I guess that you will all have heard that old story of the desperate golfer who comes to Thailand and takes up a lesson with a local professional for help. The Thai golf professional asks the golf traveler to hit a few shots then says that he can see the problem: “You are standing too close to the ball – after you’ve hit it!”
But there is actually a serious fault that some of us have of standing too close to the ball at address. One of the reasons for this is because some people sole the club flat on the ground and then take their stance, assuming you are supposed to leave the club soled flat against the ground. This may sound logical, but the centrifugal force of the swing causes the toe to dip down – to prove this you can check your divots, they should be deeper towards the toe end.
So, when you set up, the toe should be higher than the heel, and that will move you a bit further away from the ball. At setup the distance between your hands and body should be at least 6 inches. Try if you can to keep this distance consistent.
This tip has oftentimes helped me to improve my golf ball striking consistency, always a welcome on course result. Let me know how it works for you by posting a comment or if you prefer just send me an email at my Thailand golf vacation company.
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2 Responses
Hi Mark, You are absolutely correct about this. Standing too close make one tend to “pull in” your arms and that brings inconsistency.
Thanks for all the articles through 2006. Have a great Christmas Season and an even better 2007. We will hopefully see you in August/September.
Great, a bit of theory. You say “check the divots, they should be deeper..” correctly it will be even depth after the advice has been taken and toe-deep before. Now would you say that I would be better off with more loft on my driver, it is 9.5, and I know the answer but it was on-sale and like everything else you can get what no one else wants. Is another way to hit softer balls? Do you think that the advantage of loft is that the spin is more so that the ball hangs longer? and if I got a softer ball would that make up for my slower swing speed ? The technology has got beyond me but I know that a driver is no longer expected to go low and long with a 30%run. I read in Peter Alliss’ book “The Weekender Gofers Companion” (or similar title) the average drive on a dry flat ground carries 180 yards and runs a further 60, that for me is a good drive but I was wondering if a modern “bat” might do better.