Ask a Pro: Round 2 with Elaine King

Question from Karen: 

Everyone talks about the importance of arm speed, but I haven't heard much about what you can do to improve it. Do you know of any exercises or drills that can help improve arm speed? With winter coming on, indoor exercises would be even better.

Ask a Pro-Round 3 with Sarah Stanhope

Question from Andrea:

I feel like a beginner, though I have been playing for a few years, and have been given lots of advice. I have two toddlers, so I mostly just throw in the back yard (we have one long 300 foot-long field). One thing I keep getting told is to not do a run up (or X-step) until I have some consistency with aim. I feel like I have enough consistency with approach discs, though throwing drivers is still a lost cause (I can't put enough power on them to control them consistently). When would you recommend a person start incorporating a run-up or X-step? Is there some way for me to gauge when I reach that point in the learning curve? Because I am beginning to feel that no one is going to walk up to me some day and say, "I think you should try the X-step now".

Ask a Pro- Round 1 with Kathy Hardyman

Question from Karen:

How far should a women's grandmaster be able to throw? I took a lesson from a male pro, who thought I should easily be able to throw 200 ft, and was disappointed that I didn't get there during the lesson. I noticed that during worlds, the long distance drive for a women's grandmaster was 189 ft. It seems like unless the conditions for the contest were really extreme, then someone who's nonathletic probably shouldn't expect to throw that far. So, from your experience, what should I expect?

Professor of Instruction: Valarie Jenkins

Here are a few of my putting tips that I use when I step behind the mini and gaze into those shiny chains…