Justin Rose is known as a terrific ballstriker, especially with his long irons. (Hallowell/Getty Images)

By Travis Fulton, Director of Instruction, PGA TOUR Academy

The similarities between Ben Hogan’s famous 1-iron and Justin Rose’s 4-iron on the 72nd hole of yesterday’s U.S. Open are striking. Both players needed to make par on the very difficult 18th hole at Merion — Hogan to force a playoff in the 1950 U.S. Open, which he’d go on to win, and Rose to hold onto a slim one-shot advantage.

And both players faced long approach shots — Hogan from 213 yards, and Rose from 229. Neither player flinched, as Hogan hit his approach to 40 feet and two-putted for his par, while Rose threw a dart at the flag that ran through the green and left him with a fairly simple up-and-down for his first major championship title.

Hogan was considered the best ballstriker of his time. He was fond of finding it in the dirt. And Rose is earning quite a reputation as a ballstriker as well. When he absolutely needed to find the short grass on No. 18 yesterday, he split the middle of the fairway. Then, under tremendous pressure, he delivered the shot of his life into the 18th green. Not a single player made birdie on the 18th hole this weekend at Merion, and Rose’s third shot came within inches of dropping in the hole for a 3.

For the week, Rose tied for first in par-4 birdies (10), was second in fairways hit (75 percent), and tied for seventh in greens in regulation (69.44 percent). It should probably come as no surprise that Rose hit those two clutch shots on 18, since he leads the PGA TOUR in both total driving and GIR percentage from 200+ yards (60.42 percent) this season. He’s also sixth in GIR (69.81 percent) and third in ball striking, a combination of GIR and total driving.

What makes Rose such an exceptional ball-striker, especially with his longer irons, is his ability to differentiate his upper and lower body at impact. He’s able to shift his weight into his lead foot, which moves the low point of his swing forward, to the ball, and he maintains his side tilt away from the ball. This is essential to hitting green-hugging long irons because it allows you to stay behind the ball and utilize the true loft on the clubface, so the ball launches higher and lands softer.

The most common mistake that amateurs make with their longer clubs is that when they shift their weight left on the downswing, their upper body goes with it. There’s no differentiation between the upper and lower body, and they typically come over-the-top of the ball and hit it to the right, or mishit it off the toe, which shoots it low and to the left.

On the flip side, if they try to stay behind the ball with their upper body, their weight stays on their back foot and they hit behind it. With no differentiation, they may still hit their short irons okay (because of the loft), but they’ll launch their longer irons, hybrids, and fairway woods too low. Here are two drills to help you create this differentiation and improve your ball striking.

DRILL 1: PRE-SET IMPACT

Take your setup with a 5-iron or hybrid and, from there, assume a good impact position. Move your weight into your lead foot and open your hips, but keep your spine tilted to the right, behind the ball, as it was at address. You should feel a good stretch between your upper and lower body, and your shoulders should be closed relative to your hips. Hold this position for a second or two, and then return to your address position and swing, trying to recreate the differentiation you felt between your upper and lower body at impact.

DRILL 2: USE THE GROUND

Place a towel or sponge (something that offers a little resistance) under your lead foot, and as you swing down, feel as if you’re applying pressure from the left foot into the ground, through that towel. This drill will teach you to shift your weight forward, so that the clubhead doesn’t bottom out too soon and you hit the ball solidly, with the club’s full loft. If you watch Rose’s practice swings, you can see him rehearsing this move.

He swings the club to the top, and then very deliberately transfers his weight forward, applying pressure into the ground with his left foot. From there he uses his left foot as leverage to turns through and complete his swing. Copy this move and your ballstriking should improve as well.

Travis Fulton is the Director of Instruction at the TOUR Academies at TPC Sawgrass and the World Golf Village. For more information on the TOUR Academy, click here.

