Golf can be a difficult sport! We love the challenge that golf brings and the journey we start on every season to try to play our best golf yet.
We all want to play consistent golf, where we are hitting the shots that we need to play the course.
There are ups and downs in every season and every golf journey, but the goal is to have fun, get a bit better and beat your friends from time to time.
There are thousands of different golf swings out there. THere are golf swings that produce draws and those that produce fades. There are golf swings that produce high ball flights and those that produce low ball flights.
Whatever ball pattern your swing might produce, I have three tips below to help you get the most of your golf swing every round and every season.
Some golfers don’t want to tinker with their swing or make a drastic change, but do want to score the best they can with the swing they have!
How to get the most out of your golf swing?
There are four tips to help you score your best and to get the most of your golf swing. They include:
- Play the shape shot that you are hitting that day.
- Play each hole one at a time, using vision and a target based approach.
- Practice your short game frequently
- Train for speed
Tip #1: Play the shape shot that you are hitting that day
Too many golfers try to force shots at certain times on the golf course. If your hitting a fade that day, stick with it and hit the best fades possible. If you are hitting a draw, do the same thing! The bottom line is to play what you have that day. Jack Nickalus has said several times that he would play whatever he was hitting that day and that was the goal of the range session before teeing off.
Assess what is working and what is not and play the best shot you have that day! The time between rounds is the time to tinker, work on shots you couldn’t hit or possibly learn a new shot that you might want to add to your game!
If you are hitting a draw that day and you have a pin tucked on the right side. Aim right at the pin and if it draws, you are in the middle of the green. If you happen to hit it straight, you wil be right at the pin. However, do not aim outside the green and hope for the draw.
Playing the percentages and using what you have the day can help you hit a hot streak at some point during the round and capitalize on your ball pattern for that round.
Tip #2: Play each hole one at a time, using vision and target based approach
Too many golfers force things. This tips goes along with the first. Read the hole, see what the hole is calling for and hit the best shot you have in the bag that day. If you can hit the draw on a draw hole, go ahead and hit it. If you can only hit a fade that day, take the best angle.
Have a plan of attack for each hole, based on what you are hitting and go ahead and commit to the shot. Too many golfers force things during the round of golf, instead of playing towards the bigger part of the fairway and greens.
I would highly recommend the Shawn Clement approach to golf, where he picks a target way off in the distance, an intermediate target and then swings towards the target. It is a motion that is not based on positions in the swing, but rather natural movements that allows you to swing the arm and club unit out towards your target.
The liberation found in this swing is amazing and one that you can use to make the most of your golf swing for that round of golf. I love his vision and target based approach to free up the body and allow it to swing without tension.
Get rid of the idea that you are going to hit certain positions in the golf swing and instead make a natural, athletic like motion with your arm/club unit and throw that club out towards the target. Give it one range session and see what you think, but first check out this video below!
Here is one of my all time favorite golf instruction videos:
Tip #3: Practice your short game frequently
The number one fastest way to lower golf scores is to become a great short game player and putter! There is no faster way to reduce your score than by chipping it close and making more putts!
Stop chunking or thinning the ball across the green and instead find a consistent movement that you can rely on to send the ball out towards the hole.
The best way to get the most of your golf swing without drastic changes is to be the golfer that everyone is envious of because of your short game. The golfer who sinks the putts when needed and always seems ot hit pitch and chip shots within 5 feet.
How do you do this? Practice!
The great news is that the short game in golf doesn’t take speed, power, flexibility and all of these desirable attributes that often are required for a strong, powerful, consistent golf swing! Instead, you simply need repetitions and a basic plan to control your distance and aim on every chip shot that you hit!
I would recommend developing a system that looks like this:
Every golfer needs a system for his or her short game. It might be one or two go to chip shots or a system like the one below that I highly recommend!
Recommended System
There are three variables that impact the distance a ball will travel when chipping:
- The loft of the club
- The length of the swing
- The speed of the swing
The shot that has the least amount of loft, with the longest, fastest swing will travel the furthest.
The slowest swing, that is the shortest with the most amount of loft will travel the shortest.
After determining the landing spot of the shot and determining how the shot will roll out, the golfer should decide on three different options.
The golfer will first decide on the club to use, the length of the swing, and the speed. The golfer should take into consideration the lie and how they are feeling at the time.
- The golfer can pick anywhere from a 6 iron to a lob wedge.
- The next step is to determine the length, 7:00, 8:00 and 9:00 (shortest to longest)
- The speed of the swing (slow, medium, and fast)
The clock system assumes the club is pointed at 6:00 at address. For the shortest swing, the golfer would take the club to 7:00, medium length would be 8:00 and the longest swing would be 9:00. 12:00 is by your head, and 6:00 is by your feet.
The speed of the swing is slow, medium and fast. This is pretty self explanatory, but the golfer should stay smooth with whatever speed is selected.
