Sixty Minutes of Quality Practice

At the course where I teach, a gentleman comes out to practice everyday at 3PM. He stands in the same spot and hits the same iron, to the same target for the same amount of time everyday. How much better is this golfer going to get? Not much, if you believe that everything you have done in golf up to this moment has led you to be the golfer you currently are. This golfer has always had the same practice routine and it has led him to be the player he currently is. If he wants to get better he must upgrade the input in order to upgrade the output (results).

Today I wanted to map out how you can make the best use of your already limited practice time. With the objective being scoring, I have focused our 60 minute session on driving, wedges and putting. Now, I understand that not everybody has 60 minutes to practice or a facility to practice where you can work on the shortgame or putting, but fitting the general ideas from this article into what you have available to you will start to move the needle in a positive direction. I am also assuming that you have stretched and warmed up prior to starting the clock...

First 20 Minutes - Technique and Driving

Spend the first 10 minutes working with a middle to short iron on any pertinent drills or feels you are trying to incorporate into your swing. You should be using an alignment aid and all shots should be directed towards one target.

The next 10 minutes should be spent hitting driver down various fairways you have created in your mind's eye (eg. between the red and blue flags). I recommend the 20 Ball Driver Drill where you try to hit as many balls as possible in play out of 20. Have a goal score in mind and try to write down what you score everytime you do this drill.

The Second 20 Minutes - Wedges and Shortgame

Spend the first 5 minutes in the sand. Take all your wedges and start with some shorter shots and work out to 30-40 yard shots. Make sure you even hit a few of those longer shots with your PW.

For the next 5 minutes I would practice chipping and bump and run type shots. Pour some balls out in close proximity to the green and starting with a 7 iron hit one shot to each of the holes on the green (4 or 5). Work this approach all the way through your most lofted wedge. The best part is that you have not hit the same shot twice - just like on the course.

In the final 10 minutes focus your attention on pitching. These shots could be from anywhere in the 20-90 yard range. As you hit these various shots do not hit the same shot more than twice in a row. Teach yourself to control the ball flight by changing clubs and rely on your feel more than anything. My favorite drill here is the Golf Ball Drill - it sounds strange, but all I do is hit a multitude of pitches to random golf balls lying out on the range. This way I am reacting to my target.

The Final 20 Minutes - Putting

You use the putter more than any other club in the bag and that's why it receives the most attention. I would like you to focus on two drills here - one that isolates shorter putts and another that encourages touch and feel.

The first drill is what I call the Jack Bauer Drill. Place tees 3 feet from the hole at N, S W and E and using three balls go around twice holing three putts from each point. You need to hole 24 (thus Jack Bauer!) consecutive putts in row. If this takes longer than 10 minutes quit and conquer it next time. Remember - practice is all about building confidence.

The second drill is called String and here you attempt to "string" together as many two putts from 40+ feet as possible. Compete with somebody if you can or simply try to establish your own personal best.

You can now head home knowing you have put in a solid hour of work on your game.

Additonal Resources:

Put purpose in your golf practice

Smart Golf: How to Practice

What I Learned in 2011

Around this time of the year I like to look back at the year and contemplate what I have learned as a teacher and coach that will make me better in the future. After much thought here is my list:

• Golfers too often lose sight of the fact that the game is all about scoring. It's not about style, or aesthetics, or form - it's about function. And scoring is function. If any golfer can go out and hit the ball the same as they always have and shoot five strokes lower they are very happy. No, this is not something new to me, but as I get older and hopefully wiser, I see way too many golfers who miss this point. They are searching for a swing, a technique, a "holy grail" that will upgrade their game. The answer lies in driving, wedging, putting and a hefty dose of hard work - period!
• Anybody can get better in twenty minutes. With the help of Trackman I have seen this time and time again. The challenge is taking "ownership" of the changes as this can only be done through practice. Through practice you get comfortable, you then begin to trust the changes, which in turn channel into confidence - the magic elixir of all sport.

• The driver works much better when it strikes the ball with an upward hit. If a golfer swings at 100mph and strikes the ball with a 5 degree downward hit, they will be 28 yards shorter than a golfer who hits the ball with the same swing, but a 5 degree upward hit! The launch angle goes up, the spin goes down and boom, you're not even swinging any harder.
• With an on plane swing, when the clubhead moves towards the ground the club path travels in to out and when it moves away from the ground it travels out to in. I know you're more than likely scratching your head over this one - watch the video and read the article and it'll make a ton more sense. This has been a game changer for me and I so wish I had knowledge of this information thirty years ago.
• Modern golf technology can do wonders for your game. From the latest drivers to launch monitors to pressure plates - there is new technology that can help you make real changes to almost any part of your game. Seek it out and take advantage...
• It is possible for every golfer to get longer - yes, I said every golfer. Even you! Most of the gains can be made simply by learning how to deliver the driver to the ball more efficiently. If you could learn what it takes to hit the ball 15 yards further (which is about my average for male golfers after a TrackMan session!) you have now made the golf course you play 200 yards shorter. Where do I sign up for that....?
• The weight transfer in the backswing is due to the swinging motion of the arms. There should be no conscious shift or lateral motion with the body. See the 84 degree secret...

Thanks for reading - I hope you have all learned at least something from my musings during 2011. If you remember one thing remember this: Nothing will ever take the place of hard work and heart - not talent, not finances, and certainly not coaching.

Oh, and if you haven't wrapped up your holiday shopping yet I have a smokin' deal for you. Buy one copy of It's All About Impact and I'll send you four - one for each member of your foursome.

