Let the lead arm dominate

I had my swing videotaped this last year (face-on), and was amazed at what I saw when the impact frame was paused. My hands were behind my club head and it appeared I was flipping at the ball (the wrists had already become slightly unhinged). This explained why I consistently hit the ball too high and often hooked the ball.

Any time the trailing arm (the right arm for right handers) becomes too dominant, there is a tendency to release the club too early, which causes the 'flip' at the ball and promotes the toe of the club head passing the heel of the club head before it has reached the ball (thereby sending it to the left). It also discourages the descending blow that is necessary for good contact and it does not keep the club face square through impact as long.

The right hand should not play an overly active role in the golf swing. The majority of grip pressure should come from the pinky, ring finger, and middle finger of the left hand, and just the middle finger of the right hand. As a right hander, it does feel more natural to grip the club more firm with the right hand, but this must not happen, especially on the downswing. When the left hand grip is not firm enough, the grip actually separates from the hand at the top of the swing, which throws the club off of the proper plane.

My coach (USGTF Master Instructor Jim Perez) gave me a great drill to help get the left hand more involved and get the right hand less active. Simply take your normal grip then move your right forefinger to the top side of the grip so that the tip of the finger touches the tip of the thumb (mimicking an 'OK' sign). Hit some balls and be aware of how the left hand feels when it is forced to carry more of the load (you'll likely be surprised at how well the ball flies, especially if you've been losing them to the left previously).

These days, when I find that I'm pulling or hooking the ball, I just remove all grip pressure from my thumb and forefinger of the right hand. This is a modified version of the above drill, and it really helps me lead with with my left arm and hand, thereby discouraging the right hand from excessively rolling over the left through impact.

Another easy and very beneficial drill to help train your left arm to lead is to merely hit chip shots with only your left hand on the grip. You'll find that it's very difficult to try and flip the club head at the ball when performing this drill, and it also re-trains your muscle memory to make the correct 'down and through' move.

A great swing tip I read recently stated that "it should feel as if you're getting ready to throw a Frisbee with your left hand during your downswing." This is wonderful advice, as it gets the mind to focus more on the pulling motion from the left side of the body and less on the forced pushing, or 'flipping' with the right.

It's no wonder that many left handers find success golfing right handed, as their left hand and arm are naturally more dominant when they swing. For the rest of us though, it takes some work. I wonder if right handers wouldn't benefit from learning to golf left-handed? Something to think about.

Make your putter smooth, like butter

Putting is an often underappreciated artform that is hugely neglected by most golfers in their practice regimin. When one considers that almost half of the shots during a round occur on or right around the green, it becomes evident just how important putting is.

When I teach beginners how to play golf, I take them to the practice green immediately and get right into the putting stroke. By doing this, they are starting out with the smallest stroke and getting instant feedback by feeling the clubhead contact the ball with very little chance of 'mis-hits' (thereby building confidence). They also get a quick understanding that golf is a game of feel, and many shots during a round will require much less than a full swing.

I start with explaining the putting stroke itself and the things I believe are sound fundamentals:

> The only motion the body makes during a good putting stroke is the rocking back and forth of the shoulders to get the club head moving on a pendulum (I believe in putting on an arc. Putting straight back and straight through entails some manipulation of the wrists and elbows).

> Any time something else is moving besides the rocking of the shoulders (i.e. wrists hinging, body rocking back and forth, hips turning), the golfer is introducing another one or two pendulums into the mix and thereby making distance control that much harder to obtain.

> The ball should be played right in the middle to just slightly forward in the golfer's stance. This encourages hitting the ball slightly on the upswing (the putter and the driver are the only clubs used that hit the ball on the upswing) and gets it rolling off the club face rather than bouncing. If you were to take your normal putting posture, take the ball and hold it right in front of your left eye then drop it straight down on to the ground, this is the ideal location to play the ball.

> Keep a light grip on the club (even lighter than with other clubs). Hold it just firmly enough so that the club does not sway, or drag during the putting stroke. This encourages 'accellerating through the ball' which is a neccessity. Often times the golfer will second guess how far they've taken the club head back, which leads to decelleration on the downswing and a botched stroke.

> Keep your eyes down until after you've putted the ball towards the hole. Any time the eyes come up early the putter is thrown off it's intended path and the ball veers away from the intended line. This is important with every club but especially the putter. Usually one is in such a hurry to see where the ball went that they lift their eyes and try to immediately watch the ball. A good way to help them keep their eyes down for longer is to tell them to 'look for the black spot that the ball leaves on the green after it is hit' (this is a trick your eyes play on you, because the ball is so bright against the green, when it is hit you can see a 'black spot', or an impression of where the ball was). Looking for this spot will help re-inforce keeping the eyes down longer.

> Use whatever grip feels comfortable. As long as the hands are at least touching (for standard length putters), the palms face each other, and the wrists are kept firm throughout the stroke, the golfer should go with whatever grip feels good in their hands.

> Have a shoulder-width stance and make sure that the body line is always parallel to the target line (this is a good time to briefly introduce the importance of alignment). Make sure they understand 'aiming to the apex of the break' (the spot where the ball stops moving one way and starts moving the other).

> Always play more break than you think you should. Most golfers don't play enough break and never even give the ball a chance as it ends up on the side below the hole (there is a reason why this is called the 'sucker side' and the other side, with the break, is called the 'pro side').

> Favor 'dying the ball at the hole' as opposed to agressively trying to make every putt. This will leave the ball close to the hole instead of way past it (this may seem obvious, but many instructors teach the aggressive approach with the theory that more putts will be made. Many more will be missed on the way back too though). If you can, at least try and miss slightly on the far side so it at has a chance to go in. I like the thought of the ball rolling in just fast enough to tap the back of the cup and rattle in.

