I once gave a golf lesson to someone who desperately needed help with his consistency when driving the golf ball. When he swung, as the golf club went back, so did he, and then he slid back over to his right side. Now, from there you have to be extremely talented to match up the club face with your body, because you’re just going to slide right back into it.

This reminded me of when I was little and the lesson my mother used to give me. A number of years ago, because I was so small when I was younger, I used to drive the golf ball sliding backwards. And I did it so many times I got pretty good at it.

But at one point, when I was probably 12 years old, my mother used a golf swing training aid that I will never forget. There was an aluminum garbage can on the back of the practice facility at Fort Myers Country Club, and I remember it very well.

My mother went and got it one day and brought it over to the pile of balls that I was standing across from. She made me climb into it and hit balls while standing inside.

I hit balls for two weeks and she teed up every golf ball for me. And as you can tell, if you use your imagination, by using this golf swing training aid, it helped me to stop moving away from the golf ball. It made me start turning around, and that changed everything for my driver.

I didn’t hit it as far, but I hit it a lot more solid, and eventually, I got my length back.

So, if you’re struggling, if some of your friends are saying to you that they see you sliding, use a golf swing training aid of your own, or use your imagination and feel as though you’ve stepped into a garbage can so you can feel the club go around and have your body turn around and not slide back and forth.

If you’re struggling with sliding, think of the aluminum garbage can.

Thanks.

Bobby Eldridge is the Head Instructor for the PurePoint Golf Academy where he teaches “The Simple Golf Swing” theory. You can check out PurePoint Golf instructional DVDs at http://www.golfswingguru.com/index15.htm

I’m going to tell you the most common fault with a driver. It’s slicing it, that’s a given.

But let me tell you the reason why I believe that so many people slice it. If you turn when you go back and you swing your arms up, in the downswing the arms have to come first.

So many amateurs open the shoulder up in the downswing. And that makes the golf club cut across it.

From the top the arms swing first, and your shoulder never opens.

So, let me teach you something that I think will help fix a golf slice.

I cannot tell you how many golf balls I have hit with my feet and knees touching each other and making normal, real golf swings. Everything else stays the same.

It is a wonderful way for you to start feeling that the arms swing away from the body. And they aren’t connected to it when you turn into it with the left shoulder.

The arms are free to swing past you and you don’t have to worry about the body.

You can play golf that way. I shot 71 on a really good golf course ten years ago with my feet and knees touching each other the whole way around.

You will hit about 80% of your regular length this way but have 100% better contact with the golf ball and fix your golf slice.

Give that a try the next time out.

Thanks.

Bobby Eldridge is the Head Instructor for the PurePoint Golf Academy where he teaches “The Simple Golf Swing” theory. You can check out PurePoint Golf instructional DVDs at http://www.golfswingguru.com/index15.htm

Of course, when you’re learning how to play golf there’s a million different ways to address the golf ball because there’s millions of different people that play the game. But there are some absolute musts that you have to try to do to try to get in different positions at address.

Now, bad posture would be where the knees are too straight: no bend at the hip and the back is too straight. This doesn’t work, I promise you. This posture, you probably would hit a lot of pop-ups with your driver and hit the ground a lot with your irons.

The complete opposite would be where the knees are flexed too much and you’re bent way over at the hips and you slouch your shoulders. This doesn’t work either. This one creates hitting ground behind it and topping.

So, there’s somewhere in the middle where one of these postures has to be about right, so let me give it to you.

Slightly flex your knees. Put two index fingers on your hip bones, and tilt over your belt buckle or tilt over your waistline. But don’t let the shoulders slouch. Keep the shoulders back.

From here you can then turn and the golf club will be on plane.

If you try this when learning how to play golf, I promise you, this will help you.

Thanks.

Bobby Eldridge is the Head Instructor for the PurePoint Golf Academy where he teaches “The Simple Golf Swing” theory. You can check out PurePoint Golf instructional DVDs at http://www.golfswingguru.com/index15.htm

I’m going to tell you a great way to become your best teacher.

The next time you go to the practice facility, pick out a nice green patch of grass. And after you have hit balls for 10 or 15 minutes, walk back behind the golf ball and look and see where your divots are going.