I have big plans for upgrading the information and look of the site in 2012 so stick around and watch this space...

Hitting Up or Down? Here's How to Set Up

Correct Set Up for a Descending Hit

Shots struck off the ground need to be hit with a descending blow and shots struck off an elevated tee are better when hit with an upward blow - fact! While TrackMan stats for the PGA Tour may show that on average Tour players hit down on their driver (1.3 degrees), as mere mortal golfers, we need to make sure we are efficient and get the most distance we can out of the driver by hitting up on the ball.  If you need some more convincing how about this: Golfer A swings at 90mph and hits 5 degrees down on the ball (-5 attack angle). Their average well struck tee ball goes 234 yards. Now, golfer B swings at 90mph and hits 5 degrees up on the ball (+5 attack angle). Their average well struck tee shot travels 256 yards - a gain of 22 yards while swinging the same speed!  Ready to listen now....?

I have recently started noticing that many golfers actually set up to hit their irons in the same manner as their woods or vice versa. Ever wondered why so many of your playing partners are either good with the woods and not the irons or no good off the turf and solid with the driver?  The answer is, is that there are two different types of swings. One that suits shots hit off the ground or close proximity to it and a swing that suits the upward, efficient hit of a driver off a high tee.

The picture above is an excellent illustration of what I have been seeing.  Here, I have a student setting up to a driver and an iron. Notice any similarities? In case you're wondering the seven iron stance is on the right.  They look decidedly alike don't they? The good news is that this was taken at  the beginning of the lesson, she made the necessary changes and gained 14 yards with her driver while maintaining a solid descending impact with the irons.

It should stand to reason that if there are two swings then there should be two different set up positions.  Here are the important differences...

Setting up for shots off the ground:

• As in the picture at the top of the page the weight should be anywhere from a 50/50 split to favoring the front foot slightly
• Your head should be centered between the heels
• There should be very little spine tilt away from the target and as a result the shoulders will be fairly level

Setting up for shots off a high tee:

• As in the picture below the feet are fairly far apart and there should actually be a little more weight on the back foot than the front foot
• The ball is positioned inside the left heel and teed high
• The spine should be tilting away from the target a little as you prepare to "swing uphill" 

Set Up for an Upward Strike

The best teacher you have available to you to help with this is a mirror. You are now aware as to what it should look like, but you don't quite have the feel yet. Get in front of a mirror, set up so that it looks correct (your feel might have something else to say about it!) and take that with you to practice or play.

The Golf Swing - Right or Wrong?

In 2010 the player on the left, Jim Furyk won the Fedex Cup and the player on the right, Matt Kuchar won the PGA Tour money list. Can you tell which arm position at the top is correct or better?

My opinion is that both are correct and neither is better than the other. The swing methodology a player uses means very little in my honest opinion - it's all about what the golf club makes the ball do. Does it work or not? These guys only split $20 million in 2010 so there is nothing wrong with what either of them are doing! Don't get caught up in what the arms or the legs or body are doing unless there is a problem with the ball flight. The swing may be unique, but if it works, keep it.

If either of these players came to me for a lesson I would find footage of when they felt like they played their best and work them back towards that particular swing.

Don't get too caught up in what the text book says you should do - work towards whatever results in better golf shots for you.  If you feel that you know will win the Fedex Cup next year and would like to place an online bet, visit TopBet Sportsbook. The swing that does not work is wrong and the one that consistently works is correct - no matter what it may look like.

Can You Get Better in 20 Minutes?

I recently ran an interesting promotion where I offered golfers an opportunity to gain 10 yards if they participated in a twenty minute TrackMan session. The cost was $50 and if they didn't gain the yardage their session was free. This meant I had to be on my game and I had to make simple and effective upgrades to get paid...it's not often a golfer can take a lesson and only have to pay for the lesson if they see immediate results!

My reason for running the promotion was primarily to create interest and excitement in the new TrackMan unit and to give the Berkeley Hall membership a peek at what this technology can do for them.

I had eighteen golfers, eleven men and seven ladies sign up and I encouraged each of the participants to focus on the driver. In case a participant wanted to work with an iron I had them each bring their driver and a seven iron along.

When hitting the driver I try to get my students to have an attack angle of somewhere from 1 - 5 degrees up along with a club path of somewhere from 1 - 5 degrees from in to out.  I prefer that most golfers hit out and up on the ball creating a high launch, low spin trajectory with the driver. We all could benefit from a few extra yards, no?

Here is a compilation of points of interest from the day:

