Best Golf Tip you’ve received ?

[TCUfrog]

There are 2 tips of advice I've carried with me since I was about 12 year's old. First was that rhythm is more important than speed in the golf swing. My coach taught me to say "Johnny Miller" in my head as I swung at the ball. Back swing say "johnny" then "Miller" through the finish.

Second is slightly more entertaining: "Stare at the ass of the ball" My coach said to picture a good ass on the back of the ball and to not move my eyes from it.

[silver & black]

Get a bigger flask.

[downlowkey]

Breathe through your eyelids... like a lava lizard.

[Buraqoo21]

On 5/23/2020 at 2:09 AM, SteddyGolf said:

 

We have all probably received far more advice than we will ever need or want. Still there are those hidden gems that can be transformative.

 

Recently I received one of those. It has to do with flattening your left wrist (for a righty) on the back swing. This is something I’ve always struggled with and has led to me coming over the top more than I care to mention. The advice was to imagine you are ringing out a towel with you right hand turning it clock wise as you get to the 9 or 10 o’clock position. This has really helped me to strike the ball better.

 

What gem have you received that left a little twinkle in your eye?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

 

Thank you for sharing your tip! I'll definitely be trying this next time I'm at the range. https://matchpractice.com/ is a great resource for golfers of all levels to get tips and advice from professionals.

[Pandaman]

Above all ENJOY it.  Try your best if course, but it's a game we play for pleasure after all.

[chisag]

... Judging by the responses, evidently I have been wasting my time posting tips on MGS.   My most transformative tip is for those that top or hit thin shots and haven't taken a divot. Place a golf ball one foot in front of the ball you are going to hit. Take a full normal swing but make your ball hit the ball one foot in front. This changes your focus from trying to hit the ball UP and in the air to DOWN and through in order to hit the ball on the ground in front. Sooooo many compressed a golf ball with spin and hit it higher than they ever had by simply changing their focus, not their swing. 

[GolfSpy TCB]

28 minutes ago, chisag said:

Evidently I have been wasting my time posting tips on MGS.

I love your tips chisag!!

[CarlH]

47 minutes ago, chisag said:

... Judging by the responses, evidently I have been wasting my time posting tips on MGS.   My most transformative tip is for those that top or hit thin shots and haven't taken a divot. Place a golf ball one foot in front of the ball you are going to hit. Take a full normal swing but make your ball hit the ball one foot in front. This changes your focus from trying to hit the ball UP and in the air to DOWN and through in order to hit the ball on the round in front. Sooooo many compressed a golf ball with spin and hit it higher than they ever had by simply changing their focus, not their swing. 

Never heard this before...I'll have to give it a go next time I'm out on the practice facility!  

And...au contraire to the wasting of your time.  I always read them.

[sirchunksalot]

18 minutes ago, EasyPutter said:

Relax once you're set and don't think while you swing.  

Okay maybe that's two tips but so related put together they are two halves of a whole  

The evidence supports the notion the body knows how to swing the golf club.  Consider the infant learning to walk; all wiggles and jerks trying to stand and move a foot until distracted - then off and moving naturally until child realizes they are walking, starts thinking about it and promptly falls down.  We practice how to swing so when it is time to swing stop thinking about it.  Amazingly music and normal conversations around me have no effect on my swing though people often apologize for speaking while I hit.  Regular partners are the ones who relax and carry on knowing I don't wait and they don't have to pause what they are doing because my "relax and swing" happens so quickly one after the other I have usually hit before anyone realizes I have gone into my routine, and with ready golf I don't hesitate to tee up first and letterip with a good idea where the ball is going to be found.

Great one @EasyPutter and this is something I'm working on to integrate into my game. I think tension is a killer of the golf swing and something I'm working to eliminate from my game. It's a work in progress, but when it works the results are so much better. 

My old routine used to be, pick a spot, set up, waggle several times, and sit over the ball for a short eternity thinking about everything, and then hitting. Now it's pick a spot, set up,  waggle twice, set the club down and go. It's still not perfect, (see today's round) but it's what I did on the last hole. I'm proud to have made a bogey on a par 5 after having to pitch back into the fairway after an errant tee shot. 

 

[NC Golfer]

16 hours ago, chisag said:

... Judging by the responses, evidently I have been wasting my time posting tips on MGS.   My most transformative tip is for those that top or hit thin shots and haven't taken a divot. Place a golf ball one foot in front of the ball you are going to hit. Take a full normal swing but make your ball hit the ball one foot in front. This changes your focus from trying to hit the ball UP and in the air to DOWN and through in order to hit the ball on the round in front. Sooooo many compressed a golf ball with spin and hit it higher than they ever had by simply changing their focus, not their swing. 