For example if the golfer has a chip shot of 30 feet. The golfer might select the sand wedge, an 8:00 swing at a medium speed. Or the golfer might go with a 9 iron, a 7:00 swing, with a fast swing and keep it nice and simple. The golfer has options and should practice the different options to determine what is best in each situation faced on a course.
Resource: More in depth about distance control
Tip #4: Train for Speed
If you don’t want to change your swing, but would like some additional speed, I have a great program for you!
Let’s face it, everyone could benefit from more speed, which many times equals more distance!
I believe many used to believe, well this is just how fast I can swing.
Recent training tools have started to change many minds.
We have seen many of the professional golfers get longer and longer with their tee shots as a result of additional swing speed. You will find many touring pros using the SuperSpeed System, which I highly recommend.
SuperSpeed Golf is one option to increase your swing speed through a science based overspeed training approach. In simple terms, you train by swinging a lighter club (20%) faster than you swing your driver. Over time, by training at a higher speed, your mind and body feel safe to swing that fast with your normal driver, resulting in an increase in driver swing speed.
Check current price on SuperSpeed System, here!
The SuperSpeed System provides 3 different weighted sticks and takes the golfer through a training protocol every other day for about 15 minutes. The golfer can expect to see a 5-8% increase in swing speed, resulting in 20-30 yards for most golfers. The great news is that the 5-8% can be expected as early as the first training session. The additional speed will become more permanent after about 30-60 days of training.
My own experience has been an increase of 7-10 miles per hour on average from between 98-101 all the way up to 106-109. My goal is to hit the PGA Tour average of 113 mph in the coming months. I will continue to train every other day and watch in amazement as I am hitting drivers longer now than ever before!
Phil Mickelson has been known to increase his swing speed in the past year or so and is close to 120 miles per hour in his swing speed. There are potential results for golfers of all ability levels and age!
| Original Swing Speed | After 4-6 Weeks | New Carry Distance | Total Distance |
| 95 | 102 | 245 | 265 |
| 100 | 108 | 259 | 279 |
| 105 | 113 | 271 | 291 |
| 110 | 118 | 283 | 303 |
Assess Your Game: Know Your Numbers!
I use my own portable launch monitor to check for spin axis and the amount I am curving the ball and to ensure I am maximizing my distance and controlling my start lines and curve. This helps me with tip number one of playing my shot that I have that day!
While many won’t want to spend the money on a Trackman, there are some viable options in the 500 to 2000 dollars range that provide the following data after every shot:
- Ball Speed
- Spin Rate
- Spin Axis
- Launch Angle
- Carry and Total Distance
What I find most helpful is the shot tracer and the spin axis information. I am visually able to check the flight of my ball as I work to build my stock shot and have the reliable shot I can count on in any situation.
Here are the top 3 options to check out:
This technology is a game changer as the golfer can build a stock shot using the information while expanding a golf season where the golfer can practice 365 days a year. Whether the golfer goes all out and builds a home simulator or simply sets up a net and mat in their garage, the possibility of improving the swing and being able to practice or play 365 days a year is a game changer!
Take Action – What You Can Do Today to Get Better
What does this mean for you? I believe in the following recipe to get better:
1 – Improve your motion in the golf swing by identifying a golf instructor. Here are some options:
Here is a list of golf instructors that we have reviewed:
2 – Train to swing faster and improve your swing speed. Here are some options:
Looking to gain more Speed and Distance in your swing. Two Options:
3 – Understand course strategy and work to break through your next barrier. Here is a series on breaking through:
We have provided guides on how to break 100, 90, 80 and 70. Check out more below, if interested.
4 – Practice Frequently
Did you know that I build a golf simulator in my garage and have played over 500 rounds of golf on my SkyTrak system? It has been a game changer and one worth checking out. Here are some of my other posts on golf simulators frequently asked questions:
- Is a Golf Simulator Worth It?
- How to Build a Golf Simulator?
- What is the Best Golf Simulator?
- Golf Simulator Accessories?
- How to Build a Golf Simulator for under $7000
- Top 11 Reasons to Buy a SkyTrak
- How to Build a Golf Simulator for Under $1000
- Why Build A Golf Simulator?
- What Space is Needed?
- Can A Golf Simulator Improve My Game?
- How Much Does A Golf Simulator Cost?
- Don’t Forget to Check out our 15 best golf swings of all time.
Final Thoughts!
Golf is supposed to be fun. Many golfers don’t want to go through an entire swing change, but still want to play solid golf. The four tips above can help you get your game to the next level without some drastic changes that are going to take 12-18 months to reap the benefits.
Tips 3 and 4 alone can help you hit the ball further and chip and putt better. These two, simple put, can make you better quickly! You can save several shots a round by hitting the driver further and having short putts for par or birdie!
Commit to the short game and train for some speed and watch your score drop quickly!