5 of the Best Golf Games to Play During Your Round

Golf is one of the most enjoyable games on the face of this earth, but as we all know it can certainly be frustrating. Even more frustrating is looking at your scorecard at the end of the round to see all the bogeys and the final score.  It’s almost like looking at your bank account after a long night out. 

Regardless, your round doesn’t have to be that frustrating. Most amateur golfers think you have to keep score every time you hit the links, when in actuality that’s not always the case. 
There are plenty of fun games to play within your foursome. Rather than killing yourself trying to shoot the lowest score, take a break and enjoy your round while trying to make some cash off your playing partners. 

You may be aware of the standard playing formats such as scrambles, match play, and stroke play, so here are some of the more common games to play during a round of golf. 

WOLF

Probably my favorite of all games to play among a foursome, wolf keeps everyone involved and is for golfers of all skill levels.  However, it can seem confusing, so hang in there. 

Each hole starts with one golfer in the group being designated as the “wolf, “ and rotates each hole. 

The wolf tees off last after watching each golfer in the group hit their tee shot. After each individual’s tee shot, the wolf decides whether they want to team up with that golfer or see the next tee shot.  

If the wolf decides to team with a golfer, it will be those two against the other two golfers in the group for that specific hole. The golfer with the lowest score on the hole wins the point for their team and the losing team gets a point taken away (Points are a dollar amount to be determined before the round).

If the wolf decides to not team up with any golfer, he or she becomes the “Lone Wolf.” The Lone Wolf plays the hole against the other three golfers in the group and hopes to have the lowest score. If the Lone Wolf wins, then he receives three points, one from each golfer. If the Lone Wolf loses, then he/she must give up three points. 

The points are added up at the end of the round and decide on payouts for each golfer.

NASSAU

Nassau is one of the most popular golf games to play and are much more simple to understand. 

Golfers can either play individually in the group or split into two teams. The player or team then compete against essentially three bets in one: front-nine, back-nine, and the 18 hole round. 

The player or teams that win each side collects the determined prize amount. The beauty of this game is that it can be played in almost any format. Stroke play, scramble, best ball, or match play. Any of these will work in Nassau. 

SKINS GAME

If you’re really looking for an intense game to cash in on, ‘skins’ is the perfect format. Golfers decide how much a skin will cost and that then compete for that amount on each hole.
Skins is similar to match play where a golfer wins a hole rather than counting the total score. Only in skins, there are no halves or ties. If golfers tie on a skins hole, the cash amount is carried over to the next hole and it’s worth double. 

At the end of the round, each golfer counts up their skins and decides how much they won or lost.

BINGO, BANGO, BANGO

Bingo, Bango, Bongo is a point-based game that can be played with anywhere from two golfers and up. 
There are three ways to collect points on each hole depending on whether you get Bingo, Bango, or Bongo.
•    Bingo - First golfer to get their ball on the green
•    Bango - Golfer to get closest to the pin once balls are on the green
•    Bongo - Golfer to hole out first
Add up the amount of points for each golfer at the end of the round and collect your winnings (or losings).

SNAKE

Snake is a fun game for amateur golfers to help them avoid the dreaded three-putt. The round starts with the group deciding on an amount to bet on. 

Each time a golfer three-putts, they become the new snake. After each three-putt there becomes a new snake and whoever is the snake at the end of the round has to pay the other golfers in the group the amount originally agreed upon.

What makes this game so great is that there are no “gimmies.” Golfers must putt out everything, including the short five-foot putts. It puts more pressure on the knee-knockers and helps golfers build confidence in that short range.  

Playing regular rounds as an amateur golfer is always fun, but it can be even more fun when competing against friends. Use these game types in your next round to bring a competitive edge to your round.  

How to Properly Warm Up Before a Round of Golf

In almost every sport, you’ll see every athlete warming up by stretching and getting mentally prepared for the battle that lies ahead. Even in golf, the pros show up to the course almost three hours before their tee time to prepare for their round. Unfortunately, this is an area that amateur golfers seem to overlook. 

Most amateurs will show up 15 minutes before their tee time, roll a few putts, and then head straight to the tee box. Warming up for a round of golf goes beyond hitting a few putts on the practice green. 

Setting yourself up for success starts well before the first tee. Just like a pre-shot routine, it’s important for golfers to have a pre-round routine as well. Here are a few things to consider applying to your warm ups. 

Give Yourself Plenty of Time

There’s no reason to add additional stress to the game of golf by rushing to make a tee time. Getting to the course early is the first step to a promising round. If you don’t have enough time to effectively warm up, then it’s going to cost you on the course. 

Activate Your Glutes and Other Muscles

You may recall last year when Tiger Woods withdrew from the Farmers Insurance Open. Woods had a bizarre interview with the media which he kept blaming “deactivated glutes” as a big reason for his withdrawal from the tournament. 

As ridiculous as this sounds, there’s plenty of truth behind his comments. Amateurs don’t realize how many muscles actually go into swinging a golf club, but it’s time to start educating yourself. 

