Wedge Control Tip

When using a wedge from any distance and to ensure the best accuracy , use this bit of advice ,which will also help you with driver and iron shots.


On the start of the back swing, the best swing thought is that you want to keep your back turned away from the target, then allow the back to follow through at impact. To double-check this tip, make a few dry runs, stopping right at impact. At this point, your shoulder line should be pointing to your target. These movements allow your arms to follow along your shoulder line at impact. Your shot will always be on the same track as the target line, simply because your arms will always follow your shoulders.

Make some soft swings with this swing thought and you’ll be amazed at how much closer you are to the target.

BOMB AND GOUGE:(PART 1)


There’s a new way to play golf my dear friends and it’s all about power these days. Today’s tour bombers are not only crushing drives, they’re establishing a new style of play: Bomb & Gouge. The thinking goes, bomb drivers as far as you can and, if need be, gouge the ball out of the rough and onto the green. Golf’s long held ideal- fairway and greens- is giving way to this aggressive new style. Even from the rough, these power hitters say they can take advantage of shorter approach shots and create more birdie opportunities.


“I like hitting drivers as much as possible because it gives me the advantage of being 50 yards past other guys. If I hit 3 wood, I’m back where everybody else is.” Says J B Holmes. That simple logic sums up the strategies of many long hitting tour players today. Hotter, more forgiving drivers and straighter balls allow big hitters to fire away without much risk. The best evidence that bomb and Gouge is for real is the success of Bubba Watson, J B Holmes & Camilo Villegas, who together with the all-round ability of Tiger woods have created a serious stir on tour.

How the New Bombers Do It:
The stats suggest that Bomb and gouge can be an effective strategy on tour, but why now? . Advances in club and ball technology are playing a part, but some players see it as an inevitable shift in the game. “You’re going to have advances in technology, but also advances in human body. Guys are bigger, stronger, faster with added technology, hence they are going to hit the ball farther” woods was quoted as saying.

Turn on your chips
Release to the target to hit short shots solid


Extend your arms and turn your head to see where the ball lands.
Believe it or not, it's actually possible to be a little too focused when you hit a chip.
A lot of players get so fixated on the ball and on making clean contact that they don't let the arms extend and the body rotate through impact.
If your arms collapse and your body stops turning, the bottom of your swing is going to be behind the ball. That's how fat and bladed chip shots happen. Feel that extension and body rotation through the shot, and turn your head and eyes to where you want the ball to land. That will help move the bottom of your swing forward, where it needs to be.
The club you choose for a chip depends on what kind of shot you have to hit. I like the idea of maximum ground time and minimum air time. For a close shot from just off the putting surface, use a pitching wedge. For a 30-yard shot with lots of green to work with, try a 7- or 8-iron.

