One problem I’ve struggled with in my swing is a little too much lateral movement, both in the back swing and in the down swing. When there is a lot of lateral movement (a small amount is normal), the bottom of the swing arc moves. That leads to inconsistency because I then have to try and return the low point of the swing to the correct spot to make crisp contact.

If I shift too far right and then not enough to the left to counter it, I hit the ball fat. If I shift too much back to the left, then I come down to the ball at a steep angle and smother it. It becomes one big inconsistent mess. It’s magnified because I’m a big guy and don’t have a really speedy action in my hips, so if I get too far right, it’s hard to get back to the left in time.

I discovered something at the driving range recently that has really helped me to cut down on this problem.

I found that when I address the ball, if I move my right knee every so slightly toward the left one it makes a big difference.

What it does is help to keep me from trying to turn too much with my hips. When I do that, I tend to add in a little subconscious hip slide to help myself get the proper coil and that’s where the problems arise.

Unfortunately, I don’t need to coil my hips to the degree that they want to go. Part of that is from flexibility. My brain feels like it needs to help a little to get the job done because I’m not as flexible as I should be. And part of it is a fixation on getting a full turn for increased power, even though my turn is already pretty full.

But that’s not really necessary. A while back, Jim Mclean presented his concept of the X-Factor, where he believes power originates.

Imagine looking down at yourself from above as you address the ball. Further imagine lines parallel to the ground, one passing through your both shoulders, and one through both your hips. At the top of your back swing, your shoulders should turn about 90 degrees from the target line, but your hips will turn somewhat less, maybe only 45 degrees. Now those lines would form an X instead of being parallel to each other and to the target line.

McLean believes that power originates not from the amount of turn that your hips and shoulders have, but because of the difference in turn in relation to each other. He goes further to mention that it’s the resistance in the lower body that generates that power, and that one shouldn’t try to restrict hip turn. A good turn is necessary, but resistance is crucial to power.

In my case, I’m turning a little too far and losing that resistance. Plus, I’m letting my weight shift to the outside of my right foot sometimes on the back swing, compounding the inconsistency.

By kicking in my right knee just a tiny bit, I’m now getting the proper resistance in my lower body. I’m keeping my weight from shifting so far and keeping it from getting on the outside of my right foot by lessening the slide to the right. I can also feel the coil in my leg now, especially in the upper part.

Instantly, I noticed an increase in how solidly I was striking the ball.

If you have trouble with too much lateral shift in the back swing, give it a shot. Keep in mind that you don’t want to inhibit a proper hip turn. I’m only talking about a tiny bit of inward pressure on the right knee that helps me to throttle back the hip turn to a proper degree to increase that X-factor. Try it out and see if it can help you too.

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Further Reading:

Maximizing Power Potential (Jim McLean Golf Schools)
Jim McLean’s “The X-Factor Swing” (Amazon.com)

And now for something completely different…

One thing that I find interesting outside of golf is personal finance and personal productivity. In my quest to be a pro, I can’t just look to improve my golf game without improving myself overall at the same time. So, I sort of follow a handful of blogs in those categories.

In many parts of the blogging world, blog carnivals are run, where every so often a blog hosts and the various blogs in that category submit articles that get linked up in a big “Here’s what’s happening in the world of <whatever>”.

I’m mentioning this because a good carnival citizen is encouraged to link back to the carnival when an article is submitted. This week, I submitted my post about 7 Ways to Improve Your Golf Game on a Budget to the 114th Carnival of Personal Finance hosted at The Simple Dollar, an excellent personal finance blog.

If you’re interested in personal finance, check it out. It’s always a great collection of posts on the various aspects of personal finance.

To my fellow golf bloggers: wouldn’t it be fun to run a regular carnival of our own? Hmmm…..

We now return you to your regularly scheduled programming.

Harvey Penick’s Little Red Book by Harvey Penick with Bud Shrake should be required reading for anyone who loves the game of golf or is interested in learning about it. According to the cover of the paperback edition, it is the highest selling sports book of all time, and there is little question why.

Harvey Penick was one of the most respected teachers the game of golf has ever seen. One only needs to read the introductions in his Little Red Book to see that.

