Pitch or Chip?
Dan Dolan
One of the great joys of teaching is to see improvement in your students. In this article, I am using one of our students who began with scores around 100 and is now enjoying scores in the low 80’s. He has made some incredible improvement to his overall full swing and has enjoyed the successes that came from his hard work and structured indoor practice on his technique. At GolfTEC we are able to use biomechanics, or motion sensor technology, to help in the learning process. The usage of the motion sensors enables the lessons to be factual which increases the learning curve exponentially. The following article is written for a right handed player and uses the motion sensor technology to aid in the lesson process. Please note the motion measurements within the pictures.
The address position within the golf swing is extremely important. It enables the player to make the proper movements throughout the swing. Many golfers spend countless hours on the range and years playing the game with poor fundamentals at the address position. Whether it is a poor grip, improper weight distribution or a lack of proper posture, any element that is incorrect at the beginning of the swing, almost guarantees that the golfer will have a difficult time accomplishing proper movement during the swing. Additionally, having a proper address doesn’t guarantee proper movement either! It takes effective professional instruction, dedication from the student and time, to accomplish a great golf swing.
In the picture below, the amateur on the left side of the image has improper bend of the shoulders. The player on the right image (Tiger Woods) has proper bend. Shoulder bend is simply the action of “leaning forward towards the ball or taking a bow towards the ball”. The purpose of bending forward
correctly is to allow the arms to hang down naturally. By looking at the shoulder bend measurement within the picture it is seen that this player has bent forward 30 degrees as measured inside the GolfTEC Learning Center. This is not enough bend of the shoulders for this player as it allows him to stand too tall thus slightly reach for the club. The critical factor that this error creates is that the swing plane for the student is too vertical. Please note the line of reference drawn through the golf club. This line is refered to as a primary swing plane reference line. This line, with all clubs, should point at the belt buckle and exit the extreme lower back. If a player is set up at their address position where their swing plane is too vertical or too flat, it will create a cause-and-effect relationship in their swing that is not desired. As this student is standing too tall (same as saying he has not bent forward enough), his swing plane reference is too vertical. This position hurts his ability to turn his shoulders.
Please note the right image in the next picture. This player has increased his shoulder bend from 30 degrees forward to 36 degrees forward. Essentially, he has leaned more forward towards the ball thus
allowing his arms to now hang down naturally. This instantly allows the club to point into his belt line as opposed to entering into his upper chest. It is
extremely critical to make sure that every set up position with every club is correct to allow for proper turn ability in the takeaway. The left side of the 2nd picture clearly shows the exit of the red line within the upper back (too vertical), whereas the right image exits the extreme lower back (perfect).
Continuing with the address position and how it affects the ability to turn, please note picture 3. The left image of picture 3 is the image of the student attempting the takeaway. He has incorrectly lifted the arms causing his club and hands to be too far in front of the toe line. This lifting action is the opposite of shoulder turn. You can either lift or turn and the shoulder turn of course is the desired movement. Note the shoulder turn half way in the swing of 27 degrees. The tested PGA Tour average is between 40 to 50 degrees of shoulder turn when the club is parallel to the ground. The right image of picture 3 shows Tiger Woods. Notice where his hands and club are when the club is parallel to the ground. His hands are directly on top of his toe line due to proper shoulder turn, whereas the amateur within the left image has his hands and club outside the toe line. His improper address position created this lifting movement (cause-and-effect).
Note the change in picture 4 below: The amateur was instructed to increase his shoulder turn, from his correct address position, to get the club and hands on plane during the takeaway. The left image of picture 4 shows the incorrect lift measuring only 27 degrees of shoulder turn. The right image is the correction. Notice the increased shoulder turn now measuring 40 degrees. Very simply, the player has turned his shoulders more thus allowing his arms, hands and club to travel on plane. Notice the arrows. The green arrow indicates the arms and club correctly positioned on top of the toe line similar to the Tiger Woods image. The red arrow indicates a position that is not on top of the toe line.
