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Improve Your Golf Game with Tips from Orlando's Top Golf Instructors

Known as a golfer's haven for its 176 challenging golf courses, perfect year-round weather and renowned golf academies, the Orlando area welcomes rookies, veterans, and anyone in between with the golfing bug. And what better way to enjoy a golf outing in Orlando than with the following tried-and-true techniques offered by some of the destination's top golf pros.

"The Basics"

1) There is no such thing as a "perfect swing." If you look around the golf course, you'll see golfers with different body types which influences the golf swing. If you're serious about becoming a better golfer, you should be aware of and make use of these five fundamentals:

  • The Grip: A good golf game is impossible without a correct grip.
  • The Address: Your relationship to the ball consisting of your posture, aim and ball position.
  • The Takeaway: This is the path of the club and your arms as the club moves away from the ball.
  • The Steady Head: This is a result of the head's position during the swing and is not "keeping your head down" or "keeping your eye on the ball."
  • Acceleration: The club must be accelerating from start to finish.

Practice and hit balls to master the fundamentals and your individual swing will develop based on your physical ability, age, body type and style of play.

- John O'Leary III, Director of Instruction, Arnold Palmer Golf Academy, 407-876-5362

"Think Before You Swing"

2) Many golfers have a problem with inconsistency in ball striking and putting. Instead of trying to change your golf swing, consider what you do prior to swinging the club. Below are a few examples of questions to determine if you have an effective pre-shot routine.

  • Do you aim the clubface at the target first, or do you align your body parallel to the target first?

If you don't know the answers to these questions, most likely you have an inconsistent routine. Next tournament, watch touring professionals and observe what they do prior to hitting a shot. Their pre-shot routine is similar each time they make a swing. There are a variety of items you can use to customize your personal pre-shot routine. Work on those listed above, stick to them, and you will see your game gradually improve. Remember, a good pre-shot routine creates more consistency in your golf game.

- Jim Kroll, Director of Golf, Ginn Reunion Resort, 407-396-3200

"It's in the Backswing"

3) Two faults are common with a backswing. Both are caused by attempting to get the club on the inside path. The first is when the hands and forearms excessively rotate, causing the right elbow and shaft angle to be buried too deep behind. The second fault happens when keeping the club too low and straight back. This causes a disconnected steep shaft angle and lifted right side. Spend time feeling the slot of a correct backswing position by practicing the following drill:

  • Keep your left elbow pointing towards the ground as you coil up with your shoulders and arms. You should feel the upper body coiled around the braced right leg; and the club should feel balanced: light and vertical with little wrist angle at this point.
  • Test your position by relaxing your grip pressure and then allow gravity to be your guide. Can the handle end of your club slide and drop freely or is the club head caught? Use this simple drill to feel the slot of a better backswing path.

- Brad Brewer, Director, Brad Brewer Golf Academy at Shingle Creek, 407-996-3306

"Tension Troubles?"

4) There is an enemy almost all golfers fight on a daily basis - tension. We quite often hear, why can I hit good shots one day and not the next, why can't I take my game from the range to the course or why can I hit long drives down the middle, but then can't pitch a ball 30 yards? Sound familiar? Chances are the cause is tension. There are four areas of tension one should focus:

  • Grip tension. When gripping a golf club, just enough tension should exist to hold onto the club and not have it twist in your hands. If the grip is too tight, it will tense the forearms, thus tensing the elbow/arm. This will hinder proper folding of the trail arm in the backswing, a flaw in many golf swings and many times in short pitches.
  • Wrist tension. During the swing, the trail wrist must be able to bend into a leverage position. If the trail wrist is too tense, it will be impossible to get into a good leverage position at the top of the swing, thus often leading to "casting" or early release of the club and loss of distance.
  • Lower body/knee tension. Too much tension in the legs will cause a "locked knee" position, which is a very poor balanced position. With poor balance, it is hard to keep the club on plane throughout the swing. This typically causes the club to come toward you in the downswing and an outside/in path causing the common slice.

What is the opposite of tension? Relaxation. Next time on the range or course, when you start to loose the swing, try relaxing and see what happens - you might be surprised.

- Tim Graves, Director, Graves Golf Academy, 866-377-2316

"Solid Ball Striking"

5) It is said that up to 70 percent of your strokes are played from within 70 yards of the green. Need I say more about the importance of the short game?

  • In order to have a good short game, you need to have good distance control. And in order to have good distance control, you need to strike the ball solid with consistency. Miss hits, chips and pitches all go different distances. In order to strike the ball consistently solid, position yourself in such a manner that will encourage a slightly descending strike. The goal is to establish consistent ball then turf contact.
  • First, position the ball in the center to back of center in your stance.
  • Work to keep the weight on the left leg while swinging. This set-up position will move the bottom of the swing arc forward and encourage the swing to go up and down more frequently. In turn, you will strike the ball then the turf for more consistent striking. Striking the ball consistently will give you the feedback needed to improve distances and ultimately improve scores.

- John Viera, PGA, Mission Inn Golf & Tennis Resort, 352-324-3885

"Chipping: Less Air, More Roll"

6) When chipping from around the green, get the ball on the green quickly and let it roll as much as possible. In other words, minimize air time and maximize ground time. For the best placement, pick a landing area for your ball anywhere from one to five feet onto the green. Then, choose a club so that if you land on that mark, your ball will roll the remainder of the distance to the hole. Focus on your landing mark and the amount of stroke that is required and watch it roll up next to the hole.

- Fred Griffen, Director, Grand Cypress Academy of Golf, 877-330-7377

"The Difference Between Play and Practice"

7) Most amateur golfers have two golf swings - the one they use on the practice range and the other one they use when they are on the course. Only when playing on the course can you truly evaluate your game. There is no consequence attached to a practice shot. On the course, it counts as a stroke. The more you play, the more you recognize what areas of your game need the most attention. Also there is a quality of your game that arises out of the quantity applied. Playing more and practicing properly will lead to lower scores.

- Bill Madonna, Director of Instruction, Hawk's Landing Golf Academy, 407-238-8660

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