A few years back, I got an email from one of my golf newsletter subscriptions talking about this fellow named Tracy Reed.  The following day several others also sent me emails talking about the same person who had developed this phenomenal approach to the golf swing.  Since I now had recommendations from several sources I decided to check it out more thoroughly.  Boy am I glad that I did.

The introductory video that I watched had an interesting feature to it that I had never seen or heard about.  Tracy gives a thorough explanation of  the value of balance in the golf swing and what he says makes a tremendous amount of sense.   Before I heard Tracy’s ideas my standard approach to the golf swing was a rushed address and a hasty swing which was rarely a deliberate setup  with an “in balance” stance.

After viewing this small piece of information I went out to the course to give it a try.  As someone who rarely broke 90, my swing was inconsistent, my setup routine was non-existent and my drives and fairway irons rarely went as far as they should have.  The balance aspect was the root cause of most of my problems.  In a word, I was “SWAYING.”

I would move over onto my right side in my back-swing, usually too far.  Then struggle on the downswing to get back to center to hit the ball, much less have any sort of weight transfer to my left foot for a proper finish. On top of that my timing was poor and my wrist cock was expended before the club had even passed 9 oclock on the downswing.

Tracy’s simple counsel was to start with a balanced stance, that you settle into so that you truly feel balanced.  Then tilt your upper body slightly toward your right or non target side.  In other words instead of moving there in your back-swing you start out there.   This puts you in a position to take an efficient back-swing without moving your weight outside of your back foot enabling you to focus on transferring your weight onto your front side.

There is no magic or hocus/pocus here, when you start your swing in balance and stay within the parameters of the balls of your feet the weight transfer occurs naturally. The consequence is that you are able to deliver maximum power to the ball.  The results are immediate, your swing improves immensely.  The timing takes place naturally and your body co-operates by spending  it’s energy swinging through the golf ball instead of trying to regain your lost balance.

If you add to this a good setup routine in which you insure a correct grip, insure that correct muscles are engaged (every time you address the ball) and a short mental/visual check-list (where do you plan to land).  You will have given your self a chance at curing the most common complaint that golfers have.  Which is: Golf Consistency!

That is what I discovered.  Those two simple video’s on Tracy’s site showed me how to setup in balance, how to swing in balance and finish with my weight transferred to my target side foot.  The swing became repeatable because the steps to get into balance were repeated every time and this made the results predictable.  I did not have to change my grip, or change my swing or add anything new.  I simply learned how to setup in balance and stay there through-out the swing.

Tracy  spent 20 years developing and refining his technique to come out with Golf Swing Control .  The issue of staying in balance is the beginning of building a consistent golf game, once that is mastered the game becomes much more exciting as you can now focus on mastering the ability to draw or fade the ball at will.  When you have learned to craft your shots you can then move on to learning how to control your golf focus to get even more consistency into your golf game.

You can opt in to see the two video’s that I mentioned at http://ultimategolfsystem.com I won’t make any outrageous claims as to decreased strokes for your game, for each golfer it will be different.  I can tell you however,  that  having a predictable golf swing is priceless.

Technorati Tags: consistent golf game, Golf Consistency, Golf Swing Control, Tracy Reed

Golf training is a never ending pursuit for the golfer who has been bitten by the allure of golf.  As golfers there is always something more to learn and improve upon.  When you spend time on the range you find yourself wondering what this or that shot would look like on the course. When you are on the course you only get one chance to make your best golf swing for that particular hole.  The goal is to find a way to take your best golf swing onto the course every time you go.

As you think about your round of golf coming up tomorrow.  What are you planning for tonight? Do you know you can go online and get all your questions answered ?  Do you have a routine for when you arrive at the course?   If you are like me, you like to arrive at least an hour early and hit some balls to warm up. Then head for the practice green and get a feel for the speed and break of your putts.   If there is time, you go over to the practice chipping green and work on your short chips as well.  With any luck you will be able to demonstrate your best golf swing on the tee box.

This game has so many aspects to it.  On the tee box you want to hit the ball as far as you can;  then you get to the green and try to slow your shot from  deep rough to a close pin. Of course the putting green can be a whole different story.  I played last year for the first time on “rolled greens”, after the morning cut they bring in a heavy roller and mash the grain down.  Wow, if you hit the ball too firm and miss you are easily 12 feet beyond. If you gently tap it the ball literally moves like a snake back and forth.   I felt lucky to get away with a two putt on most of those holes and three was my average.

Score Card From Lakota Canyon Colorado; Yes those are real piles of rock along the right hand side

One of the joys of golf is getting to play different courses. Each course is unique and each will have some things that are deliberately designed to frustrate the casual golfer.   So, how do you maintain your handicap when you go to these different courses for a one time experience?   In most cases you are not quite sure of what to expect.

Having sound fundamental skills is essential to enjoying the game.   When you get into trouble, the ability to recover is critical.

That's me in the sand, 100 yards out at Bear Dance

I know the professionals play a different course every week,  but you and I  probably play a different course 5 to 10 times a year with most of our time spent on our home course.

Tracy Reed spent over 20 years analyzing the golf swing.  He put together Golf Swing Control and released it as a book to selected few.   A client convinced him to put together a golf training video, which was released in 2008.   (That video completely turned my game around)  On his Blog he has an 18 minute slow motion critique of Tiger Woods golf swing; which is the best explanation of the complete process of a golf swing you will ever see.

As with all things on the internet links tend to change or go away over time.  I had previously mentioned a golf blog membership on these pages that offered instruction in all aspects of the golf game.  That site the ultimate golf society has closed their doors, oh well.  There are many more that you can find and join if you want.   The bottom line is that you want to have your fundamentals in place.

There is no substitute for a good setup routine.  Develop one and use it on every swing,  don’t allow your game to get rushed and ignore the setup for every shot that you take.  Spend enough time on the driving range and establish the distances that all the clubs in your bag will travel.  Know that! When you do it speeds up your decision making in your setup.

For your wedges, you also want to know the distances of an 8, 9 or 11 o’clock back-swing for your 60°lob,  56°sand 48°pitching wedges.  I understand that ball travel is relative to the contour of the green, but the important part is to know how far it travels in the air before it lands.  When you are armed with this knowledge you can be very accurate around the green.   Essentially you will have 12 shots  that you own and can pull out of your bag to get close to the pin any time you need them.  I don’t have to tell you that a 3 foot putt is one hundred percent more make-able than a 15 footer.

His book is $25 and yes that is an affiliate link, I will maybe make a $1.46 if you buy through that link, or you can simply go to your favorite book seller to get it.  The bottom line is that it is the single best instruction I have ever read on the short game.  His clinics will run you a mere $500 for a 4 day session if you can find one in your area.   If you are a more visual learner the PurepointGolf   Short-Game Championship Series is fantastic for giving you a visual demonstration of what you need to know around the green to be effective.  I own both, and have benefited immensely from them.

From there on out it is simply play and practice to improve your game.

Technorati Tags: best golf swing, Dave Pelz, golf setup routine, golf training, golf training video, Short Game Bible, Tracy Reed