We live in a fast paced, muti-tasking society. We eat in front of the TV, we text while in the grocery store, we email while having a conversation with someone across the room. Geezzzz…talk about attention deficit disorder! We’re training everyone to have it. This is not good training for a better golf game! Many golfers try to pack too many things into their day and rush to the golf course after work for a “quick nine.” I hope they don’t expect low scores. To play your best golf, try having a PRE-GAME ROUTINE. We ... full post »

Have you ever watched your playing partners have a wide stance for a chip shot….or do they have a narrow stance for a shot using the driver? Check out the setups of the people you play with. What’s going on in their brain usually shows up in their setup and in their swing. I can tell what a student is thinking by the way they setup to the ball and how they swing. Let’s get your thoughts and actions to match the “need.” Confusion is the quickest route to misery on the golf course. If you are confused about what shot ... full post »

I watched an old replay of a match of Byron Nelson and Gene Littler on the Shell’s Wonderful World of Golf on the Golf Channel the other day. They were playing at the prestigious Pine Valley Golf Club in S. New Jersey. It was great to watch because it looked like two amateurs playing match play on a Saturday afternoon. I say that because I’m used to watching guys hit it over 300yds., making unbelievable shots to the green, wedge shots that spin back, stop quickly, fly high, or roll to exact distances. Mr. Nelson and Mr. Littler were the ... full post »

We all hear about golfers who never practice but we don’t hear much about the player who practices more than they play. A question I often get from my students is “why do I hit it great on the range yet I can’t take it to the course?” My answer is “you’re not as GOOD as you think you are on the range, and you are not as BAD as you think on the course!” HUH? Think about it….on the range, if you hit a bad shot, you can rake over another ball and make it ... full post »

OK…this article is for our blogger, Chris Baldwin. Back in May, Chris claimed that instructors are “afraid to teach the driver“. No, they are not “afraid.” Experienced and knowledgeable instructors want to help students “walk around the block before they run a marathon!” I personally want to help a student with a game improvement plan and not give them a band-aid to keep their tee shots in bounds! Band-aids fall off. Until a golfer learns to hit a ball in the center of the clubface, the driver will be the hardest club to keep in the fairway. But thanks for ... full post »

Get it OUT! Get it CLOSE! Get it IN! Once you’ve learned to get your bunker shot onto the green, you’ll now want to learn how to get it CLOSE! So you need to learn BUNKER DISTANCE CONTROL This lesson is to help you adjust to the different length shots you will face from the bunkers. You need creativity and touch. We can all get better touch through practice and experience. Please use this lesson to help you develop your ‘touch’ so that you can hit shots of varying lengths. Getting the ball close to the hole so ... full post »

I receive several golf publications each month because I need to know what my students are reading and seeing. Sooner or later a student of mine will ask me about a theory, concept, or idea that is being written about in one of these magazines. I need to keep up with what’s being said and demonstrated. Whatever is being written about is what many players will want to try! They are going to ask me my opinion since I’m supposed to be an “expert” in my field. For the last year, it’s been “what do you think about the ONE ... full post »

Donald Ross is alive at Pine Needles this week for the US Women’s Open! I hope all of you are watching the Open this weekend. These women (and girls) are good!! Just to show you what girls can do…the yardage is set up to 6664 yards. OK guys, how many of you can play from that yardage? There is even a 12 year old girl playing who is unbelievably good. Alexis Thompson is the youngest participant ever to qualify for a US Women’s Open. There are actually 25 players under the age of 20 in this years’ ... full post »

I’ve heard it ALL now!! I got a call from a student of mine after she played in a local golf event recently. It was a fun event that was played with a group of local women and a group of invited women from another city. She’s a fairly new golfer (2 yrs.) with a handicap index of 28.5. She’s attend USGA rules seminars, etiquette seminars, taken lessons, and has played in several local tournaments. She was so perplexed by something that happened during the round that she started questioning her knowledge of the rules of ... full post »

Want to hit your driver further? That is one of the most common desires I hear from my students. I am going to give you a short, easy way to improve your distance. Put some face tape (can be purchased from a golf shop or ask your instructor) on your WEDGE and see how often you contact the ball in the center of the clubface. You’d be surprised at where the marks will be on the face tape. It has been proven that when you contact the ball in the center of the clubface, your distance ... full post »

I used to be a terrible “pitcher” of the golf ball when I was learning to play golf. I could hit it far off the tee but when I got to 70-30 yards from the hole, my knuckles would turn white, my shoulders would be up around my ears and the ground would tremble with my fear! That was not fun! So I learned how to pitch the ball. I practiced correctly until I learned to perform the shot and then I learned how far the ball would carry onto the green. I then observed ... full post »

Last week I wrote about being invited to be an instructor at a golf school of 35 women and 7 instructors. The school was a great success … how do I know? Because I saw LOTS of smiles, experienced lots of positive energy, saw lots of camaraderie, and the students were going out to play on the golf course after the school was over! That’s a sure sign! I know that they left with a very positive experience. And that’s what it’s all about … a positive experience. They also learned some valuable things … not just about their ... full post »

I have been invited to be an instructor at an all women’s 3-day golf school. There will be 35 students and 7 instructors at one facility. Whew! Sounds like a zoo, doesn’t it? Thank goodness the lead instructor is very organized. Read my blog on “Teaching women … a bit like herding cats” and you’ll see that during these 3 days, we will have “herded them!” What they do when they go back to their home course will then be totally out of our control “Heaven only knows” what will happen to the students then…this is when the ... full post »

What’s going on with the weather this week!? Watch the tournaments on TV today and see how the pros handle these conditions. I know that the wind is playing havoc on golf games around the country. Scores are higher and it is a battle sometimes just to get through the round emotionally and physically! If you have seasonal allergies, your energy if really being zapped in this wind! So how do you adjust in these conditions? First of all, take your medication and then adjust your thinking about your game before you get to the course. ... full post »

It’s spring and it’s Augusta, Georgia! To truly understand the Masters Golf Tournament and why it is the most revered event in all of sports, one must have an understanding of Bobby Jones. Being from the South (Greensboro, NC), I also believe one must understand the culture of the South, especially in the era that Bobby Jones grew up in. The history of Augusta National Golf Course and of Bobby Jones will help your enjoyment of this tournament. I highly recommend learning more about this rich history. To give you a little background, Bobby Jones was one of the greatest golfers ... full post »