Sharpen up

 THE FLOP OR LOB SHOT

For this months lesson I have decided to look at a particular shot that most amateurs will avoid playing and who never think they will ever be capable of playing. One of the main reasons that many avoid playing this shot is because they lack confidence to play the shot which is often coupled with poor technique.  However, I will show the correct method for playing this shot which should make it a lot easier for you next time you are practicing or out on the course. Imagine the scenario, you have missed the green pin high, you have to play a flop shot where you have to hit it high and land the ball softly to a very tight pin position on the green.



The problem is that you are not comfortable playing a flop shot over hazards beside the green because the results are mixed at best. This typical scenario is from watching golfers playing on the course and the problem is that many play this shot using their regular swing.  As you can see in photo 1, I am releasing my hands too much through impact and the toe of the club is pointing to the sky, as in a full swing position. By releasing your hands to much for this shot creates the typical bladed shot or you end up hitting the club head into the ground before the ball, resulting in a "duff".

Photo 1
Releasing the club decreases the flight of the ball

To change your results for this shot you should try the following tips and your results will dramatically improve.



1.Place the ball in your stance just forward of centre while opening the clubface, but make sure that the top of or butt of the club is pointing at the zip on your trousers.



2.  Open your stance a little and also spread your feet wider apart than normal. These couple of things will allow the clubface to stay open as it slides under the ball.



3. Make a backswing, but the trick is to keep the clubface always pointing to the sky as in photo 2 from start to finish.

Photo 2
Clubface always pointing to the sky through the shot for drop and stop

 4.  Keep your weight centred, if you put too much weight on your left (opposite if you’re left handed) it will close the club face, making it impossible to get any height on the ball.

When you get used to this and if you need the ball to go a little higher with less distance simply widen your stance and increase the tempo or speed of your swing.

Try it, you’ll be amazed at the results and hopefully you'll play that shot you have always been dreaming about…..and enjoy!

Swing and Ping

Many of my students have asked me ‘what is the correct position to be in at the top of your backswing?’ This is a very good question, especially as so many golfers have different swings and backswings which is very evident when watching television, friends and playing partners at the golf club.  So this month I have decided to share with you a drill that I personally use and teach to all my students and one that I hope you will find useful. 

It is very important to get your backswing right as it sets you up for the downswing and ensures the correct path into the ball inside the target line.  This very simple drill will allow you to get the feel for your backswing and enable you to hit the ball cleanly and effectively.  One other added advantage is that it can easily be practiced at home and/or on the practice ground.

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

The first step is to address the ball Step 1, where you are bending over from the hips with your knees slightly flexed, as if you were sitting on the edge of a bar stool.  Then while holding your address position and posture, extend the club outwards and let it rest on your right shoulder (opposite if you are left handed) beside your neck while keeping your elbows bend and close together as in Step 2.   Next turn your shoulders so that your back is facing the target while allowing your hips to turn as in Step 3.  Finally when you have got used to this position allow your left arm to extend while your right arm forms a letter ‘L’ as in Step 4 (opposite if you are left handed). 

As I mentioned earlier one of the great things about this drill is that it can be practiced on the practice ground, in your garden or even in the house.  All you need is a mirror so that you can check your position and get the feel for a really good backswing.



THE PITCH SHOT


The pitch shot can be quite difficult for the inexperienced golfer to execute especially if they have adopted a poor technique.  Imagine you are on the course and you have to play a shot with your wedge from 60 yards to the green which includes a water hazard in front of you to carry.   By using this tip you will find it a lot easier to play the shot, avoid hazards like losing your ball in the water, hitting ducks or bull sharks if you are in Australia and hopefully make you feel much more confident about taking this type of shot.

It is important that you stay connected and that your upper and lower body work in harmony; remember if your body is out of sync your pitch will also be out of sync.  From my experience most bad pitch shots are created when the upper body remains static while the lower body moves about too much or when a golfer relies on their hand movement rather than allowing their body to move correctly.  Either way the shot wills will probably go wrong due to inconsistent contact with the ball.  To hit the ball correctly and consistently you must practice at creating a good, fluid and unhurried tempo swing for the shot which will help create the correct balance between your upper and lower body.  You must also feel that you are pitching the ball with your big muscles i.e. thighs, hips, chest and shoulders.  This way you control your distance and flight through the length of your backswing and club selection.  This will undoubtedly rule out the feeling that your upper body is overpowering your lower body or vice versa.  Remember keep your body turning through the swing so that you just don’t hit the ball using your hands.

