JohnHayesGolf.com Newsletter Golf Tip – June 2018
For your golf game: What tells you what club to use when you have a small shot around the green? THE LANDING SPOT tells you what club to use. The landing spot is the place where the ball first hits the ground after impact. Here is a simple rule of thumb to use: when your landing spot is MORE THAN HALF WAY to the hole you will likely need to use one of your wedges. This is generally called a pitch shot. When your landing spot is LESS THAN HALF WAY to the hole you can use your 9 iron, 8 iron, etc., all the way down to your putter. This is called a chip shot. So the technique does not need to change for these different shots; just let the different loft of the club produce the different shot for you. And it is great practice to hit a basic small shot around the practice green with all the clubs to see the different ways to ball reacts when going to the hole.
What should you consider when selecting your LANDING SPOT? FIRST – you would like the ball to land on the putting green if possible as this is the most consistent surface on a golf course. SECOND – you would like the ball to land on a level surface, if possible, that is large enough to give you some margin for error. THIRD – you want to roll the ball along the ground as much as possible. When your ball is on the putting green do you play a high, quick-stopping shot or a low running shot? Of course you putt and roll the ball along the ground.
Now that you have selected your club I want you to add something as part of your short game shot routine – VISUALIZE THE BALL ROLLING AND STOPPING AT YOUR TARGET. If you have a pitch shot where the ball is going to curve 4 feet to the right as it rolls to the hole then your target should be a spot, equidistant to the hole, and 4 feet left of the hole to account for this curve. So you see you need to pick your target carefully and VISUALIZE BEFORE YOU SWING.
I am taking a couple of more sign-ups for my SUMMER GOLF LESSON DEAL (8X8). In the month of JUNE and JULY you will get 8 private half-hour lessons and be able to attend 4 one-hour group supervised practice sessions (6/8, 6/22, 7/13 and 7/27) held on four Fridays from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. during that same timeframe. ALL THIS FOR ONLY $250. This is a savings of $110. There is a limit of only 8 golfers for this program and you can call, text or email me to sign up now. (727) 692-4679
Upcoming clinics and events: I will conduct a FOUR WEEK GOLF CLINIC on four consecutive Wednesday evenings this month, JUNE 6, 13, 20 and 27 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Week 1: Set PRIORITY after skill and swing assessment, Week 2: Set PRACTICE ROUTINE, Week 3: Set ON-COURSE ROUTINE and Week 4: PRACTICE and final skill assessment. For Men & Women all levels, 16 or older recommended. Total cost is only $80 and includes everything! Limit of 6 golfers, call/text or email.
My next LADIES-ONLY GOLF CLINIC will be held on 3 consecutive Saturday afternoons – JULY 14, 21, 28 from 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.. Cost is only $50 total for 4 and a half hours of instruction! It is good for beginners or newly dedicated golfers.
My next specialty clinic will be a SHORT GAME BOOT CAMP for 2 hours held on THURSDAY morning, JULY 19th from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. I will cover pitching/chipping, bunker play, putting, and fun games to practice effectively! Men or Ladies welcome. This is NOT for new beginners. There is a limit of only 3 students so call or email to sign up. Total cost is only $55.
Please call/text (727) 692-4679 or email, jh@johnhayesgolf.com, to sign up as space is limited for all clinics. Go to www.johnhayesgolf.com for more details.
** I will be conducting the Adult Golf Clinics every week on Friday mornings at 9:30 a.m. and on Saturday afternoons at 12:30 p.m. There is no sign up, just show up and cost is only $20 which includes a large bucket of range balls.
As always, please contact me with any questions or comments and I hope to see you soon on the lesson tee at the Chi Chi Golf Range & Sports Complex in beautiful Clearwater in the Tampa, FL area.