Golfers ... how’s your chipping game? I walked into a golf pro shop upstate near Oneonta last week and saw a gentleman and sales rep looking at a video which showed a golfer doing some practice chipping and what they were chipping into looked something like a cornhole board. I asked if this was for real and the sales rep said they did not sell these but that they could be ordered directly from Chippo. He handed me several pieces of paper which explained everything. After getting back home I thought local golfers might like to hear about Chippo as the sales rep in the pro shop said a number of golfers got a set which they claimed did help their chipping around the green. The fact sheets I was given noted the Chippo is part of “Chippo Nation a wedge-wielding herd of stampeding Chippoputamuses” somewhat determined to change the world of golf and backyard games forever, and they urge golfers to chip some golf balls and “maybe sling a cold beverage or two.” Chippo started with an idea and grew with a widely successful kick-starter campaign and has blossomed into a what some have called one incredible backyard game and winner of the prestigious Best New Product Award at a PGA Merchandise Show. Chippo has been featured in content from Golf Digest and the Golf Channel. So Chippo is designed as a viral golf game for beach, backyard, tailgate, office, clubhouse ... literally anywhere. The two designers of Chippo say, “we’ve combined the old fashioned tailgate-dominating goodness of games where you can work over your buddies while working on your short game.” Playing Chippo is pretty simple. 1. Set up the boards 15 feet apart. 2. Chip on the lawn, sand or chipping mat provided. 3. Find three friends and start chipping. Gameplay is reminiscent of cornhole, washers or horseshoes, flip a coin to see who goes first. Here’s how scoring works for match play: One point –– Just hit the board on a fly...boardie. Three points –– Drain your shot into the larger center hole ... 3-hole. Five points –– Send the ball to its home in either top corner home..5 hole. 2x points –– If you’re a surgeon with a sixty degree wedge, bounce your shot off the chipping mat for 2x 6 or 10 points....bounce shot. Sounds like fun.....yep they can be ordered at the Chippo store at contact@chippogolf.com Ed’s Outlook TaylorMade has announced its new line of Sim2 drivers, fairway woods and irons. The driver comes in SIM2, SIM2 Max and SIM2 MAX 2 MAX-D versions. With the original SIM, the company focused on reshaping the driver to deliver speed and aerodynamics at the most critical stage of the swing. Regarding the irons they are designed with the all new Cap Back Design. Golf Tip By Robert Menges Sometimes you hit a great drive right down the middle of the fairway and think you have an easy shot to the green, only when you get to your ball you find it sitting in the middle of a divot that someone didn’t replace. Unfortunately, due to a rule called rub of the green, you must play the ball where it lies and hit the ball out of the divot. If you make a few adjustments this shot is quite easy. First use one more club than you would normally use from that yardage. After you select the club, grip down or choke down on the club. When you aim, try to aim more left than usual (this is for right-handed golfers), as the ball will have a tendency to curve to the right after impact. Try to play the ball more towards the back of the stance, this should make the ball fly lower than normal and put more spin on it. When you make your swing be sure to hit down on the ball and drive through it with some acceleration. A full follow through is not necessary, keep your arms and hand low through impact and hit more of a punch shot. The key to this shot is to make contact with the ball first and then drive the club through the shot keeping your head still. Robert Menges is the head golf professional at the Swan Lake Golf & Country Club, Mt. Hope Road, Swan Lake. Call to see if he is available for private lessons and if you have a question or subject you would like covered, he can be reached at 845-292-0323 or 845-866-5567 or via email at bobmenges22@gmail.com Putting Tip By Geoff Walsh Most important barometer for building putting skills is MOTIVATION. The student golfers I have taught over the years that improve the most are those that are motivated the most. Practicing diligently what they learn. Performing the putting drills every practice session. Building better putting skills is an ongoing process. Try EVERY week. Geoff Walsh is a Class A PGA Professional at Tarry Brae Golf Course located at 387 Pleasant Valley Road, South Fallsburg. Call to see if he is available for private lessons, and if you have a question or a subject you would like covered, he can be reached by telephone at 845-434-2620. Ed Townsend is a Public Relations Consultant to the sport of golf and brings over 60-years of sports journalism experience in writing and compiling the information for this column. If you have league or tournament information, shoot a hole-in-one or score you age let Ed know at 845-439-8177, email to bght75@gmail.com or fax to 845-205-4474. View this column at http://bght.blogspot.com We are also on Facebook and Twitter.