With over 25 million golf enthusiasts in the U.S. it is one of, if not the fastest growing sports with more than 15% of the population playing. Many people spend a lot of time and money playing and practicing golf, but generally not so much on conditioning their body to play golf.
What these people don't realize is that golf is one of the most stressful sports you can play, particularly for your back. Golf requires full rotational capacity of almost every joint in the body, the coil and recoil action of the spine during a golf swing is challenging to the healthiest of spines. Any dysfunction or imbalance in the length/tension of the muscles and stabilize and support the joints can lead to inconsistency on the course; lower scores, and breakdown of your body, including your swing.
So, is golf such as a docile game where you just go for a walk, hit a little ball, and then go for another walk and hit it again? Most of us believe we can take up golf later in life when we have time for it? It can be a wonderful and challenging new sport for most people to take up if they properly condition their bodies for it. If conditioned they can avoid some of the common ailments such as: sore backs, shoulders, hips, etc. that tend to be associated with golfing.
5 Components to a better Golf Game:
1. Focus on Core Strength. The muscles stemming from the chest down to the pelvic area involve the "core" or torso of the body. Think of the trunk of the body as the solid, stable force from which all other body parts can move. If this area is weak and not conditioned properly our extremities such as the legs and arms cannot function optimally with ease and efficiency.
The abdominal muscles involving the superficial rectus abdominus, the deeper tranverse abdominals, and the side obliques all involve some aspect of stabilizing the spine for the twisting and side bending action involved with golf.
Practicing Pilates-based exercises on the mat or equipment successfully conditions your core in all of these planes of movement. As you wok to stabilize the core you can simultaneously move the extremities of the body such as the arms and legs through corrective and efficient hip and joint mobilization.
2. Stretching and Strengthening the Muscles. Think of your muscles as a rubber band, when they are not being worked but are just resting they are resilient and pliable. When you stretch that rubber band out it becomes more vulnerable to forces acting upon it. One prick and it could go shooting across the room. Not that your muscle would go shooting across the room but it may become injured or tear if it was weak when elongated.
If you have strength without flexibility when hitting a golf ball you may just have to walk farther into the rough to get the ball. If you have flexibility without strength you may keep the ball on the fairway, but then not have as far to walk. With this in mind you can see now why it is important to combine these two components for a better and more consistent golf game.
The best way I have found and many of the pros as well, is to practice Pilates exercises which utilizes spring tension to combine strengthening while stretching the muscles at the same time. If you are looking for a certified Pilates instructor in your area check here for members:
3. Improve your Posture. Without proper posture and spinal alignment in the body your center of gravity will be off and cause inconsistency in your scores.
Increased kyphosis (rounding) in the upper or thoracic area of the spine restricts rotation in the torso causing faulty swing mechanics. No matter how well trained you may be, you will always have some distortion and inconsistency in your swing plane.
To decrease your risk for injury, improve motor programming, and, in turn your swing plane, align yourself properly at address. Good postural alignment and muscle balance involves a straight or neutral spine. Make sure as you hinge forward at the waist to keep your chest open, abdominal muscles drawn in and then feel like you are poking your butt out to sit in a chair.
4. Warm-Up for Consistency. Your warm-up or pre-event exercises should be dynamic in nature, which means with movement. Focus on the spine, hips, and shoulders. The brain is constantly monitoring the changing length of the muscles as you do your warm-up, so you need to slowly but steadily move in and out of your stretches until you loosen up. Pilates exercise sequences are based on this smooth flowing but exacting movements.
5. Fuel your Body. Good nutrition is our body's fuel. If it is running on low it will not perform optimally. Make sure to eat properly and within a couple of hours of your golf game if you hope to perform at your best.
Remember also, our muscles are over 80% water and if they are not hydrated they are like a rubber band that was left out in the sun dried out and easily cracked. Like the rubber band, your muscles without water will not be as pliable and will be more prone to injuries. Drink plenty of water and electrolyte drinks if you are out for longer than 2 hours to keep your muscles loose and pliable.