The testimonials by Tom Kite, Ben Crenshaw, Betsy Rawls, Mickey Wright, Kathy Whitworth, Mary Lena Faulk, Dave Marr, and Byron Nelson aren’t just evidence of what kind of teacher Harvey Penick was, but are a testament to the man himself.

Throughout his over seventy years of teaching, Penick kept various notes and observations on topics from every facet of golf in a little red notebook. For a long time, he only shared the contents of his book with his son Tinsley and had no intention of publishing it. Late in his life, he decided to share these notes with the rest of us and that’s how his Little Red Book came to be.

He took a simplistic approach to teaching, but don’t let that fool you. While he didn’t get wrapped up in angles and planes and the geometry of modern golf, he understood the game like few ever could. His mantra of “take dead aim” is, by his own words, the most important lesson to be taken from the book.

He also understood players like few others. He seemed to have a knack for understanding how to relate to players and get them to accept what he was teaching. Two of his most famous pupils, Tom Kite and Ben Crenshaw, have over 70 wins as professionals, including three majors.

In some ways, Harvey Penick was the first golf blogger, well before the days of the personal computers and the internet. He just kept his posts on paper instead of whirling around the information superhighway. His “posts” are just chapters in the book and cover his observations about players, the swing, and whatever else came to mind.

One of my favorite anecdotes is one involving an average golfer pestering Tommy Armour about how to get more backspin on the ball. Armour asked the golfer when he hits an approach from 140 yards whether he was normally past the pin or short of it. The player remarked that he was nearly always short of the pin and Armour’s reply was, “Then what do you need with backspin?”

Chapter List

I usually like to list all the chapters, but this book just has too many.

The Good

• The book contains many, many pearls of wisdom that any golfer can benefit from.
• His teachings and observations are timeless and are applicable still today.
• The book is a tremendously easy read.
• Penick’s gentle personality really comes through the book. After reading the book several times, I wish I had a chance to know him.

The Bad

There’s nothing about Little Red Book that I didn’t like. I would ask you to be aware that Little Red Book is not a blueprint for the golf swing. You’re not going to find a step by step introduction to the game or to the swing. Beginners can take a lot from the book but it’s not the book for someone who has never played the game and is looking to figure out how to start.

Conclusion

As I said at the top, this book should be required reading for every golfer. It’s interesting, informative, and fun. Golfers of all skill levels will learn things that can help them with their own games. We’re fortunate that Harvey Penick changed his mind and decided to share his Little Red Book with us.

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Further Reading

Harvey Penick Biography (Austin Country Club)
Another Harvey Penick Biography (The Handbook of Texas Online)
Harvey Penick’s Little Red Book (Amazon.com)
More Books by Harvey Penick (Amazon.com)

It seems to be the next big revolution in club design.

Unlike some of the club design atrocities from the past, I think this one is here to stay. Remember the Top-Flite Magna soup ladle? Ugh. Well, the square headed drivers are coming on in a big way, and frankly, they look kind of neat if you can get over the initial “new things are bad” feeling.

Since the creation of metal drivers, manufacturers have been toying with ways to increase the “more factor”: more distance and more straightness (and let’s not forget - more money).

In recent years, the trend has been to make the heads larger. The USGA limit of 460cc for club head volume has been the norm for a few years now. The final frontier, at least for the time being, is the shape that is employed in the club head.

There are some limitations there too. According to the USGA’s Rules on Clubs and Balls:

When the club is in a 60 degree lie angle, the dimensions of the clubhead must be such that:

1. the distance from the heel to the toe of the clubhead is greater than the distance from the face to the back;
2. the distance from the heel to the toe of the clubhead is not greater than 5 inches (127 mm);
3. the distance from the sole to the crown of the clubhead is not greater than 2.8 inches (71.12 mm).

So, the distance from heel to toe may not be more than 5 inches wide, and 2.8 inches high from bottom to top. Also, most importantly, that heel-toe distance can’t be greater than the distance from the front (face) to back.

The design wizards got together and found that they couldn’t make the clubs any bigger because they’re already at maximum volume. And they can’t make the faces any more springy because they’re already at the maximum coefficient of restitution (COR). So the only place left to go is shape and because of the requirement on proportion of heel to toe length versus face to back depth, squareish was the next logical step.

