Work hard on your takeaway

The first thing that affects your swing and the flight of your ball is the plane you move your club backwards and forwards on.

So how do you take the club away? If you have an overly flat swing plane (taking the club away too far inside the intended plane), you will fall victim to a myriad of problems. Sweeping hooks, pushing to the right and even catching the ball thin with your irons. If you are too steep, there are a number of things that will show up as evidence of this problem. Deep divots, toe first contact with the ball and an open club face at contact are a few of these things. Work hard on how you take the club back as it rather dictates the shape of your backswing and overall 'plane'.

Take a close look at those playing in Carnoustie this weekend and you'll see some wonderful swings but pay special attention to how the players take the club back away from the ball.

Out of Bounds: The following three sayings are a must to remember during a round for any golfer -- Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity; The last thing I want to do is insult you. But it is on my list; and I really don't have a solution, but l do admire the problem.