Today's Golf News
Featured Golf ArticleHow A Muffin Tin Can Improve Your Golf Game
By Gray Rollins
Any golfer will tell you that a lot of confusion can stem from not being able to identify your ball on the course. When two golf balls fall near to the hole but also near to each other, the debate over which player made which shot can get quite uncomfortable. This kind of awkward situation can take a lot of the fun out of this otherwise soothing sport, and can negatively affect your ability to play well.
During an argument, your muscles naturally tense in order to prepare you for the possibility of a physical attack. This response is meant to protect you in a high stakes life or death situation. But in a low stakes situation like a game of golf your bodys natural defense mode can sabotage your game by keeping you all wound up, when what you really need on the course is to stay calm. Golfing experts agree that one of the keys to a perfect shot is relaxing your muscles so you can achieve your maximum range of mobility and greatest efficiency of movement. To keep play moving swiftly without being halted by snafus, to keep your cool and avoid heated arguments, and to keep yourself relaxed in order to achieve your best game, it is a good idea to make your golf balls unique.
By making your golf balls stand out from the ones owned by other players on the course, you can take a big step towards being a better and happier golfer because you will be minimizing one of those hassles of the game.
Some people purchase monogrammed balls, which is a smart way to make sure your golf balls cant be mistaken for anybody elses on the course. Other people buy golf balls as souvenirs on their trips to unique places, and doing this all but guarantees that your ball will stand out. However, both of these options can be quite costly. And, every golfer knows that balls get lost easily and often, which makes expensive golf balls quite a luxury. Most amateur golfers balk at spending a lot of money on golf balls that will inevitably disappear into water traps or get lost in the rough at the edge of the course.
For an inexpensive and simple alternative to buying pricey monogrammed or souvenir golf ball, you can mark your balls at home. First, get a small muffin tin and place one golf ball in each of the indentations. This will keep the balls from rolling into each other while they are drying. Then, take a permanent marker and mark the top of each ball. You can write your initials; or use a simple symbol like a star, a square, or even a large dot. Leave the tin and the balls in place for a few hours so the ink can set, and then get ready to hit the course. The next time that you need to know if a ball is yours, all that you will have to do is look at it and then move on with no hassle, and without any of the tension that can sabotage your game.
About The Author
Gray Rollins is a featured writer for YourGolfing.com. To learn more golfing tips and to learn about golfing vacations, visit us.
Tips On Golf Wedges
Bottom Out
Notice how the logo on my shirt has moved closer to the target at impact than it was at address. The bottom of the swing will occur under the logo, making it a must to get it past the ball if you want to make ball-first contact.
...Golf Tips magazine
Nike Sasquatch Fairway Woods
If you plan to choose used golfclubs as beginner's tools, scrutinizing before purchasing is a must. The clubheads, the shafts, and the grips are golfclub parts that should pass inspection first before landing a decent spot in your golf equipment cabinet. Another excellent golf tip that will get you through the game is making sure that the set of used golfclubs you're eyeing have set consistency. It will also help a lot if you check first the price of new clubs vs. used.
Improve your golf game with a new golf driver head today!
Leg Angle
The lower leg should angle away from the ball at setup. This helps the body weight move off the heels and into the balls of the feet. This is an athletic position that really works.
...Golf Tips magazine
Short practice sessions regularly are better than one long period. Practice, and good repetition, will teach your muscles to learn to feel - creating your own internal dialog from within that you, and only you, can describe to yourself.
...Golf Instruction Guide
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Balancing Your Checkbook And Golf Swing
By: Sean Cochran
We all search for it. Balance in our daily lives. Balance while riding a bike. Politicians are always debating a balanced budget in Washington, and most of us could use a little balance in our checkbooks. Balance is a term used in golf quite often as well. It�s a �buzzword� and almost a clich� when it comes to the golf swing. I am sure you have heard numerous times from swing coaches that �you have to stay balanced when swinging your club.� Others phrases that I hear when we talk about golf and balance are the following: �When it comes to a sand shot, dig your feet into the stand so you can stay balanced,� �If the ball is on an uphill lie and above your feet, make sure you swing through the ball, and stayed balanced,� and �Stay balanced when hitting the driver and get to the finish position in perfect balance.� The list could go on and on, and I am sure all of you could probably add to the short list above.
Two questions always arise in my mind when I hear the word balance in association with golf: 1) what does balance exactly mean, and 2) how do I create balance in my golf swing? I am guessing quite a few of you have these same questions, or similar ones, when you talk about the subject of balance in relation to the golf swing.
I am going to answer both of these questions. We will first define balance and its relation to the golf swing. Secondly, we will discuss how you develop the balance capacities of your body in relation to the golf swing. So without further ado let�s get started.
What is Balance?
This is a really great question and the perfect way to begin. So let�s hear it! What is the definition of balance? Think about it for a minute and then write down a couple of your answers. I understand that this is not the easiest question to answer (trust me, I have asked it plenty of times), and it is okay if you are not able to create a good working definition of balance (that�s part of what we are going to do with this article). Okay, time is up, what did you write down?
