RICK SHIELS: 6 KEY TIPS TO UP YOUR GAME

One of the world's most famous golf coaches shares his favourite fixes to help you to lower scores

- ROB JERRAM & RICK SHIELS

I’m incredibly grateful for the success YouTube has brought me, but at heart, I’ll always be a golf coach who enjoys nothing more than helping people to get better at the game they love. To help you do that, here are six of my favourite, easy-to-follow tips and drills that can benefit every level of golfer.

1. DRIVE UP ON THE BALL

Basic ball position and set-up mistakes with the driver immediately mean you’re not going to get the results you hope for off the tee. The good news is that a couple of simple tweaks should have you hitting the ball on the up and with consistency.

Distance sapper

If your ball position is too central and your chest is too much on top of the ball, you won't be able to hit up on the ball and will end up with a descending blow that produces a low flight and lacks distance.

Get tilting

What I want to see is your ball position in line with your left heel and a nice wide stance, feet slightly further apart than shoulder width, and a little more weight in your right foot than your left. Feel that your right shoulder (righthanders) is lower than your left, to create tilt in the upper body and ensure you're perfectly set up for an ascending blow.

Hitting up

Creating this position at address helps you to return to it at impact, as shown here, with the driver head hitting up on the golf ball for optimum distance and consistency, through to a solid finish position.

Complete the swing

Getting things right at address will also help you complete the swing with the chest facing the target and the weight transferred into the front foot.