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The post Want to find the perfect posture for your golf swing? Try this appeared first on Golf.

If you want to hit solid golf shots on a consistent basis, you need to have rock-solid fundamentals. If you can’t get the simple pre-shot stuff right, you’ll have no hope of nailing a complex movement like the golf swing.

One of these pre-shot fundamentals that you need to focus on is your posture, i.e. the way you are standing when you address the ball.

GOLF Top 100 Teacher Tim Cooke sees errors in posture from his students every day, and it has a profound impact on their abilities to make a consistent swing. One of the most common errors he sees is the trail hip bumped away from the target, which leads to all sorts of issues in the full swing.

In an effort to correct these setup mistakes, Cooke uses a simple exercise where he has his students jump up and land on an alignment stick that is laid out on the ground pointing down their target line.

“When I land on the alignment rod, I want to land on the tripod of my feet,” Cooke says. “The big toe, the ball of the foot and the heel, I want them all grounded at setup so we can add some speed in the golf swing.”

If you want to try this for yourself, lay an alignment stick on the ground pointing down your target line and stand on top of it so it bisects the arch of your foot, favoring the front side of it. Now, just jump straight up in the air as if you are testing your vertical jump, and try to stick the landing back on the alignment stick.

“When you land, you should feel weight on the tripod of your feet,” Cooke says. “And I can feel my hips and my pelvis sit perfectly between my feet at address.”

If you’re someone who struggles to find the correct posture at address, give this exercise a try. By incorporating a little bit of athleticism into your setup, you will put yourself in a much better position to make a consistent strike on the ball.

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The post What should move first to start your downswing? We explain appeared first on Golf.

Golf instruction is ever-evolving, but the best advice stands the test of time. In GOLF.com’s series, Timeless Tips, we’re highlighting some of the greatest advice teachers and players have dispensed in the pages of GOLF Magazine. Today, we look back at our December 1979 issue for a deep dive into how your body should move to initiate your downswing.

The backswing gets everything organized, but the downswing is where the magic happens. From the top of the backswing to impact, what the club is doing is incredibly important. If something gets out of whack in this section of the swing, there is little hope for squaring the club at impact.

The order in which you move each part of the body has a huge impact on how this happens. This sequencing helps with efficiency and consistency, which ultimately makes the game much easier.

But while there are some rules that need to be followed for maximum efficiency, that doesn’t mean every swing is exactly the same. Every golfer’s body moves in unique ways, which has an impact on how they can best swing the club.

One such impact area is the initial downswing move, which GOLF Magazine explored in a 1979 issue by then-instruction editor Ernie Vossler. Check it out below to learn more about how you should initiate your own downswing.

How to initiate the downswing

You’ve completed your backswing. You have paused for a fraction of a second to change directions. Now you’re going to make your first move down. What should that first move feel like? What should it actually be?

Put these questions to top Tour stars, teaching professionals or amateurs and you’re likely to get as many different keys, tips or feel descriptions as the number of golfers polled. What works for some golfers doesn’t work for others.

The fact is that the proper first move down depends entirely on the type of swing you have.

Broadly speaking, there are two categories of golfer. One type is the “hitter,” who has a square or open clubface at the top of the swing. On the forward swing, all he has to do is “hit” or release so that he works the club back from that open position to a square position at impact and then to a closed position in the follow-through. To be more precise, the “hitter’s” club will be in a “toe up” position halfway into the forward swing. From there he begins to roll his right forearm over his left so that waist-high in the follow-through the toe of the club again points straight up. That’s releasing.

The second type is the “puller.” At the top of the swing, this golfer has the clubface to some degree closed. On the forward swing, this golfer has to pull from the left side in order to work the clubface from a closed position back to square before he can release the club.

Now let’s examine these two swing types in more detail. Then we’ll discuss the first moves down for each. 

Hitters and pullers

Because the fine line between “hitters” and “pullers” depends on clubface position at the top, let me clarify the terms “open” and “closed.”

If you extend the fingers of your left hand so that the back of the left hand is in line with the left forearm, then make a fist, as though you were going to hold a club, you will notice a small angle between the back of the hand and the forearm. Your hand is now in the “square” position. Now, with your hand still in a fist, move the back of your hand toward the top of your forearm as far as you can; you have gone from square to a fully “open” position. Then, continuing to hold the fist, move the back of the left hand from square to where the left wrist is in line with the forearm. Although this straight line position is commonly accepted as square, it is actually slightly “closed.” The completely closed position finds the left wrist in as convex a position relative to the forearm as you can achieve.

