Putting is arguably one of the most important aspects of Golf. Don’t worry about trying to read the green until you have become proficient with pace of the ball. Getting this right comes from developing a smooth and rhythmic putting style. There are no clear-cut rules about how you address the ball - develop a style which feels comfortable and delivers a smooth and reliable stroke.

Step One

Very few top golfers break their wrists when they putt. Instead they let their arms relax and hang loosely and hold the putter lightly to produce a pendulum action from the shoulders. Ben Crenshaw is one of the world’s finest putters. He holds the club so lightly that sometimes he drops it - but this is how he achieves the ‘touch’ behind a smooth rhythm. Set up with the ball near your front foot, the club face square to the target line and your eyes over the ball. It is advisable to keep your hands level or ahead of the ball throughout the stroke.

Step Two

Move the putter away smoothly, the arms hinging from the shoulders rather than the elbows or the wrists. Keep the putter head as a low to the ground as possible and on a line square to the target as you swing it back and then forwards.

Step Three

Maintain your tempo through the swing, accelerating slightly into the approach. Watch the putter head strike the back of the ball on the upswing, feeling almost as if the palm of your right hand is striking it towards the target. The best putting strokes look smooth and effortless because the club is swung back and forward at the same speed.

Step Four

Follow through to the hole with your club rather than with your eyes. It is good to practice keeping eye contact on the spot where the ball was rather than trying to see where it has gone. Practice counting two seconds in your head before you allow yourself the temptation to see how well you’ve done. Follow these steps and with proper practise you’ll avoid the dreaded yips. Also, If you want to concentrate on any one single piece of equipment, consider the following: you hit your putter approximately 2 ½ times more often a driver during a round. With some basic instruction and a well-designed putter you CAN putt like a pro. Driving like the pros is only a fantasy.

Tags: golf, putting

Old sayings die hard. That’s because they often contain a kernel of truth within them. Take the old golf saying, You drive for show, but you putt for dough— This saying highlights how critical the short game is to winning matches and lowering golf handicaps. As golf sayings go, it’s a good one.

The short game, often determines who wins a match and who loses one, as well as what your score and your golf handicap is at the end of the day. Weekend golfers with poor short games seldom win matches or have a low score or handicap. Most have a hard time breaking 100. Some have difficulty breaking 90. So don’t look for them to be among the leaders in club tournaments.

From 50 Feet Away

One of the hardest parts of the short game for many weekend golfers is playing a shot from 50 feet away. While the distance to the pin is relatively short, misplaying the shot adds strokes to your score—maybe as many as two or three per hole. If you’re really serious about improving your game, you need to master this shot.

The biggest challenge with this shot is being decisive. Most weekend golfers aren’t sure what club to use. Others are unsure how to play the shot. You have several choices of club and a couple of different approaches to hitting the shot. But you can simplify the process if you approach it logically, as I teach students to do in my golf lessons.

A major factor in club choice is how well you play. If your short game is weak, you’ll want to use a club that provides good control and is easy to hit, cutting down on your chances of mis-hitting the ball. Your club choices are a hybrid club, a fairway wood, and 8-iron, or a wedge.

You also must decide if you’re going to play this shot aggressively or conservatively. If you consistently break 80, you’ll use a different approach than you would if you have trouble breaking 100. Evaluate your skills honestly before deciding how to approach the shot. Below are three scenarios.

Breaking 100

If you have a hard time breaking 100, you’ll probably want to take a conservative approach. The best choice for a tight fairway lie is using either a hybrid club or a fairway wood. Select whichever one feels most comfortable and use a putting stroke to hit the ball. First, picture how you want the ball to bounce and roll on the green. Keep in mind that if the first bounce is before the green, the ball will roll on the green like a putt.

Once you decide how you want the ball to bounce and roll, take a normal putting stance and choke down an inch or two on the club’s shaft to provide greater control. Position the ball in the middle of your stance, with your weight evenly distributed, just they way you’re taught in golf instruction sessions. From there, make a normal putting stroke, accelerating through impact. You need to make level contact with the ball, so avoid a downward stroke. Imagine the shot as a long lag putt, with just a little extra pop.

Breaking 90

If you break 90 consistently, you’ll probably want to be more aggressive. Use an 8-iron with a standard chipping technique. Play the ball off your right instep (for right-handers), set most of your weight on your left foot, and use a firm wrist motion. Swing the club’s grip end to about the height of your right pocket, going back and through to your left pocket.

Your set up with this shot promotes a descending blow. You need to determine where you want the ball to hit and how far you want it to roll, just like on the previous hole. Play for about one-third carry and two-thirds roll, with the first bounce just off the green. Remember the longer the roll, the easier it is to control the shot.