> Picture a 'hula hoop' sized hole surrounding the cup for long putts, and have this be your target. This takes a lot of pressure off of getting too wrapped up in the line of the putt and allows the golfer to lag the ball up to the hole in a relaxed fashion. I like taking my practice strokes while looking at the hole for long putts, too, as this helps me get a feel for how hard I want to hit it.

After these fundamentals are introduced, the most important thing to teach about putting is: Distance Control Trumps Aim Control Every Time. This should be stamped on the grip of every beginner golfer's putter. Too often the beginner obsesses so much with reading the line that they neglect to focus on the distance of the putt, or 'how hard they need to hit the ball to get it to stop in a general area'. Therefore, when I begin the lesson on the green, I simply have the golfer putt balls from different distances on the green and instruct them to 'try and get it to stop in the fringe' (you first have to explain what 'the fringe' is of course). I continue with this drill for at least ten minutes, so that they can establish a good feel for distance control. Then, I do a couple more distance control drills with tees before having them try to hit towards the hole.

If an adequate amount of time is spent teaching distance control, the golfer will have a great foundation to build from and progress forward.

Teaching the chip shot to beginners

"So, what would you like to get out of these golf lessons? What are some of your 'golfing goals'?" The instructor asks the new student.

"Um, I don't know!" The student replies without much thought.

"Are you sure? Nothing comes to mind?" The instructor persists.

"Well, uh.. I guess to hit it far and to learn how to hit my driver better?"

We've all heard this one before. It's a fairly common theme.

The student may not have wanted to admit it because they know, even at their skill level, that learning how to hit it far and how to hit the driver well are bi-products of learning smaller shots with more lofted irons first, and building towards the 'Big Dog'. However, patience is a virtue that not all of us possess (guilty as charged, your honor), and it's just human nature to want to hit it far.

Convincing the beginner student that the best way to learn the game is from the green backwards is usually not too challenging, as the student places quite a bit of trust in the instructor before the two even meet. Therefore, the instructor should take the student to the practice green for the first one or even the first two lessons and get a good short game foundation established.

If the student is signed up for a series of lessons - the first lesson should be spent entirely on putting. The drills practiced should encompass primarily 'distance control' exercises (such as putting to the fringe from different areas on the green to get a feel for 'how hard a ball needs to be hit to get it to stop at a certain area'). As we all know, distance control trumps 'reading the line well' in terms of putting success, especially for the beginner. After a good amount of distance control drills have been completed, the instructor should then introduce 'reading a putt' and show how the student how to line up to hit a putt to the apex of the break (the spot where the ball stops moving one way and starts moving towards the other). This is a good time to mention the importance of aim/ alignment.

At the end of the first lesson, the instructor should mention that the next lesson will be devoted to the chip shot. First the instructor needs to define what that shot is, then give a demonstration with a pitching wedge, mentioning how similar the chipping motion is to the putting stroke (rock the shoulders, light grip, keep the rest of the body still, keep the eyes down until after contact, don't break the wrists, and focus on distance control). Playing the ball back in the stance should be encouraged as well.

Bringing up things like 'having an open stance, accelerating through impact, hitting the ball on a descending blow, lagging the club head behind the hands through impact, leading with the left arm, and opening the club face for more loft', should not yet be introduced to the beginner. This will cause sensory overload and tension. Give them a chance to try a couple of shots before the first lesson is over.

For the second lesson, give a quick verbal refresher on the putting stroke, then transition back into the chip shot by again mentioning the similarities between the two shots. Then tell the student that the chip shot is an incredibly important shot to practice (in my opinion it is the most important shot for beginners to practice and feel comfortable with before moving on).

Reasons why the chip shot is so important for beginners to learn and practice diligently include:

-The motion mimics the putting motion, thereby reinforcing a good putting stroke.

-The golfer establishes a good feel for contact through repetition. The more this action is repeated the better.

-The golfer is unknowingly practicing hitting the ball on a descending blow, setting a great foundation for the full swing.

-The golfer is also unknowingly practicing a slightly delayed release of the hands, again setting an excellent foundation for later.

-The golfer is practicing the most important small section of the full swing, the contact point.

-The golfer is practicing the 'one-piece-takeaway' that is the start of a good back swing.

-When the golfer practices the chip shot with different lofts (and this is where it gets exciting), they are not only practicing chipping with different trajectories (which is a good idea in my opinion - I am an advocate of using as little loft as it takes to get the ball on the green and rolling over as much green as possible), but they are practicing how 'club-to-ball' contact feels with different clubs. I believe that if this is introduced on the practice green, the golfer will transition from lofted to less lofted clubs easier on the driving range.

Whichever loft they are using for chipping, make sure the student picks a specific target spot where they want the ball to land on the green in order for it to roll towards the hole (laying down a golf towel as the target spot works well for this) rather than thinking of the hole as their target spot. Be very encouraging and tell them that just getting it on the green is a success as a beginning golfer.

When the student is finally taken to the range, have them practice some chipping strokes without a ball at first, relaying the importance of 'brushing the ground' with every stroke. Encourage 'the club head thumping the ground every time' and introduce the concept of hitting down on the ball with more lofted clubs. Then, have them practice hitting chip shots with a pitching wedge and transition to the pitch shot and towards the full swing.

The more a golfer practices chipping, the better their entire game gets. What's so great is that practicing the short game is always free at the practice green, in the park, or in the living room at home (just make sure to use practice balls in the living room - I learned this one the hard way).