Pitching Help

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When it comes to the shortgame it is vital that the golfer strikes the ball and the ground on every shot - and preferably in that order! Golfers run into trouble when the club contacts the ground before the ball, particularly with a closing clubface as the leading edge will dig into the turf. There is no quicker way to deplete confidence than to start  alternating between bladed and heavy pitch shots.

A helpful drill is to practice hitting 40-60 yard pitch shots with an 8-iron. Try to get the ball up in the air, with a slight cut action and have it land softly. This will give you the sense of keeping the face open and using the bounce of the club correctly. It will also prevent the wrists from being overly active. A feeling to key in on is the sense of swinging to the inside after impact (as pictured below). Be sure to keep the face open or looking up while the club tracks to the inside as this will prevent the leading edge from digging.  This is rapidly becoming one of my favorite drills!

Golf Grip Guidelines

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Here is an excellent method to ensure that your grip stays in the fingers and favors the strong end of the spectrum.

Remember - a strong "ish" grip helps the handle get in front of the clubhead at impact and encourages all golfers to keep their hands passive through impact.

Have a friend draw a "channel" on your glove diagonally across the base of the fingers (as illustrated left). Be sure that the guidelines are not too high up in the palm - if this is the case the wrists will have a hard time setting the club and the grip will always look weak.

When gripping the club be sure to position the handle along the lower of the two guidelines - this will make sure that the handle does not sneak up into the palm.

Be sure that once your glove hand is positioned on the club you can see at least two knuckles and the V formed between the thumb and the index finger is pointing to the trailing shoulder.

As we saw with Louis Oosthuizen and his glove - you can draw or write whatever you want on any part of your equipment, in any color too!

For additional information on the grip:

Bunkers: The Buried Lie

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 View the HD video lesson HERE

I often talk to golfers I teach about how they play the buried lie out of a sand trap and more often than not they say they used the closed face method to get the club to dig the ball up and out onto the green. This method works fine if you don't have much of a lip or plenty of green to work with, but how do you handle this situation if you have a short sided pin or high lip to clear?

Here is a great method I got from Lee Trevino:

  • At address the weight should be well onto the front foot
  • The ball should be in the center of the stance or slightly back
  • The hands should be forward of the ball and very low
  • The idea is to get the "V" formed between the hosel and the sole of the club to delve down into the sand and lift it up and out of the sand

  •  Notice how the clubface remains open so as to impart some height and softness to the shot
  • The hands need to be very low  at address to get the toe up in the air and the "V" exposed to the entry point
  • The swing is steep with a sharp downward attack into the sand
  • There is no need to overpower this shot as, when executed correctly, the ball should pop out with some height and softness.
  • There should be very little follow through

Notice how low the hands need to be here

View the HD video HERE

Additional information on Buried Lies:

Tom Watson: Buried Lies: Pick The Right Club: Golf Digest

Video Golf Tip | Buried Lies in Greenside Bunkers

Golf Tips for a semi-buried lie - Rod Lidenberg PGA

Free Golf Lesson - How to Play from Various Bunker Lies

Impact Drill

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Here is another great drill to help any golfer gain a better perspective of what impact should feel like.

  • Drape a towel (large or small) around the hosel of any iron.
  • With the clubhead resting on the ground as pictured above drag the towel along the ground toward the target.

This drill can be done with or without a towel (pictured below) and will give you the sense of leading with the handle into the impact zone.

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Notice the flex and pressure in the shaft as I am pressing down while dragging the handle into the hit.  Give it a try - I did, and I think it can help you too.

Thanks to my fellow instructor Mark Costaregni at Atlantic Golf Club for turning me onto this drill and Joe Connery for his camera expertise.

View the HD video of this drill HERE

Using the Long Putter

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Over the last decade the long putter has become accepted as a viable option for golfers that have woes on the greens.  I used the long putter for the 6 or 7 year period that I played professionally and it essentially enabled me to have a career in golf. I liked it for the fact that it stopped me from twitching through impact, but also because there were two distinct methods that I could use with the broomstick.
The first option is known as the piston method and is the one I tended to prefer:
  • Form a circle around the grip cap with your thumb and index finger with the left hand (if you are a righty).
  • Do not wrap your other fingers on the left hand around the grip as you want the shaft to be able to pivot from a fixed axis.
  • Hold the club in the right hand in one of the methods illustrated below.
  • Keeping the shoulders out of the stroke - stroke the putt by "pistoning" the right arms back and forth.

With this stroke the only part of the body moving should be the right arm. Berhard Langer has used this method very effectively over the years.

The second method is a stroke based on connection and using everything as a unit. Here the shoulders and arms all work together to get the ball rolling.

  • Place your left thumb on top of the grip cap and wrap all the fingers comfortably around the shaft.
  • Once the putter is anchored in your sternum pivot the shoulders back and through.
  • Make sure the arms are linked to your side or at least stay in place relative to the shoulders during the stroke to ensure a "one piece" motion.
The following pictures are various versions of how to hold the club in your bottom hand. Whichever one feels best to you should be the one to get the job done.

