Golf Instruction - Tip Of The Month Archives

Copyright 1996-2004. All Rights Reserved.

September, 1996

"Approach your progress to improvement in the game of golf like a hiker. The mountain has been there a long time; it will wait for you to get there."

October, 1996

"Take note of the many different styles employed by the pros, and then discover the style that works for you."

November, 1996

"Observe the results of your efforts while on the course as if someone else where hitting the shots or making the decisions. Then make mental notes for any required adjustments."

December, 1996

"If you hit a bad shot and don't know what went wrong, try to improve the next one by putting into your swing those actions that are the proper fundamental movements. Chances are that the missing ingredient will now reappear, and you'll be 'back on course'."

January, 1997

"When you play with others that are slower, faster, more talkative, less talkative, or are new to golf and not quite up on etiquette yet, look upon it as a challenge to see if your game came hold up. If not, you need to be more in tune to your golfing identity as a player. Think in terms of your skills defining you golfing personality."

February, 1997

"Chipping is underrated as the area where you can dramatically reduce your scores. One good chip can avoid a second chip and or 1 to 2 additional putts."

March, 1997

"When putting on a steep down slope, let the ball 'die' in the hole. Otherwise, give it more 'oomph' so that it would die a foot beyond the hole if the hole was not there to 'get in the way'. Why? Slow puts lose their line the most when they're about to stop, which is usually near the lumpy area just around the hole. Avoid the risk of having it 'blow by the hole' a mile when putting downhill, but do give it a fair chance of going in by keeping the speed up on a fairly level putt."

April, 1997

"The art of striking a golf ball is just that; an art. Perfection can never be constantly achieved. Therefore, accept that you will always perform to a certain level of excellent, poor, and 'good enough' shots."

May, 1997

"Be aware of your balance as your weight shifts to the right, and then back to the left. The corridor of weight movement should be upon the balls of your feet and center of your body, and not move front to your toes or rearward towards your heels."

June, 1997

"A good swing key for completing the back swing is 'Shoulders face right'."

July, 1997

"Be careful to not allow an overly-aggressive hip turn to push the right leg to the rear. This would result in pulling you away from the ball on the forward swing, thusly causing the clubface to strike the ball towards the toe. Not only will distance be lost, but also accuracy."

August, 1997

"Remember that the object of the game is the score, not just beautiful shots on the sweet spot. A great drive does no good if you can't save par with a good chip and putt after missing the green with your approach shot."

September, 1997

"Arm plane. What should it be? Simple. At the top of the backswing, the plane of your arms should be slightly higher than the plane of your shoulders when viewed from down-the-line. If it is currently too low, concentrate on more of a lifting action of your arms/club rather than a pulling-to-your-right action"

October, 1997

"Remember that as your body parts turn on the forward swing, your arms drop back down towards the ground. With this in mind, avoid any extremes in movement that would cause hips, shoulders, or arms to out pace any other part."

November, 1997

"Sometimes it is too all easy to fall into the rut of thinking only about technique while on the course. Try to 'get back on course' and remember the concept of the game; low scoring. Concentrate on every tee shot. Carefully align every pitch. Strive to get your chips within gimme range. And really grind those putts, trying to make every one. Do all this, and watch your scores drop!"

December, 1997

"Avoid 'overpracticing'. If the first few shots at the driving range are good ones, either quit or move on to other aspects of your game that need attention"

January, 1998

"Dress the part. To acquire a 'pro-like' demeanor on the course, be well dressed and groomed. Replace glove when it starts to appear worn. And take care to keep your equipment clean and in good condition."

February, 1998

"Treat your playing partners with respect and courtesy, and in return, you will be treated the same. When encountering others on the course who have not yet learned the etiquette of golf, be patient and understanding."

March, 1998

"Every few months, try to play a new course. Not only will it be an enjoyable experience, but it will teach you new things about the game and broaden you horizons."

April, 1998

"Become familiar with historical players and important events in our great golf heritage. An appreciation of the past and what led to the present will provide you with a deeper connection with this great game and the wonderful people that we enjoy it with."

May, 1998

"This is the month to make a major advance in your game. If you're a 90's shooter, you will move into the 80's. If you're an 80's shooter, you will start flirting with scores in the 70's. This is going to be a wonderful year for you, and the next will be even better!"

June, 1998

"Use all the power sources in your forward swing. The first power transfer is the shifting of weight back to your left leg with the 'hip bump'. Then the second power transfer occurs when you start turning you right hip out towards the target. The last power transfer finally kicks in when you swing your arms down and forward. Only a slow, gradual transfer of power in the proper sequence will allow you to achieve the full potential of energy release from the club face to the ball that you are capable of."

