IRON CLAD FUNDAMENTAL NO. 2:  ALWAYS SET UP AT ADDRESS WITH NEAR PERFECT POSTURE

This is another iron clad fundamental you can master, do consistently and control as well as any pro. This is to have perfect or near perfect posture at address.  

So how do you do it?  The answer is CUBOAH.  Stand to the ball with your 

1.  Chin Up

2.  Butt out

3.  Arms Hanging.

1.  Chin up:  This keeps you from slumping over the ball.  You need a straight back and keeping your chin up helds a lot.

2. Butt Out:  You bend over slightly at address by sticking your butt out and slighly flexing your knees.  Again this will keep your spine and back straight.  

3.  Arms Hang:  People get very confused about how close or far they should stand away from the ball.  All you have to do is close your eyes, have your butt protruding behind you so that you bend slightly over with a straight back, and your arms should loosely hang down from there. That is all you need to do.  It puts your hands about 4" to 5" away from your legs.  Letting your arms hang naturally results in you neither reaching for the ball or standing too crowded into the ball.  

Do these three steps and you will have all the posture you will need to make a good golf swing.

Do You Want to Putt Well?  

Get the two or three key fundamentals down and start looking for 30 putts per round!

Go To Amazon.com and order your copy of "Breakthrough in Golf" Today!  

Chapter 9 Has It All!  Become a Master of Putting!

 A NEW SERIES - IRON CLAD FUNDAMENTALS

Today, we start a new instructional series for golfers who do not want to waste their time on "noise" such as tips, fads and current swing trends.  Instead we will focus on a series of rock bottom golf skill fundamentals that will propel steady and fast improvement in your golf game skills, from swing soundness to shotmaking, to short game play to putting.  We will present a fresh lesson every week.  So let's get started!  

This week's first lesson is correct alignment.  Why start with that iron clad fundamental?  Because it is the ONE fundamental that is crystal clear and easy to learn and crystal clear to get right every single shot.  It is the one fundamental in your golf swing you can exert full 100% control over whatever your skill level may be.  And if you do not do it, no matter what your level of skill is, it has disatrous negative effects on your shotmaking.  Even the PGA Tour Pros.  And not doing so for everyone who plays is not an excuse, because we all can do it.  So what is the key rule and how do we insure we do it?  

IRON CLAD FUNDAMENTAL NO. 1:  NEVER NOT LINE UP PERFECTLY!

The critical need to align correctly at address should be obvious - the clubhead is being slung into the impact zone at impact at over 100 mph, and is,in terms of physics, not different than a balanced tire on an automobile.  If it is out of balance, it's bad, really bad. When it is properly aligned, the clubhead heads down the target line as it compresses the ball at impact and it is great - or even wonderful!  Friends, It is that simple.  And you must have the clubhead at impact be slung into the back of the ball in an aligned state, which is a clubface squarely facing down the target line of the ball, and a downswing path that runs perfectly along the target line.  These two physics points are key, and there is no if ands or buts.

So how does that happen or look like?  The grip is important for sure to square the clubface at impact, but we are now talking about set up and stance as you address the shot.  So how does set up get done correctly to insure a clubpath that is aiken to a well balanced tire traveling at over 100 miles per hour?  

The secret is "Railroad Tracks"  You should think of the impact swing path as a clubhead traveling along a railroad track that is completely parallel to your stance and your feet on an alighment line that is completely parallel to your swing path as governed by your target.  You have to have your feet perfectly parallel to your ball flight pathway.  SEE ILLUSTRATION 3.2 IN BREAKTHROUGH IN GOLF (AVAILABLE ON AMAZON).

How does that happen?  It happens by your ingraining the habit of setting up fully aligned parallel to the parallel target line and clubhead path, and that is done EVERY SINGLE SHOT YOU EVER HIT ON THE PRACTICE RANGE WITH AN ALIGNMENT STICK ON ONE SIDE OF THE BALL CLOSEST TO YOU AND ONE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE BALL.  YOU LITERALLY LAY DOWN RAILROAD TRACKS ON EACH SIDE OF YOUR PRACTICE SHOT GOLF BALL.  IF YOU DON'T HAVE ALIGNMENT STICKS, THEN USE TWO CLUBS TO PUT DOWN THE RAILROAD TRACKS.  

This is not an optional habit.  Almost every tour professional lays down at least one alignment stick on the practice tee if not one on each side of the ball.  Some even lay down three sticks or clubs, one on the outside ot the ball, one between the ball and your feet and one for your toes.  But you have to do at least one to make sure your feet are parallel to the target line indicated by the railroad track, and clubhead path at impact, and you have to do it for EVERY SINGLE PRACTICE SHOT YOU EVER HIT.  OTHERWISE, THE HABIT OF PERFECT OR SOLID ALIGNMENT WILL NEVER COME INTO YOUR GOLF GAME. YOU CANNOT AFFORD TO LEAVE THAT ON THE TABLE!

IT IS THE ONE THING AND ONE OF THE VERY FEW THINGS YOU CAN TOTALLY CONTROL IN GOLF - GOLF IS VERY HARD TO CONTROL ONCE YOUR GOLF SWING IS STARTED.  BUT YOU CAN ENSURE GREAT ALIGNMENT OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN.  ELIMINATING THE VARIABLE OF FEET AND STANCE MIS-ALIGNMENT BEFORE YOU START YOUR SWING IS HUGE!  IT IS THE ONE "MUST DO" FUNDAMENTAL YOU MUST ADOPT AND CAN ADOPT THAT WILL BE JUST AS EFFECTIVE AS WHAT THE PROS DO.  THINK LONG AND HARD ABOUT THAT