2013年9月3日星期二
Golf chip shot: its a lot easier than you think
I'm so tired of reading about the latest and greatest method for a golf pitch shot or any other golf shot for that matter. You know, you can go back to some golf magazines from the 60's and you'll see almost the exact same pictures and instruction sequences as today. Not much has really changed in golf instruction I'm here to tell you. If you read the latest books, however, you'd swear that the human body was just invented or that golf clubs were just invented, one of the two.
Listen, it's so simple to make a great golf pitch shot and everyone wayyy over complicates this. As with everything I teach in golf, it all boils down to doing a couple main things very correctly. Most of the details matter very little but we get all caught up in so many minor things that we end up not paying attention to the major thing.
For a golf pitch shot. Here's the major things:
1. As still a body as you can given the distance of the swing. Again, I hear all of this advice on videos about wrist cock and proper stance and blah blah blah... Guess what? There's many ways to make a pitch shot, not just one. But they all work more consistently when the body is still. Focus on this. Work on this in your living room while watching TV. You don't even need a ball? This will pay you back in spades in lower score and yet nobody does it.
2. Hit down to make the ball go up. Now if I had a nickel for every time I saw an amateur try to "help" the ball up in the air, I'd be a millionaire. This is so common because it is counterintuitive. To hit a great golf pitch shot, you must strike the ball before the ground. If you need more loft, pull out your sand wedge or lob wedge. Don't go through all those bodily gyrations to force it. The best way to make sure this happens is to pre-load it in your setup. That means, you should be leaning on your front foot more than your back. That drops your front shoulder down and back shoulder up. As long as you keep your body still, your swing will necessarily result in a downward, correct strike on the ball.
3. Make the shot while keeping it as low as possible. In other words, you don't always need a wedge! In fact, for most amateurs, running the ball up on the green is almost always a better choice, especially if you tend to chunk it or hit it fat as they say. Pull out your 5-iron some day and chip with it anytime you don't absolutely have to put it in the air You'll be surprised.
Folks, those are the biggies. Get real good at them and then you don't even have to worry about any details. Forget about being "technically correct." Much of that stuff is for the pros. Look, you just want to break 100 or 90 right? How will you do that? By becoming as consistent as possible. Work on the big 3 in your next golf chip shot and you'll be amazed at what you can do.
Listen, it's so simple to make a great golf pitch shot and everyone wayyy over complicates this. As with everything I teach in golf, it all boils down to doing a couple main things very correctly. Most of the details matter very little but we get all caught up in so many minor things that we end up not paying attention to the major thing.
For a golf pitch shot. Here's the major things:
1. As still a body as you can given the distance of the swing. Again, I hear all of this advice on videos about wrist cock and proper stance and blah blah blah... Guess what? There's many ways to make a pitch shot, not just one. But they all work more consistently when the body is still. Focus on this. Work on this in your living room while watching TV. You don't even need a ball? This will pay you back in spades in lower score and yet nobody does it.
2. Hit down to make the ball go up. Now if I had a nickel for every time I saw an amateur try to "help" the ball up in the air, I'd be a millionaire. This is so common because it is counterintuitive. To hit a great golf pitch shot, you must strike the ball before the ground. If you need more loft, pull out your sand wedge or lob wedge. Don't go through all those bodily gyrations to force it. The best way to make sure this happens is to pre-load it in your setup. That means, you should be leaning on your front foot more than your back. That drops your front shoulder down and back shoulder up. As long as you keep your body still, your swing will necessarily result in a downward, correct strike on the ball.
3. Make the shot while keeping it as low as possible. In other words, you don't always need a wedge! In fact, for most amateurs, running the ball up on the green is almost always a better choice, especially if you tend to chunk it or hit it fat as they say. Pull out your 5-iron some day and chip with it anytime you don't absolutely have to put it in the air You'll be surprised.
Folks, those are the biggies. Get real good at them and then you don't even have to worry about any details. Forget about being "technically correct." Much of that stuff is for the pros. Look, you just want to break 100 or 90 right? How will you do that? By becoming as consistent as possible. Work on the big 3 in your next golf chip shot and you'll be amazed at what you can do.
Triggering Your Swing
Most club pros teach "left-sided golf" in their golf lessons. In other words, when it comes to triggering the swing, you start your backswing using the left side of your body. You might start the swing, for example, by pushing off with your left foot, left shoulder, or left hand and arm, which is what most pros teach in their golf lessons. It's an approach I've even written about it in my golf tips.