Chisag, Thanks, for sharing. Makes sense. My best shots are coming out of the woods, trying to hit it low under a tree limb and the ball goes high. What's a good change of focus for the driver or a teed up ball?

Edited September 18, 2022 by NC Golfer

[chisag]

6 hours ago, NC Golfer said:

Chisag, Thanks, for sharing. Makes sense. My best shots are coming out of the woods, trying to hit it low under a tree limb and the ball goes high. What's a good change of focus for the driver or a teed up ball?

 

... If you are topping or hitting teed up balls thin. Change your focus to hitting the tee not the ball. Some fear skying the ball if they try and hit the tee with a driver so if that is the case just tee it a little lower. 

[gman8966]

Best tip I ever got was not to care about your score. It's hard when you start a round and are par or under after several holes, but I play my best when I'm just out messing around and I don't care.

[GolfSpy TCB]

Mark O'Meara talking to a group of Jr. Golfers at the PURE Insurance Championship Impacting First Tee last week recounted advice he gave Tiger before he got his tour card...  

What O'Meara learned by playing with the best players in the game..

1) Always hit approach shots pin high

2) You have to have good speed on the greens

Sage advice...

watch the video here:

https://fb.watch/fPh3mbTkWD/

 

[MacTourney]

On 9/17/2022 at 4:43 PM, chisag said:

... Judging by the responses, evidently I have been wasting my time posting tips on MGS.   My most transformative tip is for those that top or hit thin shots and haven't taken a divot. Place a golf ball one foot in front of the ball you are going to hit. Take a full normal swing but make your ball hit the ball one foot in front. This changes your focus from trying to hit the ball UP and in the air to DOWN and through in order to hit the ball on the round in front. Sooooo many compressed a golf ball with spin and hit it higher than they ever had by simply changing their focus, not their swing. 

Is the second ball topped by the struck ball that's lofting off the ground?  

[chisag]

3 hours ago, MacTourney said:

Is the second ball topped by the struck ball that's lofting off the ground?  

 

... The only way to have the first ball hit the second is if you hit it thin or of course topped. By attempting to have the first ball hit the second most have a downward or at least level contact and the loft of the club with more spin, will launch the first ball well over the second. 

[MacTourney]

7 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

... The only way to have the first ball hit the second is if you hit it thin or of course topped. By attempting to have the first ball hit the second most have a downward or at least level contact and the loft of the club with more spin, will launch the first ball well over the second. 

What if it was a flushed strong 3wood tipped heavy, could that make a difference and the top of the second ball could be skimmed by the elevating first ball?

[cnosil]

10 minutes ago, MacTourney said:

What if it was a flushed strong 3wood tipped heavy, could that make a difference and the top of the second ball could be skimmed by the elevating first ball?

Based on right triangle math, you would have to launch the ball at less than 8* to potentially hit the second ball with the first.  Is it possible with a bad shot, yes. you would  probably have bigger swing issues than not hitting down on the ball. 

[tony@CIC]

Teeing the ball down. Over the past year I progressively teed the ball higher (and even went to 3 1/4' tees) andkept skying the ball at least 2-3 times per round. My instructor told me given my swing/ball position to lower it. The ball now sits just a tad less then halfway above the crown of the driver. The tee sits 1 1/8" vs. 1 3/4 above the grass

[TR1PTIK]

11 minutes ago, tony@CIC said:

Teeing the ball down. Over the past year I progressively teed the ball higher (and even went to 3 1/4' tees) andkept skying the ball at least 2-3 times per round. My instructor told me given my swing/ball position to lower it. The ball now sits just a tad less then halfway above the crown of the driver. The tee sits 1 1/8" vs. 1 3/4 above the grass

This is probably pretty close to where I tee the ball. As with most things in golf, there's no hard and fast rule that holds true for every player regarding tee height. I've seen too many players struggle with teeing the ball too high and it's one reason why I struggle hitting in simulated conditions (off mats) unless there's a "short" tee available. Much more important that you find the middle of the face with a neutral AoA (even slightly negative is ok) than to tee it up for a positive AoA and get the occasional moon launcher. It might not be optimal, but if it's consistent you can play golf.

[bens197]

Nobody cares what you shoot so play well and have fun and if you aren’t playing well, be fun to play with.