July, 1998

"Timing is one of the most elusive elements in the golf swing in that you can know what happens when, but puting it into pratice is a whole 'nother story. Since the forward swing can occur in just a half second, muscle memory is of major importance. Let's review what happens when in the forward swing. 1.) The left hip shifts laterally left without consciously trying to 'unwind'. 2). Then, the right hip starts to swing out and around towards the target. NOTE: it is very important at this point that the head, which has shifted back left in step one now stays put and not continue to move forward. 3). The arms actively swing forward into the impact zone. To summarize: Shift left, turn hip (while head stays put), and finally swing arms into impact zone (while head continues to stay put, or even move to bit backwards away from the target). Practice this, and watch your shots fly straight, long, and true."

August, 1998

"Keeping abreast of the latest equiptment and happenings in the world of golf is important in that it puts the reason why you're out there on the course week after week into perspective. Do subscribe to one or more golf magaziness, and watch the tournaments, Inside The PGA Tour(s) shows, and even the infomercials."

September, 1998

"This is the month to put your skills to the test. You've spent all season ironing out the bugs, and have grooved your swing. Let's make this a banner year for your scoring average!"

October, 1998

"Continue the progress you made last month. Let's get those few extra rounds in before the season closes in the harsher climits."

November, 1998

"Great job! The holidays are almost among us. Take a brief break before one last attack on your all-time-record low hdcp next month!"

December, 1998

"To get back that freedom in your swing for iron shots, practice hitting off a tee, and then immediately copy that same free-wheeling swing off the mat."

January, 1999

"It's a new year, so how about trying a new swing? If your hips get too active going back, let you chest center start the backswing, with the hips resisting and only turning in response to being pulled around. Not only may you obtain more power, but your shots may be straighter too."

November, 1999

"We've all paid lip service as to the importance of the short game, but never truely understood that it is 'the' key to playing at a whole new level. I cannot highly enough encourage you to read a book that recently came out, "Dave Pelz's Short Game Bible". I promise you, it will make a monumental change in your golf life and how you view the sport and your involvement in it thereafter."

January, 2000

"Welcome to the year 2000! A new century, full of opportunity! Here's wishing you the best in this exciting time. See you next month with more golfing tips."

February, 2000

"Read Dave Pelz's Short Game Bible cover-to-cover, twice, and then re-read it every few months. Why? You'll see after the first few pages."

June, 2000

"Trouble making a smooth transistion between the back and forward swing? Do you find yourself rushing to start the downswing, failing to complete the back swing? Are you completing the back swing but making only a half hearted attempt at a forward swing? Here's the solution: Make it a distinctively two segment swing by first (1) finishing the back swing and saying "top" mentally follwed by just a small momentary pause, and then (2) move the hips on a diagonal towards the ball-line and then rotate your outer-back hip around like opening a door on a hinge by using your left leg as a solid pivot point. If you do this, and resist the urge to "hit" with the arms or hands, you will additionally benifit from a full release and optimum timing."

July, 2000

"Why is golf so difficult (in case you haven't noticed) ? It's because it requires the human body to precisely perform a learned series of movements that are anti-intuitive. It's been said that golf is a game of inches, and that's true in the full swing as well as the putting game. It doesn't take much to skull a shot, where as just a inch or less lower would have produced a climbing, proper shot. Throw into this mix the difficulty in which the struggling golfer is trying to discover the set of basics that works for him/her, and when things aren't working, it becomes unclear whether the technique is at fault, or the execution. And that's precisely what's so rewarding about this game; the journey, and the pot-o-gold at the end of the rainbow."

August, 2000

"How are your golf shoes? There are many hi-tech spikeless varities out on the market today. A new, high quality pair, that look's good, feels good, and works good, will add much confidence to your game."

September, 2000

"This month, we are starting a four part 'Tip Of The Month' series. In it, we will be covering a method to ingrain individual fundamentals of the full swing into your muscle memory. Each fundamental will be practiced one at a time during a complete swing by concentrating on it alone. This will have a much greater effect that trying to be aware of too many things at once. The fundemental this month links the head and right knee positional relationship. Assuming a slight tilt to the right at address, your right ear shoud be roughly aligned with the left of your right knee. It may differ somewhat, but the point is that through the entire backswing, and half of the forward swing (up to the point where your hips have turned back to face where they were at address), your head and right knee should remain linked and close to motionless. Picture your head as the top hinge, your right knee as the bottom hinge, and your body as the door. After your door has swung on your hinges back fully, make sure that the hinges stay where they are when the door starts to swing back the other way. The two hinges will seperate after your hips have returned back to face where they were at address. What will actually occur is that your lower hinge (your right knee), will move to your left, but your upper hinge (your head), will remain where it was. It won't be until after the ball is struck that your upper hinge will begin to move to the left also. At the end of the follow through, however, it will have caught back up to the lower hinge, and once again, they will be aligned. If you desire, you can practice this at home holding the head end of a club, with a slow speed swing. The more you do it, the more it will become an engrained fundamental that you won't have to think about. But you should refresh your muscle memory by practicing this drill from time to time."

