Which Golf Clubs?

Should They Stay Or Should They Go!

If you had to choose which group of clubs you had to take out of your bag, which would you choose? Group A - Your 3, 4 and 5 irons or Group B - Your Pitching Wedge and Sand Wedge

Which would you choose A or B?

Now if you chose Group A, you’re without the services of three clubs that’ll give you distance to get down the fairway and also give you the chance to hit the green from far away. These clubs are often referred to as Long Irons. And to many Golfers, their whole experience on the golf course is determined by “how I hit my Long Irons today”.

If you choose Group B, you’re without the services of two clubs that you can use to hit precise shots onto the green to set yourself up for a short putt. These clubs are often referred to as Wedges.

So which is going to be?

This is an important question, not because you’ll ever have to choose between the two groups to play in some whacky golf outing. It’s based on knowing where you should concentrate your limited practice time and when to give yourself some credit on the golf course for improvement.

For example – I know a Golfer that used to score in the upper 90’s and now scores in the mid 80’s. This would seem like joyous news to many upper 90’s Golfers; even grounds to pop a champagne cork in celebration - though this Golfer isn’t happy because he still can’t hit his Long Irons as consistent as he wants to.

So the question begs – is it more important for you to hit a certain group of clubs better or is it more important for you to improve more than 12 strokes per round?

Why did you want to improve how you hit those clubs in the first place?

Some Golfers are so dead-set on hitting certain clubs better, that they forget why they want to hit them better in the first place. If you feel that your Long Irons are holding you back from scoring better, though you score 12 strokes better despite your Long Irons – wouldn’t you be satisfied with your round? Is all sense of accomplishment lost? In your effort to promote continual improvement, there most be some acknowledgement that you have improved.

As hard as it is to believe – there’s a percentage of Golfers that aren’t satisfied with scoring 12 strokes better. Can you fathom that? Can you believe that a Golfer that was struggling with their golf game and upset that their scores aren’t where they want to be – would complain even though they’re scoring 12 shots better in less than a month?

How could you complain about anything?

It’s funny, many Golfers are so adamant that there’s one aspect of their game that’s holding them back from improving – it’s my wedges that are killing me or it’s my Long Irons that are holding me back or my Driver just messes up my entire game or if I could just putt. And these Golfers get so caught-up with the thought that this aspect of their game is holding them back from scoring – that they’re never satisfied until they hit the ball perfect 20 out of 20 times with their Long Irons. Even though the reason they wanted to improve these clubs in the first place was to improve their scores. Yet, the scores are improved – and I believe this was goal Numero Uno – yet, because this improvement in score had nothing to do with your Long Irons, you don’t consider it an accomplishment!

And I’m going on record to say that I’ve never heard such a crazy thing!

Yes, I agree if you’re having trouble with one aspect of your game, you should continue to try to improve it. Yes, we’ve always said that you’re only as strong as your weakest link. Though, if a 90’s Golfer improves 12 strokes in not 3 months, not 2 months, but less than a month – maybe what they thought was their weakest link wasn’t. Maybe their Instructor discovered what was truly their weakest link and helped that Golfer improve on it.

Suppose the Instructor decided to exclusively work-on this Golfer’s Long Irons – do you think this Golfer would improve 12 strokes in such a short period of time? Yet, this Golfer still is infatuated with his Long Irons to the point that may eventually be the downfall of his game. I believe it will get to the point when this Golfer soon starts giving back those 12 strokes because the focus will get away from what initiated the progress and go towards concentrating on their Long Irons.

When Golfers let their ego get in the way on the Golf Course and on the Practice Area – bad things happen! One of best attributes of our GMS Instructors is that they’re straight forward and will tell you when your ego is getting n the way of making a smart PLAN.

The Monkey bases their improvement on how they feel about one aspect of their game, irregardless of if their scores improved

The Player bases their improvement on results

Or in other words-

The Monkey is the Golfer that writes an email that says they improved 12 strokes, but isn’t happy because they aren’t hitting their Long Irons better

The Player understands that once you add up your scores after 18 holes, that if the scores are better, it’s time to celebrate!

