To Improve Your Short Game You Have to Be Able to Make Putts

Almost anyone can learn to drive a golf ball with a little practice. Being long off of the tee is not what gets the average golfer in trouble. It is not what gets the pros in trouble either. To really improve your score you have to improve your short game and this means being able to putt.

Here are few tips to lower your score by improving your putting.

1. Putting is all about feel. When you feel good about your grip you will have control over your putter. What you want is to lightly place your hands on the club so it is easy for you to swing the clubhead squarely toward the target. The index finger on your left hand overlaps the little finger of your right hand. Many golfers prefer the index finger to overlap more than one finger.

2. Keep your thumbs straight down the front of the shaft. Do not grip to low. Grip as close to the top of your putter as is comfortable. Keep your feet shoulder width apart. Slightly bend your knees and elbows. Keep your eyes on the ball and stand close to it with your arms close to your body.

3. You want a relaxed swing moving your arms and hands together through the ball. Stroke the ball with the middle of the putter. Keep your eyes on the ball and do not lift your head to look until you have totally completed your swing.

4. For longer putts you will have a longer swing. A shorter swing for short putts. This is all that changes and is based on how far you have to putt. The mechanics of putting stay the same no matter how far your putt is.

5. When it comes to reading a green you can see the layout of the green from 100 yards and in as you approach it.

Read more

10 tips ... that will improve your golf game

Five local professionals and PGA-certified instructors tell you how to become a better player

Not every player gets to practice before every round with his teacher hovering behind him, watching his swing, checking for malfunctions, making sure everything is working just right. Just those on the PGA Tour.

And not every player has the luxury of going for a lesson or visiting an instructor on a periodic basis, usually because the cost can be prohibitive.

So, how do you become a better player? What is it that you need to know to improve your game and lower your scores, which is the desire of every player who has ever teed a ball, hoisted a club and tried like heck to make the ball go high, straight and, yes, especially long?

Well, short of having a certified PGA teaching professional on your payroll, or taking one to the golf course every time you play, the Post-Gazette has asked five local professionals and PGA-certified instructors to provide a list of the top 10 tips a player should know and work on to become a better player.

Consider it the PG's version of Harvey Penick's "Little Red Book," a compilation of teachings, lessons and musings designed to help players understand the work, preparation and execution that is required to lower scores and make golf a more enjoyable game. Or just less frustrating.

The participating professionals are John Aber, head professional at Allegheny Country Club; Eric Johnson, director of instruction at Oakmont Country Club; Kevin Shields, teaching professional at Rolling Hills CC; Sean Parees, teaching professional at Quicksilver GC and Robert Morris University Island Sports Center; and Jim Cichra, director of instruction at the Robert Morris University Island Sports Center.

The tips are designed for players of all skill level, but primarily are geared toward the average player. And, with the average score in this country over 100, there are plenty of players in search of lessons to improve their game. 

Read more

Golf Increases Life Expectancy

It sounds too good to be true, but playing a round of golf can add years to your life. Why?

Think about it: A round of golf takes about 5 hours to play. The whole time the golfer is outside, he is walking, taking in the sun and burning calories. In fact, 18 holes of golf burns 306 calories per hour (is you carry your own clubs –- 292/hour if you use a pull-cart for your bag and 238/hour if you ride in a golf cart). Could all this add up to a longer, healthier life?

The Swedish Golf Federation has more than 600,000 members (membership is required for playing almost everywhere in Sweden, so the list contains almost all of Sweden’s golfers). Here’s the great thing (if you are a statistician): Sweden also maintains a record of all the deaths that have taken place in Sweden for decades. Researchers were able to link the two databases to learn about the impact of golf on mortality. They compared the golfers and non-golfers and found that golfers were 40% less likely to have died than non-golfers of the same age.

Not only is golfing, in general, good for your life expectancy, but the more someone golfs, the greater his increase in health. When golfers handicaps were put into the equation, golfers with the lowest handicaps (indicating a better golfer who, in theory, plays more) had greater reductions in their risk of death.