Justin Rose's upbeat attitude helped him at Merion Golf Club. (Redington/Getty Images)

By Dr. Gregg Steinberg, Special to PGATOUR.COM

It was not lost on Justin Rose that the final round of the U.S. Open was played on Father’s Day. Rose was 21 when his father passed away. Rose said poignantly, “A lot of us come from great men and we have that responsibility to our children to show what a great man can be”. Furthermore, Rose stated that his goal was to carry himself proudly regardless of what happened during the final round. Acting with pride and a deep sense of responsibility helped Rose to be confident and stay mentally focused to win the U.S. Open.

Our actions can greatly affect our emotions.  According to Self-Perception Theory, we infer our emotions from our actions. Our brain gets the message how to feel. When we smile, we infer that we are happy because we are smiling. Even faking a smile will make us happier. When we act prideful, we will feel proud about confident about ourselves and our golf game.

This same principle can have a huge impact on your confidence level. One of the best ways to become more confident is by simply acting confident. Walking off the green with shoulders slumped and head down after missing an easy putt makes a golfer feel less confident during subsequent holes. On the other hand, a golfer fresh off a double bogey can maintain his confidence by keeping his chip up, literally.

If you want to feel more proud about your game, then act with pride like Rose did at Merion. If you want more confidence, strut your stuff all the time, no matter what. If you want to have more fun, just keep smiling!

Dr. Gregg Steinberg is a regular guest every Tuesday on “Talk of the TOUR” heard on the Sirius/XM PGA TOUR radio. He is a tenured professor of sports psychology and has been the mental game coach for many PGA TOUR players as well as top collegiate and junior golfer.  Dr. Gregg is the author of the best selling golf psychology book, MentalRules for Golf, and you can get your autographed copy at drgreggsteinberg.com.

Harris English's wide backswing is a key for his success. (Petersen/Getty Images)

By Mark Immelman, Special to PGATOUR.COM

Memphis, Tenn., and specifically TPC Southwind, became the Dawg Pound as Georgia Bulldog Harris English notched his maiden PGA TOUR victory by two strokes from the chasing pack.

English, a TOUR Sophomore, withstood a final-round charge from two seasoned campaigners in Phil Mickelson and Scott Stallings. He performed with a maturity and poise well beyond his 23 years and carded a 3-under 32 on the back, including two birdies in his last three holes, for a final round of 69.

English hit a selection of very solid and well-controlled shots over the final hour or so to give himself a few stress-free and certainly viable opportunities for birdies over the tough closing stretch of holes. He did so by unleashing, what in my opinion is, a golf swing that does not get the credit it deserves. English swings the club with power, poise, control and balance and his action is as fundamentally sound as any in the game right now. There are so many elements to his swing that are worth emulating, but one I feel is especially important is the overall width of his swing arc.

Harris makes a beautifully wide backswing and an equally wide down-and-throughswing which allows him extra time to unload maximum energy into and through the ball. It also makes it much easier for him to square up the clubface through impact which in turn results in more powerful and consistent shots. This is a very important principle of the swing to remember: generally, the narrower the radius of the arc is, the more hand and forearm action is required to present the clubface consistently squarely through impact. Conversely and more often than not, the wider the arc of the swing is the less compensation and manipulation is necessary to square the face.

A simple drill: A few elements have an influence on the width of the swing arc, but probably the most influential is the hinging of the elbows on either side of the swing. For right-handers, the back-and-downswing width is largely controlled by the hinge of the right elbow and the throughswing width is controlled by the hinge of the left elbow.

By way of explanation, the more your elbows hinge the narrower the swing arc will be and the less they hinge the wider the arc will be. In my opinion and in an ideal world, at the top of the backswing the trail elbow would be located to the right of the right side and slightly lower than its shoulder, while being hinged to about 90 degrees.

So, if you feel that your backswing could use a little extra width, and I am sure it could, strive to keep your right elbow to the right of your right hip as you ensure that it hinges less than 90 degrees at the top of the swing. If you really want to get a feeling for what less elbow hinge feels like, use a swimming arm-band floatie and inflate one of its sides. Put it on your trail arm so that the inflated panel is sitting over the fold in the elbow. Then make a backswing and you will feel how the floatie will not allow the elbow to hinge too much as it retains a 90-degree shape between the forearm and the bicep. Once you have rehearsed the wider swing and got used the feel of it you can go ahead and hit shots with the floatie still on your arm. You will be surprised at how easy it is to return the clubface consistently to the ball – just like English.