• The average swing speed for the men with the driver was 83.9mph. The top speed achieved was 96.1mph while the slowest was 70.1mph. Keep in mind that this event was promoted as a "distance" event and as a result the golfers who came out tended not be the longest of hitters.
• The average speed for the ladies with the driver was 65.6mph with the top speed being 73.4mph and the slowest being 60.3mph.
• Before any changes were made 11 out of the 18 golfers hit down on the ball at an average of 1.6 degrees with the driver.  After the changes had been made the same 11 golfers averaged 0.6 degrees up on the ball. Not bad...
• Before any changes were made 7 golfers (a surprisingly low number in my opinion!) hit from out to in at an average of 3.3 degrees with the big stick. This means that their club path was travelling 3.3 degrees left (for a right hander) of the target at impact. After adjusting, the same 7 golfers averaged 0.8 degrees from in to out - a very positive change.
• Prior to any changes 4 golfers hit too much (in my opinion) from in to out at an average of 6.6 degrees. After the changes they averaged 2.2 degrees in to out - a far more respectable number.
• Not every golfer gained yardage, although the majority did.  A few golfers actually lost some clubhead speed while they were working on the changes which were primarily in the address position.  It was interesting to note how some golfers adapted and changed easily while others had a tough time.
• The golfers with slower swing speeds tended to be more efficient, something I had already noted from the PGA Tour stat on Total Driving Efficiency and as a result it was quite difficult to get them make the "required" yardage gains. They were quite close to optimal already...
• Similarly, I found the ladies to generally be more efficient in transferring the energy they created to the ball than the men. I've also noticed that LPGA golfers also tend to be more efficient than their PGA Tour counterparts, particularly with the driver. The mantra seems to be "the more energy you create, the more likely you are to waste it!" It does not have to be that way though.
• Every golfer who attended the event improved in an important area regarding how they deliver the club to the back of the ball. Quite a few golfers did not gain 10 yards, but they all left feeling like they had the knowledge and feel they needed in order to realize longer tee shots.
• One lady had a fantastic golf swing with very efficient numbers, but, primarily due to her petite size, she was unable to generate much clubhead speed. She had an older, heavy driver with a 70 gram shaft and so I spent most of our time talking to her about what equipment (lighter = faster) suited her best and what exercises (Momentus woosh) she could do to increase her speed with the driver.  I'll be interested to see how she does with the new club.
• Almost all the participants commented that while the "numbers overload" from TrackMan was overwhelming at first, once we had isolated a particular problem (attack angle, club path, spin axis etc.) it seemed very simple. They were able to key in on one area and get a feel for how much change was required in order to reach their goal - all without much in the way of complicated, positional swing changes.
• The twenty minute time format worked well for the students and for me. They did not get overloaded with information and I had be concise and clear (for a change!) in what they needed to upgrade.

So, back to the question, "Can you get better in twenty minutes?" I would have to say an emphatic yes. With the right feedback mechanism, which TrackMan certainly is, and a simple approach, you can make fairly substantial changes in a short period of time. The important thing moving forward is that you practice the changes in order to gain a measure of comfort and confidence in them - and as we know, that takes more than twenty minutes.

Thanks for reading.

TrackMan at Berkeley Hall

Berkeley Hall and Andrew Rice Golf are proud to announce the acquisition of a TrackMan radar unit.  TrackMan is golf’s leading instructional analysis and club fitting application and offers golf professionals and their clients exciting and innovative solutions to game and equipment improvement.

Facilities that currently utilize a TrackMan include Baltusrol, Islesworth and Augusta National.  Touring professional owners include British Open Champion Darren Clarke, Lucas Glover, Martin Kaymer and Dustin Johnson.  While all of golf's greatest instructors consult TrackMan in their teaching - they include Butch Harmon, David Leadbetter, Jim McLean and Sean Foley.

 

Here's how you too can benefit from this technology:

 

Thursday October 20th will be TrackMan Day at Berkeley Hall.  Starting at 9AM Andrew will offer a "Gain Ten Yards or It's Free" promotion.  Each session will be 20 minutes and the cost is $50.  Bring a seven iron and a driver to your session to start seeing what this new technology can do for your game. Oh yes, and if you don't gain 10 yards with your driver the session is free...! Call Andrew at (843)247-4688 to reserve your spot.

 

Ever wondered how far you should hit your driver?  Each week on Tuesdays and Fridays from 12-2PM Andrew will be offering club fitting on the TrackMan.  Each fitting session will last approximately an hour and you will leave knowing your equipment is taylor-made for you and your needs.  Fitting are billed at the same rate as lessons. 

Of course TrackMan will also be utilized in all lessons.  If you would like to understand and "quantify" your shots like never before come out to Berkeley Hall and get together with Andrew.

 To learn more about TrackMan please either go to their website or read this earlier article from my website... 

Wouldn't you like to hit the driver 25 yards longer? Don't you want to get back to enjoying the game?  Call today and book yourself a session on TrackMan to discover why golf’s leading authorities and professionals all choose this leading technology for swing and ball flight analysis.

Function vs. Form

 When I first got into teaching golf I learned a particular method of swinging the club - I was very much a method teacher.  I believed there was an ideal pattern to be followed and all golfers would have been better if they could learn to swing the club and move their body in this manner.  At one point I even went so far as to say that in a few more years there would never be another "homemade" golf swing on the PGA Tour!  There was only one, ideal way to swing a golf club and I wanted every student I taught to get to this ideal.

That phase of my teaching career came to an abrupt end five years ago when I started a self-education project to study the swings of golf''s all time greats.  As I researched and broke down these championship swings the very first thing I found was that not a single one of them had a swing that was similar to another.  How could this be?  I had spent the first fifteen odd years of my career teaching golfers a certain swing method and in the space of  one month had figured out that no great golfer used the same method as any other great golfer.  What did that say for my, or any other, method?

Think of the foursome you play golf with most often - there could be a multitude of body types, age groups, and personalities in every group on the course.  And I, in all my brainwashed brilliance, had been trying to get every one of them to swing in the same fashion.

Little did I know that my self education project would turn my teaching upside down.  I now know that there are many ways to swing, yet very few ways to hit - and all the greatest golfers employ those same narrow parameters to hit repeatable, quality golf shots.  My research project actually culminated in the book "It's All About Impact".

Early in my career I attempted to achieve function or peak performance by improving the look and form of a golfers swing.  Can you imagine what I'd have done if Lee Trevino, Raymond Floyd, Nancy Lopez, Hubert Green or Jim Furyk had come to me for help early in their careers?  I'm thankful for their sake that they hadn't as you might never had heard their names.

