How to Cut Five Strokes from Your Game By the Weekend

How to Cut Five Strokes from Your Game By the Weekend

By Jack Moorehouse

If you're serious about lowering your golf handicap and doing so quickly, master the three scoring clubs—the driver, the wedge, and the putter. These clubs have the greatest impact on your golf game and provide the greatest opportunity for cutting strokes from your scores. Mastering these clubs will improve`your game as much as 5 strokes per round.

Specifically though, let’s focus on the wedges. Knowing which wedge to hit in different situations is really the best way to drop shots because if you have the right club selected, it makes it so much easier to pull the intended shot off. While learning to hit a wedge is not difficult, hitting one with confidence comes in handy, especially 40 yards of so from the green. Golfers face this situation two or three times a round, maybe more. Hitting a good shot from 40 yards out often leaves you with just a short putt, as I emphasize in my golf lessons, so you want to hit the shot well.

The most critical decision with the 40-yard pitch shot is which wedge to use—the pitching, the sand, or the lob. These clubs are easy to hit to the green, but landing on the green is one thing and getting the ball to do what you want after it lands is another. Let’s look at three typical 40-yard situations and the type of wedge shots each requires.

Lob Wedge

In first situation the pin’s up front and there’s little green to work with. Here, you need a high-flying shot with little run—a shot you can easily learn to hit with a some practice. The lob wedge is the club of choice for getting the ball in the air, so it’s recommended in this situation. (If you’re on the fairway with a tight lie, however, you might want to try one of the other wedges.) The lob wedge has from 58 to 60 degrees of loft, so there’s no need to open the clubface. Just square the face to the target and swing. Since the ball will fly high and come to rest softly, you need to be careful about where you land the ball.

Sand Wedge

In the second situation the hole is in the middle of the green, so you have some green to work with. The sand wedge is the club of choice in this situation whether you’re on the fairway or in the rough. The sand wedge enables you to customize your shot more easily than either the lob or the pitching wedges. You can learn to alter the roll and the trajectory with very little golf instruction. I personally like the sand wedge as my “go-to” club.
If you want a shot with less carry and more roll, square the clubface to the target. If you want a shot with slightly more roll than loft, then close the clubface slightly. If you want to hit the ball higher, just open the clubface more, in which case the shot will resemble a shot from a lob or a pitching wedge. Also, keep in mind that with an open clubface, the shot tends to go right.

Pitching Wedge

In the third situation the pin is back and there’s plenty of room for the ball to roll. The pitching wedge is the club of choice if you’re on the fairway or in some light rough. (If you’re in heavy rough, try one of the other wedges.) Keep in mind that the ball will run lower and hotter, even if you open the clubface a little, so don’t swing as hard as you might with another iron. It’s a mistake I see a lot of when giving golf lessons. The ball is also going to roll more than with the other wedges, so get a good reading on the green, just as if you were going to putt the ball. More often than not you will get closer to the pin with this type of shot than a high-lofted shot.
The mechanics of a wedge shot are easy to learn. The key is choosing the right club at the right time, and making slight adjustments in your shot. That’s something that only experience can teach. At the same time it’s important to practice these three shots as much as you can, so you can master the technique of each shot, develop control of it, and build self-confidence in your ability to execute them. That, in turn, will make shots easier to make.
The wedge is as important the driver or the putter when it comes to minimizing scores. Wedge shots from 40-yeards out may not have the drama of sinking a 30-foot birdie putt or powering a 300-yard drive down the middle of the fairway, but over the course of a round, they’ll save you as many as five strokes or more from your scores. And that result is bound to lower your golf handicap.
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Jack Moorehouse is the author of the best-selling book “How To Break 80 And Shoot Like The Pros.” He is NOT a golf pro, rather a working man that has helped thousands of golfers from all seven continents lower their handicap immediately. He has a free weekly newsletter with the latest golf tips, golf lessons and golf instructions. You can find his book at:http://www.howtobreak80.com/?hop=atlwarrior *************************************************************************************

