Dave Pelz’s 10 truths about putting

We found some great tips & musings from Dave Pelz on putting. Read about them below!

Source: GOLF.com

DAVE PELZ Thursday, July 12, 2018

I could talk for weeks about my 50-year infatuation with all things putting. But I figured I’d just give you the CliffsNotes instead.

1. Putting is important.

Regardless of skill level, putting accounts for approximately 43 percent of your total strokes, taking into account your good putting days and the ones where you’re ready to snap your flatstick over your knee. Lower this percentage and your scores will go down. Allocate at least one-third of your practice time to becoming the best putter you can be.

2. Aim is critical.

You can’t dominate with your putter if you don’t know how to aim it correctly, or how much break to play. Nail these fundamentals first.

3. Keep your stroke “on-line” through the impact zone.

If you hook or cut-spin your putts, your chance of success goes down. If your putts roll off the face in the same direction your putter is heading immediately after impact, that’s good. If your putter moves one way and the ball another, you’ve got problems.

Dave Pelz wants to share his putting truths.

4. Face angle is even more important than stroke path.

And not insignificantly — it’s six times more important. Even if your path is good, unduly opening or closing the face at impact spells doom.

5. You’re only as skilled as your impact pattern.

Catching putts across the face produces varying ball speeds. Find one impact point. My recommendation: the sweet spot.

6. Putts left short never go in.

When you miss, your putts should end up 17 inches past the hole. If you roll them faster, you’ll suffer more lip-outs. Roll them slower and the ball will be knocked off line by imperfections (footprints, pitch marks, etc.) in the green.

7. Proper putt speed comes from proper rhythm.

At our schools, we incorporate rhythm into pre-putt rituals, then carry that same rhythm through the stroke. Rhythm is the harbinger of consistency. You’ve got to find your own, and groove it.

8. Putting is a learned skill.

Having the “touch” in your mind’s eye to know how firmly to stroke a putt (so its speed matches the break), and then also having the “feel” in your body to execute that touch is gained only through experience and solid practice. See No. 1.

9. Be patient.

Sometimes poorly-struck putts go in and well-struck putts miss. Sometimes badly-read greens compensate for poorly struck putts. Results can confuse golfers when they don’t understand the true fundamentals of putting. Having the patience to learn to be a good putter is an incredible virtue for a golfer.

10. Putting is like life.

You don’t have to be perfect, but you can’t do any of the important things badly. My advice? Believe in yourself. Becoming a great putter isn’t easy, but it’s possible (Phil Mickelson, at age 48, is enjoying the finest putting season in his career). Maintain a good, hardworking attitude as you work through items 1 through 9. I’ve seen success stories happen thousands of times. Everyone is capable of improving.

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Michael Breed: Try My Secret Move To Flush It From Any Lie

Here’s a good tip we found from GolfDigest to help you with muddy lies.

Source: GolfDigest By Michael Breed

If winter for you meant no golf, I know you’re itching to get back out there. First, we need to do a little prep work. I’ve learned from all my years in New York that spring lies—those muddy ones with no cushion under the ball—are prime territory for fat shots. And when you hit a few of those, you can lose it fast. Let’s talk.

Golfers who are afraid of hitting the ball fat tend to bend over too much, with their weight on their toes. They feel more in control if they’re closer to the ball. But your body will find its balance as you swing, so you’ll pull up and dump the club behind the ball (fat) or hit it thin. To stay in the shot, set your weight in the arches of your feet. Next: ball position. With an iron, play the ball in line with a spot on your body between the buttons on your shirt and your chest logo (short irons in line with the buttons, longer irons farther forward). I’ve got a 6-iron here (see below).

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Now I’m going to give you just one swing key to think about: Drive your left shoulder closer to your left hip as you start the downswing (far right). That’s probably a strange concept for you, so let’s break it down. I want you to shift toward the target and feel like your upper body is leaning that way, your spine tilting left—we call that side bend. That will shift the low point of your swing in front of the ball so you hit the ball, then the ground. You’ll love that crisp impact, and your confidence will soar because you won’t be worrying about the next iffy lie.

That move—left shoulder toward left hip—also causes your upper body to turn open slightly. Perfect, because that brings your arms and the club back in front of your body, which is another key to avoiding fat shots. Golfers blame fat contact on a steep, choppy swing, but a shallow swing will often skim the ground before impact—and that’s fat, too. The common denominator is, the club hits the ground too soon. Driving your left shoulder forward will prevent that and add compression to your strikes.

So get the ball in the right spot, set your weight in your arches, and focus on that left shoulder. You’ll have the pieces in place to hit it solid—and beat those muddy lies. Come on, spring!

BUTTONS TO THE BALL Focus on two positions at address: (1) Weight in the arches of your feet, never on your toes; (2) Ball just ahead of your shirt buttons (for a middle iron).

TURN INTO YOUR RIGHT SIDE Let your weight shift to the heel of your right foot, and be ready to drive forward. What you do next will determine how solidly you strike the ball.

LEFT SHOULDER TO LEFT HIP This is the key move for solid contact: Drive your left shoulder toward your left hip to start down. When you feel like your spine is tilting left, you’ve got it.

Michael Breed is Golf Digest’s Chief Digital Instructor.

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Link to article: Click here

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Membership Bonuses Before February 28th!

LOOKING FOR MORE OPPORTUNITIES TO PLAY GOLF IN 2019?

