Golf Tips and Instruction Feb. 27, 2006

By Jack Moorehouse

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How To Break 80 Newsletter

February 27, 2006

"The Web's Most Popular Golf Improvement Newsletter"
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This issue includes...

1) Hitting From Packed Dirt
2) When to Hit a Hybrid Club

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1) Hitting From Packed Dirt
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Few golfers realize how much a lie affects their shot. A bare lie,
as golf tips often tell you, produces a lower than normal flight
path, so trying to hit a high cut shot is not recommended by
many golf tips. With a grassy lie, the opposite applies. So what
do you do when your ball lies on hardpan?

Hitting from hardpan is a challenge. It is intimidating for some
golfers. It's especially difficult when the shot is within 30 feet
to 70 feet of the flag and the player wants to chip close to the
pin.

Choosing the right club is almost as important as developing an
effective technique. Some golf instruction tips suggest using a
sand wedge. Other instructions suggest a 9 iron. Either will do
because both have a sharp leading edge to cut through to the
back of the ball. Find a club you're comfortable with and stick
with it. Keys to hitting from hardpan:

• Position ball toward back
• Place weight on front foot
• Grip ahead of the ball
• Use chopping motion
• Hit ball cleanly below equator

The best approach in this situation is to hit the ball cleanly. Take
your normal stance, with your weight on the front foot. Position
the ball toward the back of the stance, with your hands in front
of the ball. Use a chopping motion when you hit the ball.

To practice this shot, pick a spot near the green that will provide
a hardpan lie. Take the set-up described above, except with no
ball. Practice sticking the club in the ground using a choppy up-
and-down motion, instead of a back-and-forth one. Without delay,
drop a ball on the hardpan and hit away, using the same technique.
Repeat this until you hit clean shots. Don't worry about distance
in the beginning. It will come as you master the shot.

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2) When to Hit a Hybrid Club
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Many players dread hitting long irons (2,3,4,5). Even with the
proper golf instruction, these players would rather hit a short iron
any day. Others prefer higher lofted woods.

Thanks to the Hybrid (Utility) club, a cross between an iron and a
wood, these players need no longer even carry a long iron, never
mind hit one. This club replaces the long irons in you bag.

A Hybrid club is easier to hit than a fairway wood or a long iron, as
most golf tips stress. It has a loft from 16 degrees to 25. It has a
low-center-of gravity. And it has a slightly smaller head and lower
profile.

The Hybrid club is practically a "universal" club. Use it off the tee,
from all lies in the fairway and rough, in fairway bunkers, and near
the green, for pitch-and-run shots.

• Off the tee
Tee the ball very low. Position it near the center of your stance
but towards the target. Use a smooth tempo, with a full swing.
Complete the follow-through.

• From the fairway
Use a ball position closer to the center of your stance. Swing more
down and through the ball. Hit the ball first, then take a small divot.
Complete the follow-through.

• From the fairway bunker
Assuming a good lie, position the ball in the center of your stance.
Dig your feet into the sand. Use a shorter swing. Complete the
follow-through. Don't try to kill the ball.

• From the rough
Position the ball in the center of your stance. Use a 3/4 back swing,
with a full follow through and a smooth tempo. Accelerate the
downswing through the ball. Again, don't try to kill the ball.

• From in front of the green
Pitch and run shots as you normally would but swing the club like a
putter.

Hybrids can really help your game, whether it be in the longer
shots or around the greens. So, if budget allows, go and pick one up
and start to see a difference in your game.

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If you want to truly discover the secrets of shooting like the Pro
and creating a more reliable and consistent swing, check out:
http://www.HowToBreak80.com

Also, for past issues of this newsletter and some of my most recent
articles, visit our blog at www.HowToBreak80.com/blog

Until next time, Go Low!

Jack

P.S. Feel free to share this newsletter with family and friends. If you
would like to subscribe to this newsletter, send a blank email to
htb80newsletter@aweber.com

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About the Author
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Jack Moorehouse is the author of the best-selling book
"How To Break 80 and Shoot Like the Pros!". He is NOT a golf pro,
rather a working man that has helped thousands of golfers from all
seven continents lower their handicaps quickly. His weekly newsletter
goes out to thousands of golfers worldwide and provides the latest
golf tips, strategies, techniques and instruction on how to improve
your golf game.