Your butt muscles play a major role in helping generate power for golfers and they also help to maintain posture throughout your swing. An easy exercise to help activate your glutes is to lay on the ground with your feet flat, raising your pelvis, which ultimately engages your glutes. This may seem silly, but it plays an important role. 

Don’t just stop with your glutes. Stretch out other important muscles like your hamstrings, calves, shoulders, neck, and back. Getting a full stretch in will not only help get you loose, but it can also help prevent injuries. 

If you ever get a chance, check out Miguel Angel Jimenez and his pre-round stretches. It’s one of the best of any pro out there. 

Visualize the First Shot

Your tee time may be may not be for another hour, but that doesn’t mean you can’t start thinking about the first tee shot. Hitting that first shot is usually the most nerve-wracking, but it doesn’t have to be. Start visualizing it ahead of time. 

If the first hole happens to be near the putting green, glance over to see what you’ll be dealing with just so you’re prepared when you step up there. Can you safely use driver or should you use a club you’re more comfortable with? 

No need to overanalyze the situation, but it doesn’t hurt to get familiar with it. If you hit balls on the driving range beforehand, practice the first shot you’ll be hitting. Having that confidence ahead of time can make all the difference from hitting a fairway and hitting a shank.

Take Your Putting Seriously

It’s always nice to get some reps in on the driving range to loosen up, but most of your time should be spent on the putting green. After all, most of the shots you take in a round are with the flat stick.

Most of the time, the putting greens are set up just like the greens on the course, so it’s crucial that you take your putting practice seriously. Rather than mindlessly hitting putts, take the time to understand the true roll of the greens. Figure out how much break goes into the putts and take that knowledge with you to the course. 

Start with shorter putts to build your confidence early and then move to 10, 15, and 20 footers. Once you have the greens figured out, move to the rough and repeat the process with your chipping. 

Figuring out an effective pre-round warmup can do wonders for a golfer’s round. If you show up to the course at your scheduled tee time, you’ll spend the first few holes trying to get into a good rhythm and give up strokes along the way. Stop giving away shots and start warming up. 

Calculating Your Handicap and Why It's Important

One of the biggest thrills about playing the game of golf is improving each time you go out to the course. The adrenaline rush of breaking 90 or making one less bogey whenever you play 18 holes.

Unfortunately, some amateur golfers don’t have a strategy to help measure their success on the golf course. They don’t take the time to develop one of the most basic measurements in all of golf: an official handicap.

The handicap in golf is a number to determine a golfer’s playing ability. It’s rare that you’ll come across a foursome of golfers with all the same skill level, so the handicap helps level the playing field so it’s equal for all golfers. This makes it more appealing to play competitively among one another.

At the end of each round, the golfer subtracts their handicap to the final score to keep things fair. If you happen to be a scratch golfer, then your handicap is 0 and nothing is added to your score. The lowest number when scores are adjusted is the winner of the round.

So how is a handicap calculated? There are a number of factors that go into figuring out one’s handicap such as score, slope of a course, and course rating. You can manually figure out a handicap, but it’s best to go through a website that does the hard work for you.

If you belong to a country club, there is usually a computer in the clubhouse that allows you to keep track of your handicap by entering your score after the round. For those not lucky enough to belong to a club, you can register your handicap online through multiple sites.

Golf.com offers their own handicap tracker as well as Golf Digest. The beautiful part about using these two handicap trackers is that they’re both accessible through an app as well. If you can’t make it to a computer, you can easily punch in your score on your smartphones.

Handicaps take into account a golfer’s most recent rounds up to their last 20. The point of a handicap is to tell a golfer’s playing potential rather than their average score.

Not only can a handicap predict a golfer’s potential as well as keep the playing field equal, but it also measure progress. Make it a goal to lower your handicap with every round. The lower, the better. It’s always important for amateur golfers to set goals from themselves and playing to lower a handicap is the perfect goal to set.

Once someone finds out you golf, they usually follow up with the infamous, “What’s your handicap” question. Start 2016 off right by building a handicap for yourself and working to keep it low. It’s never too late to figure out your playing potential.

Winter Golf Mindest

There is no bigger enemy to a golfer than Mother Nature. From 50 MPH winds like the Farmers Insurance Open saw last Sunday or rain ruining a tee time, weather can certainly put a damper on a golfer’s life, but that’s only if you let it.

Entrepreneur Jim Rohn has a famous quote that applies directly to golfers:

“You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change yourself. That is something you have charge of.”

The same goes for the winter months. While most amateur golfers use the cold weather as an unofficial offseason, it’s actually the perfect opportunity to improve your golf game.

You only get three months of playing time in the summer, so rather than wasting the limited time you have to figure things out, do it in the “offseason.” Get a leg up while the competition is sleeping on winter.

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Set Goals

If you do nothing else while cooped indoors this winter, the least you can do is set goals for yourself. Identify areas of weakness in your game and work to make them a strong suit. It’s hard enough trying to get better in this difficult game, so make things easier with a sense of direction.