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Additonal articles and sites for using the long putter:

thelongputter.com

How To Use Long Putters by Jack Moorehouse

Putter Length - Comparing Conventional, Belly and Long Putters

How to Use the Long Putters | Golf Digest

The Proper Putting Grip and Set-Up

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I see far too many golfers that set-up poorly to their putters. This is something that is quite easy to improve and in this article I will isolate a few important keys to help you improve your set-up when putting and ultimately reduce the numbers of putts you take on the golf course. Remember that a good stroke is first built by having a solid setup. Putting priorities:

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Hip Slide: Good or Bad?

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The hip slide, weight shift, hip drive or whatever you want to call it is one of the most important, yet overlooked elements in the golf swing. Golfers have become so brainwashed against any form of lateral movement that I believe the vast majority of us are trying to stay as quiet and centered as we possibly can. Here are a few interesting points about hip action:

The downswing does not mirror the backswing. There should be no lateral hip motion in the back swing, while the downswing must have a good measure of shift towards the target. The weight shift to the front foot is entirely attributable to the hips gliding towards the target in the downswing. The head and upper body must remain over or slightly behind the ball as the hips shift, thus creating body curve. Hip slide creates the room necessary in the downswing for the arms and club to drop to the inside. Too much spin or rotation from the top and you can only come over the top. Not only does the hip slide create room for the arms to get to the inside, but it also positions the weight so that the ball can be struck with a descending blow. The weight must be on the front foot for any golfer to consistently hit down on the ball. This video from my

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Golf Instruction News

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The Berkeley Hall Learning Center has just been completely upgraded! We have just had all our computers upgraded with the latest software from V1 Golf. Students will now be able to view a summary from their golf lesson online in their own V1 locker or on their smartphone. Students will even have the ability to upload their lessons onto Facebook for all their friends and family to see. The changes at the Learning Center include an expansion of our indoor putting capabilities, two Casio EX-F1 Exlim 300 frame per second cameras (for amazing high speed footage of a golf swing!) and the ability to view your golf swing on a 50" HD screen. Casio EX-F1 Exlim Camera

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Playing Golf in the Wind

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One of the biggest mistakes golfers make when playing in the wind is to make full swings. It almost seems as if they try to overpower the wind - that cannot happen! This is a perfect example: A golfer faces a 120 yard shot that is into the wind; they calculate the shot to be playing approximately 130 yards; they pull their 130 yard club and make a full swing; the ball comes down 25 yards short of the pin. The reason this happens is that the harder you strike the ball the more it spins and spin creates turbulence, which leads to lift, which leads to height, which leads to soemthing far less than the expected distance.

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A Highlight from the 2010 PGA Show in Orlando

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I have just returned from the PGA Golf Show and came back with a very positive vibe. While it is always good to catch up with friends, old and new I feel that the game of golf is doing just fine even without Tiger. Here are a few notes on what I found to be the highlight of my trip:

Even though this is their second year at the show I found Swing Catalyst Studio to be the most exciting and positive piece of technology involving golf instruction. Last year I reported on the Swingia Balance Plate, but the Swing Catalyst takes the same idea to a new level.

The Swing Catalyst Force Plate seamlessly integrates with video analysis software and an optional launch monitor (TrackMan). The force plate is housed in a tee unit covered with artificial turf.

The Swing Catalyst Force Plate enables the teacher to view a student’s centre of gravity, stance and pressure distribution both live and recorded, in real time and in slow motion. Additional data on rotational force, tempo and rhythm are also available once the swing has been captured.

The best feature shows what percentage of a golfers' weight is on each foot. Many systems have this option, but none go so far as to indicate what part of the foot the weight is located on.

When integrated with a TrackMan system and 300 fps cameras, Swing Catalyst provides the optimal in instructional tools - an upper level viewing experience, all the numbers pertaining to the club and ball flight and now all the numbers pertaining to the body, force and weight positioning.

With integration this really is the Rolls Royce system available on the market today.

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Staying Centered over the Ball

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This is one of the most integral elements of the golf swing - the upper body must stay centered over the ball. By doing so, you will increase your ability to get that weight on the front foot at impact and deliver a downward, compressing blow to the back of the ball.

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Distance: How to get more of it!

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There are three factors that go into making a quality golf shot; the distance the ball travels, the accuracy of the ball flight and the quality of the strike on the ball. Very often golfers are striking the ball well enough and hitting it straight enough, yet there is a definite lack of distance. In this case there is a need for speed. Jamie Sadlowski is the current World Long Drive Champion. He weighs in at 165 pounds and his longest drive in competition is 419 yards. He generates 140 mph of clubhead speed which equates to almost 200 mph of ball speed! I believe that hitting the golf ball further has very little to do with strength and everything to do with speed - and Jamie is certainly testament to that.