DRILL FOR HOME: Lay a club down on the ground across your toe line. Make halfway takeaway drills and imitate the technique as written above. However, is your address position correct to allow you to have the best chance of turning?
Continuing throughout the takeaway, the player must continue to turn the shoulders and hinge the wrists. At a time when the club points back at the ball, there is a checkpoint that instructors use. When the club is “in between and parallel to” the primary and secondary plane lines, the hands should be roughly “at the middle of the shoe” from a side view perspective. By looking at the left image of picture 5 notice the blue line drawn down to the ground. It appears that the club is “on plane” yet notice the position of the hands relative to the ground. The amateur within the left image has a shoulder turn of 47 degrees which is inadequate. As his turn was low his hands remain outside his toe line.
*As you are reading, pick up a club and try to lift your hands outside your toe line. Notice that your shoulders are not active. Of course, you will not be able to measure your turn without the sensors, but you can absolutely feel the difference in a lift versus a turn. Tiger Woods’ takeaway is seen here in picture 5. Tiger’s club is on plane but notice the position of the hands relative to the ground. As he is turning effectively, at this checkpoint in the swing, his hands are at the middle part of his shoe. This is desired. The PGA Tour average (as tested through research) shoulder turn at this checkpoint in the swing is around 60 to 70 degrees. The amateur’s shoulder turn of 47 is too low.
Note the change in picture 6: This player has now made tremendous improvement to his swing plane as he has increased the turn of his shoulders. Notice the right image. It is clear that his hands are “deeper” within his takeaway as his hands are now at the middle part of the foot. (I marked the heel and toe section of the foot with small yellow dashes for this write-up so the reader can accurately see the shoe) His shoulder turn has increased from 47 degrees to 62 degrees. This very simple increase in shoulder turn has allowed the player to accomplish a more effective, deeper takeaway. This takeaway is really not that different than Tiger Wood’s takeaway as it has proper shoulder turn and proper swing plane.
In review, the golf swing is a challenge yet it can be beat. Unfortunately, over my past eight years of teaching using high speed video and motion sensor technology, I notice a majority of golfers with poor fundamentals at the address position. The poor address position truly hurts the golfer’s ability to make proper movements during the swing as we discussed in this editorial. As an enthusiast of this game, you owe it to yourself to play it to your best ability. Seek professional instruction from a PGA Professional that you trust and that can help you improve your ability to play the game to your best ability.
The Right Golf Club
Julie Roberts
Choosing the right club can be the difference between par and double! I see so many golfers not recover from bad lies because they have the wrong club in their hand. The new hybrids can be helpful in dealing with less than perfect lies, but understanding when to use them and when NOT to use them is one thing players of all skill levels should know.
So what’s to know?
It is important to note that a bad lie is usually one where there is grass behind the ball or the ball is sitting down which prevents the clubface from getting to the ball cleanly. This can affect distance and
direction. Most average golfers are challenged by a situation like this and when there is indecision about how to play the shot it is nearly impossible to execute.
First, golfers must make the effort to practice from a few challenging lies. Make it late in the evening when there are few people on the golf course, take the time to practice these shots in a realistic setting and this will help demonstrate the need for proper club selection. The driving range cannot offer these types of lies or the demand of having to get out of trouble. Sometimes you can find an evening or twilight rate that cost you less than a large bucket of balls! Try it!
When you practice take your longest iron (3, 4, or 5 iron) and try to hit it from a difficult lie, note the distance and direction of the shot. Then try your 7 iron and wedge from the same or similar lie. Which clubs produce the straightest, longest recovery shot? Now you may be on to something . . . do you do better with less loft or more loft?
If you own a hybrid club you should try it too. If you don’t, ask your golf professional or shop assistant for a demo and take it with you on the course. For some golfers the design of the hybrid and added loft provides the necessary confidence to manage a challenging lie. But you must try it to know for sure! So use hybrids and long irons when you are confident you can hit the shot. And how will you know? You practiced, right?
