WARMING UP

CLUB BEHIND BACK

PURPOSE: This drill is a superb warm up exercise. It loosens your lower back and, with regular use, improves your range of movement. The drill also improves your balance in the fullswing.

PROCEDURE: Place a club behind your back and hold it below your biceps where the elbow bends. Now turn gently to the left and right rotating like a fullswing, gradually increasing the amount you turn, feel your weight shifting from left to right and back again. Continue until your back muscles feel relaxed and flexible and you cannot turn farther in either direction.

TURN AND TOUCH

PURPOSE: The purpose of this drill is simple. It will teach you to turn your body on the backswing instead of simply swinging your arms and hands alone. The result is a fuller, more complete backswing.

PROCEDURE: Stand about two feet from a wall and perpendicular to it with both hands held directly in front of you at chest level. Note that this forms a triangle with your arms and chest. Now rotate your hips and torso until your hands hit the wall maintaining the triangle at all times. Return to starting position and repeat several times both ways.

PUTTING

CLOCK DRILL

PURPOSE: This drill will improve your touch, concentration, confidence and green reading skills immensely.

PROCEDURE: Select a hole that is situated on a slope of the green. Place balls on each side of the hole from two feet away. Try to hole all the balls, noting how the break is different on each putt. After you have made all putts three consecutive times each, move the balls to four feet away and repeat the procedure. If you miss one of the balls, begin again.

TWO CLUBS

PURPOSE: There are two areas of putting where golfers most frequently go wrong. Either their putter face is not square to the target at address, or else their putting swing path is excessively inconsistent. The following drill enables you to check both.

PROCEDURE:  Find a straight, level part of the putting green. Test this by hitting a few practice putts. Lay two clubs on the green parallel to the line of play and to each other, just far enough apart to accommodate the putter head. Address a ball, taking special care to see that the putter face is aligned at the target. Now compare the putter face to the club shafts. It should be perpendicular, or at a right angle, to the clubs. Now make your normal putting stroke keeping within the shafts.

LEFT HAND ONLY

PURPOSE: Stroking putts with your left hand only will strengthen your left hand and forearm, increasing your control of the putter. It trains you to keep the putter blade moving toward the target, guided by the back of your left hand. When you go back to putting with two hands, your left hand and wrist won't break down and you will hit your putts more solidly.

PROCEDURE: Using your left hand only, hit a series of two foot putts, concentrating on accelerating the putter through the ball with the back of your left hand moving directly at the hole. Eventually increase the length of putts to ten feet.

PUTT TO A TEE

PURPOSE: There are days when the hole seems small as a thimble, making even routine putts seem impossible to hole. The following exercise will make the hole seem bigger and will result in more confidence on all putts.

PROCEDURE: Stick a tee in the green and place three balls about three feet away. Aim at the tee until you can hit it several times in a row. Move farther from the tee until you are four feet away. Again, try to strike the tee with every putt. Move farther away at two-foot increments until eventually you are aiming at the tee from ten feet away.

CHIPPING

CIRCLE DRILL

PURPOSE: This drill is effective for both chipping and pitching. It provides you with a vivid picture of how far the ball flies and rolls with different clubs. It emphasizes that it is not necessary to land the ball on a precise spot on the green to obtain a good result. Rather, if you can land the ball within an imaginary six-foot circle, you are assured of a reasonably accurate chip or pitch.

PROCEDURE: Designate a target on the green and, through trial and error, find a spot on the green where the ball must land in order to roll close to the hole. Create a six-foot circle around this spot using string or talc. Practice landing your shots somewhere in the circle and letting the ball roll near the hole. When you get on the course, picture in your mind the imaginary circle and try and land your ball within it.

FULL SWING

UPSLOPE SHOTS

PURPOSE: The classic reverse pivot consists of putting to much weight on your left, or forward foot on the back swing, and then falling back on your right foot during the downswing. This drill is effective because it helps you transfer your weight onto your right foot on the backswing.

