the total golf experience - mel sole golf schools · too much bend causes all sorts of problems...

THE TOTAL GOLF EXPERIENCE

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Start With the Right Grip For Your Body Type...........................................................................................3The Three Basic Golf Grips....................................................................................................................3The Two Golf Grip "Laws" That Every Golfer Ought to Know.............................................................4

The Two Knuckles Law......................................................................................................................4The Lifeline Law................................................................................................................................4

The A, B, C's of Address and Ball Position.................................................................................................5The TOTAL GOLF Power Move.................................................................................................................6Learn The 7 - 8 - 9 Pitching Method............................................................................................................7

The 7-O'clock Position.......................................................................................................................7The 8-O'clock Position.......................................................................................................................7The 9-O'clock Position.......................................................................................................................7

The 3 Keys To a Great Pitch Shot...........................................................................................................8Learn The 6 - 8 - 10 Chipping Method........................................................................................................9How to Easily Develop a Killer Putting Stroke.........................................................................................11The Push Drill: Push Yourself To Peak Performance!...............................................................................13

Week 1 ..................................................................................................................................................13Week 2 ..................................................................................................................................................13Week 3 ..................................................................................................................................................14

How to Stop Topping the Ball Once and For All ......................................................................................15How to Finally Stop Coming Over the Top...............................................................................................16How to Prevent the Dreaded "FAT" Shot ..................................................................................................18

Message From Mel Sole........................................................................................................................20About Mel Sole.....................................................................................................................................20

Copyright Mel Sole Golf School, 2011. All rights reserved. www.ritson-sole.com

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Part 1: TOTAL GOLF FUNDAMENTALS

Start With the Right Grip For Your Body TypeA good golf grip is fundamental to the mechanics of a solid golf swing, yet it's also one of the most neglected elements of a golfer's game. As a golf instructor, I see more bad grips than bad swings. And, I've never seen a good player with a bad grip.

The problem begins when you're unsure of which of the three grips is best for you. Start by determining your body type:

1. Do you have strong hands and arms, or are you weak in that area?

2. Are your fingers long and thin, or short and pudgy?

The Three Basic Golf Grips

For reasons of clarity I will be referring to top hand and bottom hand rather than left or right. This is so the article can be understood by both left or right handed golfers.

The Baseball Grip, or 10 Finger Grip, is good for women and seniors who do not have a lot of strength in their wrists and forearms. This allows the lower hand to be a little more active through the hitting area, helping rotation and resulting in straighter shots as well as more distance.

The Overlapping Grip, or Vardon Grip (named after Harry Vardon), is the most popular grip and is suitable for most golfers with strong arms and wrists. This grip unifies the hands and helps them work as one unit.

The Interlocking Grip works well for people with short fingers and pudgy palms who find it difficult to get the small finger to overlap correctly or sufficiently. The small finger and index finger of the opposite hand interlock again unifying the hands in order to work as one unit. Jack Nicklaus uses this grip.


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The Two Golf Grip "Laws" That Every Golfer Ought to Know

Regardless of which golf grip you choose, there are two "laws" that are fundamental to a good grip:

The Two Knuckles Law

The top hand needs to be placed on the club so that as you look down you can see two knuckles. The line formed by the thumb and the back of the hand is pointing to the right shoulder (or left shoulder for left-handed golfers.)

The Lifeline Law

The bottom hand is placed on the club with the palms adjacent to one another, so the lifeline of the bottom hand fits snugly over the thumb of the top hand. The lines formed by the thumbs and the back of the hands are parallel to one another. The thumb and index finger of the bottom hand form a slight "trigger grip" with the tip of each finger touching.

You'll squeeze better performance from your game if you start out with the right golf grip. Determine your body type, choose the right grip for you, and be sure to follow the golf grip laws, and you'll be well on your way to better scores!


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The A, B, C's of Address and Ball PositionThe most important - and frequently overlooked - full swing fundamental is the setup. The setup sets the tone of your swing and ultimately, your scores. So what makes a great golf setup? It starts with address and ball position.