Go ahead, Be a Player!

Regards,

Marc Solomon – Your Instructor For Life
www.GolfMadeSimple.com

"BAD STREAK" You're Not Alone!

"BAD STREAK" You're Not Alone!

We all go through “Good Streaks” on the golf course and “Bad Streaks”. Even Tiger and Annika go through their share of “Bad Streaks”. So you shouldn’t feel too bad when you go through your own “Bad Streak”.

The key is what you do while in the midst of a “Bad Streak”. Or maybe I should say - it’s what you don’t do while in a “Bad Streak” that has a positive affect on your golf scores!

What’s the worst thing to do while in a “Bad Streak”? Panic! So many Golfers go to the golf course and hit a “Bad Streak” and then panic. We get so upset with ourselves that we start to do things a sane person wouldn’t do.

When the Player goes on a “Bad Streak” - the Player will take it in stride. They know that sooner or later, it’ll happen. Though, the Player doesn’t let their “Bad Streak” ruin their entire round. Meaning that a Player will limit themselves to making a double bogey at worst on a hole.

So after a “Bad Streak” of 5 holes, the worst they’d be is 10 over Par. Now that’s the worst. Though, the Player will probably come out better than that. And for Golfers that are looking to break 90 or 100 - if you only have 5 double bogeys during a round – you should easily break that magic number!

On the other hand, when the Monkey goes on a “Bad Streak” - they panic. They think that this “Bad Streak” is going to last the rest of their life if they don’t do something drastic to stop it. And because the Monkey is trying all the golf swing tips they’ve heard in the past; one after another in the effort to get rid of the “Bad Streak”, they continually fall farther and deeper into their “Bad Streak”.

So a “Bad Streak” is now not only limited to 5 holes and to only double bogeys. The “Bad Streak” tends to last all the way to the 18th hole and this “Bad Streak” leaves you wishing for double bogeys. Often times the Monkey will see triple bogeys, quadruple bogeys, X’s or the infamous Double Par Rule on their scorecard.

Now, the Monkey will say that it’s because their swing isn’t very good and they need to work harder on developing a one plane swing or being able to keep their head down or even following through to a higher finish position. And if you feel these issues are important (though I feel they’re just Monkey Talk), even if you did all those things perfectly, you’re still going to go through “Bad Streaks” on the golf course. Like I said, nobody swings as perfect as Tiger and Annika and they still have “Bad Streaks”.

So the key to getting out of that “Bad Streak” has less to do with your swing mechanics than it does with having a PLAN based on your Strengths and Weaknesses.

What’s your PLAN? Well, its understanding what caused you to enter into your “Bad Streak”. Yet so many Monkeys are so concerned with their swing mechanics, they don’t even notice how or when they entered into their “Bad Streak”.

For example – Where did your “Bad Streak” start?

Was it the drive on the 5th hole that went too far to the right and ended up behind a tree? Then because you wanted to make up for that bad shot, you decided to “punch out” with your 3 iron between two trees so that you could get within 20 yards of the green (or possibly roll up on to the green). And unfortunately your ball grazed a tree which deflected it solidly into another tree which caused the ball to land behind the biggest tree you’ve ever seen. Then you had to waste another shot just to “chip out” to the middle of the fairway (the smart shot) - which then left you with a 230 yard shot to the green. So because you’re already laying 3/hitting 4, you decide you need to get on the green by hitting your 3 wood. And because your name isn’t Tiger or Annika, you hit a grounder about 150 yards into a fairway bunker. And then things start to really get bad!

Thus, the beginning of your “Bad Streak”.

And yet, the Player would’ve avoided that situation by playing smart from the trees. The Player would’ve avoided the big number (or possibly the Double Par limit) by making the smart shot from the trees back into the field of play, then hit a 5 iron or 7 iron to put them into position to have a wedge for their next shot on to the green and then 2-putt for a double bogey or one putt for a bogey.

