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Credits: Better Golf With Fitness

Have you ever found yourself in a conversation with a golf fanatic and found yourself dumbfounded at the jargon that’s used? If you’ve answered a resounding YES, then you’re not alone. There are hundreds of slang terms used to describe every aspect of the sport which makes it nearly impossible for a non-enthusiast to keep track of them and commit them to memory. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be this way. To help you join in on those once confusing conversations, I have compiled some of the more interesting terms used and defined them in such a way that will hopefully make remembering them an easy task. That way you will understand what others are saying and may even be able to baffle the uninitiated yourself!

Let The Big Dog Eat

When I first came across this term I couldn’t wrap my head around it. It sounds incredibly comical and the number of “use this word in a sentence” examples I could come up with are numerous. The fact is though that the meaning of this term is quite simple. The Big Dog, also known as the driver (#1 wood), has received its name because it is the largest club in the golf bag. If a player uses this club to tee, he or she is letting the big dog eat. Interestingly with further research I found that this phrase was made popular by the movie Tin Cup.

Oscar Brown

To my surprise, the term Oscar Brown does not refer to the friend you’re going to meet at the club house bar after the game. In fact, Oscar Brown is just a fun way of saying out of bounds. Any out of bounds ball is usually marked with white stakes or noted on the scorecard and is always un-playable regardless of whether or not it can be found. If your ball is constantly out of bounds when you play golf, I say you go ahead and treat yourself to a drink at the club house bar with my good friend Oscar Brown.

Sclaff

I can’t wait to use this word during my next game of Scrabble. The sheer spelling of the word will surely get it contested. Contest away because it is in fact a word! Sclaff, of Scottish origination, means to scrape or strike the ground with a golf club behind the ball before hitting it. An example would be “He sclaffed the ground with his club.” I know it’s not the best sentence but you get the gist of it.

So there you have it! These three terms are just the tip of the iceberg in the world of golf jargon but will hopefully help you get your two cents in next time the subject of golf is brought up. Read and re-read these terms and before you know it, with pure confidence you will be able to say, “I let the big dog eat but ended up sclaffing the ground which caused me to Oscar Brown.”.

Sliced shots are a real pain when you are just starting to learn how to play golf. A sliced shot is when instead of sailing straight ahead your ball goes off to the right. This is really frustrating and many new players can’t understand why they do this. The answer is that it’s all in the swing.

An incorrect swing and using your arms and body wrongly will produce sliced shots. Use golf swing tips online to correct your swing so that you can send that call flying straight for the green. Try out this online golf swing instruction the next time you go to the driving range and you will see an improvement.

Using Your Body

Golf looks as if it uses the arms a lot when in fact the only thing you really do with your arms is hold the club in place. All the work is being done by your body. Golf swing tips online will first illustrate where you are going wrong with your swing to help eliminate the problem of sliced shots.

When you are swinging incorrectly you will find that your arms are doing all the work. After a couple of holes you will start to feel your arms hurting. This is not a sign that you are getting a good workout but rather you are not using your body properly. Your arms should not be used in your downturn swing.

When you use your arms instead of your body the swing will go out too much and then come in towards the ball. This means that your ball will travel at an angle rather than a straight line, which is what you want. Golf swing tips online will tell you that the magic lies in your shoulders rather than your arms.

Use your shoulders to bring your swing downwards; your arms should be passive. To guide your club towards the ball you really need to use your body. Your legs and hips should be moving towards the ball and then turning forwards. This way your club is always in a straight line and your body has been the one doing all the work.

These golf swing tips online need time for you to see any result. You will find that it’s quite hard to break out of the habit of using your arms to control your swing and your club. Once you do get out of the habit you will see that these golf swing tips online are really working and your swing has improved tremendously.

