Southern California's No. 1 Golf Source
SITE
SEARCH
GOLF RESOURCE GUIDE:
instruction
|
||||
 Where can you pick up strokes? What bad habits do you need to kick? Is golf still enjoyable? How’s your weight, or, for that matter, your weight shift? Whatever your situation, it’s time to formulate some realistic and attainable goals for the next 12 months. Check out these tips out before making your next tee time. Be good to your body People who feel better often play better, and that includes nutrition. Take a couple of Power Bars with you on the course and divide them up into thirds. Take a sip of water every hole and eat a third of the bar every three holes to keep your hydration and sugar levels constant. I used to eat at the turn, but eating a hot dog, drinking a beer or having a Coke does crazy things to your body. Treat your body like you’re an athlete while on the course. Have your beer in the clubhouse. — Alan Ochiai, PGA professional, Oak Creek Golf Club Learn the Swing Don’t listen to your friends. There’s so much bad advice out there, so find a good teacher — especially one who doesn’t teach cliches. If you really want to learn to play golf better, you really need to understand the golf swing, not swing tips or swing thoughts, but truly understand what has to happen in the golf swing to hit the ball better. Once you do that, it’s amazing how much better you’ll become. There's a great golf book written by Mike Hebron called “Golf Swing Secrets … and Lies.” He's like a golf scientist. There's a lot of information and it could be overwhelming, but it actually describes certain things that must happen in the swing. The big rush you get as a beginning golfer is to get the ball airborne. When people first start playing golf, they don't understand how the ball gets airborne, and that really gets them off track. If you look at all the equipment changes since Bobby Jones won the Grand Slam — how much better it is, how much longer the ball flies — the sad fact is the average golfer shoots the same scores now as then. And that’s ridiculous. — Tim Terwilliger, PGA professional, Brookside Golf Club Stop guiding and start swinging So many people get over the ball and try to guide it. The idea of hitting the ball is not to guide it where you want it to go, but to swing through it. If you guide it, it isn’t going to get it there. There aren’t any books that say hit the ball; every book says swing through the ball. People swing with their eyes wide open and miss all the time. Have that same guy put his club behind the ball and close his eyes. He’ll hit it every time. — Al Duhon, PGA professional, Chester Washington Golf Course Get the proper fit Clubs that are too big for a person will cause a swing to flatten, and clubs that are too small will result in a swing that is too upright. That not only affects ball flight, but also causes the club to be a few degrees off target. Only 10 percent of clubs off the rack are a perfect fit for the average golfer, so if you’re going to take the time to buy new clubs, make sure you get properly fitted. — Blake Dodson, Del Mar Country Club Stretch out I notice that a lot of people have difficulty getting the golf club into certain positions. Everyone is striving for the golf swing they see on the Golf Channel, but they don't realize how hard those players work on flexibility and strength. Stretching for 10 to 15 minutes before a round is plenty, but golfers should be on a stretching program of 20 to 25 minutes each day. And don’t neglect the lower body, particular the hamstrings. We use our legs for support, so it’s vital they stay flexible and strong. A strong lower body also helps golfers move their arms properly, make the proper rotation and drive through the ball on the downswing. Another side effect of tight hamstrings is what happens to your right leg in the backswing. If you coil back into your right leg and it straightens, chances are good that your hamstrings aren’t flexible enough, and that limits your rotation. — Patrick Kemball, PGA professional, SCGA Course Keep it simple Golf can be a cumbersome thing sometimes, especially for beginners and intermediates who don’t have the right swing. I’m always telling my students to keep things small and simple and not to get overwhelmed by mechanics. Practice in smaller increments — maybe three times a week with a small bucket rather than feeling like you have to be on the range for hours. Make it a little bit easier on yourself. Commit to simpler, easier practice sessions. Golf is hard enough. — Karen Tucker, PGA professional, Tustin Ranch Looking good As long as I’m feeling comfortable and have a nice outfit on, I’m fine. It doesn’t matter how I play. Basic polos are out in women’s golf, and the trend is toward fashion you can wear off the course, like halter polos. Men’s fashion has shifted to flat-front pants, and argyle, bright colors and white belts are back. While women continue to be more fashion-conscious than men, I think the guys are starting to care more about how they look on and off the course. — Erica Edwards, buyer for Worldwide Golf Take a playing lesson Playing on the course with an instructor is a great way to implement what you’ve learned on the range. A playing lesson centers on course management and scoring. On the range, you hit ball after ball and it’s easy to build a rhythm, but when you hit a bad shot, you don’t really notice it. On the golf course, however, bad shots are immediately apparent because you’ve got to go find the ball and play it. Plus, there’s added pressure on the golf course, and there’s a lot riding on each shot. Having an instructor with you will help ease the tension and get you in the right frame of mind to play better golf. — Steve Kaese, PGA professional, Nike Golf Learning Center, Riverwalk Golf Course Practice your short game Approximately 60 percent of your strokes in an 18-hole round are putts and chips, and 15 percent are made with a driver. Reorganize your practice schedule so you’re spending at least 50 percent of your time on the short game. — John Kennedy, PGA professional, Singing Hills Resort at Syucan Create a mental plan Review what you did last year. How was your swing, were there any fitness issues, were you mentally prepared? Now, what were your strengths and what do you need to work on? From that information prepare a plan for a specific period of time, such as three months, a year or two years. The length is determined by your goals. There's approximately six minutes in a round of golf when you’re motor-engaged, the rest of the time you’ve got a lot of chances to beat up on yourself. People interested in the mental game don’t want to feel better, they want their golf game to get better. If their golf game improves, they’ll feel better. — David Wurzer, PGA professional, Golf Excellence International |
||||
RSS Subscribe