And I know that someone reading this is saying – “That’s old man golf! I’ll never break 90 if I start to play for double bogeys.” Well, I don’t think it’s old man golf – it’s more about limiting your worst tee shots to double bogey golf as opposed to the Monkey making 8’s, 9’s and X’s. The "Bad Streak" didn't start with the errant drive - it started with not playing smart from the trees!

Again, you can break 100 or 90 or even 80 if you limit your big numbers to double bogeys!

Because after making a double bogey, the Player is not in a panic or pissed off on the next tee. They only made double bogey – no big deal. On the other hand, the Monkey is standing on the tee after making an 8, saying to themselves that they need to hit a big tee shot down the middle on this hole so that they have an easy wedge into the green, so that they can make birdie and make up for the last hole.

So the Monkey tries to hit a big tee shot - Well, you know the story, you’re back into the trees and trying to “punch out” like the previous hole and the whole scenario continues to where you’re standing on the tee of the next hole thinking about how your entire round is ruined because you just made two 8’s in a row. So now you’re so mad and discouraged, you try for another big tee shot on the next hole and - the “Bad Streak” continues.

While the Player is just taking their time, playing to their Strengths and avoiding their Weaknesses and sticking with their PLAN until their “Bad Streak” comes to an end. And sometimes that “Bad Streak” will include 5 holes of double bogey golf and sometimes it will include only 2 double bogeys. The key is that the Player never gets panicked during a “Bad Streak” and thus is able to keep themselves in the game.

The Monkey gets frustrated after making a couple of double bogeys and because of that, they make triple bogeys

The Player never panics – they take the “Bad Streaks” in stride and convert them into “Good Streaks”

Go ahead, Be a Player!

Regards,

Marc Solomon – Your Instructor For Life
www.GolfMadeSimple.com

Golf Made Simple - Believe It or Not!

I recently observed a situation you mightl be surprised to hear. In fact, many of you may not believe this story at all.

On the golf course the other day, I was watching a mid 90's to mid 100's Golfer play a few holes. On the 1st hole (a Par 4), this Golfer was on the green in 3 shots and then 3 putted for a 6. On the 2nd hole (a Par 4), was on in 2 shots and 3 putted for a 5. On the 3rd hole (a Par 3), was on in 1 shot and 3 putted for a 4.

So after 3 holes, this Golfer looked at no one in particular and said – “I’m playing so bad. I can’t believe how bad I’m hitting the golf ball today!” To which someone in the group looked at this Golfer and said – “You’ve hit 2 out of the first 3 Greens in Regulation. Why do you feel that you’re hitting the golf ball so bad?”

“Because I’m 4 over par after 3 holes and I’m not hitting the ball well!” Which had everybody in shock since nobody else had hit 2 Greens in Regulation and if this Golfer didn’t 3 putt 3 holes in a row, this Golfer would be only 1 over par.

Now stay with me for two more holes -

On the 4th hole (a par 4), was on in 2 shots and two putted for 4 and then on the 5th (a par 4 and one of the toughest holes on the golf course), was on in 2 shots and 2 putted for a 4.

After that par on the 5th – someone said to this Golfer: “Hey, you’re hitting the ball great. You’ve hit the last 4 Greens in Regulation including this past hole, where you made par on the hardest hole on the golf course. If your putting was a little better on the first 3 holes, your score would reflect how well you're hitting the golf ball!”

The Golfer responded by saying – “I hit the ball like this often. I’ll play 4 or 5 good holes and then all of a sudden I just lose it. I start to hit bad shots for no reason!”

And then, just like this Golfer was trying to prove a point – this Golfer hit a Drive on the 6th hole with one of the biggest, ugliest slices I’ve ever seen. Then the Golfer looked at the other Golfers as if to say – “Just like I told you!”