For reasons of clarity (because there are left and right handed golfers) I will refer to front and back rather than left or right. The front foot would be the left foot for right handed golfers.

A) Address Position

Width of Stance: Your stance should be approximately the width of your shoulders for the mid-irons. Go slightly narrower for the shorter clubs and slightly wider for the longer clubs.

Posture: The knees are only slightly bent. Too much bend causes all sorts of problems with the backswing. The arms hang down vertically from the shoulders. This helps keep any tension out of the arms at the address position. Tension in the arms at address also causes problems with the backswing. The spine should be relatively straight, and the chin held slightly away from the chest.

Hand Position: This is an often neglected position at address. It is important that there is a straight line from the top of the front shoulder to the ball, as in picture #2. This sets the hands in the correct position relative to the ball position. Note that the butt of the club should be over the middle of the front thigh regardless of the club in your hand.

B) Ball Position

The Irons: The ball position for all regular iron shots (not low/high/uphill/downhill lies) is about 2" inside the front heel. This automatically sets the hands slightly ahead of the ball and helps give the desired "slightly downward" blow that is required for crisp iron shots.

The Fairway Woods: The ball position for the fairway woods is directly off the left heel. This automatically sets the hands even with the ball and helps give the desired "bottom of the arc" blow required for lofted fairways shots.

The Driver: The ball position for the driver is off the instep of the front foot. This automatically sets the hands even with the clubhead and helps give the desired "slightly upward" blow required for good tee shots.


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The TOTAL GOLF Power MoveThe TOTAL GOLF Power Move is executed at the all-important start of the downswing, and allows you to unleash your swing power at the point of impact with the golf ball. How exactly is this done?

In photo #1, I'm at the top of the backswing.

Photo #2 shows the first move of the downswing, starting with the left side (for right handed golfers), and not with the arms as is so common among high and medium handicap golfers. The weight has started to shift across to the front side and the angle created by the shaft and my left arm has not changed. This indicates the downswing has not been started with the hands.

Any attempt to start the downswing with the hands and arms will immediately cause two things to happen: 1) you will "come over the top" and, 2) you will instantly lose the shaft angle and get what is called "casting," because it is like casting a fishing rod. This results in instant power loss, and direction loss as well.

In photo #3, my hands have already passed hip level and the angle is still the same as it was at the top of the backswing. The weight is now approximately 60% across onto the front side. In photo #4, I'm in the impact position. In comparing photo #3 with #4 you can see that my hands have moved approximately 12 inches in the same time that the clubhead has moved 5 feet, obviously creating tremendous clubhead speed. At impact, my weight is approximately 70% over to the front side and the arm and shaft are in a straight line. At this moment, all the power that has been stored up during the downswing is being released right at the point you want it - at impact!

Any golfer wanting to improve their distance has only to look to these areas to see where the power is being lost. A golf lesson with the use of a video camera will quickly illustrate this. Once you understand the principals involved in creating the TOTAL GOLF Power Move, you'll be pleased to see your drives increase and your shots come down.


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Part 2: TOTAL GOLF SHORT GAME DOMINATION

Learn The 7 - 8 - 9 Pitching MethodMost of the amateurs I play with hit the ball well from tee to green, but when they get within 50 yards of the green they seem to struggle. "I don't have time to practice these shots", they tell me. If that sounds familiar, this lesson is for you. The 7-8-9 Pitching Method requires a little practice initially, but once you've established your distances you'll be able to rely on it in the future.

The 7-O'clock Position

As you address the ball, imagine that you have a large clock in front of you. Learn to swing your left arm (right arm for those who are left-handed) to the hours of the clock.

Notice there is a slight wrist cock. This is important as you need to cock the wrist to help deliver a slightly downward blow through the shot. Practice hitting shots like this until you can consistently hit shots a certain distance. This will become your 7-o'clock shot.


Practice hitting shots swinging your left arm to 8-o'clock and note your distances. This will become your 8-o'clock shot.