Give this a try the next time you on the pitching green and hopefully you will see a big improvement.

Until next time enjoy your golf......

The importance of your Lies & Lofts

The golf club at Santo da Serra has recently opened a Repair and Fitting Centre which is exclusive to the island. We offer a number of services from a lies & lofts check, reshafting, regripping and custom fitting your clubs with modern custom fitting tools. There are a wide range of grips and putter grips to choose from in the Pro shop, where you can also select the size of grip depending on your grip size. We can measure you for your lies & lofts and do a shaft fitting by measuring your swing and ball speed. Interestingly enough many of the golfers I have checked for their lies and lofts have had to have alterations to their clubs to get the right lies and lofts specific to their technique.

You are probably asking yourself what are the lies & lofts of your golf clubs?

The loft of the club is related to the how far and how high each club in your bag goes. For example a shot from your pitching wedge (pw) will go a lot higher but not as far as your 5 iron.  The reason why a standard pw is around 48 degrees of loft and a standard 5 iron is around 30 degrees of loft depends on the various manufacturers. It is possible for example to change a 48 degree pitching wedge to a 50 pitching wedge to suit the make up of your set if you thought that the club was a little strong. It is extremely important that you have your lies and lofts checked to make sure that they are correct for your game and that the clubs have not altered themselves from constant playing especially if they are a forged set or a soft metal. 

The lie of a club is the angle that is created by the shaft at the bottom of the club. Golfers often ask what is the correct lie angle for their clubs?  Well this depends on the golfer.  At impact you should make contact with the center of the sole of the club. By doing a dynamic lie test where impact tape is put on the sole of the club and the player is then asked to hit balls form a impact board.  By examining the tape the correct lie angle for your club can be determined.  Once the correct lie ange has been calculated each club in your set can be altered.

Club being altered in the lies and lofts machine

                    
Are your clubs  too flat or too upright? An example of a club that is too upright is where the impact tape is marked on the heel of the club, this type of shot will tend to finish to the left of the target.  A shot where the impact tape is marked on the toe of the club means that the club is too flat and the ball will tend to go to the right of the target.                                                                         

Heel Strike

Toe Strike

It is important that a golfer marks the tape in the centre for the correct lie angle to be assessed and if  any necessary changes need to be made to create the correct lie angle to to suit the golfer. If you are interested in checking your clubs for lies and lofts you can book for a free fitting today.  This is one of the important services we are providing at Santo da Serra, for any other inquiries you can contact the pro shop.

Once you've had your clubs checked and if necessary altered you'll be raring to go out onto the driving range or play on the course, so here is a quick WARM UP exercise for you.

How many times have you driven  into the car park of the golf club and ran down to the first tee without warming up properly. This is a simple way that you can warm up effectively before practicing or hitting your first tee shot of the day. Simply leave the headcover on your driver and make some swings with the head cover on. It is a great way of getting a slow smooth takeaway to start your backwing while maintaining a good rythm and clubhead speed to your swing. Make some backswings first and try a few full swings with the headcover on.

Until next time hope you enjoy your golf and have fun.

Just to remind you that the THE BRIT golf tournament will be held at Santo da Serra golf club for the 3rd year running on Saturday the 22 October. All members and visitors are welcome to participate.  The fee for visitors  is €25 which includes the green fee and a 18 hole stableford competition on the day. For details about the tournament and enquiries about the the Repair & Fitting Centre please contact the pro shop on 291 550100 or email the club reservations@santodaserragolf.com.

Common Faults

In this months article I have picked out two common faults for most golfers; the frustrating slice and the fat shot.

An Easy Cure for A Slice

Bent elbows like in picture 1 will open the clubface for a slice

Picture 1

Straight elbows through impact will cure a slice and create more power, as in picture 2.