Would you like to improve your golf swing?  Unless you’re a professional golfer with millions in the bank, the chances are that your answer is a resounding yes.  While many amateurs are content with their swing and enjoy their time on the links, the truth is that the majority of golfers on the courses today would love to know how to shave some points from their scorecard.  There are many things you can do to improve your golf swing and every element of that swing, from widening your stance to switching to clubs with more flex.  You can also visit a golf pro or videotape your own swing so that you can break it down step-by-step and see where you might need to make some improvements.

But there are also things you can do to improve your golf swing on your own, and one very simple thing to remember is to relax.  That’s right, relax.  Take an easier approach to your swing and stop trying to force it.  Why do we say this is important in order to improve your golf swing?  Isn’t it better to pick apart your swing and concentrate on every element in order to do it properly?

Usually when someone picks apart all the elements of a swing, they become very nervous, stiff, and tense.  This tension causes their body to react in a way that usually blocks the golf swing, either the back swing or the forward swing.  It’s usually better to improve your golf swing by relaxing and thinking only about the basics, not about every detail of the swing.

It’s also true that when you try to improve your golf swing by being overly anxious about it, you may have the tendency to try to overpower the swing.  Many mistakenly think that they need to put a lot of muscle into their swing in order to get any distance from the ball.  This is actually detrimental to your game.  To improve your golf swing and get that distance, you instead need to rely on the whip effect produced by the right club and by the flex of your wrists at the last minute.  It’s not really your muscles that are going to send the ball down the fairway, but the coordination of the club and the right swing.

Being able to relax is key if you want to improve your golf swing.  Over-thinking or trying to overcorrect a problem can often make that problem that much worse and can create new problems as well.  Your body will also respond to tension, even if you don’t know it.  Many believe tension to be golf’s biggest enemy, so relax!  You can improve your golf swing if you slow down, take your time with each shot, and work on different elements of your swing patiently.  Remember that you’re not fighting a clock when it comes to your golf game, so consider how slower may very well be better!

There are many different things that go into making a good golf swing.  The biomechanics of golf swings is something that many expert and not so expert people have spent years and thousands of dollars trying to figure out.  There is no simple answer as to what biomechanics makes a good golf swing, but there are some simple basics that you can look at that will determine what is and is not going to make the ball go straight.

Biomechanics Of Golf Swings That Are Predictable

The first thing to consider when looking at the mechanics of a good golf swing is what are the easiest things you can change to make your swing more predictable.   The first is your backswing and club facing at impact.   There is nothing more important than making sure that your club head hits the ball square at the point of impact.  Everything else that looks at the biomechanics of golf swings is trying to make sure that this happens.  Professionals maybe able to be off center a bit to play a draw or fade, but for 90% of the golfers out there the goal is to hit the ball straight.

Taking your backswing slow and being sure to keep the swing and motion smooth and consistent will greatly improve your consistency and accuracy.  The biomechanics of golf swings will directly affect your ability to make you swing smooth.  Be sure that you keep your arms straight and always lead your swing with your hips.  When moving into your backswing, turn your hips back first than allow everything else to follow.  Once you reach the top of your swing, turn your hips forward than bring your swing down through.

These are just some of the basics to adjusting your swing to match the biomechanics of golf swings of successful players.  Try modeling your swing after theirs to achieve true consistency and ease in your game.  A good way to do this is to have a friend or a coach tape your swing.  Sometimes what you feel like you are doing is not the case and a camera can provide an unbiased view of your swing.  Most great golf swings are not natural, but rather something that is worked on for years and years until finally becoming smooth and natural.  Even the great golfers of the world will change the swing from time to time to adjust for changes in the body or in their game.

Do you have the perfect golf swing, or are you thinking that such a thing is a myth?  If you’re an amateur struggling with your game you may assume that the professionals know some secrets that you don’t since they make the game look so easy, and you may be getting frustrated with trying to improve your own.  The idea of a perfect golf swing might be starting to sound like a joke.  But in truth, there really is no such thing.  No one’s swing is perfect, not even Tiger’s or Arnold’s or Ben’s.  We can say this with confidence because if they did have a perfect swing each and every time they were out, they would come in under par no matter where they were and what course they were playing.  They too need to make adjustment to each and every swing, every time they address the ball.  However this doesn’t mean that something close to the perfect golf swing doesn’t exist, and it doesn’t mean that only the professionals can have such a great swing!  Once you apply the same tips and tricks they’re applying to their game, you’ll see tremendous improvement in your swing.

