Darren Steels PGA Professional - How to hit longer tee shots

Every golfer wants to get a few extra yards out of your drives. Many say that the short game is so much more important than the drive but the drive is what sets up the hole. If your drive is too short or off line your short game will not give you a chance to save par. Here are 5 golf tips on hitting longer drivers

Golf Driving Tip #1 Fire your hips to start your downswing

One of the best power sources you can have for a longer drive is your hip rotation. Many amateurs have heard this but they push there hips towards the target instead of turning them. At the top of your backswing you should focus on starting to unwind and turn your hips. Turn your hips first and keeping your shoulder turn minimal at start of downswing will create some resistance and increase clubhead speed and distance.

 

Golf Driving Tip #2 On the backswing, when your shoulder turn stops your arms should stop

To create distance on your drives you need to have the proper coil to unleash a powerful drive. Your maximum coil will be had if you stop turning your arms once your shoulders stop turning. Many players turn the shoulders and then keep turning the arms. This takes away all of the coil they had built up and the power and the distance of the drive is gone. Use this tip to see immediate results in your golf game.

 

Golf Driving Tip #3 Keep your left arm straight and hand away from your head at top of backswing

When you are at the top of your backswing your hands should be as far as you can away from your head. This will ensure that your left arm is straight. If you bend your left arm you will lose any power you had stored up on the backswing as it will allow you to keep moving your club past parallel. This golf driving tip will not only add distance but help you keep the ball in the fairway.

 

Golf Driving Tip #4 Turn on a sold left side

As you turn through the ball your weight should shift to your left leg. Straighten your left leg and keep it firm to hold a solid base. This will allow the club to come through at a greater speed which will add some distance to your drives.

 

Golf Driving Tip #5 Release your hands right before impact

This is an important tip that many amateurs struggle with. If you release your hands early the power and speed in your swing is gone before it reaches the ball and you will lose distance on your drives. Try to hold back on releasing your hands by keeping your right elbow close to your right hip. This will also cause you to approach the ball from the inside which will create a draw and add some yardage to your drives.

Follow these 5 tips your next time out on the course and your driving distance should increase.

Darren Steels PGA Professional - Mel's 5th Lesson

 

Hi All,

           Well we are well and truly into the summer now and with the good weather we are having and the long days there's no excuse to not get out on the course to practice. That's what I've been doing, remembering all the advice from Darren and trying to produce it on the course.

 I had a bit of a disaster with my driver last week. I was lifting my clubs out of the car and heard a crack, on investigation I found the shaft had broke. So it looks like I'll be purchasing a new one. I spoke to Darren about it and he said he would help me get fitted for a new driver. So for my   penultimate lesson with Darren this week he has had me on the latest piece of equipment which the club have purchased. The' Foresight golf performance simulator' is a machine that measures how you strike the ball. It accurately collates data when you hit the golf ball measuring the speed, loft , distance ,side and back spin of the ball and by altering the different shafts and heads  of the club  it can pick the right one to suit your swing.  I have been having a bit of trouble getting off the tee with my driver so perhaps it's a blessing in disguise that I broke it.  I started off very poorly not getting much distance at all so Darren told me to put more weight on my back leg and instead of hitting down  on the ball  he said get the feeling of hitting up. After a couple of tries I got the idea and finished up hitting the ball further and straighter. The club I was using was the latest Titleist 913 10.5 degree which has the technology to enable you to alter the head to give 1.5 degrees more loft (12.0) or 0.75 degree less loft. As I tend to slice the ball setting the club with more loft takes out the side spin thus giving you more chance of hitting the ball straighter. I really like the club but I'm going to try other makes before I make up my mind. Still I took the driver on the course on Saturday in a Stableford competition and guess what I got 21 points on the front nine. Unfortunately I didn't score on two holes on the back nine but shot a score of 36 points playing to my handicap. Seems like all the hard work is at last paying off.

Cheers

Mel     

Darren Steels PGA Professional - Hitting a lower tee shot into the wind

 

Well we are definitely in the windy portion of the season! So one shot that is a must to

have in the bag; is being able to hit the ball lower from off the tee.