If these divots are going to the left, that means your club head is coming out to in and across the golf ball.

On the other hand, if after a few minutes of practicing you look up and see that you have divots going to the right, or that you’re hitting the ball real thin, this divot would tell me that you’re swinging too much from in to out.

So, here’s a golf swing tip that will tell you how to correct it.

For those of you that find that the divots are going left, every time you get ready to hit a golf ball, simply put this club along your shoulder line and check to make sure that you’re not aiming miles over to the left. That’s probably what you’re doing. You’re standing with your shoulders aimed left and that’s why you’re seeing divots going to the left.

If you’re hitting golf balls for a few minutes and you see your divots going to the right, your shoulders are probably way over to the right.

So, here’s another golf swing tip that will help you correct it.

For those of you that discover your shoulders are going left, put the ball back in your stance a little bit.

For those of you that find out that your shoulders are aimed way right, put the ball a little further forward in your stance.

Try those golf swing tips the next time you’re out and I promise they’ll help you.

Bobby Eldridge is the Head Instructor for the PurePoint Golf Academy where he teaches “The Simple Golf Swing” theory. You can check out PurePoint Golf instructional DVDs at http://www.golfswingguru.com/index15.htm

There are so many drivers on the market today that you often get confused over what you should own. So, let me give you some pearls on what to think about when hitting a golf driver and what will help you in the future when you go to purchase a driver.

For starters, for the ladies, they don’t give you a lot of choices. They give you a Lady’s Shaft with a ten- or twelve-degree loft head on it.

So, if you’re a little bit taller that the average height lady and you’re strong enough, make sure to get the next shaft up, which is usually an A shaft, it’s a Senior Shaft. It’s nicknamed a Senior Shaft. It’s a little bit longer and it’s a little bit heavier, but you should be able to handle it.

Now, for the weekend golfer, the amateur, that’s maybe a hundred shooter that’s not very strong, there’s a shaft out and it has an R on it. It’s called Regular.

Now, that covers a large group of people. It covers the newer golfer that’s not very strong, all the way up to lady players that are good, long, and strong hitters when hitting a golf driver. So, that R Shaft fits in all of those categories.

The next step would be the real good players, maybe the 7 or 8 handicappers and lower, and the younger players. The shaft has an S on it.

Now, these letters that I’m telling you, L for ladies, A for seniors, R regular, S stiff, that’s the flex in them.

What this means is that when hitting a golf driver, if your speed of swing is fast enough, that makes the shaft flex at the right point.

And lastly, for the real good players, or the young and strong players, some shafts have an X on them. That means that it’s really tough to bend. You have to be really strong.

Let’s talk a little bit about the head. The loft on the head ranges anywhere from six degrees to twelve degrees, and all that means is that how much loft is on the face of the golf club. The more loft, the more backspin. The more backspin, the higher it goes.

The flatter the face, the less loft, the more it will curve left or right. So, if you have a driver that’s, let’s say, a 12 and you slice it all the time, you’ll probably want to find one that says 14.

If you have a driver that says 6 1/2 and you’re a great driver of the golf ball, keep it. But if you curve the ball, make sure that you get a driver that has more loft, not less loft.

The grip: 99% of the grips come in a standard size. So, if you’re a lady with real tiny fingers and hands, make sure that you get a Junior Grip.

If you’re a man that has real tiny fingers or hands, get the Ladies Grip.

If you’re a real strong player and you have large hands and you hook the golf ball, get a Regular Grip or a Jumbo Grip.

But if you get a Regular Grip, get it built up.

So, I think that may give you some insight into what’s out there. I’m a big fan of graphite. Unless you’re a real young, strong player stay away from steel. It’s too heavy. And the performance of graphite these days is just incredible.

I think that gives you some information that you may not have been aware of and it’ll help you select your driver the next time you’re looking for one.

Thanks.

Bobby Eldridge is the Head Instructor for the PurePoint Golf Academy where he teaches “The Simple Golf Swing” theory. You can check out PurePoint Golf instructional DVDs at http://www.golfswingguru.com/index15.htm

In case you’re not sure about what clubs to use when you’re chipping, I have some advice to give you for your golf short game. I’ve been a big advocate of using a 5, 7, and a 9: a 9-iron for your short chip shots, a 7-iron for your medium length chip shots, and a 5-iron for your longer chip shots.