The perfect golf swing starts with your stance and your grip.  This is something that should be dictated by the club.  Many golfers make the mistake of inaccurately judging the distance they need to stand from the ball and in having a very poor stance.  A good way to correct this is to line up your club with the clubface adjacent to the ball, where you want it to be hit.  Then step back from this, allowing the club’s length to dictate your distance from the ball.  The perfect golf swing needs to incorporate both your swing itself and the club’s length and flex, but far too many amateurs line up incorrectly and then try to correct this by pulling their arms or stretching too far.  You can’t have a perfect golf swing if you’re off balance or if your arms are bent too far or outstretched too far.  Work in harmony with the club itself, not against it.

The perfect golf swing starts from the shoulders, not the arms themselves.  Too many golfers make the mistake of just pulling their arms up and around but usually this means the club is held too vertically and comes down on the ball in a harsh angle.  A perfect golf swing follows a circular motion, not an up and down striking motion.  The hips pivot and the wrists cock at the last moment.

These are the most important components of a perfect golf swing.  While you may have certain problems and concerned that should be addressed individually, typically if you apply just these important points you’ll see a vast improvement in your game.  Too many golfers ignore these simple tips for a perfect golf swing and because of it, they struggle with their swing and with their game overall.

There are many great golfers and with them many unique swings.  This article is going to take a look at what makes the swings of some of the great golfers great and what are the mechanics of golf swings in general.  There are some basic things that are similar between different swings and those similarities lie in the mechanics.

Unifying Mechanics Of Golf Swings

The first thing you will find that is the same in the mechanics of golf swings that are effective is the way the club face is when brought back and at impact.  A good golf swing will hit the ball square to limit the amount of fade or draw that the ball will have when leaving the club.  To do this you must be sure to first line up with the club face square to the ball.  As you bring your swing back, the club face will rotate.  At the top of your swing the club face should be facing almost directly towards your target.  As you bring the swing down, the club face should rotate back into position.

The next most important thing in the mechanics of golf swings that are effective is you foot position.  If the ball is too far back in you stance, you will not get enough loft.  Too far forward and you will get too much.  Depending on your lie you can move the ball back and forth in your swing.  ON flat ground the ball should be completely centered.  In addition your feet should be shoulder width apart.  If you spread your feet out to much, you will have to pull up on the club to complete your swing.  If your feet are too close together you will have to reach down to hit the ball.

The next thing you have to consider when looking at the mechanics of golf swings that are consistent and hit for power is the hip positioning.  The biomechanics of golf swings that meet these criteria all have superior hip position.  The position of your hips should be a little ahead of your swing at all times except for the follow through.  The key is to have your hips drive through the ball pulling your arms through right behind so that you can generate power through the ball.  Most people who over swing will drive through the ball with their arms and shoulders causing an erratic an unpredictable contact with the ball.  This is not the case with a swing that is driven by the hips.  You will have less effort and more accuracy by using your hips to pull through your swing.

The mental portion of the golf game is an important part.  Your mind can defeat all the good training with one thought.  If you get mad at yourself over your performance it is non-productive and will eat away at your confidence.  The next time you catch yourself getting mad or losing your focus remind yourself you did the best you could and let it go.

Just remember when you tell yourself something it is like programming a computer.  It remembers.  So make is all positive and productive.  You don’t want to work against yourself, so choose what you think carefully and make it positive thoughts.

Negative thoughts are a bad habit, but it can be changed.  When you start to think a negative thought, tell yourself “stop!” and don’t continue the thought.  Instead change it to a positive thought.