The Golfer ended up making a 9 on the Par 5 number 6 hole.

Believe it or not!

As unbelievable as it may seem, this really did happen. I witnessed it with my own eyes!

Why is it that many Golfers are reluctant to give themselves credit when they’re playing well? I’ve seen this happen a countless number of times. It’s like some Golfers don’t want to see themselves get better. It’s like some Golfers are happy and content in a weird kind of way to not allow themselves to get to the next level. Maybe you’ve experienced this situation yourself?

Many Golfers unfortunately believe that “Better is not good enough!” Their expectations are so out of whack based on the scores they see the Professionals on television scoring week after week. And because these Golfers feel that they’re still scoring in the 100’s or 90’s or 80’s and not in the 70’s or 60’ s– you feel as if you're not a very good Golfer, even though you might’ve improved dramatically over the previous 12 months. Base your improvement on where you were 12 months ago – don't judge your game based on where Tiger or Annika are today!

Here’s another Believe it or Not!

A Golfer that used to score well above 100, just wrote to say that they’re recent scores have been 94, 101, 100 and 92. But, followed up these scores by saying – “so obviously the news is not very good.”

This goes back to the point of – “Better is not good enough!” This Golfer’s expectations are not realistic if improving their worst score by 20 strokes and their best score by 16 strokes in less than a year is not good enough. Based on the 4 scores above having an average of 96 versus having approximately an average score of 112 a year ago – for some reason, these scores aren’t good enough for this Golfer.

Yet, this isn’t an isolated case!

We see and hear of this often.

And I believe this is an important topic for you to pay attention to, since if your expectations aren’t set correctly – you won’t allow your swing to improve. If you don’t believe that improving 20 strokes isn’t good enough and that you’re not making improvements fast enough – then you’re likely to start searching for answers to “fix” your golf swing. And in the world of Golf Made Simple, that’s called “Fiddling!”

The more you “Fiddle” – the more you struggle! It’s the same with the Golfer I wrote about, about 900 words ago. This 95 to 105 Golfer hit 4 out of the first 5 Greens in Regulation and wasn’t happy about it. And then sabotaged his own game to prove to the others in the group that he wasn’t playing well enough! It was as if this Golfer needed to prove, not just to the other Golfers, but to himself that his swing wasn’t good enough.

My belief is that until these two Golfers (and the 1,000’s of other frustrated Golfers out there) can find someone to help them understand what their expectations should be for the next year and then the year after that and so on – that we’ll unfortunately see Golfers that have the talent to play better Golf - continue to struggle with their games.

Realistically Managing your Expectations can help you to see improvement in your golf swing and have more enjoyment on the golf course – Believe it or Not!

The Monkey never allows themselves to play better because of Unrealistic Expectations.

The Player, though never satisfied and always wanting to improve, acknowledges their achievements.

Go ahead be a Player!

Regards,

Marc Solomon – Your Instructor For Life
www.GolfMadeSimple.com

How to Become as Consistent as a PGA Tour Player

How can you become more consistent with your Golf Swing? What do you need to do to become more consistent? In order to become consistent – watch consistent people! And there’s nobody more consistent on the golf course than the Players on the PGA Tour!

Golf’s merry-go-round continues to spin – every year on the PGA Tour you have two different types of Players. There are the usual group of Players that are always in or near the Winners Circle – then you have the group of Golfers that go on a good streak for 3 weeks and then fade away.

There’s so much written about the best Players – that I believe we should speak about these streaky Players. Because these are the Professional Golfers that most resemble the regular Golfers that you play with each week.

Why do I say this?

These are Professional Golfers like the kid - Charley Hoffman - that won a couple of weeks ago at the PGA Tour’s Bob Hope Classic. Now don’t get me wrong – winning a PGA Tour event is a big deal and you have to be playing your best golf to win - you need to be playing better than any of the other 100 PGA Tour Professionals.

