Quiet Feet Lead to Better Ball Striking

If there is one part of the golf swing or body that is often overlooked when working on a golf swing or trying to improve it is the feet. One area of focus that I stress when working with students is to get quiet feet on the ground. What I mean by that is feet that don’t come off the ground on the back swing. During the back swing I like to see feet that stay flat on the ground providing a solid base to wind your upper body up against.
On the forward swing I don’t like feet that are rolling on their sides or a rear foot that is coming off the ground. Both of these habits lead to your rotation slowing down and your pivot stalling. If you are not in contact with the ground you can’t turn against it!
Practice hitting little pitch shots keeping both feet on the ground and see if you don’t improve your footwork and your ball striking.

What Part of the Ball am I trying to Hit?

Another great question comes in this week from the Dewsweepers.T- I am Confused what part of the ball am I really trying to hit?A great question and one that is often misunderstood. Many time I'll ask a student where they are trying to hit and the answers vary from "the ball, to the back of the ball, to I'm not sure"First remember all of our previous Dewsweeper lessons and that the correct low point of the swing (which is a big circle) is in front of the ball. Second imagine as you look down that the ball is a "pie" sitting on the ground. Now imagine that the "pie" is cut into four quarters. You want the club to strike the inside quarter of the pie. The club is swinging down and out as it comes into the ball.Here is a great tip. Take a sharpie and place a dot on that inside quarter of the ball. Now try and drive that dot down and out into the turf in front of the ball.If you accomplish this you will find that begin to hit more solid iron shots and begin to get them started more online.If you are struggling with balls starting too much to the left of your target (for a right handed player) try this it may help you get your ball flying at the target and your scores coming down!

Hit it better out of the Rough! US Open Tip

One thing you will definitely see when watching the US Open at Pebble Beach this week will be players having to hit difficult next to impossible chips and pitches out of nasty long rough. Thankfully not many of us will deal with rough this severe at our home course this week. However here is a tip on how to handle short game shots when you find yourself in tough lie down in the rough.
Set up slightly open. You want to make sure that the club is working across the ball imparting cut spin on the ball. Setting up open will help hit a softer shot and help keep the club head from turning over and leaving the ball in the rough.
Swing more up and down. A swing that is too shallow or too much inside going back has no chance to get the ball up and out of deep rough. The club finds itself getting caught up in too much grass. Make sure you swing the club much more vertical or up and down. This will help you find the ball cleaner and improve your chances of getting the ball out.
Use judgement when picking the line your ball will travel on. Remember...safety first. A shot from the rough will be unpredictable in the distance it flies and the run out is unpredictable as well. So do not pick a line that requires a precise place to land the shot and stop the ball. Take your medicine and get out of there with a bogey at worst.