Another aspect of the mental game of golf is over-analyzing.  If you are the type of player who has a difficulty with the amount of time you have to get ready for your shot.  The good thing is you don’t have to make you shot until you are ready to make it.  The bad thing is with too much time you will think too much.  When you start over-analyzing every shot and every putt, you will clog the brain.  The brain then sends poor signals to the body.  Your mind is designed to process only a certain amount of information before it goes into over-load.  The best avenue to take is to relax and let your imagination take care of the variables of the shot.

A quiet, non-analytical mind is the type of mind to get into the flow and become engrossed in the execution of the shot.  Don’t let past holes get in the way of your concentration on this shot.  Focus totally on the shot at hand.

To quiet your mind focus you attention on your breathing while you are preparing for a shot.  Let all other thoughts pass and re-focus on your breathing.  Try to keep your thoughts about your swing to only one thought such as the rhythm of the swing.  If you are a visual player, see the target and let your body hit the shot.  Save the analysis for practice drills.

Reading the greens will make it easier for you during the game because you will know how your ball will react to the contours of the green.  You may adjust your shots to fit the greens.

To read the greens you will need to squat down for you to get a better view of the contours.  With your ball in front of you a ways, squat down so you will be able to see the slopes of the green.

Look closely at your putt from the side, if there is a low side, look at your putt from the low side.  It will give you another view, which will enable you to judge the distance and gauge the speed of the ball.

Cross to the opposite side of the flagpole from your putt because this will give you a view from yet another angle.  If players are waiting on you to make your shot, do not hold them up.

Watch the putts of the other players.  If one of the players has a putt a lot like yours, especially watch as he or she putts the ball toward the hole.

It never hurts to ask for help unless you are playing for money or defending your ego.  Your teammates or partner will be happy to give you advice.  Pros often ask advice of their caddies.  It never hurts to have a second pair of eyes watching.

If you have already made your putt, pay attention to the details.  Watch your ball as it moves; observe how it is moving, and how it reacts to the green.  Try to learn from your mistakes.  Sometimes our mistakes are our best teacher.

Always practice a few putts on the practice green.  This will give you an idea of the playing greens.  You will want to note the speed of the greens so you can adjust your shots accordingly.

Does your putting ability seem to leave your body when you are standing behind your ball on the green and the pressure is on?  Let’s see what you are missing when you are in a putting situation.  Make sure the grip is in your palm and not your fingers.  Golfers using their fingers will tend to use their wrist to putt the ball.  When you putt this way you won’t have control of your distance.  If your putts end up way short of the hole, this could be the problem.  If the wrists get involved with your putt shot it will add a little lift to your putter.  This will use up some of the distance you ball will go.

Make sure your arms are straight and make your wrists stay out of the shot.  You will then be able to put the correct amount of lift to your putter and the ball will roll the distance you need it to go.  You should be able to cut your putts per hole down to two putts, assuming the ball goes in the direction you intended.   Watch your score drop.

If you are having trouble making distance on your drives, maybe your body is not in alignment when hitting the ball.  If you are not in the proper position you will be making a considerable amount of adjustments during your swing.  First, position the ball forward, opposite your left heel.  Most of your weight (about 60%) should be on your right foot with your shoulders squared up.  If your body and your ball are lined up in the proper position, you will end up pop the ball in the air.  This causes a loss of power.  Keep your spine angle and you will see your drives level out with your ball reaching greater distances.

If you miss a breaking putt, your stroke was probably fine, but your speed was probably wrong.  Missing a straight putt you know your stroke was a bad one.  For this reason you need to only focus on the stroke of your straight putt.  Usually the putts we expect to make are the ones 4 to 6 feet from the hole, so with practice you can improve your putt from these distances.

Group together about 10 balls, but line up one as a straight putt of about 4 feet.  As you go to make your first putt, make sure the head of the putter is going straight back and then straight through to hit the ball.  Your putter face should be square to your target line all the time.  This is one of the easiest mistakes to make and the most common among golfers having trouble with their putts.  Correcting the problem takes a lot of work and attention, but if you have determination, the pay off is huge.

