Latest-Golf-News-and-Information

Swinging the Pitch Shot

The secret of scoring on the pro tour is getting down in two shots when you're
about a hundred yards from the green. The average club golfer has more modest
demands. He doesn't expect to get down in a pitch and a putt very often, but he
would like to be able to pitch well enough so that he has a crack at a one-putt
green every now and then and can at least count on regularly hitting the green
with his pitch. We don't always do that, you know. A good many times when we
scoop our shot the ball lands short and expire’s on the apron. Other times, when
we try to put a little punch into his shot, he pulls or pushes it far off the
line. These particular errors are hard for him to take because the pitch shot
doesn't require a full and powerful swing, as driving does or true finesse, as
trouble shots do. The pitch is one shot he thinks he ought to be able to handle
pretty well.

I believe in learning a standard pitch that is a swinging stroke as opposed to a
slapping hit. The concept the you should have is that this shot is quite similar
to the way you toss a ball underhand: just direct the right arm and hand toward
the target. On the short pitch there's no body turn to speak of—you use your left
side far less than you do on a full swing. As for your right arm and hand, you
shouldn't think of them until you're coming down into the ball. Then they swing
through the ball together and go right on out toward the target. There isn't an
easier shot to learn or a more reliable one.

Until next week…good golfing!

September 13, 2005 16:53 - Todays Golf Tip

Putting:

The elusive problem for all golfers! How do you putt?
For starters: go straight back with the putter - one inch for each
foot of distance the ball is from the cup, and then straight though
with a smooth swing of equal distance beyond the strike point.
Make the necessary minor adjustments for existing conditions. You
must "see" the imaginary line - from the ball to the cup. There
are very few putts that you aim straight at the hole!

Having said that, putting is mostly about speed, not aim. If the
putt breaks more than a couple of inches, you need to get both
right in order to make the putt (or get both *wrong*, such that
they cancel out). Aim is more important out to about two feet.
Beyond that, you need both. Outside of ten feet, it's all about
speed. You're not likely to make the putt no matter what you do
and your read of the break isn't likely to be off by more than a
foot or two. But boy, can you get the speed wrong by more than
that . . .In my experience, almost all three-putts are caused by
poor speed control on the first putt (and a resulting second putt
that's more than two or three feet).

September 13, 2005 17:23 - Does Money Grow on Trees?

I know this is not golf related but it is something I would like to share with you.

It is a complimentary report which may help to answer the question above.

Its called the Internet Money Tree.

To receive a copy, post a comment or contact me via the contact page.

You will love this.

September 19, 2005 16:22 - Michael Anthony's Mental Golf Tip

Hi Determined Golfer,

You have received this newsletter because you signed up to receive it. Thank you for subscribing. A friend may have forwarded you their copy or you are receiving it as a bonus for purchasing "The Mental Keys" book and/or my CD "Polish the Wheel."

Change of Address and Unsubscribe Links are at the BOTTOM of this newsletter.

If you find this newsletter helpful, please forward it to your friends, associates and golf instructor. Thanks for helping us grow.

"Keep Polishing Your Wheel"

If you are a new to my newsletter, welcome aboard.

My mission is to help you lower your score by increasing your awareness of how your mind processes information and providing you with insights on how to improve your mental game.

It is important for my new subscribers to get up to speed as quickly as possible. If you truly desire to lower your score, read my book and all the mental tips in my private archive located by clicking the link below.

Once you have done your homework, you will have laid the foundation to have one of the best mental games around. The next step is to continue to work on improving your mental game (polish your wheel) until these insights become an instinctive part of your mental makeup.

My advice to my old subscribers is to keep polishing your wheel if you want your scores to continue to fall. Since my mental tips are designed to enhance and reinforce your understanding of "The Mental Keys," keep reading them as well as rereading my book from time to time.

My CD "Using The Mental Keys to Polish the Wheel" makes it easy to keep polishing your wheel while you drive to and from the golf course or relax at home.

If you don't practice your swing mechanics, your game will get rusty. This holds true for your mental game as well. So keep polishing your wheel :-)

I usually publish my newsletter twice a month. Some contain new tips and others repeat past tips to refresh your tape. If you use "The Mental Keys" as well as my tips, your scores will fall. I guarantee it!

Once and awhile, I send out a Special Golf Announcement to inform you of other golf products that will help you to polish your wheel. Please take a serious look at them.