Picture 2

The first thing that I would recommend to cure a slice is for the golfer to try and keep their elbows closer together as they turn  through the ball. The classic slice position is that demonstrated in picture 1 which you have heard being referred to as the 'chicken wing'.  This is not a tasty starter before the main course, but in golfing terms it is where the left elbow is bent pointing towards the sky instead of  a straightened and turned under position.  This position makes it extremely difficult to square the clubface at impact.  If you can imagine you elbows being closer together through impact, your right forearm releases and the clubface will square up much easier only closing as you turn to a finish (picture 2). 

Next time you are on the practice ground try to create this position through your practice swings as it is a great way to feel your arms fully extend past  impact which will not only cure a slice but will give you more distance.



An Easy Way to Get Rid of Fat

A fat shot in golf is one where you catch the ground early and the ball only goes a fraction of the intended distance. Its a very common shot in golf and we all know how it feels. It occurs when you make the mistake of trying to help the ball into the air. You can see it happening; as a player starts the downswing their weight stays on their back foot and the upper body and spine begin to tilt back. The club gets stuck into the ground because of your wrist position at impact and the angle of your body.

Here is an exercise for you to try; try swinging to a finish.  As you make every swing try to complete a full turn through the ball to stop hitting it fat. If you trust the club that you are hitting you will get the ball into the air.  Aim to focus on finishing your swing with your weight on your left leg and your body over the left leg also (picture 3) and you will start to hit a much sweeter shot.

Picture 3

A good drill for you to practice to cure a fat shot is to try hitting some balls on a downslope (Picture 4). With the ground being that little bit higher it is much easier to catch it heavy, therefore you will learn much quicker to shift your weight forward.

Picture 4

 I hope these tips from the article help you in some way with your game. Until next time happy golfing.

Tournament News
 BPI bank recently held their sponsored tournament at the Santo da Serra Golf Club. The tournament which had over a 100 participants was considered a  great success by all, which was reflected in the scoring on the day.  The men's event was won by Crisóstomo Luís 43 points, followed by António Henriques 39 points and José Francisco Carreira 38 points. In the ladies section  Lara Vieira won with 37 points, Nelida Agular was 2nd with 36 points followed by Manuela Hodge with 35 points.

Congratulations to all of you.

Consistency for Driving

Dara Ford PGA Professional                     

This month I have decided to do a section on the importance of hitting a longer and straighter drive; the one that everybody dreams about. Unfortunately, some people think that they are not able to achieve a more consistent tee shot and I hope that by using and practising these handy tips it will transform your stats off the tee.

1. DRIVING THROUGH

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

The secret to hitting a powerful drive is all about using your body to create speed at the right time. During your downswing you need a natural rhythm that turns your weight onto your left side facing the target (vice versa for a left-hander). Players often become too complicated with their own game on how to improve driving the golf ball, that they forget to go back to the basics and keep it a little more simple. A good way to feel the natural movement is to go back to how you would throw a ball, you may not have done this in a while but everybody has done this at some stage in their life. To create a lot more power you simply rotate your shoulders away from the target, with your weight naturally loading on your right side. When you go to throw the ball your weight will shift to your left side and your body rotates through to create the neccessary power to throw the ball a lot further. The same principle applies to the golf swing, if you try working on this move and incorporate it into your golf swing you will definitely gain a few extra yards.

2. THE IMPORTANCE OF TURNING

Fig 1.

Fig. 2

A good turn is essential to hit longer more accurate drives. The turn is the most athletic position a golfer will create. At the top of your backswing you will see that in picture on the left my back is facing the target and my left arm is straight. In this position you are creating a huge amount of width which results in greater power. The picture on the right (Fig.2) you can see my left arm has folded and my chest is facing the ball, in this positon I have lost control of the clubhead and I have less power resulting in loss of distance and also direction.

So when you are practicing at the golf course try these two simple drills and hopefully you will see a huge improvement in your long game. 

Santa da Serra Golf Club has just opened the first Fitting and Repair centre which is exclusive to the island offering a wide range of sevices to golfers from regripping clubs, checking the lie and loft of your clubs, shaft repairs, and custom fitting. For any enquiries about the new centre please feel free to contact the pro shop on (+351) 291 550 100.

