Here at the Peter Cowen Academy, we see a lot of people treating their short-game move too similar to their long-game move. It is still considered a movement and therefore we never want to restrict somebody, however, it is certainly a quieter movement than that of long game. We often see our clients who struggle with their short game having a lot of drive with their body, and pulling of the club, coming in the downswing as opposed to using the natural forces of the club moving through the ball. 

To do this we want to see the club head moving back more in line with the hands when the shaft of the club reaches parallel to the ground and from there it can work more underneath our hands through the ball with little compromise. However, we often see the club head rolling behind the hands and then golfers using forces within their body, manipulating the club back to the ball, often steepening the club, allowing the hands to get too far in front of the ball and compromising the strike.

With the short game, we would like to keep the movement as simple as possible to the point where we get a nice solid set-up. We let the arms take the club back, the club comes back to the ball (natural forces/weight of the club so there is no pulling on the club) and then the body turning will support the club through to finish. Typically, we will see the body being quieter until after the hit but please make sure it is still a movement through the ball.

To better strike your short-game shots, hit some balls where you swing back and stop, with the shaft parallel to the ground and the club head in line with your hands, using a mirror or camera to give you feedback to make sure you hit this position. Feel the club head starts the downswing first towards the ball and let your chest then take the club through to finish. You should feel your lower body being much quieter than normal. This is very much a technical exercise to build a feeling so I would not do this towards any target to begin with, the focus should be on the movement as opposed to the outcome of the shot. Then you can start to build this feeling into a movement with nice rhythm to take on to the course.

To help control that strike with your short game, look to get the club back more in line with your hands in the backswing, use the natural force of the club to get back to the ball and then use your chest to support the club through to finish.

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Euan Bowden is a PGA teaching professional at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club’s Peter Cowen Academy Dubai.

More golf tips and instruction:
It is never too late to pick up a club for the first time — some tips to get started
Mobility and stability are key links in the chain to golf fitness
The chips are down if the hips are right
Looking for more power? It’s all about kinetic sequence forces
Understand golf’s power chain and how to avoid a weak link in your swing
Why solid putting starts with a sound set-up
Alignment is a fine balancing act to stabilise clubface
Why you are wasting your time on the range
Claude Harmon III’s simple impact drill
How Billy Horschel’s simple back swing move will make you a better ball-striker

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Here at the Academy, we see too many people who lose control of this in the downswing which can often lead to poor strikes and the clubface becoming very unstable. This can often be a reaction to something that has happened in the backswing so it would be worth looking at previous videos with Golf Digest Middle East to make sure you are correctly rotating the body in the backswing.

MORE: Why solid putting starts with a sound set-up

Typically, people will let the top of the spine drop behind the bottom of the spine in the downswing which can move your low point back before the ball and cause you to catch the ground before the ball. As a reaction golfers will pull their arms up through the ball to try and ensure the strike and create the ‘chicken wing’.

A good exercise for this is to feel as though you are hitting low ‘punch/driven’ shots where you finish with your hands as close to the target as you can. In order for your hands to finish as close to the target as possible with good extension through the ball, you must keep your body continuing forward, aligning the balance points and the top and bottom of your spine. Throughout this exercise, your arms should feel passive and your body moving forward will very much be in control of your hands and arms. At the end of the exercise, you should notice yourself more forward over your lead foot with your arms extended in front of you towards the target, level with your chest.

This idea of the balance points (top and bottom of your spine) staying aligned throughout, and practice low punch shots will encourage a more stable clubface and better control of your strike.

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Euan Bowden is a PGA teaching professional at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club’s Peter Cowen Academy Dubai.

The post WATCH: Alignment is a fine balancing act to stabilise clubface appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

We see this curse to consistent putting frequently here at the Peter Cowan Golf Academy at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club, with new amateurs in particular guilty of setting up for putts like they’re about to take a full swing.

The problem is this does not give a suitable foundation to make a repeatable putting stroke. That in turn can lead to frustrating problems, notable challenges controlling your distance and starting the ball on your intended line.

A great place to start when building the basis of a strong putting set-up is with the alignment of the arms. An easy way to achieve this is by holding the putter grip with your palms level and facing each other (1). When doing this you want to feel as though your upper arms are connected to your ribcage (2) which will allow your arms to be well connected to the body throughout the stroke. By aligning the hands together you will also be able to align your forearms and shoulders straight away. This connection between your arms and body will encourage better control of your stroke length and distance when putting and, with improved shoulder and forearm alignment, you will be able to move the putter on a better plane throughout the stroke.

In practice, hit putts with your palms facing each other as well just to get used to the feeling. It will also allow you to make a smooth stroke without too much of a ‘hitting’ action. The key when taking this new feeling into your regular putting set up is to maintain the same structure of the arms and shoulders as when the palms were facing each other. Take your normal grip but make sure that the forearms and shoulders maintain the aforementioned alignment.

