Another Playing Lesson
I had another keen golfer come out for a 9 hole playing lesson today. He felt like he hit the ball pretty straight and wanted some more distance.
On the first hole, a par 3 he hit a great shot onto the green, hit his next putt 8 foot past and holed it for a par. Not bad for a 17 handicapper with borrowed clubs.
Anyway I asked him how long his putt was on the first hole and he said 20 feet (7 metres). He was shocked to learn that it was in fact 15 metres. So the first thing we addressed was distance control of putts. Pace out the putt, find out what backswing will send the putt that far, rehearse it three times and putt.
Next hole, he hit a nice drive and then had a 5 iron to the green which he hit into the right hand bunker. I checked his ball position and alignment and he was aiming right where he hit it and the ball was opposite his left heel. You just can’t have an efficient swing if these basics aren’t right. If you have to move forward to hit the ball, you lose power and direction. We hit another couple of balls and bingo, he had a taste of true golf shot.
On the third hole, he hit a slice but just down the right side. He had to carry a tree 130 metres and I suggested a pitching wedge over the tree short of the bunkers guarding the green. He thought he could make the shot and did, a beauty onto the green, but then 3 putted.
He tried the layup shot as well, which was great as well, leaving a 60 metre pitch to the pin which was up the back of the green. He said he wanted to putt the shot, such was the state of his short game. Once again, his setup was the main problem.
So I showed him a simple punch shot. Once I got his setup and ball position right, I simply got him to swing mainly with his upper body and he hit down and through the ball, and it flew straight and solid with a lot of backspin. Then he repeated two more shots the same.
On the fourth hole, a slice into the trees onto a bare sandy lie just required a chip out onto the fairway. Instead, he tried a miracle shot, a big slice out of the trees onto the green which was tucked out of sight. The shot went too far, out of the frying pan and into the fire. A double bogey or worse. So I got him to take his medicine, and hit a controlled chip onto the fairway. A nice pitching wedge from about 80 metres to about 20 feet and an easy bogey.
Fifth hole, a par 5, and a reasonable drive put him in good position to make par. A well struck shot straight into the right trees, again poor alignment was the culprit. A chip out and a nice 60 degree wedge (from the middle of the stance) flew onto the green and a bogey. He didn’t carry a lob wedge, but just about every pro does, and a middle handicapper needs just as good a short game, if not better.
Next hole he hit another slice and it hit a tree and bounced back on the fairway. Then we started to do some swing work. Even though there were a few poor shots, the good ones were exactly what he needed to get a taste of. More distance, higher ball flight and straight where he was aiming.
On the last hole, I showed him how to chip and those shots came out great instantly. The six steps to setting up for successful chipping are as follows: 1. Open stance 2. Lower spine more toward the target 3. Head over the back foot 4. Ball position of the back foot 5. Weight over the left leg 6. Hands forward so front arm is in line with the shaft
Then you just swing the triangle you have formed witht he arms and club with the chest and shoulders. You wil swing down into the ball, catching the ball first and then the turf, giving you the spin and control. To change distances, just change length of swing and the loft of the club.
So that lesson will save him plenty of shots and win him many bets. Once again, it’s not a lack of ability that prevents the average player becoming a good one, it’s a lack of knowledge and a lack of motivation.
Once you have a taste of what you are capable of, you will want to make a bit of time to put a bit of work in to master these skills. If you can learn them in an afternoon, it doesn’t take a lot to maintain them.