Posts Tagged ‘Golf Lesson Kent’

Great Improvements Made

Gab 1

Had a client of mine pop in for a lesson today and we made some tremendous upgrades to her swing. The key thing we focused on was improving her body turn/pivot.

As you can see in the above image (left picture) the swing before we made any changes. The hip turn was poor and as a result the swing had got long with a cupped left wrist which caused a very open clubface.

The main focus was incredibly simple; we focused on letting the right leg straighten a little in the backswing (right picture above). This in turn naturally shortened the golf swing as the core was more engaged.  This also made it easier to get the left wrist in a much flatter position at the top of the backswing. Having the left wrist set better in the backswing ensured a square clubface which made it so much easier through impact which resulted in soft baby draws!!

Gab 2

The left picture above shows that the club was over plane in the downswing, this was a direct result all stemming from a poor body pivot which lead to a long swing with an open clubface. This makes it hard to control the accuracy of the golf shots and also lacks power and distance was being lost.

The right picture above shows the swing being on plane and in balance with a square clubface. Once again the swing thought was very simple, just let your right leg straighten a little in the backswing and hay presto we upgraded the left wrist position, clubface position and downswing plane which all lead to much greater accuracy and powerful iron shots.

www.markwoodgolfacademy.co.uk

Mark Wood

PGA Advanced Professional
UK’s No1 Golf Coach

The Best Golf Lessons in Sussex and Kent

Correct Distance to the Ball

distance to ball

 Create Room to Swing

A great check point reference to see if you are the correct distance from the golf ball is to be able to have a hand span between your grip and the inside of the left thigh. You can do this whilst out playing on the golf course as it only takes a few seconds. Ensuring that you have created the necessary room for your arms to swing freely past your body during the hitting zone will get you hitting the ball much more solid from off the clubface.

www.markwoodgolfacademy.co.uk

Mark Wood

PGA Advanced Professional
UK’s No1 Golf Coach

The Best Golf Lessons in Sussex and Kent

Explosive Distance

smash

Explosive Distance from the Tee

One way of creating energy in the golf swing is to increase the pressure point between your feet and ground in a backswing. Many golfers as they swing back pull the force up away from the ground and this creates a negative effect on creating power. Think of jumping up into the air if you kept your pressure of your feet very light on the ground and then jumped you will not get very high. If you increase your pressure down into the ground before you jumped you would jump much higher as it gives you more energy from a solid base.

www.markwoodgolfacademy.co.uk

Mark Wood

PGA Advanced Professional
UK’s No1 Golf Coach

The Best Golf Lessons in Sussex and Kent

In the Bleak Midwinter a joke to raise a cheer……

In the Bleak Midwinter a joke to raise a cheer……

Just thought you might appreciate a funny golf story to make you chuckle on a cold, bleak February day.

Does this story remind you of anyone you have played with…………..

While sitting at a table in the clubhouse after a game, Padraig remarked to a fellow club member’, I’m not going to play golf with Jim Lawler anymore. He cheats.’

‘Why do you say that?’ asked his friend.

‘Well, he found his lost ball two feet from the green’, replied Padraig indignantly.

‘That’s entirely possible’, commented his friend.

‘Not when I had his golf ball in my pocket’, retorted Padraig with finality.

Some Great Caddy Comments

 

  1. Golfer: Think I’m going to drown myself in the lake.
    Caddy: Thinkyou can keep your head down that long?
  2. Golfer: I’d move heaven and earth to break 100 on this course.
    Caddy: Try heaven, you’ve already moved most of the earth.
  3. Golfer: Do you think my game is improving?
    Caddy: “Yes sir, you miss the ball much closer now.
  4. Golfer: Do you think I can get there with a 5 iron?
    Caddy: Eventually.
  5. Golfer: You’ve got to be the worst caddy in the world.
    Caddy: I don’t think so sir. That would be too much of a coincidence.
  6. Golfer: Please stop checking your watch all the time. It’s too much of a distraction.
    Caddy: It’s not a watch – it’s a compass.
  7. Golfer: How do you like my game?
    Caddy: Very good sir, but personally, I prefer golf.
  8. Golfer: Do you think it’s a sin to play on Sunday?
    Caddy: The way you play, sir, it’s a sin on any day.
  9. Golfer: This is the worst course I’ve ever played on.
    Caddy: This isn’t the golf course. We left that an hour ago.
  10. Golfer: That can’t be my ball, it’s too old.
    Caddy: It’s been a long time since we teed off, sir.

(Jokes and storys from www.guysports.com)

Why not come and cheer yourself up a bit more by booking a lesson with me and make sure you are not the butt of a funny story this year!!

www.markwoodgolfacademy.co.uk

Mark Wood

PGA Advanced Professional
Worlds Leading Expert on Curing a Shank

The Best Golf Lessons in Sussex and Kent.

Golf Lesson Sussex – Find More Yards

Golf Lesson Sussex – Find More Yards

Hitting the ball longer and straighter is high on the list of every golfer and here I am going to give you some very simple things that you can do to help you achieve those extra yards.

Golf Lesson Sussex

Firstly we need a nice solid base to swing from so I would like you to widen your stance just a little bit.You are going to do this by dropping right foot back another six inches away from the target. This will set you more behind the ball and promote an aggressive move into impact.

Golf Lesson Sussex

Secondly I would like you to make a real nice deliberate backswing. Make that first six inches of the take away from the ball nice and smooth, this will ensure that you fully turn your shoulders in the backswing, a feeling of turning your left shoulder behind the ball is our main focus here.

