Category Archives: Golf Tips

How Flying Wedges Can Lower Your Golf Score

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Hey it’s Doc O’Leary here with another free golf video for you. Improving your golf short game is all about consistency. Once you develop a consistent chip shot you can start predicting the trajectory and distance of these shot and start getting closer to the pin.

To develop this kind of consistency in your chip shots you have to eliminate bad habits.

One of the most pervasive bad habits is using the wrists during these short chip shots. Using the wrists introduces all sorts of problems. Yes, you may hit an amazing shot every once in a while if you use your wrists while chipping, but overall you will not be consistent and you’ll have a hard time shaving strokes off your golf scores.

This golf drill in this video is all about learning to chip with your pivot, not with your arms or wrists.

To teach this Bobby Schaeffer likes to use the concept of the “flying wedges.” To avoid confusion I’m going to go more into depth about what those wedges are. He explains it more fully in another part of this instructional DVD.

Basically if you put your arms and hands in the proper impact position (as shown at the beginning of the clip) the club shaft will make two very important angles (flying wedges) with your arms.

The first flying wedge is most obvious. There should be a fixed angle (wedge) between the handle of the golf club and your right forearm. This wedge is nice and wide. It’s stable and by maintaining this wedge you’ll also have to keep your right elbow bend and in toward your body.

The second flying wedge is less obvious. There will be a smaller fixed angle between the very end of the golf club handle and the underside of your left forearm. This angle (wedge) only exists when you are choked down on the golf club a bit.

By focusing on keeping these flying wedges fixed throughout your golf chip shots you’ll be forced to use your torso and core pivot to move the golf club. This is exactly what you want.

The drill using two golf clubs, one under your arm pit, takes this concept to the next level. It prevents you from using your wrists even if you want to.

By taking your wrists out of the equation your golf chip shots will start improving dramatically, and so will your ability to score around the greens.

This clip came to you from Bobby Schaeffer’s Beyond Long DVD package. For access to the whole program click here.

For Better Golf,
Doc O’Leary
Head Golf Nut, OHP

Start Your Golf Downswing “In The Slot” For More Consistency & Distance

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This week’s video tip comes to you from a long drive champ and a former long drive world record holder Brad Peterson.

How you take the golf club to the top of your backswing has a huge effect on your swing path and the power of your golf shots. That’s why this week’s video is so important.

Let’s start off with the basics. Each person will have a unique backswing that should feel comfortable, but all good golf backswings should have a few things in common.

First they should all rely primarily on the twisting motion of the torso to get the club back. This twisting of the torso stores power.

Second, you should always load your wrists in the backswing. Loading the wrists means that the club shaft is at about a 90 angle to your hands at the top of the swing. This loading action stores power to be released through impact.

Third, a great golf backswing should set you up to have a proper swing path for the downswing. This last point is the main focus of this video. A proper swing path creates consistency and accuracy. If you get the other two right you may be storing a lot of power, but when your swing path is off you won’t be able to translate that power into long straight golf shots.

To get your swing path off to a good start you need to pay attention to where your hands and club are at the top of your backswing.

As Brad explains in the video, when your hands are too far back your golf club swing path will be too flat. You’ll have trouble getting solid contact with the ball and your shots won’t be straight.

If your hands are too far forward (toward your head) you’ll also have trouble hitting consistent golf shots because your swing path will be too steep. This usually results in popped up shots, you know, the ones that leave a nasty mark on the top of your driver.

Learning these principles is easy, it’s feeling them and knowing where the happy medium is that’s the tough part. As Brad demonstrates in the video that happy medium is usually when your hands and the golf club are over the space between your head and your right shoulder.

A great way to visually check this in your own swing is to get in front of a full length mirror and go through the motions. Just remember to keep an eye on the ceiling fan.

Remember making a solid connection at impact is a lot easier when you start your downswing from the right spot.

To get your hands on Brad’s A-Z golf instructional program check out his 7 Steps to Smokin’ Hot Club Head Speed DVD Package.

Eliminate Impact Fallout [idiot proof tip]

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Hey Hotlist Member,

Like most things in golf chipping is all about consistency. Knocking the ball six inches from the pin once in a great while is worthless if you can’t get it close on a regular basis.

Using your wrists is hands down the biggest mistake golfers make when chipping. Using your wrists in a chipping stroke is not only unnecessary, it’s also the number 1 source of duffed shots and double bogeys around the green.