A couple of points worth noting at this stage are:

a) Playing a low shot from off the tee is not the same as from off the fairway  And,

b) Fighting the wind by swinging harder usually creates a higher ballooning ball flight. So definitely

not a great idea!

So here’s how we create a Tiger like ‘stinger’ ball flight off the tee.

Shorten the Club, Lower the Tee and Swing it Smooth!

Here are three main keys to hitting the ball lower off the tee:

No. 1 Hold further down the grip: By doing this it will give you more control and stiffen the playability of the golf shaft which in turn helps to decrease the spin rate and height of the ball flight.

No. 2 Tee it down lower: By teeing it lower the club will contact higher on the ball thus creating less back spin. Again helping to produce the desired lower ball flight.

No. 3 Swing smooth: As noted earlier; hitting in to the wind it is easy to fight the conditions and try and hit it harder. But unfortunately by doing this you will increase the back spin, thus producing a higher ball flight. So the expression I like to use here is to “swing with ease into the breeze”.

So create a good stable base, take it easy and keep it smooth.

Hope this helps and of course remember; “never fight mother nature”

Good luck and great golfing

Darren Steels PGA Professional - New Launch Monitor & Custom Fit Service

 

New Launch Monitor & Custom Fitting Service Foresight GC2a Launch Monitor

We have just invested in the latest state of the art Launch Monitor to be used for custom fitting and tuition. The new piece of equipment is portable so can be used on the driving range and is set up in minutes. The information received from the monitor will help to match the correct shaft flex and kick point along with the correct loft to maximise your driving potential. Iron and ball fittings are also available. A typical driver fitting would consist of someone hitting a series of shots with their current driver and by using the recorded information we would pick appropriate alternate shafts and lofts to increase control and distance. By using this information and hitting balls outside not only would the figures show any improvement you would see the difference in your ball flight. Fittings are booked through the Golf Shop and cost £25 for a 45 minute session (£10 of the cost will be refunded against any hardware purchase made). For further information or bookings contact the Golf Shop on 01332 836016

Darren Steels PGA Professional - New Video Golf Swing Tuition

New Golf Tuition Video Lessons

We have just taken delivery of an ipad that we will now be using at the golf academy. The swing app that we are using offers instant feedback and can be used to compare up to 4 swings at a time. All recorded swings can be emailed for your own viewing at home after each session. To book your lesson or for further information please contact the Golf Shop on 01332 836016.

Darren Steels PGA Professional - Lesson Number 4 Mel Oates

Hi All,

               Well my game is definitely improving   after my fourth lesson with Darren. I entered a medal competition on Wednesday on the Moorland course at Breadsall Priory and shot a net 72. Looks like the lessons are starting to pay off. I feel as I'm definitely striking the ball better and with more control.

On the last lesson we talked about the psychology of the game, as you most likely know sixty percent of the game is all in the head. An interesting point Darren made was imagine you're on a golf course and standing on the tee looking down at the hole. On the right is a big lake, and on the left side its all out of bounds. What are the two thoughts you think about first?

 1, I don't want to hit the ball into the lake and

2,    I don't want to hit the ball out of bounds.

Wrong... what you should be concerned about is none of the above. Your thoughts should be, what I'm going to do, not what I don't want to do. It sounds obvious doesn't it but how many of us high handicappers think about the negatives when we should be thinking about the positives. So what Darren said was focus on a spot on the fairway, Try to imagine the shape and flight the ball will take, keep that thought and only that thought in your head, because once you have that thought in your head you're more likely to hit the ball towards that spot and not into the lake or out of bounds. Well I tried it out and guess what it seems to work. When playing your local course is there a hole which you always dread because you never seem to score well on it? Most of us have that problem because we are thinking too negative. We're thinking about how badly we played the hole last time  when the way to over come the problem is to think positively about the hole, try to remember the time when you actually  played that hole well and the feeling you had when you did. Don't let bad shots get you down, put them out of your head straight a way and have positive swing thoughts for the next shot. Yes it sounds easy and I know lots of readers might think it's all a waste of time but I'm giving it a go because if it helps my game it's got to be good.

