benredik

I would like to see a picture of someone squeezing a ball between the clubface and the ground.

Hank Haney's take on it [QUOTE]More spin w rust RT @kjadams76: @HankDHaney do you think vokey oil can wedges work better when covered in rust?[/QUOTE]

Pilsner Urquell - unpasturized.

Here in Czech Republic everyone starts with a 54 HCP (!) and can only be reduced by playing in tournaments. And to the OP, Great job, a fantastic score for your front 9.

My friend (11 HCP) and I was playing and on the two first tee shots he blasted the ball with the driver off the tee. His drives where about 260-270 yards. On the third hole, a par 4, it's a small water hazard just off the tee. He gets ready with his setup, about to blast another perfect drive.. I say "It's 101 to carry" - he gives me a weird look and of course shanks it into the water :-) So that has become our inside joke on hole #3 on our home course. Of course this is all for fun and I would never consider it in a tournament.

I have it and I like it. Quite heavy putter.

My best round ever today (8 strokes less than my second best..) All distances in meters. (hole 3 was a 2-putt..)

Harrington -12

I had to smile while reading your post, because I recognized my struggles so much in your first paragraph. I remember being very happy when my drive didn't end up in the fairway, but rather in light ruff/ first cut. It was like the ball was teed up already and I got a much cleaner impact. I even used a half swing with my Driver on long Par 3s. Finally, I'd use my putter anywhere even close to the green. I've managed to shake those habits now, and I will also try to shake off my habit of picking the ball clean from the bunker. I guess I knew it was wrong all along, I just needed someone to tell me :-) I might use the "clean pick" on a few more rounds (as it works better for me at the moment) but I will only practice the real bunker shot.. Anyway, thanks for sharing. Great video, a bit of an eyeopener to be honest. I thought I'd found a shortcut, but I guess it's back to the bunker practicing :-) Thanks for great replies - Very useful.

Where exactly in Austria are you going? If you are going to Vienna there are a few nice Golf courses on the Czech side of the border (incl my home course) It is about 1-1.5 hour drive away from Vienna. There you would not need any established handicap, but you need to be able to keep up a normal pace of play (1 round < 5 hours).

Hi and thanks for the link. It is well explained and good material, but I still can't get my head around that the best way to get a ball out of a bunker is to smack it into the sand. Too much is left up to chance. Even on the PGA tour you see a lot of players messing up their bunker shots even when the lie is good. Ok, it looks amazing when it works, but I struggle to believe is is the most efficient way to get the ball out of a bunker.. Does anyone know of any different approaches to (greenside) bunker shots?

So I'm a new golfer, struggling with most parts of the game. On a good day I shoot in the mid 90s. Going through my first few lessons I was learning how to get the ball out of greenside bunkers; open stance, open club face, bent knees, hit one inch in front of the ball. Conventional wisdom. I practised it quite a lot, but it seemed a bit odd; hitting the sand first seems to add a lot of uncertain elements into the shot. I never got very good at it either. I had some drastic improvements in my iron game after reading Bobby Clampett's "the impact zone" and I was thinking how inefficient the sand trap shot was. So much lost energy, so many added factors; why not try a clean shot with less power and let the loft of the club do the work. So last weekend I did two full rounds with just trying to do a clean wedge shot, hands in front of the ball, aiming 1-2 inches on the target side of the ball and much less power. I had 5 sand trap shots, all ending up within a few feet and one directly in. Much more confidence, much more control, and a much better feeling with actually making an impact with the ball. Ok I know it just might be because my traditional sand game was horrible, but it just seems odd to me that this inefficient way to launch a golf ball out of a bunker has become the one and only way to deal with these shots.. Am I missing something or has anyone else had a similar experience? I realise there is a reason why this has become the conventional wisdom on bunker shots, but on every other type of shots there is a million different opinions on how to make a proper shot (hit up or down on the ball with the driver, stack and tilt or not.. We can't even agree on what makes a ball fade or draw..)

Yep. Only as a trial, but chances are it will become permanent.

The Olympics :)

[URL=http://img9.imageshack.us/i/imageeju.jpg/][IMG]http://img9.imageshack.us/img9/4066/imageeju.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

[quote name="wrx_junki" url="/forum/thread/39248/best-iphone-golf-gps-app/54#post_559571"] You compared your Golfshot with against which dedicated GPS? I've tried it so am I free to bash? Golfshot is inferior to dedicated GPS. I'm pretty sure I posted somewhere in this thread already about go the iPhone depends on aGPS which lacks accuracy.

I use the 10 finger grip. It feels ok to me, but then again I am a high handicapper and I am playing with the idea of changing it. I have big hands and i've heard that the 10 finger grip is reducing your ability to shape the shot. When I try interlocking or overlapping my shots all go to the right. No exception.

Thanks for the input, but I've just bought a 19* fairway wood. Hopefully it will help me out. My thinking was that I hit my driver much better than my irons, and that the fairway wood would be closer to the driver. Thanks and well done on braking 90! Hopefully I will be there at the end of this year. My goal is to reach a HCP of 18, which means a 92 on my home course. Even though I live in Czech Republic, I'm not Czech. However, Rosicky is still a great player!

Good luck with your putting!

I just read the article http://thesandtrap.com/b/playing_tips/ball_flight_laws and it just answered my question about the inside to out swing. It makes a lot of sense.

In meters, so multiply by 1.1 to get yards; Driver 200 with FIR 70%, 230 with FIR 35% 4 Iron 50 (my average shot is a fat shot) 5 Iron 145 6 Iron 138 7 Iron 130 8 Iron 120 9 Iron 115 P Wedge 105-110 56* 75-80 60* 65 Variance +/- 5% on all clubs..

Earlybird at Santana Golf Club close to Malaga, Spain.

Hi Canadianpro, Thanks for your feedback, I realize it's not much to work on with only that mobile phone video. When you say inside to outside you mean I should have a steeper swing plane and then hit "out" on the ball? I feel like my shots are going mostly slightly right already, and my gut feeling (which have proved wrong many times in golf!) would be that I would push the shot more if I don't change to a more closed clubface. My previous problem was the strong draw or hook on shots, which got better after trying to hit down on the ball (with aim and divot on target side of the ball) instead of trying to hit the ball. I also use a 10 finger grip, which I realize is not optimal after reading a few other blogs. When I had my first lesson the Pro told me to use whatever grip felt comfortable, and at the time holding a golf club in general felt uncomfortable so I stuck with the 10 finger grip. When I recently tried to change to an overlapping grip, the shots went all over the place.. even with my wedges. Finally, regarding the punch shots, I will try to spend my next indoor driving session doing those. It is something I have never practised before. If I understand right I will basically not release the cocked wrist and not finish the follow through? I have tried to start with my hips first in the downswing, and although I feel like I get much more power (and a fairly clean contact), I feel less balanced and like I am "swaying" a bit. I it something I should continue to practice on? Thanks for you comments.

596; thanks for sharing! Truly amazing! Looking forward to the spring and playing golf again!

As a newcomer to the sport of golf, the beauty of the sport is not only the game itself, but also the incredible surroundings that we have the privilege to play in. This picture was taken on the Franciacorta Golf Course close to Bergamo in northern Italy in November. I just had to take a picture as the view was fantastic! You can see the snowcovered Italian alps in the background. It was taken with my phone so the colours are not perfect. If you have any nice golf pictures yourself, please share them with us on this thread!