Though, we see this happen just about every year. Someone that nobody’s ever heard of – with the exception of family and friends – comes out and wins a big tournament. And they may follow-up that win with a few more weeks of strong play, but they slowly drop-off.

This is not a put-down on their abilities – it’s more about how similar your golf game is to the PGA Tour Professionals golf game.

Consistency is often our main focus. We all want to become more consistent with our Golf Swing. We all want to hit the ball in the fairway every tee shot. We all want to be on the green every opportunity that we have. We all want to make every 7 foot putt we have for Birdie, Par or Bogey.

Don’t you think Charley Hoffman wants to be more consistent?

Of course he does! If he’s not consistent on the golf course, he doesn’t eat. If you’re not consistent on the golf course, you’re just another Golfer.

But, here’s a guy that practices 8 hours a day, 7 days a week, 50 weeks a year and has done it for the last 14 years – and he’s not as consistent as he wants to be. So if that’s the case – why are you banging your head against the wall when after trying a new golf tip every week for the last 52 weeks hasn’t helped you become consistent?

If Charley is struggling to get more consistent so that his scores are the same week to week and his life is dedicated to becoming more consistent - while practicing around 56 hours a week, every week – how can someone that has other priorities and gets to practice for as little as 2 hours a week expect to get so much more consistent?

I’m not here to say that your golf will never improve.

It’s more about understanding that you’ll have some frustration out on the golf course. You’ll have good rounds that are followed up by bad rounds. Though you shouldn’t think that after one bad round – “Oh, I have this terrible slice that I need to get rid of. It’s killing my game. I’m playing worse than I ever have!”

And some people will laugh at that – thinking that people don’t really say those things after one round. Heck, I’ve heard people say that after 2 holes!

If you truly understand that you’ll never be 100% consistent – then you’ll be able to improve your consistency. Yes, you can improve, if you understand how to use the proper techniques and work on the things that are important for your swing – not the things that are printed in a magazine for 1 million Golfers to read. You can improve if you understand that even the winner of a PGA Tour event one week, can drop completely out of contention to 35th the next week.

Or that a guy named John Rollins that came in 2nd place to Charley Hoffman at the Bob Hope Classic (losing in a Playoff) – could come back the next week and completely miss the cut (ending up virtually in last place).

If the best Players in the world – people that practice and play more in a week than you possibly do in... well, let me put it this way – John Rollins probably practiced for 4 hours on Monday, then played 18 holes – then the same on Tuesday and Wednesday – then he’ll play a tournament on Thursday, followed by 2 more hours of practice – then do the same on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. And then start all over again on Monday.

Yet, he can’t find the consistency he desires and it showed during a recent two week period. So with the limits of your practice schedule – how can you expect to be 100% consistent?

The Monkey gets upset after 2 or 3 bad shots thinking their game has fallen apart

The Player understands that you have to take the good with the bad.

Go ahead be a Player!

Regards,

Marc Solomon – Your Instructor For Life
www.GolfMadeSimple.com

Why Henry Hates Golf - The Conclusion

So we left off last week’s Why Henry Hates Golf speaking about how to get the golf ball up in the air. The common fallacy in golf is that you need to get underneath the golf ball to get it up in the air. And if you try to get underneath the golf ball – you’re probably going to either hit behind the golf ball (meaning the ground before the ball – which is never good to do, unless you’re in a sand bunker next to the green) or you’re going to avoid hitting the ground by compensating in some way that you’ll end up hitting the top of the golf ball.

How do I know that most Golfers are trying to get underneath the golf ball?

Because that’s what they tell me they’re trying to do. Either I ask the Golfer – “Where on the golf ball do you need to hit with your club to make it go up in the air?” And the answer 7 out of 8 times is “underneath it”. Or I hear the Golfer on the golf course say – “I didn’t get underneath that one!” after they hit a topped shot that is skidding down the fairway.

Though many Golfers have heard the phrase – “You need to hit down on the golf ball” -which can be true to a certain extent. Meaning – if you hit straight down on the top of the golf ball, would it go up? No, of course not! It would go straight down into the ground!