Alicante 2006 2002

Lastly I would like you to have the feeling of swinging through the ball and not at the ball. Get to a full finish with tour weight finished nicely on your left side.

www.markwoodgolfacademy.co.uk

Mark Wood

PGA Advanced Professional
UK’s No1 Golf Coach

The Best Golf Lessons in Sussex and Kent

 

Well Done Steven

Very nice feedback from one of my clients…..

Mark Wood Golf Academy

Thanks for helping me with my game in 2014, I’ve improved a lot and really appreciate your coaching.

I managed to win 3 trophies this year at The Nevill, the most by anyone in Centenary year of the club and handicap official reduced from 20 to 14. Below is a picture of me at the trophy presentation.

I’m taking a few weeks break but will have a think about my goals for 2015 but keen to start another course of lessons to get my handicap even lower!

Steven

Well done to all my clients on there recent successes.

www.markwoodgolfacademy.co.uk

Mark Wood

PGA Advanced Professional
UK’s No1 Golf Coach

The Best Golf Lessons in Sussex and Kent

Watch the Ball

Watch the Ball

Keeping your head down can cost you distance

www.markwoodgolfacademy.co.uk

THE POWER MOVE: Let your eyes follow the ball. You’ll turn through better and generate more swing speed.

It astonishes me on how many times I hear golfers say “I know what happened there I lifted my head on that shot” after they have hit a bad shot……….

I ask them to have a look at the video of that particular swing and their eyes are glued down at the ground, where the ball was, long after it has gone. I then say to them “so you lifted your head on that shot”…. Their response is “well that is what my playing partners say when we are out playing”

I am always encouraging my students who fall into to this category to keep watching the ball, let your eyes follow the ball, do not keep looking down at the ground as this will restrict you from turning your body through impact and to the full finish, costing you POWER and YARDS!!!

A free flowing motion will create speed and therefore POWER, so keeping your head down for too long will lose you power and distance. Bad shots are caused by things that have gone wrong in either the backswing or downswing, not because you lifted your head…..

Next time your practising or playing remember to let your eyes follow the ball and enjoy the extra YARDS!!!

From Your Friends at Mark Wood Golf Academy

PS. Come down and tee it up to make some magic moments of your own. Check our website at 

www.markwoodgolfacademy.co.uk

Mark Wood

PGA Advanced Professional
UK’s No1 Golf Coach

The Best Golf Lessons in Sussex and Kent

Sink More Putts

Mark Wood Golf Academy

“Keep yours eyes still to hole more putts”

My Best Putting Tip

I have been coaching golf for over 20 years and I have read, watched, listened and attended many golf coaching seminars with the world’s leading coaches and this is by far the best tip to get you holing more putts.

If you find yourself missing these putts, their is a good chance that you are moving your head and body around far to much as you make your putting stroke. If you do this you will also affect where you strike the putt on the putter face, this can lead to poor lag putting.

A good idea would be to focus on a specific area of the ball, the logo, a dimple or even a pen marking that you have put on your ball. Focus on this area when you are making your putting stroke and listen for the ball to drop into the hole.

Keeping your eyes still will also dramatically increase your chance of hitting the putts out of the center of the putter, this will alone improve your distance control.

From Your Friends at Mark Wood Golf Academy

PS. Come down and tee it up to make some magic moments of your own. Check our website at 

www.markwoodgolfacademy.co.uk

Mark Wood

PGA Advanced Professional
UK’s No1 Golf Coach

The Best Golf Lessons in Sussex and Kent

 

USA’s Ryder Cup Task Force

USA’s new Ryder Cup Task Force

I have just been reading an Article by Rob Lee of Sky Sports, with regard to USA’s new Ryder Cup Task Force. He has quite strong views with regards to the process the PGA of America follow and suggest that us Europeans have it sussed when it comes to the make- up of the Ryder Cup ‘The European Tour seems to have it spot on for me – its committee selects the next captain, while players regularly make the transition from vice-captain to the top job later down the line.’

So who you may ask is on the Task force?Phil Mickelson, Rickie Fowler, Jim Furyk, Steve Stricker ,Tom Lehmann and lastly and most controversially is Tiger Woods, a man in Rob Lees and my opinion has never seemed that invested in the Ryder Cup and certainly does not have the best public standing to keep the Americans glued to their TV screens.

Another glaring omission from the Task Force is the last winning captain (2008) Paul Azinger, who’s ‘pod system’ proved highly successful in winning that years Ryder Cup. You would be expecting the PGA of America to be falling over themselves to get him to join the Task Force and help them develop the winning formula.

What are your thoughts on the new American Ryder Cup Task Force, do you agree they may have made a faux pas when it comes to including Tiger in the mix?

Mark Wood Golf Academy is based at Dale Hill and provides the best lessons in sussex.

PS. Come down and tee it up to make some magic moments of your own. Check our website at 

www.markwoodgolfacademy.co.uk

Mark Wood

PGA Advanced Professional
UK’s No1 Golf Coach

The Best Golf Lessons in Sussex and Kent

Waggle the Club

Release Tension by a Waggle

When you watch the best players in the world and also the good players your club you will notice they waggle the club at the address position.

Why do they do this………

I think you will agree that the most famous waggle is that of the great Raymond Floyd, it is his signature and you would never mistake for anyone else,s.

The main purpose of a waggle of the club is to get the tension out of your arms, hands and wrists, you will instantly feel the clubhead in motion as you waggle.

Try it for yourself I think you will find it hard to waggle and feel tensed up at the same time.

From Your Friends at Mark Wood Golf Academy

PS. Come down and tee it up to make some magic moments of your own. Check our website at 

www.markwoodgolfacademy.co.uk

Mark Wood

PGA Advanced Professional
UK’s No1 Golf Coach

The Best Golf Lessons in Sussex and Kent