Prepare to play your best golf by doing something now!
Tour Greens: Tour Quality Synthetic Greens
Tom's Bonus Tip: Trust The Process
Lesson Comments: What Students Have To Say
Sponsors: Plum Creek Driving Range
Batavia Country Club
Tour Greens Western New York
Chestnut Hill Country Club
Click here: INDOOR GOLF LESSONS for details on how to improve your game over the winter.
Plum Creek Driving Range, Batavia, NY, Open All Year
Simulator Course Play Specials: BataviaGolf.com Call 585-993-0930 or Email Mark to reserve simulator time!
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Golf lessons - Outdoor and Indoor - are available at Plum Creek, please call me at 716 474 3005, email me at ttucker@rochester.rr.com, or visit my website at http://www.tomtuckergolf.com/lessonrates.html for details.
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Tom's Featured Tip: The True Fundamentals - Low Point
There are many thoughts on the fundamentals of golf. Most players think that they are comprised of stance, grip, posture, etc. My thoughts, based on my research and study of the swing method principles that I teach, is that there are three true fundamentals to golf:
- The ability to hit the ground in the same place every time and forward of the ball to insure clean contact.
- The ability to create enough power or distance to enjoy and play the game.
- The ability to match the clubface to the swing path to control the curvature of the ball to keep it in play.
In this newsletter and in the two following issues, I'll address each of these fundamentals.
In order to hit the ground in the same place every time so that we can insure a "ball first" strike, we have to have the knowledge of where the low point of the swing is. It's one of the first things I address during my ball striking lesson.
Just as a point of interest, Trackman now has that stat available with their most current software.
Low point can occur either before or after impact due to the circular/elliptical nature of the golf swing. Think of the golf swing as a big hula hoop. Zooming in on the bottom of this "hula hoop" (see the picture below), we can see the club is traveling downward during the red part of the swing arc. It then bottoms out in the white area (low point), before ascending in the blue area.
Here's about where your low point should fall:
A driver can benefit from having the low point behind the ball, potentially maximizing distance through higher launch and lower spin. My low point with a driver is as much as 9 inches behind the ball.
Your low point can be more level with the golf ball if you have a nice, fluffy lie and are trying to pick your fairway wood off the turf. For shots where you may need a steeper angle of attack (e.g. out of deep rough), a more forward low point may be desirable.
Having your low point behind the ball with a shot from the ground will not work out well (especially on tight turf). You will either strike the ground very early, or even the smallest of raises in height will create a severely thin/bladed shot.
With the low point position behind the ball, we are stuck between a rock and a hard place. Contacting the turf will produce a drop-kick or a fat shot, but missing the turf will produce a thin shot.
Getting on a Trackman launch monitor will tell you where your low point is, but for those that don't have that resource available here's a drill that I have my students do to find that point: The Divot Drill.
I've found that with the swing I teach the low point is usually right in line with your forward arm armpit at setup, after you have shifted your weight correctly, pivoted correctly, and retained your impact angles in your hands and wrists past impact with forward shaft lean.
Your swing method dictates where your low point falls in relation to your setup, and how you transport everything during your swing to get there correctly. It is literally different strokes for different folks, but understanding low point and knowing your own swing is necessary to make low point awareness functional.
Once you know where your low point falls, ball placement should take care of the rest.
Know your low point and you'll experience more high points during your round.
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
Click on the image below for a demonstration of how well golf shots hold on our Tour Greens synthetic putting greens.
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: Trust The Process
I can't count the number of times that good students come to me after they've tried to tweak their swings for the umpteenth time and it isn't working.
The problem was that they abandoned what had been working for them because they were not executing their tried and true technique properly.
So they jumped ship after reading a tip in a current issue of Golf Magazine.
"Stop worrying about the mule going blind; keep loading the wagon."
For a time - not being a country boy - this analogy was lost on me. Finally, it dawned on me, keep trusting the process.
Keep doing what you were taught to do, and the results will take care of themselves.
That's as good as any other golf advice that I've heard lately.
Try it, you'll like it.
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:
http://www.tomtuckergolf.com/testimonials.html
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!
Batavia Country Club (585) 343-7600 www.bataviacc.com
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. Come and join us at The Lodge at BCC for Easter Brunch, Sunday April 16th, 10 AM - 3:30 PM Reservations are requested, call (585) 344 - 8367 and reserve your time for a delicious brunch!
Tour Greens Western New York Practice with purpose in your own back yard on your own synthetic practice green. Our greens LOVE Western New York weather!
Chestnut Hill Country Club (585)-547-3613 www.chestnuthillgolf.com
THE WESTERN NEW YORK LEADER IN GOLF OUTINGS!
Only minutes from Buffalo, open to the public. Tee times online or by phone in season.
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