Become a member at Irish Hills!

We are offering many deals to existing and new members.

We have always viewed our members at Irish Hills as part of the family.  Not a member yet?  We welcome the opportunity to get to know you better, help your game improve, and have a lot of fun with new friends.

At Irish Hills, we care about making every round enjoyable. How? We are always willing to give you tips and advice for what you are looking for to improve. We even invite our members to play in our groups. We care about you, your game, and we love celebrating your success!

SO WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?
LET’S DO THIS!

 Fill out the form below for more information, prices, or general questions you may have.

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HURRY, SOME DEALS ARE FIRST COME FIRST SERVE!

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New members who buy a 7-Day Membership with Cart before February 28th

SAVE $300!

But that’s not all…

The first Irish Dozen (13 People) to purchase a 7-Day Membership with Cart and get a free Callaway Golf Bag

Discount + Golf Bag = $500 savings!

*New members only , must be 7-Day Membership with a cart

Memberships start as low as $700 and offer proshop discounts and exclusive lesson rates.

Choose between Single, Single with Cart, Couple, and Couple with Cart. Valid from date of purchase until December 31st, 2019.

EXISTING MEMBERS: 7-Day Membership now includes WEEKLY LEAGUE Green Fees! 
*Excludes Outings & Events

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New members who buy a 5-Day Membership with Cart before February 28th

GET LEAGUES INCLUDED!

Looking to get out on the course during the weekdays? This membership is for you!

Memberships start as low as $500 and offer proshop discounts and exclusive lesson rates.

Choose between Single, Single with Cart, Couple, and Couple with Cart. Valid from date of purchase until December 31st, 2019.

*5-Day Membership excludes Weekends & Holidays, Leagues, and Events (Leagues included if purchased before February 28th).

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MORE TO COME

-12 Member Event opportunities

– Clover Card Special

Don’t miss out on your opportunity to be a part of these great deals.  Let’s Do This!

PLAY IRISH and become a Member in 2019!

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Brooks Koepka sounds off on Bryson DeChambeau, fellow players’ slow play: Hitting a golf ball “Is not that hard…it’s kind of embarrassing”

A  host of players have defended professional golf from its stigma of slow play. Brooks Koepka isn’t one of them.

Pace of play has increasingly become an issue for the sport’s top circuits, and it was in the spotlight again over the weekend thanks to Bryson DeChambeau’s deliberate pre-shot preparation at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic.

Both Koepka and DeChambeau are playing in this week’s European Tour event in Saudi Arabia. Speaking on Golf Monthly’s podcast to Michael Weston, Koepka was asked about his thoughts on the criticism DeChambeau and other players have received for slow play. The three-time major winner did not sugarcoat his response.

Read More Here

Source: Golf Digest

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Tiger Woods opens as a Torrey Pines favorite

Keep Your Golf Resolutions in 2019

5 tips to help you keep your golf resolutions in 2019

The new year has arrived and a lot of you golfers out there might be uttering the words, “new year, new me.”

Most of us make New Year’s resolutions and, unfortunately, most of us fail to see them through for all 365 days.

If your resolution involved improving your golf game in 2019, here’s a list of things you can do every day/week — even if you’re in the bitter cold like a lot of folks right now — to help you achieve those goals.

And, once it warms up in your area, you can take all five of these drills outside.

5. Exercise. Yeah, we know. That’s what we should be doing every day anyway, right? But when it comes to golf, you don’t want to be tight. There are a number of stretches you can do right from your desk while reading emails that will benefit your arms, shoulders, neck, back, hips and legs for golf season.

Even better, place one of those handy, elastic, tension bands in the top drawer of your desk.

4. Take 100 swings per day in your house or garage… without a golf ball. The best players in the world visualize the shot they want to hit before they hit it. With a drill like this one, you’re going to be forced to visualize, because there’s no ball there to hit. If you’re able, place a mirror in front of you and pay attention to the positions of your address, takeaway, the top of your swing and impact position as well as follow through. Do it in slow motion. Become an expert on your swing.

3. Work on your chipping. Can’t do it outside? No worries. You can purchase a chipping net, or even put down a hula-hoop as a target. Get a few foam golf balls and a tiny turf mat to hit the balls off of.

Will it produce the same feel as a real golf ball? Of course not. But what it will do is force you to focus on a target and repeat the same motion over and over. After a long layoff, “touch,” is the first thing that goes for all golfers.

This will help you to work on some semblance of touch all winter long.

2. Practice your putting. Anywhere. All you need is a putter, a golf ball, a flat surface and an object — any object — to putt at. If you’re so inclined, rollout turf can be purchased for around $20 with holes cut out.

Since the greens are where you’re going to take most of your strokes, doesn’t it make sense to dial that in whenever possible? It can be fun too. Does your significant other, roommate, or child play? Have regular putting contests.

The feel you gain during those sessions may not seem like much, but man will they come in handy when your season begins on the real grass.

1. Make a weekly appointment with your PGA Professional. Even in areas of the country that are suffering through the cruelest of winter conditions, you can always find a place to hit golf balls inside. Contact your local PGA Professional to find out where places like this in your area exist. You might be surprised at all the options you have.

Learn about lessons with Irish Hills

Source: pga.com

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2019’s Biggest Rule Changes

With the new year comes new rules…here are 2019’s most important changes to the rules of golf.

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