2019 May

It really is surprising that the golf swing has changed to add power but the classic golf swings are still the best for the Weekend Warriors. Yes, I’m talking to you. The less exercise that you do, the more your game suffers. Pros and low handicap golfers spend a lot of time keeping mobile and in shape. The rest of us either work for a living or our aging bodies would prefer to limit active exercise. Our flexibility suffers and our golf does too.

Let’s look at some important changes that we should consider to “ACTIVATE OUR BODIES”.

Waggle: Getting your body moving before you take your swing is a critical starting point to free up your flexibility. In other words: Overcoming the FREEZE-UP. In Sam Snead’s era the waggle was a way to loosen the hands and relax the wrists and arms. Jason Dufner is still playing with that historic waggle today but very few pros are as exotic with their waggle.

The modern waggle seems to have a completely different approach as it duplicates the take-away as it loosens up the arms and hips. Golfers like Rickie Fowler, Michelle Wie and many others are now using a takeaway waggle similar to what Mike Weir started before he won the Masters in 2003. Each of these take-away waggles are a little different as they are either focused on a wrist bend, a shoulder rotation, a hip rotation or any combination of all 3.

Double Swing: Another way to keep your whole body moving is a double swing exercise that you many have seen Phil Michelson do. In this warmup exercise he uses 2 or 3 clubs and swings them forward and then backward in a continuous motion as if he is hitting in both directions. It really warms up your arms, shoulders and hips. Especially on a cold day or between nines you really can get your blood flowing before a next tee shot or on a fairway when waiting for the green to clear.

Pump Drill: Justin Rose loves to do this and we often see him practice this move before he takes a shot. He takes a straight arm backswing and then pumps down with his straight leading arm without releasing his wrists as he transfers his weight to his leading leg. He stops this motion before releasing his wrist lag. It forces the early hip shift and prevents the early casting of your wrists (which cause your over the top swing and slice).

Ben Hogan made his transition at the top with a minor leading heal lift and a major weight shift to his leading foot (like a baseball player).

Jack always lifted his leading heal to limit the strain on his back and to create more rotation for more power in his swing.

Learn from the Classic Pro Swing
I love what I have learned from Jack Nicklaus and many of the aging and retired pros. They lift the heal of their leading foot during their backswing to allow more freedom in their backswing for more shoulder and hip rotation. It also helps with the timing at the top of the swing to let your weight shift into your leading foot like Brooks Koepka (or any of the Major League baseball players). Golf is not baseball but that motion can really help you start your downswing with your hips as you “PUMP” your arms down before your wrist release.

Body motion or waggle just before your swing is a great starting point for every swing. Lifting your leading heal may just be that trigger that you need to allow for more “body windup” followed by your weight transfer and wrist release. Practice with GOLFSTR+ and get your body moving before your swing. Buy one today at www.golfstr.com

I found this listing on-line and decided that we can all benefit by prioritizing the primary weaknesses in our game and then focusing on corrective action. The game of golf will drive you insane if you don’t make changes to improve your game.  Choose your worst problems from the list below and find your fix. Why not set a goal to lower your average score by 5 strokes this summer (be aggressive and make it happen).

Einstein defined insanity as “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results”. Why not start practicing with your GOLFSTR+ to improve every swing in your game?

In the following list I found the best options to improve my game and you may want to consider doing the same. Most golfers can’t get into the 80’s consistently … even though they have the ability to do it. You refuse to play from tees that suit your ability. It’s a lot more fun to break 90 every time you play so choose the tee that allows you to reach the par 4 greens in 2 strokes. Hitting less than 30% of your Greens in Regulation is BAD for your MENTAL HEALTH so make your change today.

Brooks Koepka loads up on his back foot to build up energy for his swing.

ONE: Too many big numbers. [Hit more fairways by using less power in your swing and LEARNING TO SETUP for THE DRAW OR FADE that suits your swing on every drive. Know where your ball is going to go.]

TWO: Not enough distance off the tee. [Be happy with less distance and landing in the fairway 80% of the time. Stop trying to hit 250 yards when 220 yards will land in the fairway every time.]

Then he shifts to his leading foot as he “feels” the direction and power of his swing.

