Best Way to Hit Solid Irons

I tend to cast/scope the ball at impact without realizing I'm doing it. It's been a reoccurring flaw for me during the second half of the 2011 season. I plan to follow this drill religiously next season in order to make consistent solid strikes.

By Rick Smith via Golf Digest

Many golfers unhinge their wrists well before impact in an attempt to help the ball off the ground. This is called casting, like you cast a fishing line, and it usually leads to poor contact—fat or thin. For solid strikes, your wrists should not unhinge fully until after impact. Get a feel for this with my punch drill: Using a 7-iron, hit punch shots with an abbreviated finish, keeping your hands ahead of the clubhead well past impact (left). Hit 10 punches, then try some normal shots re-creating that feel.

Putting: Get Your Touch Back

By Rick Smith via Golf Digest

Jack Nicklaus, one of the all-time best putters, used to say he would think about the palm of his right hand traveling down his intended line. This is one of the reasons I like my students to practice putting with the right hand only. It reminds you how to release the putterhead properly and helps you regain your hand-eye coordination. By using one hand, you tend to forget about the mechanics of the stroke and simply roll the ball to the hole. That's a great mind-set for the course.

Great tempo

Great tempo will be a key for me in breaking 80. I found this video of Adam Scott who not only possess  one of the best looking swings in the game, but also great tempo. Notice the "1-and-2" count of the swing (1-Backswing, 2-Downswing). Great way to establish consistency.

Dropping the club on an inside path

During most of the second half of this season, I've run into struggles with shanks and crooked slices. And I rediscovered a tip that I found last winter that explains the"key difference in swing mechanics between an 'amateur' and 'pro' player". The tip described's that amateurs tend to turn laterally with their right shoulder on the downswing. The result is an out-to-in swing path which produces a slice. The correct mechanic, illustrated by Ernie Els in the photo below, is that you're supposed to pull the club down from the top and fire your right shoulder down on the inside as well. If you notice in the photo, Ernie's right shoulder in far below his left which is how he delivers the club on an inside-to-out swing path, promoting a draw ball flight. Also, note how his head remains on top of the impact position. Secondly, he's staying low to the ground, fully extending his arms through the ball. I along with many other players tend to stand up at impact.

Three keys to swinging on an inside path:

• Pull club "down" from the top. Don't cast.
• Fire your right shoulder "down" rather than sideways.
• Stay back and post your weight onto your left side.
• Stay down and low to the ground through impact.