You don’t use your wrists in a putting stroke because you need that stroke to be dead accurate and repeatable. The chip shot is no different. That’s why the video I’ve included above is so important.

The technique may be a bit unorthodox but it works. Your buddies may snicker the first time you use it but when you’re consistently knocking your chip shots in a 4 foot radius of the hole they’ll change their tune real quick.

Okay on to the actual technique. To make your chip shots consistent and repeatable you want to take your wrists completely out of the action. And for short chip shots you’ll be taking your hips out of the action too. All the movement comes from rotating your shoulders.

This technique starts with a special grip on the golf club.

Start by placing your left hand at the very bottom of the grip, where the rubber meets the steel. Allow the grip to rest along your left forearm. Now there should be a slight gap between the grip and your left wrist. This little gap is where you grip the club with your right hand.

Your right hand is there to stabilize the club and press it into your left arm so that your left wrist stays flat. This grip will keep the golf club and your wrists in the proper impact position through the whole swing.

This technique adds consistency because it doesn’t rely on you getting in the proper position for one brief moment. The perfect position is there the whole time.

Now that you’ve got the grip down, the next step is swinging the golf club by rotating your shoulders. Your arms and hips should not be involved. It should feel like your arms and shoulders are locked into a triangle.

This is where the consistency comes from. Now the only variables in your golf chip shots will be how far back you rotate your shoulders and the loft of your golf club.

It may take you a few strokes to get a feel for how much rotation you need to get the ball a certain distance, but after that your golf chip shots will be dead accurate, follow a predictable trajectory every time, and get close to the pin on a regular basis.

This tip can be a real game changer for you.

Sometimes I can’t believe I’m giving away such great info for free. Luckily the DVD package this tip came from is so jam packed with great golf instruction I can give little nuggets like this away and not worry too much about it.

If you want to get a hold of the parts of Bobby Schaeffer’s Walk Through Power that I just can’t stomach giving away for free check out:

Walk Through Power DVD Package

Go ahead check it out now. Your buddies will hate you for it.

For Better Golf,
Doc O’Leary
Head Golf Nut, OHP

Golf Tip – Can A Metronome Help You Sink Putts?

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Having a consistent repeatable stroke is a big part of sinking putts. This golf tip will definitely help you sink more 8 to 10 footers. More importantly this putting drill will help you sink those 4 to 6 foot putts where your nerves and the pressure of losing a round are weighing on you.

It’s all about having a consistent rhythm ingrained in your head so that no matter what kind of putt you are facing you know exactly what to do.

The metronome is a great tool for developing rhythm and tempo, after all that’s why musicians have been using them for nearly two centuries.

So how do you use a metronome to improve your putting? It’s very simple. First of all you’re only using the metronome for that very last part of your whole putting routine. It wouldn’t make sense to hold yourself to a strict rhythm while reading and aligning your putts.

Instead you’ll only be using the metronome for about the last 4 seconds of your putting routine, the part where you take your last look at the hole then make your putt. To do this you have to break those last few seconds down into specific movements. As Bobby Schaeffer points out in the video those movements are 1) Your last look at the hole 2) Moving your eyes back to the ball 3) Taking the putter back and 4) Impact with the ball.

When you learn to do these four steps in a set rhythm you’ll be able relax even during tough putts. Having a set routine means you won’t really have to think about much during the stroke, you already know the exact movements you are going to make and how long they will take.

The actual speed you set the metronome to doesn’t matter all that much. What matters it that you learn to use that same rhythm every time you make a putt.

You can certainly use this drill without a metronome but having a metronome will help keep you honest. Also listening to the continuous beats will help you internalize whatever putting rhythm you choose.

For more tips on becoming a master of putting check out Bobby Schaeffer’s Hot Touch Putting.

For Better Golf,
Doc O’Leary
Head Golf Nut, OHP

Golf Tip – Rotate Eyes to Target for More Golf Swing Speed

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This drill comes to you from PGA Golf Pro John Darling. This tip is all about allowing your body to make a complete golf swing with full shoulder and core rotation.

Often time the biggest obstacle preventing a full swing is fixating on the ball. Sure you’re going to need to look at the ball during address, in the back-swing, and before impact, but looking at the ball any longer than that can freeze your upper body.

This fixation can prevent full shoulder and torso rotation which is necessary if you want to increase your swing speed. Even more important it can cause deceleration at impact and a whole host of other nasty golf swing problems.

