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How to Play Golf Shots From Uneven or Sloping Lies

By Mark Pearson

Wouldn’t it be nice if all our golf ball lies were as level as they are on the driving range? Unfortunately they are not… and golf would not be as interesting if they were!

We often find ourselves in situations where the ball is above or below our feet, or we are hitting from an up or downhill lie. All of these lies affect the way the shot is played and how the ball will fly. So how should you play these shots?

Uphill Lies

When you are hitting from an uphill lie, the ball will fly higher than normal. The slope you are hitting up effectively adds loft to the club. So take an extra club to compensate. Always try and align yourself perpendicular to the slope. This will stop you coming in too steep on the shot.

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No Comments | Posted in » Golf Swing

Think More Loft for Better Distance

By Deron Frederickson

Recently I wrote an article touching upon the myth that “more length equals more distance” for golf drivers. Most golfers are also under the impression that to gain those few extra precious yards off the tee, they need a driver that has less loft.

This is almost always the wrong answer for the everyday golfer — and there are several reasons why.

First, most golfers don’t swing fast enough to use lower lofted drivers. To illustrate, a golfer who swings the driver 100mph generally gets maximum carry distance with a 10 degree driver. Yet, I see countless golfers who swing much slower using drivers with 7 to 8 degrees of loft.

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No Comments | Posted in » Equipment, Power

If You are Not Serious About Improving Your Golf Swing, Do Not Read This

By Paul Macleod

Warning: If you are a weekend hacker and are happy with it, do not read this. Just click away from this article and go on with whatever you were doing.

If you play just for the heck of it and could care less about the score or competition, there is a great knitting site you may be more comfortable with. Go there.

For everybody else, those of you who strive to get better at golf, this is an absolute must read.

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No Comments | Posted in » Golf Swing

Play Ready Golf – Speed Up Your Golf Round

By Sean Lensborn

Five hour rounds are a pretty common occurrence at a public golf course. And honestly, there is no need for it. I don’t care if you’re a 40 handicap or a 5 handicap, you can play in 4 hours or less, as long as you follow some simple rules…

Play Ready Golf!

How often have you stood around on the tee of a par 3, watching the group in front for what seems to be an eternity? Three of the guys are on the green. One is in the bunker. The guy in the bunker was the last to hit… so he’s also the last to get to the bunker.

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No Comments | Posted in » Miscellaneous

Improve Your Golf Swing Using Proper Weight Shift (Part 2 of 2)

By Michael Kosmala

In part 1, I discussed the impact that simplifying the golf swing can have on consistency and accuracy. More specifically, minimizing your weight shift back and away from the ball is your first step to a more consistent golf swing.

Proper weight shift forward and through the ball on impact will help you improve your golf swing resulting in straighter balls with more distance.

In practice, this means less sliding through the ball and more swinging your weight around your body.

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No Comments | Posted in » Golf Swing

Golf Mental Swing Tips

By David Kierstead

When we finally realize that golf is in our head in a big way, we can attack the animal where most of our golf swing issues arise.

For instance, when you take your backswing, I bet that in your head you think, “terrible back swing I am in trouble,” and you give up on the swing on the way down. Meaning, you straighten up and remain on your backside and flip it. Now, I bet that if you stayed with the swing and transferred your weight, you would have hit it a ton better then when you gave up on it. So why don’t we just trust our swing even if we feel it’s a bad backswing and complete the downswing?

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No Comments | Posted in » Golf Swing, Mental Game

Improve Your Golf Swing Using Proper Weight Shift (Part 1 of 2)

By Michael Kosmala

Most golfers spend countless hours trying to reproduce a highly technical swing that only a handful of professionals can replicate on a consistent basis. So it’s no wonder that the United States Golf Association recently reported that only 10% of all golfers break 100 on a consistent basis.

Many golfers learning to play golf shift their weight back on the backswing because this is what they see countless pros do on TV over and over again. What they don’t realize is that you don’t need to swing like a pro to lower your golf handicap. In fact, simplifying your swing will dramatically improve your golf swing, increasing consistency and distance.

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No Comments | Posted in » Golf Swing

Chipping Tips – Have a Plan

By Robert Bernard

Having a plan when you chip the golf ball will not only increase your chances of success, but will also increase your confidence. Any sports psychologist will tell you that increased confidence will result in better execution of the golf shot, and better execution results in increased confidence and so on.

When you know (and are confident with) the 7 to 5 chipping distances of all your clubs (including your rescue clubs and high lofted woods), you have taken the guesswork out of your short game and have built in shot saving confidence.

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No Comments | Posted in » Short Game

Golf Course Magic With the 7-Iron

By Ray L. Walberg

If you have seen Tin Cup, a popular movie starring Kevin Costner, you should understand how important the 7-Iron is to the game. To the golf player, the 7-Iron is often thought of as the perfect golf club.

With only a 7-Iron and a putter, a golfer could shoot par on nearly any golf course. Now, using a 7-Iron as a golf drive will not result in drives of 300 yards, but long drives are not what the 7-Iron was designed to do. However, depending on the golfer’s strength, a quality shot with a 7-Iron can still go anywhere from 175 to 225 yards.

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No Comments | Posted in » Uncategorized

Augusta National Myths

Previously Published in HumanGolf.com 

By Martin Vousden

We all think we know Augusta National because it’s the only course to host a Major every year. But there are a number of falsehoods and misunderstandings about the place.

Myth: You need to be a great putter

Ian Woosnam, Bernhard Langer and Fred Couples have all won there in the last 15 years and none of them would be regarded as the best at wielding a short (or in Bernhard’s case, long) stick.

What you need to be is a great iron player who puts his ball into the right part of the green, so that putting does not become an obstacle course. NB: Ian Woosnam uses a long putter now but didn’t when he won the green jacket.

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No Comments | Posted in » Miscellaneous