Best wishes and play well ... Michael Anthony

P.S. Once you read this section "Keep Polishing Your Wheel" several times, you can skip it in future newsletters and go directly to the "Golfers Locker Room Bulletin Board" for inspiring success stories. After several repetitions, just seeing the words "Polish Your Wheel" will automatically remind you to keep working on improving your mental game.

© Copyright 2005 by Michael Anthony. All rights reserved.

Click for access to my private mental tip archive

GOLFERS LOCKER ROOM BULLETIN BOARD

"This is the finest book I have ever read, it made me a much better golfer the past few months. Whenever I go into a downturn in my game I just start reading, in fact today I shot the lowest score in my life a 75. I highly recommend this book to everyone!"
Jay Papez, August 9, 2003

"I just wanted to let you know that the book still works. I went from a 13 handicap to a 9.0 just by reading your book every so often."
Jay Papez, August 12, 2004

"Michael you are my hero! When my mens club membership renewal came to me in the mail today I was named most improved player for 2004. I would like to thank you so much for all the articles and mind changing information in your book! I finished a single digit handicap this last year thanks to you. Thanks Again"
Jay Papez, Portland, Oregon, February 21, 2005

"Hey Mike your book did wonders again! This past weekend I put two good rounds together and won the Club Championship! I re-read your book all the week before, practiced hard and it all paid off. Thanks again for the awesome book I bought about 2 seasons ago. My head is always on straight every round of play, its just amazing."
Jay Papez, Club Champ, August 31, 2005

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Note: Don't be shy. It is always good to share positive feedback with your fellow golfers. Your generosity in sharing your experiences with others will help inspire them to keep polishing the wheel and help you sink an extra putt or two :-)

MENTAL TIP by MICHAEL ANTHONY

"Reduce the Variables of Golf"

Golf can be a very complex game because a golfer's swing mechanics are not a simple thing to learn and execute instinctively. However, the more you can reduce the variables of golf, the simpler the game becomes and the easier it is to lower your score.

Unfortunately, many golfers trying to lower their score spend most of their time and energy on buying expensive equipment or practicing without taking lessons. Besides not taking lessons the average golfer neglects to work on improving the simpler variables that they have more control over.

Fortunately, there are three other variables that influence a golfer’s performance and score. They are course management or strategy, physical condition and the mental game. These variables are much simpler to control than the mechanics of the golf swing.

Course management or strategy is simply playing the golf course within your mechanical and physical limitations. Whatever level of mechanical skill you have attained, learn what your probability of success is for each club in your bag and base your shot selection according to your skill level. Don't try to be a hero unless you have a legitimate chance of making the shot. Be realistic and play within your limitations.

Being in good physical condition is very simple to control, but requires strong discipline to follow a structured stretching and exercise program. A strong flexible body makes it a lot easier to repeat a complex golf swing, especially towards the end of a round of golf when many out of condition golfers are getting physically tired. It's a simple choice. Either get and stay in shape or pay the consequences by shooting higher scores.

The mental game is the simplest variable to control if you know how. It requires the total realization that your mental state affects the chemistry of your brain which in turn affects your ability to perform. Then, it's just a matter of reprogramming your mind to optimize your chemistry to play at your full potential.

Golf is a funny game in that it has its share of ups and downs which vary from hole to hole and day to day. The most important variable that you can control is your attitude and state of mind. If you control your attitude and always keep your cup half full, it's a lot easier to put up with the emotional roller coaster of golf. A positive attitude allows you to remain confident when the golf gods turn against you. Plus, it gives your subconscious a chance to figure out what is happening mechanically.

If you reduce the variables, you will have more fun playing golf and shoot lower scores.

More Infomation

September 22, 2005 13:58 - Win a Scotty Cameron Putter

Just cut and paste the link in the message into your browser register at the site
and your done.

GOOD LUCK

To commemorate a recent win by one of the greatest putters of all-time, Titleist is
offering an exciting new sweepstakes, giving you the opportunity to win one of eight
custom-made Brad Faxon-inspired putters.
http://www.scottycameron.com/sweepstakes/default.asp

Faxon, a long-time Titleist staff player and Scotty Cameron putter loyalist for over 14
years, captured his eighth career PGA Tour victory in a dramatic playoff at the Buick
Championship. Even sweeter for Faxon, a native New Englander, was the fact the win came in
his own "backyard," at the TPC River Highlands in Connecticut. Now you, too, can pull off
a dramatic win in this "Just the Fax" sweepstakes by registering on scottycameron.com.

