Another Fathers Day is approaching and many Dads all around the world are preparing for a time tested ritual and yes, it is golf.  For many men this is one of only a very few number of rounds of golf they will play all year.  It is sad that a game that is loved by so many is played "often" by so few.

Let's give Dad the break he needs by having this day to free his mind from the daily toils of life.  Let us allow him the chance to play "his" game.  Let him know it's okay to clean up those white shoes, dust off that bag in the garage and begin that mind cleansing process of preparing for a round.

Cleaning each club he will imagine spectacular shots into greens or fantastic flops from the deep rough. While Dad's shot making ability may differ "slightly" from reality, it will hardly matter when he hits that one great shot!  The shot that will yield fist pumping and high fives from the guys.  For many of us this is all we need in return for all of our frustrating efforts on the course.

Stories of great shots become almost "legend" in golfing circles.  I can't tell you how many times I have played in groups as a stand bye fourth and in the course of the round heard stories of famous past shots, heroic efforts that have crossed over from the normal to the almost mythical!  Even in my golfing groups we say things like, "Remember that time you drove that lake?" or "This is the green you holed out one on!".  So give Dad his day! His day to play some golf.

To celebrate Fathers Day this year mrfredsgolf.com is offering a limited number of iron sets for a shockingly low price! We normally sell these clubs for $249.00 4-pw. Through Sunday (Fathers Day), these irons can be yours for $179.00!!! ( plus tax and shipping). Happy Fathers Day!!

Follow this link to see the Fathers Day Irons.They are the  Turner T13 iron set 4-pw. They are a stylish set of affordable golf irons that are very similar to the R11's. I have assembled this set with the DM Shaft and the lamkin X10 Grips for superior feel and playability. We have a limited number of these clubs at this smokin price! Hurry! While supplies last!

Is it a fashion statement? Is it a fad?  Maybe it's some kind of marketing gimmick to lure you into buying a new putter.   What is it with all of these ghostly white putters on the market?

Here is what we think at www.mrfredsgolf.com .  I find that the color itself is fresh and clean.  Golfers already have an appreciation  for a clean white look, just look at our shoes!  Contrasting white with black lines gives a golfer instant feedback when he glances from his putter to the hole and back again.  Another benefit is the contrast that jumps out to they eye with a white putter head against the dark green of the grass. 

I think one's perception of square is also enhanced when he looks down at a white putter head. Particularly when he is wearing white shoes. The dark background of the grass on the green and the four white points of reference, the golfer's two shoes, the white putter head and the ball all help maintain the integrity of the target line at address.

Here is a trick I have discovered that a golfer can play on his eyes with a white putter. Now, I use this trick when I putt with any putter but it works really well with a white putter head.  As I swing my putter back and forth I stare at the ball, almost like I do when i am looking at one of those crazy 3d puzzles. The trick here is to use your peripheral vision and "frame your shot" as a unit.

What do I mean by "framing the shot as a unit"?  Well, I try to see all of the elements of my putting shot, my feet, the hole (or target) and the ball as well as the line the club travels back and through as it arrives at impact.  Next, I try to "witness impact" and deliver the club head through the ball along the target line and hold the finish pointing at where I have aimed.

With so many things to watch and calculate as I am executing a putting stroke, I use my "staring technique" to merely see the blur of the club head going straight back and coming straight through along the target line. My main focus can then be on the pace of the stroke and try to keep it close!

We offer several styles and shapes of white putters at mrfredsgolf.com to accommodate all golfers Perhaps if you switch to a white putter, with some practice, maybe you can find a new success on the greens at your local course!

_  I guess the question is really: “Where can I buy putters at a cheap price?”. The reason I mention this at all is because I get that question a lot! The more I think about the word “cheap” the more confused I get.

In past years, as when I was growing up, the word “cheap” had a very different implication than it does today. I remember cheap as meaning “crappy“ or “junky”. Who has not heard of or even owned a pair of “cheapy sunglasses”?

Today it is commonly accepted to be a word indicating an inexpensive price. This is particularly true when it applies to a search engine search term. It even appears in website names and is a highly competitive keyword earning Google millions of dollars. It can be applied to flights, hotels, vacations, cruises and the list goes on.

