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GOLF TIP OF THE MONTH:

The Trampoline Effect by I.J. Schecter with Doug Weaver

If you’re standing on a trampoline and you push down with your legs, what happens next? The trampoline pushes you back up. Keep this in mind the next time you’re standing over a golf ball.

When a club comes down and its face makes contact with the ball, two things occur. First, the ball compresses, and then the clubface compresses. When the face then trampolines back out after compression, the ball is launched slingshot-style into the air.

Recreational golfers often try to “sweep” or “scoop” their shots because they do not understand or trust that the trampoline action occurs as a result of a downward strike. It isn’t the strength of your arms and hands that creates distance and velocity, but the converged elasticity of the ball and clubface.

The Smashing Tees Drill
By “smashing tees,” you can prepare yourself to better enable the trampoline effect to work its magic.

Place a tee in the ground as though you were preparing for a drive. When you swing with an iron, focus on striking the tee. This will force you to maintain a downward trajectory instead of inadvertently scooping the ball and losing the trampoline effect.

Move the tee a little lower with each successful swing, still focusing on striking the tee.

Continue the drill until the tee is essentially buried. At this point, a ball placed in the same position will be ricocheted with greater distance because of the trampoline effect.

Doug Weaver is the Director of Instruction at the Palmetto Dunes Golf Academy and conducts "Where Does the Power Come From?," a free golf clinic and demonstration, every Monday at 4 p.m. (843) 785-1138, (800) 827-3006 or palmettodunes.com.