Well, let me tell you some of the replies I have received for this question and we will take if from there. Here are just a few that I hear: �head over your belly button between your feet,� �swinging a club on the correct path,� �knowing where your body is in space,� and �kinesthetic awareness.� All of these answers are somewhat correct, but none of them gives us a good sound understanding of what balance really means.
The definition of balance is simply the ability to control your body during movement. Sounds pretty simple, does it not? It really is when you think about it, but let�s break this definition down so we understand it completely. Starting with the first portion of the definition: �the ability to control� means what? Well, it is probably easiest to imagine what �out of control� looks like. Take the mental image of a racecar crashing into the wall. We could describe the car as out of control. Now take the flip side of this, and what would this car look like if it were in control? It would probably zoom around the track without hitting anything. The body is the same; if your body is out of control it will, in a sense, crash or fall over. If the body is in control, then it performs whatever movement you are asking of it without �crashing.� Take the example of a toddler running. Sometimes they get going so quickly that they get out of control and fall over. Other times they stay in control and are able to run.
Moving onto the second part of the definition: �your body.� Pretty easy concept to understand, don�t you think? Your body includes your torso, head, arms, legs, and anything attached to the arms or legs, like a golf club. Up to this point we can put together the first two parts of the definition and summarize it as: the body (including your arms, legs, torso, head, and golf club) must be under control. Let us add the final part of the definition into the mix to complete our understanding.
The final piece of the definition is: �during movement.� This simply means anything your body is doing. It can be walking, running, throwing a baseball, or, in our world, swinging a golf club. Swinging a golf club is �our movement� when discussing this definition. We are now at the point to put the whole definition together. Let us use the example of a golf swing to create the connection we are looking for in terms of the definition.
Balance is the ability of your body (i.e. nerves, muscles, and skeleton) to swing a golf club effectively and efficiently on the correct path without changing the position of your body in such a way that it is detrimental to the swing and its outcome (i.e. contact with the ball). Pretty simple definition when you break it down, and from now on when your swing coach says, �You have to stay balanced,� you know what he is talking about.
Developing Balance in Our Golf Swing
Okay, we now know the definition of balance and its relationship to the golf swing. Now, for the second question of this article: �how do we develop balance in relationship to our golf swing?� This next section will answer this question for you. I would also bet that the answer is not as obvious as it appears.
I will first say that developing balance in your swing is a combination of a couple of factors. The first and probably most obvious factor is mechanics. The golf swing is a biomechanical movement that requires the body to take the club through a specified swing path in a certain sequence and timing. The body must learn the biomechanical movement of a golf swing to become efficient with the movement. As your body becomes aware of the movement, more efficient with the movement, and has a better �feel� for the movement, the concept of balance in your swing will improve. So the first part of developing balance in your swing is linked to the mechanics of the swing and becoming more efficient with these mechanics. This all funnels down to two things: 1) proper instruction about the swing, and 2) practice. Practice, practice, and more practice is necessary to create better balance in your swing.
The second factor has to do with a term that many of you have probably heard before. That term is �muscle memory.� Realize that within your body the skeleton is controlled by your muscles, muscles are controlled by nerves, and the nerves are told what to do by your brain. The messages sent to your muscles through your nerves by the brain create movement (i.e. muscles working to make the body move). These movements can either be efficient or inefficient. Inefficient movements by the muscular system tend to be �sloppy� and �unrefined.� Efficient movements are just the opposite. Efficient movements by your muscular system are refined and technical. Improvement in balance is a result of the latter (i.e. efficient muscular movement). Efficient muscular movement is developed through training the muscles and nerves of your body to become more efficient. This is not done through typical exercises like bench press or leg press, but through stabilization and balance exercises.
As golfers we have our priorities. Let�s get some balance in our golf swing by training our bodies, getting proper instruction, and certainly a lot of practice. Once we�ve got balance there, then we�ll start talking about balancing our checkbook or helping Washington balance the federal budget.
Sean Cochran is one of the most recognized golf fitness instructors in the world today. He travels the PGA Tour regularly with 2004 Masters Champion Phil Mickelson. He has made many of his golf tips, golf instruction and golf swing improvement techniques available to amateur golfers on the website www.bioforcegolf.com
Hints On Golf Drivers
To learn how variations of the grip affect ball flight. Experiment with slight variations of your grip. Observe how the changes affect the flight of the ball. A weak grip encourages a slice or fade. A strong grip encourages a hook or a draw. The V.s formed by the index finger and thumbs on both hands should point between the chin and right shoulder.
Learn more about golf clubs today!
You learn to play golf by feel, not mechanics alone. Too much detail is confusing. You cannot think your way through a golf swing. You feel your way!
...PGA professional golf
Golf is played in many different types of weather. The type of weather affects how far the ball travels and its amount of spin. Knowing how the weather conditions affect your ball, therefore, is necessary to making correct club selections.
...golf news
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