Practice the same as the first two shots, while swinging your arm to 9-o'clock.

Finish off swinging the arm to 10-o'clock and you'll now have four specific distances that you can consistently pitch the ball. (Distances will vary from player to player as in full shots.) When you find yourself 40 yards from the flag on the course you can say to yourself, "OK, this is my X-o'clock shot." and you know for sure that if you swing your arm to that position, the ball is going to go about 40 yards.


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The 3 Keys To a Great Pitch Shot

1. Notice that at address the majority of my weight is on my front foot. This help you keep your body steady during the swing, and also powers the downward blow that is important in creating the backspin you want on this shot. You will also notice looking at the other positions during the backswing that my weight does not shift to the back foot at any time. I keep my weight on the front foot even at the top of my backswing. (This is only for the pitch shot - not for full shots.)

2. It is important that the pace of the swing be consistent throughout. It is no good swinging slowly through one shot and quickly through the next. You’ll get very inconsistent results. Try to imagine a pendulum and the way it moves backward and forward at the same pace. Try to fell this in all of your pitch shots.

3. Lastly, follow through. Do not stop your follow through on this shot or you will constantly come up short. The follow through should finish at about 3 o'clock.

Make sure that the follow through is directly at the target and not around your body. The hands should finish in about the middle of your chest.

With just a little practice to establish your distances and pace, you'll find playing these shots a lot more fun. You'll also get a lot of comments from your playing partners like "Where did you learn to pitch all of a sudden!?"


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Learn The 6 - 8 - 10 Chipping MethodThe golden rule in chipping is:

Fly the ball as little as possible and roll the ball as much as possible.

With that in mind, it's important to understand the air-time/ground-time ratios of shots hit with different clubs. The selection of the correct club is vital. You can chip with anything from a three iron to a sand wedge depending on the situation, but you must know the following formulas to decide which club is required.

1. When you chip with a 10 iron, or Pitching Wedge as it is commonly called, the ball will fly 1/2 the distance to the hole and roll 1/2 the distance.

2. When you chip with an 8 iron, the ball will fly 1/3 and roll 2/3.

3. When you chip with a 6 iron the ball will fly 1/4 and roll 3/4.

Now these formulas are based on a normal paced, level green--a situation we don’t often find on the course. So, if you're going uphill you would need to go up one club, and downhill requires going down one club. If the green is fast you again will need to go down one club and if the green is slow you will go up one club. This may sound confusing at first, but once you understand the basic formula it's really just common sense from then on.

CLUB LEVEL UPHILL / SLOW DOWNHILL / FAST

6 iron Fly 1/4 Roll 3/4 4 iron 8 Iron

8 Iron Fly 1/3 Roll 2/3 6 Iron P/Wedge

P/Wedge Fly 1/2 Roll 1/2 8 Iron Lob Wedge

Always try to land the ball about 3 feet onto the putting surface (dotted line) and let the ball roll the rest of the way.


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At the address position, keep your weight on your front foot, with the ball position in the middle of your feet. Your hands should be slightly ahead of the ball.

Besides choosing the right club, the most important aspect of chipping is making sure the left wrist (or right wrist for left-handers) does not break down during the chipping motion, because the moment the wrist breaks down two things happen:

1. The loft on the club changes, changing the trajectory, which in turn affects the roll of the ball. Inconsistent distances will result.

2. The arm breaks down as well, causing bladed shots that go screaming across the green.

To ensure that neither of these things happen, work on keeping your arm straight and your wrist firm during the shot. If you find this difficult to achieve in practice try this, it will give you the correct feel: Take a thick rubber band and place it around your wrist. Slide the butt end of the club under the elastic band, keeping the butt end of the club close to the wrist.

If you wish to lower your handicap, skip a few sessions on the driving range and head for the chipping green instead. You’ll love the results to your game – your opponents won’t!


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How to Easily Develop a Killer Putting StrokeShort putts - those between 4 and 6 feet - are the ones we expect to make most of the time. But research tells us that the touring pros make only about 50% of 6 foot putts, so the average golfer should not get too frustrated when their percentage is lower. However, with intelligent practice we can do something to increase that success.

