Three Tips That will Improve Every Round of Golf

I recently watched videos that reminded me of the 3 most important tips in golf. One tip is for your driving, one for your iron shots and one for your putting. Every hole that you play requires your instant focus on these 3 tips. Don’t start your next round without these thoughts.

The first 2 tips came from my favorite golf instructor, Danny Maude (just Google his name for a free site sign-up). His videos are excellent so I often use his video insights in my blogs.

1/ Impact Your Irons with a Forward Shaft Lean
Danny must be following my blogs as he is using the same mental cadence as I started using about a year ago. He mentally says “1 and 2” to allow for more time in his backswing to load his weight on his front foot during his transition. It just naturally happens if you don’t rush your swing at the top of your swing. It allows you to keep your head directly over your ball and to swing your irons with a forward shaft lean during your down swing.

The forward press of your hands during the downswing closes your club face and allows you to impact the ball with less loft angle and higher on the face of your iron (on the sweet spot).

2/ Power Your Drives UP with your Head Behind your Ball at Impact
Your driver has a limited loft because it is designed to impact your ball as the club head is arcing upward. That’s right, you are powering your ball with an upward trajectory as you push with your trailing foot to thrust the ball upward. Your head remains behind the ball at the point of impact.

Make sure that you tilt your upper body at your hips during your setup. Don’t sway back in your backswing. Just rotate your hips and shoulders while you cock your wrists to create lag in your backswing. [Danny did not recommend using the cadence count of “1 and 2” for this driver tip but I still use it to give more time in my backswing to cock my wrists during my transition.] Releasing your wrist lag, at the bottom of your swing, is where about 50% of your power comes from.

This is a great sequence showing Tiger keeping his head behind the ball, holding his wrist lag and releasing his club face in an upward trajectory.

3/ Choose Your Putting Target Line and Practice the Right Swing Speed
About 40% of your strokes in your rounds of golf come from putting (or chipping and putting from just off the green). If you could eliminate your 3 chip and putt holes and make a few more 1 putt holes, your game will be a lot more fun. Great putters practice for hours daily to learn the feel of the hit required to pass a hole. Successful putter know how to:
a. Choose a target line and swing their putter up their target line (without arcing their swing) when they impact EXACTLY ON the center of their putter face as they hit up on their ball (for a forward roll).
b. Adjust for the changing slope for every putt, the green speed for the course they are playing on and for the changing speed as the green dries out during the day. Make a practice swing with the swing speed that you know will at least pass the hole. YOU WILL ONLY LEARN THIS SKILL WITH PRACTICE.

Never start a round of golf without practicing short and longer putts on a down-hill, side-hill and up-hill grade. You will never be a great putter until you learn the skill of adjusting to the green speed for the course that you are playing.

Practice these 3 tips before you take them to the golf course. Of course GOLFSTR+ is a great training aid to help you train for the proper wrist and elbow positions for every swing with your driver, irons and putter. Buy one today at www.GOLFSTR.com

Golf Truism #71: Nonchalant putts count the same as chalant putts.