Good luck.

/mi

Mark Immelman, the brother of PGA TOUR professional Trevor Immelman, is a well-respected golf instructor and head coach of the Columbus State University (Ga.) golf team. For more information about Mark and his instruction, visit his web site, markimmelman.com or follow him on Twitter @mark_immelman or “Like” Mark Immelman Golf Instruction on Facebook. He also has a golf instruction e-book called “Consistently Straight Shots – The Simple Solution” available on iTunes/iBooks.

Harris English's ability to hit a knockdown shot helped him to a victory. (Lyons/Getty Images)

By Travis Fulton, Director of Instruction, PGA TOUR Academy

I have a feeling this is going to be the first of many PGA TOUR wins for Harris English. The Georgia graduate had already posted three top-10s in 2013, including a tie for sixth at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans a little over a month ago.

As Harris reflects back on a great week in Memphis, and the invitation to the 2014 Masters that comes with his first win, no shot will stand out more than the knockdown he hit on the 71st hole, setting up a huge 17-foot birdie putt that put him on top to stay. This knockdown shot is a go-to shot for many TOUR players, when they really need to control their ball flight and keep the spin down.

So many times during lessons, I will encourage students to learn the knockdown shot. One of the reasons why is that so many amateurs scoop the trail wrist at impact, which causes the clubshaft to lean away from the target. This adds loft to the clubface, increasing the initial launch angle and robbing the players the distance they should be getting. What’s interesting is that when amateurs learn how to hit a knockdown, they often feel as if their arm swing gets shorter; yet, they hit it farther because of the improvement in the launch conditions at impact.

Here are a few tips to help you hit the knockdown, and improve your impact position in the process.

1. Shorten your arm swing: When hitting a knockdown shot, swing your hands to about shoulder-height on the backswing and follow-through. This abbreviated motion will not only make your backswing more compact, but also encourage a more delofted clubface through impact as a result of the lower finish.

2. Focus on two rights: On the downswing, feel as if your right elbow moves in toward your right hip. Don’t allow the right elbow to move away from your body, but rather keep it in front of your hip at the delivery position. As this happens, it’s a must that your right wrist stays bent. Maintaining this right wrist angle position through impact keeps the shaft leaning forward, which allows the clubhead to work down into the ground. Thus, no scooping!

3. Turn the knuckles down: If the right wrist remains bent through impact, as it should, then you must use your left hand to square the clubface. To do this, rotate your left forearm and hand down so that the back of your hand faces the target at impact. The hand should then continue to swivel down so that the knuckles face the ground shortly after impact. Turn the knuckles down and you should hit the ball on a much better trajectory.

Travis Fulton is the Director of Instruction at the TOUR Academies at TPC Sawgrass and the World Golf Village. For more information on the TOUR Academy, click here.

Harris English was nervous near the end of his round, and said he benefitted from it. (Lyons/Getty Images)

By Dr. Gregg Steinberg, Special to PGATOUR.COM

Do you have difficulties staying focused on the course?

Harris English, winner of the FedEx St. Jude Classic, might have a solution for you. Harris stated that he loves the pressure and thrives on the nerves. Also, he mentioned that intense pressure gives him a more laser-like focus. His butterflies actually make him concentrate better.

English is hitting upon an important psychological principle related to concentration: our ability to concentrate is modified by our intensity level. Think of your concentration like a searchlight. When you are not motivated, not warmed-up, not interested (i.e., your intensity level is very low), your searchlight will be bouncing all over the place. In other words, when you have low intensity levels, your focus will bounce around the course and you will have a difficult time staying focused on the shot at hand.

However, if you are very motivated, very interested, and the pressure is on (i.e., your intensity level is high), your searchlight becomes like one beam of light focusing intensely on its target. Your focus becomes like a laser. This is what Harris English was alluding to concerning his comments about focusing better under pressure.

