Cart Path Relief

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A golf course without cart paths is a rarity.

Knowing your rights is a necessity.

First, a player is entitled to relief from the cart path in any of these situations: 1) the ball is in contact with the cart path, 2) a player’s normal stance is in contact with the cart path, or 3) the player’s swing is interfered with by the cart path (e.g. the ball is resting close enough to the edge of the path that the club head will contact the path during the swing).

Second, relief from the cart path is an “entitlement” not a “requirement.” If for some reason a player prefers not to seek relief from the cart path, they may play the ball as it lays.

Third, here is how we go about determining our relief: 1) leave the ball (temporarily) where you found it. Then, 1) Use a marker (coin or tee) to identify the nearest point (no closer to the hole) the ball could be placed where the cart path no longer interferes with your swing and stance. 2) Holding the ball at knee height the player must drop the ball at this point or any point within a club’s length of this point (no closer to the hole). 3) As long as the dropped ball does not roll more than two club lengths, does not roll closer to the hole, nor rolls back onto the cart path, the ball is now in play.

Remember the above and you’ll be on the right path to handle the cart path.

note: Obstructions and relief are addressed in rule 24 of the USGA’s Rules of Golf. These are expanded upon in the USGA’s Decision on The Rules of Golf page 386. If you consult the Decisions, be advised that the diagram on page 386 is misprinted with the points printed 5 mm too far to the left.

Enjoy the thrill of hitting better shots!

Heartland Golf Schools

St. Louis

Better Putts from a Better Fit

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You may be familiar with the phrase, “Its the Indian not the arrows”. Golfers often use this expression to convey that most errant shots are more often a matter of the player than a matter of their clubs.

However, sometimes it is a matter of the arrows (i.e. our clubs). Most commonly, club problems are less a matter of their brand and more often a matter of how they fit us. We find that one of the most commonly misfit clubs is the putter. The most common problem with the putter is that the shaft has not been sized and is too long. We wind up re-sizing the putters of about 60% of our players. Most in-stock putters have a grip size and shaft length for men 6′ and taller. Both because few shops carry a selection of women’s putters and because women often inherit their putters from male players, women are the most frequent victims of mis-fit putters.

A putter that is too long results in any of three perfomance-robbing outcomes:

  • The player must get use to holding the putter out from their body which reduces their natural balance and stability. They are more likely to sway and wobble during their putt.

  • If the player does not hold the putter out from their body the length of the shaft cramps their arms and hands in too close to their body denying them the accuracy of a free flowing swing,

  • Perhaps most importantly, a putter that is too long denies the player the critical advantage of putting with their eyes DIRECTLY over the line of the putt.

While determining the optimal fit for a putter is a simple matter, it is a more demanding task than we would want to attempt in this article. There is a preliminary way you can check your putter to see if it is seriously misfits you:

  • Using a two foot piece of tape or string to represent the line of a putt, set up the putter on this line in your regular putting stance.

  • While being careful not to move your head, release your upper hand from the putter and use it to drop a golf ball from the bridge of your nose.

  • Watch were it lands relative to that line. Repeat these steps a few times. If the ball doesn’t drop very near the line, its time to take that putter in for adjustment so your eyes are over the line.

If the eyes are not over the line you are making putting more difficult. Many players find that they are standing too far away from the line. When they attempt to move closer they find that the putter grip is rubbing against their clothing or their arms are not free to hang comfortably. If you find this to be true, your putter needs to be re-sized.

While the expense is nominal, you will find the benefit “phe-nomenal”.

Enjoy the thrill of hitting better shots!

Heartland Golf Schools

St. Louis

Buying A New Set of Irons

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We walk into the golf store and there they are. Lined up along the walls, sleek and shiny sets of irons that have the appearance of elegant instruments. We succumb to their beckoning and take one that is most attractive down from its perch. With our hands embracing its fresh grip, visions of wonderful shots rush through our heads.

Too often that’s the extent of our decision process. For the more conscientious buyer, the process may include a discussion with store personnel about who uses the club on tour, what are the most popular sellers, and what does that person think about these clubs. Sometimes we will even hit some ball with the club and watch the flight projected on a big screen.

There are other factors to consider. Important ones. Here are 3 of 6 considerations when making a selection:

1. Where is the clubs center of gravity (CG)? If there was one “most important” characteristic of the club this would be it. The CG is the most important factor determine how solid the ball feels, how easily the club gets the ball in the air
BOTTOM LINE: the lower the CG the better.

2. What is the clubs moment of inertia (MOI)? If we can combine a low CG with a high MOI we are talking about an optimally forgiving club. The MOI increases as we move weight from the middle of the club out to the toe and heel (perimeter weighting).
BOTTOM LINE: the weight should be distributed around the perimeter and the CG should be as rearward as possible.

3. Imagining a line that runs down through the center of the shaft and right through the bottom of the golf club, what is the distance behind that line where the leading edge of the club begins? Between and eighth and quarter of an inch is considered a moderate offset. This offset is considered to be a game improvement feature.
BOTTOM LINE: look for offset.

4. Forged or cast? Test results have proved that excellent golfers have been unable to tell the difference in the feel between forged and cast clubs built to comparable specifications. Forged are generally more expensive and have higher aesthetic value. Cast are more readily consistent in their performance from two iron through wedge.