Create an result and process oriented goal.  A result goal would be something specific like scoring: break 100, 90, or 80. Other examples would be trying to go a whole round without making a double bogey or three putt. These goals are out of our direct control. 

A process goal examples would be having a specific routine before every shot, practicing an hour once a week, or making sure to have positive body language your entire time on the course. These goals are within our control. Focus on the process and the results will come.

Setting goals gives a sense of motivation for human beings, so motivate yourself to get better in the new year by identifying what’s important to your golf game. Get rid of the distractions.

Practice When Possible

Just because there are subfreezing temperatures outside doesn’t mean you can’t be practicing inside. There are plenty of ways to get reps in despite winter weather.

One of the most important parts of golf is the short game. Luckily, this is something that’s very accessible even to the most beginner of golfers.

Grab your putter, a few golf balls and a plastic cup for the hole. Use it as an opportunity to get comfortable with your putting stroke so you’re ready to go for the first round of the season. Practice five footers so you build confidence for when it really counts.

Another way to practice is to take advantage of indoor facilities scattered around the city, including MY CHICAGO GOLF. Scheduling a session with a simulator once every other week throughout the winter will keep your game sharp, while your opponents rust away.

Hold a Golf Club

Something as simple as holding a golf club can do wonders for one’s confidence. Keep the feeling fresh in your mind throughout the cold months.

If you’re lucky enough to have a garage or backyard, get out there and get some swings in. Whether you realize it or not, this easy task can keep a golfer’s muscle memory on point.

Take Hank Haney's advice of making "100 swings per day". You don't need to hit a ball and it will only take you 5 minutes.

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The winter doesn’t have to be a sad time in a golfer’s life. Like Jim Rohn said, “You can change yourself,” so change your perspective and look at the cold weather as a blessing. It’s the perfect opportunity to pinpoint the areas your game that need improvement and take action to improve them. Don’t sleep on winter. 

-Matt Cochran

How To Hit Good Shots Under Pressure

The Secret Is The Pre-Shot Routine!

The purpose of a pre-shot routine is to provide a deep focus on what you want to happen to each shot; rather than what you don't want to happen. It productively distracts your mind from negative thoughts or visualizations, while helping you stay aware of elements that affect your shot like wind, slope, lie, and distance.

Say to yourself: "The hole is 130 yards away with wind left to the right. Let's start the ball at the tree behind the left side of the green with a smooth swing" rather than "Don't slice this shot out of bounds again. This hole always gets me. I don't want to look silly in front of my friends. Hopefully I don't go left into that deep bunker. Here goes nothing..."

The whole routine lasts only 15-20 seconds, but needs to be distraction free for every shot you play on the course.

Step 1) Analyze

What elements are affecting your shot? Wind, slope, lie, elevation, yardage, safe zone, starting line, how you're hitting it that day, location of hazards and obstacles. Analyzing this info helps you choose a specific target and a club to get it there. Good shots don't just happen: you have to analyze and prepare for them.

Step 2) Visualize

The more vivid you can imagine the shot before you hit it, the better. Play a movie in your mind of how high and far the ball will go, and how it will roll once it hits the ground. This is especially key for short shots around the green.

Step 3) Commit

Once you've picked your target and club you need to walk into the shot with confidence, make a practice swing to get a feel, and pull the trigger. DO NOT freeze over the golf ball and fill your mind with thoughts. See It, Feel It, Trust It.

Also, if you get distracted its important to step back and start your routine again. No more hitting uncommitted shots.

Step 4) Assess

Ask yourself how well you executed steps 1-3, regardless of the result of the shot. If you did well, pat yourself on the back because you gave that shot your best effort. That's all you can ask for on the course. Don't waste shots because you're unfocused, distracted, rushed or uncommitted.
Remember: If you focus on the process, positive results are much more likely to happen. You cannot control the outcome, only the process.

5 Keys To Launch Your Driver

The game of golf is much easier when you can hit long drives in the fairway. You'll have shorter approach shots to the green, give yourself a chance to shoot a career low score, and hit the ball past your golf buddies. Launching the driver is simply one of the best feelings in golf and here's 5 tips to make it happen:

1) Stand with Spine Tilt
The stance with the driver is different than with the irons. Place the ball inside of your lead heel, widen your stance and tilt your spine away from the target. Your weight should still be even between your left and right foot. For your drive to carry the farthest possible amount, it must be launched between 12 and 15 degrees- spine tilt at address makes this possible.

2) Create Width in Backswing
The golf swing is a circle, and the wider the circle, the faster the club head moves. Visualize the club moving back low and slow. This will help you make a full shoulder turn behind the ball and put you in a position to create power. Width also makes the club travel very smoothly at the bottom of the swing, rather than crashing into the ground.

