January 2009 January 4, 2009 BUMP AND RUN
Here is a situation that you have probably faced at least once in your last round of golf—a twenty yard shot from a tight lie to a green that slopes away from you. Under these circumstances even if you hit a perfect lob shot, the closest you could get is 15 feet past the hole. The idea is to use enough loft to get the ball off the grass before it starts its roll to the hole. Even though it will be airborne as soon as you hit it, it won't look that way -- in fact it will look like a putt rather than a chip. Also note that you should be close to the ball, a very similar posture to your putting stance.
This shot is like a chip in that your weight starts, stays and finishes on your front foot to insure that you make contact with your hands leading the clubhead. Unlike a chip however the ball is positioned just forward of the center of the stance (about off the logo) creating a flatter angle of attack and less spin.
Also, to produce more power you should employ a partial wrist cock on the backswing. Cocking your wrists with a synchronized slight turning of the of the chest adds force as required so you can hit the bump and run shot up to 80 yards when you have to keep the ball “under” heavy wind or to fit other conditions such as hard, fast fairways and greens.
Remember that you should never try a shot on the course that you haven’t practiced so take a bucket of balls to a practice green area and experiment with this shot before you try it on the golf course. Once you get used to how the ball reacts in varying circumstances the “bump and run” with the rescue will save you lots of strokes.
Summary of the basic mechanics are as follows:
1] Weight on the front foot
2] Ball position off shirt logo
3] Use a slight wrist break with a tad of chest turn
December 2008 December 18, 2008 Don't Cheat on Your Coil
.jpg)
I'm cheating on my coil and I'll pay the price in loss of distance. The ball may go straight but it will be short of target.
A bigger shoulder turn translates into receiving the "true value" of the club i.e. I get the distance I plan for. Golf is a game where surprises are not good.
Lazy House Guests
Your muscles are like lazy house guests, they just lay around content to do nothing until you force them to get moving. And nowhere is this propensity to be lazy more prevalent then when you move the club to the top of your swing.
It only Weights a few Ounces
Please remember that your club weights only a few ounces so if your goal is to "get it to the top" then you can simply hoist it up there with no attention to creating coil, i.e. turning the top of your body at least twice as much as you turn your hips.
In photo 1 I've made an OK turn but the ratio of my hips to shoulder is not what it should be. Although I haven't measured it I'd estimate that I've turned my hips 45degrees and my shoulders 80 degrees -- less than the 2 to 1 I'm capable off.
Rule of Thumb -- 2 to 1
Now everybody is a bit different in flexibility--some might be very flexible and turn their shoulders 100 degrees, others a little stiff and turn them only 75 but the rule of thumb is that to maximize your power you want to turn your shoulders at least twice as much as you rotate your hips while keeping the spine angle you started with at address. In fact some on of the tour pros like Tiger and VJ Singh exceed this guideline by making huge shoulder turns.
Double Up
In photo 2 I've "doubled up" for a 2 to 1 ratio and you can see how much more torque I've produced in my coil as evidenced by the increased number of wrinkles in my shirt. I'll hit my irons 10 yards more and my driver 20 yards farther from the position in photo 2 vs. the one in photo 1.
Coil Exercise
The key to power and accuracy lies in a relationship where the shoulders stay perpendicular to your spine during your backswing. To better understand proper shoulder turn, do the following exercise: Take your normal setup and then stand up straight, with fully extended arms so that the club shaft is parallel to the ground. Keeping your feet flat on the ground, make a back swing and stop when your hands are over your toe line. You should feel your hips turn slightly in response to the pull of your shoulders. When you do this, you'll be able to sense the tension in your back between your shoulders and hips. That's the beginning of "coil."
A good coil stores energy when you make your backswing, then releases it on the forward swing but without a proper shoulder turn you can't coil enough to generate the power you need.
December 15, 2008 LOOK FOR INSTRUCTION BY TJ ON GOLF MAGAZINES BLOG. GO TO GOLF.COM December 12, 2008 I have entered into a relationship with a management company to develop golfing talents who are interested in playing professional golf. Once accepted into the program, the company will provide funding, fitness and instruction in a management capacity.
November 2008 November 26, 2008 GET THE CORRECT GRIP PRESSURE
Hand pressure is one of the most important, and yet, most overlooked aspects of the swing. Most golfers grip the club much too tightly with the four fingers of their top hand reducing the mobility of their wrists.
During the swing, excess pressure from your hands cuts down on the sensory input to your brain, which can’t feel the correct wrist cock on the backswing or make the natural adjustments to maintain the proper wrist angles on the downswing. Under these conditions, even properly “trained” hands are rendered almost useless and you have a civil war -- right vs. left.
The index and middle fingers are for clutching while the other two are more for touch. The thumb of course is the Great Grasper that combined with the last two fingers allowed our ancestors to fashion some neat tools. We are used to grasping important objects very firmly -- and that can turn into a death grip when you have the ultimate survival tool in your hand -- a golf club.
How to get the correct grip pressure—Think "hold," not "grip"
On a scale of one to 10, where one is much too light and 10 is a death grip, your hold on the club should be a five.
The major pressure point in your grip is the pressure exerted by the big joint of your lower thumb on the big joint of your top thumb. Picture a quarterback taking a snap for an image to guide the correct positioning of your thumbs. Your overall hold pressure should be light enough to allow your wrists to cock 90 degrees at the top of the backswing but firm enough that you don’t have to rearrange your hands on the downswing. I use the term “hold” rather than “grip” to promote a more moderate approach to hand pressure.
Note: Your new hold may feel too light but your hand-feel coordination system will make all the adjustments necessary during the swing to stabilize your club -- if you start with the correct pressure you'll end with the correct pressure.
October 2008 October 15, 2008
Learn the Pop Piston Stroke
This unique putting method makes long lags like tap-ins
The problem: On long putts, you have difficulty getting the ball to the hole with your Tour-style, back-andforth pendulum stroke. The solution: A "pop piston" stroke will help you get long putts to the hole. The "pop" action on the backstroke, achieved by hinging your wrists, will produce more speed, and the "piston" forward stroke, achieved by moving everything in one piece, will maintain acceleration and let you strike the ball in the center of the putterface. How to do it: Position the ball toward your left toe. Open your stance slightly to accommodate the forward ball position, and keep your eyes over the line of putt. Place your thumbs on the top of the grip, with your left index finger on top of your right fingers on the target side of the shaft. Keep your weight on your left side, and anchor your right elbow against your right hip. Push the putterhead straight back with your left index finger, and keep your right elbow fixed to your right hip. This will ensure that the putterhead stays on line. At the end of your backstroke, your right wrist should be cupped (bent back), creating wrinkles on the back of your wrist. Your left wrist should remain unhinged, so that if you were to draw a line from the back of your left wrist toward your elbow, it would be perfectly straight.
December 2007 December 19, 2007 December 1, 2007 |
