Many Golfers struggle with hillside lies for a couple of reasons. Either they fail to make solid contact with the ball or they lose balance during the shot. Apply these 4 tips to help you save strokes on hillside lies.

With side hill and downhill lies, the tendency is to lean into the hill during the swing.

This will result in inconsistent shots; and you end up hitting fat or thin shots. When you make clean contact on hillside lies, you’ll hit the golf ball straighter and save strokes.

The key to this shot is making sure your shoulders match the hill’s slope, which you can do with a simple adjustment of your front foot.

Below are 4 tips to making clean contact with hillside lies:

1. Start with club selection.

a. An uphill lie will cause your shot to have more loft in your golf shot, so you need to choose a less lofted golf club.

b. With a downhill lie there will be less loft from your golf shot, so you will need to use a more lofted club.

2. Next you will need to adjust where you position the golf ball in your stance.

a. When playing an uphill lie you want to play the ball forward in your stance an inch or two.

b. With a downhill lie you need to play the ball in the middle or a bit further back in your stance.

3. Flare your downhill foot to even out your stance.  This will put the ball at the bottom of your swing.  This will keep you from hitting the ball fat or thin.  Flaring your foot will also give you more freedom of movement in your backswing and will help you maintain your balance.

4. Finally, match your shoulders to the slope of the hill and take a normal swing. The adjustments you made in preparing for the shot will allow you to hit your golf shot squarely.

Don’t let a hillside shot throw you. Next time you are faced with a hillside shot, try these 4 tips to help you save strokes on hillside lies.

For more tips on how to play those difficult shots, I recommend you pick up a copy of

© 2010, David Wakeman. All rights reserved. On republishing this post you must provide link to original post.

Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned golfer you know that golf is a great game that can frustrate the best. Golfers are always looking for that adjustment that will help them improve their golf game. You can become your own teacher by observing the flight of your golf ball.

Ball flight is determined by the swing path and the position of the club face at impact. By studying the way the golf ball travels you can get a better understanding of what adjustments you can make to correct a misguided golf shot.

The ideal swing is one where the golf club approaches the golf ball from inside the target line, is square to the target at impact and then comes back inside during the follow-through.

One of the most common swing faults is an inside-out swing. The golf club approaches the ball from inside the target line, but then continues to travel to the outside, never actually squaring with the target at any point in the swing.

Most of the golf shots from this type of golf swing will start to the right. Where the shot actually finishes is determined by the position of the club face at impact.

If the face is square to the inside-out path, the golf ball will continue to travel right.

If the club face is closed (aiming left), then the result will be that of a hook with the golf ball starting right then curving left.

If the club face is open (pointing right), the golf ball will start to the right and continue traveling to the right.

To counter an inside-out swing try bringing the golf club straight back as long as possible during the takeaway phase of your back swing. During the forward portion of the swing try to have your hands roll over just after impact. This will cause to golf club to return to an inside path.

An outside-in swing brings the club face into the ball from outside the target line and continues to move to the inside of the target line, never actually squaring with the target at any point in the swing.

If the club face is square, the golf ball flies dead left, called a “pull.” An open face makes the golf ball curve sharply left to right. A closed face makes the golf ball curve even further left.

You can correct an outside-in swing by bringing the golf club inside the line during the takeaway.

A proper inside-square-inside swing starts the ball straight. Any subsequent movement is the result of club face alignment:

If the club face is open the golf ball will bend to the right.

On the other hand, if the club face is closed the golf ball will curve to the left.

For more help with your golf swing, check out: Full Swing Fundamental DVD

© 2010, David Wakeman. All rights reserved. On republishing this post you must provide link to original post.

Having the Golf Channel speaking out as if the world of golf is in real trouble without Tiger Woods playing is an insult to the rest of the professionals that play golf and the true golf fans that watch and attend PGA Tour events.

I think Tiger is a great golfer, but isn’t it time that we stop putting professional athletes, actors and actresses and other public figures on a pedestal.  They are only human with human flaws.

I know I will be watching the tour until the weather turns and we can get back out and play. The PGA will take care of itself and the tour will prosper whether Tiger Woods is playing or not.

Now, if you are looking to prepare for the 2010 golf season and want to improve your game, I recommend you look at our selection of eBooks. We have assembled a collection of the best books on the market today that cover every aspect of your golf game including: conditioning, driving skills, mastering your irons,  short game, the mental game or putting.

© 2010, David Wakeman. All rights reserved. On republishing this post you must provide link to original post.

Photo By J.D. Cuban

Many golfers struggle with their pitch shots. They will either chunk the ball with it stopping well short of the hole or they will hit a thin shot and have the ball run way past the hole. Either way they are now in a situation that requires a long putt.

This can be attributed to either too much lower body movement or too much of the stroke being controlled by the arms.

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Try these practice tips to improve your pitch shots

• Use the wedge you normally use for a 50 yard pitch shot.

• Keep your feet together in the middle of your stance so that they are touching.

• Take some practice swings using your upper body to control the stroke.

• Focus on turning your upper body to make your stroke. Do not use your arms only.

Take short controlled swings. Anything else will cause you to lose your balance. Hit some balls like this, making sure to use your body to control the stroke. Be sure to keep yourself in balance throughout the swing.

This will force your upper body to control the swing. Using your arms or legs to control the swing will cause you to lose your balance due to the weight shifts these actions cause.

If you try to use your lower body, you will get too far off balance to control the swing. This forces you to make the controlled, flowing type of swing with very little lower body action that the pitch shot requires.

You will develop a nice sense of balance if you practice this enough.

Take time to try this technique the next time you are practicing your short game. Improving your pitch shots will help you lower your scores and take pressure off your putting.

If you are struggling to get your pitch shots close to the hole, help is here. I recommend you get the Ultimate Short Game eBook.

© 2010, David Wakeman. All rights reserved. On republishing this post you must provide link to original post.