3) Hit Inside Part of Ball
The most important aspect of solid drives in hitting the inner part of the ball, but it can also be the most difficult to achieve. Feel a slight pause at the top of your swing in order to drop your arms in transition. Keeping your back facing the target to start the downswing is also a good thought to ensure the club drops to the inside, which makes the ball draw and increases distance.

4) Check Impact Point
The weakest part of the clubface is the heel (inside part of club close to the shaft). Hitting the ball there creates a slice and drastically increases backspin and is a distance killer. Spray some foot power on the driver face and strive to make impact just above center or slightly toward the toe.

5) Practice Creating Speed
For every mile per hour you increase your club head speed, you'll get 2.6 yards. Increase your swing speed by 10 m.p.h, and you've got an extra 26 yards in carry. Making sure your grip pressure is light and you have zero tension in your arms. This gives you the best chance of moving the club the fastest. Swing an alignment rod and try to make the loudest "swoosh" sound possible.

What I Personally Learned From Dave Stockton

Ever wonder what the world's #1 golfer, Rory McIlroy, thinks about when he's making clutch putts to win majors? MY CHICAGO GOLF was fortunate to learn first hand from his putting coach Dave Stockton at the 2015 PGA Demo Day in Orlando, FL.

Dave Stockton's Putting Tips:

1) Learn How to Fix Your Miss Pattern: If you tend to miss every putt to the left of the hole simply lift your hands at address to start the ball on line. This will help keep your lead hand solid through impact without having it break down which causes the pull. If you miss to the right of the hole, make sure the heel of the putter moves back first which prevents the putter from fanning open. It's that simple!

2) Listen For The Ball: On Short putts inside of 5 Feet, make a committed putting stroke and stay down through the shot until you hear the ball rattle in the hole. Most amateurs miss short putts because they want to look at the hole too soon and move their bodies prematurely which causes the ball to go off line.

3) Process and Spot: When Rory McIlroy is playing in pressure tournaments he is not focused on the outcome of his shots, but rather the process necessary for execution. He's developed a pre-putt routine that gets his mind so immersed on rolling the ball over a small target 1-inch in front of him, that all the pressure disappears. It's a productive way to distract the mind not only for putting but for full swings.

4) Swing The Putter: Many amateurs jab at the ball and have poor rhythm when putting. Instead Dave Stockton wants you to make a smooth stroke through the ball, almost has if the ball isn't even there. When using this strategy you must adjust the length of stroke for the length of putt. Make sure to swing the putter far enough back for longer putts to keep smooth rhythm.

What I Personally Learned From Butch Harmon and Jim McLean

It's not often that a golf coach is privileged to learn from multiple World Golf Hall of Fame Teachers at the same time and place, but that is exactly what happened at the 2015 PGA Teaching and Coaching Summit. This summit occurs every other year and is located in Orlando, FL. It gives a chance for golf instructors from around the world to learn from the best teachers in the history of the game, and find insights to bring back to their own clientele.

The best part about the summit this year was being able to watch live lessons from these legendary instructors. The PGA of America did a great job creating a learning environment that made it possible  for the audience to clearly see how the lessons were given. Each teacher started by sharing pertinent information about the student they were working with, had the student hit balls, then their golf swing was recorded and displayed on large screens while being able to see the ball flight from a simulator.

Here are 4 "Pearls of Wisdom" from Butch Harmon and Jim McLean:

1) Find the cancer of the golf swing: Butch said this statement several times, and it means find the one element of the golf swing that is the root cause of many faults. Once this element is fixed, a golfer will see several other improvements as a result. If the "cancer" of the golf swing is not addressed, then a golfer will be working on several compensations and have a mind filled with clutter, rather than one precise thought that leads to quality contact.

2) It takes no athletic ability to stand to the ball correctly: Another tip Butch said several times emphasizing the importance of pre-swing fundamentals (grip, aim, stance, posture). Most poor golf shots can be avoided if a golfer can address the ball properly, but these basic need to be practiced and perfected on a regular basis. Often times a golfer is focused on technical parts of the swing and gets poor results because of overlooking pre-swing essentials.

3) Rhythm and balance can mask poor technique: A great tip emphasized by Jim McLean that should bring hope to all golfers. Even if a golf swing has technical flaws, if the player can be free of tension and make a balanced and rhythmic motion- good shots can happen! The opposite can be true of a technically sound swing that lacks grace and composure. Tension kills the golf swing. Make sure to incorporate rhythm and balance into practice at the range, but especially to shots on the course.

4) Always prioritize ball flight over how the golf swing looks: In the live lesson conducted by Jim and Butch, they were able to get their student to hit the driver solid in straight after about 5 minutes! The student went from a low hooking shot, to a high trajectory with little curve by making small changes in the grip and stance. Quite honestly, the new swing didn't look as appealing on video, but the quality of the contact and ball flight had drastically improved. Even though we all want our swing to look like the tour players on TV, there is no better feeling than hitting great shots on the course and watching your golf ball fly straight toward your target.

Quality golf coaches understand the importance of continuous education. At MY CHICAGO GOLF, we are proud to keep expanding our knowledge about golf instruction and look forward to sharing more insights from the brilliant minds in the golf industry.