Cheers for now

Mel       

Darren Steels PGA Professional - Golf Club Custom Fitting

How does custom fitting benefit club golfers?

Everyone has an individual golf swing and each person's build, strength and ability is different. So

taking that into account, should we all buy Clubs off the rack or be fitted for our individual swing

motions? The major golf companies mass produce golf clubs to an average specification; having us

believe one set of clubs fits all. Some do offer fitting by way of a static measurement, but that is just

the starting block. I believe all golfers would benefit from being properly custom fitted. Twelve

handicap golfers and above would certainly benefit the most from a custom fit. The clubs not fitting

the individual causes a big percentage of miss hits, missed fairways and missed greens. If you are

custom fitted, the golf clubs you end up with will fit your individual swing motion, ability and strength.

You will see more distance, accuracy, trajectory, consistency and feel from your golf clubs. 

'My swing isn't consistent so how can clubs be made to fit me and my swing'

Even the best players in the world have swing inconsistencies the difference is that they are able to

replicate a similar swing more often than higher handicap golfers. However it seems, even the top

professionals do not play with off the shelf clubs that you and I can buy. They are custom made to

their exact specification. Their club shafts compliment their swing tempo and speed and the swingweight

of each club is matched for consistency. They are hugely talented but still demand custom

fitted clubs that compliment their swing motions.

So if the professional’s need fitted clubs to compliment there grooved swings, we as amateurs

certainly do. Look at it this way, it’s like driving someone else’s car, the first thing you do is move

mirrors, change the seat position, make yourself comfortable. It doesn’t make you a better driver, but

it will make driving experience easier. Custom fitting your clubs to match your swing will have the

same effect.

 Is it better to be fitted outside or inside?
You've got to get fit in real conditions. That means being outside, hitting off real grass, viewing the entire ball flight down-range. Even if there's some wind, that's a regular part of the game, so it's beneficial to see how different setups result in certain trajectories for a player against that element. And though indoor spaces are set up with enough room to swing, a lot of people can't help but feel claustrophobic with four walls and a ceiling. If this affects their comfort level, it will affect their swing, and the fitting session won't be as productive.

Darren Steels PGA Professional - The Long Bunker Shot

The Long Bunker Shot

 

Usually, when you have 40 yards or more to the pin, it's a matter of playing a long version of either a runner or one-bounce shot. These can be tricky to gauge, even for pros.

Slice An 8-iron On Long Bunker Shots is another option.

Once you get a feel for it, you'll find yourself relying on this slicing 8-iron to bail you out of the toughest of positions.

The problem is, to get enough distance with a sand wedge, you have to take a fairly big, fairly hard swing while also minimizing the distance you hit behind the ball. Even the best golfers occasionally make the mistake of coming a bit too close to the ball and blading the shot, or of quitting on the downswing and fluffing it entirely.

For these reasons, a secret weapon for long bunker shots is slicing an 8-iron. You can't use it when you're facing a buried lie or a high lip, but in all other cases I'd recommend it over the long explosion.

Take the 8-iron - use the full length of the club. Play the ball well forward, off your left instep, and take a wide, very open stance. You should aim yourself more to the left than on any other shot, about 45 degrees or so. The clubface, like your stance, should be open, and laid back as well.

What you want to do is make a shallow, splashing explosion. You won't have to worry about getting too deep because the ball is well forward in your stance and the club is well open. Still, the idea is to hit at least an inch and a half behind this ball, and that's a lot of sand for a long shot.

The longer shaft and stronger loft of the 8-iron will help you get distance, but you still must give this a hard swing. However, that's what's nice about this shot-you can hit it and you don't have to worry about digging down deep; and you can get all the distance you need without having to hit too close to the ball.

When you hit this shot right, it'll fly on a line several yards left of your target, hit the green still at least ten feet left, and then spin to the right.

