Wow, what a great turn out for our first 'How to Read Southern Greens: Putt and Chip on Grain' class this past Friday. 10 members attended the 1.5 hour class with John Phillips and myself and it was a really fun time for both instructors and students. We even had some putting and chipping challenges that made for some exciting moments.
If you're from the North and have trouble with reading southern greens for slope and speed, please consider this class... it's a perfect session to help you become a better putter! Also, if you have children or grandchildren who are interested in learning golf or developing their games, summer is the perfect time to enroll them in some camps or lessons with our staff.
We have so many fun opportunities for them, plus they can also benefit from the fun games and notes in the new junior golf sticker activity book, Stick to Sports: Let's Play Golf (ages 4-8+), available in all golf shops starting June 23rd. Keep it in the fairway and best wishes for 1 putt greens!
Monday, June 20, 2011
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Warming Up is Important
I've been hearing about some recent golf injuries from golfers excited to get out and start hitting without warming up. Be careful to warm up your body (your golfing machine, so to speak) before you play or hit balls.
Start with a few minutes of cardio (pending on doctor approval) to get the heart rate up and blood moving into the muscles so you can actually stretch them. Stretching and holding a cold muscle is like taking a rubber band out of the freezer and expecting it to stretch to full capacity on the first pull... a great way to snap the band!
Warm up the muscles, do some dynamic (movement) stretching instead of static (holding) stretching and then make some swings without a golf ball. Let that swing just move with some rhythm back and forth. You can start small and increase each swing in length. Feel free to join a Golf Stretch & Flex class at the Fitness Center and they can show you how to warm up appropriately and stay stretched during the round.
I would rather see someone warm-up their golf machine / body instead of hitting poor shots or risk injury before a round. Stay stretched for great golf!
Feel free to email any questions you'd like to nicole.weller@landingsclub.com.
Start with a few minutes of cardio (pending on doctor approval) to get the heart rate up and blood moving into the muscles so you can actually stretch them. Stretching and holding a cold muscle is like taking a rubber band out of the freezer and expecting it to stretch to full capacity on the first pull... a great way to snap the band!
Warm up the muscles, do some dynamic (movement) stretching instead of static (holding) stretching and then make some swings without a golf ball. Let that swing just move with some rhythm back and forth. You can start small and increase each swing in length. Feel free to join a Golf Stretch & Flex class at the Fitness Center and they can show you how to warm up appropriately and stay stretched during the round.
I would rather see someone warm-up their golf machine / body instead of hitting poor shots or risk injury before a round. Stay stretched for great golf!
Feel free to email any questions you'd like to nicole.weller@landingsclub.com.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Benefits of Sunscreen
It's summer and time for some fun in the sun but make sure you are using sunscreen!
I've had many people ask me what type of sunscreen I use since I'm outdoors all day. I use Banana Boat Sport 100. I know after a certain number, like 50, it doesn't make that much difference but I like the thickness of this particular tube of sunscreen. The 30 and 50 are very watery. I've tried others (Coppertone, Neutrogena, etc.) but I am really enjoying this one. I've heard good things about Bull Frog too.
The most important thing is to make sure it has both UVA and UVB blockage. Check with your dermatologist and try to wear sun protective clothing when possible. I wear capris as long as possible and try to get sleeveless shirts that have more of a cap sleeve to cover the top of the shoulder. Nice wide brims, Oakley Half Jacket sunglasses, high collars on the shirt - those are some things that also help.
Check at our golf shops for clothing that has SPF built in. Other companies like Coolibar and Sun Precaution have great long sleeve and other items as well. Be safe in the sun!
I've had many people ask me what type of sunscreen I use since I'm outdoors all day. I use Banana Boat Sport 100. I know after a certain number, like 50, it doesn't make that much difference but I like the thickness of this particular tube of sunscreen. The 30 and 50 are very watery. I've tried others (Coppertone, Neutrogena, etc.) but I am really enjoying this one. I've heard good things about Bull Frog too.
