How to increase clubhead speed with this drill
This handy rules option is almost like cheating!By Lynn Blasch Every golfer knows that some rules, when breached, require the player to adjust his or her score by one or two shots. On a more positive note, knowledge of the rules can help a player make the best of a difficult situation. Consider the seventh hole at Springfield. The creek which parallels the fairway is properly marked with red stakes and lines, which means it is a lateral water hazard. The most common situation is that the player’s ball enters the hazard from the fairway side of the creek. The player can elect to play the ball as it lies for no penalty. If the ball cannot be played from the hazard, there are four penalty options, but almost every player will take relief by dropping, with a one stroke penalty, within two clublengths of the spot where the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard, no nearer the hole.Less well known, or even contemplated, is that another of the four penalty options available to the player under Rule 26-1 allows the same two clublength drop on the opposite margin of the hazard, equidistant from the hole.So at Springfield, if your ball enters the hazard from the fairway side, you are unlikely to consider dropping on the opposite margin (cart path side) because the terrain is sloping and the rough is usually sun-baked. But suppose your ball lands on the cart path side and then bounces into the hazard. One look will tell you that instead of dropping in the difficult terrain on that side of the hazard, you are far more likely to get a flatter lie on the opposite margin, or fairway side, of the hazard. In summary, there are not many opportunities at Springfield to take advantage of the opposite margin option (the left side of number two and the pond to the left of 16 green may be the next best times to consider the option) but whenever you play number seven, or any other course which has lateral water hazards, try to remember that you are entitled to the opposite margin option.  Source: Clublife article from www.sgccva.org  Some of the most helpful & productive lessons I've had in the past came right after playing well in a tournament. I wanted to have a second set of eyes take a look at my swing, wedge game, lag putting, etc. and have my instructor give his input into the reason for my improved play. This helped me identify some of my natural tendencies and embrace them. BUT often times I found that even though I may have been striking the ball well, my swing on video would look identical to previous lessons when I was striking it poorly. Mainly just a result of good timing of the clubface at impact and a bit of blind luck. But I would take advantage of my good clubface timing to make the necessary swing changes that improved my consistency. This made swing changes easier to adjust to and helped prevent the dreaded “getting worse before you get better”. Whats critical is working with someone with total understanding of the golf swing (which comes down to simply understanding how the best players in history use a golf club to strike a golf ball consistently) Nothing scientific here and no analyzed data, just my 2 cents from past experience. On a side note regarding swing lessons… After being around the game for 30+ yrs, one thing I've learned is that most golf pros are able to at least slap a band aid fix on a student’s swing but don’t last and can lead to bigger problems. Often the pro giving the lesson is no better than the average amateur golfer and has little competitive experience. Even worse is the golf pro that pays a recurring fee to be a ‘certified XXXX swing method’ instructor. Claiming that their secret method is the only correct way to swing and that all the touring pro’s are doing it. The real secret is that its a scam that forces the student to dish out big time $ and commit to dozens lessons to learn the latest swing fad. Both are a waste of time & money. How to Control your ball-flight with your golf grip One of the simplest and most effective ways to control your ball-flight is to adjust how you hold the club in your hands. Its well known that strong grip will help influence a shot to the left and a weak grip will influence the ball to the right (I will use a right handed golfer for the entirety of this article). What’s not well known is how to properly achieve these two grips. Too often students tell me that they create a strong grip by putting the club more in the fingers of the left hand and just move their right hand a little more under the shaft. For a weak grip, they put the club more towards the palm of the left hand and move their hand hand more on top of the shaft. Both of these descriptions are wrong and result in changing how you hold the club in your hands. There is a simpler, more consistent way to achieve these two grips. For a stronger grip, start with the clubface aimed left of your intended target, take your normal grip, and then rotate the clubface back towards the target using just your hands and forearms. It's important to note that once you complete your grip, that you do not adjust your hands on the club. That would be defeating the purpose of strengthening your grip. For a weaker grip, simply start with the clubface aimed right of your intended target and continue with the same process. All this is assuming that your grip is sound in the first place, so I highly recommend working with a qualified instructor who will know exactly how to help you with your grip. So as you play a round, use these two grips to help work the ball towards your target and away from the trouble. Its a simple and effective way to lower your scores!
 Springfield CC new FlightScope Launch monitor due to arrive shortly! Pretty excited to use this tool for club fittings. Check it out _here_
 Here's a pretty useful website when looking to hire services. Company's bid for your business so you get exactly what you want and at a lower price. I use it for my golf lessons. Not a plug for this company, just thought I'd share. Here's my business profile page... Here is a good refresher for those looking to gain consistency in their swing. Consistency in golf is simply reducing and minimizing misses. 
This is a drill I practice from time to time to help sequence my upper and lower body. WARNING - Do not try without contacting me first. You can seriously injure yourself with a alignment stick! If there is enough interest, I will post a more in depth video on this drill.  online golf Lessons
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