I am often asked how to set up with a hybrid and the general consensus is to set up with it as you do a long iron. Hybrids are shorter than fairway woods and should be played slightly forward of center in the stance. If you are working from a difficult lie it may help to move the ball behind the center of your stance to encourage a more descending impact which can improve the chance of getting the ball up. As the club descends it can help the ball impact higher on the face of the club (even though the ball may be nestled down) thereby utilizing the loft of the club.
In general hybrids can be more effective for players who do not generate as much clubhead speed. Long irons require adequate clubhead speed to produce proper trajectory and carry. If you cannot hear the shaft of the club “whoosh” when you make a practice swing, then you are less likely to be consistent with long irons (3, 4, 5 and 6 irons). Not hearing the “whoosh” indicates slower swing speed and therefore a lighter, more lofted club is a better choice.
Players with less clubhead speed have an increased challenge when faced with difficult lies. So the best advice depends on your goals. If you want to achieve better scores and are playing golf for fun, just improve your lie! Once you see improvement when hitting from a good lie, then you may be ready to face the challenging ones. For those who enjoy the challenge of playing the ball “as it lies” it is best to use a more lofted iron to manage the shot and get out of trouble.
More advanced players who can generate adequate clubhead speed may want to seek a hybrid to fill a void or gap in yardage. Many players have a gap between certain clubs, usually long irons and fairway woods, which leaves a yardage that cannot be managed. I always struggled with approach shots from 200 yards. A 4/5 wood was too much, but a 3 iron was not enough. And let’s be honest, few of us should really be using a 2 iron (though it’s tempting). I searched for a club that I could hit exactly 200 yards that would give me enough trajectory to control spin. I found a Callaway Heavenwood with 21 degrees loft that fit perfectly in my bag and I practiced with it until it became comfortable. I love having confidence from 190-210 yards and my Heavenwood makes a great utility club from less than perfect lies, too. Consider this next time you play a round and figure out if there is a need for a hybrid, Heavenwood, or utility club. Check with your PGA professional and clubfitter to determine the best possible option. Make sure you are able to play with the club so you can be sure it works for you on the golf course.
Some players become so confident with the latest technology that they replace all of their long irons with hybrids. Again my best advice is to practice with what you have, demo clubs to see what works better, THEN decide.
Julie Roberts is a PGA Professional and the
General Manager at Minor Park Golf Course
Pitch or Chip?
Dan Dolan
GolfTEC Learning Centers are known nationally for providing “Fact-Based” golf lessons.
Utilizing high speed cameras and motion sensor technology has created an Indoor PGA Learning Center for year round improvement. However, GolfTEC PGA Teaching Professionals also provide short game lessons outdoors to help their students improve their scoring ability. Let’s address a short game challenge.
One of the best methods of stroke saving encompasses club selection around the green. At what point do you use a club with more loft versus a club with less loft? As a rule of thumb always remember this thought, Get the ball on the ground as quickly as possible if the shot allows. We want to get the ball on the ground quickly, because the more time the ball is in the air, the more time it has to encounter influences such as wind direction and velocity, backspin, and green softness/firmness.
Unlike approach shots of 30-100 yards, chip shots do not require you to use clubs that have lots of loft, i.e. sand or lob wedges. When you are within a few yards or feet of the green, you should actually begin using clubs with less loft in order to help you get the ball on the ground quickly.