Set a goal for the number of putts made consecutively.   When you have reached that goal; add to the number of putts until you are up to 50.  Start over again at one putt each time you miss a putt.

This practice will help you learn how to putt under pressure because as you are practicing and you reach 45, 46, 47, and 48, you don’t want to start all over again, so it will important for you to make the next putt.

Another benefit to this method of practice is it will increase you confidence level and your fear of these types of putts will lessen.

If it is difficult to go to the course, you can always practice anywhere there is carpet on the floor.

Now you will want to improve on your putting practice drills.  You will be working on gauging your speed and working on your control of distance.  This will be your focus for this practice drill.  Use a ball marker, tee or a coin as your target.  You don’t want to use a hole because you don’t want to see your ball missing the hole.  From about 6 feet away, roll your ball toward the target.  Focus on pinpointing the ball on the putter face.  Place markers at varying distance, and practice putting the balls to each of these distances.

You will want to practice long putts, hit from one side of the green to the other.  Fortunately 70-foot putts are not a common occurrence.  Most of the putts you should be practicing are about 6-feet from the target, preferably 4-feet putts.  You will need to practice putting on a flat part of the practice green.  When ending your practice session, make short putts.  Don’t quit on a miss.  Make yourself to make five or six putts in a row to end the practice session.

Confidence is a huge part of putting.  Visualization helps your confidence.  Learn to visualize to help you stay positive.  If need be, put down a chalk line for you to practice keeping your putter on the line.  There are putting aids you can purchase to assist you with the centering the stroke.

It is important to develop a pre-shot routine.  A pre-shot routine will give you the opportunity to look closely at your situation.  Get behind the ball to start your pre-shot routine.  This will allow the best advantage.  You will be able to line the ball with the target use your golf club to line up the two together.  Once you have determined your aim so your ball will move in the direction of the target when you hit it.  Etch the path of the ball and the target in your mind you will be ready to take your shot.

Next you will want to line up your body with the ball, making sure to check your shoulders, hips, thighs and feet.  You should be parallel and left of the target.  Keeping your eye on the ball you can take your best shot.  As long as it on the line to your target, it won’t matter so much if you don’t hit the ball perfectly.

With practice and experience all of this will become a habit.   Since it is necessary for you to have a target to aim for, it is important to work on this pre-shot routine till it becomes old hand.

All great golfers have a good golf set-up position.  If you are determined to improve your score, focus on the basics, which are successful.  Many people overlook one of the most important basics, the set-up position.  Your swing is developed from your set-up position.

A good golf set-up position ensures the proper posture and placement of the feet, which will allow you to be able to keep your balance during your swing.  All of the really great golfers are balance from the time they first focus on the ball to the end of their swing.  Staying balance will ensure you are able to hit the ball squarely in the middle of the clubface.  They key to being consistent in hitting the ball with the correct spot on the club is balance.  With a good set-up you will remain balance all through your swing.

With a good set-up position you can control the direction your shot with power.  The ball position and body alignment are key elements in the pre-swing; it creates conditions enabling you to take control.  When you first focus on the ball, your body alignment will have complete control of the path and the angle you swing your club.  Basically your set-up affects all aspects of your swing.

If you want to be a great player, a good set-up position will put in a position where you are at an advantage.  A good set-up will allow you to connect with the ball and achieve a good impact position.  When you set-up, make sure you set-up with good impact in mind.

Most people who have played the game of golf will tell you it is one of the most difficult games to play and play well.  They love or at least enjoy playing the game, but will also tell you not many people every master the game.  Even Tiger has his off days.

This could be the reason there are so many people trying to sell you something to improve your skill and to help you score.  The swing aids are just one of them.  The swing aids for the most part do work, and they will help you improve your game.  However, do we have to be able to swing like the Pros on the PGA tour to enjoy playing the game?  Probably not, but it sure helps.