The reason? Because you can use one golf swing, and let the different golf clubs control the distance.

For instance, a 9-iron chip shot will make the golf ball go about 30 feet. Now, that doesn’t mean that it’s 30 feet for everybody in the world. Some of you might only chip your 9-iron chip shots 15 feet. Some of you might go 35.

But the way I like to do it is on an average-size green. My 9-iron chip shots go to the front third, my 7-iron goes to the middle third, and the 5-iron goes to the back third.

So, for your golf short game, if you use the same golf swing, but change to a 7-iron, you will see the difference is in the length that the golf ball goes. It’s the same golf swing, but now, the golf ball will go maybe 50 feet. And, lastly, if you use your 5-iron, it’ll go maybe 100 feet.

Here’s another thing that will be helpful for your golf short game. If you’re in the front of the green and it’s a steep green and the pin is in the middle of the green, maybe you chip that with a 5-iron, because it’s so steep.

If you’re on a flat green, 9-iron, 7-iron, 5-iron.

If you’re on a steep green and you’re in the back, maybe a 9-iron for all the different distances coming down the hill, because it’s so much quicker.

The next time you’re out, try that.

Bobby Eldridge is the Head Instructor for the PurePoint Golf Academy where he teaches “The Simple Golf Swing” theory. You can check out PurePoint Golf instructional DVDs at http://www.golfswingguru.com/index15.htm

Let me tell you something that will play a major, major role in whether you can make solid contact with your chip shots. I’m going to tell you how to use the correct golf swing when chipping and it has to do with the backswing.

There are two ways that you could swing the golf club back when you’re chipping that are incorrect, and there’s one correct golf swing.

There are the two ways that you possibly could be doing it wrong after you’ve gotten all ready and all set up.

If the golf club travels too much inside, away from the golf ball, that means the golf club didn’t go up in the air.

When it goes inside, it stays too low to the ground. If you do that, you’ll hit tops to the right, or you’ll hit the ground behind it.

Those of you that are hitting the ground behind it or thin tops to the right, it has to do with the club going too much inside.

Now, here’s a mistake that few people make, but you could be one of them. If the golf club goes outside, you’ll go up in the air too much, and if you do that, you’ll pull to the left and hit it low and flat to the left.

If you stand correctly, with the ball in the middle and a little weight left, and use the correct golf swing, the golf club travels straight back. Okay, so it goes just a hair inside, but mostly straight back with just a little, tiny curve inside on the way back.

And then you’ll be able to make solid contact. Not too much inside in the backswing and not on the outside, but straighter back with just a slight curve to the inside.

That’s your backswing when you’re chipping.

Bobby Eldridge is the Head Instructor for the PurePoint Golf Academy where he teaches “The Simple Golf Swing” theory. You can check out PurePoint Golf instructional DVDs at http://www.golfswingguru.com/index15.htm

I’m going to describe two very different golf shots to you. One is called a pitch shot with loft, and the other is called a chip shot with run. Now what’s the difference?

Well, first of all, sometimes the pin is in a situation where you have to go over an uneven lie, or you have to go over the edge of a bunker, or you have to go over a little tree and you need it to stop a little quicker.

So, you take out your loftier golf club, your lob wedge or your sand wedge. Put the ball in the middle of your stance, a little weight left and swing your arms up and down. And after it hits the green, it will slow down and stop because it has so much loft on it.

Now, for a chip shot, or a bump and run shot, it’s the same golf shot, but it’s done with a pitching wedge, or you could even use a 9 iron.

In this situation, the pin is in the back of the green and there is no trouble in front of you. So, you put the ball in the middle of your stance, put a little weight on your left leg, and swing your arms up and down. But because you did it with a pitching wedge, the shot takes off flatter and runs more.

Now, some of you get confused because the pin is in the back of the green and you want it to run, but you use your sand wedge or your lob wedge. That won’t happen. That won’t run.

So, make sure in the future when you need a running chip shot, use a pitching wedge and put the ball in the middle of your stance. And if you really want it to run a lot, put it in the back of your stance.