Until next month...happy golfing

Use of Alignment Sticks

Stick to This

I have noticed from my time in Santo da Serra and where I worked in Ireland at County Sligo Golf Club that alot of players have recently added a set of alignment sticks to the bag. It is great to see people using them when practising because it is a great way to make sure that you are aiming correctly at your target  and I would recommend every golfer to carry them in their bag, they are not expensive to buy roughly 18 euros and they are very light.  Alternatively you could easily invent something very similar yourself . So often you see a golfer on the driving range hitting balls in any direction and not picking an actual target to align themselves towards. The great thing about the alignment sticks  are that they can be used for so many different purposes when practising not just for alignment. In this months article I will show  useful ways to use this tool so that you can really benefit from your practise sessions.

1. Swish the Stick

This an excellent drill for someone who lacks clubhead speed, it will allow you to move your arms and wrists freely without getting that feeling of tightness which can happen so often. Try first by making one-handed swings with the cane switching over and back from your left hand to your right hand. When you start to hear the sound of the swish at the bottom of your swing you are beginning to free your arms and wrists correctly. This also ensures that you achieving effecient clubhead speed and the feeling of releasing the clubhead correctly.



2. Correct Posture

Picture 1

Picture 2

This is a common fault with most golfers and is often left neglected without realising its importance. A good posture will allow you to rotate freely and maintain good balance when you swing. Start by positioning an alignment stick along your spine. It should touch your back in three different points, the back of your head, middle of your back, and the base of your spine (picture 1). Once you have tried this using the aid of a mirror preferably you simply tilt forward from your hips while keeping the three points of contact unlock your knees ( picture 2). By using this drill you are setting yourself in the correct posture position allowing you to swing powerfully and more freely.


3. Chipping Set-Up &  Downward Strike

Some golfers feel they have to tilt their shoulders away from the target, which encourages an upward strike. By holding a cane across your shoulders and feeling like the front end points down helps achieve the correct set-up position and also and very importantly promotes a downward strike.

When chipping, place a cane behind your back foot. your angle of attack will automatically improve. The cane causes a barrier behind the ball which makes you strike the ball steeper while also allowing the shaft to lean forward. This will improve your strike while also promoting a downward blow.

Until next time..... happy golfing

CALAMITY JANE PART TWO

Got to play with a driver today – note to self, must hang about in car parks more often! (tee hee).  Joking aside I have now been introduced to said driver and having spent the first fifteen minutes worrying needlessly about its slightly less than robust structure and that its larger head was going to give me more room for error I finally plucked up the courage and started playing with it.  I even managed to give it back to Dara without him noticing the slight kink -only joking! And I have to admit I actually found it good fun to play with.  Just occasionally instead of a thunk! There was more of a melodic kerplink.

Having got used to this new piece of equipment it was suggested that perhaps I ought to play one hole.  I think that was all Dara’s nerves could take and I believe he still has nightmares of me digging my way out of a bunker on our first course lesson.  The fact that the bunker was approximately two miles away from where I was actually intending to hit, that’s a joke in itself, I shall merely say dribble the ball should not really have caused a problem, except, that a sudden gust of wind took it on a journey and embedded it into the middle of a bunker.  Unfortunately, it was very much a case of saying 'give me thirty minutes while I dig my way down to Australia.'  

Well after the embarrassment and the time it took to re-rake the bunker I decided that I was going to have to do something about it and luckily at a local car boot sale I managed to find a dual purpose sand wedge with the ominous letters PS written across it – I am not even going to try and find a suitable phrase for those two letters as I am sure you will be able to work it out for yourselves!  I’m not sure what the other purpose is, but from looking at it, the person who owned it before me also spent a lot of time in the bunkers, as the definition ‘well worn’ certainly applies.

Of course you can imagine how enthusiastic I was the next time that I ended up in the bunkers (no tittering here please!) and I have now recovered from the black eye, for although my stance, swing and contact were all good I misjudged the angle of the bunker walls and the return ricochet was somewhat faster and more painful.  Of course this serves me right for gloating the other day when my ball which was yet again heading towards a yellow patch on the golf course managed to bounce off a tuft of grass, hop over the bunker and land safely on the other side.  Dara later informed me that the phrase ‘how’s zat’ was not a golfing term!

Oh well, until next time………. and any ideas about what PS stands for, keep to yourself.