When running backs in the NFL train, they are often hooked up to wind resistance chutes behind them. They then run as hard as they can in an effort to overcome the wind resistance. This exercise gets them to run "stronger" but not necessarily faster. Sprinters on the other hand are hooked up to a device on the track that actually tows them down the track at a faster rate than they are accustomed to, thus getting their limbs to move faster than they are used to. This is the formula we need to apply to golfers who are in search of a few extra yards - and we all could do with that!

Try this drill consistently over the course of a month:

During each practice session count out 12 balls (and only 12

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What is Bounce?

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Think of the bounce on wedge as an insurance policy against digging the leading edge of the golf club into the ground. It is very important for any golfer to not only understand what the bounce is, but how to use it to their advantage. An excellent exercise to do every now and then is to hit a few pitch shots off of a lie board. This is a flat plexiglass board that most club fitters use in determining the correct lie angle a golfers irons should be set at. If you do not have access to a lie board, use a piece of plywood painted black. Just be sure to not hit any shots where the ball is too close to the edge of the board.

What you should see...If the markings on the sole of the club are as pictured above you are using the club correctly. Should they be closer to the leading edge you might be in danger of sticking the club into the ground on your next chip of pitch. The most important aspect of using the bounce correctly is addressing the ball correctly. Take a look:

The Set Up for a Chip or PitchIn the above image you will see the ball positioned in the center (watch out for too far back as it reduces the bounce at impact and makes it easier to do some gardening); the feet are fairly close together; and the hands and weight are just slightly in front of the ball, with emphasis on slightly.

As you go through the motion of striking that chip or pitch try to feel that the handle and the clubhead get back to impact at the same time - in other words don't allow the handle to get too far in front of the clubhead at impact as you are then exposing more of that sharp leading edge to the ground. And we all know what that can lead to.....

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Chipping: One Method & Three Clubs

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Golfers love to chip with their favorite club. Regardless of what the shot or situation calls for the majority of golfers are going to use their 'go to' club. That is fine if you are a genius around the greens and have the talent and touch to create any shot with that one club, but I am sorry to say that there are very few golfers who can hit those shots and you are more than likely not one of them. There is an easier way.

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Ben Hogan's Dynamic Golf Swing

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If you have been follwing this blog you more than likely have heard about the 84 degree secret. Let's take a look at how this line applies to the swing of Ben Hogan. It is important to remember that top golfers generally are flush up against the 84 degree line prior to any part of the body initiating the downswing. Some of the golfers are not necessarily all the way to the top of the backswing when they initiated a dynamic downswing, i.e. their hands and arms were actually still completing the backswing while their bodies (hips and legs) had already begun the downswing. Starting the lower body forward while the arms and club are still going backward creates energy or snap in the swing – just like when a whip is cracked.

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Swaying in the Golf Swing

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I have come to learn that golfers mean different things when they talk about a sway in the golf swing, but they can really only mean one of two options: a lateral slide or shift with the upper body, or the same move with the mid-section or lower body in the backswing. Both flaws will prove to be detrimental to quality golf shots.In studying greatest golfers in the game, it became quite clear that there are many different ways to position the arms and club face throughout the swing, but almost every great player pivots the body to the top in a similar fashion. The great news is: the better the body position, the better the arms and club face position. I have often seen a frustrated student, striving for the perfect plane or look to their swing, suddenly have tremendous success simply by improving their body motion.

Here are examples of the two most common errors in pivoting the body and interestingly, both mistakes involve lateral movement:

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Divots in Golf

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I believe that divots -- at least with irons -- are integral to great ball striking. It’s been my experience that most golfers are not aware of the importance of divots, or what a good divot should look like. Here is a detailed description of what makes up a proper divot:

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Putting with a Pop!

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I have always believed there should be a measure of “hit” in every putting stroke. In studying the top putters, it is uncanny how they seem to pop the ball off the center of the putter face; it’s almost as though they manage to compress the ball with the putter face. True, there is no divot involved (call me if there is - soon!), but there is definitely a louder and crisper impact sound when an expert putts the ball. Throughout the stroke, the putter seems to load in the backswing, lag in the transition, pop through the hit, and release into the follow through -- a similar motion to the one required to crack a whip, yet on a substantially smaller scale.

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Using Wedge Bounce Correctly

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For example: A club with ten degrees bounce will have a ten degree angle between the sole and the ground (barring any rounding of the sole). Notice how the back edge of the sole of the wedge rests on my finger, while the leading edge is slightly raised. Thanks to Gene Sarazen, who first invented bounce, irons have been built this way to deter the leading edge from shoveling or digging into the ground.

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Golf's Fundamentals: Ball Position

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Most of the greatest golfer's of all time used a wide range of ball positions, but it is amazing to me how few of them place their golf ball forward of the position recommended in this article. Start each shot with an eye towards impact (yes, even ball position helps!) and you too can enjoy more crisp and penetrating golf shots.

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