In my teaching now, I work to get golfers to squeeze the most out of what their unique bodies, minds and experiences will allow.  It is all about function and very little about form.  I often say to a student, "If I could get your swing to look worse and have you shoot five strokes lower, we'd both be happy campers."  I will do whatever I need to do to get my student to get the club to do what they want the ball to do...regardless of how it looks.

We are all different physically, mentally, emotionally and experientially - how can we possibly swing a golf club with the same form?  The answer is - it cannot be done! Stop trying to swing like your favorite player and start learning how to hit like your favorite. Understand that you're different and unique and if you can deliver the appropriate set of physics (forces and angles) to the back of the ball with your swing - it will follow the desired trajectory to the desired location.  Isn't that what you're after?

I believe so strongly in providing my students with an understanding of what the "appropriate physics" at impact are that I have purchased a TrackMan unit.  TrackMan is the ultimate in functional teaching as it measures all the factors that lead to ball flight.  The radar unit tracks clubhead speed, swing plane, angle of attack, club path, face angle and dynamic loft all at the most important part of any golf swing - impact.  Now, as golfer, imagine being able to know which of the previously mentioned measurements are stumbling blocks for your golf game. Wouldn't it be great to know that you have to worry about nothing else other than the club path being too far from out to in? Or perhaps your attack angle is too far down and you need to feel like you sweep each iron off the ground?

My goal with any student is to change as little as possible and it often works that way, but sometimes we need to change quite a lot.  The objective is always the same - influence the club at impact in order to make the ball what we would like it to do.

If you come to me for a lesson you will not be taught a method of swinging a golf club, but you will be taught a method of hitting a golf ball.  None of my students will ever have golf swings that look similar, unless by accident, but many of them will hit shots that look and sound alike.  You will leave the lesson knowing what you need to do to hit better shots - and you will also leave hitting better shots.

TrackMan arrives in early October at Berkeley Hall.  Call Andrew at (843)247-4688 to book a lesson.

Better Shots - Out of the Rough

There seem to be so many different formulas when it comes to getting out of rough I thought I would share my philosophy in an attempt to simplify your approach.  It all really depends on the quality of the lie, because even in very long rough, it's still possible to get decent access to the back of the ball.

Here are a few examples:

In this situation the clubhead needs to get so far down into the thick grass that most of the velocity created in the swing will be dissipated.  The challenge here is not only getting the clubface on the ball, it is getting the ball over/through the grass in front of it.  I would always use a very lofted club here (9 iron max) and plan on getting the ball back in play.  Hit down more by moving the ball slightly back in your stance and thus steepening the angle of attack and do not be greedy here.

In this scenario the ball is perched on top of the longer grass and we're smiling.  Be careful though as this is a perfect lie for a flyer.  A flyer occurs when the grass does not slow the clubhead down through the hit and just enough of it gets caught between the ball and the face.  As this grass/matter fills the grooves at impact and gets trapped between the ball and the face, there is very little grip on the ball and as a result the ball launches closer to the dynamic/delivered loft (higher) and spins very little.  Ever heard of "high launch, low spin"? That's what we're looking for with our driver, but not with an 8 iron from 130 yards and explains why you airmailed the clubhouse from the 9th fairway last week.

With this type of lie also watch for hitting under the ball.  When it's perched on top of the grass like this try to view it as being on a high tee - an easy one to swing under!  Make your practice swings where you just brush the very top of grass and duplicate that during the actual shot.

This is a tough one - it doesn't look bad, yet the hard part is deciding which way it will come out.  It could be hot, yet it could also come out very soft and dead like the first example.  The best thing you can do here is take a few extra seconds to assess the lie and then commit fully to your decision.  Make the call and be committed.

When hitting out of very long grass (ankle/knee high) remember that the long blades of grass will get to the shaft and hosel first.  As they wrap around this lead part of the club it will slow down dramatically, causing the face to deloft and the toe of the club to close.  Notice how hard Phil Mickelson is working to keep the face from closing in the picture at the top of the page.  Having hit out of the fescue more than a few times at Atlantic Golf Club this summer I know this for a fact - take a lofted club, aim a little right, swing hard and don't ever be greedy.

Should you have had enough trouble getting out of the rough and you'd like to attend a sporting event or concert Click Here

Additional Resources: 

Hitting Out of the Rough | Golf Lesson | Golf Tips

Getting Out of the Rough | Golf Instruction & Help

Hitting the Golf Ball from Deep Rough

How Far Do You Hit It?

The PGA Tour has a new stat titled Total Driving Efficiency .  The stat measures how many yards each player is able to squeeze out of their driver clubhead speed- how much are they getting out of what they put in?  We should all be looking to be  as efficient as possible, particularly with the big stick.   The stat is quantified by how many yards per mile per hour of clubhead speed a golfer extracts from their driver and there is a minimum of 25 driver shots required.

The current leader is David Toms who works with noted instructor and Trackman user Brian Manzella.  Together they understand the ins and outs of what it takes to be as efficient as possible with the driver.  Brian says David's path and face are right around zero (which means straight at the target) with his attack angle being about 2-3 degrees up on the ball.  Read more here.  David's YTD averages are:

• Ball Speed - 159mph
• Launch Angle 12.6 degrees
• Spin Rate 2300rpm
• Carry 260 yards

Keep in mind that the new stat is an average and thus includes balls hit on firm and soft fairways, into and down wind, and of course good ones and less than stellar ones.  The numbers below indicate the best (Toms), middle of the pack (Scott) and bottom (Driscoll).  As you view the distance they would hit the ball at various clubhead speeds keep in mind that some players prefer to not be optimal.  In other words, some players just prefer to hit a higher spin cut shot out there as they know it'll stay in play.  Also keep in mind that most of the golfers who do well in this stat tend to swing the driver at less than 110 mph - they need to be efficient to keep up!  The vast majority of us need to do the same. Read THIS to learn how to be more efficient with your driver.  If you know what your clubhead speed this is where your average tee shot would end up. If you are similar to Toms' number keep it up, if you are in the Driscoll category we need to talk...