THREE: Some STUPID decisions are easy to fix. [Don’t go for the miracle shot. Take your “penalty shot” to setup for a perfect recovery shot to the green.]

FOUR: Thinking “I have to HIT the ball” instead of “collecting” the ball. [Smash vs Control: I never thought of it this way but I love the thought of feeling my shot instead of killing my shot.]

FIVE: Missing too many short putts. [Take the pin out and hit your ball with enough power to stop 12 inches past the hole (and make sure that you plan for less break). Downhill putts take a lot more care so leave the pin in and focus on rolling to the hole.]

SIX: Too many shots around the green. [Learn to pitch over hazards like water and sand traps. Open your club face and your stance, then put more pressure on your leading foot to make sure that you strike your ball before skimming the grass or taking a divot.]

SEVEN: Three-putting too often. [Keep track of your putts and make sure that your first putt stops within a 4 feet radius of the hole. (Of course better putters should focus on getting the first putt within 2 feet above, below or past the hole because short putts never go in.)

EIGHT: Too many lost fights with hazards and OB. [Focus on #2 and a save your sanity.]

NINE: Lack of confidence. [Work on #1 to #7 and your confidence will continue to improve.]

Now print this blog out and read it before every game this summer. Of course you need to practice with your GOLFSTR+ for your drives, fairway shots, approach shots and putting. Improve your game for all 6 swing fixes by practicing with GOLFSTR+. Buy one today at www.golfstr.com

The pros all swing with a straight leading arm in their backswing and downswing for more power and distance. Aging bodies lose their flexibility for a full backswing so you better find a way to “cheat” your swing to improve your body rotation. You may not be able to hit your drives 300 yards but you can certainly add 30 to 50 yards to your drives by making a few adjustments.

Clay at Top Speed Golf suggested some of the following tricks for more body rotation in his blog. Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer figured these tricks out well before  the end of their careers.

On the left Jack lifts his leading foot to allow for more backswing and then on the right he shifts forward with is leading foot to force the transfer of his weight at the start of the downswing.

1/ Lift your leading heal in your backswing to allow more rotation. You don’t see the pros doing this as they want to coil their bodies during the backswing. Jack Nicklaus always used the heal lift in his swing and he used the same trick during the ceremonial tee shot this year at the Masters.

2/ Exercise and stretch your shoulders to allow for a high backswing so that you can loop down and up the slot (for more power) the way that Jim McLean and so many others recommend.

3/ Rotate your head back so that you can see your ball with your leading eye during your setup. Yes, Jack did this throughout his career. This allows you to rotate your shoulders a little more during your backswing and really forces you to keep your leading eye ball on the ball (even during your down swing).

4/ Try a takeaway waggle the way so many pros are adding motion before their swing (like Rickie Fowler, Mike Weir and Michelle Wi). When you make the Weir Waggle, just leave my head rotated slightly (the way Jack does) with your leading eye firmly focused on your ball. This is another way to hold your head rotation during your backswing (as described in #3).

5/ When you setup make sure that your trailing foot is rotated back to assist in your backswing rotation and rotate your leading foot 45 degrees forward to help you complete the finish of your swing. Flaring your feet make it easier to rotation back and then forward.

6/ Finish your follow-through with the butt of your shaft pointing outside of your target line. This will force you to avoid leaving the face of your club open at the point of impact. [You need to do this to avoid slicing your shots.]

All of these “cheats” will help with your body rotation. Don’t depend on your arms to power your swing. Power comes from shoulder and hip rotation in the backswing followed by hip and shoulder rotation as you downswing and follow-through. Practice with your GOLFSTR+ to help you generated rotation with a straight leading arm in your backswing and down to your point of impact. Buy one today at www.golfstr.com

Repeat of OUR MOST POPULAR Blog in 2018
Golf really is an easy game. If you play a very conservative game, avoid mishitting any shots and hit a maximum of 2 putts on every green, you can easily break 90 or even 80 on every round. The key is to hit consistent and controlled shots every time you swing. All you have to do is determine the limited power of your swing (60%, 70% or 80%) and limited backswing that will allow you to consistently hit every shot.

Of course you’d love to smash every drive and try to hit it 250+ yards. I noticed that the long ball driving champions often mishit all 8 of their shots because they are trying to kill the ball. Even in their case, the harder they swing the more inconsistent they get. So why not find your happy medium where you can hit 10 balls consistently for each of your clubs?

