Here are my five favourite tips I gave students this year – and how they can help you:
1. Be firm in the rough
When hitting out of the rough, have a firmer grip with the top three fingers (pinky, ring and middle) on your left hand. You’ll hit out of the rough with a squarer face, as the firmer grip will stop your club being caught in the long grass and stop the ball going left.
2. Hover it
Don’t ground your club in thick rough when the ball is above ground level. Instead, hover the club level with the bottom of the ball. This ensures your club doesn’t slip under the ball – hitting it high on the face will cost you metres.
3. Chip with quiet legs
Too many golfers move their legs during chip shots, and it leads to inconsistency in the short-game. Isolate your legs and allow your upper body and arms to control the path of the club. The club will control the loft, spin and roll of the ball and you’ll develop continuity around the greens.
4. Check the lip
When hitting a long bunker shot [below], always check the height of the lip on the bunker – getting the ball out is the most important thing. Hence, you need to choose a club that will clear the lip. For a 25-metre shot, I would use my 50-degree wedge and play it like a normal bunker shot. A deeper bunker, however, would require extra loft on the club and a more aggressive swing to get the same distance.
5. Impact
The ‘moment of truth’ in the golf swing is the position of your club at impact. It will determine the distance and shape of your shot. Using an impact bag allows you to practise the alignment of your left arm and shaft with a flat left wrist. This will help you achieve a more consistent distance and shot shape.
If you have any questions, email me at [email protected]
