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Golf Tips for a Windy Day

It's a windy day. You are 140 yards out to the green. Which club do you use?? Hmm.. Well, I can't tell you WHICH club to use, because we all strike the ball differently. I CAN tell you that you if you are hitting INTO the wind, you should take one club more than you usually use for every 10 mph of windage. So, if you use a 6 iron from 140 yards out, keep it in the bag if you are hitting into a 10mph breeze, and use your five iron. If you are hitting with the wind to your back, you would go UP 1/2 a club. So, use your 7 iron, and adjust your swing speed accordingly.

Additionally, choke down on the club. This keeps the ball on a lower trajectory, and helps to avoid the hazards of the wind!!

Most importantly, don't swing hard!!! A hard swing, if it connects, causes the ball to go higher, where mother nature will do as she pleases. A shot with 80% of your normal swing speed will keep the ball low.

On Drives, tee the ball a little lower than normal. This takes a lot of practice, as you are going off your normal 'drive swing'. Play the ball SLIGHTLY back in your normal stance, swing easy, and your ball will come off in a nice, low trajectory, beating the wind, and scorching down the fairway. You'll also get a lot of roll from this shot

Tip of The Week - Everyone Knows It's Windy!

Ok, we've all been there. Some of us are still there, said the author as he looked in the mirror. You're golfing with three other people, and you are obviously the worst golfer. How do you handle, what is the 'etiquette'? Well, if they are friends, there really isn't any. However, follow these as rules of thumb:

Don't delay play. If you are on your tenth shot, or twelfth, or fifteenth, pick the ball up. You're probably holding people up behind you, and just as importantly, you are frustrating YOURSELF!!

If you're scoring every hole, give yourself your last shot number plus two.

If you lose a ball, look for it yourself. This promotes faster play, and your friends will appreciate it.

If you don't find the ball, take a stroke, drop near where you think it is, and hit away.

Don't look for a ball for more than three minutes

If you are having a bad day, don't complain and whine. The people you are playing with don't want to hear it. If you are going to open your mouth, maybe ask for advice.

Remember, you're supposed to be having fun. If you are not, stop playing. My worst day on a golf course is better than sitting at home doing nothing!

NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER OFFER ADVICE UNSOLICITED TO A PLAYER WHO IS CLEARLY BETTER THAN YOU, AND RARELY OFFER TO SOMEONE WHO IS CLEARLY WORSE. THE ADVICE MUST BE SOUGHT OUT, NOT GIVEN!!!

Again, you know your friends better than I, and these are rules of thumbs. Not all of them conform to the "Royal Book Of Golf Published By The Golf Kings", but if you read them a couple times, I bet you would agree.

From our Readers:

"I love your newsletter. I am a beginner (greenhorn) or whatever you call it. I just turned 60 in July and my family went together to get me rigged out with golfing gear. I am learning as we go and enjoying every every minute of it. I will be looking forward to your email newsletter. I am willing to learn everything that I can".
Ken Anderson, Lexington, OK.

Thanks, that is really appreciated. 60 is not old, but I will say: You are never too old or too young to start golfing. Just make sure you enjoy it. If you don't, quit and go bowling, or throw darts or something that makes you happy. Try to get better every time out, but don't cry if you have a bad round. We all have them. We all start shooting in the 120's or higher, and we all get better. Sometimes slow, sometimes fast.

GUEST Column: Scotty McDougal, Golf Pro

- Maintaining Balance Back to top

Swing High, Swing Low, Swing Wide, Swing Around. Everyone's swing is different. Even the pro's have VASTLY different swings. Look at Jim Furyk. What an awful swing to win a Major Tournament! I'd take those results. The one thing every golfer MUST have in common is BALANCE. If you are not balanced (and I don't mean mentally), you are losing so much in your distance and accuracy that it will make you cry.

OK, how do we get proper balance? Well, we started off by saying everyone has a different swing. And we all do. However, we ALL have the same balance point. Imagine if you could swing around a fixed point consistently. You'd hit the ball the same spot each time, and you will have mastered the most elusive part of this game: Consistency!!!!

Here it is: You ready? This is going to be the biggest revelation, since, well, since I realized that I wasn't good enough to golf on the PGA circuit (I never got my card, whoa is me!!)

Your point of balance is..... The middle of your collarbones, 3" down. BINGO!!!

Turn and swing around that center of balance. If you had somebody videotape you, you would notice (if you got it right) that the center of balance never moves!!

Actually, the ideal training aid is to get a video camera with a laser pointer mounted on it. The laser will point to the center of balance. You will note on the perfectly balanced swing that the laser point NEVER MOVES.