Thanks and have a great day.

Bobby Eldridge is the Head Instructor for the PurePoint Golf Academy where he teaches “The Simple Golf Swing” theory. You can check out PurePoint Golf instructional DVDs at http://www.golfswingguru.com/index15.htm

I have a great tip for you that’s going to end all the doubt you had in your mind about golf setup and where the golf ball goes in your stance. It’s called ball position.

A lot of amateurs, unfortunately, address the golf ball, what I call, backwards. They come in and they put their feet down and try to aim where they’re going, either down the fairway or towards the pin, and then they just stand to the golf club that they’re holding onto. Sometimes their golf setup is too far back and sometimes it’s too far forward.

Other amateurs do this. They like to play all of their shots off their front foot. Some like to play all their shots off the middle of their stance. But let me tell you something, and I think this is really going to help you.

This weekend if you’re sitting around watching TV, watch the tour players and watch how they come up and they grip the golf club first, they take a look at where they’re going, and then they stand to the golf club that they’re using.

For instance, put the butt of the pitching wedge across from your belt buckle, and stand to the golf club with the face square and your shoulders going where you want them to go.

What that does is put the golf ball in the middle of your stance for your pitching wedge. Now, keep that stance with your 7 iron.

Now, the 7 iron is three inches longer than the pitching wedge. If you just stand there and grip it with your shoulders square, look how the golf ball is just starting to move forward in your stance over towards your left heel, and it’s about three inches apart.

Now, pick up your long iron and do the same thing. Keep your shoulders square, don’t move your stance, and grip the golf club. And all of a sudden, the long iron starts to move even further forward.

Lastly, watch this. During golf setup, when you hold your driver in your hand. If you just put the butt of the club across your belt buckle, put the club on the ground the way it was built in the factory and stand across from it with your shoulders square, that puts the golf ball across from your left foot.

It’s not complicated, but remember this: During golf setup, stand to the handle of the golf club. Don’t address the golf ball first, but address the golf club to the ball and then take your stance.

Bobby Eldridge is the Head Instructor for the PurePoint Golf Academy where he teaches “The Simple Golf Swing” theory. You can check out PurePoint Golf instructional DVDs at http://www.golfswingguru.com/index15.htm

If you had to rate golf shots on degree of difficulty, personally, I would think fairway bunkers is a top five. There’s no question about it. I’m going to share with you a golf swing technique to help you with this shot.

One of the main reasons some of you struggle with fairway bunkers is when you have a long fairway shot, a Par 5, you’ve hit the fairway bunker in 1 shot and now you want to reach the green in 2, so, you pull out your trusty fairway wood.

There’s a problem with that. The sole on the bottom of a fairway wood, a metal wood, is a lot wider than that of an iron; let’s say the 8 iron. The sole on the 8 iron is about, maybe a fifth or a fourth as wide as a 3 wood. This is what happens if you try to hit a fairway wood from a fairway bunker shot.

What you do is, as you start to swing down, the sole of the golf club catches the ground and makes the wood skid. A lot of times you’ll take a little too much sand and hit it 10 feet, or you’ll top it.

Fairway woods, metal woods, were not designed to be hit out of fairway bunkers. The reason is, if you take a normal golf swing and if you catch a little sand you won’t go far, or you’ll top it. That’s what your golf swing is designed to do is to run level with the ground.

Let me share with you a great golf swing technique that will help you in the future when you’re in the fairway bunker.

Using an 8 iron, if you play this golf ball in the middle of your stance and put a little weight on your left leg and put the handle of the golf club over towards your left side and swing your arms up and down, the ball will go near 125 yards.

The next time you’re in the fairway bunker, if you’re looking for 125 yards, try this golf swing technique and use a lofted club, a 7, 8, 6 iron. Put the ball in the middle of your stance, put a little weight to your left leg, swing your arms up and down, and feel the chop down on it for a 125-yard golf shot out of the bunker.

Try that tip.

Bobby Eldridge is the Head Instructor for the PurePoint Golf Academy where he teaches “The Simple Golf Swing” theory. You can check out PurePoint Golf instructional DVDs at http://www.golfswingguru.com/index15.htm