The best way to fix this problem is to hit the range and use the drill in the video above. By making an exaggerated effort to transition your eyes to the target line earlier in your swing, even before impact, you’ll force your body to make a full rotation.

Take your time at first, focus on the rotation. You may also want to make it easy on yourself by teeing the ball up to get a perfect lie. Don’t let a chewed up range get you frustrated. Tees are cheep. By teeing the ball up for a perfect lie the only things you have to focus on are the rotation in your swing and transitioning your eyes to the target line.

Once you get this drill down you’ll be surprised at how smooth and fluid your swing gets.

For more instruction from John Darling check out his Swing Speed Accelerator DVD.

For better golf,
Doc O’Leary
Head Golf Nut, OHP Direct

Golf Tip -The Hybrid “Floater” Shot with Marc Minier

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One of the biggest challenges in golf is that on the golf course there are hundreds of different types of shots you may need to make, yet you only have 14 clubs in your bag.

The solution, learn to hit clubs in many different ways. That’s where this golf tip from PGA Golf Pro Marc Minier comes in. In this video he shows you one of the many ways you hit a hybrid golf club.

The “Floater” shot is great when you need to get some serious distance (maybe from a not so good lie) but need the ball to get high, land softly, and have a short roll. Your traditional 3 or 4 iron simply won’t cut it for this kind of situation.

To hit this shot you need to do three things.

First, put the ball at the front of your stance (off your left toe). Second you need to close your stance so you aren’t reaching for the ball. Third keep your shoulders aligned with your target.

When you swing you are going to be swinging the golf club a bit softer than normal. You also want to make sure you are swinging the club along your shoulder line not along your stance.

The result should be a nice shot that gets high, carries a bit shorter than a full swing and doesn’t roll too far. Perfect for when you need a long shot to stick on a green. This shot should also fade a bit due to your closed stance and outside-in swing path.

This is just one more way to improve your game using hybrid golf clubs. As Marc said in the video you simply can’t do this with a 3 iron. Not to mention the fact that hitting a solid shot with a hybrid is so much easier than hitting a 3 iron.

If you don’t yet have any hybrids in your bag I recommend you check out my Hot Metal Hybrids. You’ll be glad you did.

For Better Golf,
Doc O’leary
Head Golf Nut, OHP Golf

How Can A Marshmallow Improve You Golf Swing?

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Strange tip I know…but I’ve seen this trick help many golfers.

Like Darrell says in the video it is difficult for many golfers to take their mind off the golf ball when practicing.

You may be wondering “why would I want to take my mind off hitting the golf ball, isn’t that the whole point of golf.” Think of it this way, is it possible to make a good golf swing without hitting a ball? I think so.

For many golfers the second you put a ball in front of them their natural swing disappears and they start to hit AT the ball, not THROUGH it.

When you aren’t hitting through the ball you are slowing down at impact. Slowing down at impact can cause a whole bunch of nasty things to happen to your golf swing, not to mention it robs power and distance from your golf shots.

The marshmallow trick allows you to focus on your swing NOT what you are hitting. Once you focus on your golf swing it is much easier to accelerate through the point of impact.

Like Darrell explained in the video the best way to practice with this trick is to swing and imagine hitting an object that is a foot or so past the ball/marshmallow. The ball or marshmallow will naturally get in the way. When the ball is just getting in the way as you accelerate toward the imaginary object you will know that you are hitting through the ball.

This will maximize your distance and and eliminate all the problems that come from decelerating before impact.

For more golf instruction from Darrell Klassen check out his signature series package. It’s a great deal you don’t want to miss out on.

Falling Victim To The Putting Illusion?

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As Bobby said in the video the importance of proper putting cannot be ignored if you want to shoot low scores. I’ll admit putting isn’t the most fun thing to talk about, but let’s face it consistently dropping 6 footers will take a serious bite out of your score (plus it will drive your golf buddies nuts).

Golf is a mental game and putting relies even more heavily on your mental state and confidence level. That’s why overcoming the illusion Bobby talked about is so important if you want to become a consistent putter.

Focusing on keeping the putter face perpendicular to the target line through your whole stroke will drive you nuts, force you to do some funny things, and cause you to lose confidence on the green.

To eliminate many of those problems all you need to do is understand that the putter face will open and close naturally through your putter stroke.