Breaking 80

For players who consistently break 80, taking a more aggressive approach is not out of the question. You usually have low golf handicaps and are probably more accurate with your short game. Instead of trying to make the ball bounce before the green, try flying the ball onto the green to avoid any impressions on the front of the green. Use a pitching or a sand wedge, position the ball in the middle of your stance, and set more weight on your left side than your right. Swing your arms back to the 9 o’clock position, letting your wrist hinge the club up.

Swing through to 3 o’clock, turning your body through so it faces the target. Plan to hit the green with this shot. Play for two-thirds carry and one-third roll. This approach is riskier than a chip shot, so make sure a mis-hit won’t find disaster over the green. This approach works well for many veteran golfers. With practice, you’ll able to get the ball within a foot or two of the hole.

Fifty feet away from the pin, as I caution players taking golf lessons, is a difficult shot for weekend golfers. Indecision is the main problem when it comes to hitting the 50-foot shot. Be decisive. Choose a club and an approach that fits your game and your golf handicap, and then practice the shot until it becomes ingrained. If you’re truly serious a lowering your golf handicap, you’ll learn to master this shot.

This Article is provided courtesy of Jack Moorehouse who is the author of the best-selling book How to Break 80

Sooner or later, you’ll face a shot where you must go over an obstacle and land on the green to hole out with a par or better. It may be for bragging rights in your Tuesday morning foursome, the title to the club championship, or a friendly wager with the club pro. Or, it might just be for sheer personal pride. Whatever the case, it’s a shot you must make.

When faced with a 25-foot lob like this, the first thing you need to do is to relax, as I tell students taking my golf lesson. Catch your breath and review the shot closely. Then decide if the reward is worth the risk. Sometimes discretion is the better part of valor in golf. But if you’re convinced it’s a shot you need to make, then go for it.

Confidence is the Key
The secret to overcoming an obstacle like a tree, as I’ve written in my golf tips, is confidence. If you watch a good golfer address the shot and then a not-so-good golfer, you’ll notice one big difference: Good golfers know they can get over the tree and land on the green. Not-so-good golfers aren’t sure. Instead, they hope (and pray) for a miracle shot, one that lands on the green and sticks.

Good golfers know they can make the shot for three reasons. First, they have faith in their mechanics. They know what adjustments to make in their swings to get the job done. And they know they’re swings are good enough to do it. Second, they know what the real key is to making the shot. And third, they know that they can do it because they’ve done it before in practice. Let’s take a closer look at each of these topics.

Making the Right Adjustments

Making the right adjustments, as I have said in my golf instruction sessions, is often the difference between hitting a shot like this successfully or failing miserable. Here are six tips on hitting the shot:

1. Choke down on the club
2. Use an open stance
3. Play ball in middle of your stance
4. Align your body left of the target (for righties)
5. Align the clubface square to target
6. Swing along your body.

Start by choking down on the grip and addressing the ball with an open stance. Aim your feet about 30 degrees more open than normal. Also, play the ball in the middle of your stance and position your weight on your back foot. Although you align your body left of the target, align the clubface square to the target. Position your hands directly over the ball. This is the proper position to hit the shot, as you may have read in my golf tips.

Key To The Shot

The key to this shot is taking the right swing path. You must remember to take the club back along your bodyline. That means approaching the shot on an out-to-in swing path on the downswing. Maintain the bulk of your weight on your back foot and use a steady smooth swing. And accelerate through impact. Allow your hands to release through the ball while still holding the clubface open.

Most recreational golfers don’t choke up on the club when taking this shot and/or they don’t open their stances. They just grab the club at the usual spot and then use a normal stance. Then they try to “lift” the ball over the obstacle. Needless to say, they’re not successful.

Practice Makes Perfect

After taking a few practice swings to get comfortable, find an obstacle like a tree or a high fence and practice the shot. Address the ball as indicated above but take your mind off your swing. Concentrate on the obstacle you need to hit over instead. Visualize yourself successfully making the shot. Once you have a clear picture of success, swing away with confidence.

Practice this shot several times and concentrate on the visual image of the ball clearing the obstacle and dropping softly on the green. After a few attempts, with sufficient confidence, proper visualization, and sound mechanics, you’ll ingrain the shot enough to try it on the golf course. Practice this shot as often as you can. Your goal should be to ht the shot successfully 10 times out of 10. Do that and you’ll have enough confidence and skill to hit the shot in a pressure situation.

This Article is provided courtesy of Jack Moorehouse who is the author of the best-selling book How to Break 80

Good putting demands good technique. And the utmost in limited and controlled movement during the putt. The slightest movement can throw your putting off. The same holds true for your eyes. Any deviation can affect both your aim and distance control, leading to a bad putt. Below are six keys to improved putting:

• Keep grip pressure light for better feel
• Square up to the intended target line
• Make a full smooth practice stroke
• Keep your wrist firm
• Stay square through ball
• Strike on the up stroke

A good way to train yourself to keep your eyes steady is the “Show Me the Money Drill.” To execute it, all you need is a penny (or a ball marker). First, find a flat spot on the green. Place the coin on the ground. Then place the ball directly on top of the coin. Now, take your stance and putt as you normally would. Concentrate on seeing the coin after you’ve putted. By focusing on the coin, you’ll find your stroke is more likely to accelerate through the ball.