For example, if your ball comes to rest on the fringe or a few feet off the fringe, it would benefit you more if you practiced and mastered the following technique. The most common club to use around the fringe area is the 8 or 9 iron. Utilizing these clubs will help you to carry the ball just onto the green so that it can roll like a putt. Most amateurs think they have to use a sand wedge or lob wedge around the green. The fallacy begins by the notion that more loft is good. In some cases more loft is good, but from the fringe it is usually not a wise decision. Learn to hit chips of varying length with the following technique (SEE Picture 1: Address and Takeaway): your ball position should be located near or outside the right foot, 80% of your weight should be on the foot that is closest to the hole, and your hands should be forward pressed toward your left thigh. This set-up position will deloft the club, which will provide an initial hop over the fringe and help maintain a low, rolling advancement to the hole. When hitting chip shots always make the same stroke, but change clubs to dictate the distance that the ball will travel. Hinging your wrist is not needed to a large degree as hinge equates to additional height on the shot) (See Picture 2: Impact and Finish). When you practice, you should hit at least 20 chips each with both the
8 iron and the 9-iron to get a feel for the distance that the ball travels with each club. This will help you decide which club you should choose when you are on the golf course. Practicing the bump and run will improve your chances of getting up and down for par. *Trick: By delofting a high-lofted club like a 60 degree wedge, it increases the rpm’s of back spin. This backspin is not desired for a bump and RUN as it will slow the ball down. Yet, the delofted 60-degree shot is good for “other” shots when the course forces you to!
Now that we have discussed the chip shot, let’s address pitching the ball. The pitch shot takes place at distances from 10 yards to 40 yards. Once again, the key element to improving this part of your game lies in club selection. From a distance of about 10 yards you should be using a pitching wedge (approximately 48 degrees loft) or gap wedge (around 52 degrees loft). (See PICTURE 3: Address and Takeaway)Ball position should be in the middle of the stance. Weight is now 50% on the foot closest to the hole, and hand position is still forward pressed but not as much as with a chip. This setup position will allow the club to strike down on the ball, which will help you carry it onto the green. KEY: Wrist hinge equates to height in the short game. If you hinge your wrists, you will provide a steeper takeaway, thus a steeper angle of attack on the downswing. (*NOTE: The hinge with Ernie Els in Picture 3)This provides additional height to the flight of the ball and will increase back spin! As we progressively get farther from the hole, the club selection will require a club with more loft. When approaching the 40-yard shot, select a club that has loft in the mid to upper 50s, i.e. a sand wedge or lob wedge. This will allow the shot to carry the turf, land before the pin, and release to the hole. Again, you should hit at least 20 shots with each wedge to get a feel for distance. The angle of attack on the downswing is steeper and requires un-hinging of the wrists on the follow through to provide height and spin. (See Picture 4: Impact and Finish)
Club selection is the biggest key to improving your pitching and chipping game. Learning to practice the correct shot, with the correct club, will lead to improved scores.
If you would like more help improving your pitching and chipping, or full swing analysis using state of the art technology, please contact a GolfTEC Learning Center near you.
Dan Dolan is Director of Instruction for GolfTEC Kansas City Metro and nominee for Teacher of the Year Award 2008, Midwest Section PGA
Dan has given 11,000+ Lessons with GolfTEC since 2001.
BUNKER BUSTER
Tony Roberts
Am I just getting sloppier with my iron play or does it seem like there are more and more bunkers in play every year? The new courses spring up with record numbers of bunkers and course renovations seem to focus on bunkers as much or more than anything. After putting and driving, solid bunker play is as important a component of your game today as any other.
Greenside bunker play demands a basic understanding of the sand wedge. These clubs have a specific design to the bottom, or sole, of the club and has the area behind the leading edge actually hanging lower than the leading edge. This is called the club’s “bounce” and is the feature that allows the club to enter the sand and skim (or bounce) under the ball instead of digging too deep to power the ball out. When we hit the most common and essential sand shot in our arsenal, called an “explosion” shot, it is the cushion of sand that forces the ball out of bunker. The correct depth of sand removal is critical to the success of the shot. The bounce on the sand wedge helps create this correct depth.
You’ll hit the basic explosion shot on almost all of your greenside sand shots. To hit it properly you need to further expose the bounce of the club by opening the face significantly. Because you’ve opened the face you’ll need to aim left of your target as the open face will throw the ball to the right. Position the ball slightly forward in the stance. Make the swing along your body line (left of target) and enter the sand two inches in back of the ball. Force the club through the sand and make a full finish just as you would on a long shot from the fairway.