If you’re square to open at the top of your swing, you’re a “hitter;” if closed to any degree, you’re a “puller.” You can determine which type of swing you have by checking yourself in a mirror or by asking a friend to check you at the top of your swing.

The “hitter” has a big shoulder turn going back. He has some or no forearm rotation to the right, depending on whether he’s to some degree open or perfectly square at the top. (In other words, the forearm rotation or lack of it is the direct cause of the clubface position at the top.) However, his most important backswing characteristic, in regard to the first move down, is his big hip turn. Study any of the “hitters” on Tour, including Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Hale Irwin and Gil Morgan. You’ll see that the “hitter” turns his hips so far in the backswing that he must move the lower body laterally to the left to start the downswing. This allows him to hit from inside, to square at impact, and back to the inside. Without this initial, lateral move, the “hitter” would clear the hips too early in the forward swing. He would pull the club across the line from out to in and slice or pull.

The “puller” also has a big shoulder turn going back. He has a little forearm rotation to the left, if his left wrist is in line with his left forearm at the top, and has more of this type of rotation if his wrist position at the top is convex. (Again, the forearm rotation directly causes the ultimate top-of-the-swing position.) However, as with the “hitter,” the important point is hip action. The “puller” — Lee Trevino, Larry Nelson, Bruce Lietzke and David Graham are examples — has very little hip turn going back. He turns his shoulders, but holds his hips and closes the clubface. On the forward swing, the only reaction his hips can make is to rotate to the left or “clear” very rapidly.

This clearing motion is mandatory for the “puller.” Because he has closed the clubface going back, he has to reverse that position in the forward swing, and the only way to do that is to subordinate the right side and “pull” with the left side by a clearing motion of the hips. For the first two-thirds of the downswing, the “puller” reverses the clubface back to square, then goes ahead and releases normally. However, this late release does require much more strength and more precise timing than the action of the “hitter,” who can start releasing the moment he begins his forward swing.

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The post Follow this 5-step plan to hit perfect shots this season appeared first on Golf.

You slice. You catch it fat from the fairway. Your game: riddled with a two-way miss. With my plan, that’s all part of your golfing past.

Below, you’ll learn how to nix these errors and get a ton more consistent in your ball striking. It’s a plan that I feel works for everyone — from struggling rec player to the golfers you see on TV each weekend. It’s based on always getting back to a solid impact position, something you can do by rehearsing impact first. Then you’ll be growing the swing to add more speed and power.

In this special edition of GOLF instruction, I’ll show you how to do just that in five easy steps, starting with learning what proper impact should look and feel like while incrementally adding width and speed to your overall swing. They are proven fundamentals that will not only help you, but also give some structure and insight to your regular practice sessions. Guided practice is the best practice, more so than simply swinging for the fences when you’re at the range. Follow along and at the start of the new season, your golfing buddies won’t believe what they’re seeing. Neither will you.

STEP 1: REHEARSE IMPACT WITH A LOWER- CASE ‘y’

In order to achieve perfect impact, you need to know what it looks and feels like. That’s Step 1 in this learning session. So … with a wedge, follow these steps:

1. With a ball set slightly forward of center, ground your club while setting about 80 percent of your weight on your front foot.

2. Push your tailbone back and rotate your hips 40 to 45 degrees open — as if you’re getting them “out of the way” for the moment you strike the ball.

3. Call this the Holy Grail of impact: Press your hands forward without moving anything else, adding some bend to your trail wrist while keeping your lead arm straight. You know you did it right if your arms, hands and club form a lowercase ‘y’, as you see in the photo above.

4. As you get into these positions, mind your head — set the right side of your face behind the ball. As you’ve probably experienced in your golfing career, moving your head too far in front of the ball tends to lead to a ton of swing misery.

5. Once you’re set, stick a tee between your trail arm and your torso, right in your armpit. Create pressure between your arm and your body to hold the tee in place. Subtle, but this trail arm and body connection is one of the true keys to producing solid strikes, as you’ll learn in Step 2 below.

If you can copy what you see here, you’re on the fast track to better ball striking and lower scores. Practice these impact alignments as much as you can. You can spend time at the range as well as at home grooving this. In the next step, you’ll learn how to guide your swing through this A-plus position.

