Saturday, August 8, 2009

Attaining The Perfect Golf Swing

Attaining The Perfect Golf Swing

The game of golf has a Holy Grail, a mythical thing that everyone is searching for but nobody ever seems to find: the perfect golf swing. The reason for this is simply that there is no such thing as a perfect golf swing. Each person is different, and so the swing style that is right for them will vary somewhat. However, there are a few basics that when applied can dramatically improve your golf swing.

There is no doubt that a professional golf swing is at the heart of the game and it is not possible to expect to play a reasonably good game of golf if one is not able to produce a consistent and good professional golf swing. Golf specific exercises play a key role in helping any golfer dramatically improve on their game quicker and perfect various aspects of their game much more rapidly, such as the golf swing plane.

The Swing Plane

The swing plane represents the path on which your golf club should travel upon during the swing. A good swing plane is vital if you want to be a consistent golfer. The idea that separates the high handicapper and low handicapper is usually the ability to rotate your body, keeping the club on a consistent swing plane.

The One of the easiest ways to analyze your swing plane is have someone film you. A more high tech way to assist you in correcting your swing plane is a laser light that fits onto the end of the club handle. A swing trainer can also help you with your swing plane. Don't try to force the club into the correct swing plane, as this is counter-productive.

Swing Speed

When it comes to swing speed some players just cannot swing the golf club very quickly. It takes an optimum level of strength to produce a high enough swing speed to hit the ball the correct distances. Using a golf training club is one of the most effective ways to increase golf swing speed and power. The Speed Stik Golf Swing Trainer is one of the better golf swing trainers available on the market today.

Developing core strength is important for increasing golf power levels and swing speed, which is why the proper exercise is also very important to improving your swing.

The Swing Exercises

When you are implementing a golf fitness exercise into your golf swing improvement program, you must be able to place the body in the correct starting position of the exercise. It is a proven fact that muscles used in the golf swing that are not exercised and conditioned on a regular basis with the correct exercise will usually not respond to the correct golfing techniques.

The Most of the touring pros are now using exercise for golf to strengthen their swing and have seen their driving distance go way up. I can’t tell you how many golfers have emailed me telling me their amazing improvements in power, distance and accuracy from using exercise for golf to strengthen their swing.

The power exercise in the golf swing can also tremendously improve on the enjoyment of the game by eliminating pain, even as your body is strengthened to play a better game. Failure to execute a proper golf swing has even been responsible for numerous nagging injuries many golfers suffer, which further hampers their game.

So there you have it. There is no Holy Grail, no perfect golf swing, but there are three fundamental improvements that can be made: in the swing plane, swing speed, and regularly engaging in swing exercises. If you are careful to pay attention to each of these three aspects of swing training, you are sure to see significant improvements in your golf game.

Golf Originate

Did The Game Of Golf Originate From Outer Space ?

It is for the 9th hole on the golf course.
The exact origins of the game of golf remain a subject of continual debate. Though Scotland is generally considered as the birthplace of the game, as it is played today. This claim is due in large part to a number of specific historical references dating as far back as the mid 1400s.

The most commonly cited of these references is a written record that a games called either geoff, gowf or gawd , this is a hard game was played during the reign of James II of Scotland. In 1457 King James proclaimed by royal decree that the playing of “fluteball : and “gowf” were forbidden so that the men of Scotland could concentrate on their archery practice.

Thus the pursuit of golf remained outlawed until the signing of the Treaty of Glasgow in the year of '1501 m which brought peace between the warring parties. At this point even Scotland James IV took up the game of golf himself. A long relationship between golf and royalty ensued – although both commoners and gentry alike frowned upon Mary Queen of Scots when, in 1567 was found to be playing golf just days after the death of her husband Darney.

In an alternate theory of golf’s beginnings, a Dutch historian, Steven von Hengel, has argued that golf originated in Holland around 1297.
A form of the game called spel metten kove and also called Colf. Colf, it is believed, was played primarily on ice. Nevertheless golf may have grown out of this game and another game that was popular in Holland, called Jeu De Mail. This letter carrying game was played in wooden shoes with soft spikes.

