Steve Anderson
is the head PGA Teaching Professional at Eastwood Golf Course in Fort Myers, Fla. He was named 2000 PGA Chapter Teacher of the Year and has specialty certification in instruction. Anderson has authored more than 75 tips and articles for various golf publications.

Selecting the right clubs

Before you do anything, go to a PGA professional trained in club-fitting and get yourself measured. You'll be wasting your time and money buying something new off the rack. No two golfers have the same build, swing, or ability, much as no two people have the same fingerprints.

Your professional can measure you for the right lie, length, loft, shaft type and flex, as well as the clubhead style and set makeup. There are companies who have terrific club-fitting systems that can pin point exactly what specifications you should have. Once measured, the brand of club become simply a matter of cosmetics and price. Do you like what the club looks like, and is it in your price range?

As your game improves, your swing and consistency get more refined, and custom clubs become more important. Remember this: Tests with a 5-iron have shown that if your clubs are even 1 degree off on the lie angle, your ball will be 5 yards off line. Scary, huh?

Establishing a good weight shift

A home-run hitter "steps into the pitch." A bowler slides his foot toward the line. Every athelete starts down with the legs leading the arms. Golfers need to do this as well.

There are many ways to start the lower body down first and different golfers think different things. One of my favorites is to "turn your belt buckle towards the target." This not only turns your hips, but also gets your weight properly over to your left leg. Your right knee kicks in toward the left, and your right heel starts coming off the ground. All good players have their right heel slightly off the ground before impact.

At the completion of your follow-through your belt buckle should face the target, your knees should be together, and your right foot should be vertical. Your lower body leads and your arms follow.

Two drills you can try are to:

1) Take slow motion practice swings making sure your right heel comes up before contact and

2) Stand with your feet together at address and swing up to the top. With the club at the top, actually step about 3 feet toward the target like a baseball player would. This "stepping into the pitch" exercise will exaggerate the feeling of the legs leading the downswing. Think "step then hit." Your arms will be pulled into the ball with power and accuracy.

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