STEP 2: SWING LOWERCASE “y” TO CAPITAL “Y”

Once you have nailed the look and feel of a proper impact position in Step 1, it’s time to add some motion to your overall swing. We’ll start small and work into fuller motions in the proceeding steps.

To put this in action: It’s time to reset your lowercase ‘y’ impact position, then smoothly rotate back. The goal here is to transport the lowercase ‘y’ you formed in your mock impact position to a one-third backswing (top photo avove). All you need is a slight shoulder turn and moving a bit of weight from your front foot to your trail foot. Important: Don’t swing past this length at this point in the overall exercise.

Once you’ve set your lowercase ‘y’ mini- backswing, hit the ball, swinging your arms and turning as normal, but cutting off your finish to the point where the club is parallel to the ground (bottom photo above). Check that you’ve posted up solidly on your lead leg. Your wrists will have just a slight re-hinge. This combination of body turn and arm extension is a hallmark of great players. You’ll know you did it correctly when you move from a lowercase ‘y’ to a capital ‘Y’ position.

Big key: Keep the connection between your trail arm and your torso, pinching the tee in your armpit firmly. This is critical to managing your body structure as well as keeping you on plane through the strike.

You’re not looking for big hits here, just solid strikes as you work on your lowercase ‘y’ to capital ‘Y’ motion. If you’re like most of my students, you’ll feel like you’re compressing the ball like never before, even with a “mini-swing.”

Dedicate at least a full range bucket to this drill before even thinking about adding length to your motion.

STEP 3: BUILD AN ADDRESS POSITION THAT FUELS SOLD IMPACT

Suggestion: Start every one of your practice sessions with Steps 1 and 2. You’ll build the ability to create solid ball-first contact every time.

But knowing you can’t play this game in “drill mode,” it’s now time to build an address position that best allows you to achieve the four key impact fundamentals without even thinking. Here’s what to do, in four easy steps:

1. Stand erect with any iron, hinging your wrist to get the club parallel with the ground while keeping both arms snug against your sides. Put the club level to your belt buckle.

2. Without changing anything else, extend your hands away from your body. Checkpoint: The distance between the butt of the grip and your body should equal the distance between your thumb and pinkie when both splayed.

3. Again, without changing anything else, simply bend from your hips and sole the club against the ground. Think “back straight” and “arms relaxed.” You’re looking good.

4. To complete the process, simply add a bit of knee flex. You’re now in a position that is balanced and ready to dynamically move. Once you’re set, take your trail hand off the club and splay your hand with pinkie and thumb open wide. Use this gauge to make sure the distance between the club and your body hasn’t changed since Step 1 in this drill.

You need to practice these steps to build your great setup. By doing so, you’re in an excellent position to catch it crisp every time.

STEP 4: SWING CAPITAL ‘L’ TO CAPITAL ‘L’

So far this lesson has focused on the main requirements of Tour-level impact with what you need to do at address to make it all possible. But, as every golfer knows, this is a power game. At some point you need to learn how to add speed without losing the fundamentals of impact and setup address in Steps 1 to 3.

Enter Step 4: adding serious mph to your lowercase ‘y’ swing. Easy. To get it right, get into your address posture, but this time with an alignment rod held snug between your hands and whatever iron you’ve chosen to swing.

Get set, take the club back, and now you’re building more length to the swing. You’re using the alignment rod to check your ‘L’ positions and to groove a great swing plane. In the backswing, the ‘L’ should point at or slightly inside the ball target line. On the through swing, it should return back and point at the target line again. When using the alignment rod, move slowly back and through to check your angles. This is not about speed; there’s a reason why this is called the “punisher drill.” If you don’t do it correctly, you will hit yourself with the stick. Go slowly to work on the motion, then you can take the rod away and simply swing the club from ‘L’ to ‘L’. This is where the perfect “snap” release lives — the swish! You can also practice this drill only swinging the alignment stick, and you’ll really hear the speed firing up! If you fight a slice with the dreaded chicken wing through the ball, you’re definitely not doing this!

This is how you begin building speed correctly.

STEP 5: GET YOUR SHOULDERS IN ACTION BY TURNING TO ‘THE WALL’

The four drills discussed thus far are your fast track to better strikes and more speed. There’s just one more element as you work on each during your training sessions and that’s turn.

