Course News

Written by: Dave Leadbetter Those stingers you see the pros hit on television look cool, and they’re valuable shots on a windy day, but the last thing most amateurs need is a low-trajectory tee shot. You need more hang time. Studies have proved that the slower you swing, the more you’ll benefit from a trajectory that keeps the ball in the air longer. And thanks to radar systems like TrackMan, we also know that the optimum way to increase air time is to hit up on the ball with your driver. But this notion of hitting up on it requires clarification. To catch the ball on the upswing with the driver, many golfers find themselves swinging while keeping their weight on their back foot (right foot for right-handers). Unfortunately, that’s usually going to lead to poor contact with the … [Read more...] about Need more air off the tee? Here’s how to max your hang time for more distance

Written by: Ron Kaspriske For some, golf is stress relief—a pastoral stroll interspersed by 70 or 80 golf swings and maybe a stop for a hot dog at the turn. For others, it’s a fist-clenching, nerve-racking, nearly out-of-body experience where success is often defined by getting through 18 holes without feeling like you need to see a therapist afterward. We’ve been there, too. For the latter, the adventure is only exacerbated when playing for money, or in a tournament, or with strangers, or in front of a crowd—or all of the above. If you’re faced with needing to execute in one of these competitive moments, but your central nervous system is failing like the Manhattan power grid on a 95-degree day, you need a go-to shot you can rely on. What’s a go-to shot? It’s one that might not make the … [Read more...] about 7 shots anybody can rely on in the heat of competition

Written by: Keely Levins Let’s talk about hip turn. James Kinney, one of our Golf Digest Best Young Teachers and Director of Instruction at GolfTec Omaha, says that from the data GolfTec has collected, they’ve found lower handicap golfers have a more centered lower body at the top of the swing. Meaning, they don’t sway. If you’re swaying off the ball, you’re moving yourself off of your starting position. The low point of your swing moves back when you sway back, so you’re going to have to shift forward to get your club to bottom out where the ball is. That takes a lot of timing, and is going to end up producing some ugly shots. So, instead, Kinney says you should turn. “When turning your hips, you are able to stay more centered over the golf ball in your backswing and the low point of … [Read more...] about How a doorframe can help your golf swing

Written by: Deborah Vangellow You can’t start a car from a dead start and put it immediately up to 70 miles per hour. No matter how powerful your engine, you must have a gradual acceleration of speed. So it is in the golf swing.” — Mickey Wright “Explosive power starts from the ground up..flat-out, lower body initiated power…my legs and hips drive forward and my upper body simply unwinds.” –Tiger Woods We all have a love of power and yearn to achieve more of it in the golf swing. Muscular power is the rate of energy expended and it depends on the amount of energy available and the time taken to expend it. This is really about the amount of weight moved and the time involved to move it. Why is this relevant to the golf swing? Simply put, you have permission to move when making a full … [Read more...] about As Tiger Woods says, “explosive power starts from the ground up”