You know how the Professionals do it?

They hit the golf ball first, and then they hit the ground. And I’m sure many Golfers have heard that and have even tried to do that. Though, many of the Golfers that have tried to do this have unfortunately failed to get the results they desired. So after a few unsuccessful attempts, we give it up and go back to what we’ve been trying to do before – “I need to get better at getting underneath the Golf Ball.”

Why is it so hard to do?

Well, I believe that it’s more of not understanding the concept of what makes the golf ball go up in the air, rather than a lack of skill by the Golfer. And it’s understandable that many Golfers don’t understand what makes the golf ball go up since all we hear from most of the Golf Media Sources is about the Swing Plane or how to turn your shoulders for more power or How to Hit a Stinger Shot Like Tiger. Those points might have some value to somebody – well they probably have a lot of value to the person coming up with these gimmicks.

But are they helping you?

To understand the concept of what makes the golf ball go up in the air – you first need to block out all the other Golf Noise you’re bombarded with – turn-off all The Monkey Talk. Then when you have a clear mind, you can start to understand how hitting the back of the golf ball with your club as it moves down and forward helps to create the force that will make the golf ball go up.

The combination of the Loft (the angle of your clubface), the force of your club moving down and forward, the grooves on your club and the backspin - this combination of factors is what makes the golf ball go up in the air.

“Okay Marc, I understand that concept – how do I do it?”

To make sure you hit the golf ball first, before the ground – you shouldn’t have to think about hitting the golf ball first. It’s not like you’re saying to yourself – “OK, I need to guide my golf club into the back of the golf ball as I swing down.” If that’s what you’re thinking, then you’re probably stinking!

Being able to hit the golf ball first so that the golf ball goes up in the air can be accomplished if you’re able to control your center of gravity. Your center of gravity controls the direction of your golf club. And you golf club controls the direction of your golf ball.

The Monkey is more interested in the Secrets of the Pro’s

The Player is more interested in the Basics of Golf

Go ahead, be a Player

Regards,

Marc Solomon – Your Instructor For Life
www.GolfMadeSimple.com

So we left off last week’s Why Henry Hates Golf speaking about how to get the golf ball up in the air. The common fallacy in golf is that you need to get underneath the golf ball to get it up in the air. And if you try to get underneath the golf ball – you’re probably going to either hit behind the golf ball (meaning the ground before the ball – which is never good to do, unless you’re in a sand bunker next to the green) or you’re going to avoid hitting the ground by compensating in some way that you’ll end up hitting the top of the golf ball.

How do I know that most Golfers are trying to get underneath the golf ball?

Because that’s what they tell me they’re trying to do. Either I ask the Golfer – “Where on the golf ball do you need to hit with your club to make it go up in the air?” And the answer 7 out of 8 times is “underneath it”. Or I hear the Golfer on the golf course say – “I didn’t get underneath that one!” after they hit a topped shot that is skidding down the fairway.

Though many Golfers have heard the phrase – “You need to hit down on the golf ball” -which can be true to a certain extent. Meaning – if you hit straight down on the top of the golf ball, would it go up? No, of course not! It would go straight down into the ground!

You know how the Professionals do it?

They hit the golf ball first, and then they hit the ground. And I’m sure many Golfers have heard that and have even tried to do that. Though, many of the Golfers that have tried to do this have unfortunately failed to get the results they desired. So after a few unsuccessful attempts, we give it up and go back to what we’ve been trying to do before – “I need to get better at getting underneath the Golf Ball.”

Why is it so hard to do?

Well, I believe that it’s more of not understanding the concept of what makes the golf ball go up in the air, rather than a lack of skill by the Golfer. And it’s understandable that many Golfers don’t understand what makes the golf ball go up since all we hear from most of the Golf Media Sources is about the Swing Plane or how to turn your shoulders for more power or How to Hit a Stinger Shot Like Tiger. Those points might have some value to somebody – well they probably have a lot of value to the person coming up with these gimmicks.

