Golf Practice Blog

Below are a list of some of the most quoteable golf quotes. For more stories, tips, hints, quotes and humor, pick up a copy of Who’s Your Caddy? from PracticeRange.com.

• “Hockey is a sport for white men. Basketball is a sport for black men. Golf is a sport for white men dressed like black pimps” -Tiger Woods
• “Green and black go well together, don’t they?” - Tiger Woods
• “Golf is a good walk spoiled.” - Mark Twain
• “In golf, the customs and etiquette and decorum are as important as the rules of play.” - Bobby Jones
• “I never learned anything from a match that I won.” - Bobby Jones
• “Nobody ever remembers who finished second at anything.” - Jack Nicklaus
• “The most important shot in golf is the next one.” - Ben Hogan
• “Nobody asked how you looked, just what you shot.” - Sam Snead
• “Golf is the hardest game in the world to play, and the easiest to cheat at.” - Dave Hill
• “There is no such thing as a natural touch. Touch is something you create by hitting millions of golf balls.” - Lee Trevino
• “Don’t play too much golf. Two rounds a day are plenty.” - Harry Vardon
• “Hit the shot you know you can hit, not the one you think you should.” - Dr. Bob Rotella
• “Why am I using a new putter? Because the last one didn’t float too well.” - Craig Stadler
• “You know what they say about big hitters…the woods are full of them.” - Jimmy Demaret
• “Golf is a compromise between what your ego wants you to do, what experience tells you to do, and what your nerves let you do.” - Bruce Crampton
• “I’ll always remember the day I broke ninety. I had a few beers in the clubhouse and was so excited I forgot to play the back nine.” - Bruce Lansky
• “Missing a short putt does not mean you have to hit your next drive out of bounds.” - Henry Cotton
• “No matter how good you get you can always get better and that’s the exciting part” - Tiger Woods
• “I don’t think I’ve ever stepped into a gym - they won’t let me smoke there. I just thank God Miller Lite isn’t as fattening as most beers. If I cut back on beer, though, I’d look anorexic.” - John Daly
• “All my exes wear Rolexes.” - John Daly
• “I believe nicotine plus caffeine equals protein.” - John Daly
• “My Sunday best is a Wednesday afternoon compared to him.” - Nick Faldo, talking about John Daly
• “The only way to enjoy golf is to be a masochist. Go out and beat yourself to death.” - Howard Keel
• “Golf and sex are the only things you can enjoy without being good at it” - Jimmy Demaret
• “When it’s breezy, hit it easy.” - Davis Love, Jr.
• “Is my friend in the bunker or is the bastard on the green?” - Anonymous
• “Golf is a game in which you yell “fore,” shoot six, and write down five.” - Paul Harvey
• “One thing about golf is you don’t know why you play bad and why you play good.” - George Archer
• “It is good sportsmanship to not pick up lost golf balls while they are still rolling.” - Mark Twain 
• “The difference in golf and government is that in golf you can’t improve your lie.” - George Deukmejian 
• “Golf is a fascinating game.It has taken me nearly forty years to discover that I can’t play it.” - Ted Ray
• “Golf is so popular simply because it is the best game in the world at which to be bad.” - A.A. Milne

If you’re a big fan of The Golf Channel’s Fore Inventor’s Only, then chances are you’ve been introduced to the SKILZ line of products. If you’re unfamiliar with this product, the Gyro Swing Training Club is going to help you ingrain a truly repeatable golf swing.

SAN DIEGO, CA — SKLZ, the industry leader in sports skill development products and equipment, today announced that its Gyro Swing Training Club has been tested and approved by the PGA TOUR Partners Club Members. The final result was an Excellent approval rating of 85% and an overall member rating of 8.6. In this program, products are submitted by manufacturers and tested by PGA TOUR Partners Club testing members all over the country. Members use the product and rank it in several categories including value, ease of use, design, durability, quality, and whether or not they would recommend the product to others. The overall member rating is an average of all specific ratings as scored by each tester.