When performed properly the club will never touch the ball. The sand you removed will carry the ball forward and onto the green. For starters, try to make the same swing on all of your explosion shots and vary the distance and height the ball goes by varying the degree to which you open the club.
The more you open the face the shorter the ball will go and the more you’ll need to aim to the left. Later on you can vary the length of the swing to create another determinate of distance and height. Success with this shot will come quickly.
No other shot in golf affords the margin of error that the explosion shot does. You can enter the sand an inch and a half in back of the ball, or two and a half inches behind and have similar results. Try hitting a 4 iron from a tight fairway with an inch or two variance in where the club comes down and see how that works for you.
The standard explosion shot works for most greenside shots but let’s leave you with one other option for when golf, like life, throws those little curves at us. The fried egg or buried lie can strike fear in the hearts of best of players.
When the ball lies below the top of the sand you’ve got a couple of options. The younger, stronger and most talented among you can still keep that blade open, play the ball back a little, and through both pure strength and precision, fashion a mighty explosion shot that cuts under the ball and lifts it out not altogether unlike a standard explosion. But not many can play it like that.
The rest of us need to get a little gimmicky with this one. One of the most fun shots in golf is to take the buried lie, aim way right, and close the face to the point that the toe of the club is aiming almost back to the hole. Swing down into the sand in back of the ball and make no effort to bring the club out of the sand. Just stick it in the sand behind the ball and leave it there. The ball miraculously pops up and out, way left, and runs hard and long. You can get some of the worst lies you can imagine out of the bunker and on the green with this technique.
Try these golf shots at your local practice bunker before you hit the course. Sand play practice can be a lot of fun and will bring your scores down. Kind of funny isn’t it? One of first places we find ourselves playing as a toddler is the sand box, and here we are later in life doing it again.
Tony Roberts is the PGA Pro at WinterStone Golf Course
and MidWest Section PGA Teacher of the Year for 2001
PUTTING IS REALLY SIMPLE
Mark Nigro
Last year I went to Cog Hill in Chicago to train on the “SAM” Putting Lab that we had purchased for our academy. I was fortunate enough to work with Dr. Christian Marquardt, the inventor, one-on-one.
He was a very interesting person in that he had no background in golf at all. Even to this day he does not play golf. He is a scientist that studies human motion and movement, the type of person that would study the hand movements of a concert pianist or why a person might get writers cramp.
Marquardt became interested in putting when he heard about the dreaded putting yips. He started his research on putting by going out on the European Golf Tour. His equipment was an apparatus that fit on the putter and read every movement that the putter was making during the putting stroke using ultrasound.
His findings were surprising. There were many different techniques and styles, but all were pretty efficient. The one common element was that they were very repeatable. Consistency was more important than the technique. It didn’t matter if they used a long putter, putted crosshanded, used the claw grip, or a belly putter. Consistency was the most common trait among the best players in the world.
This doesn’t mean that technique is not important, it just means that consistency is more important.
Dr. Marquardt’s first statement to me was, “Mark, putting is a very simple movement. There is very few moving parts and it takes very little strength or power.” My first question to him was, “Why is putting so difficult for most people?” His answer was that most people perceive it to be difficult. So if we think putting is simple and that is not difficult, and truly believe that concept, we are on the right track to becoming a great putter.
This really makes sense because in teaching the golf swing, there is so many moving parts and the club is going at a very fast rate of speed. The putting stroke requires very little athletic ability and does not require a great deal of strength.
The key to developing a good stroke is simplicity. At our academy, we always evaluate our students first. The most common problem we see, is that the putter does not fit them. Or should I say that the putter does not allow them to get into a setup that is mechanically sound that will allow their hands and arms to swing freely from their shoulders.
Most putters are too long and are too light. If the putter fits you right, you should be able to bend from your waist and get your eyes over the ball. Your arms should hang freely with a slight bend in the elbows. The ball should be positioned forward in the stance to allow a slightly ascending stroke. The power in the stroke should come from the right hand and arm. The left arm and hand should stabilize the path and face to keep it square to your target.
