Lesson 8

Good balance = good shots.Key to Balance? Feet under shoulders! Place feet under shoulders-NOT twist shoulders over feet. BIG DIFFERENCE

Lesson 7

Hands on the club. Club behind the ball. Aim the face, arms and shoulders will follow the hands.Top half in position then set feet.

Lesson 6

Shoulders determine path, Path creates spin. Spin curves the ball. Fix the curve? Fix the shoulders. www.usgolfacademy.com

Lesson 5

Lesson 5-Arms swing-shoulders guide. Shoulders create swing path & direction. Path to face produces spin-Shoulders control directional spin.

Lesson 4

Lesson 4-Position the arms. Lead arm extended on top of chest. Follow arm bent elbow points toward hip. Shoulders follow arms.

Lesson 3

Lesson 3-Review. Face controls ball-hands control face. Next-arms control hands. We swing the arms. Think lead arm leads. Rear arm follows.

Lesson 2

Lesson 2-Fix your grip.Top hand-shaft at base of the fingers thumb on top. Bottom hand-fingers grip shaft-palm grips top hand thumb-No Gaps

The Grand Experiment

I am embarking on a great challenge. One golf tip a day limited to 140 characters.
It will be posted here on the Academy Facebook account and Twitter @barusga.

Lesson 1. The ball goes where the clubface is pointed at impact. The clubface is controlled by the hands.

New Golf Ball Technology

Nike has a new top-of-the-line golf ball that has appeared on the PGA Tour and should be available for consumers later in the spring. This ball, called the 20XI Prototype, will become the 20XI when it hits retail shelves. At Kapalua, it was used by Anthony Kim, Francesco Molinari and Carl Pettersson.
The ball is unique because it has a core made of lightweight resin. This allowed Nike engineers to reposition a small amount of weight nearer the outside of the ball. Players in Hawaii used the S (spin) version. Eventually, an X (distance) version will be available and we will have ball fitting available with both balls this spring.

Lifetime Golf Academy

My career as a golf professional/instructor started in the summer of 1981 when I was offered the starter’s position at Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club and Lodge in Orlando, Florida. At the time Bay Hill was the winter home of Arnold Palmer, Dow Finsterwald, Greg Norman, Scott Hoch and the late Payne Stewart to name drop but a few. In addition, because of Mr. Palmer, his invitational tournament, and its location in Central Florida, if there was a player of any consequence in the area, especially during the winter, they congregated at Bay Hill. Name a great player of that era and the odds are really good I had an opportunity to spend some time with them. This opportunity to play with them in the legendary Shoot Out, to hang out during practice sessions, and to hear them share secrets in the locker room at the end of the day was the best education a young golf professional could have. If you were paying attention, you learned something real and important about playing the game of golf, every day!
In 1986, I hit the equivalent of the golf professional lottery when Mr. Palmer offered me the opportunity to become the Head Golf Professional at his home club in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. I call this time at Latrobe my graduate level work. Every day that Mr. Palmer was home I had the opportunity to spend some time with him, on the practice tee, on the golf course, or in the workshop and the discussion was always the same, even for a man considered one of the games all time greats. How could he get better? I think you will find this a common theme among all elite players. So armed with the knowledge, generously passed along by Mr. Palmer and the Bay Hill crowd I followed the advice of the old saying, “Those who can, compete, and those who can’t, teach.” I wasn’t the player I wanted to be, so over time I came to realize I enjoyed sharing what I had learned.
One of the goals we have had at the United States Golf Academy was to create an opportunity to pass along some of this insider information. This was not as easy to do as you might think. First, it had to be a one on one teacher to student opportunity. Second, it had to be over a period of time. 30 years of experience is tough to share in a 60 minute session, and especially tough to relate the experience to more than one or two players at a time. To find a solution we went back to my days at Latrobe and copied the corporate outings we did with Mr. Palmer’s clients. These were usually two day excursions, including time on the golf course, the practice range, and around the putting green. We also spent time together socially, getting to know the players and their golf games. We call the result the Lifetime Golf Program. It starts with a two day comprehensive evaluation of your game. Two full days to complete an evaluation of your golf game from the golf course and utilizing our diagnostic technologies. After our visit, we follow up with full access to the instructors through the use of special email accounts, reduced lesson and package rates for subsequent follow up visits, and limited access phone numbers for lifetime students. Watch this blog for more detailed information as we approach the start of the season.
Sample Itinerary
Day 1
3:00 PM Check in at Swan Lake Golf Resort
Unlimited golf and practice.
Day 2
9:00-11:00AM Golf Course Evaluation
11:00-12:00PM Video Analysis
12:00-1:00PM Lunch at Pro Shop Grill
1:00-3:300PM Full Swing Recommendations
3:00-5:00PM Putting Analysis
6:00 PM Dinner with PGA Professionals –
Day 3
9:00-12:00PM TrackMan Launch Monitor – Ball Flight and Equipment Analysis
12:00-1:00PM Lunch at Pro Shop Grill
1:00-3:00PM Short Game Area
3:00-5:00PM On Course Training with PGA Professional
5:00PM Depart from Swan Lake Resort