A FEW GOLF TIPS FROM THE CLAREMONT GOLF COURSE:


1. Don't listen to them when they tell you to keep your head down...

Concentrate instead on keeping your chin up, so you're looking somewhat down on
the ball.  Keeping your chin elevated will allow your shoulders to rotate under
your chin--a must for a good shoulder turn--something that will never happen if
your head is down.  So, the next time your playing partner tells you to keep
your head down, you can smugly think to yourself that he doesn't know what he's
talking about, even if he is beating you like a rug.


2. Key to grip pressure?  It's in your forearms...

If you're gripping the club too firmly (wearing out a glove a week or building
up huge calluses) try this little test: grip your driver as you normally would,
then take your left hand and feel your right forearm.  If it feels tight, like
maybe you're trying to lift the front end of your car, then you need to ease up
on the forearm pressure.  Relaxing your forearms will relax your grip.


3. Arc of the Driver - it's a swing plane...

Simply stated, a swing plane is the angle your body and the club head create as
you move the club back and through the swing.  The swing plane for a longer
shafted club (the driver) would be somewhat more flat than, say, the swing plane
of a shorter shafted sand wedge.  (This, of course, is controlled by the
position of your back, which becomes more upright as you move closer to the
ball, with the shorter clubs.)  Maintaining a smooth swing, keeping your hands
in line with the arc and your left arm straight--as though it were the singular
spoke of a wheel--will help create a proper swing plane.   To help you visualize
the swing plane and the rotation of the club head through the swing plane arc
try to imagine seeing the club head, at the top of the back swing and at the end
of the downswing, stopping at the same point in the swing plane arc--with
the club head forming a completely connected circle as it travels through the
swing.  (Now, wasn't that simple?)


4. Stay inside the barrel...

When you swing your club try swinging it as though you were standing inside a
barrel.  Staying within the confines of an imaginary barrel will insure that you
make a smooth, steady rotation and that you don't sway from side to side during
your swing.


5. Keep your toe up...

As you take the club back (on your back swing) stop the club head when the shaft
is parallel to the ground and check the location of the toe of the club.  Is it
pointed straight up (sky-ward)?  It should be. Now swing through on the
downswing and, again, stop the club with the shaft parallel to the ground - is
the toe pointed sky-ward? Again, it should be.  If your club head is not in the
"toe up" position at these mid-swing check points, then try "grooving" your
swing by practicing slow and easy half-swings (while actually hitting balls),
this will help you create the "muscle memory" needed to achieve the "toe up"
position.


6. Good players vs. bad players--it's not just ball striking...

Show me a good player without a solid, repeatable "pre-shot routine" -- oh,
sorry, you can't.  Good players are good players because of their "pre-shot
routine."  It's an integral part of their "shot routine."  Pro golfers would
never hit a ball without going completely through their "pre-shot routine."
Target line, club face alignment, proper stance & grip, waggle (to relieve
tension), positive mental images, a short check-list of swing keys, and final
address position -- all of these are important elements to a good "pre-shot
routine."  If you haven't got one, you need to get one.


7. Uphill or downhill lies - no problem, if you watch your shoulders...

The key to successfully negotiating an uphill or downhill lie is keeping your
shoulders parallel with the slope of the ground.  If you try to remain upright
and level (with one shoulder either higher or low to the ground) while hitting
either of these shots, you're probably not going to be happy with the results.
So, adjust your shoulders so they are level with the slope of the ground (which
may feel awkward at first, because you'll feel like you're leaning with the
hill) then take your normal, easy swing--you should be happy with the results.
Provided, of course, that you do everything else right...
 

8. Pick a spot, any spot...

So, how do you aim at a target that's 200 yards away and located 90 degrees
from the angle you're facing?  That's easy. Locate an aiming point close enough
to the ball so that you can see it as you stand ready to hit the ball.  This
aiming point can be a simple blade of grass, a broken tee, or anything else
lying on the ground, close to your ball, that will help you form an imaginary
line between your ball, the aiming point, and your target.  Remember, you locate
this aiming point from behind the ball -- during your pre-shot routine -- so
that as you address the ball you can visualize an imaginary line running through
the ball and the aiming point (and on down to the target).  You then align the
club face perpendicular to your imaginary target line, adjust your stance,
finish you shot routine...then give the dimpled orb a good solid whack.


9. So, you want to hit the ball, but that's the problem...

Have you ever seen those people who get up to the ball, get all set, but can't
seem to pull the trigger?  They're mesmerized, or maybe even paralyzed--like a
deer in headlights--as they stand there, for what seems like an eternity, before
they finally smack the ball into the next fairway.  Well, among other things,
these people may be suffering from a debilitating malady know as "takeawayitis".
You see, the golf swing can't start until you take the club head back away from
the ball, and if you do this incorrectly, nothing you do from that point on is
going to matter; it'll all be bad.  So, how do you start the swing in order to
insure that the club head is on the proper swing plane path? Well, try this
simple exercise: as you stand at the ball and begin taking the club head away
from the ball, pretend that you are actually, physically pushing the club head
away from you--so that, in those first 18 to 24 inches you are not swinging the
club so much as pushing it away from you.  This will help maintain the proper
swing plane arc in those critical first few moments when you actually begin the
swing.  Another good driving range exercise for takeawayitis is to tee up, say,
a dozen balls all in a single file about six inches apart.  Then, step up to the
first ball, take your stance, and hit it.  Quickly step up to the next ball,
take your stance and hit it.  Do all the balls as quickly as you can. Then
start over.  Do this for a few practice sessions and you'll soon have no problem
pulling the trigger.  


10. Are you chipping or chili-dipping...?

Having trouble getting the ball close to the hole from close to the green?  Try
this: play the ball off your back foot and use your putting stroke. Playing the
ball back in your stance will help you hit down and through on the shot.  Try
it, you may like it better than the chili-dip you've been serving up.


Finally, remember:

Warm-up before you begin your round.  Play as quickly as you can and, if you're
slow, allow faster groups to "play through."  Replace all fairway divots and
when your skillful shots hit the green be sure to repair your ball mark -- plus
another one.

So, what are you waiting for?  Get out there and enjoy the greatest game ever
invented.  

                                Compliments of Bruce Thompson and Dennis Bishop