Take 10 balls and line up a straight putt of about 4 to 5 feet as I am here:

Practice a straight putt, because then you need only focus one the stroke and not on the break. Now, start putting these putts with two objectives:

1. Make sure the putter head is going straight back and straight through.

2. Make sure your putter face is square to your line at all times. This is the most common fault with poor putters and takes the most work and concentration, but will pay off handsomely if you have the determination to get it right.

Set yourself a goal for the number of putts that you can hole in a row. Gradually increase this goal until you can get up to 50. Remember, if you miss one you have to start at one again!

This teaches you how to putt under pressure, because as you reach 45, 46, 47, 48 - you don’t Copyright Mel Sole Golf School, 2011. All rights reserved. www.ritson-sole.com

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want to start at one again - so you must make a good stroke.

The secondary benefit of this practice method is to your subconscious. As you hole putt after putt at this distance, your confidence escalates and you have less and less fear of these putts.

If you don’t have time to go to the course, remember - you can practice this at home on the carpet. Especially those of you who are stuck indoors for the winter, this is a great way to work on your putting stroke and get it nice and solid for next spring.


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The Push Drill: Push Yourself To Peak Performance!The Push Drill is designed to help you kinesthetically feel the correct movement of the arms and hands throughout the putting stroke. The overall objective is to allow absolutely no breakdown between the forearm of the leading arm and the putter shaft. This ensures a perfect pendulum stroke. It also helps tremendously with distance control because the hands are completely passive and will not get involved in "hitting" the ball, which causes loss of distance control. This drill takes six weeks to perfect, but you can practice at any time, at the office or at home for just a few minutes a day.

Week 1

Put the putter directly behind the ball as in photo #1. Without taking the clubhead back, simply push the putter head through, keeping the putter face square and the putter head low to the ground, as in photo #2. Do not use a target, just make sure you feel the upper part of the leading arm controlling this movement - no hands are to be involved at all. Notice that the angle between the leading arm and the shaft has not changed between photos #1 and 2. Do not progress to week 2 until you can keep the putter head path going straight through and able to hold the putter face perfectly square on the follow through.

Week 2

This week, place the ball at the 6" mark, and the putter head at the 3" mark, as seen in photo #3:


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Now push the putter head through to the 12" mark, again making sure that you feel the upper part of the leading arm controlling the "push" with no breakdown between the forearm and the shaft. The toe of the putter must stay parallel to the ruler, and the putter face must remain square. As you see in photo #4, I have a "very slight" breakdown myself when I do this drill, and so I will continue to work on The Push Drill until I have it perfected.

Week 3

Finally, put all of this together by making a continuous putting stroke, still using the ruler, still taking the putter head back half the distance of the follow through.

Week 4, 5 & 6 are the same as 1, 2 & 3 but with a target.

Work diligently and these drills will make you a much better putter than you ever dreamed of!


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Part 3: TOTAL GOLF SWING CLINIC - FAULTS & FIXES

How to Stop Topping the Ball Once and For All Most times when a golfer tops the ball, their spouse or playing partner will say, "You lifted your head!" However, this is probably not the case. The most common cause of topping is the collapsing of the left arm (for right-handed golfers) causing the distance between the golfer and the ball to shorten, and a topped shot is the result.

The Solution? Practice pitch shots.

Address Position. Ball slightly forward of center, hands ahead of the ball. The butt of the club is on the left thigh.

Take the club back to a 9-o'-clock position, keeping the left arm straight.

At impact, the hands still lead the clubhead. The left arm is straight.

This is the most important position. The arms are extended out in front of you at the finish. At no time should the left arm collapse.

After several practice sessions in this manner you’ll have obtained the feeling of straight arms through impact. Do this with all of your clubs and topping the ball will no longer be a problem for you!


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How to Finally Stop Coming Over the TopOnce you are in the correct position at the top, the very first move of the downswing is a small lateral slide of the hips towards the target. This will automatically let the hands drop down vertically.