But there is an option to "left-sided golf"-one that's not discussed often in golf instruction sessions. When it comes to triggering your swing, "right-side golf" can be just as effective as the left-handed approach. At least it was for golfing great Seve Ballesteros, who switched to the right-handed approach early in his career. The Spaniard found it more comfortable and more effective. But he had to make some adjustments for it to work properly.
Conventional Wisdom
Most instructors teach you to start the swing with your left hand. That's the conventional wisdom dispensed in golf instruction sessions. They believe that if a golfer activates his right hand too early he's liable to take the club up too quickly, or jerk it too far to the inside of the target line, throwing off the rest of the swing. If you give as many golf lessons as I do, you quickly realize that that argument has merit. Many weekend golfers are prone to these problems.
But most of us are right handed. We eat, sleep, and drink right-handed. So most of these left-handed movements are unnatural. Anytime you ask a person to do something that's unnatural, it's both physically and mentally challenging. And while golf is clearly a game of opposites, some players must do things naturally to succeed.
Ballesteros Makes the Switch
The great Seve Ballesteros was apparently one. He struggled early on in his career trying to play "left-sided" golf but to no avail. He became so depressed over it that he even thought about giving up the game. Then he switched from triggering his take swing with his left side to starting it with his right. The switch paid off royal to him and he was able to maintain his low golf handicap.
What triggered the switch? He realized early on that he did almost everything with his right hand. He wrote right-hand. He answered the telephone right-handed. And he turned a doorknob right-handed. He was a natural right-hander. Why shouldn't he play "right-sided" golf? For Seve, it was both a logical and wise choice.
Necessary Adjustments
Igniting your swing with your right hand requires you to make some necessary adjustments, however, as Seve eventually found out. For the switch to work, the first movement away from the ball must be a very deliberate one. In fact, it has to be slower than any other movement in the swing.
Also, there is the problem of synchronization-another discovery Seve made. To get the lower body in sync with your hands, you need to turn your right hip clockwise an instant after you started pulling the club away from the ball with your right hand. Otherwise, your swing sequence is thrown off.
By making these adjustments, you're able to control the pace of the takeaway better. It also helps put the club away on the correct path and keep it traveling on the proper plane and arc-two keys to hitting the ball longer and straighter consistently.
Neutral Grip is Critical
A third adjustment you may have to make affects your grip. Seve found that using a neutral grip was critical to triggering his swing. Basically, a neutral grip is one in which the palms are set parallel to each other, with the right palm facing the target. With a weak grip, the palm is angled toward the ground. With a strong grip, the back of the left hand and the right palm are angle toward the sky. I covered this topic in my golf tips also.
Some people naturally favor a strong grip. Some a weak grip. But for most golfers, the neutral grip is the most effective grip anyway. It provides the most consistently square and solid striking of the ball. It certainty worked for Seve, who is a legend in his homeland of Spain, and it's what I teach in my golf lessons.
Learning to trigger his swing with his right hand paid off for Seve Ballesteros. It helped him achieve the golf handicap it too to compete on the tour. But it took a lot of hard work to perfect the approach. If you're having trouble triggering your swing with your left hand, the right handed approach is an option. Just remember that you need to sync your hands with your arms and body for it to work-and that takes practice and discipline.
But there is an option to "left-sided golf"-one that's not discussed often in golf instruction sessions. When it comes to triggering your swing, "right-side golf" can be just as effective as the left-handed approach. At least it was for golfing great Seve Ballesteros, who switched to the right-handed approach early in his career. The Spaniard found it more comfortable and more effective. But he had to make some adjustments for it to work properly.
Conventional Wisdom
Most instructors teach you to start the swing with your left hand. That's the conventional wisdom dispensed in golf instruction sessions. They believe that if a golfer activates his right hand too early he's liable to take the club up too quickly, or jerk it too far to the inside of the target line, throwing off the rest of the swing. If you give as many golf lessons as I do, you quickly realize that that argument has merit. Many weekend golfers are prone to these problems.
