Best of 2016: The one your swing needs most – our top five long game drills of the year
As we said when we showcased our top short game tips and equipment stories of the year in our ‘Best of 2016’ openers, there’s no doubt 2016 saw a lot of incredible content appear on the GolfTEC Scramble.
We’re back with our best-of-the-best highlight reel, giving a list that’s more valuable to improving your golf swing than any other. So read on, as we present our top five long game drills of 2016 …
Best of 2016: Top 5 long game drills
5. Understand golf ball flight laws and these 3 steps to fix your slice
It’s no secret most golfers slice the ball. What’s often little known, however, is why most golfers slice the ball. Many players, whether given poor advice from their buddies, elsewhere or from their own misconceptions on how to improve, often work on aspects of their swing that hurt their efforts, not help. So, Nick Clearwater tackles this with Jon Levy in one of our popular Lesson Series episodes, giving clarity on the golf ball flight laws that dictate a slice and three simple checkpoints to create a great starting place to fix it.
4. Elbow Bend Exercise for better contact
PGA Tour players make swinging a golf club look easy. So much so, that while many of us try to emulate the smooth swings we see on TV in our own games, it becomes frustrating when our swings instead look like they came with step-by-step directions in a foreign language. Our No. 4 long game drill helps bridge this gap with with Nick Clearwater’s Elbow Bend Exercise, an easy-to-understand guide on limiting elbow bend in the downswing and follow-through, and a key reason as to how tour pros make the swing look so easy.
3. Book Drill to control wrist bend and help ball flight
The manner in which your wrists bend in the golf swing can make a HUGE difference on your ball flight. Katie Finney explains and provides the Book Drill as a simple way to “read” (See what we did there?) into your wrist position throughout the swing. The best part? This is a great drill you can practice during the offseason in your living room.
2. Push It Out Drill to fix your “chicken wing”
Chicken wings are better served at sports bars, not with your golf swing. Which is why Andy Hilts’ Push It Out Drill was so successful on the GolfTEC Scramble this year – because too many golfers out there struggle with the chicken wing in their swing! Take a look at the simple checkpoints Hilts gives for your backswing, and limit those wings to only the kind you eat.
1. Shoulder Bend Drill for a proper finish
Proper shoulder bend in the follow-through directly correlates to playing better golf. This is not our opinion, it’s been proven by GolfTEC’s unprecedented SwingTRU Motion Study. Patrick Nuber explains in a feature that appeared on Golf Channel, and gives the Shoulder Bend Drill that can have you finishing like a tour pro in no time.
Bonus drill!
With SO many great drills appearing on the Scramble this year, how could we limit the list to just five? Here’s a fun drill you can use to control your ball flight on those windy days – one that pays homage to Tiger Woods’ recent return to competition. Check out Nick Clearwater showing us how to hit that low stinger shot Tiger made famous.
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Not sure if these tips are right for you? Find a GolfTEC near you and talk to a Coach who can help today!
Great post! I am definitely guilty of slicing the ball! I l especially like book drill and the chicken wing fix. Low shots into the wind can be so difficult! Not moving the ball too far back is definitely the key.