Try this putting set up the next time you are on the practice green to ensure you are well connected and correctly aligned.

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Euan Bowden is a PGA teaching professional at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club’s Peter Cowen Academy Dubai.

The post WATCH: Why solid putting starts with a sound set-up appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Golf in the Middle East is entering its annual sweet spot – when the mercury dips and the big professional tournaments roll into the region as the event season heats up.

Join us as we preview the Saudi Ladies International with an exclusive – and inspirational – chat with Golf Saudi ambassador and reigning Women’s British Open champion Anna Nordqvist.

Enjoy a sneak peek of Yas Acres, the long-anticipated new baby sister for award-winning Yas Links Abu Dhabi. Get the lowdown on the five-month rebuild of the Majlis greens at Emirates Golf Club and catch up with Josh Hill after the Dubai amateur sensation’s busy UK summer campaign.

We find out how Steve Stricker’s Americans won back the Ryder Cup and why Europe should be very afraid. There are even tips from winning Ryder Cuppers Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele, along with a deep dive on the golf balls of 2021. Are you playing the right sphere for your game?

All this and much more in the October 2021 edition of Golf Digest Middle East.

The issue is again free to our loyal audience. You can scroll through the ISSUU link provided or download the bumper Octoberber 2021 issue FREE to your favourite device for later. Alternatively, pick up a copy at your favourite club. Whatever option you take, we hope you enjoy the read.

The post Get the October 2021 issue of Golf Digest Middle East FREE today! appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Euan Bowden
At the Peter Cowen Golf Academy at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club we promote, teach and hone golf swings controlled by the body. It is important to rotate the body – the catalyst of the entire movement – well in order to unwind in a free flowing manner through the ball. 

Over the summer, we have installed a brand new swing studio, equipped with Trackman and new Ground Reaction Force Plates from Swing Catalyst, to highlight the correct sequencing of the golf swing.

The fluid and powerful sequencing of the swing is often best achieved through correct rotation of the body in the backswing. Here’s how to picture that rotation.

Imagine a spiral staircase, the type that typically goes around and up. That is how we want to think of the body rotating in the backswing, around and up. When you do this it is crucial to keep your balance points (top and bottom of your spine) aligned on top of each other through the rotation, to remain centred. As you do this, you want your pressure to favour your right side throughout the movement of the backswing to set you well to move forward and through the shot from there.

If you misalign these balance points and do not rotate well in the backswing, your body will react in the downswing which can often jeopardise your club path and strike through impact. Typically, this ‘reaction’ in the downswing will lead to the sequence of the downswing being mistimed and not allow you to maximise your ground reaction forces. By not utilising your ground reaction forces you are missing out on the distance that your body is naturally able to generate.

Aligning the balance points by rotating well and loading pressure into your trail side in the backswing, you are then well set to unload into a free flow through the ball with little manipulation. This will help you maximise your ground reaction forces, allowing you to create distance as well as controlling the club path and strike through impact.

Visit the Peter Cowen Golf Academy for check-up in our Swing Catalyst. A session with one of our Swing Catalyst Certified Instructors will make sure you are getting the most out of your swing and ensure your body is allowing you to maximise the forces available to you.

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Euan Bowden is PGA teaching professional at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club’s Peter Cowen Academy Dubai.

The post WATCH: Why spine balance in the takeaway is so important appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The swing evolves from the initial move away from the ball. Let Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club professional Euan Bowden get your takeaway right from the get go.

By Euan Bowden
The takeaway is crucial as the rest of the swing evolves from here. It gives you a chance to set width in the swing and trigger the correct body movement from the outset.

To initiate the takeaway, feel as though you are applying pressure in the club down and away from the ball. This will encourage you to keep the club-wide and the arms connected to your body. It is important to ensure your body stays centred as you do this.

A mental image to help you achieve this feeling is to picture yourself holding a beach ball underwater, moving it away from your body. In other words, you are trying to drag your club through the water as it goes away from the golf ball. The feeling will create a resistance that slows the club down, helping to produce a slow and controlled takeaway.

A driving range drill to help with this is to place an alignment stick parallel to your target, half way between your feet and the ball. A good takeaway will see your hands staying on the inside of the stick as the club head stays on the outside just as the club reaches a position parallel to the ground. A lot of amateurs snatch the club away from the ball, whipping the club head inside their hands and around their body, often separating the elbows as a result. Others pick the club up from behind the ball, getting it working too far from the body. Both of these will make it hard to initiate the correct body movement.

Essentially, you should look to move the ‘V’ shape created between our arms at address straight back away from the ball, keeping the hands and club head low and wide. Work on this feeling and you’ll be on the path to sweet strikes in no time.

Euan Bowden is PGA teaching professional at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club’s Peter Cowen Academy Dubai.

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With reigning Race to Dubai champion and European Tour Golfer-of-the-Year Lee Westwood on the cover, the January edition of Golf Digest Middle East is your essential guide to the Desert Swing opener, complete with its unexpected PGA Tour twist.

