The last couple of weeks we concentrated on the biggest golf event in Nepal. Now we get back to some tips and rules of the game.

During this year's Surya Nepal Masters, I felt I was hitting my driver better than ever before. I was averaging 295 yard drives with almost 85 percent of fairway hits. That is quite something for any player and an even more remarkable achievement for me. I have always hit the ball long but have been quite wild. Well, the sudden change was an adjustment I made recently, and I will share how with you.

In recent months while I have been working hard to straighten out my drives, these are a few things I consciously worked on.

Making an effort to keep the spine at the same angle until impact. This promotes a lot of balance in the swing and avoids those big slices and hooks.

Ensuring shoulders and hips are fully turned. I concentrate on this when taking my club back. This is what brings the big muscles into play.

Using the bigger muscles. On the downswing, I worked on ensuring I cleared my left shoulder and on turning my hips. This helped avoid unnecessary hand action and instead allowed the bigger muscles to power the ball through.

This distance and accuracy has proven very useful for me and a lot of people who've played with me recently are quite amazed with my length and accuracy.

See if these tips apply to your swing and can help you improve and enjoy the game more. Don't hesitate to discuss and practice these with your professional golf instructor as well.

Another decision on the rules of golf:

There are many occasions during a round of golf where you end up in interesting situations that leave you puzzled as to how to proceed. Here is one example.

Two balls end up close to each other in a bunker. A's ball is just an inch away from B's ball but A's is further away from the hole. What is the proper procedure according to the rules of golf?

In this situation B, who is nearer to the hole should mark his ball and lift it, and should be aware that he may not clean his ball. Since both balls were so close, A, while playing the shot can alter the lie where B will replace the ball. If the lie is altered, B, in equity, is allowed to have the lie given to him before A's shot, and should recreate the original lie as near as possible and place the ball under rule 20 - 3b (iii).

This rule sounds quite complex, and most golfers are surprised that B was allowed to touch the sand prior to making the shot.

Next time you are faced with this situation during a competitive four ball match, be confident that you can apply this ruling. This and all other rulings are available under 'Playing the Game', followed by the 'Rules' link at www.usga.org

Do have a browse through when you have some free time.

Deepak Acharya is a golf instructor and Head Golf Professional at Gokarna Forest Golf Resort & Spa, Kathmandu. [email protected]