Getting better at golf is not difficult, especially if you are the type of golfer who reads help online! This is a contradiction as this is help online, and I am going to right that contradiction now. Online golf help DOES NOT make the complex clear, it makes the CLEAR TOO COMPLEX. Let me explain how in the form of 3 simple drills and some evidence.
- Practice your putts from 8-10 feet from the hole. The idea here is not to do anything other than develop a system you feel comfy with being able to repeat. The style you choose isn’t important right now, just own it! I want you to focus on two things once you’ve settled down. Once you’ve worked on these two ideas, and really understood them, consider your practice over.
- Firstly, the weight in your feet when you hit your best putts, are you leaning towards or away from the hole?
- Second, on your best putts how does the club face feel? I want you remember that feeling, and try and replicate it!
- I want you to pick a 15-20 yard shot, reasonably flat and with no major obstacles. Grab your favourite wedge for this shot. Not the one you read in Golf Digest you should use, not the one your favourite tour player uses but YOUR FAVOURITE WEDGE. Now hit some balls to the target, however you feel happy doing so, again, not how you think it should be done but how you feel happiest doing so.
- There’s just one take away here. Once you are hitting any shot, to a distance from the target you are happy with consider that particular shot to be yours. You’ve got your favourite wedge in your hand and you’re hitting a super-comfy shot. This is your chip/pitch and I want you to practice it every time you get a chance. I want you to use it on the course as often as you can! Don’t let anything stop you from hitting this shot if you think you can pull it off!
- Ponder the same 2 things you did when you were putting. How was your balance during the shots, and how did the club face feel when you were hitting your best shots?
- The process you went through with your chip/pitch I want you to repeat but this time from about 100-125 yards. Grab your favourite club to use from that distance. Pick a good target. Hit comfortable shots to that range. It doesn’t matter is its a 6 iron or a 60 degree wedge! This is now your shot. I figure you are probably swinging at about 75% with a gap or pitching wedge but as I said whatever you are doing is right for you. Think about how your weight feels at address, thing about how the club head moves through the ball.
These three simple drills will lower your scores, guaranteed. What I am hoping you do is own your own swing or shots (or both!). There is not only one good way to get the golf ball in the hole, it truly is not about how you get the ball in the hole, it’s about how many shots you take to do so!
You do not need a repertoire of 30 great golf shots to break 80, or even to break 70! You just need a few shots that you know will work for you and you need to deliver them at the right time.