David Toms (best)

• 100 mph - 269 yards
• 95 mph - 256 yards
• 90 mph - 242 yards
• 85 mph - 229 yards
• 80 mph - 215 yards
• 75 mph - 202 yards

Adam Scott (average)

• 100 mph - 258 yards
• 95 mph - 245 yards
• 90 mph - 232 yards
• 85 mph - 219 yards
• 80 mph - 206 yards
• 75 mph - 194 yards

James Driscoll (worst)

James Driscoll

• 100 mph - 244 yards
• 95 mph - 231 yards
• 90 mph - 219 yards
• 85 mph - 207 yards
• 80 mph - 195 yards
• 75 mph - 183 yards

Where do you fall?

It would be interesting to see what would happen to James Driscoll's efficiency if he spent an off season working on getting more out of his driver...

The Driver and Accuracy (Part 2)

We all want to hit the ball straight and far of the tee don't we? In more technical terms our goals with the driver are to achieve the highest ball speed possible (distance), along with the desired flight pattern (accuracy). We want cake and we want to eat it too!  Here's a run down on what club manufacturers have been working on to help us keep the ball in the fairway...

The primary factors directed towards accuracy are bulge and gear effect, center of gravity placement, adjustable heads or weights, a preset face angle and the clubhead design.

• The most interesting element built into each driver that serves to increase accuracy is the one two punch of bulge and horizontal gear effect.  The face of every driver (all clubs requiring a headcover for that matter) has roll and bulge while irons do not.  Bulge is the curvature of the face from its heel to its toe, while roll is the curvature of the face from the crown to the sole.  Bulge starts the ball farther to the right on toe shots and farther to the left on heel shots and is a correction for the clubhead’s center of gravity (CoG) that causes hooking or slicing (gear effect) on off center shots. In other words, manufacturers have built bulge into the face to counter the negative results of gear effect.  Here is an explanation (BTW Irons do display gear effect just far less than drivers):

Here's a definition of gear effect from Dave Tutelman (who has an excellent site for the scientist golfers out there):

Gear effect causes a ball to  have sidespin which is the result of an off-center hit with a club whose center of gravity is well back from the clubface.

Without an off center hit and a CoG that is well behind the face gear effect cannot happen.  In the picture above, we have a toe impact with an iron and a driver.  The center of gravity (CoG) is indicated by the black and white circle.  The collision between the clubface and the ball on the toe creates a torque that causes the club to twist - the club twists around the clubs' CoG which is indicated by the red arrow.

The CoG on the iron is virtually on the face and this type of strike causes the face to rotate open.  This invariably causes the ball to fly weakly to the right as there is no gear effect on the spin imparted on the ball.

The driver is very different.  With the CoG being further back from the face a toe impact causes the entire face to rotate around the CoG.  As the ball compresses and grips on the face the red arrow causes the ball to actually rotate to the left (blue arrow) - the ball and the face actually work like two gears!  Thus the term gear effect.  And the reason why a toe hit with a driver tends to hook and a a heel hit tends to fade.  Bulge helps out by launching a toe hit to the right of the target - a good thing if the ball has draw spin.

• The design and shape of the clubhead is something that we have seen much tinkering with in recent years.  From the triangular Titleist 907 D1 (how could you forget that!) to the onslaught of ugly square heads - these designs all strive to do one thing - re-position the CoG to stabilize the head during off center hits.  The longer (from face to back) the clubhead is, the further back the center of gravity is from the face which also increases gear effect.  If you can deal with the aesthetics of these scientifically upgraded clubs by all means have at it.
• Another modern trend that has been proven to straighten wayward tee balls is the advent of adjustable weights or screws on the clubhead.  Originally introduced by TaylorMade in their R7 line, tests have shown that the higher the swing speed the more a golfer is able to curve a ball by changing the weights in the clubhead.  A golfer with a swing speed of 115mph (PGATour average is 112mph) will experience 35 yards of curve while a golfer with an average type speed of 85 mph will only experience 6 yards of corrective curve.
• Along similar lines are the adjustable heads where the shaft rotates in order to adjust the loft or lie. While changing the loft will not do much to improve your accuracy, altering the lie angle can help you make subtle changes.  Moving the shaft to a more upright position will promote a draw, while flattening will promote a fade.
• There is also the preset face angle. For those golfers out there who struggle with slicing this has been a tremendous help.  If you feel like you could benefit from this just look for on offset driver or one that says draw somewhere on the head.

There are also rumors that there are certain shafts (Nunchuk) that make the ball go straighter, but I have not read anything or seen any convincing evidence to support this.

Thanks for reading and I hope that now you have a better understanding of what your driver can do for you....

Getting More Out of Your Driver

I know that in the past I have made it known that it is okay to hit down on the ball with the driver.  This was primarily due to the fact that the PGA Tour average for attack angle (hitting up or down) was 1.3 degrees down.  I have since come to learn that the vast majority of us could greatly benefit from an upward strike with the big stick.

