BMW Championship - Lessons of the LeadersLEADERBOARD (after 3rd Round)
I know we have spoken about him a few times this summer, but that just shows what kind of year this guy is having. He may not have won yet, but he has been in contention a lot this year. Most of the time players have to learn how to win. I have a feeling that once he does get that first victory the floodgates will open and he will win many times on the PGA Tour. We have spoken about his great turn, and how his backswing is quite short. We also talked about how he creates tremendous power. He is also a consistent ball strike. That is why he has been a top of the leader board so often. The reason he strikes it so solidly is that he has great rhythm. His great rhythm comes from a great transition from his backswing to his downswing. Watch the video above and you will see how he pauses at the top to make sure his swing comes down smoothly. He does not come to a full stop, but his club seems to get suspended in mid-air before it comes back down to the golf ball. It's like Jordan soaring in for a dunk (during his days with Chicago). He floated. Often players get too quick going from the backswing to the downswing. This is where Villegas gets himself into trouble when the pressure is on. His swing gets a little quicker and out of rhythm. If he can keep his natural pause that will be very effective today. Try to copy that pause to give your swing better timing and contact.
Jim Furyk...well...is Jim Furyk. The best thing I can say about this motion is that he believes in his swing and his motion. That is a huge advantage over a lot of players. If you can trust your swing then you can forget about the mechanics and just go out and play. I know this is not an easy thing to do, but here is a trick for when you are warming up for your next round. When you are on the range, pay attention to your ball flight. If you are consistently hitting the ball left to right; don't try to change it. Take note of how much it is curving and play that shot for your round. When the round is finished then go and practice to get the ball flight you want. This helped me a lot for a tournament. I typically hit the ball right to left, but I showed up that morning and hit everything left to right. I even hit my pitching wedge with a fade that day. The key thing is that I played that shot and still put up a good score. I hope you enjoy the final round of the 2008 BMW Championship. Good luck with your practicing, playing, and watching. May you 'Play Your Golf Dreams' sooner with the help of free-golf-lessons.com. Return to Home Page from BMW Championship Copyright 2006-2012 Free-Golf-Lessons.com
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PGA Tour Winner Quick Lesson
Congratulations to Steve Stricker on his victory at the 2012 Hyundai Tournament of Champions.
I believe the commentators said he has won 9 times in his 40s. That is amazing!I also agree with Sir Nick and Johnny Miller that his swing will be copied in the future. Technology has reduced the need for hand action in the golf swing to generate power. Watch the old videos of Bobby Jones to see how much action he created compared to that of Steve Stricker.
A great objective for any player is to eliminate any unnecessary movement. Stricker does a great job of that. His hands stay very quiet on the backswing. His wrists hardly hinge at the top of his backswing. You can see from the above video that his backswing is all shoulder turn.
His downswing starts from the hips and he simply turns everything through the golf ball at the same time. His hands and wrists release naturally without any effort. This is a great way to have a consistent rhythm through the golf ball on every shot. This swing delivers enough power to win on Tour.
European Tour Winner Quick Lesson
Congratulations to Louis Oosthuizen and his victory at the 2012 Africa Open.
Louis burst onto the scene with his dominating performance at the Open Championship. Many have predicted multiple wins for this player. His victory this past weekend is likely one of many to come.
In the video above pay really close attention to when the video ends. Take a look at his left foot. Notice how all his weight his on his left heel. This is a great sign that he has cleared his hips properly.
One of the key reasons for starting the downswing with your lower body is to clear your hips out of the way to create more room for your arms to swing through impact. It is a great indicator as to how well you cleared your hips, when almost all your weight is on your heel.
If your weight is leaning on you toes or even the middle of your foot then you have not rotated and cleared your hips enough through your downswing and past impact. You really want to feel the pressure of your weight on your heel like Oosthuizen.
Make sure you start your downswing with your lower body. At the top of your backswing; either pull your left knee or your left hip (right handed player) towards the target. Also make sure your hips keep rotating through impact and into your finish position with your weight on the heel.