Driving
Want to be a big hitter? Get golf driving tips and add yards with our long golf drive secrets. Here you'll see articles on golf driving from some of the foremost experts around.
Thursday, March 1, 2007 Alternate DrivingWhen your driving goes south -- or when situations call for something other than the big dog -- ?don't forget your options The well-worn cliché “drive for show, putt for dough” is familiar to
most golfers, but heeded by few. Hitting big drives is, in fact, often
the most desirable accomplishment in the game for many recreational
players, most of whom are less concerned with score than the bragging
rights that accompany a long drive. Players who are interested in
shooting good scores, however, know that accurate driving, or
strategically positioning the ball off the tee, is a critical part of
playing solid golf, and sometimes mandates the use of different clubs. |
Friday, February 16, 2007 Keep It Level One of the keys to a solid golf swing is a level turn of the shoulders
and hips during the backswing. A solid rotation not only promotes
consistent ballstriking, but lays the foundation for achieving maximum
distance as well. |
Friday, February 16, 2007 Preload The Power I’m frequently approached at my power clinics and exhibitions by senior
golfers who claim they’ve lost strength and suppleness, which
translates into shorter tee shots. My advice to them for regaining lost
distance is simple and direct: pre-load your power. By that I mean
seniors should make a few swing adjustments to compensate for advancing
age and a diminished ability to turn their shoulders and torque their
torso. |
Friday, February 16, 2007 Clear The Way You can’t hit big drives if your body gets stuck. That’s why I make a
point of rotating my hips completely open on the downswing. This allows
my arms to fully extend through the hitting area. Not only do my hips
clear, but they remain level, which is key. By rotating through on a
level plane, my right shoulder, arm and hip are able to continue adding
power through impact. This prevents my body from getting stuck, which
would limit the potential for clubhead speed by forcing me to hit only
with my hands. |
Friday, February 16, 2007 Alter Your Focus One of the first lessons most golfers learn is to “keep your eye on the
ball.” I’m here to offer a better suggestion: Move your eyes behind the
ball. Heresy, you say? I don’t think so. That’s because when a golfer makes
his or her backswing with a full turn of the shoulders and a proper
shift of weight, the center of his or her chest, or sternum, will be
well behind the ball. (Exactly how far behind the ball depends on an
individual’s suppleness and flexibility.) |
Friday, February 16, 2007 Coil And Load There are many keys to a powerful swing, and my number-one focus is to
establish a powerful backswing coil. Notice how my left arm is parallel
to the ground while the shaft is perpendicular to it. This position
indicates a massive turn away from the ball and not a simple lifting of
the club to the top (you can see my entire body stretching and
straining to get turned). The coil is further enhanced by my left foot,
which is firmly on the ground. This limits the amount I can turn my
hips while still allowing me to rotate my shoulders as much as
possible. |
Friday, February 16, 2007 Focus On The Finish Many amateurs are so consumed with anxiety about the incremental parts
of the golf swing (grip, alignment, posture, setup, etc.) that they
lose sight of the overall objective, which is to strike the ball
squarely and forcefully. Let me suggest a method to alleviate this
anxiety: Focus on the finish. |
Wednesday, November 1, 2006 Squat For Power To begin the downswing, I squat to create leverage. The squat disappears as my left leg straightens, however. This move creates tremendous power and speed. |
Monday, May 1, 2006 The Secret To SpeedFor more clubhead MPH and more yards, turn to your hips If there’s an absolute truth in golf, it’s that the faster you can move
the clubhead, the greater the potential for extra distance. Granted,
you still need to make solid contact in the center of the face and with
the club moving on the proper plane, but all other things being equal,
more speed definitely means more yards. The big question is: Where does
speed come from? Your hands can move fairly quickly, and there’s no
faster part of your body than your fingers. But where the golf swing is
concerned, a fast clubhead almost always results from fast hips moving
correctly and in the proper direction. |
Sunday, May 15, 2005 Hip Work The three components for proper hip movement—a critical component of a fundamentally solid downswing—are weight shift, a slight lateral slide and hip whip (the explosive rotation just before impact that generates power). Good players know how to mix these components in the proper proportion to achieve both maximum power and outstanding accuracy. |
Sunday, May 1, 2005 Drive With Control & PowerSerious advice and drills for big, big hits Each of my students completes a pre-instruction questionnaire,
indicating wants, needs and goals. I’ve used this questionnaire for 20
years, and easily the most oft-noted goal is “more distance with more
control.” Many of these golfers own sound fundamentals, solid iron
swings and good short games, but nonetheless lack the skill to
consistently produce pure and powerful drives. In your own attempts to
improve, does it seem like the harder you try to gain distance, the
worse it gets? Trust me, you’re not alone. I’m confident that learning
from four typical driving faults and comparing those to the moves of
golfers who hit it forever with a seemingly effortless flow of motion
will help you do the same. |