Research has shown that the most efficient way to strike the driver is to impact the ball from the inside and with an upward/ascending direction (the clubhead must travelling away from the ground).  This encourages a higher trajectory, reduces spin and leads to more roll once the ball comes back to earth. Ever heard of high launch, low spin? How can you incorporate these two important keys into your tee shots?

Let's start at address:  In order to move your swing plane to facilitate an in-to-out path drop your back foot and shoulder inside the target line - basically set up with a slightly closed stance. 

Face On Set Up

 Tee the ball high and make sure it is not too far back in your stance.  You should have a sense that you are behind the ball and are preparing to "swing uphill" as you get set.

 In the swing you will need to feel that you are staying behind the ball with your upper body as you aggressively drive the hips and weight over onto the front foot.  This is where the "uphill" sense comes from - as the hips drive the head stays back you create the body motion that allows for the clubhead to move up into the hit. I like to refer to this as body curve.

Believe it or not when you hit 5 degrees from the inside, coupled with 5 degrees up on the ball the clubhead is travelling straight at the target at impact (assuming you aligned correctly of course)!  A fantastic recipe for long and efficient tee shots.

If you cannot seem to get the sense or feel for hitting up on the ball it could well be that your are working your body incorrectly through impact.  It is very common for golfers with tight hips or general flexibility problems to overuse the upper body and try to muscle the hit with their arms.  This will always result in a downward, spinny strike on the ball.  You may also need to consult with a golf specific fitness trainer to help you become more physically able to get your body into the correct position.

Remember - this can be overdone! We are only looking for the clubhead to be moving a few degrees from the inside and a few degrees up so take it easy and go slowly.  I have had startling results this summer just by getting golfers to execute these two simple keys with the driver.  One golfer actually gained over 50 yards! I'm sure we could all benefit from a few extra yards....not to mention 50!

Understanding Swing Plane and Club Path

There are important differences that occur at impact when a golfer hits either down or up on the ball (attack angle).  I have always espoused that golfers hit down on all clubs, the driver included, but my research with Trackman has convinced me otherwise.  The ball should be struck with a subtle downward blow with all shots off the ground (irons, hybrids and fairways), but the driver should ideally be hit with an upward strike for optimal trajectory and spin patterns.  I will attempt to explain the differences in the direction the clubhead travels (relative to the target line) as it moves both down, and up, into the ball.

Firstly, it is important to understand the difference between swing plane (also referred to as swing direction) and club path, because too many golfers believe they are one and the same.  Let's view swing plane as the hula hoop in the pictures below - it is the angle upon which the arc of the swing travels.  Club path is the direction the clubhead is travelling in, relative to the target line, at the moment of impact.

Hitting down on the Ball:

PGA Tour golfers hit down on a 7 iron with an average attack angle of slightly more than 4 degrees.  You should be able to tell to what degree you hit down on the ball simply by analyzing your divots - too much dirt being moved and you're more than likely 8 degrees down, no divots would mean a flat or neutral attack angle.

When a golfer hits down on the ball with a neutral swing plane (straight at the target) notice how the pencil (used to illustrate club path) points right of the target. The table's edge indicates the target line.

Hitting down...

Down with a neutral plane...

This means that with a straight plane/swing direction, when the clubhead travels down, it is also travelling from in to out relative to the target line.

Left swing plane for neutral path...

In order to neutralize the club path, the swing plane must actually be rotated to the left.  Thus, with a descending attack angle, in order to create a straight club path, the swing plane must be rotated to the left of the target line (for right handers).

Hitting up on the Ball:

Better drivers of the ball tend to hit up on the ball - anywhere from 1-5 degrees up.  This reduces the amount of spin on the ball and increases the launch angle - thus increasing both carry and roll distance.

When a golfer hits up on the ball with a neutral swing plane (straight at the target) notice how the pencil (club path) points left of the target. 

In this example, with a straight plane/swing direction, when the clubhead travels upward, it is also travelling from out to in relative to the target line. 

This out to in path can be neutralized by rotating the swing plane/direction to the right (for right handers).  Notice how the pencil (club path) is now straight.

So if somebody ever asks you if the swing with the driver and the irons is the same, just smile and say, "No, not really!"

Any thoughts?  Questions....

The Best Swings in Golf

In my opinion these are the five best active swings in the game today:

Charl Schwartzel

Rory McIroy

Jason Day

Gary Woodland

Martin Kaymer

Any thoughts? Anyone out there better than these five?

I would have to say that honorable mention goes to Luke Donald, Ernie Els, Louis Oosthuizen, and Jhonattan Vegas.

No More Slicing!

If you are like the vast majority of golfers and you tend towards slicing or "power fading" the golf ball and I told you that with one simple change you could straighten out your shots and get a fair bit longer at the same time it would sound too good to be true wouldn't it? The great news is that it IS true.

If your shots are constantly fading or slicing then your clubface must be aiding in getting the ball to curve this way.  The most important factor in determining the clubface angle is the grip and if you're a slicer/fader then there is a very good chance your grip is weak - no matter how it "feels"!  A weak grip leads to active/flippy hands  through the hit and this takes away from a golfers ability to trap or compress the golf ball. You know the feel and sound when you hit one just right....that's what we're after!

As you grip the club in your normal fashion rotate the face down/closed from vertical 30 degrees and then set up to the ball. Keep in mind that 30 degrees is equivalent to one hour on a clock so don't over do this.  Be sure that all you have changed is the club position.  Now the face will feel very closed at address, and you need to work towards getting (and keeping) the face square at address without altering your grip.