Wrist actions should be minimal but not necessarily eliminated. Length of stroke should be determined by how much speed is required to reach the hole. The ratio of backswing to forward swing is 1 to 2. Grip pressure should feel firm but not tight. There should be very minimal body motion. The legs and head must be very steady. Is this beginning to sound complicated? Remember, our perception is that this is a very simple movement.
Of course there is more to putting than just developing a simple stroke. How about reading the greens? Or how do you develop the proper speed? How about your mental preshot routines that are so important to developing focus and a relaxed state of mind when you putt?
As you can see there is a lot to putting. Much more than what I can write in this article. You just have to learn and feel the proper technique and get a putter that fits your stroke.
And remember, putting is very simple.
?One of Kansas City’s most popular golf instructors, Mark Nigro provides over 1300 lessons a year from his base at the Robin Nigro Golf Academy. Contact him at www.robinnigrogolf.com
OH NO! THE SHANKS!
Tony Roberts
I was walking through the shop on yet another cold “spring” Saturday morning and I made the mistake of asking one of our Annual Pass guys what I should write this article about. The gentleman responded with, “Well, I’ve never read a good article about curing the shanks.” I assured him he could probably say the same thing in another 30 days when this comes out but, by gosh, I was going to go tackle shanking.
Nothing scares me more on the lesson tee than the guy hitting it on the hosel. No single fault in the golf swing comes to us quite so mysteriously. Certainly nothing else can be as devastating to both score and the amount of fun we’re having while playing the game. If you’ve been cursed with this dreaded malady, you’ve undoubtedly been the recipient of many suggestions. Some wanted, but most are unsolicited. Seems like everybody’s a pro when you’re hitting them sideways, doesn’t it?
For those of you unfamiliar with the shank . . . put the magazine down now and walk away. You don’t want to finish the article, you don’t want to use the word and you don’t want anything to do with the whole subject. I’m not kidding you, walk away now. For the rest of you, I’m sorry. Let’s look at it and try to beat it.
You shank the ball when the hosel contacts the ball before the face has a chance to get there. The ball takes off almost straight right. Looking closely at the club you can see why.
I’ve seen and heard many explanations and theories on the cause of shanking and an equal number of possible cures. My best results have come by taking a three-pronged approach. If I can’t fix it within these three categories, then it’s a mystery to me.
Once in awhile it’s the easy fix. If you are just plain standing too close to the ball, you can see how your arms might ask for a little more room on the downswing and return the club extended outward ever so slightly. Doesn’t take much outward extension to move from the center of the face to the hosel. So unless you feel you’re a golfer that already stands far from the ball, back away from the ball a little and give it a try.
Not usually that lucky though, so on we go. The second thing to investigate is a spine angle change. You know from other instruction that we need to keep the spine angle constant (maintain the angle you set at address throughout the swing) in order to hit our best shots. Most of this work is done to correct people who lift up, “standing up out of the shot.”
The other spine angle change can cause a shank. If you lower your spine, you will scoot the club outward and potentially expose the hosel. This problem can occur on the backswing by exaggerating the vertical tilt of the shoulders or on the downswing by diving down to the ball. Spend time feeling the exaggerated opposite of this by hitting shots where you feel as if you are raising the spine instead of lowering it. You’ll know you are overdoing the correction if all you hit are ground balls. Just play with it a little.
If you yank the club too quickly and too much to the inside on the backswing, you’ll arrive at a position at the top of the swing that is low and behind you. From there it’s difficult to get to the ball without “throwing” the club out. Instead of turning through the shot and getting your body moving to the left, you’ve created force that moves the club away from you. Again, it’s not the face that approaches the ball now, it’s the hosel. Try taking the club back a little straighter, a little more upright. The downswing should take care of itself from a better spot at the top.