Why Golf Improves Life Expectancy and Longevity

It could be that the increase in exercise for golfers explains the effect that researchers saw. Unfortunately, the analysis could not compare the exercise levels of the non-golfers. We don’t know for sure that the increased exercise explains the benefit. There could be other explanations like:

• People with certain illnesses and certain health conditions cannot golf, therefore golfers only include healthy people.
• People who golf are wealthier on average than people who don’t golf.

 Read more

Meditation Techniques for Concentration

Meditation is mainly done for the purpose of relaxation of mind and for gaining good concentration as well. Your level of concentration is sure to be improved if meditation is done on a regular basis.

In the beginning you may feel distracted. But it is very necessary that you have a good focus so that you improve. There are many meditation techniques for concentration that can be implemented.

Focusing on a particular object is very essential to develop concentration. This has to be done for a certain time. Depending on this the techniques for concentration can be mainly divided into 3 types. They are Zazen, which is mainly breathing concentration, Vipassana, which is also known as concentrate to sensations and Tratak, which is also known as concentrate to candle flame.

Zazen

This is a very renowned Buddhist practice of developing concentration and an effective meditation technique.

This technique of meditation is known to be the best for beginners. This helps in focusing on breathing while you count.

The seating posture for this purpose should be such that your spine is erect when you do this form of meditation.

Vipassana

This technique of meditation is also the best for beginners. The physical sensations of body are focus when you do this.

It is known to have enlightened many people when compared to any other technique of meditation. It helps in keeping your mind very cool and you can also control your mind in a very easily.

Tratak

This is known to be a wonderful technique of meditation that helps in providing you with the desired results. It helps you to keeping your mind focused and also greatly assists in enhancing memory as well.

In this technique, candle flame is focused and concentrated. It helps you to come out of distractive thoughts. 

Read more

Meditation and Breathing Exercises to Reduce Stress

How you react to stress determines how it will affect you. Too much stress can be bad for your heart. Learn how to manage your stress with deep breathing and meditation exercises.

Stress can be hard to avoid, but don’t worry if you can’t avoid stress completely—you don’t have to.stress is a normal physical and psychological to both positive and negative situations. Stress itself isn’t necessarily unhealthy—but your reaction to it can be.

How Does Stress Affect Your Heart?

When stress becomes constant and chronic, it can cause an increase in heart rate and blood pressure that may damage the artery walls, the American Heart Association (AHA) reports. Stress that’s left unchecked may contribute to high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, and diabetes.

In particular, research has shown that those with “Type A” traits—such as often feeling rushed, irritated, impatient, or angry—have an increased likelihood of developing heart disease. Emotions like anger and hostility cause your body to release stress hormones into your blood. This causes an increase in your heart rate and blood pressure, which makes your heart work harder.

Managing Your Stress Levels

Although the exact link between heart disease and stress is unclear, it’s smart to take steps now to get your stress levels under control. It may be tempting to ask your doctor for medicine to manage stress, but lifestyle changes such as stress management techniques are a much better long-term strategy to lower your stress level.

One of the best ways to help you relax and manage stress is through deep breathing exercises, including meditation. It takes a little practice to make a habit of breathing exercises, but anyone can learn them. You can use them at home or in the office—or anywhere that you need some relief. Try these exercises, recommended by the AHA and Mayo Clinic, to help reduce stress:

Deep Breathing

The Anatomy of a Zen Habit

This post, The Anatomy of a Zen Habit will explain why we have made Zen Habits, (the website) part of our lives and the whys and hows of habit breaking and making.

Through his website and books, Leo Babauta has shown us that a regular person can do extraordinary things. As a husband and father of 6, Babauta quit smoking, lost weight, ran a marathon, adopted a vegetarian diet, turned his blog into a business, tripled his income and quit his job, and through all of that taught us how to do it too.

Zen Habits has more than 210,000 subscribers and even more readers. There is no doubt that Leo worked hard, especially at first to grow his blog. He worked a full time job, while writing morning, noon and night and then some. Even so, there is more to the success of Zen Habits than luck and hard work.

