The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Some tips to improve your golf swing this summer: Be confident and think positively when you swing. Say ÒI play great golf all the timeÓ or a variation. This will keep your mind working in the right direction. Keep the good energy flowing and donÕt give in to any negative thoughts. ÊThe most important thing about the golf swing is the angle and not the strength thatÕs applied to it. Use the basic ÔhitchhikerÕ position when youÕre working on your backswing. Look back at your thumb. Make sure itÕs pointing to the sky. When working on your backswing, keep your weight on the inside of your right foot. Keep a slight bend in your knee. ÊMake sure youÕre relaxed. Contract all your muscles tightly for a moment and then relax them. When you swing if you have problems with your left knee buckling, imagine youÕre holding a soccer ball between your knees. Swing slowly and steadily using a nice rhythm. If itÕs windy, hit the ball lower than you normally would. Use the muscles in your legs and trunk. Make sure to use the proper technique. Pick out a spot on the course, preferably the green of the fairway, and concentrate on hitting the ball to that spot. Think about how youÕre going to swing the golf club. At the end of the backswing the hands are above the right shoulder, with the golf club pointing more or less in the intended direction of ball flight. At the end of the swing, the weight has shifted almost entirely to the left foot, the body is fully turned to the left and the hands are above the left shoulder with the club hanging down over the playersÕ back. Accomplished golfers purposely use sidespin to steer their ball around obstacles or towards the safe side of fairways and greens. Putts and short chips are ideally played without much movement of the body, but most other golf shots are played using variants of the full golf swing. As the body matures, the ability to rotate the upper torso is affected by age, and your hand action can also slow down, so youÕll need to use a slightly stronger grip. Even players who are strongly left-handed in their daily life prefer the right-handed golf swing. After the golf ball is hit, the follow-through stage consists of a continued rotation to the left.