The drill also improves your ability to gauge distance and speed.The Show Me the Money Drill works for three reasons. It forces you to keep you eyes steady, helping to stabilize your whole body. It prevents you from lifting out of your stance prematurely. And because you’re focused on the coin and not the ball, it inclines you to make a nice clean stroke through the ball.

If want to excel on the greens, remember the putting keys. And practice the Show Me the Money Drill. Together, they’ll improve both your putting technique and your golf handicap.

This Article is provided courtesy of Jack Moorehouse who is the author of the best-selling book How to Break 80

Nothing’s more frustrating than putting a ball offline. Instead of sinking the putt, you leave yourself with a tap in, even though you had the right distance. If the green is sloped away from you, you drift several feet away from the hole, with a difficult putt coming back. Either way, you’re adding strokes to your score.

Lining up your ball properly is a key to putt well. No matter how close or far you are from the cup, if the put isn’t lined up properly, it has no chance of going in, even if you have the right speed. And compensating in mid-stroke for misaligning the putt seldom works, if ever.

Many weekend golfers try to push or pull the ball to get it on target instead of starting square and trusting their stroke. They sideswipe the ball, send it off line, and have problems with distance control. Instead, line up your putts by using this visual device. Try framing the ball.

Next time you’re putting, picture a framing square as it relates to your putter and your line. The vertical part of the tool should be parallel to the face of your putter, and the horizontal part should be parallel to the target line. Keep the putter on line and the face square, and the ball will go where you aim it.

Here are 5 other keys to keeping your putts on line:

• Position your eyes over the ball
• Remain still during your putt
• Square up your shoulders
• Keep you hands over (or just ahead) of the ball
• Form a neutral union of your hands

If your putting is offline, it can be frustrating. Use the framing square to line up the putt and commit to the five keys mentioned above.  If everything is in order, trust your stroke and make a good putt, accelerating through impact. Almost half of all your strokes during a round of golf are putts. Keep them to a minimum and your will reduce your scores.

This Article is provided courtesy of Jack Moorehouse who is the author of the best-selling book How to Break 80

These steps will ensure that you have the right mechanics for getting out of bunkers. Once you’ve read these steps, practice them and get used to hitting out of bunkers, and they will become just as natural as a regular short game shot. These steps will give you the solid foundation that you need for bunker success.

Here are the steps: (note: These steps apply to a normal sand bunker. Not wet or hard sand)

1. Choke down on the golf club (Have your right index finger about an inch from the bottom of the grip). Choking down gives you control of the club and allows you to “feel” the shot rather than hitting it.

2. Narrow your stance a little and play the ball a few inches forward in your stance. This will also aid in controlling the shot, and it will contribute to higher ball flight.

3. Dig into the sand with your feet a little and get comfortable.

4. Keep your body completely still throughout (no twisting hips).

5. Start your swing with your arms and keep your swing vertical. The end of the grip butt should be pointed at the ball at the top of your backswing. (Don’t bring the club straight back, remember steep is better here!)

6. Your left arm should be parallel to the ground and fully extended at the top of your swing.

7. Then start your downswing at the sand focusing to hit 1 inch behind the ball. Don’t focus on hitting the ball, hit the sand an inch behind and the ball will get out every time!

8. Your arms and body follow the ball as it leaves the sand.

9. Remember - a steep angle into the sand is key here.  You don’t have to swing too hard; we are not blasting the ball out, we are advancing it.

Go into a bunker and take 3 clubs your pitching wedge, sand wedge, and a lob wedge(if you have one). Remember that you can get creative with shots; just because it’s a sand wedge doesn’t mean that you’ll “feel” the most comfortable or get the best results. But notice the difference in design and performance.

Hit a few shots with each club and really notice the difference in how the ball comes out of the sand. Then choose the club that bests suits you. But remember, with all these clubs swing steep and hit 1 inch behind the ball. You can even draw a line behind the ball and aim for that line.

At home, office, or at the course take practice swings and focus on bringing the club up at a steep angle. Watch as your grip end points to the ground. And stop there - this is the position that you want to be in. A great way to see if the grip is pointed over the ball is sticking a tee in the grip handle. Do that a few times to ensure that you know where to stop the golf club and start your steep downswing. Then the downswing is easy! Just hit an inch behind the ball. Practice this for a few days then go have fun in a bunker.