It takes some practice, as all sand shots do, but once you get a feel for it, you'll find yourself relying on this slicing 8-iron to bail you out of the toughest of predicaments. And you'll amaze your friends at the same time.

Darren Steels PGA Professional - Top 10 Putting Tips

Top 10 Putting Tips

Tip No. 1
Putting is around half of your golfing score, but how often do you practice your stroke, or alignment, change your grip, or even have a putting lesson? Yes, that’s right - a lesson! Never thought of it? In that case, "Take a lesson" is probably the best tip I could give you, so follow this step by step, complete breakdown on how to.

Tip No. 2
One of the most important factors in golf is the ball position. Don’t forget it is the back of the ball that you are stroking with the putter, and not the centre. I always teach that the back of the ball is in the middle of your stance, or slightly forward of this, if you are using a square-to-square stroke.

Tip No. 3
Gripping the putter can be done in so many ways, but it is important not to have a dominant hand, as you are looking for a relaxed combination of shoulders, arm and hands for a smooth stroke.

Tip No. 4
To grip your putter at the right length:
 - Address a golf ball in your normal putting position;
 - Now have a friend plumb bob the line from your eyes to the ball;
 - With a relaxed grip move yourself backward or forward until you have a perfect vertical position from eye line to ball;
 - Re-grip, whenever your hands are holding the putter grip;
 - Mark the position and use it in future putts. Your eyes will now consistently be over the ball.

Tip No. 5
Your feet should feel comfortably apart, never too narrow, and your weight should be biased towards your toes - not as most people tend to address the ball with the weight on their heels.

Tip No. 6
The easiest way to stop your lower body moving during your putting stroke is to make yourself knock-kneed. This will automatically put your weight onto the inside of the sole of your shoes. Now, if you make a stroke you will see that the lower body, legs and knees stay still. Try putting a toilet roll between your knees and practice your stroke. Positive stroke isn’t it? And no lower movement!

Tip No. 7
You never, ever hit at the ball! You stroke through it. Try putting as normal, probably with a half distance back the same distance through. Did the ball jump and move off line? - and when it slowed, did it take the break quickly? If the ball is hit with a sharp hammer type stroke, the first few inches of the ball’s movement will be airborne.

Tip No. 8
Try putting with a quarter distance back stroke and a longer three-quarter distance follow through. This will lead to greater acceleration. Now you will find that the ball gets to roll much quicker than before - it stays straighter longer and fights against taking the break (if there is one).

Tip No. 9
If you really want to perfect your through stroke, try putting in a normal position, but with your eyes closed. Think you will miss the ball? I very much doubt it, but what you will find is that if you watch the ball roll after the stroke has finished, you will see the ball rolls perfectly straight - why? You stroked through it and not at it, because your eyes were closed you never knew when to hit and only created a putting stroke.

Tip No. 10
If you watch your playing partners or pros on TV, see what happens. First the back stroke, then the through the ball stroke and then their finish. Yes - what about the finish? Normally the club head recoils. Try having a practice putting stroke where the finish is held still. This will give you a different feel - more positive - I’m in control!!

Darren Steels PGA Professional - Game improvement through using stats

 

 

 

 

How To Set Your Priorities For a Better Golf Game

 

One of the keys to playing your best golf more consistently is to reduce the number of things you focus on in practice. This may seem counter intuitive, and you may feel as if every part of your game needs work and should be addressed in practice.  That concept is not only wrong, but also unproductive.  In fact, it’s the slowest path to improving.

 

You will make much more progress, much faster — and start getting lower scores sooner — through the simple process of prioritizing.

 

And, believe it or not, your score card has all the clues you’ll need to discover your priorities.

 

By selecting the one or two top priorities (both strengths and weaknesses) that will make the biggest impact on your scores — and then focusing 80% of your efforts on just those areas — you’ll give yourself a better chance of accomplishing your goals, and you can do it far faster than you imagine.

 

Begin At The End

 

So let’s start with the end in mind and work backwards from there.

 

The goal of your course navigation strategy should always be to put yourself in situations where you are playing from your strengths.

