This is an important part of the year for any golfer who wants to get the most out of the 2016 season. Although it's still a couple of months or so until everything gets under way for the competitive season, we are now well and truly into our pre-season. If you have been watching on social media, you will have seen that our Scottish elite amateurs have been warm weather training in Dubai and just last weekend that Drumoig's Connor Syme won the Australian Amateur Championship.
Warm weather training will likely not be on the cards for any of us 'normal' golfers, so we must make the most of what we've got and get out on the range and start beating some balls. If you have been following a fitness program throughout the off season, then you should really be feeling the benefit of this. For those of you that have not, then it's important that as a bare minimum you start a regular stretching program.
I'll show you a couple of great stretches below, to help get you started.
Equipment MOT
It's time to have a look at your equipment and make any repairs that may be required. There are a number of things that need checked out before the new season gets under way and below is a list of some of the most important things.
Grips - Check you grips to see if they are worn and needing replaced. If you are a regular golfer, your grips will likely need replaced every season. As a grip starts to wear, it loses its grip and this results in a greater pressure required to hold the club and created tension in the swing.
Shoe Spikes - Make sure you have grip in your shoes. An unstable base will lead to lost power in your swing.
Wedge Faces - Worn grooves will reduce the spin you can impart on the ball and as a result your control around the greens will reduce. Re-grooving your wedges can make a huge difference to both the performance and appearance of your wedge.
Iron Loft & Lie - Through regular play, an irons loft and lie can change. Have you noticed an inconsistency between the distances that each iron carries? A wrongly lofted iron can cause this. If you are prone to pulling left or blocking right, then there is a strong chance that your iron lofts are wrong.
You have to work at it
Like everything in life, you have to work hard to achieve your goals. Whatever level your strive to play at, you will have to work at your game to get there and I can assure you that once you get there, your goals will change and you will want to continue improving.
Our driving range membership is one of the best ways to help you improve your game. For just £19.99 per month you can hit up to 100 range balls every single day. Whether you've got some spare time at lunch or you pop in on your way home from work, it's amazing how much your game will improve with regular practice.
Our driving range membership is such great value that if you were to hit just 1 basket of balls per week, you would save yourself 35% per month. Many of our members hit balls 5 or 6 days per week and get amazing value from their membership.
For more information on our driving range membership, call 01738 440678 or email info@noahsarkgolf.com
Pre-Season iron play
One of the biggest problems I see is a player coming to practice with a single mid iron, usually a 6 or 7 iron. Although this will help your play with that specific club, it will unlikely help the rest of your irons. If you want to really improve your iron play, then you will need to start using them all! This practice plan is based around hitting a basket of 50 golf balls (just double the numbers if you are going to hit 100 balls)
Firstly take a few minutes to warm up, stretching and making practice swings, then select 4 irons, odds one day evens the next. Now pick a target and follow the plan below.
- 20 balls - 5 balls per club, starting with the shortest iron, and working to the longest, hitting towards a target.
- 8 balls - 2 balls per club, starting with the shortest iron, and working to the longest, hitting towards a target.
- 22 balls - 1 ball per club, alternating between a shorter & longer iron.
This is a rhythm & timing practice session and is designed to help your transition between clubs. As such, don't get tied up with swing technique, but give every single ball 100% concentration.
Play Better Golf - Connection Drill
Today's exercise will help you rotate your body better through impact. Poor rotation through the hitting area causes your clubface aim to be very inconsistent, and can also cause you to lose power in your shots. This drill can be done in doors without a ball or better still on the range with a ball. Firstly set your ball on a low tee and make your address position. You should now swing back to around chest high and pause, ensuring that you have rotated your shoulders and arms together.
From this position I want you to swing through to chest high, making sure that you move your body and arms together. If you do this correctly, then at impact position you will find that your hips have cleared out of the way leaving plenty of space to strike the ball. As your rotation continues through, then you should find that by the time your club reaches chest high on the follow through that your body is pointing at your target.
This exercise is designed to really help improve the timing and synchronicity of your swing. If you try to hit at the ball with your hands then you will be prone to hitting the ground before the ball or you will spray the balls wildly left and right. If you're not going to get the chance to hit a ball, then this exercise can be practiced in front of a mirror.
PING G Series Launch Event
With the eagerly awaited New PING G Series due to launch mid-February, Noah's Ark Golf Centre is happy to be hosting one of the country's very first fitting events on Wednesday, 24 February, 3-7pm.
We are offering you the opportunity to book a 30 minute fitting session with PING's technician who will help set you up for the latest gear. If you would like to book a slot, then give us a call on 01738 440678 or email niall@noahsarkgolf.com
Putting League
Our Putting League is due to start on Thursday, 4 February.
This is a great chance for you and your friends to test out your putting skills.
The league runs with teams of 4 players and players can be substituted if someone can't make it.
It's great fun and also very competitive, so if you are up for the challenge give us a call on 01738 440678 or email info@noahsarkgolf.com
The Lob Wedge Putting Challenge
Last week's challenge was to play 9 holes of our Mini Golf Putting Course using only a lob wedge. A pretty tricky challenge it turned out to be! The winner… and it is getting to be a bit of a habit, was Andrew with a great score of 19. Following a 3 'putt' on the first, he was very steady on the rest of the way round. If you'd like to see his winning effort, just click here or on the video image.
Control your distances challenge
For this week's challenge we thought we would change things a bit and wanted to show how important it is to be able to control the distance of your golf shots. To this end we decided that we would play the 18th hole at the Old Course St Andrews… but from the driving range! The 18th hole at the Old Course is 357 yards from the medal tees and our challenge was to play a drive and an approach shot (using Flightscope) and see how close we could each get to that 357 number.
Playing an imaginary golf course, is a great way to practice your game when on the range and it breaks up the monotony of hitting lots of balls with the same club and I would advise this practice game for anyone who is a bit of a range bunny. Click here or on the image to watch our teaser video and then comment below it on our facebook page with who you think won and what total distance they managed to hit with their 2 shots.
Pre-Registration Season Ticket Offer
If you are looking to play some great value golf in 2016, then North Inch could be the golf course for you.
Our Pre-Registration offer has been proving very popular and allows you to play Free golf until full registration opens in March.
As many golf clubs membership subscription prices continue to rise, North Inch as a municipal course continues to offer fantastic value. At just £279 per year for adults and £189 for seniors and 18-29yr olds you really can't beat it.
Our Junior season ticket at just £20, including the opportunity to attend some free coaching sessions, makes it a great choice for the entire family.
For more information please call the starters box on 01738 636481 or email northinchgolf@pkc.gov.uk or visit our website www.northinchgolf.co.uk where an application form can be downloaded.
