Canadian Foursomes or are American Foursomes Better?
March 10, 2008
My buddies and I would like to hear what a Canadian Foursome is. We are all very interested in knowing, thanks Golf Virgin. - Harry in Andover, MN
I bet you are and I can promise you above anything that a Canadian Foursome is not a group of crazy canucks sitting around a bonfire in BF E telling stories about bacon. A Canadian Foursome is variation of regular foursomes and is also known as Greensomes.
Here’s a bonus for all you Golf Virgin readers out there. An American Foursome is similar in where two players tee off and then switch each others balls.
Player A plays Player B’s shot, and vice versa and from there each player will hit their second shot. After each shot is hit, they will select the best of the second shots and play only one ball in an alternate shot fashion until the ball is holed.
Now, Canadian Foursomes are 2 person teams where each team plays one ball. This is basically when both players on a team tee off and the best of the two tee balls is selected and from there that ball is then played on an alternating basis until holed.
Also, during normal foursomes, the 2 person team would play on an alternating shot basis for the entire game with only one tee ball being used. Canadian Foursomes is essentially a 2 person scramble off the tee which is then played in an alternate shot fashion until the ball is holed.
See how unique and interesting golf as a sport really is? What other game can you play with your buddies balls and give it a name like Canadian Foursomes or American Foursomes or Greensomes…??
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A Golf Slice Cured
March 7, 2008
I have a golf slice but I really want to get better and improve this as much as possible. Do you think this is something that I can work out on my own? - Quinn in Rapid City, SD
A golf slice requires a lot of hard work to improve and if you really are interested in making this cure stick then lets get into the meat of how and why this happens and go from there. I want to pick this apart so you can gain a much clearer understanding of what you need to improve your stroke. Now, to make it perfectly clear, this advice is for righties so you need to reverse this if you are lefty.
If you hit a golf slice to the right, it means that it’s curving in a left-right motion across the horizon and if the ball doing this, it is spinning in a clockwise direction. Right now, imagine that your ball is sitting on a peg. To spin the ball clockwise, the club has to swing more to the left with the clubface pointing slightly to the right. In a golf slice, hitting the ball with an open clubface makes the ball curve across the sky as a slice. So tell me, my virgin friend, how’s your grip in golf?
Consider this. Your grip has little to do with the direction of the swing but has absolutely everything to do with where the clubface is looking upon impact with the golf ball such as being in the opened, closed or square position. Everyone has their own unique way of holding a golf club. To keep this simple, if your hands are turned too far to the left on the club, this will more likely than not return with the face of the club looking to the right at impact.
Something else to keep in mind while preparing to swing is having a correct golf stance. In the course of playing you find yourself hitting a golf slice far to the left, you may find yourself compensating by adjusting your swing over to the right. However, in doing this basically you are not addressing the root of the problem and creating another one from the opposite direction. What do you do to fix this then?
Lay your club on the ground and make sure that it is parallel with your target line so you can check your aim. Make positive that your aim is not too far over to the left and keep in mind the alignment between your feet, knees, hips and shoulders are parallel to the club on the ground and with your target line.
By checking your stance you can determine what is really going on with your swing. Let the ball be your guide. Are you seeing it curving less over to the right? If so then you are getting close and if its curving over to the left or flying straight, then you are starting to make some headway.
Now if you are one of those rare hard to find, self-motivated go getters, then it is definitely possible that with practice and A LOT of hard work you will see an improvement in your score, not to mention your overall enjoyment of the game.
Get out there and experience for yourself if this works go over to all your buddies and tell them how the Golf Virgin helped improve your game. You never know until you try.
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Golf Penalty Stroke
February 29, 2008
Golf Virgin, is it considered to be a golf penalty stroke if I accidently bump the ball off of the tee? - Shane in Helena, MT
Do you have shaky hands? Are you worried that you will have to take a golf penalty stroke over and over and over again? Do you find that your balls fall off the tee all on their own and you wonder if you’re racking up penalty strokes left and right? I pity you. I truly do. Honestly Shane, there is really nothing to worry about.
If you are about to address the ball and have not actually made the attempt to swing… but due to a shaky grip bump the ball off the tee. Then no, it would not be counted as a penalty. You see, a penalty stroke in golf would only apply in this situation if you were about to take a mighty swing and did, yet there was no crack of the club head hitting the ball and definitely no golf ball shooting through the sky.