A great way to practice this is to set up in your address position [1], with an alignment stick set perpendicular to your target line just inside your trail foot.

As you move from your dynamic address and start building your capital ‘L’ [2], you’re now going to focus on turning both shoulders to the rod while keeping the ‘L’ shape intact [3]. I call this turning to the “imaginary wall.”

Think of the alignment stick on the ground as a thin vertical wall that is running through your trail shoulder at address. Your upper body and lower body are fully coiled to it. As you can see in the picture [3], my lead shoulder and the edge
of my trail hip are both stacked over the rod. We’re now in a fantastic spot to let things unleash back through a great impact [4]. This move is a bona fide swing accelerator and usually the one that separates good golfers from those who can really mash it.

Go in slow motion at first if you need to, but once you groove creating that capital ‘L’ in your backswing and moving it all the way to a solid top position with your shoulder and hip turn, the ball won’t know what hit it.

All the while, keep in mind that your primary goal is to deliver the club through a great impact position, no matter how far back your body allows you to turn.

It’s a process — go step by step. Soon, you’ll be striping it better than ever. There’s one more letter to keep in mind: a capital T.

ONE MORE MOVE: MAKE A “T” AT THE FINISH

Practice your impact position, creating the lowercase ‘y’ with your arms, club and hands. Build your swing from lowercase ‘y’ to uppercase ‘Y’. Then, move ‘L’ to ‘L’, stretching your swing by keeping all of these elements intact while finishing the full turn.

We’re now moving on to the full finish: the capital ‘T’. As you turn fully through, your trail shoulder will be closer to the target and you will be fully balanced on your lead leg, with your hands above your lead shoulder. Your body is facing the target. If you do it right, your body and the club will magically form the letter ‘T’ as you see here.

As I tell my players, you’ve done all the hard work in practice that builds a great impact. Now you’ve earned the right to let it go.

Brech Spradley is the owner and director of instruction at Barton Creek Golf Academy in Austin, Texas.

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The post 5 short-game mistakes women make without knowing it appeared first on Golf.

The post 5 short-game mistakes women make without knowing it appeared first on Golf.

After teaching many women for many years, I’ve noticed the same short game issues appear time and again. In many cases, these challenges stem from common root causes — such as equipment that doesn’t fit properly or instruction geared toward players with higher clubhead speeds. Too often, women are simply given the wrong information.

Here are some common examples I’ve seen, and how to improve them.

1. Too little bounce on lofted wedges

Players with lower clubhead speeds often benefit from more bounce (typically 12 degrees or more) so the club can glide rather than dig into the ground. This allows the club to move smoothly across the turf and still produce solid results, even if it contacts the ground before the ball.

I often compare this to a rock skipping across water. As long as the bounce interacts properly with the ground, it can help salvage shots from less-than-perfect contact. Tools like Ping’s wedge fitting system can be very helpful in identifying the right wedge and bounce for your game.

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2. Opening the clubface in bunkers

Many women are told to open the clubface in bunker shots. While that can be effective for players with high clubhead speed, it often doesn’t apply to most women.

When the face is opened, some players struggle to generate enough distance, leaving the ball stuck in the bunker. Instead, try keeping the clubface square, playing the ball slightly forward in your stance, and letting the bounce do the work. This approach can help you produce enough carry to get out consistently.

3. Trying to ‘lift’ the ball on pitch shots

The instinct to scoop or lift the ball often comes from other sports, but it doesn’t work in golf. The loft of the club is designed to get the ball airborne. You don’t need to help it.

From a solid posture, focus on extending your arms downward through impact so the clubhead reaches the ground. A gentle “thump” into the turf ensures proper contact and allows the ball to launch naturally.

4. Choosing a pitch shot instead of a bump-and-run

Shorter, simpler strokes are generally more reliable and less risky. Just because you’re near the green doesn’t mean you should automatically reach for a sand wedge and take a bigger swing.

A lower-trajectory bump-and-run is often the smarter play, helping you control distance and reduce risk while getting the ball closer to the hole.

5. Misunderstanding acceleration in putting

Golfers are often told they “decelerated” when a putt comes up short, but this is rarely the real issue. If your backstroke length is appropriate and you allow the putter to swing naturally, the ball will typically travel the correct distance.