BOTTOM LINE: if you have narrowed you choices down to two models that are comparable on the above points 1 – 3 and one of the choice is forged and the other is cast, choose the one that is the prettiest or the one that fits your wallet the best.

5. Shaft. Steel and graphite shafts can be equally stiff and equally flexible. The graphite shaft is typically lighter and therefore may allow the player to achieve more club speed. The important feature of the shaft is its flexibility. Since the shaft actually bends “forward” as it approaches the ball the loft of the clubface is increased and therefore the ball will have a steeper trajectory. For slower speed swings a more flexible shaft can mean extra distance.

6. When considering a new set of irons, consider a set consisting of 6 iron through sand wedge. Get hybrids for yardages between 6 iron and 3 wood.

BOTTOM LINE: Get hybrids/fairway woods

BOTTOM BOTTOM Line:
1. New clubs are not the answer for a troubled swing.
2. Buying clubs are like buying tennis shoes. Choose the ones with the features that you want and then be certain to have someone who is trained fit them for you.

 

Enjoy the thrill of hitting better shots!

Heartland Golf Schools

St. Louis

Adjusting the trajectory of the ball

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There is seldom a round played in which there is not at least one shot where you would like to adjust the trajectory of the ball. You would like it to travel a “little” higher or lower. Too often players get so caught up with making adjustments to accomplish this that they do not make a good swing.

Here is a simple way to accomplish the task without getting in the way of making a good swing.

When you want to have the ball travel one club higher (i.e. the difference between a 7 iron and an 8 iron) play the ball one ball forward from your standard setup. It is important to note that in this case you want the club to be positioned at setup in its normal position. That will put the equivalent of one ball’s diameter between where the club is and where the ball is. When you make your swing the club will arrive down to its normal position. When it gets there it will not find the ball. It then continues moving forward and upward. An instant later, as it is ascending and the clubface is slightly more lofted it will find the ball and send it slightly higher.

  • This ball will travel slightly left

  • This ball will be about one club higher and the distance will be about ½ club shorter.

When you want to have the ball travel one club lower, play the ball rearward by the diameter of one ball. In this case the club at address is placed directly behind the ball as it would be normally. Because the ball is back in your stance, the shaft will be leaning slightly forward.

  • This ball will travel slightly right of target

  • This ball will be about one club lower and the distance will be about ½ club longer.

Enjoy the thrill of hitting better shots!

Heartland Golf Schools

At the Core of COR (Coefficient of Restitution)

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The former land speed world record holder Bobby Thompson once said, “Too much speed is never enough.” For golfers this could translate as “too much distance is never enough.” Golfers are always attentive when it comes to driving the ball further. And so it was of no surprise that the design of “hot drivers” gets a lot of press coverage.

These drivers are deemed hot because of their “coefficient of restitution” (COR) numbers. Put simply this is a measure of the speed of a ball departing the club face relative to the speed of the club. When a club arrives at the ball at 100 mph and the ball leaves the club face at 83 mph, the club measures a COR of .83. The USGA has now raised the allowable COR to .86.

Before you rush out to lay down a few Ben Franklins on a new high COR driver, give a moment to consider the following:

  • If your driver swing speed is less than 100 mph and you have an .83 COR driver, moving to a .86 you gain three to five yards

  • If your driver is several years old its COR could be in the .76-.80 range. Stepping up to a .86 could mean 10 yards or more. Now we’re talking one less club for your second shot and a tighter landing pattern.

  • However, if you don’t hit the “hot spot” (that portion of the club face with the high COR) the gain will be less.

  • Driving the ball further demands better accuracy.       Adding ten yards to a drive that would have stopped five paces short of the rough now means a drive that carries the rough. If you don’t hit it straight, you definitely don’t want to hit it far.

Bottom Line: Higher COR can mean longer drives. Before you buy a high COR driver, buy some “impact tape” ($2). With a strip of it on your driver, you’ll be able to see how often you are hitting the ball with the center of the club face. Improve center contacts and all of your present clubs will send your shots further and straighter.

 

Enjoy the thrill of hitting better shots!

Heartland Golf Schools

St. Louis

A Margin for Success

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The Problem.

Why do many good players not hit a driver off every par 4 and par 5? Surely they aren't worried about overshooting the green. Why not aim at every pin? Isn't that where we want the ball to end up? We need to have a strategy that tells us when the most obvious shot is the wrong shot. We need to have a strategy to take on the course that builds in a "margin for success".

The Solution.

Here's a simple way do this. The next time you are at the practice tee, pick out a target for full swings with a wedge. Hit a dozen golf balls and note how far each of them land from the target (only count good swings). What was the average distance they landed from the target? For a typical golfer (16 handicap and above), they will find that their margin for success is about 8% of the distance to the target. So for a 100-yard shot their margin is 8 yards. Practically speaking, when they hit a wedge to a flag their good swings will land the ball within an 8 yard circle (24 feet) around the cup. For a 150 yard shot the circle grows to 36 feet.

Take Away.

So when we are getting ready to pick our target, draw the appropriate circle around it. If the flag is tucked against one side of the green and the 24-foot circle encompasses a green-side bunker, that would not be a flag we would shoot at. The same reasoning goes for your tee shot.

If your not sure of the percentage of margin your game deserves, start with 8% and adjust after a round or two. Always go for the best target unless trouble lies within your "margin for success".

Enjoy the thrill of hitting better shots!
Heartland Golf Schools
St. Louis