While nobody wants a cheaply made putter, most of us are looking for a quality putter and we want to acquire it at a cheap price! I like the word “affordable” when describing quality items at a good price. If something has value both in price and in construction then I deem it to be affordable.

Here at Mr Freds Golf .com we are constantly looking for quality, affordable golf equipment to offer our customers. We strive to be that one convenient “go to” spot where your money goes farther without sacrificing quality.

Hope this clears up some of the questions I have been getting concerning “cheap golf clubs” and “cheap putters”…


 

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I know there are a lot of different techniques for wedge shots out there.  As I have said before, I am not convinced the average player can justifiably say they use "feel" to execute these shots.  Consider this, nearly every pro on tour has some sort of yardage book they rely on to calculate their various shots.  They keep all kinds of notes for different shots as well, and these guys are the pros!

I like using a hand position method because it gives me choices for a particular yardage with more then one wedge.  Not to mention I have proven confidence for the shot because I have practiced these shots many times, both when I developed my system and before every round.  This can be a huge advantage around the greens.

It also allows for a lot of flexibility in my shot shaping.  I can pick a hand position for a given yardage with a more lofted wedge that will "check up" or, I can choose a less lofted wedge and play it a little back in my stance to let the ball release once it hits the green.  These are elements to consider when the green is sloping uphill or downhill.

So here are the principals of how I use a hand position system with my wedges.  First, I have included more then one wedge in my system, although someone could simplify this method and use only one wedge.  I like a few choices in trajectories at close rage, two or three wedge options are nice to have.

I use my sand wedge (56 degree), lob wedge (60 degree) and my (64 degree) lob wedge for this system.  If someone doesn't have a 64 degree lob wedges they could fill in with a 60 and maybe add a gap wedge on the other side of the sand wedge.  Regardless, it is the same process for developing the hand positions. The hand positions themselves are simple to use.  They are merely reference points to limit the amount of back swing and follow through of a given swing.  I think of them as a physical barrier. When my hands reach the position, that is the que to stop and change direction.

I like to imagine that I am standing inside of a giant clock with midnight above my head and 6 "o"clock  under my feet.  I have developed and use various combinations of four stoping positions in my back swing and three positions in my follow through.  My back swing positions are 7, 8, 9 and 10.  My forward positions are 4, 3 and 1.  Now, keep in mind that I consider a "full shot" to be 10 "o"clock in the back swing with a full finish.

I have a written record of my positions and distances for positions with various wedges in a reference book I call my yardage book.  I keep my yardage book in my pocket during every round.  When I set up my yardage book, I developed a base yardage for every club in my bag.   This base yardage is the result of a "full shot" with no wind.  I will break down my yardage book and how I put it together in a future post.

This is how I developed yardage numbers for each of my hand positions.  I went to the range and found a quiet spot next to the chipping green and set up my practice course.  I stepped off  10, 15, 20 and 25 yards and marked them with empty range baskets. Then I placed about 50 balls near each of the baskets.  I hit all of the balls and recorded the hand position on a tablet. Although it sounds obvious,  my goal was to hit each ball from a given yardage as close to the pin as possible.  It was my focus to pay close attention to where my hands were on "the clock" at each end of my swing.  The farthest point at the back and the farthest point at the finish of each stroke.  In this manner I was able to develop a predictable resulting yardage from a particular set of hand positions.

Next I expanded my yardage book from 25 yards to 55 yards in increments of 10 yards. So that's 25, 35, 45 and 55 yards.  This is where my "full shot" yardages take over for various clubs.  It took me several trips to the range to fine tune this system for myself.  I used a pencil instead of a pen to allow for adjustments and make changes in my yardage book. Although it took some work to pull it all together,  it was not difficult and now that I have this valuable tool, I can not imagine playing without it.

