Want to get the most out of your clubs? Make sure the grooves are clean! Any dirt or grass stuck in the grooves when you hit your shot is going to reduce spin making it harder for the ball to spot on the green when it lands.
Before and after each shot or if that is too much to handle, before or after each round make sure you clean your clubs getting all the dirt out of the grooves so you have the best chance of the club doing what it is supposed to do.
Every little bit counts in this game.
When faced with a shot where your backswing is limited it is really important not to try create speed of the club by forcing the club through the ball. Most of the time you will make poor contact doing this and not get any distance at all.
If you have to limit your backswing simply keep the tempo smooth allowing you to get distance by having a good strike with control.
I have just watched Adam Scott win his first Major, the Masters and he demonstrated what most of us struggle with on the course…..Staying Patient. On the final 9 holes he had chance after chance at birdies but again and again his putts slid past. He stuck to his routines, didnt let it get to him and holed a great putt to get in the playoff then again to win on the second playoff hole.
Its so easy to let mis-fortunes get to us out there but its vital to stay patient, stick to your routines so as to not let your round snow ball out of control.
Well done Adam!
Theres an old saying in golf “swing within yourself”. What this means is to swing at a tempo that fits your natural swing rhythm. Each golfer has their own individual swing tempo and when we try exceed this pace the club doesnt work in sync with your body making it hard for everything to be in place at the moment of impact.
If you put your focus on your body turn rather than the club it is much easier to swing at a natural tempo resulting in better timing of shots. Think on the backswing you are turning your back to the target then your belt buckle to the target on the follow through. The club will smoothly swing around your body but more importantly it will swing In TIME with your body!
The biggest mistake people tend to make when hitting a fairway bunker shot is trying to dig the ball out which causes the sand to be hit before the ball slowing the club down and losing lots of distance of the shot.
The idea is to hit the ball really clean.
During your swing, try imagine you are a puppet on a string and your head is being held up. Maintain this position throughout the swing making sure you stay tall and dont drop from this height and you will pick the ball cleanly off the top of the sand, getting the most distance possible.
The importance of the grip is often underestimated but so vital to controlling direction of the ball when its in the air.
The grip should be in a neutral position, a position which will see the hands return to the same spot at impact naturally. A position that is too ‘strong’ and the clubface will close at impact causing a draw/hook, too weak the clubface will open at impact causing a fade/slice.
If you are continuously fighting with sideways movement in the air then more than likely it is the grip which is the problem and this can be mere millimetres out from being spot on so come for a lesson so I can explain further YOUR neutral grip position and get that ball holding its line through the air.
Golfers often ask me why they play the first 9 poorly and then the back 9 well. I ask them if they warm up and they always reply “no”. Its pretty simple really, Tiger Woods arrives at the course 1 1/2 hours before his tee time to warm up and hes the best player in the world so how can you expect to not warm up and play well from the first hole?
Make the time to prepare for your round. Take time to stretch, hit balls, chip and putt and make sure your not rushed!
Quite often we find ourselves pitching on to the green where we need the ball to land softly and stop quickly. From a nice lie we are able to generate more spin which helps stop the ball when it lands but from a rough lie it can be much more difficult.
Think about this, If we want the ball to ‘float’ into the air and drop down softly then we need our swing to create that flight. The faster the club swings the faster the ball comes off it so by making a long but really smooth tempo swing, the ball will re-act to that and come off the club softly looking like it is nearly ‘floating’ into the air. This will stop it a lot quicker on the green.
No short quick swings when pitching from rough, long and smooth swings give a much better result.
When we set the club down behind the ball it is very easy for our perception of what is square to be distorted. This will increase the chance of the ball turning offline in the air if the clubface is even 1-2 degrees open or shut.
To check your clubface, stand upright, hold the club head directly in front of your chest, you should be able to see if the leading edge of the club is pointing directly vertical. Once you find this position simply tilt over into your golf posture and rest the club behind the ball. This is a square clubface position. If it now looks a little different to what it normally does then your clubface hasnt been square.
If you find it hard to hit the ball well on the course like you do on the practice range then you must be doing something different on the course than what you do on the range.
These three points should be considered when practising:
1. Do you complete your pre shot routine on EVERY shot on the range?
2. Do you aim at a target when you hit a shot on the range?
3. Do you select a club which distance wise will be at the target when you hit a shot on the range?
If you answered no to any of these then you are not practising like you play. Every shot on the range should be played with the same intensity you put into a shot on the course.
