March 10 /09

This month's newsletter is out a week earlier than normal because I'm off on a little holiday soon and won't be giving my site and emails the same level of attention as normal. So, if have any comments, questions, or orders, send them to me soon. I want you to have a great start to the 2009 golf season.

Click on any of the following Newsletter topics or just scroll down the page:

What to focus on in 2009?
Improving Your Putting Lowers Score the Most
Golf Improves Fitness, Proper Fitness Improves Golf
Golf Ball Backspin and Alignment

What to Focus on in 2009!

Have you tried any of these actions to help you improve your golf game?

      1. Bought new equipment.

      2. Took a golf lesson.

      3. Went to the driving range to hit lots of golf balls.

      4. Read a golf instruction book.

Have any of the above lead to sustained improvement of your golf game? How much did you spend on your attempts at improvement?

Most golfers spend way too much money trying to improve and in most cases, the above attempts at improvement are not effective. The reasons for the ineffectiveness? How about these:

      1. New equipment doesn't lead to an improved golf swing, putting stroke, etc. Usually, there is a short term improvement because the golfer's focus and awareness are heightened because of the new equipment. Once the novelty wears off, the normal distractions of the world take hold and the "new" equipment becomes just like the "old" equipment.

      2. One golf lesson isn't nearly enough to produce long term change; a series of lessons is required. And, a golfer must practice effectively between the lessons to become accustomed with the kinesthetic feel of the new motions. It can take months to actually learn the new moves so that they become automatic. It's always so tempting to revert to the old. Most golfers experience a long spell of poor golf before they can see marked improvement. Most golfers don't have the patience to keep at it long enough.

      3. Hitting balls only reinforces the swing that you have. If it's a good swing, great. But, it there are some faults, you're just practicing those bad faults. Now, hitting balls will promote more consistency, but will this lead to improved scores? It's important to only be focused on one thing while hitting ballsl

      4. Usually, a golf instruction book has way too much information in it to relate to at one sitting. It's important that you only take parts and work on them until they are mastered. In many cases, they involve major swing changes that require a major time commitment. As said before, most golfers abandon these because they see too much poor performance before any improved performance occurs.

My website focuses on providing golfers with tips that can automatically lead to improvement by making better choices on the course. Good golf shots require the golfer to use the correct club and be confident that the club is the best choice. One needs to be truly committed to the shot.

Answer my new poll question about confidence in club selection!

I have used my computer golf ball projectile model to predict the effect of many variables on golf shots. The purpose has been to provide golfers with the tools to make better club selection choices on the golf course. More confidence in club choice equates to improved commitment, improved confidence and better golf shots; all resulting in lower scores.

Go ahead, choose your weapon against uncertainty and poor golf shots. All golfers can benefit from these golf tips, regardless of handicap.

	Learn to read and play the wind effectively. You can hit the right club for the shot, like pga golf. Headwind, Tailwind, Crosswinds, Partial Cross.
	Learn to select the correct club for uphill/downhill shots. You'll improve your club selection and ht better shots.
	Learn how to read greens and adjust for breaks? Most golfers underread putts by more than 70%. Learn how to read correctly.
	Learn about the physics behind new golf club and golf ball technology so you can hit a longer ball.
	Learn how different weather conditions affect your golf ball. Maximize your distance off the tee.
	Learn what ball manufacturers don't want you to know about the longest golf ball.
	Learn whatever you need to learn about your golf game to help you move up to the next level.
	Learn about what affects golf driver distance by using my free golf online distance calculator. Input clubhead speed, mass, loft, etc. You can also order my Driver Optimum Launch Calculator that you can use to determine the optimum loft for a Driver using your clubhead speed.

You can look at all of my products here: Order Golf Tips & Accessories

Improving Your Putting Lowers Scores Most

The easiest way to lower your score is to improve your putting. A 10% improvement in putting will yield better scores than a 10% improvement in ball striking. The higher your handicap, the better the improvement in score. This article will explain why.

Using ShotLink Technology, Dave Pelz conducted putting tests in 2007 and discovered some amazing differences between pros and amateurs. Here's what he found.

Percentage for Makeable Putts (10-25 feet)

Note the amateurs were not far off the pros on 10' - 15' putts. For instance, the 30 handicappers tested made 25% of those putts compared to 30% by the pros. But, they didn't come close on the longer putts. Why?

The answer was that their putting is much less consistent. Even though they sank 25%, what did they do on the other 75%. Did they 2 putt or 3 putt?

Pelz also measured how far from the hole the golfers ended after the first putt. Here are the results.

Approach Putt Performance (putt left after first putt from 10-25 feet)

So, the amateur golfers were much farther away after their first putts. In many cases, so far away that they 3 putted. It was also found than pros generally missed past the hole. Amateurs missed short of the hole. So, on longer putts, they had much less chance of making any putts because, "never up, never in."

And, amateurs were consistently much farther offline on their putts and usually on the low side of the hole (they didn't play enough break; under read their putts). Pros generally missed on the high side.