But most of us are right handed. We eat, sleep, and drink right-handed. So most of these left-handed movements are unnatural. Anytime you ask a person to do something that's unnatural, it's both physically and mentally challenging. And while golf is clearly a game of opposites, some players must do things naturally to succeed.
Ballesteros Makes the Switch
The great Seve Ballesteros was apparently one. He struggled early on in his career trying to play "left-sided" golf but to no avail. He became so depressed over it that he even thought about giving up the game. Then he switched from triggering his take swing with his left side to starting it with his right. The switch paid off royal to him and he was able to maintain his low golf handicap.
What triggered the switch? He realized early on that he did almost everything with his right hand. He wrote right-hand. He answered the telephone right-handed. And he turned a doorknob right-handed. He was a natural right-hander. Why shouldn't he play "right-sided" golf? For Seve, it was both a logical and wise choice.
Necessary Adjustments
Igniting your swing with your right hand requires you to make some necessary adjustments, however, as Seve eventually found out. For the switch to work, the first movement away from the ball must be a very deliberate one. In fact, it has to be slower than any other movement in the swing.
Also, there is the problem of synchronization-another discovery Seve made. To get the lower body in sync with your hands, you need to turn your right hip clockwise an instant after you started pulling the club away from the ball with your right hand. Otherwise, your swing sequence is thrown off.
By making these adjustments, you're able to control the pace of the takeaway better. It also helps put the club away on the correct path and keep it traveling on the proper plane and arc-two keys to hitting the ball longer and straighter consistently.
Neutral Grip is Critical
A third adjustment you may have to make affects your grip. Seve found that using a neutral grip was critical to triggering his swing. Basically, a neutral grip is one in which the palms are set parallel to each other, with the right palm facing the target. With a weak grip, the palm is angled toward the ground. With a strong grip, the back of the left hand and the right palm are angle toward the sky. I covered this topic in my golf tips also.
Some people naturally favor a strong grip. Some a weak grip. But for most golfers, the neutral grip is the most effective grip anyway. It provides the most consistently square and solid striking of the ball. It certainty worked for Seve, who is a legend in his homeland of Spain, and it's what I teach in my golf lessons.
Learning to trigger his swing with his right hand paid off for Seve Ballesteros. It helped him achieve the golf handicap it too to compete on the tour. But it took a lot of hard work to perfect the approach. If you're having trouble triggering your swing with your left hand, the right handed approach is an option. Just remember that you need to sync your hands with your arms and body for it to work-and that takes practice and discipline.
Five Things To Remember In Team Play
A player taking golf lessons from me once complained about how much he disliked playing on a team. It seems he had several bad experiences playing on teams, even though his teammates were all good friends. So he decided he would rather play alone than play on a team. Unfortunately, many tournaments involve team play, so he ended up missing a lot of events that he really wanted to play in.
Playing on a team, as I tell players who take my golf lessons, can be a lot of fun. But it can also be upsetting. Even though you're playing with a close friend or several close friends and it doesn't affect your golf handicap, the opportunity to upset one another is great. And while it may seem silly, friendships have been lost over team play. On the flip side, playing with friends is a lot of fun, especially when you win or play really well. It's something you can share.
Handling the Pressure
The key to playing successfully on a team is how you handle the pressure involved. Playing on a team is stressful. Teammates either take pressure off you or they add pressure on you. If your teammates are the kind of players who add pressure, you're probably better off playing with another group, even if you don't know them. With less pressure on you, you will relax more and will maintain your confidence, which means you'll play better, as I written often in my golf tips.
To get the most out of team play, you need to approach team play in the right frame of mind. Here are five tips to keep in mind next time you play on a team.
1. Share Common Objective
Make sure your teammate or teammates share the same objective as you, especially if they're good friends. Are you there to have fun or to win at all costs? Some players don't care that much about winning as long as they enjoy themselves and can play with their friends. Others are dead serious about winning. That's their priority. And that's all they care about. If you or your teammates have different objectives, you could be in for a long afternoon.
2. Prepare Appropriately
You should always prepare for a tournament, especially if you're serious about winning it. The problem arises when your teammate or teammates don't prepare the way they should. If you commit to playing in a tournament-and everyone is serious about winning-then you need to prepare correctly. Otherwise, you can upset your teammate or teammates even before you start playing. There's nothing worse than spending hours preparing for a tournament only to hear one of your teammates say he or she hasn't played for weeks.
