Shotmaking
Chip from the sand, control trajectory and enhance your shotmaking ability. Uncover the secret of golf shot making with advice from the pros.
Friday, February 16, 2007 Dial In The Distance To get the clubhead traveling a little faster (a necessary requirement
for hitting longer shots), you need to create a longer backswing with
an increase in the amount of arm swing and body turn. Not only must the
swing be a little longer, but you need to pick up the pace of your
swing to increase clubhead speed as well. The pace of the forwardswing
should be slightly faster than normal. |
Friday, February 16, 2007 Hill RidesUphill and downhill lies are a challenge as they demand balance and control of the clubface throughout the swing Set up with your spine perpendicular to the slope and shoulders
parallel to the ground so you can swing up the slope on the backswing
and down the slope on the forwardswing. The arrangement of your body
will favor the creation of an upright swing and make it more difficult
to square the face through the hitting area—that’s why a shot from a
downhill lie tends to curve a little to the right. To help shallow the
plane and encourage a swing that’s a little more around your body, drop
your right foot back to close your stance slightly and match up the
ball position to your stance by putting it about two inches back of
normal. |
Thursday, February 1, 2007 Under 100Five lessons that will lower your handicap in '07 Golf isn’t a game of who hits it the best, it’s a game of who misses it the least. Even the best players in the world routinely mis-hit shots. In fact, the average Tour player hits only about 12 greens per round! How do they miss one out of every three greens and still manage to routinely shoot under par? Two reasons: steely determination and a red-hot short game. |
Wednesday, November 1, 2006 Shotshaping FormulasHow to make the shots you need to play your best It's a “how-to” world these days. Everywhere you look, you'll find someone, somewhere or something dedicated to what I like to call, “HTH” (How-To Hysteria). “How to bake a cake, how to wire a motorcycle, how to build an arboretum, how to fix a car—we as a culture have become so fascinated by the “how-to” genre that dozens of magazines, Websites and even television channels have been developed to help you help yourself. Luckily, Golf Tips is no exception, as the authors in every instructional story provide you with the scoop on how to become a better player. |
Saturday, July 1, 2006 Tips From The TourStudy the best in the world and improve your game It goes without saying that the players who compete on the PGA Tour are
the best in the world. Not only do they have impressive natural talent,
but every guy out there spends a tremendous amount of time and effort
working on his technique, strategy and fitness. For those of us not
fortunate enough to be able to spend all day, every day improving our
all-around game, this opportunity seems like a dream come true. For the
players on Tour, however, it's a job that they take seriously, and one
that's both extremely competitive and tough. |
Monday, May 1, 2006 Money ShotsEvery round requires at least one money-shot situation to win a few skins or to stay competitive when the chips are down It doesn’t matter how great or poor you’re playing, any given round
requires at least one spectacular shot to win a skin, save a
much-needed stroke or, in some cases, avert a disaster. We like to call
these “money shots,” as opposed to “miracle shots,” because we believe
that with practice, these types of shots will be your go-to plays when
the game is on the line. Better yet, learning a few money shots will
not only help you lower scores, but your overall game is likely to
improve, thanks to a newfound confidence in knowing you can face
anything that comes your way. |
Friday, July 1, 2005 An Easier Way?Fueled by the legend?and memory?of Moe Norman, the single-axis swing continues to intrigue with its simplicity Moe Norman was considered by many to be the best ballstriker of all
time. Even Ben Hogan was once quoted as saying that “Moe was the only
guy that I would walk across the street to watch hit balls.” But anyone
who’s familiar with Moe Norman knows that his golf swing was a bit
unconventional. Compared to today’s popular techniques, Norman’s golf
swing adhered to a single axis, not the two planes normally associated
with the modern dynamic. Taking away and returning the club on a single
plane fueled Norman’s consistency and correctness at impact by
“de-complexing” the swing. Is a single-axis motion the best way to
swing a golf club? The debate has raged for decades. At the very least,
it effectively simplifies and helps improve the most important part of
the swing—impact. A comparison of the single-axis technique and the
modern swing shows how. |
Thursday, July 1, 2004 25 ShotsA tee-to-green guide to great score-saving plays Shotmaking is a broad term and one that’s typically reserved for highly skilled players. Yet all golfers, even those who have a tough time breaking 90, should consider themselves shotmakers. Face it, the game of golf constantly demands a degree of creativity, and unless you play on a perfectly flat course with no rough, no hazards and no undulations on the greens, you have to be ready with a variety of plays—just to get through a single round. |
Saturday, May 1, 2004 Drop Down, Choke Down In the late 1970s, the greatest player in the world came to the realization that he had to change his swing in order to better control his golf ball in the wind. That golfer, Jack Nicklaus, spent the better part of a year relearning the golf swing in heavy Florida winds. A few years later, Nick Faldo retooled his leggy, high-ball hitting motion by inserting mechanisms that helped him lower his trajectory in order to produce a more penetrating ballflight. The move led him to six majors. |
Saturday, November 1, 2003 What Makes A Golf Swing GreatA good golf teacher can spot a great swing a mile away. Such recognition is based on years of experience. As an instructor with over 50 years of teaching experience, I’ve seen my fair share of golf swings—both good and bad. Most of the “bad” swings I see are marred by basically the same series of mistakes. Similarly, good motions are defined by several, rock-solid commonalities that, if you know what to look for, stand out like a sore thumb on a tiny hand. |
Tuesday, July 1, 2003 Become A Shotmaking ArtistFrom tee to green, all the plays every golfer needs The one constant in the game of golf is that each round is different. Weather conditions, course conditions, course layout and even a golfer’s physical and mental state on a given day create a unique set of challenges. That means that to play well you have to learn to adapt. Golfers who maximize their scoring potential know how to do things like shape the ball around the corner of a dogleg, handle uneven lies on a hilly course, and hit the ball back in play from under low-hanging branches. |
