Power
The greatest players in the world have a very common success through impact. Their body gets out of the way. Take a look the next time you see a touring pro in slow motion on the television. With the camera focused down the line, you will notice that at impact their entire back side is visible. Simply, their left side turns out of the way as the arms swing through. Most amateur golfers get “stuck” through impact and lose vital club head speed through the hitting zone. What can you do to help yourself in this situation? Well number one is flexabiliity; it helps tremendously if your body is physically able to perform these moves. Take notice of say Tiger Woods and Craig Stadler’s golf swings; different body types, different ages and different flexibilities, but both are extremely good ball strikers. There are a couple of drills that will help you keep the body moving through impact and allow you to improve comfortably with your given range of flexibility
1. Down hill lie drill-hit golf balls from a slope with an angle that is going towards your target. Using a 7 iron hit golf balls and feel how the slope will allow your momentum to move to the left side as you turn the left hip out of the way through impact
2. Step through drill- as you start your back swing move your left foot until it clicks your right, and on the down swing step towards your target as you swing through. Also known as the baseball batter drill, this will help you get your body moving through the impact zone
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Important Information
You will find that our philosophy here is simple. We strongly believe that the most important part of learning, is asking the question, “Why?” When working with our students, we encourage you to ask yourself this question, and we will help you to find the answers.
Our teachings are also based on the idea that understanding ball flight is the key to improving your golf game. The moment of truth in the game of golf is how the golf ball responds to impact. Three factors go into determining the outcome of the moment of truth – face, path and angle of attack. Once you are able to diagnose which of these three factors is not working to your advantage, you are able to correct it and improve your game. We aim to educate our students on how to understand their golf swing, identify areas of improvement and provide them with the knowledge to improve, even when we are not there to assist them.
Ball Flight Laws
Understanding the laws of ball flight is essential in improving your performance. The golf ball has nine possible directions it can fly upon impact. It can start in three directions, left, right or straight; from where it travels it will either fade (slice), draw (hook) or fly straight with no curvature.
Just as there are many paths the ball can fly, there are many ways to hit a golf ball. Look at any professional players or even your friends for that matter. You will be hard pressed to find two swings that are exactly the same. The key to improving your golf swing is repetition of impact and how to replicate the way your body moves on every swing to produce the desired results. Tiger Woods and Jim Furyk are two professional players, both with very different swings, but the common thread in their success is the repetition of their impact.
Impact Factors
The face of the golf club is what impacts the ball. The face will be either square (straight) at impact, closed or open. If the face is open, it will result in a left to right spin for a right handed golfer (fade of slice). Conversely, a closed club face will make the ball spin right to left for a right handed golfer (draw or hook). A square, or straight, club face will produce a ball that flies directly at your target upon impact.
Your golf club can also travel in three different directions.
The first is an in-to-out path, where the golf ball starts to the right of the target, and flies in a straight line to the right, which, for right-handed golfers, is called a push.
Reversely, there is an out-to-in path. The golf ball starts to the left of the target line, for a right handed golfer, this would be a pull.
The correct path would be one that travels from the inside, squares up for a moment, then travels back to the inside, resulting in a shot that flies directly at your target.
The final factor is the angle of attack. A golf club is either shallow, perfect or steep at impact. A shallow angle of attack would sweep the golf ball off the ground. This angle would result in a solid hit or a shot that is too thin. The steep angle of attack would be a player who takes a deep divot. And the final angle of attack would be a player who hits the ball first followed by a perfect divot after impact.
Address Position
When addressing the golf ball there are several components critical to your success. These are grip, aim, stance and posture.
Grip refers to the way a player holds the club. There are three primary grips - Interlock, Ten Finger (aka baseball) and Overlap. Another characteristic of a sound grip is position - weak, strong or neutral. Each player must determine which grip suits them the best and most effectively.
The position of your body has a heavy impact on the success of your golf game. Our arms tend to swing in the direction our shoulders are aimed, so it is important to concentrate on the angle of your body. In addition to shoulder position, your feet and hips must also come into play. Determining your stance depends on your swing and body type. A stance that is all square, or straight, is not always correct for every player. It is important to evaluate these factors and determine a stance that is right for you.
Posture dictates how steep or shallow you will arrive at the ball upon impact. Which swing plane works for you or your physical physique? What is your golf ball doing? Are you hitting thin shots or fat shots? Are you pulling the golf ball or pushing the golf ball? All of this can be influenced by your posture.
Swing Plane
The golf swing plane has two components: circular and vertical. Each player has a different swing that works best for them. Attempting to model yourself after a swing may not always be in your best interest.
In an upright golf swing your shoulders work on a level plane while your arms swing more vertically. Conversely, if your shoulders rotate around on a more bent over position, then your arms are going to swing more around you. This would be considered a flat swing.
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