Most of us amateur golfers never realize our best possible game on a given day because we fail to warm up properly.  I play many rounds of golf each year off of the stand-by list.  I have watched hundreds of golfers make very similar "fatal" errors before they even get to the first tee box because they never really give themselves a chance.  They jump into the round not only cold, but unprepared for the variety of shots they will ultimately face.How many times have you seen or maybe even been guilty yourself of the following scenario.  Joe Golfer rushes to the clubhouse to check in saying, "man, traffic was horrible"! He then rushes off to the range to hit a few balls before the round.  A couple of hurried duffs later the speaker sounds the call, "Joe Golfer group to the first tee box"....  He then jumps in the cart and at a blistering speed he arrives at hole number one.  He has just enough time to putt  three or four ugly putts at the practice green near the first tee box if he is lucky.In my opinion this is a horrible way to start a game that we say we love, yet so many of us do it this way.  I have many friends who begin a round of golf in this manner and I am sure you know some as well.  I have been guilty in the past of such behavior.  I had an epiphany a few years ago that forever changed my pre-round warm up routine.  I was awake very early one day before a scheduled tee time and I left extremely early for the round. I arrived at the range nearly two hours before the tee time.  As I sat in the cart it occurred to me that I should "practice as I am going to play".
"Practice as I am going to play".  That is worth saying twice.  So what does it mean?  It means that one should practice in the time before a round all of the shots, or at least, a variety of potential shots that may present themselves in the course of the impending round.  Drives, hybrid shots off the deck, mid iron shots, sand shots, pitches, chips and putts to name a few.  I am not talking about over hauling your game or learning new shots but rather rehearse the different shots that will be used.

I will lay out for you my typical pre-round routine of warm up shots and you can do with it what you want.   I will say that it may seem obsessive or maybe even over the top for some amateurs.  I have found a lot of personal satisfaction and have elevated my game by simply doing what seems natural before a round of golf and that is, "practice as I am going to play".

I try to arrive at the golf course at least one hour before the round is to begin.  I like to be checked in and on the range knowing I have plenty of time.  This helps me get relaxed from the very start knowing I don't have to rush.  Before I begin, I like to stretch out.  I won't go into the details of my stretching particulars but it's similar to the video above...

After stretching out, I hit a dozen or so balls with an 8 Iron to find my range.  This is my 150 yard club so I am watching to see my distance as well as ball flight.  As soon as I am satisfied that I am reaching 150 yards consistently, I may hit a few more with a focus on accuracy.  I really don't want to hit more than about a dozen shots with any given club so I move on.

I know that I will need to feel confident with my hybrid clubs if I am going to score well.  So I like to hit several hybrid shots "off the deck" as well as a low tee.  I try to make solid contact and feel the impact to reinforce some feedback ques that will help me when I have the club in my hand again later.  This is true for all of the clubs and shots I warm up with prior to a round.  Before I move on I usually hit a few with my driver just to see what I will be working with today, but only a few.

Off to the side of the chipping and pitching area of my club's practice area is a nice green side bunker.  I like to throw a few balls into the sand and a few balls into grass with the bunker between myself and the green.  First I hit the balls over the trap flopping them softly on the green with my lob wedge.  Next I move into the trap and hit those balls out.  I am a fair sand player so I stop after I hit two or three good shots.  This lets me remember confidently that I can count on my sand game.

I will have a wedge in my hand many times throughout the round so, I like to spend some time ranging in several distances with my lob wedge.  I pace off 15, 20, 30 and 50 yards dropping small groups of balls at each interval.  I start at the farthest and work my way toward the pitching green, hitting the balls at the flag as if I will need to score with each shot.  I stay focused to develop my swing tempo for the day.

Next I move to the chipping green with only two clubs in my hand, my pitching and lob wedges.  I am going to be rehearsing shots from the fringe and several feet off the fringe. Typically I set up only two groups of balls here.  One group a foot or two off the green and another about five feet off the fringe. I putt several balls with my PW , controlling the distance and watching how each shot releases on the green.  From the farther distance I do the same, but also pitch some shots with my lob wedge to see how soft and close I can get each ball to the cup.  The goal here is to leave as short of a putt as possible for my next shot.  I take each shot very seriously now as I am moving closer to actual tee time.

With thirty minutes left till tee time I want to hit a dozen drives before I leave the range and move to the putting green.  I like to draw and fade the first few shots before I try to hit straight shots.  I find that when I warm up my driver like this I rediscover little triggers and subtleties that are comfortable to me.  These are shot perceptions I will need later when I am on the tee box.

I always feel like I have saved the most important for last at this point in my warm up.  Putting will make or break my round, so the feedback of how fast the greens are on a given day and the general condition of the grass is very important.  Even the weekend warriors can get great feedback from their rehearsal putts, though they may not even be aware of all the quality information they are getting.

