A Couple of Ideas for Better Practice

I recently had a lesson where the student talked about not being able to take his game from the range to the course. I observed him on the course saying "Typical shot," refering to a missed driver. Being the curious person that I am, I enquired why something like that was "Typical." He went on to explain that the range was always so comfortable. His swing worked, but as soon he was under the pressure of making the shot work the first time, he could not pull it off.

This is a situation of not practicing at all in preparation for performance. His shot is pretty typical, but not in a positive way. We started to examine further HOW he practices and what practice means. This player is under the incorrect idea that trying to perfect his technique will automatically produce favourable results. We talked about it and decided he should start doing this:

(1) Test his short game. By doing a series of basic tests (approximately 40minutes), twice a month, the player can actually measure his progress. It makes it much easier to understand where opportunities for improvement lie.

(2) Basic Practice Session for Technique improvement (15 minutes). This session is designed to be BRAIN TRANSFORMING and mentally challenging. Try and keep the session at 15 minutes, which will almost guarantee 100% focus on the task at hand.

(3) Basic Practice Session for On-Course Performance (10 minutes). This session is designed to bring out your on-course demons. It is very target focused and always has both a meaning and consequence. If your range shots do not have both meaning / consequence, you will most certainly have a difficult time understanding your emotions on the course.

(4) Create a "warm up for round" session. Instead of trying to find some magical technique 10-15 minutes before a round, we got him thinking about the two "T"s: TEMPO / TARGET. Practice on the range HOW you will warm up before a round, and you may surprise yourself with positive results and more confidence. Don't forget to practice the first tee shot with routine and all its emotions.

Becoming a better player doesn't mean huge leaps all at once. The idea is to become a little better everyday, by challenging yourself and making the practice more difficult than the actual play.


Thanks for reading! Steven

4 Tips for the Amateur Golfer

One of the questions I get alot is "What does it take to be an expert at golf." For almost 20 years, I have wondered about this and so I thought I would share a couple of ideas.

(1) Own your swing. Your golf swing is the tool you need to get the ball moving forward toward your goal. It doesn't have to be pretty or look a certain way. Don't let people convince you that hitting a draw is better than a fade (or visa versa). The important thing is that the ball flight is predictable. If you hit a fade...LOVE IT...ACCEPT IT...OWN IT!!!

(2) Love new challenges. Today, I played with our elite team and I must say that I did not play up to my ability. However, when I found myself in a weird situation, I created an internal game of accepting and loving the challenge. If the ball was buried in the sand or if I hit a ball in the water hazard, my goal was to find a way to make par (or at worse bogey). Loving the challenge will give you a winner's mindset. You can not always control the result, but you can surely influence it by accepting the shot for what it is.

(3) Be a world-class putter. Being a good putter takes lots of pressure off the other aspect of your game. If you know that you can roll the ball well (irregardless of the outcome), you will most likely be a good chipper / pitcher of the ball (because you will be more relaxed with each shot knowing that your putting will back up any mistake).

(4) Accept the result and move on. Golf is a game of mistakes and if you can not accept a mistake for what it is...an opportunity to learn and improve...you are surely missing the point. Don't carry anger or expectations around on the course. Play each shot with the best of your ability and move on. Don't judge yourself and don't worry about what other people think (Most are thinking about their own game...unfortunately, you are not that important to them...harsh, but true).

Think about these ideas and start putting into use on the course. You may surely be on your way to becoming an expert golfer. Good Luck!!!

Steven

Aim more correctly using your stock shot

So how do you aim? Hmmm? Do you aim at the target? Do you aim at a starting point with the thought that the ball will fade/draw back? Have you thought about it before now?

Before learning how or what to aim at, you should develop a STOCK SHOT. This is a shot that you know will fly the same way most often. For me, a stock shot is a FADE, which mean if I aim at the target I will most likely fade the ball away from the target. My approach to aiming and my stock shot is as follows:

(1) Pick out my target (Where do I want the ball to end up).
(2) Pick out my boundary line (This is a line where the ball should never cross...right of the target for since I don't want my fade to get out of control).
(3) Pick out my starting target (If I aim and swing toward this, my stock shot should create the curve to send the ball back to the target, but not pass over the boundary line).

If this sounds confusing it's not. It just means that you may have the ability to play with the shot you already have today. It means owning and accepting your swing for what it is. It means playing with more confidence when you can eliminate one side of the course. (For me, I eliminate the left side since my ball curves back to the right).

Thanks for reading and check out my video below.
Regards, Steven