[chisag]

6 minutes ago, bens197 said:

Nobody cares what you shoot so play well and have fun and if you aren’t playing well, be fun to play with.

 

... Perfect! We all appreciate when others hit good shots. We can all identify when others hit poor shots. With a good attitude it is always a win-win.

... I actually had more than a few students that were embarrassed to hit balls in front of me for the first time, which amazed me because most would not be paying for a lesson unless they were struggling. It didn't take me long to develop a little speech with students first lesson imploring them to show me their absolute worst swings because it is much harder to diagnose their problems if they are hitting it well. So PLEASE make my job easier by using your worst swings possible! 

[MacTourney]

3 hours ago, cnosil said:

Based on right triangle math, you would have to launch the ball at less than 8* to potentially hit the second ball with the first.  Is it possible with a bad shot, yes. you would probably have bigger swing issues than not hitting down on the ball. 

Wouldn't have a clue how to proceed along geometric lines so I have no idea how 8* launch was determined   That solution could very well be correct, but my limited math skills are limited.   

I was asking, in part, because there is a similar drill, for the same purpose, using the same ball locations, in which both balls are hit in sequence with the clubhead while also avoiding excessive shaft lean-weight shift using a chase technique which really has nothing to do with having bigger swing issues than not hitting down on the ball, quite the opposite with this drill.      

    

[cnosil]

4 hours ago, MacTourney said:

Wouldn't have a clue how to proceed along geometric lines so I have no idea how 8* launch was determined   That solution could very well be correct, but my limited math skills are limited.   

I was asking, in part, because there is a similar drill, for the same purpose, using the same ball locations, in which both balls are hit in sequence with the clubhead while also avoiding excessive shaft lean-weight shift using a chase technique which really has nothing to do with having bigger swing issues than not hitting down on the ball, quite the opposite with this drill.      

    

A ball is 1.68" in diameter and is 12 inches away from the first ball.  There is a formula that you can plug in those numbers and determine that for the first ball to be higher than 1.68" it has to launch at 8*.  

 

I didn't read your saying hit the second ball with the club,  you said hit the second ball with the first ball.  Doing that would mean that you are launching the ball excessively low which would probably be a swing issue.   The drill being discussed had you hit  the second ball with the club to work in a downward AoA.  Sorry.  I am confused about what you are asking then.   

 

 

[tony@CIC]

18 hours ago, bens197 said:

Nobody cares what you shoot so play well and have fun and if you aren’t playing well, be fun to play with.

And play fast

[MacTourney]

21 hours ago, cnosil said:

 Sorry.  I am confused about what you are asking then.   

No worries.  

The initial task's working premise was trying to hit the second ball but the task would not be accomplished but still successful in establishing a downward strike, and this is a great task when learning a downward delivery.  

However, with a lower lofted club, like a strong 3w,  staying lower longer through the strike,  turning inside the back of the ball, on a flexed left knee  in order to chase the first ball with the clubhead by gaining full after strike shaft extension via hip rotation, could the second ball be nicked by the first ball by staying down longer was the question, according to geometry the answer is no, so maybe when the second ball is nicked during this drill it's coming from the clubhead instead of the first ball.      That about sums it up from my end.  Cheers. 
 

 

[alexjames]

I was having problems making good contact with the ball and was hitting behind the ball. I went for a lesson with my local pro. He saw that I was moving my weight to my back foot in the back swing, a lot. Kavin showed me this on video and gave me this piece of advice, “Swing in a barrel.”

He taught me to rotate in the back swing and shift weight in the back swing slightly. this kept me centered in the swing and able to make solid contact. I always mutter that to myself if I end up hitting two inches behind the ball.

 

[jaskanski]

The best golf tip is that there aren't really that many good golf tips - but you have to listen to an awful lot of golf tips until you find that out...

Seriously though, there will always be golf balls, golf clubs and golf courses - the only downside is one day there won't be another day, so enjoy it while you can.

[christina42]

Learn the average distance you hit all your clubs. On the course take one more club than you think you'll need. Work a lot on the short game. Chipping, pitching, bunker play, and especially putting. Learn what clubs work best for each kind of short game shot. You don't necessarily have to open a wedge wide open in the bunkers. Gary Player never did. It's better to get out of the bunker than hit it 2 feet and have to hit it again. Watch the pros and how they hit certain shots. You can learn a lot from that, and understand that even they have bad days and hit bad shots. Golf is a hard game to play well. Accept the abilities you have, try to get better, and just go out and have fun.