If you are having difficulty concentrating on the course, then it might be a function of your intensity level being too low. Here are a few suggestions to give your intensity level a good pump:

1. When I work with players who feel flat, I tell them to think of their thigh like a pump, and slap it, not hard, but in a way that when you hit it, you imagine yourself pumping up your intensity level. You could do this before every shot in your routine, and/or every time you feel your mind wandering.

2. Use some pump-up words. Another useful technique is to use some key self-statements that will get you pumped up quickly, such as, “Find the fire” or “It’s go time.” Find some key words for you that resonate and you will feel the pump!

3. Key images can get you pumped up as well. Recall an image from a moment in your past that got you fired up. This image will work great to spark your fire on the course.

Pump yourself up with the right intensity level and you will light up your focus.

Dr. Gregg Steinberg is a regular guest every Tuesday on “Talk of the TOUR” heard on the Sirius/XM PGA TOUR radio. He is a tenured professor of sports psychology and has been the mental game coach for many PGA TOUR players as well as top collegiate and junior golfer.  Dr. Gregg is the author of the best selling golf psychology book, MentalRules for Golf, and you can get your autographed copy at drgreggsteinberg.com.

Matt Kuchar was second in putting last week at Muirfield Viillage. (Chris Condon/PGA TOUR)

By Travis Fulton, Director of Instruction, PGA TOUR Academy

Make it two wins now for Matt Kuchar in 2013. The unspectacular -- but steady -- American just seems to be getting better with age. Since turning pro in 2000, the former U.S. Amateur champion has won six times on the PGA TOUR, with half of his victories coming in the last 13 months, including the 2012 PLAYERS and 2013 World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship.

After his Accenture Match Play win, I wrote about Kooch’s unique, yet effective, “flat” swing. This week, after an impressive two-shot win at The Memorial, it’s only fitting that we take a look at another uncharacteristic part of his game—his putting. You may have noticed over the weekend how Kuchar takes a belly-length putter and leans the shaft so far forward that it aligns itself with his lead forearm. This forward lean flattens out his left hand and creates a straight line from his left elbow to the putterhead. The advantage of this is it creates a de-lofting effect on the putter face, helping Kuchar roll the ball effectively. Since 2009, Kuchar has finished no worse than 26th in strokes gained-putting (he was second at The Memorial), and his strange but effective address is a big reason why.

Most TOUR players lean the shaft only slightly forward at address. This conservative lean to the shaft allows the left hand to be bent, rather than flat. The significance of this is that when the lead wrist is bent, the low point of the swing arc is opposite to the wrist. That is why you’ll see so many players position the ball slightly forward of center in their stance, directly below the lead wrist, so that they can catch the ball on a slightly ascending angle through impact. Although this approach doesn’t de-loft the putter face as much as Kuchar’s approach, it creates a solid roll through its ascending attack angle through impact. 

What’s important here is that regardless of how much forward lean you have at address, that you return the shaft back to its original address position at impact. By doing this, you will be able to control the loft of the putter face and attack angle, resulting in a more predictable and consistent. If you return the shaft at a different angle, then it’s hard to control your starting line and distance control. To avoid losing your shaft angle, here are a couple things to consider:

1. Maintain the bend in your trail wrist. With the shaft so far forward at address, Kuchar has a lot of bend to his trail wrist -- similar to his impact position on the full swing. What Matt does so well is that he maintains the angle between the right forearm and the shaft through impact, which keeps the forward lean to the shaft consistent. One of the most common mistakes you see with amateurs is that they lose this angle early because they scoop the trail wrist. This causes the handle and the shaft to drop back, leading to poor contact. If this is you, try leaning the shaft more forward at address, like Kuchar. It should help you eliminate the scoop, resulting in a better impact position.

