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Tom's Bonus Tip: Balance
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Tom's Featured Tip: Q&A: Wedges
For simplicity, all advice on actual swings or drills is provided from a right handed perspective.
Q: Hey Tom, had a question for you.
I saw in one of your newsletters that you carry a 50 and 56 wedge. Which one do you use to chip with? What bounce do you have on your 56? Do typically change bounce depending upon playing conditions?
FYI - I just bought a set of Mizuno MP-H5 irons and love them. What a difference from my old ones.
Trying to get in as much practice/rounds in as possible. The days are getting shorter! Hope all is well.
Rich
A: Hi Rich, I'm doing well thanks for asking. Glad you like your new irons, here are the answers to your questions.
- I saw in one of your newsletters that you carry a 50 and 56 wedge. Which one do you use to chip with?
- My "go to" chipping club is the 50, but if I want more roll out I'll use my PW. My 50 and 56 Ping Glide wedges are cast from
a 431 stainless steel, my Callaway Apex irons are forged and they impart less spin if I need the ball to roll out for some reason.
If you have a mix of forged
and cast clubs, especially wedges, you need to recognize that the cast will put more backspin on the ball.
A lot of players mistakenly think that it's the grooves that impart spin on the ball, but it's not - its the coarseness of the face. Grooves are on clubs to displace material that can disrupt face to ball contact such as wet grass and other similar impediments to clean contact. The grooves funnel out the material so that the face can make contact with the ball.
Cast clubface surfaces are normally much coarser than forged clubface surfaces.
Everything else being equal, cast clubfaces will impart more spin than forged, so:- If you need a ball to check more for whatever reason (fast green, downhill chip) on a chip shot, a cast clubface will give you that.
- If you need a ball to roll out more (slow green, uphill chip, very long green) on a chip shot, a forged clubface will give you that.
Of course it goes without saying that you need to log in some practice time to recognize the differences and get a feel for your chipping stroke.
- My "go to" chipping club is the 50, but if I want more roll out I'll use my PW. My 50 and 56 Ping Glide wedges are cast from
a 431 stainless steel, my Callaway Apex irons are forged and they impart less spin if I need the ball to roll out for some reason.
If you have a mix of forged
and cast clubs, especially wedges, you need to recognize that the cast will put more backspin on the ball.
- What bounce do you have on your 56?
- 8 degrees effective bounce, Ping Glide wedges are not manufactured with published bounce numbers - only effective bounce. I prefer a low effective bounce for my swing style.
- Do you typically change bounce depending upon playing conditions?
- It's good to know that if you play in predominantly hard conditions, less bounce is usually better than more bounce.
- I may make changes to the effective bounce such as ball position or clubface orientation (open, closed).
Opening the face adds to the effective bounce, closing the face diminishes it. A ball that is played more forward in your stance
brings the bounce of the club into play more than a ball that is placed more towards the rear of your stance.
I don't carry such a large variety of wedges that I have others at my disposal that have a lot of different bounce options. As a senior player I opt to have more options on the other end of my bag such as adding hybrids rather than adding wedges. A younger player or a power player of any age probably would carry fewer woods and hybrids, and have more wedge options.
I hope these answers have helped answer some of the wedge or chipping questions that the rest of you may have had, enjoy, Tom
Comments: ttucker@rochester.rr.com
Love your practice, own your swing, own your health,
Tom
Tour Greens: Tour Quality Synthetic Greens For Superb Short Game Practice
Do you want one of these in your own back yard?
If you would like a free, no obligation quote for getting a beautiful practice area or putting green installed on your property - indoors or outdoors - give me (Tom Tucker) a call at (716) 474-3005, or email at at ttucker@rochester.rr.com
For more information please click here: TourGreensWNY.com
Comments: ttucker@rochester.rr.com
Love your practice, own your swing, own your health,
Tom
Tom's Bonus Tip: Balance
For simplicity, all advice on actual swings or drills is provided from a right handed perspective.
Balance in the golf swing applies to three aspects: at setup. during the swing (dynamic balance), and at the finish.
- Setup Balance
- Heel to toe balance, weight should be evenly distributed. The most common mistake I see is too much weight in the toes,
which promotes ball - clubface contact too much towards the heel of the club. This normally produces a ball flight that starts
to much to the right.
I try to feel like I'm pressing my feet flat into the ground at address with equal pressure toe to heel, then I adjust the front side - rear side weight distribution to fit my preferred swing style.
- Front side - rear side balance depends on two things, your swing style and desired ball flight. Swing style not withstanding, weight feathered more to the forward foot will normally produce a lower trajectory ball flight than weight evenly distributed between forward and rear foot, or weight feathered towards the rear foot at setup.
- Heel to toe balance, weight should be evenly distributed. The most common mistake I see is too much weight in the toes,
which promotes ball - clubface contact too much towards the heel of the club. This normally produces a ball flight that starts
to much to the right.
- Dynamic Balance
- Regardless of style, balance must be maintained during the dynamics of the swinging motion.
- The Finish
- Except for specialty swings, most of the weight at the finish (95%) should be on your forward side with tall posture.
Comments: ttucker@rochester.rr.com
Love your practice, own your swing, own your health,
Tom
Golf Lessons
I conduct lessons at The Plum Creek Driving Range & Practice Facility
there's a link for Plum Creek info here: http://www.tomtuckergolf.com/
Lessons are available for all ages and skill levels, please contact
me - Tom Tucker - at (716) 474 3005 or email me at ttucker@rochester.rr.com
for more information.
Outdoor Lessons Details and Rates:
http://www.tomtuckergolf.com/lessonrates.html
Indoor Lessons Details and Rates:
http://www.tomtuckergolf.com/indoor.html
Driver Fitting Rates:
http://www.tomtuckergolf.com/indoor.html
Testimonials:
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Sponsors
Plum Creek Driving Range and Simulator Outdoor range and play indoor golf on any of our 40 Simulator Courses. Call 585-993-0930 or email Mark at plumcreek4@rochester.rr.com to reserve time for simulator play or practice!
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Great rates, the best greens in WNY. Golf Digest Four Star rating for public courses to play in New York State. Tee times online or by phone in season.
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Call (585) 343-7600 for pricing.
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All the best,
Tom Tucker
Teaching Pro, Plum Creek Driving Range & Practice Facility
WGTF ' "Top 100 Golf Teacher"
USGTF Class "A" Teaching Professional
IGPA Certified Golf Psychology Coach
Cell: (716) 474-3005
Email: ttucker@rochester.rr.com
http://www.TomTuckerGolf.com
"There are no substitutes in the quest for perfection!"
~ Ben Hogan