GOLF instruction comes and goes, but great advice – ideas that make a game-changing difference to your scorecard – lasts a lifetime.
Inside each issue of Australian Golf Digest you’ll find hundreds of tips from the very best players in the game to help you get from tee to green.
Read carefully because I promise you, some of these will change your game forever. How do I know that? Let’s just say I’ve been in your shoes before.
I battled my fair share of demons on the course back in the day – both as an amateur and US PGA Tour pro – particularly with my short game. Fixing the problem was all about seeking the right advice that rang true to me, having the dedication to work on it and remembering the process for next time.
While I don’t play nearly as much golf as I used to, when I do I still resort to the 10 greatest – and easiest – tips I ever received to get myself swinging great again.
I’ll never forget them because they work.
With a bit of luck, they’ll help you get the ball in the hole, too!
1. If you are always three-putting, here is a great tip to help you with touch and feel on the greens. Touch and feel are the two main ingredients to consistent putting. Drop three balls from the hole at the distance from where you are struggling to make putts. Now try to hole each one with your eyes closed. It’s as easy as that, and I guarantee your lag putting will improve.
2. Many amateurs have a hard time lining up each shot. The problem is they align their body to the target first, which is completely wrong. If this sounds like you, train yourself to set the clubface first and then take your stance last. Watch how the pros do it. They will do it this way every time.
3. A great tip, and one I still use when practising, is to put your feet together and hit shots with an 8-iron. This will keep your legs nice and quiet and produce great hand speed.
4. Another great tip for hand speed is to grip the club with just your right hand (if you’re a right-handed player – vice-versa if you’re left-handed) and hit balls. This teaches you to release the club, which is when the clubhead goes past your hands at impact, making the ball hook spin if you do it correctly.
5. Putting practice should always be fun. A simple drill I use is to place five tees around the hole a putter-length away. Now place three balls down, and going around the circle make the three putts from each tee. Once you have done this, move the tees back a foot and do the same again. Keep going back as far as you like. If you miss, start again.
6. A common mistake with chipping is to take the club back too low with straight, stiff wrists; this results in scooping the ball. Start by setting up with a slightly open stance and clubface with your weight forward onto your front foot. To generate height you have to hinge your wrists.
7. Bunker play is almost identical to that of a high-lofted chip shot. Once again, your weight is firmly on your front foot and the key to getting the ball out is wrist cock, or “wrist hinge”. This is a must. If your takeaway is too low, you will skin the shot or hit it heavy.
8. Before amateurs play they often go to the practice range and immediately take the driver from the bag. Learn to hit a few shorter clubs before you hit the driver on the range. That way, your rhythm will be better before you tee it up in your round.
9. The best pitchers in the game use body rotation through the ball; the worst use almost none. If you freeze your body, you generally just throw the club at the ball, which is no good. Turning your body through keeps the club shallow and lets it get under the ball.
10. Hitting into the wind is one of the toughest shots in golf. First, widen your stance. A wider stance helps you with a shallower swing plane. A steep downward action causes the ball to balloon upwards. Second, shorten your swing when hitting into the wind. A shorter backswing will help you accelerate through the ball. Third, take one more club than normal. How many times do you come up short against the wind?