2. Use your shoulders. The putting stroke, in many ways, is a miniature golf swing. Even in the smallest of motions, you need to use your shoulders through impact. If you don’t, then you’re more likely to overuse the hands through impact. You will flip or scoop the putterhead into the ball and disrupt the lean of the shaft. Although it’s minor, Kuchar moves his lead shoulder slightly up and back, relative to the target line, through impact. This allows the hands and putter to follow. This shoulder movement is critical to support the hands and ensure a consistent putter shaft angle at impact.

Travis Fulton is the Director of Instruction at the TOUR Academies at TPC Sawgrass and the World Golf Village. For more information on the TOUR Academy, click here.

Matt Kuchar has won three times in the last 13 months. (Chris Condon/PGA TOUR)

By Dr. Gregg Steinberg, Special to PGATOUR.COM

How do successful golfers stay motivated to practice and compete, day in and day out?

One of the best ways to keep the fire burning bright inside is by setting goals. Matt Kuchar stated that one of his goals this year was to be a multiple winner on the PGA TOUR.  With great play in tough conditions at Muirfield Village, Kuchar reached his goal with plenty to spare.

For the past 50 years, motivational researchers have discovered that goals direct effort and persistence to a given target area. Goals also guide our focus to the areas in need of improvement and are one of the best ways to increase our fire inside.

If you have lost some of your desire to practice your game (which is common), then I would recommend setting up a goal-setting program. Here is an example of an effective goal-setting program for being a better putter:

Step 1. Discover your baseline. First you will need to know how many putts you take per round. Let’s say that you average 40 putts per round.

Step 2. Set up realistic but challenging goals. A goal should be about 10 percent change to be realistic yet challenging. Thus, your goal should be to decrease to 36 putts per round.

Step 3. Create strategies to attain your goals. A good strategy would be to practice your putting three times a week for at least 15 minutes. Also, you could use a metronome to check your rhythm.

Step 4. Assess your improvement. Check your average each month. If you see improvement then stick with your plan. If not, then you will need to change your strategies. Perhaps you need to use a chalk line on the green to check your alignment each time your practice your putting.

Step 5. Adjust and set new goals. Once you reach your goals you will need to set new challenging goals.  For instance Matt Kuchar needs to set more challenging goals for the rest of the year such as win another tour event and/or major to keep him motivated.  Given his excellent mental game, I am sure Matt has already done this to stay ahead of the game!

Keep the fire burning bright in your golf game with an effective goal-setting program.   

Dr. Gregg Steinberg is a regular guest every Tuesday on “Talk of the TOUR” heard on the Sirius/XM PGA TOUR radio. He is a tenured professor of sports psychology and has been the mental game coach for many PGA TOUR players as well as top collegiate and junior golfer.  Dr. Gregg is the author of the best selling golf psychology book, MentalRules for Golf, and you can get your autographed copy at www.drgreggsteinberg.com.

Boo Weekley worked through injuries to get back into top form. (Halleran/Getty Images)

By Mark Immelman, Special to PGATOUR.COM

Fort Worth, Texas, is the home of one of golf's favorite sons, Ben Hogan. It has also been one of the PGA TOUR’s favorite stops. The host venue, Colonial Country Club, is certainly a popular course, and it serves as a shrine to the aforementioned Hall of Famer.

If one had to design a course to fit the indomitable Hogan, then Colonial would be the blueprint. The par-70 layout presents a selection of tight holes that dogleg in both directions. It demands savvy strategy and precise placement of tee shots to offer the best angles to the small greens. Indeed, I can quite imagine Hogan standing on any of the tees and shaping a low, penetrating drive into the perfect spot on the narrow fairways and then clipping a crisp iron shot toward the green.

The Champions Honor Roll at Colonial very much reflects players of the Hogan ilk – players who are good ball-strikers and who are accurate from tee to green. And a number of accurate ball-strikers vied for the 2013 title and plaid coat. In the end, it was Boo Weekley, who put together a near flawless final round of 66, who bested the ever-consistent 54-hole leader, Matt Kuchar.

