Quick Tips

It’s always been a major battle, distance vs. control… the players that have some degree of both dominate the tour. In most cases however, the long ball hitters lack the control and consistency of the shorter hitters. Lately we have been seeing a different trend, which allows for players to hit the ball a mile, while having a compact and controlled swing.

Using J.B Holmes for example, has been a the top of PGA tour average driving distance list, and has a very short and compact swing, which makes his swing more consistent and repeatable. The truth is, as long as you can make a full shoulder turn and fully cock your wrists, there is no reason why your swing needs to be longer than 10 o’clock (well shy of parallel).

The average player can really benefit from a shortened swing as this helps to increase the total stability of the golf swing. With fewer movements, the swing becomes a lot simpler to perform and harder to screw up. An elongated backswing tends to force some players to lift their front heel off the ground… which means, your it has to be replaced on the downswing often wreaking havoc with contact. Furthermore, a longer backswing tends to force your body weight to creep to the outside of your trailing foot – which decreases the stability of your lower body and increases the chances of an unwanted hip slide.

Simple creates repeatability. When working on shortening your backswing, it helps to have a friend let you know at what point your club is actually stopping. It’s rarely where you think. Practice shortening your swing with a short iron and focus on keeping a consistent tempo… quite often I see my students rush their downswing when they try and shorten things up.

The next time you hit up the range, remember this tip, shorten your swing while keeping a full wrist cock and shoulder turn – and you should see a dramatic increase on your distance and consistency.

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If you’re thinking of getting into golf, or simply wanted to get back into the game after a hiatus, chances are you’re in the hunt for new clubs. You’re starting fresh, so your clubs should be new as well. But before you go down the road of club shopping, fitting and lessons, let me explain a little more about club fitting.

Club fitting is now an essential part of learning the game for anyone wanting to take up golf. But here’s something to remember about club fitting – it fits the swing you have at the time. If you’re getting back into the game – your swing is going to go through a bunch of changes until you “find your swing”. Our advice? Use your existing clubs, or get a demo set to practice with and groove your swing first. Next step is lessons.

Once you’ve got your swing working, lessons should be next. Explain to your pro your plans to buy new clubs and get fitted. Your pro will work with you to ensure your posture and address position is in check, and fix any big swing mistakes you’re making. Posture is one of the most important factors that influence how your clubs get fitted to your swing.

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Impact is the moment of truth in a golf swing. If your impact position resembles the picture at right for your irons, you’re already a very solid player. This position is the key to power and consistency, and you can see it among all the best players in the world. As unique as every professionals swing is, their impact positions are pretty much identical. There are two key features to an ideal impact position.

1) Your head should be behind the ball.

As you swing into impact your body is transferring all the power created by your larger muscles into the smaller quicker muscles into impact. Anatomically, power is generated first with your core, as your weight begins to transfer over your legs kick in and add to the power. This power is then transferred to your shoulders, down your arms and finally as your wrists release from their cocked position, into the club.

With the rotation and movement your body is experiencing, your body center must remain relatively still to ensure you make contact with the ball. This balanced position is what creates consistency. So what does this mean to you? If your head is ahead of the ball at impact, you’re not creating power properly, and your swing is inconsistent.

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When golfers are asked which skill they would love to have, apart from hitting it 350 yards every time – consistency usually ranks the highest.  Why? Because a consistent swing is reliable and repeatable and this creates confidence, dependability and trust. A confident swinging golfer is a menacing opponent on the course.  There are thousands of tips out there that talk about improving your consistency – in my experience however – the real problems have only a few roots.  Once these problem areas are taken care of, and they are ingrained through practice… scores start dropping.

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In a study of 1,500 amateur golfers, not one with a handicap of 14.0 or higher could hit the fairway 50 percent of the time with a driver. Chances are if you miss the fairway, you’re losing a stroke to par on the hole. So why bother using your driver all day for that one great shot? The way I see it, if the club can’t help your game, get it out of your bag. Seriously, play a round with only your three wood, not only will you get a chance to play different clubs, I’ll bet you’ll keep the ball in play more effectively.

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