Playing Golf in Wet Conditions

May 12, 2008 By 6 Comments
Wet Golf Course

We’ve been getting a lot of rain around here recently. When that happens, even if the sun has started shining again, the course gets saturated and the game changes some. With an awareness of the issues and a few adjustments, you’ll be ready to tackle a round on a wet course. Length Becomes a Premium Without a doubt, when a golf course is wet, it plays longer, sometimes significantly. Just about all shots will roll less after landing, if they even roll at all. On a wet course, club selection is critical. Depending on how much water the course is holding, it may make club selection very easy. If it’s wet enough where you’re seeing little or no roll on shots, then you simply play to the full shot distance. In other words, if you normally account for some roll after a shot lands, you’re going to want to play the shot to land where you would normally expect it to finish rolling. Adjust Your Course Management Plan You really need to consider the makeup

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tips
Share

Ditch the Negativity

May 7, 2008 By 9 Comments
angry

That’s right. I said it. You want to play better golf? Positive attitude is a great way to do it. I’ve never read a book that covers the mental game that advocates anything but a positive attitude on the golf course. I’ve never heard otherwise in a lesson or from a pro or from watching an instructional program on television. So why is it that so many players have such a poor attitude on the course? I’ll tell you why – they don’t realize the importance of the mental game and they let their emotions get the best of them. Golf is an expensive game. It takes a lot of time to play, and a LOT more time to play well, in the form of practice and exercise and lessons. Why would anyone want to get anything less than the maximum out of a round? I’m sad to say that I succumbed to negative attitude on the course a week or so ago. I was struggling with my finesse wedges. I had just duffed about

Filed Under: Mental Game
Share

Chipping Flaw – Hands too Far Ahead

April 30, 2008 By 2 Comments

Most conventional teaching has a player keeping the hands ahead of the ball at address to promote a crisp, descending blow. Unfortunately, many players try to do too much of a good thing and take that bit of advice way too far. I’ve even caught myself doing it. It’s true – when addressing a chip shot, the hands should be ahead of the ball (closer to the target). But how much? I personally use the technique that Dave Pelz describes in his Short Game Bible. He recommends that the hands be aligned with the inside of the left thigh. To recap his chipping address technique: stand with the feet very close together and the ball opposite your right ankle (for right-handers) and your weight slightly more on the left side (about 65%). The feet should be flared about 20 degrees toward the target. It’s helpful to align the ball to your right ankle before turning your feet toward the target, because the change of perspective makes it hard to tell where the ball is really

Filed Under: Short Game Tips
Share

Progress Update: April 27, 2008

April 27, 2008 By 2 Comments

It always seems to get worse before it gets better. I already knew that, but it still leaves a bad taste in my mouth. After last week’s video analysis, I started to work on improving my hip action. I have a tendency to slide laterally toward the target on the down swing, causing several problems. Unfortunately, this isn’t going to be one of those quick fixes that just clicks into place suddenly. It’s a long-standing problem of mine. At the driving range yesterday I tried to key on really rotating my hips instead of laterally sliding. My swing thought was a common one for this type of situation: pull my left pocket behind me. Of course, such a drastic change threw me all out of sync and I was hitting the ball pretty poorly. Every so often, I started to catch on and would hit one that felt great, but I wasn’t able to make it repetitive. On the course later on, it was more of the same. More often than not, I found myself

Filed Under: My Progress
Share

All About Handicaps

April 25, 2008 By 3 Comments
card

One of the great things about golf is that it allows skilled players to compete with not-so-skilled players on a level playing field, all through the wonderful handicap system. Through the miracle of mathematics, players enter scores into a computer and presto, they get a handicap index. Then, they turn that into strokes on the score card and everyone is happy. Sounds simple, right? Not exactly. The USGA handicap system is extremely sophisticated and complex. If you’ve ever wondered what it all means – well, I can’t tell you what all of it means, but let’s cover some of the basics and get your understanding of handicaps up to scratch (sorry for the handicap pun). Before we get into it, I want to mention that golf handicaps are serious business. The USGA handicap manual is the final word on the subject, and it should be consulted for the latest official rules and regulations. Click here to access it online. Handicap Index Let’s start with the most basic concept: the Handicap Index. According to the USGA:

Filed Under: Glossary, Miscellaneous
Share