Golf Swing and Equipment Information at Golfer's Apex

How to Put Spin on Your Golf Ball

Posted on:: January 9, 2011
Author:: Golf Fiend

Everyone wants to do it — hit a golf ball onto the green and watch it back up! To do this we need SPIN! Now how do we get this spin onto the ball so it does this?

It takes a combination of a few factors: the golf ball, club selection, and swing speed. There are definitely other factors that play into the whole spin thing but these make up the bulk of it and if you can get them down you can spin your gold ball enough to hold it on greens where it lands and even back up!

First, the golf ball, you need a nice golf ball — period. You will have to spend the money on a nice set of Titleist Pro-V1′s or other top line golf ball. Pro-V1′s are my personal favorite and work very well. The money will be well spent, better than buying nice new golf clubs.

Second, golf club selection. You are not going to be able to spin the golf ball as much with a 3 iron as you would with a pitching wedge. Your club selection must be appropriate. To get them to stop effectively I would recommend starting off with a pitching wedge, or your favorite wedge or 9 iron.

Third, swing speed. You are not going to get spin on the ball by barely taping the ball — you need to whack it.

Lastly, the grooves of your golf clubs need to be clean and it is prudent to acquire a good groove and golf club cleaning device. It is important that they are clean and free of any dirt, grass and other debris, because if they are not then it does not matter if you follow all three of the steps to creating spin, it just will not happen. Save yourself the trouble and get yourself a decent golf club groove cleaner.

To get the spin on the golf ball you need to incorporate these three factors into the shot. Now, how do we hit it? Easy! You hit the ball as you normally would, but make sure — and this is absolutely imperative to spin — you hit the golf ball before you hit the ground. Failure to do just that simple step will cause you to fail. The hit needs to be clean, period. As with any shot, save for bunker shots, you want to hit the golf ball before hitting earth. If you remember from an earlier post this is something Sergio Garcia suggests as well.

Now get out on the range and practice your game, spring is just around the corner!

Posted in Golf Swing, Golf Tips | Tags: golf swing, golf tips, swing tips | No Comments

Why Golf Balls Make a Difference

Posted on:: January 8, 2011
Author:: Golf Fiend

In a previous post I went over why getting new golf clubs won’t make a big difference in your golf game. Now to go further on that topic I am going to cover the reasons why golf balls DO make a large difference in your golf game. If you can make consistent, clean contact with the golf ball then having one of the top performing golf balls will make a big difference, especially on your short game.

The advantages of nice golf balls when it comes to short game is that they spin, a lot. This spin helps the ball stop on greens, and for the better players can get their golf balls to back up on the green. This control is essential in attacking dangerous pins where you need the guarantee of the ball staying where you hit it and not rolling off the back of the green like a cheap ball would.

These balls offer superior control compared to some cheap Top-Flite junk golf ball and can offer immediate results to your golf game.

So, if you are able to consistently make clean, crisp impact with your golf swing then the higher-end golf balls could be a good investment.

Posted in General, Golf Tips | Tags: golf, golf balls, golf equipment, golf tips | No Comments

Why Golf Clubs Don’t Make the Difference

Posted on:: January 8, 2011
Author:: Golf Fiend

A fault of many golfers is the thinking that getting a new club will improve one’s performance. When in reality it will just cost you money and give you nothing in return. You may notice a brief increase in performance, that is until your first big misfire with the golf club and then it will perform no better than your old club.

The thing a new golf club can bring is a momentary boost of confidence — a belief that you are now better than before and surprise you might actually live up to that!

When I began golfing I used a set of clubs that was free (it was won in a door prize, it retailed for something like $100). I shot in the 70′s with these golf clubs! I had a dent the size of a golf ball on the top of the driver from a stupid swing I made, crashing it into the ground, turning the club over and whacking it into the golf ball, leaving a dent.

So what should we get from this? That new golf clubs do nothing more than offer a momentary boost of confidence, nothing you couldn’t provide yourself in the first place. New, fitted golf clubs come in handy when you are consistently playing well. Then they will offer even more consistently, but if you line up to the golf ball and have no idea if the shot will be going straight or hooking or slicing, then new clubs will not help you.