Some guys intuitively understand this or simply go with what work, and through chance and luck they figure it out. Others guys (like me) need to understand this phenomenon conceptually before our brains will let us trust the putter stroke.

This video and the inclined plane tool should prove to you that taking the putter straight back on the inclined plane results in the putter face opening up. The same rules of geometry that caused it to open up will cause it to be square when it hits the ball. So as long as you take the putter straight back you don’t need to worry about getting or keeping the putter face square at impact.

All it really comes down to is accepting that this is fact of golf. It will allow you to focus on much more important things while putting, such as your speed, follow-through, break, and the speed of the greens that day.

You probably don’t have an inclined plane at home so use a score card like Bobby showed in the video if you need to prove it to yourself. The score card will also help you ensure that you are bringing the putter straight back.

For more putting tips and tricks from Bobby Schaeffer check out his Hot Touch DVD Package. This stuff will shave some serous strokes off your score.

For Better Golf,
Doc O’Leary
Head Golf Nut, OHP

2 Simple Steps To Longer Drives

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To get the most distance out of your drives you want to make sure you are making contact with the right spot on your driver. Everyone has heard of the sweet spot on the golf club, but you may have never heard of the hot spot.

The hot spot is a relatively new term that really only applies to the big drivers on the market today. If you have a driver with a large club face hitting the sweet spot of the club will certainly produce a great drive, but make contact a little higher up and you will get even more distance out of your golf drives.

As Bill McKinney said in the video hitting the hot spot gives you a higher launch angle and less back spin. Both of these equate to more distance. The trouble is without a long tee you won’t be able to hit the hot spot. So do yourself a favor and get some taller tees. You’ll be able to maximize your swing and your equipment for longer drives.

There is a bit of a trick to using longer tees. Luckily I’ve got a video that explains this trick and how to get those long tees working for you. You can see it right here (Tee it High).

The other thing that will boost your drives is making sure your spine is tilted back during impact. At address your spine should be straight, but during your downswing your upper body should be behind your hips.

Having your torso tilted back improves the launch angle of your drives even more, and it also reduced backspin on the ball.

These two tips combined should have you hitting longer drives in no time. So go hit the range before you next round and see if you can work these tips into your swing.

For more great instruction from Bill McKinney check out his Natural Power Golf Swing.

For Better Golf,
Doc O’Leary
Head Golf Nut, OHP Direct

Straighten Out Your Golf Shots – Simplified Golf Swing D-Plane

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There has been a lot of talk recently about the Descriptive Plane (D-Plane) of the golf swing. Most of it just serves to confuse the hell out of people and mess up their golf swing. That is a real shame. In the video above Golf Pro Bill McKinney simplifies what the D-Plane is and what the take home lesson is for your golf swing.

Understanding the intricacies of the physics of a golf swing won’t really help your game. Knowing how to practically apply the lessons from physics to your golf swing will help your game.

The D-plane had always existed in the golf swing and always will. The real take home message from the D-plane is that in order to hit a straight golf shot your swing must vary depending on the loft and length of the club.

Here’s how it works:

For short high loft clubs your swing path needs to be more from the inside to the outside. This is where the disappearing hands trick comes in. If you are standing behind someone swinging a 9 iron and you are looking down the target line their hands should disappear behind their body after impact. This is due to the need to swing from the outside to the inside to hit a straight shot. In addition they should be making contact with the ball on the downward portion of their golf swing.

For long, low-lofted clubs such as woods and drivers the swing should be more from the inside to the outside. After impact you hand will continue forward and out. You should also be making contact with the ball on the upswing. In other words by the time you hit the ball the swing arc has already passed its lowest point and the club head is moving upward at impact.

The bottom line is that your golf swing changes depending on the club you hit. This is not a bad thing so don’t try to fight it. Chances are if you hit your short irons really well but struggle with longer clubs you are good at swinging from the outside-in but need to work on swinging a bit more to the outside on your longer clubs.

Don’t get too caught up in the details though. Focus on what works, and play around with your swing path to get a feel for it. For more great golf tips from Golf Pro Bill McKinney Checkout His Natural Power Golf Swing.

For Better Golf,
Doc O’Leary
Head Golf Nut, OHP

Day 1 – Unraveling At The Memorial 2012

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Day 1 — 2012 Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village

So, it was only the first round of the 2012 Memorial tournament. But I thought it was going to be pretty exciting to watch the group of Mickelson, Fowler and Watson. It was almost painful to watch and I’m sure Fowler felt the same.