Putting Fundamentals

I find when putting there are two things you need for a successful putting stroke: solid mechanics and a deft feel.  From the following tips I will help you not only improve the mechanics of your putt but also help you gain the correct tempo so that you not only become a competent putter but just as importantly by putting more accurately and consistantly you will be able to see your score improve.


1. The Correct Angle.

The position of the ball is extremely important and something which many players seem to neglect when putting. The angle of attack that your putter hits the ball with will determine the strength and the roll of the putt.

Set the ball slightly forward in your stance (between the middle and inside your left foot as in the picture on the left) this will create the correct amount of topspin when you strike the ball for correct roll on the putt, while the putter will be square to the target through impact.

If the ball is too far forward (picture on the left) you will strike the ball at the bottom of the putter resulting in a poor roll.

or alternatively with the ball too far back (picture on the left) the putter will hit the ball into the ground resulting in the ball to pop up off the ground with a poor direction and roll.





2.  The Grip.

                                                               

(picture 1 & 2)
                                                                        

I have recently noticed that some of my new students have been using the same grip for their putting and long game ( picture 2) . It is very important that you grip the putter correctly when putting. You should try changing your grip if this is the case, point both your thumbs down the middle of the grip resting on the flat front (picture 1) and perhaps try placing your index finger on your left hand on top of your fingers on your right hand. This will help you become a more accomplished putter and your hands will work more as a unit.

3. Feeling for the Putter Head

To threaten the hole more often the putter head must move with more freedom and fluidity. When you are practicing on the putting green or on the course try some one-handed swings (as in the picture) to your pre-shot routine, you will start to feel the putter head creating its own momentum. Practice this a couple of times making sure when placing the other hand back on the putter that you don't grip the putter too tightly as this will hamper the freedom of your stroke.



That's it until next time and if you want to contact me for a lesson or have any queries please contact the pro shop on 968943771 or on my email at dara@santodaserragolf.com. I hope you find these tips useful and happy golfing.

TO A GREAT AND CHARISMATIC MAN

On hearing the news of Seve Ballesteros’s death I wanted to write something that just wasn’t a rehash of all that’s been said before.   So, I contacted Peter Mitchell and asked him to recall some of his memories.  I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I have.

This is what he said.......... 

'Yes, I was one of the lucky people who, while on the PGA European Tour played with Seve Ballesteros during many tournaments and practise rounds and enjoyed his sense of fun and his genuine desire to help others.  He actually helped me on several occasions and here are just a couple of short stories that show or at least to me show just how charismatic and generous he really was.'

Words of Wisdom

It was 1992 and I had led a few tournaments over the 1990 era and just couldn't finish off and win!!!!!.  I was playing with Seve in The German Masters for the first two rounds and was doing ok, but Seve asked me why I hadn't won any tournaments?  My reply was ‘it's because I haven’t played well enough throughout the tournament.’

Well he said to me, ‘I have only won one event out of the 25 or so - The Masters where I played great golf for just two rounds and hung on for dear life for the other two rounds.  So, if you have a very good round you just hang on as much and for as long as you can until the end of the tournament and hopefully you would have won!!!!!!!!’  Well a few weeks later I did win and as Seve said in a roundabout way ‘It's not and never easy but stay in there and give it your all’ and it worked, so thanks Seve!!!!.

And on another occasion

I was paired with Seve in the Lancôme Trophy for the first two rounds.  I didn't have a great opening round (70) I think, but I'd missed putts all the way round the course.  After we had finished Seve marched me straight to the putting green with Billy Foster his caddy, placed a towel on the floor then preceded to spend 1.5 hours virtually on all fours pulling and pushing the putter and me into all sorts of positions to help me putt much better.  I have to admit it was funny looking at the faces on all the other tournament pro's on the putting green watching Seve, the Number 1, in the world at that time giving me a very strong putting lesson.

Again it shows the passion of Seve to help all of us when he could and as much as he could.

Seve, thank you for giving me a chance to have known you and to have spent time in your company. You will be sadly missed by me and everyone in the golfing world.