And The Green Jacket Goes To….TREVOR IMMELMAN

Trevor Immelman found his way out of trouble almost everytime it found him and fired a final round 75 for an eight-under par 280 total to win the 72nd Masters. Tiger finished three back in second with Snedeker and Cink T3.
Four months after he had a tumor removed from his back, Immelman handled the wind and pressure of Augusta National far better than anyone chasing him Sunday to win the Masters, the first South African in a green jacket in 30 years.
Immelman held it together around Amen Corner and stretched his lead to as many as six shots on the back nine, taking the life out of a Masters that began with so much hype.
A two-putt par on the final hole gave him a 3-over 75, matching the highest final round by a Masters champion. Even so, it was good enough for a three-shot victory over Tiger Woods, whose hopes for a calendar Grand Slam ended with a thud.
Woods never got within five shots of the lead when he was on the course, twice missed birdie putts inside 8 feet and had to settle for a 72 and his second consecutive runner-up finish in the Masters.
"I learned my lesson there with the press," said Woods, who started the talk about a Grand Slam by stating three months ago that winning all four majors in the same year was "easily within reason."
The only slam possibilities now belong to Immelman, a 28-year-old with a polished swing, who finally realized his potential in the wicked wind of Augusta and a final round that yielded only four rounds under par.
Immelman, who finished at 8-under 280, started the week by playing a practice round with his boyhood idol, Gary Player, who won his third Masters in 1978 and set a record by playing for the 51st time.
Player told Immelman he was good enough to win the green jacket, and he left him a voicemail Saturday night that Immelman played on his speaker phone for his family to hear. The message: "I know you're going to win."
"He's been on me all week, telling me to believe in myself," Immelman said. "He also told me to keep my head still on putts. It's really a special moment, and I'm glad I pulled it through for him."
Immelman's wife, Carminita, and their 1-year-old son were waiting for him behind the green. Jacob took hold of the 18th flag, fussing when he couldn't go into the scoring shack to be with his father.
Jeev Milkha Singh finished creditable tied 25th.
POS PLAYER TODAY 1 2 3 4 TOTAL
1 T. Immelman +3 -8 68 68 69 75 280
2 T. Woods EVEN -5 72 71 68 72 283
T3 S. Cink EVEN -4 72 69 71 72 284
T3 B. Snedeker +5 -4 69 68 70 77 284
T5 P. Mickelson EVEN -2 71 68 75 72 286
T5 P. HarringtonEVEN -2 74 71 69 72 286
T5 S. Flesch +6 -2 72 67 69 78 286
T8 M. Jimenez -4 -1 77 70 72 68 287
T8 R. Karlsson +1 -1 70 73 71 73 287
T8 A. Romero +1 -1 72 72 70 73 287
T11 N. Watney -1 EVEN 75 70 72 71 288
T11 L. Westwood +1 EVEN 69 73 73 73 288
T11 P. Casey +7 EVEN 71 69 69 79 288
T14 S. Appleby -1 +1 76 70 72 71 289
T14 V. Singh +2 +1 72 71 72 74 289
T14 S. O'Hair +3 +1 72 71 71 75 289
T17 H. Stenson EVEN +2 74 72 72 72 290
T17 M. Weir +2 +2 73 68 75 74 290
T17 R. Goosen +4 +2 71 71 72 76 290
T20 B. Watson +1 +3 74 71 73 73 291
T20 J. Leonard +1 +3 72 74 72 73 291
T20 B. Bateman +2 +3 69 76 72 74 291
T20 Z. Johnson +5 +3 70 76 68 77 291
T20 B. Weekley +5 +3 72 74 68 77 291
T25 R. Sterne +2 +4 73 72 73 74 292
T25 A. Cabrera +2 +4 73 72 73 74 292
T25 S. Ames +3 +4 70 70 77 75 292
T25 J. Singh +3 +4 71 74 72 75 292
T25 J. Holmes +4 +4 73 70 73 76 292
T25 A. Scott +4 +4 75 71 70 76 292
T25 A. Oberholser+5 +4 71 70 74 77 292
T25 I. Poulter +6 +4 70 69 75 78 292
T33 H. Slocum -3 +5 71 76 77 69 293
T33 N. Dougherty+4 +5 74 69 74 76 293
T33 J. Furyk +5 +5 70 73 73 77 293
T36 T. Hamilton +1 +7 74 73 75 73 295
T36 J. Rose +4 +7 68 78 73 76 295
T36 J. Wagner +3 +7 72 74 74 75 295
T39 G. Ogilvy +2 +8 75 71 76 74 296
T39 N. Fasth +3 +8 75 70 76 75 296
41 K. Choi +1 +10 72 75 78 73 298
T42 D. Toms +8 +11 73 74 72 80 299
T42 R. Allenby +9 +11 72 74 72 81 299
44 I. Woosnam +6 +12 75 71 76 78 300
45 S. Lyle +5 +14 72 75 78 77 302

Distance And Accuracy Drill For Driving Improvement

To improve your distance and extension through the ball, giving you better accuracy, try this simple trick used by many tour players to enhance their move through the hitting area.
During practice, tee the ball up 2 to 3 inches in front of your left foot. Now assume your normal address position as if the ball were still in the typical position, leaving the gap between the ball and squared up clubface. Taking your normal swing, extend yourself to the ball and maintain your move towards the target, keeping the club on the hitting plane long enough to hit the ball in this forward position. It will probably take a few swings to make a good contact with the ball.
As you begin making better contact, continue to increase the ball placement in front of your foot by moving the ball out farther in 1-inch increments. as you will see, this drill will force you to fully extend your arms and hands through the shot ,and you will be surprised that you can actually hit it pretty well from this position .The drill forces you to load the shot against your left side, producing a better release through impact .

