Welcome

Welcome to "Better Golfing" - the site for the golfing community at large.
Whether you have just started playing golf or whether you are an accomplished player this site is for you.
In this website I plan to give you some honest opinions on equipment but more importantly give you a reality check on YOU. You are different to me and you are different to Tiger.
With some honest opinion and advice, the correct basic equipment and a little bit of practice we will get you on the road to Better Golfing!

Better Golfing - Simply.

With "Better Golfing" I hope to get you to relax about the game of golf, enjoy it to the best of your ability, accept your limitations, retain your competitive edge and celebrate your achievements. We need to learn to enjoy to the full those days when "everything goes right" and accept the times when "absolutley nothing you do works". I welcome your participation by way of anectodes, questions and opinions - please contribute freely. With your input I hope to make this a place where we can all enjoy the game more and all move on to "Better Golfing".

Let's Talk Golf!

Golf is probably the most mysterious game of all and is pretty unique in many aspects. First and foremost it is a game that involves a static ball. In most other games the ball is moving at a high speed and the participants either have to hit, catch, kick, dodge, steer or guide it somewhere. There are no two golf courses that are the same, and all golf course are altered daily by moving the teeing ground and or moving the pin location. No two shots ARE EVER the same. Participants have an array of up to 14 clubs to choose from for each shot. It is a game where the partcipant is the referee. The game relies on the honesty of each golfer to ensure the rules are adhered to. How unique is that? Golf is played year round - weather permitting. There are only 34 rules in golf. These 34 rules and the various definitions cover any situation that may arise in the course of a round of golf.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

The Short Game

This is a follow up to a previous post about practice making permanent and not perfect!
Since then I have been to the range almost every day to perfect the "finesse" swing. The "finesse" swing is the only shot you will need to pitch the ball from 100 yards and in. The only variables you will need is the loft of the club and the length of the swing.
For example I now use 4 wedges:
46 degree which is the standard pitching wedge
52 degree gap wedge
56 degree sand wedge and
60 degree lob wedge.
These wedges are then coupled with a particular swing length which equate to a clock face.
If you can imagine that your left arm is the hour hand of a clock. When the club is in the normal address position (IE on the ground behind the ball just before take away) that would the "6.00 o'clock position".
Now the finesse swing is the length of the takeaway base on a 12 hour clock. 3 different lengths are used. All swing lengths start from the 6.00 position.
The first is the "7.30" position. This is by far the hardest to master at it is so short that it feels incomplete. Initially there just doesn't seem to be any potential to accelerate the club through the ball and it takes a lot of practice to stop the hands (especially the right hand - for right handed golfers) taking over. After a while it does become easier and the confidence builds.
The next position is the "9.00" and is the easiest. I suggest you start on this one first and master it before moving on to the others.
The final position is the "10.30" position. Again fairly easy with the only risk being the possibility of over swinging.
So with 4 clubs and 3 different length swings you have 12 distances from 100 yards out that you eventually know you can land the ball on a dime (distance wise anyway - accuracy is another story!).
Mathematically translated that means about every 8 yards you will have a definite shot to play with an almost guaranteed chance of success. I think you will agree if you could get on the green 90% of the time from 100 yards or less you would greatly reduce your scores.
But you would still need to putt. Maybe I should offer my e-book "Putt for Dough" as a freebie. It is jam packed with practical putting drills to get you to putt better and at all costs to avoid three putting.
Let me know if you would like that by posting a comment below. I will gladly do it if there is enough demand.
Next time I will report on how I am getting along with the "5 Key Elements to Distance".
Till then enjoy your game.

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