Tip Of The Month

By John Pallot
Director of Instruction

March 2005

The 2005 Doral Open now the Ford Championship at Doral hit the jackpot. Entries included 11 of the top 12 players on the current world-ranking list. This made for an exciting week of great golf around the Blue Monster. I paid my annual visit during Tuesday's practice round. Not only did I watch but videoed Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh and others. It was a thrill getting so close to the action. The booming drives, accurate iron shots, delicate pitching, and precision putting reconfirmed how talented and skilled PGA Tour players are today. With calm conditions prevailing the pros ate up the Monster. This year, I paid close attention to Tiger Woods. His last appearance at Doral was in 2002, so it was a real treat watching him after a 3-year hiatus. This month's tip stems from ten holes of Tiger stalking and deals with one of the serious, fixable problems amateur golfers encounter, the breakdown of the left wrist somewhere in their swing, meaning the left wrist doesn't stay in line with the left forearm. Look at the pictures below. At the top of the backswing notice the left wrist is in line with the forearm. Look at impact. Look at the finish. Same relationship shot after shot. This is a critical element in consistent, powerful, ball striking. Breaking or cupping the left wrist adds loft to the club-face, encourages poor contact, and makes it impossible to hit the ball squarely. Check your left wrist the next time you practice. Work to maintain left wrist and forearm alignment throughout the swing. It works for Tiger and it'll work for you.

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