photo credit: idovermani

Kenny Perry, with his wide stance, started the new trend.  Perry stands with his feet greater than shoulder width, when addressing his putts.  Phil Mickelson, changed his stance after spending time with Dave Stockton from the Champions tour.  One of the first things Stockton did was suggest that Mickelson take a much wider stance.

With a wider stance you should choke down on your putter to compensate for the loss of height.  Try this style for greater stability and more 20 footers.

photo credit: Brian J. McDermott

With this technique, the weight remains over the ball on the backswing for greater power.  The weight then moves forward in such a way as to enable your swing to bottom out in front of the ball.  The purpose of the Stack and Tilt is to generate more power and better contact with the ball.  Try this new style, it may improve your game.

photo credit: Mark Heard

For tee shots on longer holes, perhaps you could choose a five -or seven-metal wood, or a three-hybrid.  Either can be used for knock-down shots for more distance, if necessary.  They can also be used for long chip and run shots.  For approach shots, or shots near the green (and/or sand), a seven-iron is ideal.  You can open or close the face to adjust the ball’s trajectory for high lob shots or low chip and run shots.  The third choice is the putter. 

Playing in a group, where everyone is using  just 3 clubs, is a real challenge.  Try it the next time you play !

photo credit: Kevitivity

The ideal is to replace irons with hybrids  that have slightly higher lofts.  For instance:  the twenty-one degree three iron should be replaced with a twenty-three degree hybrid.  The hybrid, even though it has a higher loft, will fly just as far as the three iron and produce high shots with a lot of backspin. 

Since the hybrid has more mass than a three iron it is much easier to hit out of rough with the hybrid.  It’s just a great, all around, utility club.

photo credit: Zunami  

Tips:  (A)  Take the time to get your “average strike” data and not just your best hits.  (B)  Increase your ball speed (swing speed), since an increase of 1 mph. in ball speed equals 2 1/2 yards more distance.  (C)  Be mindful of the launch angle if your swing is under 100 mph., If your swing is faster than 100 mph., note your spin speed.  Averaging less than 200 rpm. per minute per degree of launch is ideal.  (D)  Be sure to use the ball that you use during regular play for best results.

photo credit: danperry.com

The 2 iron, along with the extinct 1 iron, have been replaced by the new hybrids.  The hybrids have two advantages, they are extremely easy to hit and they can be used successfully in bunkers and deep rough.  They are the greatest invention since the development of metal woods in the 1980s.

To some golfers, hitting a 2 iron was like using a putter for the same shot.  Using a 2 iron would almost guarantee a shot of no more than 100 yds., a 1 iron shot would be, maybe 40 yds. if you were lucky.  In steps the hybrid and the rest is history !

photo credit: Dru Bloomfield – At Home in Scottsdale

Perhaps these ”trend setters” know something about the “non waggle” set-up that everyone is unaware of.  Most experts agree that the purpose of the waggle is to keep muscles relaxed during the address.  Everyone knows that relaxed muscles are more elastic than taut muscles and that’s a good thing. 

The jury is still out on the subject but for now, to be on the safe side, let’s all just keep waggling.

photo credit: danperry.com

Do rangefinders make the game too easy? With this latest technology all you do is aim the unit at the flagstick and up pops the exact yardage. Of course the flagsticks have to have reflectors to reflect the laser beam sent by the device, if they don’t, the rangefinder is useless.
Some golf courses supply rangefinders with your golf cart. I question whether the use of this new technology is actually good for golf, what do you think?

photo credit: fdecomite

Today, golf balls have marks, initials, drawings, lines and who knows what else. This is not to imply that it’s a bad thing to mark your ball, hey, what ever floats your boat! It’s a good idea to put an identifying mark on your ball, it’s also not a good idea to put some sort of line on your ball to check it’s roll when putting, but, pictures of kangaroo’s and ducks and birds in every color of the rainbow seem out of place.

For the most part, hybrids have replaced the long irons (2 & 3 ). Hybrid shafts are the same length as those of long irons, however, the clubhead design is more like a fairway wood. Hybrids are used effectively in all situations especially in the rough. They are much easier to hit than a long iron. A hybrid shot will fly higher and with much more backspin than an iron and this is what makes them ideal for long approach shots. If you don’t have one…why the wait?