 

Essentially you are making a grip change as you move from a weak position to a stronger one. After a little practice you should start to feel that you can at least keep the ball straight and if all is going well you might even notice a little extra distance.  The biggest challenge you face as you execute this drill is to overcome the sense of discomfort in the hands and arms at address. Relax, hang on and know that discomfort at this point is a good thing - a positive change is occuring.

 

Additional Resources:

 

Golf Tips - Slice No More

No More Slice for Dummies - EyeLine Golf

How to Hit it Longer Than Ever

Here are a few clues - do not swing harder or get a new driver or change your shafts!  Although all of those ideas might help, the best, and simplest, way to hit longer shots is to strike the ball better.  Plain and simple!

Here is the heads up from Trackman, the premier radar technology for swing and ball flight analysis:

Generally speaking, to maximize ball speed (which translates directly into distance) it is more important to improve centerdness of impact than to increase club speed.  An off-center impact is less efficient in transferring energy from the club to the ball, thus some of the power of the club speed is lost, resulting in a lower initial ball speed and consequently less carry distance.

While increasing the velocity of the clubhead would increase distance, I'm sure we are all well aware what happens when we swing harder - perhaps increased speed, but far less control and very often a less centered hit.  This is where smash factor comes in.  Smash factor is a measurement where the ball speed is divided by the clubhead speed and essentially is the efficiency of the hit - how well was the energy of the swing transferred into the golf ball to make it go.  The more centered, or solid, the hit, the further it will go.  And, being aware that most of us do not have the ability to measure the smash factor of our shots it is important to be aware that if you want to hit it longer (and I've only ever met one person who didn't!) the direction one should take should be in search of a better hit and not necessarily a faster clubhead.

A few good drills and articles to improve the quality of your ball striking:

Impact Drill: How to Stop Scooping | Andrew Rice Golf

Hip Slide: Good or Bad? | Andrew Rice Golf

Hands Forward at Impact | Andrew Rice Golf

The moral of the story - focus on hitting it better and you'll hit it longer.  Now get to work.......

This Matters in the Golf Swing....

Please watch the following - it will change how you attempt to improve....

Any thoughts or ideas? Am I just plain crazy?

How To Stop Chunking the Ball!

One of the most demoralizing, confidence sapping shots a golfer can hit is the dreaded chunk! Or fat! Or heavy shot! Whatever name it goes by, this unfortunate experience will deplete any measure of confidence you might have had. I have had quite a few of you come to me and ask for an article addressing this so here it is. While I have used pictures referring to pitching please know that all of the points mentioned below apply wholly to the full swing as well.

 I find that while there are many reasons as to why a golfer might be contacting the ground before the club gets to the ball the following four points are certainly the lead candidates....

Here the weight tends to get too far back in the backswing due to either lateral slide or sway in the upper body or just simply setting up with the weight too far back. As a result there is no time to get it forward by the time impact occurs and the club bottoms out before it gets to the ball.

• An excellent drill to aid with this tendency is to practice the towel drill. It involves folding a towel and laying it on the ground 10-12 inches behind the ball. The towel encourages the weight to stay more centered at address and in the backswing, thus shifting the low point of the swing up to a few inches in front of the ball - which means ball first, divot second!

 In this situation the ball is simply placed too far forward in the stance. The more forward the ball is the more difficult it is get your weight in front - notice I said weight and not head - of the ball. If your stance tends to get too open then you very well could have the ball too far forward. In order to strike the ball first here you would need to really slide the upper body forward.

• A good check point to make sure you're not doing this is to simply start your address by placing your feet together with the ball centered between them (as pictured). Now take a step with either foot and match the size of the step with the other foot - the ball is now in the correct position and you are fully capable of striking it before the ground.

In this example the ball position is good, the body pivots back correctly, but there is simply no unwind through the hit. The chest turns back and away from the target, but never gets around to it on the way through impact. As a result the onus of squaring the face is placed on the hand action (flipping) and any lag is lost. The hands early release and throw the clubhead into the ball at impact, often sticking the clubhead into the ground.

• A feel to get that body moving is to make sure the chest clears aggressively through impact. David Leadbetter always said that an active body leads to passive hands and this is what you're after. Keep the body unwinding through the hit and you'll start to maintain your lag and compress the ball. 

Here the club approaches the ball too far from the inside - it is under the plane. This very often occurs due to a backswing that takes the arms and club too far to the inside. Due to the fact that the club is under plane, the tendency is for the hit to be too shallow. The club will often brush the turf before contact and create havoc with the clubface and your timing.

• An excellent drill (see picture) to improve not only your ball striking, but also your directional control is to make use of an alignment rod that is pegged in the ground at the same angle as the shaft at address. The rod should be 2 feet outside your back foot and just under the shaft at address. Now make swings (slowly at first!) to get a sense for what you need to do to get the club on plane and really start striking the ball beautifully. 

Additional resources:

How can I stop hitting fat golf shots with my irons? | The Golf Nut

Golf Swing Tips - A simple swing thought to stop hitting it fat 

How can I stop chunking with my irons??? - Toronto Golf Nuts ...

Chunking approach iron shots - TheSandTrap.com Community

Using the Web to Improve Your Golf

The web is the largest library on golf we have ever had available to us. It can be a tremendous resource as long as you either know where to look. Let's be frank, not all golf instruction or advice is what it should be. You can only benefit from certain advice if it is grounded in sound fundamentals. For example you would not want to copy this guys pre-shot routine.....

......I don't think anybody would, but it was worth a laugh! The web is also chock full of golf entertainment. Whether it be the latest news, what type of grip Tiger just installed on his new driver, or just something funny like the swings above, here are a few suggestions:

For Golf Instruction:

There is way too much information out there to comprehend, but after a little research you'll figure out whose style you like. (Hopefully you like what you see here!)

