What is your #1 golf tip for golf improvement

[Ernest Jones]

Originally Posted by Pablo68

Sound advice.

Arnold Palmer...........learn to hit it hard first then work on accuracy.

I wouldn't go that far. I say work on consistent contact, hitting hard to me is all about not decelerating or being non-committal but I believe accuracy should come before power. But that is just an opinion.

[Pablo68]

Originally Posted by Ernest Jones

I wouldn't go that far. I say work on consistent contact, hitting hard to me is all about not decelerating or being non-committal but I believe accuracy should come before power. But that is just an opinion.

Learn to swing fast first then dial it back a little to control it. Learning to hit it straight first then try adding speed I would think be more difficult.

[Ernest Jones]

Originally Posted by Pablo68

Learn to swing fast first then dial it back a little to control it. Learning to hit it straight first then try adding speed I would think be more difficult.

Maybe that's why I suck? Lol.

[Fourputt]

Originally Posted by Pablo68

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fourputt

I've made that suggestion before (I don't really favor a chipper either, but dump the 60° wedge and learn to play the chip and roll), and it doesn't usually sit well with most players.  I guess it's too old school.

I had a good short game, but then I thought like many that the LW was a required skill if I wanted to call my self a player.   I tried for years to get comfortable with a 60°, then a 58°.   My short game got steadily worse, my handicap rose from a lifetime low of 9.6 to nearly 16.  I finally ended the experiment, settled on 56° as my highest wedge, went back to what I came up with and my short game came back to me.  My handicap dropped back down to 11, even though I was in my 60's and loss of distance was making the long game harder.  I personally will never put another LW in my bag again.

I wouldn't dump my 60° LW for anything. As with all your clubs, it's knowing when to use it and when not to use it.

If you have little green to work with use the LW.

If you have plenty of green to work with, use another club to get the ball on the putting surface and get it rolling. Using the same chipping stroke and just change the club. I've chipped with every iron in my bag.

And you post that you are an 8 handicap - we were talking about mid to high handicappers.  The LW is a difficult club to make consistent contact with, particularly for a player who doesn't even make consistent contact when chipping with a PW.   Instead of trying to get too cute with a 60° when they short side themselves and chunking or skulling the shot, they would be better off just getting the ball on the green where the next shot is a putt.  Sometimes you just have to take your medicine.

I don't give a hoot what anyone actually does, but if the near bogey golfer really wants to save some strokes in the short game, he'll be money ahead if he dumps the lob wedge out of his bag until he has gained the skill to actually use one.  Last I read, even Tom Watson doesn't carry one, and he has some pretty crazy short game skills.

[colin007]

I hardly ever use my 60, the lie has to be perfect...

[Rick Martin]

Be the Ball

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGKkmpbhv9k

[onephenom]

Head up and eyes down. Otherwise your shoulder move is messed up because the head is in the way.

[Ernest Jones]

Head up and eyes down. Otherwise your shoulder move is messed up because the head is in the way.

Not to beat a dead horse but - that's not true if you turn your shoulder down.

[Jhwarren]

Originally Posted by Ernest Jones

Not to beat a dead horse but - that's not true if you turn your shoulder down.

Totally agree. There is a great thread debunking the old "athletic set-up" idea. I would encourage all to read.

My tip would be get your weight/pressure more forward at impact. Usually this is best accomplished by sliding your hips forward. Just make sure that your upper center (head and sternum) do not move forward.

[carrx]

Always, always, always accelerate the clubhead through impact.

[onephenom]

Not to beat a dead horse but - that's not true if you turn your shoulder down.

Sure. But that doesn't seem to be a particularly natural way to swing the shoulders. It's a piece of advice Luke Donald talked about that's helped me be a lot more consistent. The pros keep their head in a straight line with the spine. So many times we hear "keep your head down" but a lot of people end up with their head too far down. Just my observation though, I could be wrong. But its helped me a lot.

[colin007]

Our spines aren't straight lines naturally, trying to make them straight and rigid is unnatural. Have a bit of a rounded feel to the upper back, and turn your shoulders on a slightly steeper angle, this will allow you to turn your head down and look at the ball without straining.

[BuckeyeNut]

Really...............if you want to improve....you have to play a lot.    There is no simple fix.  Playing once/twide a week is a start................

I never practice........... I played a lot of golf to get to a 0HC.  I haven't hit a ball on the range since 1995.  I played my way to a 0HC.

[onephenom]

Originally Posted by colin007

Our spines aren't straight lines naturally, trying to make them straight and rigid is unnatural. Have a bit of a rounded feel to the upper back, and turn your shoulders on a slightly steeper angle, this will allow you to turn your head down and look at the ball without straining.

I should clarify. I don't mean straight and rigid. Straight as in natural/comfortable. No hunching over or anything, and the head should go in line with the comfortable spine position. You could have the head as low as you want, but then you'd have to have an extremely steep swing. you shouldn't put the head "down" because steep shoulder swings are hard to repeat. Head down advice causes as many problems as it fixes. Eyes down at the ball.

[skywaterbanjo]

My one tip - memorize this:

[colin007]

Originally Posted by onephenom

I should clarify. I don't mean straight and rigid. Straight as in natural/comfortable. No hunching over or anything, and the head should go in line with the comfortable spine position. You could have the head as low as you want, but then you'd have to have an extremely steep swing. you shouldn't put the head "down" because steep shoulder swings are hard to repeat. Head down advice causes as many problems as it fixes. Eyes down at the ball.

as a 4 hc, you are a much better player than i am, but i have to disagree with a couple things.

the angle that you turn your shoulders on does not determine the steepness of the swing.  you can have a steep shoulder turn and a flat swing, and vice versa.

the reason why we want a steeper shoulder turn is two-fold  - it becomes more perpendicular to the angle of the spine and therefore more efficient.  steep shoulders also mean that the head isnt going to be bumped by the left shoulder on the backswing, and that the head can remain in a better position for you to be able to see the ball without angling your eyes downward and straining them.

[Fourputt]

Originally Posted by skywaterbanjo

My one tip - memorize this:

I love it!  This is beginner catatonia over the ball.  Good find!

[Paradox]

Its not how..its how many :)