If a putt comes up short, the adjustment is simple: increase the length of your backstroke. A longer stroke creates more natural speed through the ball without forcing acceleration.

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The key to powerful shots is knowing where and, more importantly, when to create pressure in your swing.

I have an easy way to explain both by using a homemade training aid (a streamer wrapped around the hosel of my driver) to explain.

At the start, the takeaway, the clubhead moves back, away from the target, and by the end of the backswing, it has traveled back toward the target. The secret to applying pressure to create power is moving your pressure with the clubhead. So, as you take the club back, away from your target, your pressure (or, if you prefer, your weight) should do likewise.

In the photo above, you can see (with the help of the streamer) that the club is moving away from the target and that I’ve matched this move by shifting my pressure away from the target, into my trail leg.

As soon as your club reaches parallel to the ground in your backswing, however, the clubhead actually starts its journey toward the target, culminating at the top of your backswing. So it’s at this point — the first time the club gets parallel to the ground — when you need to begin shifting forward.

This might be earlier than you’ve ever imagined. Timing this pressure shift (from back to front) turns on the jets on your down-swing. Bombs away!

Dom DiJulia is director of instruction at Jericho National GC in New Hope, Pa.

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The post 5 ways playing public golf courses can improve your game appeared first on Golf.

There are so many great golf courses out there. Some are private and require an invite to access, while others are public and provide a great place for everyone to play. But here’s my take: even if a golfer belongs to a private club, they should still make time to play public courses.

One of my tennis teammates invited me and another player on the team to play nine holes at a public course, West Palm Beach Golf Park. It sounded like fun, so we all agreed to go. This isn’t something I do often — I usually play golf with my family and spend most of my free time playing tennis — but I figured, why not?

We ended up having a great time, and it made me realize this is something I should do more often. Here are a few reasons why public golf is fun for everyone — and can help your game.

1. Exposure to new courses

There are so many excellent public golf courses, and even those that aren’t considered premier can still be a lot of fun. They often have a more relaxed atmosphere, which can make the experience even more enjoyable.

We played The Park West Palm Beach, an amazing facility that truly offers something for everyone. We played the front nine of the championship course later in the day, which worked out perfectly — it fit our schedule and allowed the course to maximize use throughout the day.

The course itself is outstanding and presents a good challenge. The fairways are relatively wide, but there are plenty of bunkers, and the greens are quite undulating. It’s designed to be playable for all skill levels, and everyone in our group had a great time.

When you are playing new courses, it forces you to adapt your game and hit some shots you normally wouldn’t. And by expanding your horizons, you are adapting your game in new ways.

2. Socializing takes the pressure off

Playing public golf allows you to play and meet people you otherwise wouldn’t — and that can be a great thing for your game as it shifts your expectations and takes the pressure off your performance.

Golf gives you time between shots to relax, talk, and catch up. It was great to hear what’s going on in everyone’s lives and spend that uninterrupted time together. While we all focused when it was our turn to hit, we also had plenty of chances to laugh and enjoy each other’s company.

3. Walking the course

At my home course, I almost always ride in a cart. It’s just what I’ve gotten used to. But when we checked in, we were told our group would be walking, which caught me off guard.

That said, I walk and carry my bag when I play in Ireland and Scotland, so why not here? My friends used push carts, and I carried my bag.

I really enjoyed walking and plan to do it more often. When you walk, it can help you get into a better rhythm between shots, which can lead to better scoring.

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4. Playing with new people

When we arrived at the first tee, we found out we’d be paired with another golfer, something that’s very common at busy public courses.

He turned out to be a recent graduate from Providence College who had played on the golf team, so he was clearly a strong player. He was not only talented but also great to play with. We kept up well, and it was enjoyable getting to know someone new while sharing the round.

While being paired with strangers can feel intimidating at first, it almost always works out well. Plus, it can get you out of your comfort zone and help you become better at playing in front of people you don’t know, which is a great skill to have.

5. Accomplishing individual goals

One of the best things about golf is that, regardless of skill level, there are always small wins that make the round feel rewarding.

I played pretty well overall, aside from one hole where I got a bit too aggressive going for a pin. I did birdie the final hole, though, which was a great way to finish.

My friend Nicole recorded her lowest nine-hole score, which was exciting to see. Jessica, who had recently made a significant posture adjustment, also played really well.