3 Simple Golf Tips To Quickly Improve Your Distance

3 Simple Golf Tips To Quickly Improve Your Distance

By Mike Pedersen

Every golfer wants to know the secret golf tip to improve their distance. The secret, is there is NO secret. It’s common sense, and treating golf like a sport. The golf swing is not for the weak and feeble anymore.
Any golf tips you hear to improve distance should somehow be directly or indirectly related to the physical side of the golf swing. I mean…don’t you think the swing puts a tremendous amount of pressure on your body, especially your lower back?
To alleviate this pain and quickly improve your distance takes strength and stretching, specific to your body and your golf swing.
So the quick fixes (band aides) you hear in all the magazines and on the golf channel are short-term fixes. You won’t be able to consistently duplicate it until you improve your physical limitations.
So let’s get to these simple, yet valuable tips.
Tip #1:
Perform a dynamic warm-up prior to the first tee. Don’t ever skip it. It is more important than hitting balls before you play. How many times do you see a professional athlete go on the field and start playing? Never. That’s my point.
A Simple Warm-Up could be some arm circles, toe touches, squats with your club, and standing twists holding the club out in front of you chest high.
That’s it! Simple yet very effective to prepare your body for that LONG drive on the first tee.
Tip #2
Stretching on the course will keep your body nice and loose to make that FULL backswing, generating high clubhead speed and consistently LONG drives. There are just a few KEY stretches specific to your swing, that can keep your body relaxed for 18 holes.
One stretch I’ll tell you is the backswing/shoulder stretch. It’s a very simple stretch that will maintain a full and fluid backswing.
All you do is get in your golf posture, with your arms hanging naturally in front of you. For a right-handed golfer, you would take your right hand underneath your left, so the back of both hands are touching each other.
Now gently apply pressure from the back of your right hand against your left and pull your upper body all the way in your backswing and hold. Hold it for 15 seconds and repeat once more.
This stretch should be done on almost every hole to get the most out of it.
Tip #3
Improve your core strength and rotational speed. This one is done “off the course”, and can even be done in your home with minimal equipment. Now this is just one tip (exercise) of many you can do to dramatically explode your drives “on the course”.
Since the golf swing is a turn back and a turn through, it is rotational in nature. Then why wouldn’t you do many exercises to improve your rotational strength and flexibility?
If you’re serious about your game, you will now!
One simple golf exercise is the Seated Twist with a dumbbell. It’s very easy and can be done with a 5 or 8 pound dumbbell.
While sitting on the ground, grab a single dumbbell with both hands and hold it out in front of you.
Now lean back putting tension on the abs. Your legs will be bent at a 90 degree angle in the knee, and together.
Start rotationg side to side, only with your upper body. Try keeping your lower body as stable as possible.
You will do 3 sets of 20 repetitions to get the full benefit of the exercise. Again, this is just ONE exercise of many that will strengthen your rotational muscles of your core.
I’ve just showed you 3 quick and easy golf tips to dramatically increase your distance. Now go out and make it happen!
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Mike Pedersen is a respected golf fitness expert, and the author of the Ultimate Golf Fitness Guide, numerous golf fitness tips and founder of several online golf fitness sites. For more information on his new, cutting-edge golf fitness e-book, go to http://www.ultimategolffitnessguide.com/?hop=atlwarrior .
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How to Hit the Ball Well from Uneven Lies