There’s also tips from the “Golf Fix” guy, Michael Breed, Dubai Creek’s own Euan Bowden, a blob-by-blow guide to help you negotiate the toughest hole at Jack Nicklaus’ Ajman creation Al Zorah, plus an in-depth guide to golf in George, South Africa to keep your passion for travel on simmer in these challenging times.

All this and much more in the January 2021 edition of Golf Digest Middle East.

The issue is again free to our loyal audience. You can scroll through the ISSUU link provided, download the bumper January 2021 issue FREE to your favourite device for later or fill in the form below and we’ll get a print version sent to your home or work address. Alternatively, pick up a copy at your favourite club. Whatever option you take, we hope you enjoy the read.

The post Get the January 2021 issue of Golf Digest Middle East FREE today! appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

We preview the inaugural Golf in Dubai Championship presented by DP World with Dubai Golf head pro Stephen Deane taking a look at the five holes set to decide the outcome of the hastily arranged $1.2 million event on JGE’s Fire layout.

We ask what’s next for the European Tour once the Race to Dubai is run on Fire’s sibling, Earth, argue that this season like no other wasn’t so bad after all, and explore the ‘Curious case of Patrick Reed’, the controversy-courting Ryder Cup star who is on course to become the first American to finish the season as European No.1.

Elsewhere, we visit the best new courses of 2020, come to grips with the toughest hole at Dubai Hills Golf & Country Club and offer a solution to your putting woes with Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club pro Euan Bowden.

All this and much more in the December 2020 edition of Golf Digest Middle East.

The issue is again free to our loyal audience. You can scroll through the ISSUU link provided, download the bumper December 2020 issue FREE to your favourite device for later or fill in the form below and we’ll get a print version sent to your home or work address. Alternatively, pick up a copy at your favourite club. Whatever option you take, we hope you enjoy the read.

The post Get the December 2020 issue of Golf Digest Middle East FREE today! appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Your fairway finder is personal to you. It could be a low draw or a towering high fade but just make sure it’s one you can repeat. The simple set up changes illustrated here can make it easier to shape the ball and ensure you achieve that reliable ball flight.

To hit the controlled fade from left to right, tee the ball low and position it forward in your stance. These small alterations will encourage your club path to work more across the ball to target line from outside to in. The club path moving in this direction will make it easier for you to shape the ball from left to right.

To hit the draw shot, tee the ball up slightly higher than normal and bring the ball position back in your stance. This will encourage the path of the club to move more from inside to out across the ball to target line, creating the desired club path to hit a draw.

Instead of worrying about positions in the swing, which can be difficult to feel at full speed, try these simple set up tweaks. It will encourage the appropriate club path through impact for a more predictable and reliable ball flight, allowing you to find more fairways. Now you’re in play, go fire at that pin!

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Euan Bowden is PGA teaching professional at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club’s Peter Cowen Academy Dubai.

The post A simple set-up tweak to help you get it in play under the blow torch of competition appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Euan Bowden
No amateur ever asked for less distance off the tee but few know how to go about maximising their potential with a driver in hand. Many weekend warriors get it wrong from the get-go, addressing the ball with a poor set up. The secret to get the ball travelling as high and as far as possible starts from the ground up, firstly by building a solid foundation to give you balance as well as stability.

Start by setting your feet at least shoulder-width apart. If your stance is too narrow, you will struggle to maintain balance throughout the swing; too wide and you will compromise your mobility and the potential distance you can achieve.

Once you have the base sorted, take a look at where your feet are pointing when you take your stance. If they are pointing straight ahead or even turned inwards slightly, you may not be able to achieve your full range of motion. Try splaying your feet out at address so they point at 10 to 12 on the clock face. In this position, you’ll gain a greater range of motion in your trail hip and in turn be able to turn deeper in the backswing, coil better and load all that pent up the power behind the ball. By allowing your hips to move more freely, your shoulders will also have a greater range of motion.

Launch Angle
The angle of your spine tilt and shoulder position is also critical to maximise driver distance. Amateurs tend to have their spine too far over the ball and shoulders pointing downwards, often leading to an out to in swing path and a low slice.

A simple drill to rectify this is to put the driver across your chest as a handy reference. Tilt your sternum behind the ball so that your lead shoulder is slightly higher than your trail shoulder. Picture a thrower prior to releasing a javelin – the trail shoulder is down, the lead shoulder is up and their non-throwing arm points to where they want to launch the sphere. Setting your shoulders in this way and keeping your spine tilted behind the ball, in tandem with that solid, feet splayed foundation, will allow you to launch your tee shots higher and further than ever before. – With Kent Gray. 

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Euan Bowden is PGA teaching professional at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club’s Peter Cowen Academy Dubai. For more information, visit dubaigolf.com

The post More distance from the tee starts from the ground up appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.