How To Practice Like The Pros

Tour players know to play great golf they need a quiet mind and they strive to keep things simple. They take this same philosophy to the practice range when working on their game. They've identified their strengths and weakness and have a plan before hitting a single shot. Often times, amateur's do the exact opposite! They make their practice complex by continuously changing swing thoughts and working on every tip they've heard from a friend or the Golf Channel. Here's some proven methods to improve your practice.

Golden Rules

1) Balance practicing Technique, Impact Skills and Playing Skills: Only work on 1 or 2 technical aspects of your swing at a time. It's counter productive trying to make too many swing changes at once because you won't get enough repetitions of the proper movement to ingrain it. Instead change your focus to improving your Impact skills. This includes having control of the Bottom of the Swing, Center Contact, and Starting line. The next step is to add Playing Skills such as Rhythm, Balance, Routine and being Tension Free. All these skills are required to play solid golf- not just technique!

2) When practicing technique, feel and exaggerate the new movement before each shot: If you get a chance to go to the PGA Tour event definitely check out the driving range. You'll notice that the pros take their time between shots and always make a practice swing before they hit the ball. They want to really feel the new motions that they're trying to incorporate into their swing. It's basically double the repetitions and practice. Don't be that golfer that hits balls fast without thought.

3) Only practice as long as you can stay focused: Golf is a fickle game and you'll have good days and bad days. If you find that you're struggling hitting the ball, just step back for a minute, take a deep breath, and recommit to your practice. It's always good to hit 5-8 balls at a time then take a short break.

4) Use feedback other than ball flight: There is always a difference between "feel" and "real". Sometimes you'll think that you're making the correct movement, only to see on video that it's the exact same swing. Here's a couple ideas to help you incorporate feedback into your practice.

• • Spray foot powder on your clubface to see the impact point on the club
  • Video yourself with a smartphone and analyze your swing with popular apps like V1 Golf or Ubersense
  • Use a training aid like a headcover or alignment rod on the ground
  • Use a mirror to see the reflection of your swing

5) Set a goal for specific skills: Examples would be hitting 7 out of 10 on the center of the face, 8 out of 10 swings finishing balanced, hitting the green 6 out 10 times from 150 yards, etc. This helps set benchmarks and measure your strengths and weaknesses.

6) Practice in an environment that's similar to the golf course: Every other sport such as football, tennis or basketball is practiced on the court or field of competition. Only golf is practiced away from where you're actually playing. If possible, go to the course at a slow time, and hit multiple shots from various positions to get used to playing golf, not golf swing.

7) Have fun with the process: There's no way around it: golf is hard. But, it's a journey that's very rewarding and never ends. Enjoying the process of learning golf is mandatory for improvement. If you don't like practicing chances are you're not going to get better.

For help structuring a personalized practice plan, click here to schedule a lesson at MY CHICAGO GOLF.

PGA Tour Lesson: Jordan Speith's Tempo

There's no doubt the best golfer in the world the last two weeks (Dec. 2014) has been 21-year-old Jordan Speith with two blow out victories in a row. He won the Australian Open over Adam Scott with a final round 63 that Rory McIlroy claims he couldn't do in 100 tries, then wins Tiger Woods' tournament by 10! Click here for an article by Golf Digest describing Jordan's domination. 

So how does this seemingly average length player with a homemade swing get such amazing results? It's a combination of:

1. Being mentally focused for every shot
2. Having a consistent and repeatable swing
3. Having a quality short game that includes clutch putting

The one attribute that helps Jordan with each of these skills is his repeatable tempo. Here's video of him as a junior golfer:

Here's another video from Jordan's golf coach, Cameron McCormick, explaining other benefits of focusing on tempo.

Benefits of Focusing on Tempo

1. Helps you deal with pressure situations by distracting your mind with productive focus
2. Provides consistency with swing-speed for better distance control (this includes short game and putting)
3. Can also distract your mind from too many mechanical thoughts

If you're interested in improving your tempo check out Tempo In Motion. Practicing your tempo should be done routinely and is one of the best ways to have a quiet mind on the course.

8 Keys To Instantly Improve Your Scores

Whether you’re a beginner golfer or an experienced player, at some point your will start keeping score. This usually occurs when your skills start to develop to the point where you're getting double bogey or less on each hole (it's difficult to keep score if it takes you more than 7 or 8 shots to get in the hole).

Keeping score is not a requirement if you're just going out to the course to have a good time, but it's the best way to measure whether you're improving or not. Here are some keys to keep in mind that will help you reaching your scoring goals: breaking 100, 90 and 80 for 18 holes.

Scoring Keys: It's not how, it's how many

Key 1) Minimize Penalty Strokes: Hitting a golf ball out of bounds, in the water or any place where you can't find it automatically adds one shot to your score. Sacrificing distance for accuracy and keeping the ball in play is crucial.