December, 2000

"Tip-Of-The-Month Instructional Series, Part II: Last time, we covered your 'hinges'. This month, we will review the timing between your upper torso turning, and the arms swinging up during the back swing. You may have noticed that sometimes if you get too aggresive during the backswing that the club may be 'laid-off', or too far behind you intead of being more vertical. To truely understand how much to your right, and how much up the arms should move, stand in front of a mirror at address position, without a club, then drop your right hand to your side. You left hand should be approximately centered to you body. Now lift you left arm up so that as it rises, it moves on a slight diagonal to the right, as such that when your left hand is ear high, it is also now directly on a vertical line with you right shoulder where you right arm is hanging down. Next, regrip, and raise both arms up, allowing the right elbow to fold as it rises. Now lastly, turn your upper torso as your arms raise, timing it so that when you've reached a ninety degree turn, your arms have also just completed rising fully. Note that due to the body tilt, your hands will now be somewhat higher than your right ear. Repeat, and practice the timing so that the arms rising and the torso turning fully syncronize in their movement."

March, 2001

"Tip-Of-The-Month Instructional Series, Part III: Last time, we covered timing. This month, we will look into that thing which is paid lip service to, but often ignored, namely the club's swing plane. The specific aspect of the plane that we'll address for this discusssion is the angle of the shaft as viewed from the golfer's right side. At the half-swing point, when the shoulders are at about 45 degrees and the arms parallel to the ground, the shaft should be angled back approximately 45 degress. It is the rotation of the arms that controls this. During the backswing, the right arm supinates (bottom-side rotates up), and the left arm pronates (bottom side rotates down). If the amount of rotation that is naturally occuring is either too much or too little, then the golfer must be aware and control this action until it becomes part of muscle memory. How do you know if the club is too vertical ? One indication of a club shaft that is too vertical will be the tendency for the ball to strike near the toe of the club head. An extremely vertical club could even cause a 'reverse' shank, meaning the the very end of the toe (not the surface of the club face) will hit the ball, or a complete miss. The way to resolve this is to consciously rotate the arms more. Conversely, hits near the heel or even shanking can be caused by over-rotation. This is also know as the club being 'laid' off. The fix; less rotation. Try experimenting, observing how different rotation amounts affects where the ball meets the club face at the time of impact. When you've got it just right, that's the sweet spot, and how sweet it is!"

July, 2001

"It's the time of summer now where you must guard against too much sun, so get out that sun screen! Most people know that the higher SPF numbers offer more protection than lower numbers, but what the Sun Protection Factor really means may be more of a mystery. So, here's the skinny. Let's say that you can stay out in the sun for 20 minutes before starting to burn. With SPF 40 applied, you can stay out 40 times longer, which is 20 minutes times 40, namely 800 mintues (13 hours, 20 minutes). Now, this is an ideal max time, meaning that the correct amount was applied, and none wore off, and your skin type is average. That said, after this max time has been reached, puting any more on won't extend that max time; you must retreat from exposure to the sun. Now that's a long time, but don't rely on sun block alone; consider it secondary protection. Your first line of attack should be a hat with a brim (if that's not your style, a baseball cap is better thatn nothing), a collared shirt with turned-up collar, and long pants (select a light fabric). If you have a cool long-sleeved shirt, go for it. And don't forget your shades; make sure that they are 100% UV blocking to help guard against developing cataracts. Lastly, hydrate! Doctors say you should drink 8 glasses of water a day, and even more if out in the heat. Drink hourly at a minimum. If you wait until you're thirsty, it's too late. Being well hydrated will not only help keep you healthy, it will allow your muscles to function at a higher level, and that is definately good for your game. So, till next time, keep cool, and enjoy! enjoy! (Tip-Of-The-Month Instructional Series will return with the next installment)"