But are they helping you?

To understand the concept of what makes the golf ball go up in the air – you first need to block out all the other Golf Noise you’re bombarded with – turn-off all The Monkey Talk. Then when you have a clear mind, you can start to understand how hitting the back of the golf ball with your club as it moves down and forward helps to create the force that will make the golf ball go up.

The combination of the Loft (the angle of your clubface), the force of your club moving down and forward, the grooves on your club and the backspin - this combination of factors is what makes the golf ball go up in the air.

“Okay Marc, I understand that concept – how do I do it?”

To make sure you hit the golf ball first, before the ground – you shouldn’t have to think about hitting the golf ball first. It’s not like you’re saying to yourself – “OK, I need to guide my golf club into the back of the golf ball as I swing down.” If that’s what you’re thinking, then you’re probably stinking!

Being able to hit the golf ball first so that the golf ball goes up in the air can be accomplished if you’re able to control your center of gravity. Your center of gravity controls the direction of your golf club. And you golf club controls the direction of your golf ball.

The Monkey is more interested in the Secrets of the Pro’s

The Player is more interested in the Basics of Golf

Go ahead, be a Player

Regards,

Marc Solomon – Your Instructor For Life
www.GolfMadeSimple.com

Why Henry Hates Golf Part III

With much awaited anticipation Golf Improvement Weekly has arrived in 2007. From Golf Made Simple, we wish all of our readers a very Happy and Healthy New Year. If you have not read the previous issues from December 2006, you may be asking yourself “Who is Henry?” Henry is a frustrated golfer and is in need of some helpful advice about the game of golf.

We continue this week with Marc explaining to Henry that Golf is a game with many levels of skill and in order to raise it to the next level, you must define your current skill level.

”So Marc, what you're saying is that I need to practice more around the greens, until I become more consistent with the sand wedge before I start practicing my other clubs?” Henry offered.

”Yes, but I think you'll improve and be moving on to the next clubs faster than you think. See, Karate has done a much better job than golf has in letting the participants play to their skill level.” Henry blurted out, “Karate!?”

”Yes Henry, Karate. In Karate you're given a belt according to your skill level. The lower belts like a white belt knows his or her skill level isn't as high as a black belts skill level, so you practice skills that will get you to the next level which is yellow. Then when you are a yellow, you practice skills that will help you move on to an orange belt, and then so on up to a black belt. But, a white, yellow or orange for that matter, know they can't do the same things as a black belt. If they did, they'd probably end up hurting themselves. So their practice is set-up to help them work on their way up the order of belts.”

”So Marc, are you saying that I am a white belt that is trying to play like a black belt? And that has been hurting my progress?” Henry offered.

”Henry, you're the best! Yes, that's what I'm saying. We watch golf on television and we see Tiger hitting a 3-wood from 250-yards from the green and we think we should play the same shot as Tiger. But, Tiger is a Black Belt.” Henry interjected with laughter – “Tiger's probably a 10th degree Black Belt in golf terms!”

”Henry, you're right. You on the other hand are probably a Yellow Belt in golf. You shouldn't be trying to practice the same stuff as Tiger. You need to practice the things that'll get you to be an Orange Belt, which is the equivalent of a high 80's shooter. And that's what we're going to speak about right now!”

”Henry, what makes the ball go up in the air?” Henry answered, “loft.” “Yes Henry, loft is part of the answer, but what makes the ball go up and stay up?” “Getting underneath the ball?” Henry said with a semi-puzzled look.

”Not really” I said. “My thought is this - if you don't know what truly makes the ball go up in the air, how are you going to be able to do it consistently? What makes the ball go consistently up in the air for every club, not just the sand wedge, but every club is...”

Look for the solution that will help Henry become a more consistent golfer in next week's Golf Made Simple Golf Improvement Weekly as Marc outlines what it takes to become more consistent and confident.