In photo #1, you can see that I've started the downswing with the lateral slide causing the hands to drop down vertically. In photo #2, I 've started by rotating the hips, causing the hands to move away from the body in the classical "over the top" move.

From the front view, by comparing photos #3 and #4 you’ll see that my hips have slid laterally about 6° towards the target - without turning the hips!

This is the critical issue here. The moment you turn the hips too early or turn them at the start of the downswing the hands will move out and over, causing a pull or a slice (depending where the clubface is at impact) as in photo #5.


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From the back view once again, in photo #6 note the correct position of the hands in relation to the body, and also the clubhead in relation to the hands. Notice the hands are fairly close to the right thigh and the clubhead is behind the hands. At this point the hips have still not turned out of the way. It's only from this point that the body starts turning (rapidly.) Compare that to photo #7 when the downswing was started with the rotation of the hips.

In photo #8, I'm at the impact position and ready to deliver the clubhead squarely to the ball. The clubhead path should travel along the target line for as long as possible.

Combined with The Dagger Drill, this drill will help you pay attention to the lateral hip slide, and coming over the top will quickly become a thing of the past!


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How to Prevent the Dreaded "FAT" Shot Hitting the ball "fat", or behind the ball, can be caused by one of two things or a combination of both:

1. Starting the downswing with your arms instead of with a lateral weight shift. The very first move of the downswing is a slight lateral slide of the hips moving the weight from the right side (for right handed golfers) to the left. Failure to do this means the arms come down before the body has shifted to the front foot, causing you to reach the bottom of the arc before the ball which results in a "fat" shot. At impact, the weight is still on the back foot.

2. "Casting" or un-cocking the wrists too early on the downswing. This is also caused by starting the downswing with the arms, but the golfers loses the angle between the right forearm and the shaft early on the downswing, again causing the club to reach the bottom of the arc too soon resulting in a fat shot.

The Solution? Make sure to start the downswing with a lateral slide of the hipsand ensure that most of your weight is over onto the front foot before impact (the right

heel should be off the ground by impact).


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Also, ensure that the angle between the right forearm and the shaft stays as delayed as possible.

The Dagger Drill will help you correct both problems that cause the fat shot.

The additional benefit in doing this drill correctly is that it also increases your distance!


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Message From Mel Sole

I hope you enjoyed THE TOTAL GOLF EXPERIENCE collection of golf improvement tips! If you have questions about any of these articles or any another aspect of your game, please feel free to get in touch with me via email ([email protected]) or call me toll free at 1-800-624-4653.

If you're serious about becoming a better golfer, I invite you to take advantage of all the free golf improvement resources I publish online:

Subscribe to my free monthly newsletter to find out about new contests and giveaways, member-only specials at our golf schools, and a summary of the latest golf tips and articles on my website.

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See you on the tee!

About Mel SoleMel Sole is the Director of Instruction and Owner at the Mel Sole Golf Schoo l . His dedication to golf instruction has earned him many awards, including:

"Top Teacher" by GOLF Magazine, every year since 2001

"Best Teachers in Your State" by Golf Digest, 2009

After a playing career on the South African PGA Tour, Mel turned his focus to teaching back in the 1970s. His coaching of Junior Golf Teams in South Africa produced two National Champions and several Junior Champions. In 1988, Phil Ritson asked Mel to head up a golf academy in Myrtle Beach, USA. Renamed the Phil Ritson - Mel Sole Golf School in 1991 (and again in 2013, to Mel Sole Golf School) and relocated to nearby Pawleys Island . We now also have several locations in the U.S. and México.

Mel authored the golf instruction book, Golf Step-by-Step (Chrysalis Books) in 2003. He's a teaching editor with Golf Tips Magazine, and his golf lessons have also appeared in Golf Digest, Golf Magazine and Golf Illustrated, as well as GolfInstruction.com.


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the total golf experience - mel sole golf schools · too much bend causes all sorts of problems...

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