Everyone was talking about how fast and slippery the greens were, the course was playing tough. The word frustrated was all I kept hearing from the announcers when both Watson and Mickelson missed fairways, found bunker after bunker and even followed each other into the water on the par 3 16th. It was really hard to watch, like watching a 4 hour car crash.

Phil had that look on his face, playing with absolutely no Mojo, no magical shots and that every present smile wasn’t on his face yesterday. He finally got back to the club house shooting a 7 over 79, did I say it was tough to watch.

Now Bubba Watson looked to out of sorts too. Frustrated with golf shot after golf shot claiming to be rusty from lack of tournament play. Again, finding bunkers, water and few fairways, bogie on the  par 5  11th – Bubba struggled to get in with a 3 over 75 -just 4 shots better than his playing companion Phil.

Yeah, the green were fast, I heard they were rolling at a 14 – but that didn’t look like either of their problems during the first round yesterday at the Memorial.

It must have been tough for Fowler to keep his focus while he watched a couple of his friends come unglued on the course. He traded birdies for bogies, had an eagle on the par 5 – 11th and then a bogie on the  other par 5 – 15th he went out in 36 coming in with a 1 under 35. That’s where he stands after the first day.

Curious as to what happened with Mickelson’s game I find out he WD — are you kidding me he withdrew because of fatigue, too much travel and a family vacation to Italy and France. That’s a first, not a wrist or back injury, but fatigue. He probably thought he wouldn’t make the cut anyway, oh well -gotta get ready for the U.S. Open.

Maybe Ricky and Bubba will gel a bit better today without Phil around, we’ll see. The second round should be fun to watch, would like to see Spencer Levin play well today he’s right in there at 6 under. Or, who knows maybe come Sunday it’ll be Tiger Woods again.

 

 

Third Round 2012 BMW PGA Championship

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2012 BMW PGA Championship

Can Luke Donald win back to back at the BMW PGA Championship? He certainly looks to be in the driver seat to be able to win tomorrow.

I was lucky enough to sit on the couch with a cup of coffee to watch a few holes of the third round – BMW PGA Championship from the Wentworth Club in Surrey, England this morning on the Golf Channel.

The weather was a problem for some mainly the gusting, swirling winds, but looks to be a perfect sunny day forecast for the final round. I’m sure the leaders ability to deal with the stress will be a bigger factor than the weather coming down the stretch tomorrow.

Luke Donald seemed to be in total control of his game weather from the tee, scrambling or on the green. While not considered to be a very long hitter (287 yard driving average) his silky smooth rhythm and tempo are a thing of beauty.

I think it could help your game a lot, If you just imagine or visualize Donald’s smooth swing when you’re on the tee box, that’s a good mental picture to have.

Watching him play the par 5 18th was textbook, a smooth tee shot that split the fairway, second shot layup with a third shot wedge into the green to about 20 feet. He drained the putt for birdie to get to 11 under, two shots clear of Rose at 9 under.

The fourth round final pairing on Sunday will be the two Englishmen Luke Donald and Justin Rose. Looks like Donald might find himself back in the #1 spot of the World Golf ranking come Sunday. Since McIlroy failed to make the cut, the door is wide open for Donald to resume the #1 spot.

So the stage looks to be set for an Englishman to take the crown in the 2012 BMW PGA Championship,  will it be Luke Donald or Justin Rose, or will someone come from 6 shots back to win?

Golf Tip – 50 yard Sand Shots: Never be stuck in No Man’s Land Again

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We all know those medium distance bunker shots can kill your golf score. There is a real trick to mastering these shots, so I got Bill McKinney to put those secrets on tape so you no longer have to suffer a bogey or worse when you find yourself in a bunker that’s 50 or so yards from the green.

As you can see in the video you can’t use your normal “green-side bunker” golf swing, or your normal “fairway bunker” swing on these medium distance bunker shots. They just won’t work.

For these ~50yd bunker shots you need to use a compact half swing to get the ball onto the green. You also want to use a club with as little loft as necessary to get the ball over the lip of the bunker.

This means you probably won’t be using a sand wedge or lob wedge. In the video Bill is using a gap wedge. You can easily hit a 50 yard shot with a half swing with a gap wedge. If you use a sand or lob wedge you will need to swing much harder increasing the chances of a miss-hit.