3. Set Ground Rules
You need to set some ground rules when it comes to playing on a team, even if you've played together before. These ground rules should cover things that can, and often do, happen on a course. Some teams, for example, talk a lot. Others don't talk at all. Whether you talk or not isn't as important as setting some limits as to what you will say and not say while on the course.
One thing to avoid is giving "advice." Sometimes people give advice that really isn't advice. Instead of helping a player, it attacks a player's confidence, like reminding a player about a water hazard just before she takes her shot and telling her ‘Make sure you get it there." Comments like that tend to erode a players confidence, doing more harm than good. If you're going to point out hazard or a trouble spot, do it long before your teammate shoots. (Personally, I prefer to give advice during golf lessons.)
4. Make no apologies
Whenever I play in tournaments, I invariably hear some players apologizing to one another for bad shots or missed birdies. What starts out as a trickle, eventually becomes a flood, until all the player is doing is apologizing. That's not good for the player's confidence or his ego. Before starting enter into an agreement that no one is going to apologize, regardless of how badly one of you plays or if one of you misses a critical shot. The team will be better for it, and so will the player.
5. Be a good friend
If decide to play with friends, make preserving your friendship the top priority. Sure, you'd like to win the tournament. Everyone likes to win, especially if bragging rights are involved. But you need to keep reminding yourself that it's just a tournament, not a critical life event. Do things to maintain your friendship. You don't want to lose good friends over a game. Good friends are harder to come by than birdies. You don't need a golf lesson to know where I'm coming from.
Playing golf is supposed to be fun. And playing on a team is one of the most enjoyable experiences in the game. You can play poorly and it won't affect your golf handicap. But to get the most out of the experience, you need to approach it with the right attitude. Remember the key is taking pressure off your teammate or teammates, not adding to it. If you do that, you'll not only play better, you'll also remain friends. And you'll play together in a lot more events.
Playing on a team, as I tell players who take my golf lessons, can be a lot of fun. But it can also be upsetting. Even though you're playing with a close friend or several close friends and it doesn't affect your golf handicap, the opportunity to upset one another is great. And while it may seem silly, friendships have been lost over team play. On the flip side, playing with friends is a lot of fun, especially when you win or play really well. It's something you can share.
Handling the Pressure
The key to playing successfully on a team is how you handle the pressure involved. Playing on a team is stressful. Teammates either take pressure off you or they add pressure on you. If your teammates are the kind of players who add pressure, you're probably better off playing with another group, even if you don't know them. With less pressure on you, you will relax more and will maintain your confidence, which means you'll play better, as I written often in my golf tips.
To get the most out of team play, you need to approach team play in the right frame of mind. Here are five tips to keep in mind next time you play on a team.
1. Share Common Objective
Make sure your teammate or teammates share the same objective as you, especially if they're good friends. Are you there to have fun or to win at all costs? Some players don't care that much about winning as long as they enjoy themselves and can play with their friends. Others are dead serious about winning. That's their priority. And that's all they care about. If you or your teammates have different objectives, you could be in for a long afternoon.
2. Prepare Appropriately
You should always prepare for a tournament, especially if you're serious about winning it. The problem arises when your teammate or teammates don't prepare the way they should. If you commit to playing in a tournament-and everyone is serious about winning-then you need to prepare correctly. Otherwise, you can upset your teammate or teammates even before you start playing. There's nothing worse than spending hours preparing for a tournament only to hear one of your teammates say he or she hasn't played for weeks.
3. Set Ground Rules
You need to set some ground rules when it comes to playing on a team, even if you've played together before. These ground rules should cover things that can, and often do, happen on a course. Some teams, for example, talk a lot. Others don't talk at all. Whether you talk or not isn't as important as setting some limits as to what you will say and not say while on the course.
One thing to avoid is giving "advice." Sometimes people give advice that really isn't advice. Instead of helping a player, it attacks a player's confidence, like reminding a player about a water hazard just before she takes her shot and telling her ‘Make sure you get it there." Comments like that tend to erode a players confidence, doing more harm than good. If you're going to point out hazard or a trouble spot, do it long before your teammate shoots. (Personally, I prefer to give advice during golf lessons.)
