How To Lose Distance

Sometimes, knowing what not to do is easier to understand than knowing what to do. When it comes to power hitting, to putting some distance on that ball, there are certainly a few things that we do not want to do.

Here are a few tips that can help improve your distance:

Do not tee up your ball too low. A lot of players will do this and it hurts their distance before they even hit the ball. When a ball is teed too low, the driver will not be able to sweep under it. Instead, it tends to force a steeper downward hit from the driver. Newer drivers have a larger sweet spot and the sweet spot is higher up the face than it was several years ago. What you want to do is tee the golf ball up with at least half the ball above the top of the driver head.

Check your stance width. Often, too narrow a stance will hinder a player's balance. If your balance is off your power will decrease. If you are driving, your feet should be about shoulder width apart.

Here's one that I had to learn myself--the hard way. Check your hands. If you keep your hands too close to your body you'll create a narrow arc on the backswing. This will certainly hinder your distance. If you discover you have this problem, take some time on the practice range and move your hands out (away from your body). This will feel awkward at first, but stick with it, and your distance will improve greatly. This same problem can happen if you keep the club too close to your body on the take away. The best way to know if you're doing this or not is to ask a buddy to watch you and report back what he sees.

Ball position is very important. If your ball is about centered in your driving stance, it's too far back. You need to be playing that ball off your left heel.

Do not flip your hands at impact. Some golfers do this routinely and it decreases their power and their distance. Keep those hands cocked.

Do not 'sway' during your downswing. Swaying your hips decreases the amount of energy that you can deliver to the ball at impact. To keep the power, move the hip slightly in a lateral movement, and start the club down, with the right arm tighter into the body. This, too, takes some practice, but it is well worth the time and effort.

And lastly, do not do the reverse pivot jig. A reverse pivot is when the weight tends to go towards the front leg on the backswing, rather than to the back leg. Having your weight go forward will all but cripple your ability to power through the ball and get that extra distance.

These are just some of the things we should not do, but it's enough for now.