The most important thing is to make sure it has both UVA and UVB blockage. Check with your dermatologist and try to wear sun protective clothing when possible. I wear capris as long as possible and try to get sleeveless shirts that have more of a cap sleeve to cover the top of the shoulder. Nice wide brims, Oakley Half Jacket sunglasses, high collars on the shirt - those are some things that also help.
Check at our golf shops for clothing that has SPF built in. Other companies like Coolibar and Sun Precaution have great long sleeve and other items as well. Be safe in the sun!
Friday, May 20, 2011
Spring Greens
What a great late Spring - such nice golf weather! I've noticed that some of the greens are speeding up and that golfers are challenged with the speed.
A few tips...
A few tips...
- Read the grain. This is HUGE in assessing speed. Light color grass will be lightning fast and darker color grass a bit slower. It all depends on where the grass is growing.
- Get a feel for the putting green speed before you play by just putting to open spaces on the green (no holes yet) with the sole purpose of getting a feel for fast, medium or slow. Brad Faxon does this, as do I. Once I get a feel for the speed, then I work a bit with putting towards holes.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Tips for Better Course Play
Tip to playing better on the course: Make sure to keep your practice and warm-up separate before a round.
Practice entails detailed work, changes, observations and specific focus while warm-up involves loosening up the swing, finding the rhythm, warming up the swing key you developed in practice and loosening up your body.
Practicing before a round can make one tired and put too many thoughts in the mind, like cramming for a test! The one question I ask while I warm up is "Does my swing feel loose and balanced" and if not, I keep stretching and swinging until it does or is close. Keep the mind free of too many swing thoughts!
Practice entails detailed work, changes, observations and specific focus while warm-up involves loosening up the swing, finding the rhythm, warming up the swing key you developed in practice and loosening up your body.
Practicing before a round can make one tired and put too many thoughts in the mind, like cramming for a test! The one question I ask while I warm up is "Does my swing feel loose and balanced" and if not, I keep stretching and swinging until it does or is close. Keep the mind free of too many swing thoughts!
Thursday, April 28, 2011
The Quality of Your Shot
Watching golf shots both on television and in person via myself and students, I'm often reminded that the scorecard doesn't have a space to describe the quality of shots taken during a round and that shots sent along with poor quality can still turn out OK.
Frustration often comes about from wanting to have a great result with great quality, but golf is an interesting game - both poorly-struck and well-struck shots can still be rather effective! I once wrote an article called "Golf Blackout" for the TWATL. It described not remembering how your ball ended up near the flag but rejoicing in the fact that you now have just a 5-foot putt.
It brings to mind that the first of my 4 and a half hole-in-ones (great story - feel free to ask me about it!) hardly made it off the ground but my Dad and I watched it hit the flag stick and drop in. Not great quality but I decided to take the hole-in-one anyway! It's a reminder to me to play the game, not just a picture-perfect swing or shot.
Frustration often comes about from wanting to have a great result with great quality, but golf is an interesting game - both poorly-struck and well-struck shots can still be rather effective! I once wrote an article called "Golf Blackout" for the TWATL. It described not remembering how your ball ended up near the flag but rejoicing in the fact that you now have just a 5-foot putt.
It brings to mind that the first of my 4 and a half hole-in-ones (great story - feel free to ask me about it!) hardly made it off the ground but my Dad and I watched it hit the flag stick and drop in. Not great quality but I decided to take the hole-in-one anyway! It's a reminder to me to play the game, not just a picture-perfect swing or shot.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Shot Committment
Many golfers aren't fully committed to their shot as they start their swings.
Do you ever have second thoughts but then swing or putt anyway? It can be pretty confusing to your body and mind, as to what to do.
Make sure you have a green light in your mind about what your shot plan is. Red and yellow lights can lead to some very off-shots as your body tries to do both of the wavering ideas!
Do you ever have second thoughts but then swing or putt anyway? It can be pretty confusing to your body and mind, as to what to do.
Make sure you have a green light in your mind about what your shot plan is. Red and yellow lights can lead to some very off-shots as your body tries to do both of the wavering ideas!
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