During my putting warm up I focusing on my form.  I want to hit a variety of putts; from up and downhill, short and long, while I pay close attention to speed and distance.  Just before I leave the putting green I like to sink a few in a row from three or four feet.  This helps to boost my putting confidence.   There is something about the combination of visual and audible stimulus a golfer gets when he makes a putt, especially when the ball hits the bottom of the cup.

In addition to this warm up I will typically go to the range the day before a round and do exactly the same warm up.  I can complete it in about an hour or take a little more time and spread it out longer.  Give it a try and see if you are not a little more relaxed the next time you play golf.  Maybe you will even score better!

First let me address the posture of a person putting.  For discussion purposes let's assume there are two broad categories of putting stances.  There is the upright putting stance and the more athletic putting stance.  There are a few major differences in these two stances and they affect many factors of putting but for now I will focus on what  I like to call, "physiology at address".  This is the sum of all the influences the body's posture has on the way someone sets up to and executes a golf shot and in this case, a putting stroke.  It is important to decide which of the two posture categories you belong to.  This will allow you to tweak your putting form around this foundational principle.

If you are someone with a more upright stance then you will tend to stand a little taller, have straighter legs and bend or hunch-over the ball.  When I fit golfers who have this type of stance I find their eyes are closer to the toes and therefore the ball should line up closer to the toes.  This is because the ball should be directly under the eyes.  I fit golfers in this group with slightly longer shafts to make a more comfortable bend in their back.  After eighteen holes of an awkward putting hunch, many people lose their effectiveness on the green.

For the golfer with a more athletic stance it tends to be the opposite of the more upright stance.  First off, the legs are bent more and the shoulders are therefore closer to the ground.  This "lowering" of the body generally lends itself to a slightly shorter shaft on the putter.  This type of stance will allow ones weight to be distributed more efficiently over the balls of the feet and more of the body is engaged in the effort.  I find this promotes a more fluid and natural putting stroke that will last the whole round.

Consider the lie of the putter as well.  This is important because of the angle of the shaft in relationship to the posture of the person holding it.  I tend to fit upright golfers in double bend shafts due to the offset and the fact that it allows them to line up closer to the ball.  Just a few degrees of lie makes a huge difference.  Two degrees in the length of the average putter is roughly an inch and three quarters.

So much has been said of the putting grip concerning the hands and the actual grip itself.  I have read a lot over the years and have developed my "style".   What works for me is softer hands and firmer fingers.   I tend to have slightly firmer right fingers and a slightly firmer left hand.  I prefer a grip that has a flat front that is square to the club face which allows my thumbs to point to the ball.  I really like the jumbo style grips available these days as they help complete the perception of square.

The "pizza principle", and who doesn't like a good slice of pizza?  It would be uncommon to see a real slice of pizza on a putting green but I try to imagine one every time I putt. It's more the shape of the slice then the pepperoni.  The crust is my shoulders and the point of the slice is my hands. I try to keep this shape throughout my putting stroke.  An even tempo pendulum stroke is what I try to achieve here.

The target line plays a key role in my set up.  After I determine the target line, I line up key parts of my body along this line.   I start with my feet or "toes", placing them on a line perpendicular to the line the ball will travel along while I stand a comfortable distance from the ball.  Next I align my shoulders to my feet.  Lastly, I draw an imaginary line from several inches behind the ball toward the target, and as I execute my putting stroke, I move my hands along this line holding my finish on the line.

Ball position at address is key to good contact and will differ from golfer to golfer.  The loft of the putter face and how much ahead of the ball the hands are at impact both play a part in how the ball rolls away from the club.  I have tried to to develop some harmony between these factors to create a putting stroke that promotes a positive forward roll. This keeps the ball from skipping and provides a consistent means for distance control.

My main distance regulator is something I call  my "1/3-2/3" rule.  This is a rule I use to regulate my distance and speed calculations.   Here is how it works. Once I have decided the total length of my putting stroke, I divide it visually into thirds. The first third is how far back I take the club head behind the ball, the back stroke.  The second third starts from the ball to my finish position, which I hold on the target line.  However far I take the club head back will determine how far forward I will take it to the finish.

If you play around with some of these principals and try to find the right combination that works for you, maybe you can save some strokes on the green.  Just remember to have fun with it and stay loose.  Once you tighten up and get tense your posture may suffer, causing a collapsing chain reaction. We all know how that ends...