All in all, it was a great day on the course, and it never would’ve been possible without access to a great public course.

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The post Think ‘head behind’ for longer, straighter drives appeared first on Golf.

If you’ve ever taken a golf lesson or gone down the rabbit hole of swing videos online, you’ve likely heard about the importance of sequencing. A well-timed swing generates more speed and power than one that’s out of sync. 

However, there’s a critical link in the chain many amateurs forget—largely because they don’t even realize it’s part of their sequence in the first place.

Mike Perpich, a GOLF Top 100 Teacher, explains that if you want to hit longer, straighter drives, you have to learn how to time your head in your swing. Not your clubhead. Your noggin.

Sequence your head for more speed

Now, you might be wondering, “what does my head have to do with my golf swing?”

As Perpich explains, the head plays a vital role in the swing because it helps counterbalance your lower body in your transition and downswing. This creates a slingshot effect that boosts clubhead speed.

It works like this: as you transition into the downswing, you change direction. To do so, you have to push off your trail foot. As a result, pressure shifts forward. This initiatives your downswing sequence. But, as Perpich explains, it also causes your force to move from back to front. As your club and lower body move forward, your upper body actually needs to resist briefly and work in the opposite direction. 

“You can’t have the top and the bottom going in the same direction,” Perpich says. “Your head is going to feel like it’s going backwards. That’s what helps speed the clubhead up.”

This brief moment of separation is what causes the “whip” effect that elite players use to maximize speed.

Time your head to boost accuracy

Poor head sequencing might be draining you of power. It could also be the cause of your mis-hits with the driver. In a swing where the head is going forward at the same time as their lower body, Perpich says, the path of the swing will likely travel too far out—or over the top—and you’re going to have to compensate to strike the ball.

“When the head moves with the torso, you’re hitting down with the driver,” he says, “So, you’re not going to get a center hit, and you’re also not going to get an ascending blow.”

Remember: head backwards for longer straighter drives

If you’re trying to incorporate this into your swing, Perpich says to think about the top of your head going backwards as you change direction and begin the transition into your downswing.

“It’s like a whip, a slingshot,” he says, “You have to have the bottom half going forward, but the top half is going backwards.” 

Do that, and you’ll hit longer, straighter drives.

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Harry Hall was trying to will his way into two more Masters rounds. He had shot five over through two mentally exhausting days when, on Friday afternoon, he promised reporters, “It’s not over yet.” He felt he had a 50/50 chance of making the cut.

Hall did not have coin-flip odds, not even close. But that wasn’t the point. He had labored through the toughest test of his golfing life, looking and sounding completely broken after the first round, explaining how he needed two drivers in the bag, a new putter and irons he could spin better. 

By the time he stepped down from the podium Friday, his wife was waiting for him with a big hug. She threw her arms around Harry’s side as he stared off into the distance. All I could think was, That man chose this profession, and, at this moment, the game is beating him.

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The next time I thought about Harry Hall was Tuesday, as I turned my gaze to this week’s PGA Tour event in Hilton Head Island, S.C., the RBC Heritage. The remnants of all those missed cuts at Augusta showed themselves in who was grinding at Harbour Town — Hall among them.

The Englishman hit 266 shots on the range Monday, 46 more than anyone else, at least 50 of which were drivers. Some missing left, others right. His search was evident in the data, but you also could see it in the final question I asked of him in Augusta. 

What are you fighting with the driver? 

“Fighting to hit it where I’m looking,” he said. 

Only J.J. Spaun, Rickie Fowler and Andrew Novak joined Hall in the 200+ range balls department Monday. Fowler didn’t qualify for the Masters, Spaun missed the cut on the number and Novak, well, he walked up the 18th hole wondering if it was the last time he’d play in the tournament. 

That’s the headspace pros can find themselves in at Augusta National. And before they’ve even have had a chance to absorb what happened, it’s on to Hilton Head and its $20 million purse. 

As mind-numbing as it may be to be a regular PGA Tour TV viewer to have to tune in for more significant golf this weekend, my advice would be to view this week through a different lens. While Scottie Scheffler may walk away with the title (and tartan jacket) given the form he seems to be in, other players are thinking scary thoughts — and a more laidback week in Hilton Head might be just the warm embrace they need.