PROCEDURE: Find an upslope. Hit balls, maintaining a smooth rhythm at all times. Note on the backswing, gravity tends to make you shift the majority of your weight on to your right foot. This is what the weight shift should feel like when you are playing off level lies.

ROTATION DRILL

PURPOSE: This drill stops the over use of hands in short shots, forces you to rotate your body and overcomes the all-arms, head-down action characteristic of the move.

PROCEDURE: Place headcovers or towels under both arms. Keep them in place as you make a waist-high to waist-high swing. Feel your hips pivot through the swing and feel your feet. They should be active.

FEET TOGETHER DRILL

PURPOSE: Few drills are as all-encompassing as the feet together drill, which is why it is one of the most popular practice exercises in use today. It promotes good foot work and balance, encourages a free arm swing and prevents lateral swaying on the back and forward swings. It teaches you to swing rhythmically and within your physical capabilities, thereby improving your timing and swing mechanics.

PROCEDURE: With the ball teed, practice hitting balls with your feet touching. Concentrate on making solid contact rather than hitting the ball a long distance. Once you can hit shots consistently, try hitting off the turf.

RIGHT FOOT BEHIND

PURPOSE: An important step to curing your slice is becoming familiar with the swing sensations that produce a draw. The following drill ingrains the physical movements that produce the inside the line swing path and a shot that curves from left to right. If you have been slicing due to excessive spinning of the left side on the down swing, this drill is for you. It also helps you rotate the clubface into a square position at impact.

PROCEDURE: Using a 7 iron, assume your normal address position with the ball teed. Slide your right foot back of your left foot maintaining address position. Keeping your clubface square to your target at address, hit several balls from his position, swing along the lines established by your body. Note how the clubhead approaches from well inside the line of play and the tendency for your arms and hands to rotate through the shot.

SPLIT GRIP

PURPOSE: The primary cause of a slice is an open clubface at impact. The following drill eliminates that problem, as it teaches you to rotate your arms and hands on the downswing so your clubface is square as it meets the ball.

PROCEDURE: Using an iron, take your grip so there are several inches of space between your hands. Now make a series of practice swings with your hands reaching only hip level on the backswing and on the follow through. Through impact try to feel the right hand crossing over the left. To check that your hands are rotating properly, note the position of the toe of the club at the top of the backswing. It should be pointing skyward. Now note where the toe is pointing at the completion of the follow through. If your right hand has crossed over your left correctly the toe should also be pointing to the sky.

FLAT LEFT WRIST

PURPOSE: At the moment of impact, the left wrist should be left flat, with no angle between the back of your left hand and forearm. Many amateurs allow the left wrist to buckle through the hitting area, costing them power and control.

PROCEDURE: Using an impact bag or something similar, hit the bag freezing your position at impact. Do it so your left wrist is flat or bowed outward and your shoulders are square to the target.

TWIST AND THROW

PURPOSE: Although the majority of golfers don't swing their arms and hands freely enough, there are some that use only their arms and hands, forgetting that the larger muscles of the back and legs have a role in the swing too. The following drill demands that you be balanced at all times, and that requires assistance from the bigger, stronger muscles of your body.

PROCEDURE: Find a fairly large, heavy object such as a shag bag or a medicine ball and hold on to it firmly as you take your address position. Try to throw it firmly to a target some 10 to 20 feet in front of you. To do it successfully, you will find it necessary to coil your body on the "backswing" and drive off your right foot on the "downswing." After doing this several times, hit some balls. You will be more aware of why it is important to use your body during the swing, not just the arms and hands alone.

LOW AND SLOW

PURPOSE: This drill has several benefits. It forces you to keep the club head low to the ground during the first part of the backswing, encouraging you to turn your shoulders fully. It prevents you from snatching the club away from the ball with your hands, a common tendency among poor players. It makes you begin the backswing slowly; creating a rhythmic backswing that is smooth and flowing.

PROCEDURE: Using an iron, place a ball behind the club head at address. As you begin the backswing, roll the ball backward with the club head. The club head should continue to roll the ball until it is well to the right of your back foot. You will find this much easier to do if you try to turn your left shoulder under your chin and keep your left arm relatively straight.