Key 2) Minimize 3-Putting: A 3-foot putt counts the same as a 300 yard drive on a scorecard. Putting is the smallest of all golf swings and has the least physical requirements. With proper practice there is no reason why you shouldn't be able to 2-putt most greens. Focus on holing putts inside of six feet and lagging long putts close.

Key 3) Minimize Multiple Short Shots: Nothing's is more frustrating than hitting two quality shots hundreds of yards, then taking five shots to get in the hole from 30 yards. This usually occurs when a golfer has poor contact and distance control with their short game. X% of shots occur inside of 100 yards.

Key 4) When Out of Position, Get Back into Position: Every level golfer hits errant shots, but the golfers that score well get the ball back in play with their next shot. Don't compound mistakes! This might mean playing away from the hole and hitting a short shot to get back in the fairway. Developing a low trajectory shot to hit under trees is a valuable skill.

Key 5) Conservative Aim Management: If you are standing on a tee box and there is out-of-bounds to the right and no trouble left, you better make sure to favor that left side when you aim. Keep the ball in play and away from trouble area! Also, forgetting about the flagstick and simply aiming toward the center of the green will keep you away from hazards and sand traps.

Key 6) The 70% Rule: If you can't execute a specific type of shot 7 out of 10 times while practicing, then you should stay away from this shot on the course. Best example is a golfer that automatically pulls out the 3-Wood for his second shot on par 5's. This shot is difficult to execute and ends up getting golfers in trouble, when they can simply pull out a 6 iron and advance the ball.

Key 7) Play Within Yourself: Instead of swinging out of your shoes for extra distance, swing at 80% to ensure quality contact and accuracy. This is especially true for shots inside of 150 yards. Learn your average yardage with this smooth and balanced swing.

Key 8) Play the Correct Tee Box: If you hit a quality drive, then you should have a mid iron into the green on average. If you find that you're hitting a decent tee shot and still have to hit hybrids and 3 woods into the green, then you're playing a tee box too far back. Most males should play courses between 6,000 and 6,500 yards and females 5,000 and 5,800 yards.

Keeping these basic keys in mind helps you develop a strategy and plan before your round. It should also allow you to free up and realize you don't have to hit the ball perfect to score well, but you do have to make quality decisions.

The 3 Essential Ball Control Skills

A typical client of MY CHICAGO GOLF is a beginner golfer needing to hold their own on the course when invited to play by family, friends or co-workers. If you have goals of being able to play and not embarrass yourself, this article is for you.

3 Basic Skills:

1. Advance the ball while keeping in play (150 yards for men/ 100 yards for women)
2. Get ball on green within 100 yards
3. Two-putt once on green

Note that hitting the ball far (200+ yards) is not a requirement for quality golf. Accuracy and consistency is much more important than distance for new golfers. If you are able to advance the ball, hit it on the green once you're close, then two-putt, you’ll be playing bogey golf which equates to a score of 90 for 18 holes. You will be able to keep pace on any course!

• 48% of golfers shoot above 100
• 27% of golfers shoot in the 90’s
• 20 % of golfers shoot in the 80’s
• Only 5 % of golfers shoot in the 70’s

Attaining the above skills would basically put you in the top 25% of all golfers!

Plan of Action

Step 1) Develop pre-swing fundamentals: Learning how to properly grip the club and stand to the ball are the foundation of the swing. Making sure these elements are correct makes the next steps much easier. Click here for video tutorials: Grip and Stance.

Step 2) Make clean contact with the ball: Start with a short club like a pitching wedge and make small swings brushing the grass. Then place the ball on ground and make the same motion. The goal is to simply gain control of the bottom of the swing in order to pop the ball in the air. Also, using a tee gate at first helps you find the center of the face. Click here for video tutorial: Short Game

Step 3) Add distance: Starting to add body turn and wrist hinge allows you to generate clubhead speed which equates to distance. When done correctly most male golfers will be able to hit their 7 or 6 iron 150 yards (women: 100 yards). Using an alignment rod to practice body pivot and making a swoosh sound are simple drills for speed.

Step 4) Dial in direction: Now that basic contact has been established, the next step is being aware of the clubface. Practice starting the ball on line with an intermediate target only 15 feet in front of you. If the ball is starting too much left or right, adjust the clubface in your hands to make the ball start straight.

Step 5) Learn your distances: Having a good idea of how far you hit your lofted clubs (7i, 8i, 9i, PW, SW) will be important for you to hit greens inside of 150 yards. Hit ten shots with each club and notice the average carry distance. Make sure to discard outliers like mis-hits. Using an indoor simulator provides a controlled environment and accurate feedback to make this possible.

Step 6) Putting Basics: Making solid contact with a putter is essential to good putting. Focus on hitting the ball in the center of the face, keeping the putter low to the ground, while having a pendulum style stroke. Practice short putts inside 5 feet, and long putts over 30 feet.