3 things I’m hearing…

1. Uber . . . Green? 

An Uber driver of mine last week told me he had the pleasure of picking up Nick Faldo and his wife a few weeks before the Masters. That meant he could make the drive down Magnolia Lane without ever getting an invite to play the course. Maybe we all should start driving Ubers in Augusta? 

2. Koepka’s coming

As of this typing, Brooks Koepka is the first alternate for this week’s Signature Event in Hilton Head. That matters a lot because the only way he can qualify for these events is not via sponsor exemptions but by playing good golf. Koepka’s recent run of four top-20 finishes in his last five starts has earned him enough FedEx Cup points to be on the verge of playing his way back to the Tour’s top events. Is anyone surprised? 

3. So bad it was good 

At the Masters, I often find myself spectating from where Rory McIlroy’s final tee shot ended up Sunday, on the edge of the 10th hole. It’s a fun spot. Most shots with that much spin clank around in the pine trees and can drop into all kinds of crazy lies. I’ve watched numerous players have to pitch out with 4-irons just to reach the 18th fairway. McIlroy’s first shot was so bad it gave him enough room to rip a 6-iron at the green, making for an easy bogey. But I keep thinking about an alternate universe in which he had to work a lot harder to make 5. 

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The post A Masters repeat for Rory McIlroy reprises familiar themes appeared first on Golf.

As he stood in the pine straw late Sunday afternoon, deep in the trees, wild to the right of the 18th fairway, Rory McIlroy exhaled, rolled his eyes and shook his head, as if to suggest that even he had grown exhausted by the drama. Did it really have to be this hard? Apparently, it did.

After entering the weekend with a six-shot lead and a seeming stranglehold on the tournament, the man trying to become just the fourth Masters champion to defend his title had pressed repeat, all right, reprising the feast-or-famine play that marked his Grand Slam-capping run to victory last year. Much like 2025, the 2026 Masters had become his to lose, and for much of the day Sunday, he appeared intent on doing just that. A stressful par on the 1st hole. A three-putt double-bogey on the 4th to fall behind Cameron Young by two. And then another dropped shot on the 6th, with a birdie on the 3rd sprinkled in along the way.

Throughout the week, McIlroy had said that things felt different this time around, now that he had a green jacket to his name and a lifetime invite to the Masters. And yet what he produced on Sunday was more of the same, a nail-biting, whiplash-inducing thrill ride of spectacular shots and head-scratching mistakes.

Elsewhere on the course, the roars carried echoes of the recent past as well. Justin Rose, who fell to McIlroy in last year’s playoff, went out in 32 to vault in front, only to spring a leak around Amen Corner. Every Rose has its thorn, and it’s official: Justin’s is the Masters.

For a nervy spell on Sunday, McIlroy looked destined for more Masters heartache. Never mind what he said about having the monkey off his back — slumping into Butler Cabin and slipping the green jacket onto someone else’s shoulders would have been a particular kind of torture.

Instead, he did what he did last year: playing with a red ass, he put up red numbers, rattling off birdies on 12 and 13 to take command (and then nearly letting it go again when his wedge on the par-5 15th barely made it over Rae’s Creek). He was two clear standing on the 18th tee, the green jacket all but back on his shoulders, if only he could stop being himself for a moment.

He could not. Pulling driver, he flared one far right into the Georgia pines, eliminating any chance of a tidy finish. The groan from the gallery was familiar, almost affectionate. This was vintage McIlroy: maddening, mystifying, marvelous all at once. He hacked out and made bogey, which was good enough. A tap-in for the win and a repeat in more ways than one.

“I just can’t believe I waited 17 years to get one green jacket,” he said afterward, “and I get two in a row.”

With his second Masters, Rory McIlroy has left his demons in the distant dust. He’s chasing history now. It’s going to take a lot of energy to keep up.

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The post 4 Masters champs explain how to hit their most epic Augusta National shots appeared first on Golf.

Golf instruction is ever-evolving, but the best advice stands the test of time. In GOLF.com’s new series, Timeless Tips, we’re highlighting some of the greatest advice teachers and players have dispensed in the pages of GOLF Magazine. This week, we look back to our April 1985 issue when four former Masters champs provided breakdowns of their most epic shots at Augusta National.

The first major of the year is here — and the hype is palpable. With a green jacket on the line in northeast Georgia, it’s hard not to be excited.