Top 5 Reasons (in my opinion) for Leo Babauta’s Success

1. Leo is relatable.

2. He writes good stuff.

3. He keeps learning and sharing his secrets.

4. The information he provides is helpful & honest.

5. He’s a good guy.

In order to really break down the anatomy of a Zen habit, I went straight to the source. Leo was kind enough to answer a few questions to help break down the importance of Zen, habits and procrastination.

What does Zen even mean?

Leo: It means different things to every person. For me it is simply a way to learn to be present, to live in the moment. That’s a very simple thing, but it turns out it changes everything.

Why are we so attracted to developing better habits?

Leo: There is an optimist in most of us, who despite evidence of failed attempts throughout our lives, believes we can become better. This optimist wants us to be the best version of ourselves that we can possibly become. 

Read more

Tips For Successful Meditation That Can Make You Happier

Meditation actually can make physical changes to your brain wiring and increase function. Using meditation as part of your daily routine will help to reorganize your thinking

A routine involving meditation may be one of the most effective ways to keep your life in balance. Meditation is a proven way of lowering stress, reducing anxiety, relieving depression, and increasing health. Meditation has been shown to improve cognitive functioning, heart health, defense mechanisms functioning, and digestion.

As a matter of fact, meditation can be quite simple should you follow a few tried and true strategies for successful meditation. Each time you meditate you will learn something new about yourself.

Wear Comfortable Clothing

You will need to wear something that is not binding and won’t be distracting. Loose fitting clothes that will permit your body to move and breathe freely are preferred. Loose fitting organic cotton works perfectly.

Find Quiet

Meditation brings energy into us. So it’s necessary thing for meditation to get it done in pin drop silence. Just turn of the all gadgets even your mobile too. Turn off radio, TV, Laptop etc.They might interrupt you during meditation.

Sit Comfortably

In comparison with what many believe meditation isn’t about sitting in an uncomfortable position for some time. Sit comfortably but try the recommended positions, like the lotus, since they are designed to minimize body ache and optimize what you can do to breathe correctly.

Loosen Up

Its little weird to relax, you can scrunch up your hands for your ears and then slowly allow them to fall down. Sometime it helps to help you stress less magically. You are able to relax your body by loosen your cheeks, mouth, arms and shoulders.

Focus on Your Breathing

The important thing to any meditation practice is concentrating on the breath. Controlled breathing stabilizes blood pressure level and increases oxygen flow, thereby increasing alertness. Stay silent and concentrate. 

Read more

Simple Safety Guidelines for Golfers

Golf is a very safe sport - as long as a few basic, common-sense rules of safety are followed. When those rules are ignored, injuries can occur.

Golf involves the swinging of metal clubs, which propel golf balls at high speeds. If you're in the way of either the clubs or the balls, you're in danger. You could be placing yourself in danger, too, if you do not respect the power of the sun, the danger of lightning, or your body's need for the right kind of fluids on warm days.

Keep Track of Those Around You

When a golf club is in your hands and you are preparing to swing, it is your responsibility to make sure your playing partners are a safe distance away from you. It's not too difficult, after all, to keep track of where everyone is when your group is likely just four or fewer golfers.

Never swing a golf club when another golfer is close to you. That's the most important thing to remember. And be a little extra cautious on practice swings, when it's easy for golfers to let their guard down. Extra vigilance is also needed when younger golfers are part of your group.

Also, look ahead of you, and to the left and right of the area where you are aiming your shot. Don't hit your ball until you are confident that any golfers up ahead are out of your range.

Heads Up

While it's the responsibility of every golfer to be sure it is safe for them to take their stroke, you can't always rely on every golfer to do just that. So even when it's not your turn to hit, stay aware of your surroundings.

Be especially careful if you have to venture into an adjoining fairway to retrieve or play an errant shot, or if you are close to an adjoining fairway and golfers on that hole are hitting toward you.

Read More

Zen Meditation Techniques for Men

Meditation is among the most preached of relaxation methods,

often recommended for getting rid of our anxieties and alleviating pain or suffering. However, meditation isn't the simplest of things to practice or gain perfection over, since it requires maintaining absolute focus. Yes, the benefits are immense with greater concentration, lesser anxiety and an overall feeling of wellness. Zen Meditation works upon the principle of gaining enlightenment which essentially means you are elevated to a level where your mind is free from the usual clutter of disturbing ideas. When you are in the Zen Meditation state, you are passing into a state of self-reflection & introspection that helps to create a mind and body synergy.

