up. Finish your putt, count your strokes and write it down as you leave the green.
Check back often, as we regularly add more tips.
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