What came out of all that is a boost for us players. These square headed drivers claim to have some of the highest moment of inertia (MOI) values of any drivers out there. What that means is that the face is resistant to twisting. And what that means is that off center hits will fly straighter and further.

Callaway and Nike got into the trend recently with their FT-i and SasQuatch Sumo2 models. This week, I saw on The Turn on the Golf Channel that several other manufacturers are offering up square headed designs, one of which is Nickent that I happened to see on a window shopping trip to Golfsmith last night.

These drivers are getting exposure on Tour too. I’ve noticed both KJ Choi and Ernie Els hitting their respective sponsor’s square shaped offerings in recent tournaments, including the 2007 PGA Championship. When technology hits the various tours, it’s a good bet that it’s here to stay.

I haven’t had a chance to test-fire any of these square headed drivers yet, but I’m more than intrigued (hint to equipment manufacturers and/or retailers: got any spare demo models?).

Does anyone have any experiences with these drivers to share? I’d love to hear them!

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Further Reading:

Moment of Inertia and Coefficient of Restitution (Life in the Rough)
USGA’s Rules on Clubs and Balls (United States Golf Association)

Well all know that the best way to improve your golf game is through hard work.

We also know that golf is an expensive hobby (and/or lifestyle, if you prefer). Between the cost of clubs, balls, apparel, accessories, range time, lessons, club fittings, and instructional aids and videos, it’s enough to go broke and that’s before we even step on the course.

Many times, players who play only occasionally can’t justify the expense, or simply don’t have the money to do all those things.

It can get frustrating to know that you could improve so much if you only had money to throw at the problem. I say that it’s possible to transform your game for under $100, with the real investment being time. Let’s see how:

(Affiliate links ahead)

1. Scoring happens from within 100 yards. Forget all the shiny new drivers and hybrids and learn how to score from within 100 yards. For this, I turn to the master. Pick up copies of Dave Pelz’s Short Game Bible and Dave Pelz’s Putting Bible. Pelz will tell you everything, and I mean everything, you need to know to maximize your potential from within 100 yards.
2. Don’t have money for frequent visits to the driving range? Try your back yard for a little short game work. If you don’t have a yard, then look for a field, an empty lot, or a park (you should make sure it’s OK before going with these options). You can get a lot of work in with chipping and short pitches. You won’t have the benefit of seeing the ball reacting to a green, but you’ll be able to groove a repeatable stroke that will serve you well.
3. If you get The Golf Channel, watch some of their instructional programs like Playing Lessons from the Pros and Golf Channel Academy. These programs are highly informative and give us a few minutes with some of the best teachers and players in the game. If you pay close attention, you can learn so much about the game that you never knew.
4. Working on putting doesn’t cost a dime. Many courses (public ones, anyway) allow people to use their practice greens without necessarily being there to play. If you’re unsure, ask in the pro shop and more often than not, they’ll be fine with it. Going during off hours is best because you won’t be practicing around many paying customers and will have more of the green to yourself. Considering that your putter will be used more than any other club during a round, it’s fitting that it should get the most work.
5. Physical skill only gets you so far. Pay more attention to the mental game. I recommend Golf is Not a Game of Perfect by Dr. Bob Rotella with Bob Cullen. You can take his recommendations out to the course with little or no work and see an increase in consistency and mental attitude right away. That translates to strokes saved.
6. Increase your flexibility and make sure to warm up prior to your rounds. This one won’t cost you a dime. Added flexibility translates to distance off the tee, more consistent ball striking resulting from a better ability to execute the fundamentals repeatedly, and also less soreness and stiffness popping up during a round.
7. If you have one at home, use a full length mirror to check your posture, alignment, swing plane, etc. In some ways it can be as valuable as video, at no cost.

The costs associated with golf can really add up, but there are lots of ways to improve with little or no financial burden. Considering a round of golf can cost anywhere from $20 up into the hundreds of dollars, it’s nice to be able to play well when we step on the course. A little creativity and some elbow grease and you can be playing better in no time, all on a budget.

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Further Reading:

Dave Pelz’s Short Game Bible (Amazon .com)
Dave Pelz’s Putting Bible (Amazon.com)
Golf is Not a Game of Perfect (Amazon.com)
Book Review: Golf is Not a Game of Perfect (Life in the Rough)
Book Review: Dave Pelz’s Short Game Bible (Life in the Rough)