The 8 stupid mistakes every golfer makes. And how you can avoid them

Golf Digest, Dec, 1999 by Butch Harmon

Golf Digest Teaching Professional, with Ed Weathers

All golfers make mistakes-even the best tour pros. On the following pages I'll discuss eight of the most common mistakes I see average players make. But remember, I work on these same problems with Tiger Woods-things like faulty ball position, poor knee flex, putter deceleration and questionable course management.

We're all human, so it's natural that we make mistakes. Sometimes we think so much about swing mechanics that we don't pay attention to obvious things like setup, which takes no athletic ability. Sometimes our egos make us think just because we reached a green with a 7-iron once, we can do it every time.

The key is to know what you can and can't do, and don't try the impossible. Be careful with your setup. Take more club. Play to the middle of the green. It's simple: Avoid the stupid mistakes and you'll shoot lower scores.

MISTAKE #1:

Wrong ball position

Your ball position dictates how you'll start your swing. Too far forward, and your shoulders will aim left, you'll take the club back outside and loop it under coming down, resulting in a block or hook. Too far back, and you'll aim right, start inside, come over the top, and slice or pull the ball.

Position the ball even with your heart

On full shots, I believe in a constant ball position for every club-the ball even with your heart or shirt logo (right). As you go from shorter to longer clubs, you then just move your right foot away from the target to widen your stance.

With this ball position, your shoulders and hips (above) stay almost parallel to the target line (they may be open just a bit, because your right hand is farther away from you), and you're more likely to start the club back properly. Even tour players sometimes lose a feel for ball position. Tiger and

I work on it constantly.

MISTAKE #2: Poor takeaway

There are two faults you can make in the takeaway: You can pick the club up (near right), or you can pull it back inside (far right).

When you pick the club up, your left shoulder drops. You tilt but don't really turn your shoulders. You hang on your left side, reverse pivot, and either top the ball or chunk it.

When you take the club back inside, your left arm goes out away from your body, and halfway back it's above your right arm. The club goes behind your body, and you have to loop it up and over on the downswing, causing slices or pulls.

No: Picking the club up

No: Pulling the club inside

Drill: Clip the tee going back

I believe strongly in a one-piece takeaway. That means that until your hands are waist high, you maintain the triangle formed by your arms and shoulders at address. It helps to think about taking the club back low and slow. Here's a good drill: Place a tee about a grip-length behind the ball, then try to clip the tee on your takeaway. That will help you learn a low one-piece takeaway.

A good takeaway: When your club is half-way back, the shaft should be exactly in line with your toes, and your right arm slightly higher than your left.

MISTAKE #3: The straight knee

Many amateurs straighten or even lock the right knee immediately as they start their backswing (near right). That causes their hips and shoulders to turn the same amount, so they aren't building any coil for power. They end up throwing the club over the top to get back to the ball, which further reduces power and leads to slices or pulls.

Instead, maintain the flex of your right knee throughout the swing (far right). This encourages the shoulders to turn more than the hips, storing power. On the downswing you'll be more on plane and can release the club later for a more powerful hit.

Drill: Put a brace behind the right knee

Knee flex is something that Tiger Woods and I have worked on for years. He has perfect posture at address and tries to maintain the posture of his right leg all the way back in his swing.

If you tend to straighten your right leg on the backswing, try the drill shown here, in which a partner pushes a club into the back of your right knee as you swing. If you're by yourself, bury the head of your wedge in the ground so the shaft is angled at 45 degrees upward, place a head cover over the grip end, then back your knee up to it before you swing.

MISTAKE #4: Over the top

A good downswing begins from the ground up. But many amateurs, trying to hit the ball hard, start the downswing with the upper body, which gets the hands and the right shoulder going out and over the proper plane. For most high handicappers, the result is usually a weak slice. For better players with fast hands, the result is often a quick pull.

To work on the problem, practice swinging back to the top and stopping for a count of two or three. From there, to finish the swing, first transfer your weight to the left and unwind your hips, and then just let your hands and arms drop naturally. The first few times, you'll want to throw the club from the top with your hands and right shoulder. Force yourself to let your arms just drop. Watch Freddie Couples take practice swings: He goes up, stops, then unwinds his lower body and swings through. He's working on the same thing.