 

Want the perfect example? Consider Luke Donald.

 

Luke Donald finished the 2011 season ranked the number one player in the world. But you’d never guess it from his driving stats. He finished 147th on the tour in driving – pathetic by PGA Tour standards.

 

So how did he end up the #1 player?

 

By finishing in the Top 10 in a number of other categories:

 

8th in scrambling;

 

8th in accuracy inside 100 yards;

 

2nd in accuracy from 50 to 125 yards;

 

1st from 100 to 125 yards;

 

Top 5 in putting inside 15 feet, and;

 

#1 in putting from 5 to 10 feet. 

 

No other player is in the Top 10 in so many categories.

 

These are clearly his areas of strength, and he is smart enough to navigate his way around the golf course so that he is hitting from these distances as often as possible.

 

Do you think he is working on his driver? You bet. It’s probably his number one game improvement priority. But it’s not his only priority.

 

Clearly, he spends just as much time in his areas of strength, keeping his skills in these areas fine-tuned and sharp. How do we know that?  His scoring shot skills from 50 to 125 yards and his putting from 5 to 15 feet are the strongest in the world. And, when all was said and done, this is what earned him millions and the #1 ranking.

 

Do you have to be excellent at every aspect of the game? Luke Donald is proof that you don’t … provided you cultivate and continue to sharpen skill strengths you can rely on — with complete trust — when you play.

 

 

 

Record your stats during or after your round, take a small card with you to record the following basic information;

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fairways hit

 

Greens hit in regulation

 

Sand saves (Bunker shot followed by 1 putt)

 

Scrambles (short game shot followed by 1 putt)

 

Number of putts

 

 If you can remember your round when you are finished by using an app or a spread sheet you can add additional information (e.g. If you missed a target was it left or right etc..)

 

By using this information you can identify your strengths and weaknesses and also know what is expected for your level for particular shots.

 

For example the number 1 player on the European Tour hits 10 from 14 fairways, so to expect to hit all fairways playing from a mid-handicap is unrealistic; hitting 7 fairways out of 14 would be a far more realistic target.

 

 

 

During your next round, use your scorecard as a tool for identifying your own

strength/weakness profile.

Darren Steels PGA Professional - Lesson 3 Mel's update

Hi Folks,

 

                Here I am  again on my third month of tuition with Darren Steels. I Must say the work in the gym is starting to pay off as I feel a lot more supple.   

Doing the stats is also helping to pin point weak areas in my game. Looking at the stats Darren thought it was time for a putting lesson. First thing he noticed was how I was standing to putt the ball. Just like the set up for my iron's I was standing with my legs parallel to the ball but my top half was twisted and open towards the hole. This made the putt slice slightly  as I hit the ball. Standing correctly and using a sweeping movement to hit the ball gave a  more accurate shot towards the hole. We also discussed how to read the green before putting the ball. I will use this advice in my practice sessions.

 

To help to get the correct upward strike on the ball we used a lob wedge to putt with as a practice drill. If I struck the ball correctly it rolled true across the green.

 

 Each month he checks my swing to make sure no bad habits are returning. I told him usually it was my second shot ( on a par 4/5 hole ) which was letting me down as I either miss hit the shot or was not accurate enough to get to the green or within a pitching wedge away. He looked in my golf bag and ask me what club I normally took for my second shot. This was either a rescue wood ( 21 degrees ) or a five wood ( 19 degrees ).I have also started to use a four iron which I find more accurate than the rescue. He said the rescue and the four iron were about the same club as regards distance so he advised me to use the four iron if I was on the fairway and the rescue if I was in semi rough. But mainly I have to practice more with the five wood as that would give me more distance. He watched me hit a few shots with the five wood and said I was coming down too steep on the ball  not sweeping  it like you should. To correct this he put the ball on a small tee and asked me to hit the ball again. He told me to use the same movement  that I use when hitting  my driver. This seemed to work well and I started to  hit the ball better. I will now try this in my practice sessions. .

So plenty of things to keep me occupied for the next month.

cheers

Mel