If you are NOT creating consistent hits, even with reduced swing power, you may not be impacting the ball with the correct ANGLE of impact FOR YOUR CLUB SHAFT. Pete, an instructor at Golf-Info-Guide by Thomas Golf gave us the following tip:

NOTE: I love this setup as it forces you to put a little more pressure on your leading foot and that in turn helps you to transfer your weight to your leading foot during your swing through impact. NO MORE FALLING BACKWARDS DURING YOUR SWING.

Setup with your iron handle pointing at your leading hip. This also help your keep your weight forward on your leading foot to finish in a perfect forward pose.

1/ For your higher angle irons like a pitching wedge, setup with the ball in the center of your stance and hold your club handle pointing forward toward your leading hip. That angle will allow you to impact the ball on a downward swing and then taking your divot. [If you setup with you club pointing at your nose, you may bottom the club out before you connect with the ball and end up with a fat hit.]

2/ For lower angled clubs and fairway woods you should setup with the ball progressively further forward of the center line between your feet and with the shaft still pointing at your leading hip. (This is very similar to the club angle created by Dustin Johnson during his takeaway using an early wrist cock.).

3/ For your driver, you should be setting up with the ball forward and in line with your leading heel and the shaft of you club pointing at your nose so that the shaft has a slight tilt away from vertical (away from your target). This allows you to bottom out your swing before you reach the ball on your elevated tee. The driver impacts your ball on the upswing to give you an elevated hit without taking any divot.

Don’t try to kill the ball. Creating a consistent swing speed to control your consistent hits is the most important step that you can make to improve your game. Of course you also want to practice with GOLFSTR+ for 6 swing fixes to improve every swing in your game. Buy one today at www.golfstr.com

Technology continues to change and that’s why the pros are hitting their shots longer and with more control. If you haven’t changed your clubs in the past 5 years, take the opportunity to tryout a new set of demo clubs from a number of different manufacturers. You will be surprised to find that the weight, shape and feel of different clubs will all give you new insights on your ability to improve your game.

Consider the Following Steps before your Change Your Clubs

Take a Private Swing Lesson
Don’t expect that a new set of golf clubs can solve your swing faults. Observations and recommendations from a PGA professional can steer you in a new direction with your swing problems. If you are changing your swing to fix one problem, you may be creating another problem. Very small changes in the position of your ball, the flair of your feet and your grip can create major problems or improvements in your swing. Start with a lesson and get back to the basics.

Changing Your Grips May be a Quick Fix
Changing your grips will give you a new feel for your existing clubs. A word of caution: There are 3 grip sizes (Regular, Midsize and Jumbo). Holding your clubs with “soft hands” is an important step to generating more power and distance so you would think that thicker grips could allow you to hold your club with a softer hold. I changed my driver grip to a Jumbo size to gain more distance with “soft hands”. I was told that Jumbo grips will cause me to fade my shots. (Changing to a stronger trailing hand grip was not a great solution for consistency.) The fitter was correct and I quickly changed back to a regular grip.

GOLF is wonderful when you are playing in “THE ZONE”. You control your game and it’s all in your mind to take control and lower your score.

The Good News about New Irons
The extra weight in the head of every new iron that you will try today will help you slow down your transition, help you hold your lag and give you more time to execute your weight shift from your trailing leg to your leading leg during your transition. Don’t rush the transition. USE LAZY HANDS to allow your hands to whip your club through impact. (Just listen to the whoosh at the bottom of every swing.)

At the practice range, you can feel the delay at the top and the whipping action of your club.

If you rush your swing during your round you will lose your weight transfer to your leading foot and you will lose that whooshing sound at your point of impact.

Tips
1/ Work with a Club Fitter
2/ Test out different shaft weights and flexes for your height and arm length.
3/ Compare your performance with new clubs to your existing clubs before you buy.

Feel the momentum of your club as you change direction at the top of your swing. (If you don’t feel it, you are swinging too fast.) Allow your weight to shift your leading foot, keep your left ear over the ball to bottom out your swing as your impact the ball and then graze the turf after the ball. Enjoy your new clubs and perfect your swing with GOLFSTR+. Buy one today at www.golfstr.com