“We’re very pleased to receive such a high rating from PGA TOUR Partners Club testers,” said says Greg Shoman, vice president of marketing, SKLZ. “This is the Gyro Swing Training Club that allows golfers to actually ‘feel’ the perfect wing instead of worrying about positions and mechanics. Now we have unbiased testing results to back up our claims.”Comments from PGA TOUR Partners Club members include:
“One of the best training aids I have ever had in my hands. It lets you know when you are off plane and when to break your wrist and how to finish the swing. The Gyro Swing Training Club has given me 30 more yards off the tee and down the middle of the fairway almost every time.”“It quickly showed me where my swing was out of control, and it allowed me to adapt a better feel and grasp of what changes I needed to make. My distance and control have improved and I expect my scores will continue to improve as well.”

“WOW! Outstanding Training Aid! Helps muscle memory and also helps proper motion in legs and trunk. The drills provided with the DVD are truly outstanding, especially min-swing and good right and left arm feel. You know immediately if swings are not on plane.”
 
The Gyro Swing Training Club has a 20,000 rpm gyroscope in its clubhead that uses the principle of conservation of angular momentum to create a distinct and forceful pathway for the club. It literally fights against off-plane swings to put your hands and clubhead exactly where they’re supposed to be, back and through. It’s the only product that lets golfers feel what it’s like to have a technically correct swing.With the Gyro Swing Training Club powered by six AAA batteries, the gyroscope rotates at very high RPMs to keep the swing on plane with a perfect clubface orientation to the plane. This, coupled with the fact that it encourages proper weight shift for an ideally timed release, means the clubface is squared at impact, which yields long, straight shots with the “effortless power” sought by golfers.

Yesterday I posted a brief article about pitching versus chipping. Today I’ll share with you a tip my dad taught me when I was first learning the game.

It isn’t his original idea - though my dad is pretty sharp. His pro always advocated “keep it in the tub”. In case that’s just a silly thing to say that no one has ever heard of, the “tub” is roughly a 3-foot circle around the hole. If you are on the green and far from the hole, or getting ready to pitch or chip on, just try to hit the ball hard enough to get into the “tub” and not roll out. This will alleviate the stress of focusing on the right amount of roll to get into the cup.

With the reduced stress, you can focus on your line and the breaks on the green. It is a lot easier to gauge how hard to hit the ball when you have a 3-foot diameter circle to hit to rather than a 3-inch diameter circle. Still aim for the cup (obviously), but know that if you are at least in the tub, you’ll have a lot easier time getting off the green in two. As I said yesterday, it’s really hard to get rid of those clever three-putt nicknames your oh-so-smart golfing buddies can come up with.

PracticeRange.com offers the perfect package for golf beginners. The Beginners Golf Training Package includes everything you need to get started on your practice routine for every shot on the course. Included in the package (now on sale!) are:

1. Ernie Els Rockroller – Click here to see it in action!
2. Swing Assist
3. Izzo Foot Wedge
4. Impact Ball
5. From Beginner To Winner on DVD by David Leadbetter

Kay Adkins
Baptist Press
Sep 13, 2007

GRAPEVINE, Texas (BP)–By personal experience, teaching golf professional Scott Lehman discovered a principle that many church men’s ministries are discovering as well: Where there is a common interest in an activity, there is an inroad to a man’s heart. About 10 years ago, Lehman for the first time in his life entered a Christian bookstore seeking help for his then-failing marriage. He soon noticed a book with a golf theme — the devotional “In His Grip” by Jim Sheard and Wally Armstrong. He picked it up and began reading it.

Visit PracticeRange.com for golf books that allow you to discover more about the life-lessons that golf can provide.

Richard Oliver
San Antonio Express-News

FREDERICKSBURG — The sun had long ago nestled into the rich green hills of the Edwards Plateau, disappearing in another spectacular splash of light and color, when Hal Sutton settled into a chair in one of the rustic, cedar-scented cabins at Boot Ranch.
The celebrated golfer had a sermon to deliver. Tucked away in the bucolic expanse of the exclusive 2,050-acre resort, six miles north of the nearest stoplight, Sutton did so in a honeyed Louisiana drawl.

Click here to read the rest of this article about Hal Sutton, written by Richard Oliver of the San Antonio Express News.

Shop thousands of the world’s best golf training aids, golf books and golf DVDs at PracticeRange.com and feel free to email us to request a printed catalog of our featured products.