You look down and see to your dismay and your buddies amusement that the ball is still sitting there on the tee, completely untouched. If that happened, which I know that at one point all of us as golf virgins have experienced this embarrassing moment. Then yes you would deserve a golf penalty stroke and rightfully so. This is because you have made the intent to hit the ball, taken a stroke and even though you did not hit the ball, the ball is now in play.
However, this is where it becomes sticky for all the virgins out there. Another variation could be that after you have made that awe-inspiring swing which did nothing, the ball is still considered to be in play and you have 1 penatly stroke against you. If while making a second attempt to hit the ball you accidently bump the ball off of the tee, guess what? Go ahead and count another golf penalty stroke against you for touching a ball that is in play with your club.
Shane, see what happens when you touch balls with your equipment at inappropiate times? You have to take a golf penalty stroke. The best advice I can give you is to relax and focus… relax and focus.
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The Origin of Fore in Golf
February 29, 2008
A reader of ours had a question regarding the origin of using the term fore in golf vs saying things like heads-up or look out!!! Joe, this is for you.
The saying fore in golf means “ahead”, and it is believed to come from the military “beware before”, which was shouted when a battery fired behind friendly troops. So yelling “fore” is just a short and easy way to tell people to “watch out ahead” or “watch out before”.
Another possible origin is that the term came from “fore caddy”. A fore caddy is a person who goes along with a group of people around a golf course. They would often go ahead to be in a position so they could pinpoint the locations of the groups’ shots. If a golfer hit a bad shot, they may have alerted this person by yelling fore. The British Golf Museum cites an 1881 reference to “fore” in a golf book, establishing that the term was already in use at that period of time.
There you have it Joe, with some things it can be hard to pin down their exact origin. But regardless if you yell fore in golf or look out!!!, make sure that your fellow golfers know darn well that something is headed in their direction.
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How to Put Spin on a Golf Ball
February 27, 2008
I really want to learn how to get a good spin on a golf ball when I’m trying to shoot over an obstacle or get the ball to land in a position where I can make an easy putt. It’s something I’ve always been curious about but could never get a handle on and I wanted to see if you knew of the best way to make this happen. - Jimmy in Little Rock, AR
Being able to put spin on a golf ball is not an easy thing to do. However, getting the ball to stop almost where it lands can help you keep your score down and ultimately win a game. This becomes especially useful when you’re hitting onto firm greens or when the pin is placed directly behind a bunker or body of water. Listed below are some simple to follow steps towards becoming familiar with the basic technique of adding a good spin on a golf ball.
Step 1:
Stand closer in your stance for a normal golf swing which is a shoulder-width apart, so go ahead and stand about 1/3 shorter of the regular shoulder-width stance.
Step 2:
Also, stand a little closer to the ball so that its closer to your back foot.
Step 3:
Use a 60-degree wedge which is also known as a flop wedge.
Step 4:
Make sure to swing your club on a steeper plane than what you would during a regular shot. Basically hit down at a steeper angle.
Step 5:
Hit directly underneath the ball before taking a divot and do your best to take a divot that is long and shallow.
Step 6:
Follow through as you would during a normal shot.
An easy way to look at is to take an analogy from playing pool. When you put backspin on a golf ball it’s very similar in nature to putting backspin on a cue ball. To accomplish this you strike the cue ball at a steep downward angle with a great deal of force which then imparts this energy on the bottom half of the cue ball and sends it flying.
Perhaps you had the experience of being able to make the ball actually hop up into the air over other balls on the table to achieve a desired effect. Wow, all these different types of ball shots can be a bit mind boggling. But, balls are balls and the harder you hit them, the farther they shoot.
Adding spin on a golf ball allows to hit shots over obstacles such as bunkers, bodies of water, the rough or whatever it is that is in between you and the green. If you put enough backspin on the ball, it takes a couple of bounces and stops. In a perfect world, you would like to be in the position where you hit the ball about 15 to 20 feet from the pin and have the it stop a few feet from the hole and this will leave you a with short putt.