Without question golf’s major growth occurred in Great Britain, primarily in Scotland. Golf became an accepted part of the culture as early as 1604, when William Mayne was appointed Royal Clubmaker, although the game was still reserved for the elite who had the wealth and leisure to enjoy it.
Early golf was played with a feathery golf ball - a stitched leather ball stuffed with boiled goose feathers. A feather ball cost three times as much as a club and because feathery balls were so delicate, players had to carry three to six balls In addition the balls flew poorly in wet weather, a fact that further dissuaded the working class who, unlike the gentry did not possess the flexibility of flexible time and leisure for scheduled games of golf.

The ball, as it has throughout history, dictated other matters pertaining to the development of the game. Because the feathery ball performed so inadequately when damp, early golf was played predominantly on the relatively arid eastern side of Scotland. Furthermore the eastern seaside location was popular because the underlying sandy soil drained more rapidly than the and the grass was naturally shorter.
It must be noted that the invention of the lawn mower is a relatively current occurrence. Along the way this short grassed seaside golfing location came to be too referred to as links.

If the debate over whether the Scots or Dutch created the game of golf, the Scots certainly had a hand in creating the golf club. Leith is considered the birthplace of organized golf, and the golf club called the Honorable Company of Gentleman Golfers was founded by William St. Clair in Leith in 1744 and later became the Company of Edinburgh Golfers. Ten years later, the Royal and Ancient Golf Company was founded under it original name, the Society of St. Andrews Golfers.
The Royal and Ancient Golf Club runs the British Open and British Amateur duties that it assumed in 1919 , and since 1951 has administered the rules of golf in cooperation with the United States Golf Association .
The R & A also established 18 holes as the standard golf course. In 1764, the Old Course at St. Andrews consisted of 22 holes with golfers playing 11 holes out and 11 back. Eventually the last 4 holes on each side, all short converted into 2 holes leaving 18 to be played.

Golf Training Aids

How To Use Golf Training Aids To Improve Your Chipping

The 18th hole is a lengthy par 4 with a tricky elevated green. You've missed the green to the right on your approach. Your ball sits about 8 feet off the green in the first cut of rough. The lie isn't too bad, but it's a tricky shot.

The left-side pin is about 25 yards away and there is a tricky downhill slope leading to a bunker right behind the target. Unfortunately, your opponent and nemesis is in decent shape with a slick 20 footer for birdie.

Whoever wins the hole wins the round, bragging rights, and 5 skins. If you can chip this one close or somehow get it to drop, you can turn the tables and put the pressure on him. Of course, chip it a little too hard and it's going down in the bunker along with your chances of getting those desperately needed bragging rights.

Are your chipping skills up to the challenge? Moments of reckoning like this come along pretty often in golf. It’s the times when you wonder is your game good enough to pull you through. On tough courses, under pressure, many of these moments come down to hitting a good chip shot.

If your chipping is not the best aspect of your game, consider adding a golf training aid to your practice routine. Golf training aids can help you maximize your results, especially when you have limited time available to practice. Here are some tips to help you find golf training aids for chipping that won't waste your time:

1. Practice at home! You really can improve your chipping in your yard if you practice. If you are pressed for time, this is a great way to keep your short game sharp. Suggested training aids: a small chipping net for a target, and a mat to keep your lawn from looking like Swiss cheese.

Step off 2, 5, 10, 15, and 20 yards, putting a target at each one. To start, chip 10 shots at each target to get a feel for each distance. Then, when you feel confident that you have the feel, Chip one ball to each target to simulate on-course conditions. During a real round you only have one try to get it right!

2. Get a golf training aid that is some sort of wedge with a lengthened shaft, about 1 foot longer than normal. The long shaft will help you keep your wrist firm through the ball. This helps a lot with your consistency. Follow whatever exercises come with the golf training aid. It's fairly simple but you have to practice.

3. Tempo is just as important in chipping as it is during the full swing. Get an adjustable golf metronome and use it to get a good rhythm for your chipping stroke. Also practice your pre-chip routine because rhythm in your routine is very important in pressure situations.

4. Get a short game DVD! Butch Harmon, David Leadbetter, Hank Haney, etc. All these guys know tons of stuff about the short game that can be very helpful to the average golfer.

Good luck and chip away at your handicap!