David Nevogt writes golf instruction material that helps golfers of all levels reach their full potential and lower their scores. David is the author of “The Simple Golf Swing” which guarantees to have you shooting 7 strokes lower in only 1 week from today. You can find more of his golf instruction by going to The Simple Golf Swing.

The club of choice for a greenside chip is the wedge. But be careful. Using a wedge along the rim of the green can cost you strokes. The wedge can pop the ball up, create too much roll, or make the ball check. In a fluffy lie, it can slip completely under the ball, causing a flubbed shot.

If you want an alternative, try your hybrid. It has few of the negatives of the wedge. The hybrid almost guarantees that the ball will get airborne a few inches and immediately start rolling toward the target. The sooner the ball hits the ground, the easier it is to control. Here are 5 keys to greenside chipping with a hybrid:

• Use a putting stroke
• Choke down on the club
• Place the ball slightly forward
• Shift your weight slightly forward
• Stroke the chip as you would a putt

Take a putting stance and use a putting stroke. Choke down on the club for better control. And plan for plenty of roll, since the ball will get airborne quickly and start rolling in a hurry. Read the green as you would a putt and don’t forget to play the break.

Using the hybrid for a greenside chip makes sense. The hybrid’s enlarged sweet spot minimizes twisting and distance loss, if you mishit hit the ball or you hit it slightly on the heel or the toe. In addition, the club’s thick sole and low weighting helps brush through the turf with sufficient momentum to prevent a flubbed shot.

While the hybrid tends to be more effective from about 10 yards in, you can chip with it beyond 10 yards with success. With practice and experimentation, chipping with the hybrid will become as natural as chipping with a wedge and just as effective, if not more effective.

This Article is provided courtesy of Jack Moorehouse who is the author of the best-selling book How to Break 80

You hit a great approach shot, but it hits the green, trickles off, and rolls down an embankment. You’re in a grassy or fluffy lie at the bottom of the embankment, with the green about 5 feet to 20 feet above you. To save par, you must get up and down, so you need to hit a “pop-up” shot that lands softly on the green.

This shot intimates some golfers, but it’s easier than it looks. The keys are setting up properly and taking a flat, baseball-like swing. Here are 5 tips to making the shot:

1. Set up with the slope
2. Tilt your shoulders in line with the slope
3. Open the clubface
4. Aim 5 feet to 10 feet the right
5. Take a baseball-like swing

Although the lie is level, you still have to contend with the embankment’s slope. Place the front foot above the back foot at address. Tilt your shoulders in line with the slope, aim 5 feet to 10 feet right of the target (or left, if you’re left handed), and lay the clubface wide open.

Now take a flat swing, like you were hitting a baseball. The ball pops almost straight up and lands softly on the green. If you swing along the target line, your club and ball will just bank off the hill, instead of popping up.

You can swing with varying force levels and still have success with this shot. As long as you make square contact, the ball will go almost straight up. The worst that can happen is that it stays in the air longer than expected.

You won’t face this shot often, but knowing how to execute it can help you save par or turn three strokes into two. Find a green with an embankment and practice the shot using the keys mentioned above. With a little bit of effort, you’ll master the shot.

This Article is provided courtesy of Jack Moorehouse who is the author of the best-selling book How to Break 80

Here’s a tip on what clubs to carry in your bag: Many teachers recommend carrying three wedges, a pitching wedge plus two utility wedges. That might be difficult under some circumstances. But if you substitute a hybrid club for two of your longer clubs, you gain a one-club advantage, allowing you to carry the extra wedge. There’s a range of lofts between 52 degrees and 60 degrees that provide versatility around the green.

The 56-degree wedge is among those clubs. You can hit all kinds of shots with it when you’re close to the green. You can open the face and hit a high lofting shot, or play the ball back in your stance and hit a bump and run. Mastering the 56-degree wedge also prepares you for hitting the 60-degree wedge, the ideal club for making flop shots.

Here are five tips to hitting a 56-degree wedge:

• Determine the type of shot required
• Open your stance slightly at address
• Position the ball based on the shot
• Keep your hands ahead of the ball
• Use a descending blow

If you continually stub short wedge shots, it could be because you’re not using a descending blow. A good drill for players who stub short chip and pitch shots requires a friend’s help. Have him or her hold his hand just above and beyond the ball at address and catch it in the air after you’ve hit it. (I’ve done it hundreds of time and it doesn’t hurt.)

In addition to teaching you to make a crisp descending blow, the drill forces golfers to keep the club low after impact, so as not to hit the other player’s hands. That keeps the golfer from scooping the shot or lifting up and skulling it.

Gary Player once said that 70 percent of all golf shots are played around the green - a startling but accurate statistic. Work on your wedge shots, especially with the 56-degree wedge, and you’ll turn three shots into two when around the green.

This Article is provided courtesy of Jack Moorehouse who is the author of the best-selling book How to Break 80