4. Make no apologies
Whenever I play in tournaments, I invariably hear some players apologizing to one another for bad shots or missed birdies. What starts out as a trickle, eventually becomes a flood, until all the player is doing is apologizing. That's not good for the player's confidence or his ego. Before starting enter into an agreement that no one is going to apologize, regardless of how badly one of you plays or if one of you misses a critical shot. The team will be better for it, and so will the player.
5. Be a good friend
If decide to play with friends, make preserving your friendship the top priority. Sure, you'd like to win the tournament. Everyone likes to win, especially if bragging rights are involved. But you need to keep reminding yourself that it's just a tournament, not a critical life event. Do things to maintain your friendship. You don't want to lose good friends over a game. Good friends are harder to come by than birdies. You don't need a golf lesson to know where I'm coming from.
Playing golf is supposed to be fun. And playing on a team is one of the most enjoyable experiences in the game. You can play poorly and it won't affect your golf handicap. But to get the most out of the experience, you need to approach it with the right attitude. Remember the key is taking pressure off your teammate or teammates, not adding to it. If you do that, you'll not only play better, you'll also remain friends. And you'll play together in a lot more events.
2013年9月2日星期一
Golf Courses In India
The sport of golf in India has a long history, dating back from 1829, when the Royal Calcutta Golf Club was founded in the city of Kolkata by the British. This golf course is said to be the oldest golf course in the world outside of Britain. In recent years, there has been a development of world class golf courses in India and many tourists flock to the country to play in these courses. Indian golf courses are broadly divided into four types: designer golf courses, golf courses in hill stations, golf courses located next to historic monuments and golf courses in luxury hotels (open to their guests).
Designer golf courses use the latest design, technical expertise and specifications employed in world class professional golf. Some examples are the Jaypee Greens designed by Greg Norman and the DLF Golf and Country Club in Gurgaon ( near New Delhi) designed by Arnold Palmer. Golf courses in hill stations are old and established, and were set up by the British. These golf courses allow you to play golf in tranquil settings in cool weather. The hill stations of Shimla and Naldhera are famous for their golf courses. Ooty and Kodaikanal are two hill stations in South India which have golf courses open for the public.
Indian golf courses like the Delhi Golf Club come under those golf courses which are located next to historical monuments. This particular golf course has many ancient protected monuments of the Lodhi Dynasty enclosed in its property. There is also the Qutub Golf Course (open to the public) in New Delhi, which has the world famous Qutub Minar in the background. Luxury hotels which possess golf courses in India are The Inter-Continental and The Leela in Goa, to name a few.
It’s clear that India welcomes golf tourists with open arms. So spend your next golfing holiday in India, because it will be an experience that you will remember. Apart from playing a game of golf in surroundings which cannot be replicated anywhere in the world, you are also likely to appreciate the historical wonders this exciting country has to offer.
Designer golf courses use the latest design, technical expertise and specifications employed in world class professional golf. Some examples are the Jaypee Greens designed by Greg Norman and the DLF Golf and Country Club in Gurgaon ( near New Delhi) designed by Arnold Palmer. Golf courses in hill stations are old and established, and were set up by the British. These golf courses allow you to play golf in tranquil settings in cool weather. The hill stations of Shimla and Naldhera are famous for their golf courses. Ooty and Kodaikanal are two hill stations in South India which have golf courses open for the public.
Indian golf courses like the Delhi Golf Club come under those golf courses which are located next to historical monuments. This particular golf course has many ancient protected monuments of the Lodhi Dynasty enclosed in its property. There is also the Qutub Golf Course (open to the public) in New Delhi, which has the world famous Qutub Minar in the background. Luxury hotels which possess golf courses in India are The Inter-Continental and The Leela in Goa, to name a few.
It’s clear that India welcomes golf tourists with open arms. So spend your next golfing holiday in India, because it will be an experience that you will remember. Apart from playing a game of golf in surroundings which cannot be replicated anywhere in the world, you are also likely to appreciate the historical wonders this exciting country has to offer.
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