Swing Tips:

THE MOMENT OF TRUTH!

Are you a “Scooper” or a ball“Striker”?

Many of the amateur golfers I teach come to me with two common problems.  One being that their ball contact consistently varies and they have a hard time getting the kind of distance they would like.

It usually takes me about 2 swings and I can see already that they are committing a “deathmove” as Jim Mclean would like to call it.  The problem begins with the golfer’s lack of knowledge concerning a proper impact position.  Without a basic understanding of how you are to enter the hitting area, a golfer usually has to be lucky to make good contact through the hitting area.  Here are a few checkpoints you can go through to check if you are coming into the ball properly.  The first thing that you have to recognize is that impact position and address position are not the same.

1. Setup Position

2. Impact Position

Differences between setup and impact position

1.
·At setup my weight is basically equal in balance.
·At impact you should have about seventy percent of your body weight on the front leg

2.
·At setup, with an iron, my hands are set almost in a straight line up above the all.
·At impact, my hands are well in front of the ball and leading the way towards the target.

Proper impact position down the line…  YES

Here is the down the line view of Impact position. You can see my front leg from here because my weight has transferred, and my body has rotated.

A “Scooper’s Impact Position”… NO

Here is an up close view of a scooper’s impact position…NO

Some results of this position include…

· A divot before the ball or no divot at all.
· Contact is inconsistent.
· After contact you recognize that your weight is hanging on your back leg.
· If contact is clean the ball flight is high weak and distance is short because loft has been added to the club face.

A “Strikers” impact position…  YES!

Some results of this position include…

· A divot after the ball.  A “descending blow” down on the ball.
· After contact you recognize your weight has transferred forward.
· The ball flight is lower and there is a more penetrating flight.  You just took loft off of your iron which immediately adds yardage!
· You can create backspin with your irons.

Regardless if we were examining the swings of Tiger Woods, Jim Furyk or Lorena Ochoa you would notice that they are all ball “strikers”.   I suggest starting out with small shots first and then gradually begin to work up to full swings.  Really take your time learning how to nail this move.  Good luck, I look forward to hearing about your results!