ronaldbruceromberg's photostream

Ronald Bruce Romberg Contact As we head into the colder months, and we leave thoughts of playing golf again till the spring, there is now a great opportunity for those of you who live in the colder climates, and those of you who get home from work too late to slip down to the course for a little practice, to work on that putting stroke, and improve it once and for all. Non of us want to make a change to our putting stroke during the season just in case it ruins rather that improves our score. However, we now have several months to perfect the stroke without worrying about score, only the correct stroke. I have set up two 3x2x4" boards, standing them on the 2" side so that I have a high wall on either side. The width is determined by the width of you putter. Leave only a very small margin of error on each side. The cup is set up approx. 10 feet away (you do not want to practice longer putts, as this will effect your feel for long putts next spring). I am making sure that my eyes are directly over the ball by holding the putter on the bridge of my nose and making sure the shaft falls directly over the ball. Goals: 1. To get the putter head moving between the boards without touching 2. To finish the stroke with the putter face still at 90 degrees to your intended line. and not with the toe out in front of the hell. 3. To set yourself a target of holing at least 50 in a row. This will build the self-confidence in your subconscious to make it believe that you cannot miss from that range. Work on this and the chipping drill I will give next month, and your short game should be sharper than it has ever been come next spring. Good Luck!! About Bruce Romberg Various aspects of golf training have expanded rapidly, but one area of development that has caught on somewhat slowly is golf-specific strength training. This specific need had not been addressed until very recently. As with many things, it started at the top with pros like Tiger Woods and David Duval and began to trickle down to the masses over time. Unfortunately, many golfers still live under the old assumption that strength training is detrimental to your game. The truth is that the days of simply practicing and playing to make yourself a stronger and better golfer are from a bygone era. Ultimately, golf skills are the most important aspect of golf, but improving your swing performance will only get you so far. If you want to develop into the best player you can be, you better get with the program - a strength-training program. Let's take a look at a few of the fallacies that may be holding some of you back from beginning a strength-training program. Fallacy No. 1: Resistance training will cause a loss of flexibility. Fact: Full range of motion resistance training will actually improve your flexibility. Fallacy No. 2: Resistance training will result in "bulking up." Fact: Performing resistance training by itself will not cause the development of excess muscle mass; additional caloric intake is also required. Some individuals are under the impression that lifting heavier weights for fewer repetitions will cause this "bulking-up" phenomenon. This is also false. As a matter of fact, lifting heavier weights for fewer repetition is one way to gain strength without adding "bulk." Therefore, if you are involved in a program designed to develop stability, strength and power specific to the needs of golf, you have absolutely nothing to worry about. Fallacy No. 3: Resistance training will have adverse effects on your swing. Fact: Resistance training can actually have a positive effect on your swing because it helps develop what is known as kinesthetic awareness, the ability to detect body position, weight and movement of the muscles, tendons and joints. Fallacy No. 4: Swinging a weighted club will produce more specific strength gains than performing a resistance-training program. Fact: If anything, swinging a weighted club will produce an improper swing. The compensation required to swing the weighted club creates faulty swing mechanics and firing patterns. Also, most weighted club programs call for swinging the clubs at slow speeds. The problem with that is when golfers tee up, they are not trying to drive the ball with a 50 percent to 75 percent swing. They want to all-out blast it down the fairway with a powerful 100 percent swing. If the name of the game for golfers is club head SPEED, using a heavy club and a slow swing to gain strength won't work. To gain strength and develop speed, you have to train for speed. Fallacy No. 5: It takes too much time. Fact: You can't afford not to start a golf-specific flexibility, strength and conditioning program if you want to be the best golfer you can be. Depending on your individual starting point, you may be able to make progress by training as little as a 1½ hours per week. It is a small investment that will reap huge dividends on the course. Hopefully, reading this article has shed some light on the benefits of strength training for golf and has helped you understand that it is NOT detrimental to your game, but, more than likely, it is very beneficial. Ronald Bruce Romberg Ronald Bruce Romberg Info: A significant amount of power in your golf swing is generated by the gluteus muscles and surrounding muscles such as the piriformis, hip flexors and psoas. Their functions are connected - when the hip flexors and psoas are compromised by inflexibility, the gluts cannot work to their full potential. Having maximum strength in the gluts has a direct affect on the power and speed in your swing. This Yoga for Golfers pose is called the pigeon pose. (Trust me you have never seen a pigeon do this!) The pose supports greater flexibility in the hips and increases strength in the gluts by engaging the muscles and holding them in a contracted phase for the length of the pose. Modified Pigeon Pose Lie on your back, bend your knees and bring your right foot to your left knee. Press your right knee away from you, feeling the stretch in your hip. Place a towel or your hands (based on your flexibility) around your left thigh. Gently bring your left leg off the floor, with your knee at a 90-degree angle. Relax your neck. Hold for 10 breaths and switch sides. Pigeon pose/prep Begin on all fours. Move your right knee until it touches your right wrist. Gently bring the lower portion of your right leg up at a 45-degree angle to the top of the mat. Important note: If you feel any discomfort in your knee, come out of the pose and practice the modified pigeon pose. Slide your left leg back while you remain on the top of your leg. Do not let your knee roll out to the side. If your right outer hip and buttocks do not come to the floor, place a towel under your hip for additional support. Hold for five to seven breaths and switch sides. Full pigeon pose From the pigeon pose prep, you will bring your elbows to the floor, relaxing your neck. Hold for five to seven breaths and switch sides. Ronald Bruce Romberg Profile Ronald Bruce Romberg Info Bruce Romberg Articles Harvey Penick, one of golf's greatest instructors, always said the best way to improve your score was to improve your short game. You can see this week in and week out on the PGA Tour as the players who win usually have the best short game stats for that week. Here are a few tips to help you lower your scores. On chips and pitches around the green use a club that gives you confidence. I play golf with a friend who is very good around the green, and he always uses his eight iron for these shots. He opens and closes the face according to the type of shot he wants to hit, so I have suggested he try wedges instead of that one club. On occasions when he does use a wedge, he very rarely gets the results he does from that trusty old eight iron. Why? Because he has confidence in that club, he relaxes and hits good shots. Phil Mickelson uses his high-lofted wedges around the green for most of his chip shots for the same reason. The lesson here is play the club or shot you feel most confident with and you will be more consistent. When chipping or pitching from around the green the first rule to follow is "always get the ball on the green." How many times have you been faced with a pitch shot, over a bunker, with a closely tucked pin, only to flub your pitch shot into the bunker? Better to have a 25-foot par putt than be in the bunker with double or triple bogey staring you in the face. Always play the safe shot; in the end it will save you many strokes. Practice that short game! Practice that short game! Before each round go to the putting or chipping area and practice. Get your golf buddies to engage in some short game contests. Be creative and practice unusual shots. Practice in your backyard. The players with the best short games practice these shots more than others. That's why they usually shoot the lowest scores. Ijango Europe  | Ijango Forums  | ijango  | Ijango Signup  | Ijango Blog  | Ijango Sonic  | Ijango Distributor  | Ijango Distributors  |