In terms of lessons to learn from the champion and the runner-up, I could certainly recommend emulating their styles of play.  Never, ever will you see either player make violent swings. Both always make swings that are balanced, unhurried, disciplined and poised, but there is an intangible lesson we can learn from watching Weekley return to the winner’s enclosure for the first time in five years.

Weekley's previous victory was at the 2008 Verizon Heritage, and his consistent play earned him a spot on the U.S. Ryder Cup team that competed at Valhalla. Weekley’s manner, game and personality made him one of the favorites of the U.S. squad, and for all intents and purposes, it appeared likely that he would become a dominant force on the PGA TOUR. He seemed to have it all at his fingertips. Then a shoulder injury resulted in a severe drop in his play. Three subsequent surgeries led to him tumbling out of the spotlight as he endured a few very lean years.

Entering 2013, a reinvigorated Weekley started to show promise. He remained patient as he gradually climbed the leaderboards every week, and his breakout performance came at the Tampa Bay Championship presented by EverBank.  Weekley shot a final-round 63 around the very tough Innisbrook Copperhead course to finish second. He then had another very solid outing at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans and he referenced the fact that he was beginning to feel good about his game.

Weekley just kept playing one shot at a time, one round at a time and one tournament at a time, comforted by the fact that he was doing the right things. Finally his investments bore fruit with his emphatic victory at Hogan’s Alley.

The lesson we can learn from the likeable Weekley is about your mindset and attitude. It's the saying, "This too shall pass." I can only imagine how Weekley must have felt when he was injured, in pain and fighting his game. I am sure that competition on the PGA TOUR must have lost its luster and turned into a weekly grind and every swing he made must have been laced with doubt and disappointment.

If you are going through such an ebb in your game, do take heart and remind yourself of, what to me are, the most important four words in life and in golf.  Words I learned from the great writer, Og Mandino: "This too shall pass."

Say that simple phrase to yourself and then know that if you are doing the right things and are remaining positive that your momentum is likely to change at any time.

Too often, too many slumping golfers get mired and they begin to lose faith in themselves and their game. As soon as that happens, the slump has every chance of perpetuating itself and going on for longer than necessary.

Momentum is switched and slumps are ended with a conscious righting of your outlook and your attitude as those have a direct effect on the performance of your body. So always remind yourself that whatever the situation, “This too shall pass,” and then make an effort to look on the bright side and maintain a positive and upbeat attitude. I promise you will notice a change in your fortune.

Good luck.
/mi

Mark Immelman, the brother of PGA TOUR professional Trevor Immelman, is a well-respected golf instructor and head coach of the Columbus State University (Ga.) golf team. For more information about Mark and his instruction, visit his web site, markimmelman.com or follow him on Twitter @mark_immelman or “Like” Mark Immelman Golf Instruction on Facebook. He also has a golf instruction e-book called “Consistently Straight Shots – The Simple Solution” available on iTunes/iBooks.

Zach Johnson lost his lucky ball marker at Colonial, but found it later in the week. (How/Getty Images)

By Dr. Gregg Steinberg, Special to PGATOUR.COM

Superstitions exist in all walks of life. The number 13 is considered bad luck. Unbelievably, some office buildings skip that number as a floor. We don’t walk under ladders, and we would hate to break a mirror.

Golf is no exception when it comes to superstitions and good luck charms. Zach Johnson has a very special ball maker. Johnson’s wife, Kim, made him a ball marker that contains biblical phrases and verses that he reads during the round.

Johnson is not alone in his use of charms in hopes of bringing better scores. Superstitions have always been prevalent in golf. All-time great Chi Chi Rodriguez marks his ball with the head side up, and he never uses pennies as a marker. Then there’s two-time Masters champion Ben Crenshaw. He has been known to play only low-numbered balls -- one through four -- because he doesn’t want to make a score higher than that. And there are countless other golfers with charming behaviors such as these.

Why do golfers have superstitions? While many of these superstitions might seem a bit strange to an outsider, they provide an important purpose to our mental and emotional health. Life is very unpredictable. We want control where there is none, and superstitions make us feel more in control. By engaging in this action (e.g., always playing with a number two on our ball), we believe to have a greater influence over the outcome of the event (e.g. having a better score).