Will Scottie Scheffler join the illustrious list of golfers with three Masters titles? Can Bryson DeChambeau finally break through at Augusta National? Does Rory McIlroy have a chance to go back-to-back? The storylines are seemingly endless.

As a primer for one of the greatest weeks on golf’s calendar, we are looking back to our April 1985 Masters preview issue of GOLF Magazine. In those pages, four previous Masters champs broke down the shots that helped them claim their green jackets — and provided some tips on how to hit them.

Claude Harmon, 1948

Situation: Final round. On the par-5 8th, Harmon faces a blind, uphill second shot from 260 yards.

Shot: Uphill 4-wood. “I was trying to lay up, so I selected a 4-wood and put a smooth, controlled swing on the ball. Next thing I heard was a roar from the crowd.” No wonder. Harmon’s clout finished two feet from the hole.

Technique: Because taking your stance for an uphill lie forces you to keep more weight on your right side, the tendency is to be lazy with the left side on the downswing. The right side takes over, and the result is a pull hook. You must offset the pull by putting a fade action into the swing. 

Stand open. With the ball back in your stance, start the swing normally, but through impact keep the left hand driving toward the target to ensure square clubface-to-ball contact. Striving for a high finish — encourages you to accelerate the clubhead. 

Arnold Palmer, 1958

Situation: Palmer needs to hit the par-5 13th in two and make birdie. A perfect drive leaves him 215 yards to the green. His lie is good, but he has to contend with a 10 mph headwind. With the pin cut on the top tier, Palmer must carry the water hazard guarding the front of the putting surface and land the ball on the green with enough juice to roll it up to the hole. 

Shot: Drilled 1-iron. “I was afraid that a wood shot would get caught up in the wind or land on the green’s bottom tier and back up,”’ remarks Palmer. “I needed to hit the running wind cheater, so the 1-iron was the club.” 

It sure was. Palmer made birdie and went on to win. He won again in ’60, ’62 and ’64. 

Technique: With the ball played back slightly, stand square and keep the feet shoulder width apart. In the backswing, make a full pivot, shifting your weight from even balance to the right side. Remember to move your left shoulder under your chin. In the downswing, make a pronounced shift to the left side and drive your right shoulder under your chin. Hit down and through the ball, making no effort to help lift it in the air with the club.

Billy Casper, 1970

Situation: Generally regarded as one of the greatest putters in the game, Casper also gets the nod from his fellows for his expertise in sand. Good thing, because he needs birdie at the par-5 15th if he’s to catch the leader, Gene Littler. He goes for the green in two and misses. Although his lie is good and the lip low, he faces a diabolical shot from sand. He must shoot downhill to a flag cut 60 feet away on a fast-running surface. 

Shot: Floating wedge. “Going downhill, I had to loft the ball high and judge the roll exactly right. To help me land the ball just on the green, I pretended the flag was cut 10 feet from the edge. Otherwise, it was all over for me.” 

Casper’s strategy worked. The ball finished close to the hole. An easy birdie putt helped him tie Littler at the end of 72 holes. In the playoff the next day, Casper won by five strokes. 

Technique: Stand open and open the clubface. With the ball played off your left heel, pick the club up quickly and swing back outside the target line using your hands and arms. Pull the club down with your left hand, hit two inches behind the ball, drive the clubface at the target and finish high.

Fuzzy Zoeller, 1979

Situation: Zoeller is the long-shot choice to win a playoff with Tom Watson and Ed Sneed. All three tie the first extra hole, the 10th. After a perfect drive up the 11th fairway, Fuzzy is 164 yards from the pin. He knows he must hit his second shot close because long putts are especially tricky on Augusta’s slick surfaces. 

Shot: Soft 8-iron. “I usually hit a 7-iron from this distance, but with the adrenaline flowing, I chose my favorite club, the 8-iron.” Zoeller visualized the ball flying high and landing softly — close to the pin. His dream came true. His shot finished eight feet from the flag. A birdie conversion earned him victory. 

Technique: Zoeller believes the game is almost 100-percent mental. He doesn’t preach any standard setup or swing to play the short irons. For him, comfort is the key, which is why he starts his swing with a push of the clubhead away from his body. For you, experiment with various stances, ball positions and swings. If one ball position makes you uncomfortable or if your practice swing feels awkward, go to an alternative technique. As Zoeller says: “If you’re not confident at address, it’s unlikely you’ll hit the shot you want to hit — especially under pressure.”

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