You will now know the maximum extension you can personally achieve. when you put the ball back to your normal position, remember to continue the newly achieved extension you have just honed.Of course, be sure that the driver you are using is matched as closely as possible with the proper shaft flex for your swing speed and load characteristics.

THE MASTERS MASALA
The 2008 masters marks the 50th anniversary of Arnold palmer’s first of four victories at Augusta national, 50 years since amen corner got its name and Gary player will compete in a record breaking 51st masters. The golden bear (jack nicklaus) will take part in the annual par-3 event, which will be televised for the first time, on ESPN from 3-5 p.m. EDT.Tiger will be my favourite this week to win his 5th green jacket. Below is the list of players eligible to play at augusta this week and also to challenge tiger woods . Let us all enjoy the masters this week and happy golfing.

Current Field to Date:
Robert Allenby (Australia)(14,16,18), Stephen Ames (Canada)(5,17,18),Stuart Appleby (Australia)(10,17,18)
Woody Austin (13,14,15,16,17,18), Aaron Baddeley (Australia)(14,16,17,18), # Brian Bateman (15), Jonathan Byrd (15,16), Angel Cabrera (Argentina)(2,17,18),Mark Calcavecchia (14,16,17,18), Michael Campbell (New Zealand)(2),Paul Casey (England)(10,17,18),K. J. Choi (Korea)(14,15,16,17,18),# Daniel Chopra (15),Stewart Cink (14,16,17,18),Tim Clark (South Africa)(10,14,16,17,18),Fred Couples (1),Ben Crenshaw (1),Ben Curtis (3),Luke Donald (England)(10,14,17,18),# Nick Dougherty (England)(11,17),Ernie Els (South Africa) (12,13,14,15,16,17,18),Niclas Fasth (Sweden)(11,17,18),Steve Flesch (14),Raymond Floyd (1),Jim Furyk (2,10,11,14,15,16,17,18),Sergio Garcia (Spain)(12,14,16,17,18),Retief Goosen (South Africa)(2,10,17,18),# Richard Green (Australia)(12,17),Todd Hamilton (3),# Anders Hansen (Denmark)(17),# Soren Hansen (Denmark)(17,18),Padraig Harrington (Ireland)(3,10,14,16,17,18),# J. B. Holmes (15),Charles Howell III (14,16,17,18),Trevor Immelman (South Africa)(17,18),Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain)(17,18),Zach Johnson (1,14,15,16,17,18),Robert Karlsson (Sweden)(17,18),Shingo Katayama (Japan)(17),# Martin Kaymer (Germany)(18),Jerry Kelly (10,11),* Trip Kuehne (9),Bernhard Langer (Germany)(1),Justin Leonard (18),Peter Lonard (Australia)(18),Steve Lowery (15),Sandy Lyle (Scotland)(1),Hunter Mahan (14,15,16,17,18),# Prayad Marksaeng (Thailand),Shaun Micheel (4),Phil Mickelson (1,4,5,14,15,16,17,18),Larry Mize (1)Arron Oberholser (13,17,18),Geoff Ogilvy (Australia)(2,14,16,15,17,18)Sean O'Hair (15,18),Nick O'Hern (Australia)(17,18),Jose Maria Olazabal (Spain)(1),Mark O'Meara (1),Gary Player (South Africa)(1),Ian Poulter (England)(10,17,18),
John Rollins (14,16),# Andres Romero (Argentina)(12,15,17,18),Justin Rose (England)(10,14,16,17,18),Rory Sabbatini (South Africa)(10,14,15,16,17,18),Adam Scott (Australia)(14,16,17,18),# John Senden (Australia)(13,18),Jeev Milkha Singh (India),Vijay Singh (Fiji)(1,4,10,14,16,17,18),# Heath Slocum (14,16),Brandt Snedeker (14,15,16,17,18),Craig Stadler (1),Henrik Stenson (Sweden)(17,18),# Richard Sterne (South Africa)(17,18),Steve Stricker (14,15,16,17,18),Toru Taniguchi (Japan)(17,18),Vaughn Taylor (10),#* Michael Thompson (6-B),David Toms (10,11,17),D.J. Trahan (15),Scott Verplank (11,14,15,16,17,18),Camilo Villegas (Colombia)(16),# Nick Watney (15),# Bubba Watson (11),Tom Watson (1),#* Drew Weaver (7),# Boo Weekley (14,15,16,17,18),Mike Weir (Canada)(1,17,18),# Liang Wen-Chong (China),Lee Westwood
(England)(17,18),Brett Wetterich (14,16,17),Tiger Woods (1,3,4,10,11,14,15,16,17,18),
Ian Woosnam (Wales)(1),Fuzzy Zoeller (1)
#Denotes first Masters, * Denotes Amateur