Although this is a basic outline of the skills required to play quality golf, it's important to note that this process takes time and practice. Some players are able to get through this process in a couple months, while it takes others a few seasons. Understand golf improvement is a journey and you get out what you put in. Click here for Developmental Programs.

The Importance of Golf In Business

MY CHICAGO GOLF is fortunate to work with golfers of all skill levels and backgrounds. From junior golfers picking up the club for the first time, to experienced players with specific scoring goals. However, our typical clients are business professionals with no previous golf experience. They have goals of being able to play a round with co-workers, clients and friends without embarrassing themselves.

So how important is golf in business? This survey provides some revealing stats: From The Boardroom to the Back Nine: The Importance of Golf in Business (Conducted by Guideline Research & Consulting for Starwood Hotels).

Golf Business Stats

• 97% of executives view golf with a business associate as a way to establish a close relationship
• 92% use golf as a way to make business contacts.
• More than 50 % say there is no better way, to get to know associates and clients. The second best way is a business meal.
• 45 % say clients are more likely to give you their business if you golf together.
• 43% of executives say some of their biggest deals have been made or started on the golf course.
• 59 % believe that the way a person plays golf is the way he or she behaves in business.
• 67 % of respondents say that a person who cheats at golf would probably cheat in business.
• 57 % say a hothead on the golf course is probably bad tempered at work.
• 92 % say people stressed at work would get more relief if they golfed.

There are many skills required to perform well in business and golf. Successful golfers stay focused, use strategy, display discipline, control their emotions, overcome adversity, and commit to improvement. Use golf as an outlet to test your character, strengthen relationships and grow your business.

Tips For Beginner Business Golfers

1) Establish Basic Fundamentals: Being able to make clean contact with the ball is essential to keeping pace on the course and not slowing up your playing partners. Taking lessons is the quickest way to learn and ingrain proper technique for various parts of the game.

2) Learn Etiquette and Rules: Knowing where to stand, not using your cell phone and speaking at appropriate times are examples of basic etiquette needed on the course. Find a friend with playing experience to show you on-course basics or sign up for a playing lesson.

3) Keep It Fun: You'd rather play poorly and be good company on the course, then play decent and lose your cool. Nobody likes playing golf with negative people. Stay positive, have fun with the game and enjoy the challenge. If you're really struggling, it's okay to pick up the ball and move it closer to the green in order to keep pace.

4) Let People Know You're A Beginner: Golf is a difficult game for everyone. Nobody picks up a club as a beginner and knows how to play. If you explain that you're new to the game then your playing partners will encourage and help you through the learning process- we all have to start somewhere. Nothing worth having comes easy.

Get started today by scheduling your first lesson at MY CHICAGO GOLF. 

Mirror Checkpoint: Address

During the winter in Chicago golfers should practice basic fundamentals at home in order to keep their games sharp. Just standing in front of a mirror with a club and looking for certain checkpoints goes a long way towards developing awareness of the swing. Golfers with poor pre-swing fundamentals are MORE likely to struggle with consistency of contact and direction. Make sure to keep your address position clean throughout the winter.  Here are a couple checkpoints for golfers to look for when addressing an IRON.

Side View

1) Orange: Bend from hip with slight knee flex, small space between body and club
2) Yellow: Arms hang straight down, weight is balanced
3) Red: Club points toward belt line
4) Green: Balls of feet, knee, back of shoulder align

Front View

1) Red: Ball position just inside of left heel
2) Yellow: line should go from ball, through hands, then ear
3) Green: spine is tilted away from target, left shoulder is higher than right, left foot is flared toward target
4) Blue: balanced between left and right side

Practice for short periods of time (10 minutes) a couple times a week throughout the winter. This will give you a solid chance of making clean contact in the spring.

Setting Winter Golf Goals

As the golf season approaches the winter months, now is the perfect time to reflect on your past season. Did you make progress with your game? What areas of your game still need improvement? Give yourself an honest assessment and write down a specific, realistic and measurable goal for the off season.

To reach your goal we need to start with a plan. Answer the following four questions in order to kick start your focus and motivation.

 1) What do I want to accomplish with my golf game? Make sure it is specific, realistic, measurable and has a deadline. Example: I want to break 90 by the end of next season.

2) What's currently happening with my game? Be honest and objective. What have you tried to improve and what were the results? Think about current obstacles holding you back. Is your goal still realistic? Example: I'm currently shooting in the high 90's/low 100's. I play once a week, but rarely practice. My driver constantly slices to the right, and my short game could be better. I found some tips online that helped for a little while, but the slice came back. I'm busy and don't have much time to practice.

3) What are some options to accomplish my golfing goal? Really brainstorm and be creative. If you could do anything to make progress what might it be? Ask others you trust for their opinion. Example: I could start taking lessons and practicing. There are drills I can work on at home, and I know I can squeeze in at least one hour a week to hit balls. I could also use my cell phone to video my swing and analyze when practicing. My basement has carpet, so I can practice putting.