Imagine if your average putt 2nd putt length was under 3 feet, like the pros; you'd have much fewer 3 putts. And, by improving your putting, you'd sink more shorter putts as well, which you usually have if you have a decent short game to save par or bogey.

Click here to order Dave's Pelz's Short Game Bible, OR get it at your local bookstore. BUT, whatever you do, GET IT !! Your game will love you for it.

In 1990, Dr. L.J. Riccio did a study of amateur golfer scores.

Below is a table which summarizes some of the statistics that Riccio investigated. Where do you fit in with your game?

The last column indicates the strength of the statistical relationship between score and the statistic. A "Strong" relationship is one that predicts quite well one statisitic given the other (i.e. the SCORE given the GIR). A "Weak" relationship does not predict as well.

As a comparison, keep similar statistics for yourself over the next 5 rounds (10 rounds would be better) and see how your statistics are related to the scores you shoot.

Let's say your scoring average is 89. You have a goal to get down to breaking 80, thus a scoring average of 79. Compared to overall average golfer statistics, you need to improve by:

† increasing GIR from 3 to 8 (267% increase)
† increasing Iron Accuracy from 20 to 53% (265% increase)
† reducing Putts per Round from 35.0 to 31.7 (9.5% decrease)
† reducing Pitch/Chip/Sand from 15.6 to 9.8 (37% decrease)

Focus on improving your putting and you'll realize the most significant improvement in your golf score.

Improve Your Fitness Level

For years, I have advocated improvement of physical fitness for better golf, especially as one grows older. Your body is the machine that connects your mind to the ball. If the body is not in good shape, it's tough to get it to do what you want, even if the body has done it many times before in the past.

The previous article gave evidence of how good golf can be for a regular fitness program to reduce risk of a number of life altering conditions. As one ages, however, the muscles become less flexible and weaker. A moderate fitness program can slow (but not eliminate) this trend.

Kinesthetics in the golf swing are crucial to good ball striking. In other words, the body must be able to "feel movement" in order to get proper feedback. If the muscles are not in good shape, or if they are tired, it's difficult for them to do their job.

I'm not an expert on fitness, but do know some that can help you out greatly. Take a look at these two experts that work full time trying to enable golfers to improve by improving their level of golf fitness:

1. Fitness For Golf -- provides an excellent program that offers a powerful collection of resources, sets of exercises you can print off on your computer, interviews with top golf experts such as Annika Sorenstam, golf fitness calculators, nutritional strategies and more....

So, especially if you're approaching 50 (or have surpassed this milestone), I strongly suggest you begin a fitness program. As you age, you will begin to lose distance. Much of the loss, however, can be maintained, as long as you remain golf fit.

2.Golf Gym has been helping golfers play better since 1987. They have a great selection of programs and items that can help you in your bid to become more golf fit.

What's Your Swing Tempo?

"TOUR TEMPO is an exciting breakthrough in golf instruction, the most revolutionary work to be published about the golf swing since the beginning of golf as we know it." - Doubleday Books

For the golf swing to work smoothly and efficiently, the various swing motions must occur in a specific order. How effectively one follows the other depends on the "tempo" of the golf swing. A few years ago, John Novoel analyzed the swings of numerous professionals and made some remarkable discoveries about the timing of the swings components.

TAP Here to learn more!

In his breakthrough book, John Novosel and Sports Illustrated writer John Garrity explain exactly how to achieve TOUR TEMPO. Through clear, step-by-step instruction, golfers are taught how to master two basic drills to synchronize their swing.

Peak Performance -- How to Gain Confidence

I subscribe to Dr. Cohn's free Sports Psychology newsletter, Sports Insights. He has a lot of great tips on golf's mental game. He talks a lot about the pre-shot routine and remaining focused. He also has a series of videos that golfer can view for free. His latest is about confidence.

Here's the link to his confidence video: Confidence for Low Scores

Click here to order Dave's Pelz's Short Game Bible, OR get it at your local bookstore. BUT, whatever you do, GET IT !! Your game will love you for it.

Trying to find answers on my website? Here's how.

1. Go to my Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page. There's a link to it on my pages from the left hand menu near the top of the page, just below the Search icon. It's called "FAQs." You then click on the graphic icon and you'll be taken to my database page. For your convenience, here it is:
FAQ

I've answered hundreds of questions over the past 6 years and have created a fairly large database. You can search it out. If you can't find the answer you're looking for, submit a question and I'll answer it.

2. On all of my web pages, there is a search feature in the top left section, right underneath my LOGO. Just place your search keywords in the search box, select "This Site" below it, and then press "Search." What will come up is a Google search of the pages on my site with relevance. You can also search the entire internet by selecting "Web" instead.
Go to my main page now: Home or just check the top left menu of this page.

3. Also, directly under the Google Search area, you'll find a pop down menu called "Your Topic." Select the topic of interest and press "Go."

I would suggest you bookmark my main page and/or your specific areas of interest so that you can find them easily in the future. On each page at the very top, there is a link you can click on:
"Click here to add this page to your favourites"

Hope you find all you're looking for.

You can learn more from NEW Titleist Pro-V1 by clicking HERE.

Ken Tannar