Past champions not playing: Tommy Aaron, Severiano Ballesteros, Jack Burke Jr., Billy Casper, Charles Coody,
Nick Faldo, Doug Ford, Bob Goalby, Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer
Eligibility For Qualifying :
Number after each name indicates the basis of qualification. The Masters Committee, at its discretion, also invites international players not otherwise qualified.
1. Masters Tournament Champions (Lifetime)
2. US Open Champions (Honorary, non-competing after 5 years)
3. British Open Champions (Honorary, non-competing after 5 years)
4. PGA Champions (Honorary, non-competing after 5 years)
5. Winners of The Players Championship (2006 and 2007)
6. Current US Amateur Champion (6-A) (Honorary, non-competing after 1 year) and the runner-up (6-B) to the current US Amateur Champion
7. Current British Amateur Champion (Honorary, non-competing after 1 year)
8. Current US Amateur Public Links Champion
9. Current US Mid-Amateur Champion
10. The first 16 players, including ties, in the 2007 Masters Tournament
11. The first 8 players, including ties, in the 2007 US Open Championship
12. The first 4 players, including ties, in the 2007 British Open Championship
13. The first 4 players, including ties, in the 2007 PGA Championship
14. The 30 leaders on the Final Official PGA Tour Money List for 2007
15. Winners of PGA Tour events that award a full-point allocation for the season-ending Tour Championship, from previous Masters to current Masters
16. Those qualifying for the season-ending 2007 Tour Championship
17. The 50 leaders on the Final Official World Golf Ranking for 2007
18. The 50 leaders on the Official World Golf Ranking published during the week prior to the 2008 Masters Tournament.

APRIL’S AUGUSTA
Location: Augusta, Georgia, U.S.A
Established: 1933
Tournament hosted: Masters Tournament
Website: Augusta.com
Designed by: Alister MacKenzie
Par: 72
Length: 7445 yards
Course Record: 63 - Nick Price (1986), Greg Norman (1996)

Augusta National Golf Club,located in the American city of Augusta, Georgia, is one of the most famous and exclusive golf clubs in the world. Founded by Bobby Jones on the site of a former tree nursery, the club opened for play in January 1933. Since 1934 it has been host of the annual Masters Tounament ,one of the four major championships in professional golf. The course is well known for its botanic beauty as well. Because the Masters is held the first weekend following the first full week in April, the flowers of the trees and shrubs bordering the course are in full bloom during the tournament. Each hole on the course is named after the tree or shrub with which it has become associated.
"The Big Oak Tree":
"The big oak tree" is on the golf course side of the clubhouse and is approximately 145–150 years old. The tree was planted in the 1850s.