So if you like watching your balls soar through the air and land exactly where you desire then dedicated practice is key to your ability to put spin on a golf ball. But keep in mind that this is one of the hardest shots to master.
Update to Post:
Hi all, recently I’ve had readers take a lot of interest in this particular post and wanted to provide links my other posts on this topic. So go check out my other posts to get a better understanding of this technique by reading Making Golf Spin Happen and Beginner Golf Tips - Key to Golf Ball Spin
Happy stokes!!
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Never Hit Fat Golf Shots Again
February 27, 2008
I wanted to know if you could give me some advice on how I can stop hitting fat golf shots. I think I might have to change the local course I’m fond of because the superintendent isn’t too happy with me taking big chunks out of his green. Thanks in advance!! - Charles in Reno, NV
Hmmm… so you have a tendency to hit fat balls. I see. Well Charles, do you think your problem might exist on a deeper level? Even if it does, I’ll do my best to help. Typically, fat golf shots happen when the club hits the ground way too soon. This creates a cushion of dirt and grass in between the clubface and the ball and this pretty much kills the shot. To top it off you feel a horrible rattle as your club head strikes the ground and a nice chunk of green goes flying.
Tough situation to be in, especially when you have the course superintendent scowling at you like you’re a bumbling reject. To stop hitting the golf ball fat, the next time you are at the range, make a mark to measure where your swing actually makes impact by putting a tee even with your golf ball and parallel with the direction that your club is facing at a distance of 1 inch before the ball.
Take your normal shot and then compare your divot to where the tee is. You will probably see that the golf club made contact with the ground way behind the tee. This shows that you are definitely hitting behind the ball. So to improve, keep working this exersise and add 1 more step. Focus on hitting down but not too steeply on the back of the golf ball.
How I learned was by actually picking out a particular dimple on the ball to keep my eye on. Putting this technique together with making a mark of 1 inch before the ball with a tee helped me with this problem when I was starting out and hitting fat balls left and right.
Now you know what to do to quit hitting those fat shots in golf. After you improve maybe the super will look at you with a little bit of respect and you will get to stay at the course you are so fond of. Happy Strokes!!
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This is Exactly Why We Yell Fore in Golf
February 24, 2008
Golf Virgin, why do people yell fore in golf? - Fred in Springfield, MO
I want you to do something, right now imagine that you and a couple good buddies are out on a beautiful spring day, enjoying a great, relaxing game of golf and having what seems to be a really good time. All of a sudden, a golf ball comes whizzing out of the ether and smacks the absolute %#$# out of your friend standing just two feet from you. You stand there in shock at the oddity you have witnessed.
Your mouth drops open in disbelief at the hollow sound of a golf ball cracking off of your friends skull and the utter look of bewilderment on his face. You don’t know whether you should laugh hysterically or act in your friends best interest and seek medical attention. However, you quickly figure out that this is not the best time for humor as your friend starts convulsing and begins having a seizure. A full-on Grand Mal seizure…
This all happened because some joyless person a hundred yards back didn’t yell fore in golf and warn you and your pals of an incoming ball . You and your comrade try to hold your poor buddy down as he shakes incessantly and while waiting for a Care Flight helicopter, you begin to realize the utility of simply yelling ahead to your fellow golfers with a healthy “fore!!!” that something tiny, white and mean is on a hell-bent trajectory back towards earth.
But then again, the strangest things can happen on the golf course. It’s almost like a magnet which draws people onto this green platform so they can be judged by the “golf gods” if they are worthy of leaving the game unharmed. Refer back to my post about golf, lightning and karma and you will understand what I mean.
So Fred, there you have it, this is exactly the reason why you yell fore in golf. Think about that the next time you mess up a shot and see that ball of yours arching in the sky towards a group of hapless people enjoying the perfect spring day.
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Say Hello to the Golf Shank Fix
February 23, 2008
Golf Virgin, I don’t know what to do. I’m at my wits end. When I go to swing, I almost always shank the damn ball. It’s horrible and I’m sick of listening to my buddies razz me about it. What can I do to find the golf shank fix and cure the golf shanks for good? - Jeffrey in Albuquerque, NM
Jeffrey, oh Jeffrey, you poor poor… thing. I truly do feel your pain. As the Golf Virgin, I’ve seen this many times and I know how bad it hurts when you’re out there giving it your best, getting so close and then all of a sudden you just can’t hit and your club basically hangs there in the breeze, useless due to “performance fear”. But no worries, I will show you the perfect fix. For a lot of the less inexperienced players out there who may not be familiar with what a shank golf shot is or what causes a shank in golf, here’s the definition.