Spend the cash at the practice range refining your swing. A better swing will bring more improvements than any piece of equipment can.

Invest in your swing.

Posted in General, Golf Tips | Tags: golf, golf equipment, golf tips | No Comments

What Should You Feed Yourself for Top Golf Performance?

Posted on:: December 29, 2010
Author:: Golf Fiend

As covered in the previous post, it is necessary to recognize the importance of fitness for golf.

Another part of the equation is your diet. What should you feed yourself to improve your fitness and golf performance? This is not just a question that concerns golf, but concerns your entire lifestyle. A change in your diet should be a life changing event — to get healthier, which leads to better performance in golf, or any sport for that matter.

Now what should you eat? It is easier to state what you should avoid completely, except for special occasions. These foods to always avoid are:

anything with sugar (candy, ice cream, sodas, sweets, etc)
refined carbohydrates (breads, pastas, etc)

To eliminate those foods from your diet would lead to weight loss and a better body composition. These foods are almost entirely empty of any nutrients (why do you think breads and pastas have to be fortified?).

It is important to eat foods that leave you feeling full — and carbohydrate heavy meals will not do this, ever. How many plate fulls of toast do you think you could eat? A lot. Now how many plate fulls of steak? Exactly, not much. Foods high in fat and high in protein leave you feeling satiated. It is good to have a satiated feeling, your mind and body can focus on golfing while on the course rather than wondering when you are going to feed yourself next.

Foods that are high in fat and protein (tasty, satiating food):

meats
chesses
nuts
eggs
milk

These are great foods to snack on too while on the course. Beef jerky is a personal favorite of mine while on the golf course. I know this sounds like the Atkins diet, which it essentially is, but I recommend it because it is good, proven diet. And this is not a diet in terms of starving yourself, but rather a diet where you eat till your full, and not worry about counting calories.

It is important to remember to have your diet inline, it will improve all facets of your life, not just your golf game. You will feel better, sleep better, and have more energy among other things — for more golf!

Posted in General | Tags: fitness, golf, health, nutrition | No Comments

How to Get Fit for Golf

Posted on:: December 29, 2010
Author:: Golf Fiend

An important part of any life is to remain healthy. It can boost many parts of your life, including golf! The importance of fitness in golf is a recent phenomenon. It came around with the bulking up of Tiger Woods.

Like with any good workout regime a golf fitness plan should revolve around a strong core. Now what do I mean by a strong core? The muscles that make up the core are the muscles located around the upper legs and lower abdomen and back.

Exercises that target the core: squats, deadlifts, lunges, sit ups, push ups, and on and on. These exercises specifically target your core and are all an important part of any fitness regime. You should add more exercises to this to make sure you get a well rounded workout, but these will target many of the muscles in your body because they are compound movements. When working out make sure to select exercises that are compounded, meaning that they target several muscles at once. Isolated exercises are mostly a waste of time unless you plan on becoming a body builder. To get fit focus on the compound movements.

Here is a good site that covers all you need to know when it comes to strength training: Weight Training

By strengthening these muscles you will have a strong core with which to generate power in your golf swing. These stronger muscles will also delay fatigue allowing you to golf at your peak for a longer period of time, especially if you are walking the course and not riding a golf cart.

Another major part of fitness is diet, which will be covered in another post.

Posted in Golf Tips | Tags: fitness, golf, health | No Comments

How to Make a Proper Back Swing

Posted on:: December 28, 2010
Author:: Golf Fiend

Amateurs often make improper back swings. A back swing is not a twist away from the ball, but rather a turn away from the ball. Now, you may ask, what is the difference? The picture here of Tiger is what it looks like to turn away from the golf ball.

Notice his hips. They are turned away from the ball. Amateurs end up twisting their back away from the ball and swaying their hips away from the target (it would be swaying to your right if you are right handed golfer).

To practice and get a feel for the difference you need to turn away from the ball at the hips. To really get the feel for this make sure to keep your back perfectly straight and just turn to the side at the hip. Do this with your hands down to your side at first. The twist you see in Tiger’s swing is due to his arms being raised and shoulders turned and not because of how he turns from the ball.

When you swing back this way you’ll notice that you are able to get much deeper into the back swing than you were able to before. Now you can practice this with a golf club and get a feel for it. This will allow you to get deeper into the back swing allowing for more power and consistency within your golf game.

