Archive for the ‘Golf Tips’ Category

Learn to hit the ball lower

Jul 21st
2010

Many times we face difficult shots with wind. In a 100-metre shot our club selection under normal conditions would be 9-iron or pitching wedge.
What do you use if the wind is strong in your face?
If you use a 9-iron or pitching wedge the ball is going to spin back more and then fly higher in order to achieve the right distance.

The suggestion is, next time you face this shot, try playing a half swing with a 6 or 5-iron, gripping down the club with the same ball position. Gripping it short will make your swing narrower and that, combined with the degree of the clubface, will make your ball fly in a lower trajectory with less spin, so you will reach the distance with no trouble.

Try it…

Should we use lake balls?

Jul 1st
2010

Many golfers choose to save money by using lake balls rather than forking out for new ones they could lose after just one shot.
But buying lake balls can be a bit of a lottery if you’re not purchasing them from a reputable source.
You might well stumble upon the odd nearly-new Pro V1 or Srixon Z-Star, but on the other hand you could end up with a handful of Dunlop and Top Flite balls that could have been sat at the bottom of a freezing pond for months.

Buying lake balls has become increasingly popular with many golfers, especially in the recent economic climate.

The lake balls are also a benefit for many golf clubs, having their lakes cleared regularly by a lake ball company produces an important revenue stream and it all fits in with the recycling ethic today.

Global Warfare

Jun 29th
2010

What do you choose, a GPS unit or an app?

Smartphones and their nifty apps have permeated nearly every aspect of society. You can use them to do everything from buying groceries to monitoring your sleep patterns. So it was just a matter of time before CPS companies made their golf-course yardage-measuring software compatible with smartphones.
Unlike traditional stand-alone GPS devices, which cost €120.00 to €400.00 and have been on the market since 1999, a smartphone GPS app is cheaper – free to €25.00, and more convenient if you own an iPhone, BlackBerry, etc. But some tests revealed there is a trade-off in performance, which is why many companies have continued to improve their stand-alone devices.

For instance, the precision of any golf GPS device depends on its hardware (the antenna and receiver that can quickly read signals from satellites) and the quality of the maps loaded onto the device.
The hardware in a smartphone isn’t as powerful as that in the top hand-held GPS units, so apps aren’t as precise in measurements.
Sometimes the maps are questionable. GPS companies that make hand-held devices generally use high-quality, proprietary satellite imagery to ensure their maps are as accurate as possible.
Though battery life in a hand-held device can last for more than three rounds before needing a recharge, no smartphone tested lasted for an entire round.
The smartphones are plenty powerful for 99 per cent of their uses, but they’re not designed to offer the precision that golf requires. (Source: Golf World Magazine)

Rakes: In or Out?

Jun 27th
2010

It´s one of golf’s great unanswered questions: Where do you leave a bunker rake? There’s no hard and fast rule, so we surveyed prominent people in the game to get their thoughts.

Leave’em out.

Steve Williams, caddie of Tiger Woods: “Rakes should remain out of the bunkers in a place where they’re least likely to get hit. In most cases that would be on the lip of the bunker closest to the green you’re facing.”
Jack Nicklaus: “If I needed to choose, I’d opt to have the rakes on the outside, but not in the line of play or on the green side of greenside bunkers.”

Leave’em in.

Arnold Palmer: “When a ball gets close to a rake in a bunker, you get relief to play the shot. It doesn’t affect the game. But if it hits a rake outside a bunker, it does.”
Gary Player: “I remember a tournament in Europe where a rake stopped my ball from going into a deep bunker with steep walls. If my ball hadn’t hit the rake, I would have made a 5 or 6.” (Source: Golf World Magazine)

Custom Fitting with Taylor Made Performance Labs

Jun 2nd
2010

Custom fitting in the broadest sense is building a club designed to match your individual swing characteristics so that you hit the ball longer and straighter with better control. TaylorMade Performance Labs provides golfers with “Golf’s Ultimate Fitting Experience” utilizing the same revolutionary advancements in motion capture technology seen in such films as Lord of the Rings, Polar Express, King Kong, and Batman.

