Practice putting with your wedge to groove a steady stroke.
Practice putting with your wedge. Putting with a wedge will force you to remain quite still in order to make solid contact at or just above the equator of the ball. Good putters putt just as well with their wedges as they do with their putters.
Besides, learning to putt with your wedge will allow you to tape those two-footers in after great chip and pitch shots. <grin>
Film yourself swinging to get a new look on your golf swing.
What you feel and what’s actually happening in a golf swing are often two very different things. Get a new eye: a video camera. Today’s digital video (DV) cameras cost as little as $300, and software lets you step through frame by frame. Record your swing from at least two angles – down the line and head-on – and compare the reality of your swing (the tape) to the “feel” of your swing (what you think you’re doing). You may be amazed by the differences.
Play a round of golf with three clubs.
Pick three clubs – any three clubs – and play a round of golf with them. Leave your woods at home and try to putt with a wedge instead of your putter. For example, a PW, 7I, and 4I might be ideal. You’ll learn how to hit huge, low hooks with your 4I to get maximum distance off of the tee. You’ll learn to pinch your wedge and lay off your 7I. Your putting stroke will improve as you attempt to make consistent contact with the blade of your wedge.
Divide and conquer long putts to have a better chance at walking off with a two-putt, instead of three or four.
Looking at a long putt, say something of the thirty to forty-foot range? Take the time to read the line, but by all means don’t aim at the hole.
Dissect the putt. Divide it into shorter sections – the break left to that crest, the break right off the crest – and then, once you’ve got the line and tempo in your head, pick a spot about three to five feet along the first part of your line.
Long putts aren’t about sinking the putt every time, unless you’re a pro. Instead, working on getting the putt as close to the hole as possible is a wonderful goal, and the occasional putt in the hole a welcome surprise. Try to sink it, and chances are you’ll end up with a three-putt instead of a chance at two.
Many players speed up – their swings, their pace of play – when playing the winds. Don’t.
Watch a foursome playing the course on a windy day and you’re likely to see some fast play: they walk faster between shots, they take less time in their preshot routine, and – perhaps most importantly – they swing faster. This leads to inconsistency and poor ball striking.
In the wind, make a conscious effort to take your time and to swing with a slower tempo. You’ll strike the ball with less spin and cleaner contact.
Experiment in your back yard and reclaim the art of shotmaking.
A week ago I spent some time in my back yard with my 60° wedge hitting shots all over the place and from every kind of lie. I discovered that if I play my ball outside of my right heel, open stance 45°, and swing inside out I can make great contact and send a lot skittering shot tremendous distances. I discovered that I can hit the ball with nothing but wrist movement quite far… but that every other body part has to remain absolutely still or I don’t get perfect contact, and wrists aren’t strong enough to fight through grass alone. I discovered that I could hit a lob wedge straight up into the air, but that it only went a foot forward and ten feet up – not a particularly useful shot.
The point is this: experiment in your back yard with your wedges. Use some practice (short flight) balls if you have to. Experimentation is the key to shotmaking – see what kinds of shots you can come up with. I highly doubt that I’ll ever see “stand 45° open, play the ball three inches behind you, and swing perpendicular to your stance to send a low chip cleanly out of even bad lies,” but I’ve got that shot in my bag now.
Stretching is a good thing.
Stretch. Loosening your muscles before engaging in an athletic activity – one that requires timing, speed, and accuracy – is essential. Basketball players don’t just start playing – they gather around a hoop with a few balls and warm up. Stretch before you hit the range, before you putt, and certainly before you step onto the first tee. Get a swing weight and swing that before you hit balls as well.
Stay down and power through recovery shots to ensure escape.
When you miss the fairway and find yourself in some trouble, concentrate on getting out and back into safety. The hard bump and run sideways out of deep rough is a difficult shot – stay down on the ball and power through the shot. Often, looking up to see where the ball is going before you’ve hit the shot result in a thin shot that gets caught up in the rough, going nowhere. Stay down, watch your club pass powerfully through the rough, to get out safely.
Make friends with your 3-wood.
Learn to love your 3-wood. Many people’s drivers are hit or miss, but the 3W is a far more consistent club. If your driver is misbehaving, your 3W may consistently get you in the fairway 235 yards from the tee. The higher loft on a 3W decreases sidespin, and the 3W can be hit from light rough as well as the fairway. The 3W will hit the ball over trees, letting you cut corners on shorter doglegs. Practice power draws and fades, and the 3W may become your favorite club.