Posted in Golf Swing | Tags: back swing, golf swing, golf tips, swing | 1 Comment

How to Lower Your Golf Score

Posted on:: December 28, 2010
Author:: Golf Fiend

Everyone who plays golf wishes they could shoot a lower score. Despite this almost everyone ignores the part of the game that will lead to the quickest drop in scores: short game. We all intuitively know this, yet we always end up at the range trying to hit our drivers over 300 yards instead of trying to hone in on the 150 yard flag with our nine irons.

Being able to consistently hit the green from within 150 yards out is a very important part of lowering your score. You will waste many strokes, perhaps a stroke a hole, getting on the green from this distance. Shaving off one stroke each hole would be a vast improvement for any golfer!

Next time you are at the range, instead of bombing slices all over the place concentrate on hitting the flags or markers at 75 yards, 100 yards, 150 yards, and perhaps even 200 yards. If you can get consistent at these distances then you would see a large improvement in your golf score.

When on the golf course aim for the center of the green and not the flag. Give yourself the best chance to be using your putter on the next stroke. Pin seeking will lead to missed greens. Smart golf leads to lower scores.

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A Steady Head is Good for the Golf Swing

Posted on:: December 28, 2010
Author:: Golf Fiend

One of the oldest tips given to new golfers is to keep your head still. Now this is part right, part wrong. It does not clearly define the movements that are okay for your head to make from the ones that are not. It is impossible to keep it completely still! It must move somewhere and somehow.

First off, one of the great ways to see an immediate increase in consistency, distance, and accuracy in your golf shots is to keep your head back on the downswing. What do I mean by this? When you turn away from the ball on your back swing your head will move back too, away from your target. Now, when you swing down through the ball it is imperative to keep your head back and NOT move it forward towards the target until your follow through, after the ball has already been hit.

Your head may bob up and down slightly, this is fine as long as it isn’t excessive, the more important movement to worry about is the movement forwards, towards the target before the swing is finished.

To practice this movement go back and forth swinging a club while moving your head back in the back swing and keeping it there as you swing down and through and then bring it around in the follow through. Then swing the club right back up and move your head back again. This should be a continuous movement — back and forth, making yourself more familiar with the feeling of the movement. Once you got this down try it with a couple half swings, then a couple three-quarter swings, and then finally a few full swings.

Keeping your head back in the golf swing is important to keep a steady, solid through the swing and allow you to hit the golf ball more consistently and accurately.

Posted in Golf Swing | Tags: golf swing, head, swing tips | No Comments

How an Iron Strike Should Sound

Posted on:: December 28, 2010
Author:: Golf Fiend

I know it seems I have some sort of Sergio Garcia love-fest going on here, but he swing is too good to ignore. Listen to the sound of impact he has, you will know you hit the golf ball well when your impacts sound like this:

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Hit it Straight with a Flat Left Wrist

Posted on:: December 28, 2010
Author:: Golf Fiend

An often overlooked aspect of the golf swing is the flat left wrist. Many beginners have problems with slicing — and a side effect of a poor swing is a left wrist that is not flat. In the picture to the right you can see that Sergio Garcia has a very flat left wrist. You can go search for pictures of any tour pro and you will notice a common theme: they all have flat left wrists.

Now you realize that you don’t have a flat left wrist (if you slice you will most likely have a “cupped” left wrist, in that the left wrist is more perpendicular to the ground than the flat position) what is there to do about it? Plenty!

A good feel to get the flat left wrist is to swing to the top of your swing with the feeling that you are holding a tray with your right hand. Notice in the picture of Sergio’s swing that his right wrist is folded back, you could place a tray with drinks on it there and it would be balanced. This is a good feeling to go for when trying to achieve a flat left wrist. It will feel foreign at first but focus on it and repeat the action till it becomes second nature and you no longer have to think about it — you just do it.

Once you have achieved this flat left wrist you may notice your ball paths begin to straighten out. This is obviously not a cure-all for the slice but it is definitely a step in the right direction to correcting your swing and being able to shoot lower scores!

Posted in Golf Swing | Tags: golf, golf swing, golf tips, swing tips | No Comments