How to Hit the Ball Well from Uneven Lies

By David Nevogt

I know some of you are laughing under your breath wondering what I am doing writing a tip on UNEVEN LIES. What in the world could I possibly know about uneven lies living in Scottsdale, Arizona? Well, it is the Grand Canyon State for starters, but yes you're right, we do not face as many uneven lies as someone from North Carolina, for example. However, there are plenty of times during the course of a round when we are faced with a golf ball that might be on a side hill lie.
Before I begin, I am going to first give you the definition of the four uneven lies in golf.
Uphill Lie - The easiest of the four uneven lies. The ball is level with your feet but the slope is up-hill, we refer to this as an uphill lie.
Downhill Lie - A ball that is level to your feet but the slope is down hill, probably the second most difficult shot in golf.
Ball Below Feet - The most difficult shot in golf is when the ball is below your feet
Ball Above Feet - The fourth uneven lie is when the ball is above your feet.
Don't get confused between an uphill lie, and when the ball is simply above your feet. These are 2 different lies, and should be addressed separately. Also, don't get confused with the downhill lie, and the ball being below your feet. Again, these are 2 different lies.
Let's start with the easiest shot in golf, the up-hill lie. If you struggle with this shot, you probably swing the golf club to vertical into the ground and hit a fat shot. Before you prepare for an uphill lie, you need to think of a few important items first.
1. Make sure you take a less lofted club. When you have an uphill lie, it will make the ball go HIGHER and SHORTER.
2. The ball will have a tendency to hook to the left, so aim a little to the right.
3. To avoid hitting the shot fat, check your shoulder alignment and make sure they are parallel to the ground you are standing on. If you are on an uphill lie, your back shoulder should be a little lower that your leading shoulder.
4. The ball should be positioned according to what club you are using, as though you were on a level lie. (A bit forward for longer clubs.)
5. You want to make sure you follow through HIGH after impact.
Now we can move on to one of the hardest shots in golf, the down hill lie. If you have a tendency to struggle with this shot, the miss hit is usually a top. Follow the steps below and you will see a huge change in your down hill shots.
1. Because the ball will fly lower, you can take a more lofted club to help the ball go a little higher.
2. The ball will have a tendency to curve to the right, aim a little to the left.
3. If you have your shoulders at address tilted level to the down slope of your lie, this will encourage the club to swing DOWN into the ball (correct) and not up in the down swing. Thus, you will hit the bottom of the ball and not the top.
4. Play the ball in your stance according to the club you are using (again, a little forward for a longer club).
5. You want to make sure you follow through LOW to the ground after impact.
Now we are back to an easy shot, the ball above our feet. If you follow the steps below, you will not hit the ground behind the ball anymore, and the ball above your feet will become your absolute favorite shot in golf
1. If you struggle with hitting the ball fat in these shots, make sure you are standing taller than your normal stance.
2. The ball will have a tendency to fly to the left, aim a little farther to the right.
3. DO NOT BEND YOUR KNEES
4. This is the main point, the golf club wants to swing more AROUND your body, let it...DO NOT TRY TO MAKE A NORMAL SWING...let the club swing around you.
THE HARDEST SHOT IN GOLF. The dreaded, (I can't believe this is happening to me) BALL BELOW YOUR FEET golf shot. You have come to the right place, below is the answer.
1. When the ball is below your feet, you will have a tendency to top it to the right, whiff the ball, or shank it.
2. The address is the most important part of this shot. Bend your knees and bend WAY over at address. You ALMOST can not bend TOO much.
3. The ball will have a tendency to go to the right, aim farther left.
4. The golf club wants to swing up and down, NOT around. LET IT...It will feel like a lob swing, this is correct. IF you make your normal swing, you will whiff the ball completely.
Now, forget everything you knew about uneven lies and give this a try. I KNOW IT WILL HELP! Get back to us with all of your golf successes.
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Bobby Eldridge is the head professional at head professional at PurePoint Golf Academy, and he teaches "The Simple Golf Swing". Bobby writes golf instruction material, has given over 70,000 private lessons, and is the Director of "The Simple Golf Swing Academy" which operates in Chicago and Scottsdale. David Nevogt writes golf instruction material that helps golfers of all levels reach their full potential and lower their scores. David is the author of "The Simple Golf Swing" which guarantees to have you shooting 7 strokes lower in only 1 week from today. You can find more of his golf instruction by going to http://www.golfswingguru.com/?hop=atlwarrior
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