April, 2003

"Tip-Of-The-Month Instructional Series, Part IV: Last time, we covered the shaft swing plane. This month, we will concentrate on a specific aspect of the downswing that sets the stage for the other body parts to follow and which dramatically helps the club face to hit the ball right in the sweet spot, and additionally helps to apply solid power and a straight shot. That aspect is the initial direction that the hips and arms travel on in the first quarter of the downswing. As outlined in previous discussions here, the hips must first travel on a path that is on a diagonal left and towards the ball line. Likewise, the arms must not just travel down and left, but also to the right of the target. It must feel as though you want to hit the ball on the back-inside, as if the intention is to make the ball travel to the right of where it really is supposed to go. What happens in reality is that this does not actually happen, as the turning of the hips and shoulders counterbalance the direction the arms are moving in, and the club face winds up driving right into the back of the ball on the ball-target line. By the way, just by doing these two things alone and not changing anything else, many slicers would find that their slice has gone away! And why is that? It's because they are no longer causing the club head to travel out beyond the ball line and then back in again. So, no tennis "chop" across the ball anymore means no slice. Not only is the slice cured, but now there a straight shot with more power. There are other causes for slicing though, so this is not a cure all for all of them. But whatever the case, creating a good fundamental for the hips and arms will help when working on the other areas that need addressing. When practicing the hips/arms move, feel as though both are moving on the same diagonal. Experiment and observe the effects of making the diagonal more or less severe. You'll find that what feels the most natural will be close to the ideal path they should be moving on. This concludes our four part instructional series. Take what you've learned out to both the range and the course. We'll cover other aspects of what constitutes good fundamentals in future articles. Happy swinging!"

May, 2003

This month, we'll look at a very useful tool that will help when your swing just seems to stop working, or when you get into a stressful situation where it's hard to concentrate on just making a normal swing, i.e. during a tournament, or when being watched by a crowd. It's easy to let some important aspect of your swing to fall by the wayside, especially if it's something in the early part of the swing and you're trying to concentrate on an aspect of the downswing, and especially if it was something that had been working well for a long time, and you had no need of thinking of it or practicing it for a while. Therefore, we will put together a five item list that you should review and execute in a few practice swings whenever the need arises to fix your swing fast. This can be used for what some refer to as a "choke" swing. That is, no matter how you normally swing, this one swing will do the job when things go sour. In fact, it itself is just part of the normal swing we've previously discussed in the past, so you would do well to review these points we are about to go though for you normal, everyday range sessions and course outings. 1. What starts the backswing? The very first move, for the most consistency, power, and straightness of ball flight, should be ONLY the shoulders rotating on axis while restricting the movement of the hips. The right knee and head should also stay in place while the shoulders alone rotate. 2. After the shoulders have smoothly started, then the arms can raise and rotate (avoid "lazy arms", where the arms do not go high enough). Push the back of the left hand down in-line with the arm, if necessary, as to avoid a cupped wrist position. 3. Know when the back swing is complete. The back swing is done when your shoulder is under your chin. Don't let it go further, which would cause the head to rotate to the right. Although that is normally allowed to happen, we won't allow it here with this swing, as it causes alignment and timing issues, and we are not going for maximum power, but instead just a goodly amount of power and most importantly, a good, solid hit. 4. Start the forward swing. Do this by making sure that the right knee holds position and the shoulders also hold back from rotating with the head retaining it's position while the hips travel on a diagonal left, and the left knee returns to it's starting position. 5. Fire the right side. At this point, you'll note that the arms and club are already half way down! In fact, things have gone so well up until this point, that's there's only one main thing that you can do to "screw it up". And that cardinal sin would be allowing the head to slide to the left as you proceed to unwind and hit the ball. If you do allow that to happen, the result will probably be a long, high, and solid pulled shot. It will actually feel pretty good. But of course, that's not where the ball is supposed to go. So, simply hold your head in place, and really get "into" the shot. You should free flowing at this point, and let your body, and not head, go-with-the flow. You'll be surprised that it will actually turn out to be a quite powerful hit into the ball indeed, and a straight solid shot. On your next few visits to the range, try this five item list out, and see the results right away in you current practice and subsequent play!

February, 2004

"9-Iron Vs. 5-Iron. You might be asking yourself 'Is the swing the same for each?' or 'Do I need to do anything different at all?'. The answer is both yes, and no, depending on the particular characteristics of your swing. If you notice that you tend to hit more out towards the toe on the 9-iron, but closer to the sweet spot on the 5-iron, yes, the swing for each may need to be a little different for you. And here's why. Due to the longer shaft length of the 5-iron, it will naturally create more of an outward pull of the club head. More length, more centrifugal force. It that's simple. Hencely, the head will position itself further away from you as it strikes the ball, truly hitting more towards the middle or heal area of the club face. The 9-iron, on the other hand, is controlled more by the mechanical paths that your arms and shoulders are traveling on. Therefore, if you do find that the 9 creates more of a toe hit than the 5, what you must do is consciously 'tear' into the back-inside portion of the ball. Do this by greatly angling the direction of your hip and arm movement on the downswing more towards the ball than normal. Remember, normally, you would be angling towards the ball on a diagonal during the forward swing anyway, but do it even more so with the 9-iron. It should feel as if you are aggressively trying to smack it directly to the right of where you want it to go, but amazingly, it will instead be a nice straight hit on the sweet spot. Try it; you'll like it!"

March, 2004

"Check back in March!"

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