How to Practice on a Sim…

And Actually See Improvement on the Course…

It’s never been easier to play golf on a simulator…

Simulators have been popping up everywhere… In local strip malls, at the country club, in local gyms… you may even have one at home.

I recently worked with someone who has been playing a lot of sim golf… but hasn’t seen any real improvement in their game.

When trying to improve – Most people use a simulator wrong…

The digital range is a great place to learn your numbers… but hitting hundreds of balls off a mat into a screen doesn’t really translate to on-course game play.

If you want to see your game and confidence grow by leaps and bounds, there’s a really important button on your simulator – The “Mulligan” button.

The mulligan button makes it easy to try different ideas: different clubs, different approaches, different swing thoughts, different shot shapes, or even just “prove it.”

When you hit a shot on a simulator, you get all the important information – Carry Distance, Total Distance, Direction, Shot Shape, and Result (where you ended up).

Now… you can hit “Mulligan” and try again.

Maybe you didn’t like what you did and you want to try to improve your shot…

Maybe you picked the wrong club…

Maybe you want to try a high pitch vs a bump and run…

Maybe you crushed it and you want to prove to yourself that it wasn’t an accident.

Simulators are the easiest way to practice course strategy and gain confidence in your numbers… especially if you make liberal use of the “Mulligan” button.

 

Discover effortless, pain-free power in your swing…

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At Home Chipping Drill…

If you struggle with chipping… Use this drill to master your chipping and never fear missing the green again.

Chipping can be stressful because small breakdowns in technique and misses around the green can have a big affect on your score.

The small mistake when chipping almost always costs you a full stroke.

When you hit a great chip… You’re left with a gimme.

If you only hit an okay chip… You’re left trying to make a putt.

If you hit a poor chip… You could be left with a LONG putt or even another chip.

The same small mistake with a full swing usually costs less than a full stroke… affecting your overall score significantly less.

The best practice for your chipping is using a putting mat to practice putts with any club other than your putter.

Grab a wedge (or any club other than your putter) and hold it like your putter.

Hit the ball with your putting stroke and let the loft on the club lift and carry the ball.

This drill helps you get comfortable chipping while controlling direction and speed.

As you get more comfortable, you can increase the distance to find your “max” chipping distance with your putting stroke. (Your max chipping distance is how far you can chip before you need to a partial swing vs a putting stroke.)

This drill makes it easy to practice chipping at home and build confidence so you never fear missing the green again.

Discover effortless power in your swing…

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Never Blade It Over The Green Again…

I’ve just hit a perfect drive on a relatively short par four…

The kind of ball where everything feels good and the ball just seems to hang in the air…

The kind of ball you’ll spend the rest of the day hoping to feel a swing and contact like that again…

Now, I’m 40 yards out… it should be a simple pitch shot for a birdie putt.

BUT… You already know how this ends…

Naturally, I blade it well over the green… and it’s DEAD back there…

I proceed to chunk the return pitch just 2 feet in front of me…

Finally, I make clean contact and roll a putt to save bogey… that could have been a birdie.

We’ve all been there…

If you struggle with pitching…

        Leaving it short because you always catch it fat…

        Or finding the leading edge on the back of the ball for a screamer over the green…

        Especially, when you’re on an upslope…

The fix is simple…

Pitch shots by definition are less than a full swing…

The shorter the shot, the more likely you are to move into your backswing but forget to shift through the ball, rotating and relocating on your front side.

Which means our weight gets stuck behind the ball…

        Causing you to hit behind the ball…

        Or make a last second adjustment and catch it thin.

But you can cheat by starting with your weight forward and not shifting in your backswing.

Pre-load your front side and keep your weight forward so you are already “through” the ball.

The result is consistently good contact EVERY TIME.

The next time you have a short pitch shot, pre-load your front side, keep your weight on your front leg and enjoy that birdie putt… You earned it.

Discover effortless power in your swing with The Full Body Swing.

Click Here to Learn more about The Full Body Swing »

Understanding the Fade…

Amateur players tend to hit the fade on accident (a slice)…

Understanding how to hit a fade on purpose can help you control your drives and play better.