 Shawn Clement on YouTube

Jeff Ritter on YouTube

Brian Manzella on YouTube

Lynn Blake on YouTube

John Graham's Blog

For Information and Community:

If you want to stay in touch with anything and everything that is happening in the world of golf, then you must become a regular at one of these sites....

Geoff Shackelford

Secret in the Dirt

The Sand Trap

Golf WRX

Fitness for Golf:

Yes, believe it or not you too could benefit from some of the information here....

Mike Pedersen Golf

Titleist Performance Institute

Golf Equipment:

You junkies are out there - everyday, wherever you might be - checking out all the latest from Japan or the winner's bag. Of course if you're doing that you more than likely know better than me where to look online....

Golf to Impress

The Shop Blog

Golf's Greatest Blogs:

These are the pros and they cover everything from news and tours, to players and equipment.

Hooked on Golf

The Waggle Room

Wei Under Par

I know you'll find something you like out there. Stay patient and keep looking. Please let me know of a tremendous "golf" site and I'll happily add it to my recommendations here.

Maintain Body Angles for Consistency

Have you ever struggled with shots that just don't seem to go where they should? The ball always seems to leak right or hook left. Today's post strives to get at the root cause of why your golf swing is so reliant on timing.

One of the more frequent mistakes I see golfers make is to stand up or lose their body angles through impact - the "stand and deliver" move! The loss of body angles or posture causes the body to stop rotating and as a result the hands now assume the responsibility of squaring the clubface. Remember - if the body does not rotate to clubface square, then the hands will help out. This move is very difficult to time, especially under pressure, and often leads to the hands overworking or flipping through impact. If the hands rotate the clubface too early the shot misses left and if they're a touch late, then the shot misses right.

Consistently straight shots are achievable only when the clubface is being squared via the rotation of the body through impact.

An indicator that you are losing your body angles through impact is that your divots (if you are even taking any) are always deeper on the outside than the inside. They are toe deep. (A big reason why an "active" fitting is not always the best way to go!)

A good method to ensure that the body continues it's rotation through the hit is to work on maintaining your posture or spine angle that is established at address. Hit little pitch type shots with an eight iron trying to feel that your torso stays down over the ball while clearing through the strike. A good feel is to try and sense that the hands are low through impact - they should feel like they are actually lower at impact than they were at address. You may even have the sense that the toe of the club is higher at impact than the heel. Try this DRILL

This is something that all of golf's greatest ball strikers have in common - Nick Price, Lee Trevino and Ben Hogan all did a fantastic job of maintaining their posture through impact. This allowed them to take the hands, and timing, out of the equation - a recipe for consistently good golf shots.

Body Angles | Andrew Rice Golf

Ever Considered an Online Lesson?

With technology being what it is today it is very easy to stay in touch with a golf instructor that might be half way around the world. Most smartphones incorporate a video recording feature and some of the better footage of golf swings I have received have been emailed to me straight from a students' smartphone.

There are four simple steps required to have an online golf lesson with Andrew. Here's how:

1. Create a Video of Your Swing

2. Upload the Video for Sharing/Viewing

3. Pay for your Lesson via PayPal

4. Email me the Link to your Video for Analysis

Once all four steps are completed Andrew will let you know when your video has been evaluated. If you choose to have a phone consultation along with a video lesson Andrew will coordinate with you once the video lesson has been analyzed.

Online Lesson Pricing

Video analysis only – $50 Video analysis with 15 minute phone consultation – $80

Follow these steps to get the ball rolling:

• Create A Video of Your Swing

Capture one swing from face on and another swing from down the line. Take care when recording your swing to ensure the best results for your online lesson. Use a tripod, or a friend with a very steady hand as a moving camera leads to moving reference lines in the analysis. Camera positioning is also important. The face on shot should be at 90 degrees to the target line and the down the line shot should place the ball between the target and the camera lens ie. shoot straight over the ball toward the target.

• Upload Your Swing Video for Viewing

We have two ways you can upload videos to us, YouTube and V1 Software. Don't be intimidated, dive in - it's far easier than you might imagine!Here are instructions for both methods:

YouTube

A good way to publish your swing video for an online lesson is to upload it to YouTube. During the upload process, you can  select Public or Private for your video. Selecting Private will restrict viewing only to those that have the link.

You will need a YouTube account, so if you don’t already have one you will need to create one, which is a simple process and free of charge.

Here are the instructions from YouTube on uploading video. As you might imagine, there is also an instructional video on uploading to YouTube.

Once you have uploaded the video, check that it has been successful by clicking the link provided and watching the video.

V1 Golf Software

For use and upload with a PC you will need V1 Home 2.0 which is available free of charge HERE. Upload directions are included with your free download.

For use and upload with an iPhone, iPad, iTouch or Android phones purchase the app HERE. V1 Golf actually has the #1 sports analysis app in the world at the moment.

• Payment via Paypal

We  only take payment via PayPal. If you do not have a PayPal account go to www.PayPal.com and set one up. It is very easy and makes online payment for anything so much easier. Payment should be made to andrew (at) andrewricegolf.com

• Contact Us with Your Lesson Request

Once your swing is uploaded uploaded, send us the link to the video along with your request for an online lesson and we'll get cracking.

Please also be sure to indicate your selection of video analysis or video analysis with phone consultation. Current turnaround for online lessons is 48-72 hours.

Should you have any questions about receiving an online lesson please shoot me a note to andrew (at) andrewricegolf.com and I'd be happy to to help.