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The Art of the Short Game: Tour-Tested Secrets for Getting Up and Down By Stan UtleyMatthew Rudy ( Gotham )
Release Date: 2007-06-14
Average Customer Rating:
List Price: $25.00
Price: $15.68
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Product Description
"The hottest instructor in golf" (Sports Illustrated) takes on old-school gurus with a far more accessible, intuitive, and innovative approach to those essential chip shots, pitches, and bunker rescues.
Veteran golfers know that the secret to a lower score is a solid short game, but mastering those small strokes can be maddening—even for the pros. One of golf’s most revered instructors, Stan Utley now reveals the step-by-step tactics behind his revolutionary short-game techniques in The Art of the Short Game. After introducing readers to his groundbreaking philosophy that explains why most players don’t see all the shots available to them near the green, Utley moves on to shatter conventional wisdom about stance, grip, and ball position. From choosing the right clubs (including a checklist of must-haves that should always be in your bag) to spin reduction during chipping and fearless sand play, The Art of the Short Game demystifies the most aggravating shots on the links. Though Utley’s primer features a full set of drills, accompanied by more than seventy-five photos, his approach is far removed from the monotonous, mechanical instruction of yesteryear. Giving a time-tested secret weapon to every golfer at every level, Utley’s short-game methods turn trouble shots into triumph.
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 Not for beginners ( wantingthebest )
I am a beginner with a 30 handicap and 2 years of play. I understand that the short game is critical to my game due to my age and the late in life start of golfing which I love. Even with my scant knowledge of the game I have read David Peltz Short Game Bible about 4 times and keep referring to it even though his pictures are outdated and do not "show" the finesse swing that well. He gives the golfer the results of what clubs to use in many situations and how they will react. This I could take to the course. Utley's use of only one club your sand wedge would not work for a beginner or at my course. Also I do not favor my sand wedge but can really hit my 7 iron with good accuracy around the green. My pitching wedge and 9 iron fill in for the more challenging shots. A one club theory makes no sense to me but using his method with the sand wedge may eventually help me hit this difficult club.
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 Short Game Magic
If you need help with the Scoring Clubs (and who doesn't), then this is the book for you. Once the technique and philosophy is mastered, the shot happens almost automatically. All one needs to do is control the speed of the Pivot to control the ball's distance. You will be really happy that you gave this book a chance to help you.
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 A Must-Have For Your Library ( gtkagawa )
Utley's book is more concise than Dave Pelz' Short Game Bible. Method is simpler and somewhat unorthodox, but works. Recommend you also get the companion piece, The Art of Putting.
You will probably find it necessary to modify your swing to accommodate his ideas. Give yourself time and patience to adjust.
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With practice it's a very effective method
Stan Utley's short game method was not really "easy" for me. It was a definite change from my usual short game techniques and initially it felt very awkward. I had one great short game round with a lot of up and down par saves followed by some very frustrating rounds that included score-inflating skulled or stubbed chips and pitches. I am commited to making this work as I trust that Utley knows of what he speaks and since I did have some initial success- far better than my typical short game.
I've gone back and reviewed sections of the book and the associated drills and have dedicated some time to practice. I am finally "getting it." I've ordered a 58 deg wedge with 12 deg of bounce as Utley suggested. This will replace my current 56 and 60 deg wedges and will make room for an additional club at the other end of my set. With experimentation I have been able to hit a wide variety of shots with one wedge (either the 56 or 60) and I think the 58 deg wedge will work better for this. It was surprising to me that changing shot trajectory was not really too challenging a skill to pick up and it will come in very handy.
Utley's sand shot method is pretty unique but this alone was worth the price of the book for me. I have never been very confident from the sand despite carrying a low single-digit handicap. Once I got the feel for this method I started getting up and down from the sand more regularly and now actually enjoy hitting shots from greenside bunkers. I would recommend the book for this technique alone.
I prefer learning golf techniques with personal lessons or from video formats. I was somewhat skeptical about the relative effectiveness of learning golf skills from a book. The illustrations were helpful but not entirely clear. I spent considerable time trying to conceptualize Utley's lessons and would have liked a DVD format but hey, it worked. I can't argue with the results. This is a quick read, but as mentioned I have re-read sections multiple times and will probably continue to do this to compliment my practice and to keep me from drifting back to my old bad habits.
The bottom line for me was that this is not a magic fix for the short game but it is solid advice and proven techniques that WILL work with some practice. Good luck.
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Simple and Effective
simple effective explanations regarding the short game 'swing' ... will see some tie-ins to the 'stack & tilt' concepts ...
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