Previously available only to PGA Tour professionals the Taylor Made Performance Labs are available now worldwide in top golf academy’s and courses. In a two hour custom fitting experience conducted in a friendly, relaxed atmosphere and includes driver, fairway woods, hybrids, irons, wedges, and putter. It is beneficial to men, women, and junior golfers of all ages and skill levels. But wait, there’s more

Yellow Golf Balls Are Back: Srixon Z-Star Tour Yellow

May 17th
2010

Back in the 1980′s yellow golf balls were the next big thing, then after the “big fever” the general idea was that  yellow balls were to be only used while practising at your local driving range as they appear to be low quality golf balls. No self-respecting golfer would ever use a yellow golf ball on the golf course. It looks that this mentality is about to change!

Have you ever tried to track a golf ball on a clear and sunny day? Even with sunglasses on, you can easily lose the golf ball in the air. The new version of the popular Srixon Z-STAR Tour Yellow golf balls were presented at the 2010 PGA Merchandise Show, Srixon did a lot of testing backed by scientific data that has proven, that yellow is the most visible colour in the visual spectrum and psychology has correlated green with calming and stress relief. Even on bright sunny days or against low, overcast clouds, golfers will be able to track the Z-Star all the way to the target, Vijay Singh and Jim Furyk will be playing the Tour Yellow on Tour this year, it will be interesting to see what the reaction will be on Tour by fellow competitors and the fans.

Drivers Used by Golf’s Top Players

May 16th
2010

Apart from your own swing skills a good driver will always make the difference, take a look at the drivers used by top Golf players:

Tiger Woods – Driver: Nike Victory Red Tour (10.5°) Shaft: Mitsubishi Fubuki

Phil Mickelson - Driver: Callaway FT-9 Tour Authentic (FT Tour) (7.5°) Shaft: Mitsubishi Fubuki

Steve Stricker - Driver: Titleist 909D3 (10.5°) Shaft: UST Mamiya Proforce V2

Lee Westwood – Driver: Ping G10 (9°) Shaft: Aldila PGA Tour Only Prototype XNV6

Jim Furyk - Driver: Callaway FT-9 Tour Authentic (FT Tour) (9.5°) Shaft: Oban Devotion

Ian Poulter – Driver: Cobra ZL (9.5°) Shaft: Fujikura 6.0 Motore Speeder

Ernie Els – Driver: Callaway FT-9 Tour Authentic (FT Tour) (8.5°) Shaft: Project X Graphite

Paul Casey – Driver: Nike Victory Red Tour (8.5°) Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana White Board

Rory McIlroy – Driver: Titleist 909D2 (8.5°) Shaft: Fujikura Rombax 7V05

Anthony Kim – Driver: Nike Victory Red Tour (8.5°) Shaft: UST Mamaya Proforce AXIVCore

Source

Choosing your golf Putter

May 2nd
2010

As much as 50% of your golf score comes from the putting green. Not every putter is ideal for you; a number of factors should be considered such as brands, styles and types. Here follows some steps to choose the perfect putter for your golf.

Establish the length of your putter according to the length of your arms, not your height. Usually, long arms equal a shorter putter; short arms equal a longer putter. Standard for men is 89 cm, whilst 84 cm is standard for women.

Make a decision whether you want an offset face or non-offset face. This is normally determined by choosing what is best for the individual, someone that in nature aims right will choose an offset putter and the golfer that tends to aim left will choose a non-offset putter.

Select your style putter head-blade, mallet or traditional. Odyssey has made the mallet fashionable by introducing the “2-ball” putter.

Pick the type of shafting you want, after you have decided on your head type. An are heel shafting or center shafting.

Wet Weather Strategy

Apr 5th
2010

Wet Weather Strategy

Shot-making is very unreliable in wet conditions, manoeuvring the ball can be hazardous to your game… and outlook.  The draw that you attempt could turn into a super hook.

In wet, tightly packed sand, it’s better to chip out with a pitching wedge.  Sometimes a putter will work even better as long as the lip of the bunker isn’t too high.  If you must explode out, use a 9-iron or pitching wedge.  Neither club will bite into the sand like a sand wedge normally would. …but wait, there’s more

The book of golfing secrets

Mar 22nd
2010

 

The Little Red Book has become required reading for all players and fans of the game of golf, from beginners to seasoned pros. The legendary Harvey Penick, who began his golfing career as a caddie in Austria, Texas, at the age of eight, worked with an amazing array of champions over the course of nearly a century, dispensing invaluable wisdom to golfers of every level. Penick simplifies the technical jargon of other instructional books and communicates the very essence of the game, and his Little Red Book is full of inspiration and homespun wisdom that reflects at once his great love of golf as well as his great talent for teaching. A fantastic enjoyable way to improve your golf and a must read for every golfer.