Elaine: Regarding the clubhead being “open” or “closed” at the top of the swing: the grip would obviously have a big effect on this. But how about forearm rotation and whether the wrist is “cupped” or “flat” at the top? These also have an affect. If one follows Hogan and uses a lot of forearm rotation and a “cupped” wrist (with a weak grip), it would be impossible not to have the clubhead open at the top. This did work for Hogan, but he practiced a lot. Fred Couples uses a strong grip with a big wrist cup and massive shoulder turn, which keeps the club relatively square (but ruins his back).

It would seem to me that if one’s goal were to make the swing as simple as possible (with less to go wrong), then one would minimize the amount of forearm rotation and would have a flat wrist at the top. It would seem that this would necessitate a weaker grip than is usually advised to keep the clubhead from closing at the top and promoting a hook.

Isn’t this what Tiger Woods has done, working with Hank Haney?

Greg G.

Greg,
I totally agree with you, simple is always better.

Thanks,
Elaine

Elaine Crosby is a 19-year veteran of the LPGA Tour and a member of the Women’s Senior Golf Tour. If you have a question for Elaine, please email us.

I’m an eight to ten handicap. I tend to have shut clubface at the top of my backswing. This works well with my short irons, but it tends to get the better of me when I try to hit my long irons, causing me to have an uncontrollable hook.

One of the first things I look at with a new student is the face angle at the top of the swing. If I notice that their club is shut at the top, then I check their grip. More times than not, it’s too strong, meaning the left thumb is too far to the right on the shaft. Conversely, if someone has an open clubface they tend to have too weak a grip.

Our hands are the only connection to the club, so we need to be diligent to keep a good grip.

Elaine Crosby is a 19-year veteran of the LPGA Tour and a member of the Women’s Senior Golf Tour. If you have a question for Elaine, please email us.

In his syndicated golf blog, Kiel Christianson brings to light an interesting study regarding sleep and it’s relation to how a golfer (with good practice habits) can improve their golf game through sleep.

Click here to read the full article by Kiel Christianson.

Philadelphia, PA (PRWeb) March 6, 2007 — MIT’s second annual Better Golf through Technology Conference features David Ostrow, CEO of Body Balance for Performance. Ostrow will present research on the correlation between body movement and golf swing.

The study presented by Ostrow scientifically explores whether golf swing flaws are linked to improper body conditioning. The goal of Body Balance’s research is to develop new training methods that improve golf swing performance and prevent sport related injuries.

“We are proud to be a part of the Better Golf through Technology Conference,” said Ostrow. “We hope that our research will give the golf industry a better understanding of how the body’s limitations can affect the golf swing, leading to new golf training techniques.”

Data for the golf swing study has been gathered at Body Balance for Performance centers across the country through a variety of technologies, such as digital video capture and computer analysis of professional golfers in action. Body Balance for Performance will continue this research throughout 2007 to create a sample size large enough to draw accurate conclusions.

The MIT Better Golf through Technology Conference draws golf training professionals, golf technology innovators, researchers and golf equipment manufacturers together to discuss the latest golf technology and emerging golf fitness trends. This year’s conference will run from March 29 through March 30, featuring researchers from leading academic institutions as well as golf fitness experts. Participants will discuss the role of technology in the future of golf and compare scientific and instructional insights.

For over twenty years Body Balance for Performance has assisted with clinical research on proper physical conditioning for improved performance and minimized injuries of the world’s leading golfers. Their research led to the development of a golf fitness training and therapeutic treatment program that has aided golfers at every level of the game. With forty centers operating in the U.S. and Canada, Body Balance continues to develop new golf technology and conditioning techniques to promote health and excellence in the game of golf.

If you’ve been keeping an eye on PGATOUR.com, you’ve probably been keeping up with the series regarding the phases of the golf swing.  In the latest installment by Sean Cochran, the “transition phase” is discussed, as well as how you can focus your golf fitness regimen to maximize your swing in the transition phase.  According to Cochran, “The transition point of the swing is where the body finishes its backwards movement and begins the forward movement of the downswing.”

Click here to read the full PGATOUR.com article by Sean Cochran.