Improve your golf swing in a day? Easy.

Playing golf is funbut there's a reason why it's known as the most maddening (if not wondrous) game of all. The intricacies of perfecting your golf swing can "tee off" even the most patient golfer, but that's where this handy little guide comes in.

Improving Your Golf Swing In A Day For Dummies is packed with tips on improving grip and posture, the essentials of a good swing, and the mechanics of putting. Plus, you'll get expert advice and tips for correcting problems with your own form and swing.

The art of perfecting your golf grip and postureThe essentials of refining your swing motionAdjusting your mechanics for various distances and puttingConcise coverage of common swing faults and easy fixesOnline component takes you beyond the book with bonus content and features

Get set to impress your friends with a perfect swing in no time!

Gary McCord (Scottsdale, Arizona) is a PGA Champions Tour player and a golf instructor to many celebrities. He's best known for his 24 years of experience providing color commentary for CBS. Fans and critics alike praise him for his knowledgeable perspective, refreshing humor, and sometimes irreverent wit towards a game that is known for taking itself too seriously. In 1999, Gary McCord joined the Champions Tour and took it by storm. He won the first and last events of the year the Toshiba Senior Classic and Ingersoll-Rand Senior Tour Championship. Over the past few years Gary has continued his excellent play, proving himself to be an extremely talented golfer. Gary has also established himself as a talented author. Non-golfers might recognize McCord for his appearance in the Kevin Costner movie,Tin Cup, in which Gary played himself and served as a technical director.

Introduction 1

What You Can Do In A Day  1

Foolish Assumptions  2

Icons Used in This Book  2

Chapter 1: The Basics of the Swing and the Stance 3

Understanding Swing Basics  4

Starting with Your Hands  4

Getting a grip  5

Completing the grip  9

Positioning Your Body  10

Aiming  10

Nailing down the stance 11

Considering knee flex  12

Deciding on ball position  13

Maximizing the bottom of the swing  14

Keeping your eyes on the ball  16

Observing the one-hand-away rule  17

Chapter 2: Unleashing Your Swing 19

Making Miniswings: Hands and Arms  19

Turning Your Torso  20

Unwinding 22

Getting Yourself Together  23

Finding your rhythm  23

Visualizing shots  24

Watching a near-perfect swing: Hey, thats me!  25

Time to Refine: Establishing Your Swing Plane 25

Mastering checkpoints  26

Taking it from the top  28

Chapter 3: Chipping and Pitching: Short-Game Secrets 31

Making Your Pitch  31

Setting Up a Solid Chip  35

Pick your spot  35

Choose the right club  36

Lies and secrets: Consider your ball placement 37

Chip away! 37

Chapter 4: Putting: The Game Within the Game 41

You Gotta Be You: Throwing Mechanics out the Window  42

Building Your Putting Stroke  42

The putting grip  43

The conventional grip  43

Left hand low  45

Putting posture: Stand and deliver  46

Toeing the line  48

Standing just right  48

Matching your putt to your full swing  50

Getting up to speed  51

Chapter 5: Solving Common Faults with Easy Fixes 53

For Better Golf, Use Your Head  54

Fixing Common Swing Faults  54

Slicing and hooking  54

Hitting from the top  57

The reverse pivot 60

Swaying off the ball 60

The belly-button twist  61

A swing thats too short  62

A swing thats too long  62

Chapter 6: Where to Go from Here 63

Taking Your First Steps  63

Visiting dummies.com  64