In a world where everything seems to be at our finger tips, there must be an easy way to lower our golf scores. You know, that secret that all professional golfers understand but refuse to share with us mere mortals. Well, I have found the answer that I think will benefit every golfer and it is really easy to implement. Read further and start your journey to lower golf scores!
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Creating Lag and Adding Distance in Golf
I am currently focusing on increasing lag in my swing to add extra distance to my golf shots. This particular skill is something that I really need to improve upon because as I get older, a controlled swing with more lag will keep me hitting the ball longer and straighter. However, as I delved into this topic, I found that the term ‘lag’ is deceiving and could easily confuse the new player. I determined that fact because I was a bit confused and so I thought it needed to be cleared up.
After looking around I found this definition of ‘lag’ that I understand and best describes what it means to me:
Effectively, lag is shorthand for the angle between the club, wrists and arms. It’s formed by having the correct order of the arms, wrists and club head as the club come around into impact. Often we can become obsessed with trying to generate all of our power from the turning, spinning and torqueing of the body, but if you don’t have your arms and club in the correct order to hit it’s all completely pointless.
https://golf.com/news/create-lag-golf-swing-tip/
So basically, I am trying to create a 90° angle or box according to Ernie Els in order to create the power generating lag in my golf swing. Interestingly, The Big Easy has a smooth controlled swing that produces tremendous power on contact. Here take a look:
Now that I fully understand what lag means, I need a few drills that I can do to create more lag in my golf swing. On a side note, being a 3 handicap does not mean that my swing is permanently grooved; what it means is that I am consistent, but still have many areas of improvement; Lag is one of mine.
I wanted to find a few drills that I could do at home and in my DIY driving net. Simple, repeatable, and effective are three things I look for in any golf drill and I found this video from the Golf Channel:
The interesting aspect of looking to create lag is that it shifts my focus of my golf swing from increasing shoulder turn (which is an important part of any golf swing) to improving my swing mechanics. This change, along with the others I want to make during the off season, will keep me busy until opening day. The trick moving forward is to develop a training plan that will help accomplish my lofty goals.
Do you ever work on lag in your golf swing?
I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!
Hinge and Hold Chipping By Phil Mickelson
Most golfers struggle with getting up and down from within 50 yards of the green. I know, I practiced these distances often in the past and with my DIY chipping area in my yard I can devote even more time to successful chipping. Phil Mickelson, arguably one of the best wedge player ever, talks about using the hinge and hold chipping technique out to 50 yards from the green. I use something similar, but after watching his video, I can see the value to Mickelson’s chipping tip.
Continue readingHow to Fix Your Ball Mark Properly
This is a quick service announcement. As the snow in my area is still 3 feet high, I thought it was a good time to remind everyone to fix their ball marks. And here is how……
Continue readingDriven to Distraction On The Golf Course
Have you ever found your mind wandering when playing golf? Well, of course you have not! You are a seasoned, elite golfer who has laser focus on every shot. If this was only the truth…..right? Distraction can come in all forms, but mostly it happens when there is some doubt in your mind on which shot to play next. This indecision opens the door for any distraction to creep in and cultivates a condition that elicits poor play and higher golf scores. Unfortunately, once we start being distracted, it is a real challenge to get our laser-like focus back. However, I have a way that works for my game and thought it might help yours as well.
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The Grateful Golfer 