A shank is simply when you hit the ball with the hosel of your club instead of the actual club face. This occurs because you are not using a good stance and distributing your body weight evenly and also means you are more than likely standing too close to the ball. Heres how you fix it. Do not over flex your knees when you’re about to swing. This shifts your weight to your heels, instead of in the middle of your feet were it belongs.
When you start off with too much weight on the heels this causes the body to seek out a balanced position during the swing. So when the club head makes contact with the ball your weight gets transferred from your heels to your toes. This results in the hosel being closer to the ball and all of a sudden your buddies are laughing out loud as your ball shoots off in search of it’s own kind. You see, a good address position which is a proper stance is absolutely necessary for a great golf shot to take place.
For this stance you must align your body square to the target line. This position entails having the shoulders, hips, knees and feet aligned parallel, but left, of the line that runs from the ball to the target. Even if you have this stance down, if you are standing too far away from the ball, you will unconsciously move your weight onto your toes and thus ruin your balance.
Keep in mind that standing too far from the ball can cause the knees to stiffen. More than likely this will increase the chance of hitting the shot thin where the ball will bounce off in yet another unintended direction and again you get to enjoy roars of laughter.
The width of your stance should be a shoulder-width apart when you’re taking full swings. Be sure to keep your knees flexed with a slight bend in your waist and remember to keep your weight on your heels.
This will allow you to maintain your knee flex from takeaway to impact, so you will develop a stable, even stance that will enable you to put your buddies to shame. If you spend the time and effort training this way you will never have to worry about the dreaded golf shanks again.
So remember to keep an proper, balanced stance and back up just far enough so you can hit it. Relax, don’t be afraid, it’s just a teeny white golf ball… and from here forward you will have the last laugh as you get to watch your buddies balls fly off of their own free will and disappear into the wild blue yonder.
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So Why Are There Dimples on a Golf Ball
February 22, 2008
Hi there Golf Virgin, interesting site you have going here. I’ve read through the other questions but since that last post you have me wondering why are there dimples on a golf ball? - Cory in Denver, CO
Ahhh… finally, is satisfaction within your reach? You see, long, long ago two very drunk Scots where out playing a long drawn out game of golf, the least sober of the two noticed that his dirty, chipped and scrubby ball was actually traveling a bit further than his more lucid counterparts smooth, well shaped ball - even though his buddy seemingly had more control of over his swing.
So this particular Scot thought perhaps it was just his mind teasing him and that the reason why he was hitting the ball farther was because he was piss drunk and didn’t realize how hard he was smacking it. A few days passed and he and his buddy were out playing again. He decided to make a test and pulled out that dirty, old scuffed up ball from his last game and compared it to a bright and shiny, baby-bald new one. Lo and behold, no matter how many times and on how many different holes he tried… the dirty ball always shot farther. So really, why are there dimples on a golf ball?
The simple reason being is that as time progressed more and more people began to realize that having little dents, which later became uniform dimples, helped air flow around the ball better while reducing drag and this ultimately allowed a golfer to shoot farther and with more accuracy. Just sit here and think, you can play a better game of golf all because some old Scot got drunk and decided to play with his dirty balls… crazy isn’t it?
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Whats the Limit to the Number of Golf Clubs in a Bag
February 21, 2008
Dear Golf Virgin… A friend of mine and I were talking the other day and we were going back and forth about the limit to the number of golf clubs in a bag. Could you help clear this up for me? - Joe in Arlington, VA
How cute, so you two are arguing about the legal number of golf clubs in a bag you can carry around so you have a choice of what you bang your little white balls into a hole with? Well, ok that’s a valid question… I suppose.
The rules of golf allow you to carry 14 clubs in your bag during tournament play, so many golfers will add another iron or a specialty wood. Also, remember that the putter is considered to be one of the clubs as well so keep that in mind. You know, the more tools you have available the easier it is to sink that ball as deep as possible.
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