All you have to do to be automatically entered to win one of the eight commemorative
putters - one for each of Brad's wins on the PGA TOUR - is correctly answer all eight
"Facts on Faxon" questions. The eight-day contest will commence on September 19 and the
names of the lucky winners will be posted on scottycameron.com on September 27. Good luck!
http://www.scottycameron.com/sweepstakes/default.asp

September 27, 2005 17:19 - MENTAL TIP by MICHAEL ANTHONY

"Swing Thoughts and the Zone"

I get a lot of emails about what is the proper swing thought to have during a round of golf and how to play in the zone. Ideally, the best swing thought is no thought at all. When you are playing at your best and in the zone, you are playing on instinct without thinking.

When you are in the zone, the fastest way to lose it is to start thinking. When you make that occasional great shot, it more than likely came out of the blue with very little if any thinking about what you were doing. Then, you end up confusing yourself by trying to think what you just did that allowed you to make such a great shot.

The time to think about your mechanics is when you are practicing. When you play, it is time to perform on instinct without thinking about your swing. As a matter of fact, part of your practice time should be spent hitting balls without any swing thoughts to get use to playing on instinct.

So how do you train or condition your mind not to think when you set up to putt, chip or hit the ball? Believe it or not, it is just as easy as training or conditioning your body to do 100 push-ups.

If I would give you $100,000,000 (that’s right one hundred million dollars) as soon as you could do 100 push-ups, how long would it take you to train your body to do 100 push-ups?

If you were in good physical shape, it wouldn't take you too long. If you are out of shape, you could probably do it within a year or two. But, you could do it, if your desire was strong enough and you added an extra push-up a week to a routine of exercising three times a week.

What amazes me is to hear a golfer tell me that it is hard to still the mind and not think. It is only hard if your mind is not properly trained. You can't read a book and expect to be able to do 100 push-ups without exercising.

So why does a golfer expect to be able to stop his thoughts without the proper mental training? Just like it takes time and effort to build a strong body, it takes time and effort to build a strong mind that can clear itself of all superfluous thoughts when you demand peak performance from your body on the golf course.

To keep this tip at a reasonable length and help you to train your mind to perform on instinct, reread "The Mental Keys" and start using the four-step routine after every shot to eliminate all negative thoughts and play in the present.

Next, go to my private tip archive and read my previous mental tips called "Focus on Success", "Half Full or Half Empty?", "What If I Miss?", "Trust Your Triangle" and "See the Ball."

Then, before every shot train your mind to focus solely on your target with the total positive expectation of being able to make the shot if every thing goes right. The only thing left to do is to step up to the ball, go through your pre-shot routine without any thoughts about your swing or the outcome and hit the ball.

With practice you will be pleased at how well you will be able to still your mind and how many more shots you will be able to make. Playing golf on instinct without thinking is just as easy as doing 100 push-ups once you have done the work to prepare yourself. All it takes is the time and effort to train your mind how to do it.

There is no short cut to success. First you work and then you get paid.

More Infomation

September 30, 2005 17:24 - This weeks golf tip

Pitching from Sandy Rough

I have read about this shot in the past and while playing down at
Myrtle Beach a few weeks ago, I tried it and it works pretty
good.

On links and desert courses particularly, but wherever sand
exists, you run into a shot that few of us can cope with
successfully. This is a short, lofted pitch from the sandy rough
that must carry over a nearby embankment to reach the green. The
object, obviously, is to get the ball up and over the embankment
without punching it with so much forward drive that it either
carries or rolls on over the green—where, of course, a nice
little trap is usually lying in wait. In your consternation when
you find yourself beset with this shot, the average golfer does
little more than try to get the shot over with.

If you will keep calm and regard this shot as a cousin of the
explosion shot—which it primarily is—you will find you can deal
with it without much trouble. Use your wedge, with your feet
together and your hands a shade forward. Take the club back a
little on the outside, with the left hand in charge. Hit the sand
about an inch behind the ball. Don't let the hands roll over as
you go through the ball. Keep the back of the left hand pointing
up toward the sky on the follow-through. The ball should come up
arching high and should fall without too much forward roll.