4) What actions do I need to take? Which of the above options can I do? How and when will I go about it? Which options interest me the most and seem fun? Example: I'm going to schedule a lesson for every Tuesday at 6pm and practice Saturday mornings. I'm going to do drills in front of a mirror for ten minutes before bed twice a week, and practice putting 6 footers in the basement once per weekend. There is also a golf dome in the suburbs I can visit once a month to work on short game. If I get into a good routine I should have improved by spring. 

I'd encourage you to share your goals with me or a friend in order to have some accountability, but more importantly this exercise is to help get you energized about improvement.

How to Practice Productively

There is nothing more frustrating than dedicating hours of your valuable time to hit countless golf balls at the range only to play horrible on the actual course. This scenario is very common and makes a golfer question whether than can actually get better or not. The truth is that golfers DO get better when they know HOW to practice correctly. Quality definitely outweighs quantity when it comes to golf practice. Here are the basics for making your next practice session effective.

1) Go To The Range With A Plan

Start by asking yourself what you want to accomplish from your practice session. It often helps to assess your current golf game and find the weakness that is preventing you from playing your best. Commit that practice session to focusing purely on that weakness. Many golfers often hit their favorite club over and over because they have confidence with it. Check the ego at the door and practice that part of the game that makes your feel uncomfortable.

2) Split Practice Time

Now that you've identified the weakness in your game that you want to work on, you need to split practice between technique, games and simulated play.

Technique- has to deal with the mechanics of the swing. Hopefully you've had a lesson and understand what needs to fixed. Focus on changing elements of the swing through exaggeration, drills and slow motion movement. Where the ball goes does not matter when working on technique. Focus on body and club movement rather than ball flight. Also use feedback such as mirrors, video or training aids. DO NOT make the mistake of spending your whole practice session with a technique mindset.

Games- playing specific games on the range makes a player target oriented and introduces pressure to the scenario. Examples are: how many balls can you hit out of 10 on the green from 100 yards?, how many solid shots can you hit in a row while keeping balance? Can you curve a ball to the left with one shot, then to the right with the next one? Can you hit it high, medium or low with the same club? Etc… Once you've played these games a benchmark has been set, then you try to beat it. Have fun and get creative with games. The mindset with games should be about executing shots, rather than making a technically sound swing.
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Simulated Play- Time to bring the course to the range! Playing good golf is about putting quality shots together with different clubs. Play a pretend 9 holes on the range by choosing random targets and hitting .

Hole # 1: Hit driver, 7 iron, pitch shot, chip shot. Hole #2: Hit 4 iron, chip shot Hole #3: Hit driver, 3 wood, pitching wedge….Make this experience as realistic as possible. Use the same pre-shot routine you would on the course, take a longer time between shots, hit from clean and poor lies, etc. Be aware if your tempo, tension or balance changes as your playing.

3) Keep Track of Progress

After an effective practice session it's important to take notes about the session. It can be as simple as writing down the swing thoughts you had when you were hitting the ball well, or keeping scores for the games you played on the range. You will eventually have a journal of your practice accomplishments and will see measurable progress.

This should give you a better idea of how to spend your time practicing and provide basic structure. I'd also recommend consulting with a PGA Professional to provide a custom practice plan for your goals. They will provide clarity with the technique portion of practice, as well as give you several ideas for games. When done correctly practice becomes fun due to variety and and the internal competition with yourself to get better. You'll be practicing all parts of your game and be a well rounded golfer when it's time to play on the course.

Essential Skills to Play Great on the Course

I recently went to the PGA Teaching and Coaching Summit and had a chance to gain some valuable insights from the most respected golf instructors in the world. One of the classes was titled Peak Performance Practice For Skill Development presented by Lynn Marriott and Pia Nilsson.

They worked closed with Annika Sorenston as well as recent PGA Tour Winner and Chicago native Kevin Streelman.

They focus on developing Essential Playing Skills in their students so they can play their best while on the course and provide tangible ways to practice.

Essential Playing Skills

1. Play Box: Executing shots in an athletic performance state and being present through your senses.
2. Decision and Commitment: Having the courage to commit to a simple and clear decision for every shot
3. Balance: Having a good sense of balance improves the swing and stroke
4. Tempo: Having an intimate sense of tempo helps the body and swing be in sync for the day.
5. Tension Awareness:  Tension kills the golf swing so it's best to be aware and monitor tension levels.
6. Emotional Resilience: Being able to go to your happy place allows you access to your whole brain.
7. Storage of Memory: Events that get emotionalized get stored deeper in the brain. Being happy or neutral in you post-shot routine is desirable.
8. Self-Talk: Make sure to be your best friend and coach when playing. You're the only one out there, so talk to yourself in a productive way.

Every golfer knows the importance of the mental game but rarely does anything to practice it. We now have ways to practice the mental game through Vision54! Lynn and Pia have an iPhone app that gives specific drills to work on the above skills. As an instructor it's important that my clients not only have solid fundamentals with their swing, but are well rounded golfers that can execute on the course. These skills are what all good players have in common and cannot be practiced enough.