The difficulties of mastering the art of Zen meditation often makes people quit this rather helpful lifestyle habit. The objective of this article is to help you gain a certain degree of control over Zen Meditation. These tips are easy to understand and follow:

• Set aside a specific time during which you plan to meditate. Just like your body follows a sleeping regimen, your mind will gradually become accustomed to the idea of meditating or concentrating, every day.

• Before trying to focus your mind, try to slow your breathing pattern. Unless, the breathing in under control, you won’t be able to concentrate. Unless, a slower breathing pattern is adopted, your muscles won’t be able to relax. This is the only way to regulate your circulation also so that you don’t sweat too much or feel thirsty and irritated.

• It is better to do some basic stretching before you get seated for your meditation. This helps to loosen the tendons and muscles. This aids better circulation of blood. These factors help to be seated in the same position without feeling bodily pain or discomfort.

Read more 

Top 5 meditation tips – make it a daily habit

Modern practitioners of meditation face the same age-old question that meditators have asked themselves and each other for thousands of years: how can I motivate myself to meditate every day? We are aware that meditation is good for us, and yet the pressures of daily life and our various commitments can make it hard to ensure we fit a meditation session into our busy schedule each day. These days, when even major news outlets have sections on meditation tips, we can look to the 2,500 years of Buddhist meditation experience for inspiration.

 

Here we offer five tried-and-tested meditation tips to overcome the most common problems that beginners and experienced practitioners can encounter in motivating themselves to sit regularly.

Tip 1: Reflect on the benefits of meditation

If we are going to devote some time to our meditation practice, we want to know that the effort is worth it. It’s reassuring to know that not only generations of Buddhist masters, but increasingly also modern researchers, attest to the fact that meditation leads to increased levels of well being. Psychologists have found, for example, that “Loving Kindness meditations can have positive effects, in particular in terms of improving one’s resources and wellbeing”, and can even – literally and figuratively – positively affect the very rhythm of our hearts.

Research on the effects of focusing on the intricate and beautiful buddha forms used as meditation objects in Diamond Way Buddhist meditations has found that meditating on Buddha forms improves visual-spatial processing in the brain.

And if that’s not enough for the more worldly among us, it’s even been shown that meditating Buddhists make more rational economic decisions. Something to think about when planning your pension, or when hitchhiking home after your next trip to the casino.

Tip 2: Let go of the idea of a ‘good’ meditation

As counter-intuitive as it may seem, as long as you’re following an authentic meditation technique, it’s difficult to do it wrong. 

Read More

How to Cure a Hook Golf Tip

You'll often hear from veteran golfers and professionals that a golf slice is easier to "cure" than a hook. I definitely disagree and believe that the reasons for a slice and hook are very similar, just opposite.

A slice occurs when the club face is open at impact, and is often accentuated by an out-to-in swing. The result is literally a "slicing" through the ball. The more of an out-to-in swing, the more the ball trajectory first starts out on the inside of your body and then spins and fades away. The hook is the exact opposite. The club face is closed at impact, and is often coupled with an in-to-out swing, causing the ball to first travel away from your body, and then hook back around.

First let's concentrate on the club face at impact. Most hooks whether subtle or severe are caused by a closed club face. The reason is most likely due to premature wrist rotation. Your bottom thumb turns over too soon often before the club face makes contact with the ball/ground. This may be just due to turning your wrists over too soon, not following through with your hands to the target, or, in more severe cases, opening up your hips too soon.

The first step to curing a hook is to make sure your hands and wrists are in the correct position at impact with ball/ground. You absolutely must be sure your wrists are not turning over too soon. You can practice this by chipping. Use a high iron, try a 7 or 8 iron. Start by taking your normal chipping swing/motion. If your ball is hooking, you're most likely turning your writsts over. Practice with this same club until your chipping swing motion results in a straight trajectory.

Read More