2017 October

In early September we moved our site to a new server. We did not realize that the move cut off access to our Store Page. This has been a very frustrating time but the site has now been corrected. You are now able to make your GOLFSTR+ purchases at https://golfstr.com/shop/golfstr/

Request for Endorsements on Amazon

We receive many testimonials and comments about the ways that GOLFSTR has helped improve your games and lowered your scores. We’ve upgraded GOLFSTR+ by adding a Rubber Extender and more Velcro to make it easier to use for all 6 swing fixes.

Michael Breed from the Golf Channel called me and complimented GOLFSTR as a wonderful “golf training aid with 6 swing fixes and it so easy to just slide in your pocket when you are finished your practice”.   We have talked many times over the past 3 years as his endorsement would be ideal for GOLFSTR+.   I do however need YOUR comments to build awareness.

ENDORSEMENTS ARE THE LIFE BLOOD FOR GOLF TRAINING AIDS: If you are one of the thousands of happy users who have improved your game with GOLFSTR+, we would really appreciate your help by adding a comment about your success on the AMAZON website.

If you have ever purchased any product on www.Amazon.com or www.Amazon.ca , you are able to log into that site and write a brief Review about any product:
1/ Enter the word GOLFSTR in the search window
2/ Click on the listing for GOLFSTR
3/ Scroll to down to Product Details (orange stars) and click on: Average Consumer Reviews
4/ Click on Write a Review to enter your comments.

Thank you for your assistance and interest in GOLFSTR+.  Hope you are enjoying our weekly blogs.

Enjoy

Will Curry P.Eng, MBA  Inventor & Manufacturer of GOLFSTR+

GOLFSTR+ is 6 swing training aids in 1 product. Practice daily to learn to swing with a straight leading arm and flat wrist for your full swing, chipping and putting. Also a great lag trainer. [CLICK TO ENLARGE]

Let’s face it, we would all like to play like the best of the pros but is their strategy killing your game? Are you trying to hit the miracle shots that we see on TV?  Over 95% of golfers never shoot rounds in the 70’s or 60’s. It’s an excellent goal to reach that level but the image to be the best of the best is most likely holding you back from improving your game.

Why not set realistic targets and swing speeds to improve YOUR GAME? It’s like learning to walk before you run. You may be inspired by John Daly’s swing or the distance that the leading pros can hit their drives but until you hit a higher percentage of fairways you will never improve your Greens In Regulation (GIR).  Set a goal for yourself and create a strategic game plan to make it happen.

YOUR GOAL for the Spring of 2018: Lower your score by 10 strokes.
1/ Hit more fairways.     2/ Improve your Chipping.     3/ Improve your Putting.

TIPS TO HIT MORE FAIRWAYS

A. Should you hit longer or straighter?
Professional golfers hit their drives over 275 yards. If their aim is ONLY 10 DEGREES to the right or left of center, they will end up in the rough every time. 10 degrees is not a large margin of error so the pros have to plan for a draw or fade on every shot to ensure that they hit the fairway. You should too!

Learn to avoid a hook or slice and master your draw or fade. A short drive landing in the fairway is always better than a long shot landing in the rough. Learn your swing limit to avoid harder and faster which causes your hooks and slices.

B. Should you draw or a fade your shots?
If you Google this question, you will find pros and cons for either one but the draw seems to be the favorite method to hit consistently longer drives. . Because we swing in a circle around out body, the draw appears to be the more powerful swing. A fade is a shot where the ball falls off the face of your club and a draw travels in the direction of the rotating club.

Improve your chances of hitting the fairway by aiming your draw to the right and your fades to the left (for right handed golfers). By doing this you will have an angle of over 20 degrees to land in before missing the fairway.

Phil Michelson knows how to use an iron when he’s in the rough. Want to save strokes, you should too.

C. So you hit the rough. What’s the best strategy for the next shot?
The odds are against getting a good lie or level ground in the rough. So you better limit your expectations! Accept the fact that you are not going to par the hole. Take the pressure off of yourself. Play for bogey. Use a lofted iron and take your “penalty shot” – to escape the rough. Plan a shot for the perfect position to make your next shot to the green for a possible 1 putt green.

D. Best idea to help you hit more fairways: Focus on your drives and give yourself a check mark on your score card for each hole if you hit the fairway.  It works just like earning a gold star when you were a kid in grade school. Count them up and try to beat your total on your next round.