Using a half swing allows you to be very relaxed and methodical focusing on not hitting the shot fat, instead of worrying about swinging hard enough to get the ball to the green. You will also want to line up with the ball in the middle of your stance and choke down a bit on whatever golf club you choose.

The other key to hitting this golf shot is not hitting behind the ball. Unlike a green-side bunker shot (one that’s right next to the green) you don’t want to hit the sand first. If you do the ball will never make it to the green. Instead you want a nice clean shot where you strike the ball first, then the sand.

To practice this I suggest doing what Bill has done in the video. Draw a line in the sand perpendicular to your target line. Set several golf balls just in front of that line. Then take a few practice swings, using the line to see if you are hitting the shot fat (your divot starts behind the line) or if you are hitting them clean (your divot starts after the line).

A great way to avoid hitting behind the ball is to focus on the top of the ball or the top front of that ball as you swing.

As always you want to keep your hands ahead of the ball through impact.

For Better Golf,
Doc O’Leary
Head Golf Nut, OHP Golf

Secret To Shaping Shots

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Learning how to shape golf shots will help you get around the course much easier. Using a hybrid golf club is a great way to teach yourself how to shape shots. Because these clubs are easy to hit, it takes much of the frustration out of the process.

Start off with the easiest way to shape shots, trajectory control. Trajectory control is as simple as moving the ball around in your stance. To hit a low golf shot simply play the ball back towards your back foot. To hit a high golf shot play the ball more off your front foot.

When shaping the trajectory of your golf shots you also want to make sure you are paying attention to your hands. You don’t need to scoop the ball to hit it high. Your hands should still be in front of the ball at impact, but with as little forward shaft lean as possible (depending on how high you want to hit it).

For a low golf shot you will want a lot of forward shaft lean. This takes loft away from the club keeping the ball lower.

Now for the fun part, hitting fades and draws. As Bill McKinney shows in the video above hitting a hook or draw is simply a matter of swinging inside-out and “wrapping the toe around the golf ball.” You will also want to line up your stance to the right of your target. This type of swing is much like curving a table tennis shot. Cut across the ball to the right and the ball goes left, and visa versa.

To hit a fade golf shot or a slice you do the opposite. Align your stance to the left of the target and swing from the outside-in cutting across the ball. Also remember to keep the club face square into your follow through, closing the club face will take some of the spin off the ball. By doing these three things you will cause the ball to curve to the right.

The last segment of the video shows you the practical ways you can use these techniques on the golf course. Imagine the green was directly behind the tree in the video. Without being able to shape golf shots (or have pinpoint accuracy and hit between the branches) you would have to hit left or right of the green and take another shot to get on. Knowing how to shape shots would allow you to go for the green saving you a stroke.

Hybrid clubs make shaping shots much easier because they are so forgiving. If you don’t own any already I would recommend picking up a set. They will change your game, and you will find yourself pulling off shots you never thought you could, and miss-hits will virtually go away. For more information on Hybrid Golf Clubs Click Here.

Golf Tip for More Golf Clubhead Speed & Longer Drives

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Who doesn’t want more club head speed? This is one of the simplest ways you can boost your club head speed and start hitting longer drives.

This warm-up swing forces your golf swing to have a longer, wider arc. The longer the arc of your golf swing the more time you have to speed up the club head, which is exactly what you want to do.

Widening the arc of your swing also helps prevent you from swinging from the outside-in (which is what causes a slice). Starting a warm-up swing with the club head held out in front of you makes it practically impossible to swing outside-in. So if you slice the golf ball this is an especially good warm up.

This practice golf swing has one more advantage. Many players strike the ground on their warm up swing, whether they are getting ready for a drive or a 100 yard pitch shot.

This subconsciously trains your mind to strike the ground first not the ball (this is almost always a problem, unless you are hitting out of a bunker). If you are doing this you are literally training yourself to hit fat shots.

You want to train your brain to hit the ball first, so starting your practice swing up off the ground takes your focus off the ground and puts it on your swing and the golf ball (the two most important things in golf).

On the downswing of your practice swing just skim the grass, there is no purpose to hitting the ground (your golf scores and the greenskeeper will be thanking you).

If you want to start hitting longer more consistent drives try using the practice swing in the video above.

For more great golf tips like this check out Marc Minier’s “Squaring It Up”.

For Better Golf,
Doc O’Leary
Head Golf Nut, OHP