Furthermore, this perceived sense of control derived from our superstitions gives us a more relaxed attitude. Psychologists have determined that a greater sense of control over our environment will lead to less anxiety in our lives. Thus, superstitions can reduce our anxiety on the golf course and give us peace of mind about our game.

Would I, as a sports psychologist, recommend such habits?

Of course, as long as they are not counterproductive or inappropriate, such as skipping breakfast because you believe eating the day's most important meal has brought you bad luck in the past.

More important, you should develop positive superstitions, such as the belief that you must practice your putting for 10 minutes before every round. Goethe once stated, “Superstition is the poetry of life.”  It is an art form to weave actions into your golf game that give you a peace of mind.

Bio: Dr. Gregg Steinberg is a regular guest every Tuesday on “Talk of the Tour” heard on the Sirius/XM PGA TOUR radio. He is a tenured professor of sports psychology and has been the mental game coach for many PGA TOUR players as well as top collegiate and junior golfer.  Dr. Gregg is the author of the best selling golf psychology book, MentalRules for Golf, and you can get your autographed copy at www.drgreggsteinberg.com.

Sang-Moon executed a low-trajectory, high-spin shot en route to victory. (Pennington/Getty Images)

By Mark Immelman, Special to PGATOUR.COM

Lord Byron‘s event at TPC Four Seasons always attracts a stellar field as the PGA TOUR’s finest travel to the Lone Star State to pay homage to one of golf’s greatest champions and finest men.

The course layout is demanding from tee to green and play is normally defined by the warm and gusty North Texas winds. Hence it is those players who can flight the ball and control their shot trajectory (and make putts) who normally prevail around the firm and fast course conditions. This year, however, a band of severe Wednesday night thunderstorms changed the personality of the course and the first round became a birdie-fest with Keegan Bradley leading the assault on par with a 10-under 60.

The winds kicked up over the next three rounds and scoring became tougher. In the end it boiled down to a battle between the two members of the final Sunday pairing, Sang-Moon Bae and Bradley.

Both combatants were tied at 12 under as they headed up the par-5 16th. After getting their second shots into position, Bae faced an uphill pitch from about 40 yards and Bradley faced a pitch of about 50 feet from right of the green. Bae drove a low-spinning wedge into the green which gripped and spun back to about 5 feet from the cup. Not to be outdone, the gusty Bradley clipped a low and aggressive spinning wedge shot to just inside of his playing partner. Both shots were absolutely gorgeous and certainly worth learning how to play.

How to play the low, spinning wedge shot:

This shot starts at address. Move the ball back to around the middle of the stance and favor your lead foot (left for right-handers) as you set the bulk of your weight there. Lean the shaft slightly to the left (for righties) as you set your hands a little ahead of the clubface and the ball.

As you make your backswing, hinge your wrists up to steepen the shaft plane which will assist you to make a crisp, descending strike. It is recommendable to make a slightly shorter backswing as this will give you the freedom to accelerate through impact without the fear of the shot going too far.

Begin your downswing by rotating your lower body back to the left and swing your arms down through impact with the lead arm closer to the body and the left hand leading the clubface through impact. That lead hand should retain control of the action throughout the delivery so that the trail hand does not shut down the clubface. Once contact has been made, swing and extend the arms past the body into a shorter, balanced follow-through. Once again, the lead arm and hand should dominate the delivery and holding the club a little tighter with the last three fingers of the left hand will certainly help.
Get out and practice this shot; it will surely shave strokes off your score.

Good luck

Mark Immelman, the brother of PGA TOUR professional Trevor Immelman, is a well-respected golf instructor and head coach of the Columbus State University (Ga.) golf team. For more information about Mark and his instruction, visit his web site, markimmelman.com or follow him on Twitter @mark_immelman or “Like” Mark Immelman Golf Instruction on Facebook. He also has a golf instruction e-book called “Consistently Straight Shots – The Simple Solution” available on iTunes/iBooks.