This is the first of a series of 3 blogs to hit more fairways, improve chipping and improve putting. Check next Thursday for the Weekend Warrior’s Strategy for Chipping. In the meantime practice with your GOLFSTR+ to build muscle memory to swing with a straight leading arm and up the slot. Buy one today at www.golfstr.com

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I developed GOLFSTR to get started on the road to playing better golf. That Training Aid helped me discover the importance of swinging with a straight leading arm but it also set me on my journey to improving other weaknesses in my golf game. With support from many PGA Professional Golfers, GOLFSTR+ is now giving me 6 swing fixes for more power and consistency in my drives, fairway shots, chips and putts. These successes have put me on a journey to shoot par from the 6,000 yard tees.

I quickly discovered that customers who are buying GOLFSTR+ are also committed to improving their games. We all watch the Golf Channel and read many golf books and magazines to find the missing ingredients for our game. I have been writing Golf Tip Blogs for almost 5 years to share my research with our readers. Of course it’s helping to build sales for GOLFSTR+ but it’s also helping my game.

I’m well into my 60’s, so my handicap should be going up as I lose power, distance and consistency. Fortunately my focus on swing tips have helped me lower my scores. I still work full time and only play 2 rounds of golf per week. I have surprised myself when I discovered 3 COMMITMENTS that have the greatest impact on my game: Mental Calm, Sugar Surge and Conditioning.

A.  Mental Calm
I saw the leader, of a 2 day Club Championship, arrive late for his tee time on Day #2 and ended up dropping 10 strokes to the eventual winner. Unfortunately this individual had departed late for the course, missed his highway exit and ran to the first tee to avoid being cut from the tournament. His game went downhill from his first tee shot. To play well you need to arrive early, calm and relaxed. Use simple words like “calm and relaxed” to loosen your grip and lower your blood pressure before every swing.

The great golfers like Tiger Woods, Jason Day and Mickey Wright (the greatest female player of all time as highlighted in the October 2017 issue of Golf Digest) all go into a dream-state as they focus for every shot. Mickey said that at her best she would “go into a fog”. It’s like an out of body experience which I feel when my perfect shots just happen.

Do you turn into the Incredible Hulk when you load up on sugar? Don’t do it.

B.  Sugar Surge [Don’t Do It!]
Recently I missed lunch during a round of golf so I decided to have an energy bar at the turn. By the end of the 10th holes I was 3 over par and feeling great. Unfortunately the Sugar Surge from that bar took my mind and body to another level of strength. I started to over-swing, lost my rhythm and could not find the fairway. A friend who caddied for LPGA tournaments confirmed that energy bars are taboo for the PGA pros. They eat moderately during a match. Slices of apple or half a banana will do just fine to keep your energy up. Avoid energy surges to keep your rhythm in a consistent state.

C.  Conditioning
Flexibility and Core Strength are all you need for a wide takeaway and a powerful swing. Learning the right setup, takeaway, transition and release for a proper draw or fade are prerequisites for great golf. You will never develop distance and control without: flexibility for rotation and core strength for power. Look these up on the internet and do them religiously.

I will never shoot par without sticking to these 3 COMMITMENTS  for Success. Practicing with GOLFSTR+ for 6 swing fixes is a great starting point but golf is so much more. Buy one today at www.golfstr.com

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We would all love to see every shots fly straight up our target line. Unfortunately, unless you are hitting with a pool cue, this is not the easiest task to achieve. We swing in an arc, so our chances of hitting a dead straight ball are pretty slim. Successful golfers plan for a draw or fade on every drive or fairway shot. [For right hand players: draw curves slightly left, fade leaks to the right.] You should too if you want to lower your scores.

Choose your preference for a draw or fade based on your past performance. First you should understand why you are creating a draw or fade. [If you have a hook or a slice problem then you really need to learn how to avoid swinging over the top.] Of course there are many times when you should draw or fade a shot to curve around a dogleg or tree or to fit your shot up a green which is shaped behind a large, angled sand trap. Plan for your comfortable draw or fade to prepare for every approach shot to the green.

Rickie Fowler uses the exact same square setup for his fade or his draw.  Then he uses his hands to open or close his club face. Good idea to keep your eye on the ball through impact too, like Rickie.

Rickie Fowler described his preference for his setup to create draws or fads in a recent Golf Digest article. I have cut some of the content but borrowed his exact words.