Peter Mitchell May 2011

I have a brief story that my father told me about when he met Seve. He had won a local competition with Callaway to meet Seve along with 15 other people from around europe. Seve gave them his upmost attention from 9 a.m to 6 p.m for 3 days, he showed them every shot in the game from trick shots to the conventional along with playing holes also. My father will always remember Seve telling him " If you have an out of bounds on the left you line up and face the enemy on the left and vice versa". On the last night with Seve one of the Callaway representatives called him and told him to get ready for dinner at 7p.m , Seve said  he was not finished speaking and he would have dinner at 8p.m. Seve had breakfast, lunch and dinner everyday with the clients. My father said he had never been treated so well, Seve's generousity and commitment was far and above of what Callaway expected of him. I never met Seve but watched him play in the Irish Open in Ireland and he would always have the biggest crowds watching him.

Dara Ford

CJ

Calamity Jane Hits the Fairways

CALAMITY JANE HITS THE FAIRWAYS

I MAY NOT HAVE MANAGED AN EAGLE BUT I SURE AM GONNA GET THAT SEAGULL

Now I freely acknowledge that I will never be the world’s greatest golf player, well not for a while as such aspirations are a little unwise after just six lessons and as someone delicately mentioned, middle age! I hasten to add that they have been taken off my friends listing. Yet despite my growing enthusiasm for the sport as well as my lack of technical ability I was sniggered at.  Having already been told that I ‘squidge’ my face up when under pressure or in most cases when it comes to hitting the ball and having watched Dara’s action reply of my erratic wrist movement which makes my golf more akin to Mr Bean than Tiger Woods I have come to realise that all those little things were nothing compared to the attitude of a two legged, beady eyed, grey and white golf critic, aka a seagull.

So there I was having a lesson in chipping while Dara stood in what could only be described as a ‘man suffering’ pose while I lined up my first shot.  This and later ones didn’t go too badly.  OK, they more rolled along the ground at speed rather than elegantly rising and rolling across the putting green but boy did they move and I nearly got a hole in one.  After punching the air wildly and exclaiming loudly about take a look at that!  Dara kindly pointed out that whilst my shots had gone past a hole and yes I had nearly got a hole in one I was in fact supposed to be aiming for the hole with the yellow and white flag and not the black and red one half a mile away.  So it was back to hitting the grass again to work on a somewhat more delicate and controlled swing when a sharp cackle caught my attention.  Sitting behind me was the resident golf critic, the expression on its face one of amused contempt.  Even more upsetting was when I scowled he opened his beak as if yawning from boredom.  Of course being a beginner gives you so much leeway to make mistakes, I mean it would have been a great shame if I had misinterpreted an instruction and hit the ball the wrong way therefore relieving said seagull of its smug expression but I was prevented from doing so by the steely look that came into its eye.  It reminded me of my grandmother when she was cross and I was sure that any such transgression would result in me having to stand in a corner until forgiven (eventually!).

So, in an attempt to perfect my game and to actually get my shoulders to move rather than just my wrists Dara came up with a cunning plan; I had to hit the golf ball so that it would move a coin placed in front of it.  And it worked!  Much to my surprise and instead of landing half a mile away I actually got within a couple of feet of the intended target. 

So until next time it will be practice, practice, practice…………………………..and of course it’s always helpful if you have something to aim at!

C.J

The First Tee

As Two Ronnies would say it's goodnight from him and its hello from me (just tweaked it a little).  It's been a little different this week as we have said goodbye to academy founder Peter Mitchell who has been giving club members and visitors a wide variety of lessons here at his academy in Santo da Serra, Madeira for the past 6 weeks and I think he literally has returned to the UK for a well earned rest due to his popularity.  

While he was here Peter stated that one of his biggest concerns was that many amateur golfters chose the wrong equipment through no fault of their own , and to avoid this he is opening the first 'fitting' centre on the island which will give golfers the opportunity to talk to me, Dara, and receive professional and expert guidance on changes that are needed such as grip sizes and shaft changes.  In many instances golfers make massive compensations to actually be able to play which in turn has a major impact on their game and can lead to people giving up purely because they feel they are not improving.  Yet when they play with equipment designed for their height the improvement is almost immediate and once your game improves you become so much more excited and positive about golf.

Future ideas also involve introducing group lessons, as many people new to the sport can feel overwhelmed at the thought of a one to one lesson, whereas a group lesson allows for people to interact with the others of the group and their instructor on a slightly less intense level while the group provides each member with a support network and a healthy bit of competitiveness.