The reality is the basics we have heard numerous of times, such as “don’t lift your head”, “keep your arms straight”, and “turn your hips”.  These tips all have one thing in common which is to make your golf club come through the down swing, and hit the ball with the club face in just the right spot, so the ball will go right where you want it.  Straight down the green.

Now all those tips are important to follow for you to achieve that “perfect swing”, but you don’t have to have the “perfect swing” to play a decent round of golf.  Of course you would still like to be able to accomplish that “perfect swing”.  So let’s talk about some important points to help you bring your club square on the ball when you hit it, so the ball will go straight.

When all else fails, it is always best to go back to the basics.  Do your best to keep your front arm as straight as possible.  This will ensure your club will hit the ball for it to go straight.  Keep your head down or better yet, keep your eye on the ball.  You still want to keep your chin elevated enough for your shoulders to rotate giving your swing more power.  Don’t stoop over the ball.  Your back needs to be straight and bend at the hips.  While keeping your back straight and chin up lean forward a little bit.  Your knees need to be slightly bent.  This goes for any and every shot you make.  Don’t bend them too much, just enough to be noticed.  The key point in your swing is following through your swing with you hips.  Your back hip will come forward and your front hip will go back because the buckle of your belt should be pointing in the direction of your target.

To look more closely at the golf swing, we should note there are three parts to a golf swing.   First there is the back swing, followed by the downward swing and lastly impacting the ball while following through.

The back swing is very important to the golf swing as a whole.  Reason being if you start badly you will end badly.  In other words, if the back swing is not performed correctly, the rest of the swing is useless.  For the back swing focus should be on the body rotation, the arm position and the club.

The downward swing starts with the legs and hips.  It does not start with the arms even though the arms do the actual swing of the club.  During the downward swing there should be a transfer of weight from the back to the front using your knees, your thighs, and your hips in a forward movement.

As the club impacts the ball, your weight should be on your outside forward heel and the inside of your rear foot.

The golf swing is an unnatural movement the body will violently resist.  So for all three portions of the golf swing to be performed correctly is impossible without specific golf exercises to ready and strengthen the muscles needed to do the golf swing.  For this reason golfers find it so difficult to get right.  The swing itself many look simple and easy to do, but in reality is one of the hardest things to master.

Good rhythm and balance is important to every swing because it is the key to consistency in your swing.  If you rush your swing, your balance will be off and result in poor ball flight.  Golfers who are outstanding in hitting the ball are seldom off balance when they strike the ball and their rhythm bonds their positions and movements.  Their swings may appear to be effortless, but are actually swinging effortless and hitting solid.   To correctly arrange your body motion to arrive at the striking point with a position of control and power you must have great rhythm.  In turn to be more consistent when hitting your ball, your body must be balanced.  Good rhythm and balance are connected.  You need both to be a great golfer.

Here is a drill to help you improve your balance and rhythm.  In the ground line up 5 tees about 4 inches apart.  Then stand just inside the closest tee.   Swing a 7-iron back and forward through with a continuous motion.  Keep moving forward clipping each tee out of the ground.  Repeat three more times.  This will allow you to find a swing pace which will help you maintain your balance and still generate speed of the club.

Memorize your balance points while doing this drill.  You can close your eyes and feel your balance as you step up to the ball, then make the back swing and stop with the club in the air, feel your balance on your back foot.  Finish the swing and hold, feel your weight on your front foot and tap your back toe.

One of the best drills is to practice your swing in slow motion.  Line up 10 teed balls and make your full swing in slow motion.  Your balls will only travel about 10 –15 yards, but this only about 10 percent of your normal swing speed.  With every set of 10 balls increase your speed by 10-percent.  By the time you reach 80-percent you will have found your best balance and rhythm speed.  You might be surprised to find you are hitting the ball solid and the distance your ball has traveled.