“Butch [Harmon] taught me to hit a real fade. Transformed my game. Now I hit my little slider (fad) all the time, even when the design of the hole doesn’t demand it. Unlike a slice, where the ball starts far left of your target and then dramatically curves back, a real fade actually flies pretty straight before drifting to the right at the end.

To hit the fade:
1. I tee it low. I want the ball’s equator level with the top edge of the driver, or even a little lower is OK. I tee it high only when I want to hit a high draw or big straight ball, like on a wide-open par 5. Just sit back and let it go. But for the fade, the lower tee height helps me to get my chest “on top of the ball” at impact with no hang-back.
2. The other thing I do is pick a spot about 10 feet in front of my ball—a leaf or piece of mud—that’s in line with the left edge of the fairway. I aim the clubface at that spot and then set my body parallel to the target line, as if the left edge of the fairway were the center stripe. Then I think about standing tall with my chin off my neck, my whole body loose and athletic. I take my normal grip, nice and relaxed in my fingers. Just before starting the club back, I let the clubface peek open just a hair to the right.
3. The funny thing about a real fade is that it feels almost exactly like you’re hitting a draw. You’re attacking the ball from the inside.

For a draw:
1. The only difference is I add extra release with my hands at the bottom of the swing, really rolling the clubface over. This is what makes a real fade so reliable: You don’t do anything with your hands; it’s just a pure all-body swing.

In the end, setting your stance toward the left edge of the fairway and opening the clubface slightly at address are the two most important adjustments you need to make to hit the fade.”

Rickie swings with a wonderful straight leading arm for his long and powerful swings. Whether you like to draw or fade you should plan one for every shot to improve your chances of hitting more fairways (worst case it may go straight and still hit the fairway). Distance is only useful if you can make your next shot to the green count. Practice with GOLFSTR for every shot in your game. Buy one today at www.golfstr.com

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Are you losing 10 to 18 strokes a round by not getting your chips within a 1 putt range? Isn’t it maddening when you hit the green in regulation and your ball rolls into the heavy rough just off the green. Or you stub your short chips in the deep rough and have to waste another shot. Wouldn’t you like to learn how to chip it close for more 1 putt greens?

Of course getting it close is the dream of every golfer. We all want to turn potential bogies into pars. It’s not going to happen unless you practice with the right swing to nail every chip. Golfers RX recently listed 3 principles of good chipping so I decided to share our abbreviated version of their list:

1/ Setup with your weight on your leading leg: A chip is designed for direction and distance control, not for power. Weight transfer is not necessary. You avoid a lot of unnecessary movement by starting with the majority of your weight on your leading leg. It also sets you up to finish your swing up your target line.

2/ Control your distance with the length of your backswing: A chip swing is a smooth, accelerating swing, just like a putt. Your rhythm is a comfortable swing so don’t control the distance by swinging faster or softer. Control the distance of your chip shots just like you do on your putts – with shoulder rotation and the length of your backswing. Just let the weight of your club naturally swing through the ball. For a short chip use a short backswing, for a long chip use a longer backswing.
If your ball is buried deep in the rough, take a longer backswing with the same smooth accelerating motion as your club needs more momentum to get through the deep grass.

Jason Carbone demonstrates using most of his weight on his leading foot, locked wrist and hands forward of the club head as he swings through the ball.

3/ Keep a lead wrist rigid through impact. Your leading wrist should be locked and ahead of your club head through impact. Don’t collapse or flip your club head through impact to avoid losing control of your chip.  And don’t jam your club into the ground hoping that the ball will pop up.

Chipping can be done with any club depending on the lie of your ball and the runout that you are trying to achieve to reach the hole. Consider using your putter, any iron up to your 60 degree wedge or a hybrid. For short chips, if your ball is sitting in the deep secondary rough within 15 inches of the green, you may be better off putting it, but this takes practice.

Track your progress to improve your chipping by counting your total chips (up to 30 yards) and putts on every hole. For non-professionals this total is far more important to track your progress than total putts. 36 is your target total and keeping under 54 is your goal.

You will never be a great chipper unless you practice with a range of clubs for a range of conditions. It takes practice and judgement for every grass condition and slope run-out on the green. The more you practice the better your feel will get. Make sure that you build confidence with at least 4 different clubs and practice with your GOLFSTR to prevent your leading wrist from flipping when your make your chips. Buy one today at www.golfstr.com

If you like this tip, please click the LIKE BUTTON to spread the word. 

And share your thoughts using the Reply box.  Love to hear from you. 

Your Swing Support Center Advisor:  Will Curry

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