A fade can be a useful flight shape.

A fade is a ball that starts a little left and curves back to your target.

A fade usually has a little lower launch angle and more spin. Both of these elements mean less overall distance but also less opportunity to get into trouble.

More spin means the ball stops quicker and is less likely to roll into trouble.

A lot of Tour Pros hit a fade as their default swing for more control, especially on tight fairways and greens.

To hit a fade, open up your stance a little so you swing toward the left edge of the fairway but aim your clubface down the center of the fairway.

Opening your stance moves the ball back in your stance, encouraging you to hit the ball earlier in your swing while your clubface is still open and the club is still working down and to the right.

An open stance also makes it easier to swing down the left edge of the fairway since you aren’t changing your swing, you are changing the alignment of your body and letting your swing naturally work to the left of your target.

Understanding shot shapes and being able to hit various shapes will help you hit longer, straighter drives… not to mention make on-course corrections when you see yourself fall into old habits.

A lot of people think there’s one swing… one right way to hit a ball. Their goal is to “fix” their slice and change their slice into a draw…

A slice isn’t necessarily bad… but it’s a specialty shot.

When Tiger Woods hits a slice to get around a tree and find the green, it’s called a cut.

Each shot shape is a tool.

Instead of trying to trade one shot shape for another (ie. fixing your slice)… Start developing multiple tools.

Just like you have different clubs in your bag for different situations, you want to have different shot shapes in your bag.

Unlock the Power in Your Driver…

Click Here to Learn more about the Keys to Driver Distance »

Hit A Draw For More Distance…

Hitting a draw is easier than you think…

The hardest part of hitting a draw is letting go and trusting your swing.

The only reason you hit a slice is that your clubface is open (compared to your club path).

Thus… to hit a draw, we need to have our clubface closed at impact (compared to your club path).

The easiest way to hit a draw is turn the club in your hands so the club looks very closed, almost hooding the ball… and your hands look like you have a very strong grip.

If you turn the club in your hands you don’t have to do anything else to hit a draw.

Here’s the hard part… don’t change your swing!

You brain is a super computer. It realizes you have a bit of a weird grip and will try to make changes to your swing to compensate. DON’T!

You hit a slice because you leave the clubface open… to hit a draw, you have to learn to deliver a closed clubface.

Discover effortless power in your swing with The Full Body Swing.

Click Here to Learn more about The Full Body Swing »

Swing Channel Drill…

If you want more distance and consistency with your driver…

You have to make centered contact…

You also need a good path that drives the ball…

Finally, you need confidence…

The Swing Channel Drill lets you practice and build confidence in your swing.

Build a channel to swing through. You can use just about anything to build your channel. I like to use tees or yoga blocks… you just want to be careful not to use anything too hard so you don’t damage your club if you accidentally make contact with your channel.

Practice delivering the club from the inside with a strong in-to-out path while making centered contact…

Discover effortless power in your swing…

Click Here to Learn more about The Full Body Swing »

Maximize Your Driver Distance…

Launch angle isn’t talked about much in golf… However, the right launch angle can add 20+ yards to your drive.

To maximize your driver distance, you have to optimize your launch angle.

If you want to get into the science, it’s called quadratic drag…

All you really need to know is that launching your driver between 15° and 18° will give you the best overall distance.

18° will fly a little farther but won’t roll out much. 15° won’t fly quite as far but will roll out more.

Use a launch monitor to help dial in your driver. Remember every minute on a clock is 6 degrees… so your target range is only half a minute on a clock face.

Hit Longer, Straighter Drives…

Click Here to Learn more about the Keys to Driver Distance »

Stay Centered for Consistency…

One of the keys to driver distance is keeping your head centered.

If you allow your head to drift, the ball is actually moving forward and back in your stance based on where your head is.

Use a T-Square to practice rotating around the centerline of the T-Square, keeping your head steady and centered as you rotate.

Hit Longer, Straighter Drives…

Click Here to Learn more about the Keys to Driver Distance »