Amen Corner:
The 11th, 12th, and 13th holes at Augusta were termed "Amen Corner" by author Herbert Warren Wind in a 1958 Sports Illustrated article. Searching for a name for the location where critical action had taken place that year, he borrowed the name from an old jazz recording "Shouting at Amen Corner" by a band under the direction of Milton Mezzrow
In 1958 Arnold Palmer outlasted Ken Venturi for the Green Jacket with heroic escapes at Amen Corner. Amen Corner also played host to prior Masters moments like ByronNelson 's birdie-eagle at 12 and 13 in 1937, and Sam Snead's water save at 12 in 1949 that sparked him to victory.
Eisenhower Tree:
This is a lobololly located on the 17th hole, approximately 210 yards (192 m) from the Master's tee. President Dwight D. Eisenhower, an Augusta National member, hit the tree so many times that, at a 1956 club meeting, he proposed that it be cut down. Not wanting to offend the President, the club's chairman, Clifford Roberts, immediately adjourned the meeting rather than reject the request outright
Ike's Pond:
During a visit to Augusta National, then General Eisenhower returned from a walk through the woods on the eastern part of the grounds, and informed Clifford Roberts that he had found a perfect place to build a dam if the Club would like a fish pond. Ike's Pond was built and named, and the dam is located just where Eisenhower said it should be.
Rae's Creek:
Rae's Creek cuts across the southeastern corner of the Augusta National property. It flows along the back of the 11th green, in front of the 12th green, and ahead of the 13th tee. This is the lowest point in elevation of the course. The Hogan and Nelson Bridges cross the creek after the 12th and 13th tee boxes, respectively. The creek was named after former property owner John Rae, who died in 1789.
Crow's Nest:
Available for amateurs wishing to be housed there during the Masters Tournament, the Crow's Nest provides living space for up to five individuals. Rising from the approximately 30 by 40 foot room is the clubhouse's 11 foot square cupola. The cupola features windows on all sides and can be reached only by ladder. The Crow's Nest consists of one room with partitions and dividers that create three cubicles with one bed each, and one cubicle with two beds. There is also a full bathroom with an additional sink. The sitting area has a game table, sofa and chairs, telephone and television. Placed throughout the Crow's Nest are books on golf, and lining the walls are photos and sketches depicting past Masters and other golf scenes. To get to the Crow's Nest, golfers must climb a narrow set of steps. When coming down, they must be careful to not turn left and enter the Champions Locker Room. This is a walk most amateur golfers dream of taking.
Hogan Bridge:
A bridge over Rae's Creek that connects the fairway of hole 12 to its green . It is constructed of stone and covered with artificial turf. The bridge was dedicated to Ben Hogan in 1958 to commemorate his 72-hole score of 274 strokes five years earlier, the course record at the time
Magnolia Lane:
The main driveway leading from Washington Road to the course's clubhouse. The lane is flanked on either side by 61 magnolia trees, each grown from seeds planted by the Berckman family in the 1850s. Magnolia Lane is 330 yards (300 m) long and was paved in 1947.
Sarazen Bridge:
A bridge over the pond on hole 15 that separates the fairway from the green. Made of stone, it was named for Gene Sarazen for a memorable double eagle in the 1935 Masters Tournament that propelled him to victory.
The Green Jacket:
Every member of Augusta National receives a green sports cote with the club's logo on the left breast. The idea of the Green Jacket came from club co-founder Clifford Roberts, who wanted patrons visiting during the tournament to be able to readily identify members.The winner of each year's Masters Tournament is able to play in every following Masters Tournament until their death, and receives a Green Jacket as well. The jacket is presented by the winner of the tournament from the previous year.
The Green Jacket is worn only on club grounds. A tournament winner may wear his jacket off-grounds for the year following his win, but after that it hangs at the club
The caddies:
Augusta National remains one of the few golf clubs with a staff of caddies ready to assist members, guests and professionals. In the previous PGA Master's Tournaments, staff caddies were assigned to professional players. Not until Jack Nicklaus insisted on having his personal caddy complete competition play alongside him was the protocol changed. Although Augusta's caddy staff continue to wear trademark white jumpsuits year-round, the garb is not a PGA mandate. And though the club remains without female members, female caddies are permitted. Nick Faldo, past Masters champion, used Fanny Sunesson as his regular caddy throughout the 1990s, including Augusta. During the pre-tournament Masters events in 2007, Golf Channel's Kelly Tilghman was selected by Arnold Palmer to caddy alongside him. The LPGA has yet to accept invitation to hold competition play at Augusta National Golf Course.
External links
· The Masters
· Augusta.com