Each of these answers to the shank deals with the simple concept of returning the club to impact with the ball positioned in the center of the face. That’s what we’re trying to do with almost all shots, we’re just forced to look at it a little closer when we’re shanking. When all else fails, set up with the ball as far out on the toe as you can. Go ahead and hit from there; sometimes simple works.
Here’s hoping you never need to try any of this. The most devastating part of getting the shanks is what it does to our confidence and ability to hit even the simplest of shots. The psychological damage to our game when we get so gun-shy that we can’t even pull the trigger can be enough to make even the ardent player ponder hanging ‘em up for awhile. We can’t ever let that happen, now can we?
Tony Roberts is the PGA Pro at WinterStone Golf Course
and MidWest Section PGA Teacher of the Year for 2001
Get in the Groove
Karen Davis
Have you ever had the experience of starting the season strong, playing your best golf before you’ve had time to start working on your game? Then somewhere along they way it happens . . . a missed shot, a bad hole, or maybe a bad round. You begin to analyze what’s wrong and start trying to fix it. Pretty soon you’re tied up in knots wondering what happened to that great start. Here’s the good news – it doesn’t have to be that way!
Like so many things in life, playing great golf requires balance between the Yang (physical/technical) components of the game and the Yin (mental/emotional) components of the game. Most golfers put all the focus on the Yang, and the Yin tends to get much less focus, if any at all.
The Yang parts of the game include technique, equipment, physical fitness, nutrition, and even things like statistics and the analysis of the game. All very important, but only half the picture. These parts of the game should get half your focus, but for most golfers they get nearly 100%.
The Yin parts of the game include things like emotional management, creative thinking, decision-making, confidence, beliefs, and organized thinking. When things go wrong in the Yin side of the game, it shows up in the swing. Instead of addressing the root cause, most golfers immediately try to see what went wrong in the swing, putting the focus back on technique and failing to address the real problems.
Perhaps it’s harder to think about things like emotional management and clear decision-
making as skills the way you think of the skill of swinging the club. They are skills, and like any skill they require awareness, instruction, practice and focus to improve. These areas have just as much influence on the outcome of each swing in golf as the more visible Yang components do. If you learn to address them you can make quantum leaps in your results.
One area that is particularly under-addressed in golf is emotional management. If I were allowed to coach only one skill in golf, this is the one I would choose because I think players of all levels get a high return on investment here. Big results are possible with a small amount of practice-time investment.
Players who are great at emotional management see these and other
benefits:
- They make better and clearer decisions.
- They are more creative at finding ways to get the ball in the hole.
- They are better able to focus on the shot at hand, not letting what has happened previously in the round (good or bad) interfere with the current shot.
- They have more energy and perform better at the end of the round.
- They create their own confidence.
- They recover quickly when something does go wrong.
How do you become an expert at emotional management? The first step is to become aware of your emotional state at all times. Any negative emotion – from the low end of being a little anxious because of stress and frustration, to the high end of anger – will degrade your ability to play good golf. The faster you can identify a negative emotion and shift to a positive emotional state, the better your results will be. Speed of recovery matters immensely to performance.
There are some great tools available from a company called Heartmath that can help you take the first steps. They provide books (such as Managing Emotions: Golf’s Next Frontier) and tools like the emWave Personal Stress Reliever that allow you to see your state and practice shifting to a higher performing emotional state. Personal coaching can help you improve your skill and learn how to best utilize the skills and techniques while playing golf for great results.
For other ideas on how to balance the Yin and Yang components of your game, I recommend reading The Game Before The Game by Lynn Marriott and Pia Nilsson.
Keep your game in balance and enjoy your best golf ever!
—Karen Davis
Karen Davis is the owner of Full Circle Coaching (www.fullcirclecoach.com). She is a PGA Professional, LPGA Member, TPI Certified Golf Fitness Instructor, Licensed Heartmath Provider and a coach in the VISION54/Integrated Fundamentals program. You can reach Karen for instruction at 816-729-2000 or Karen@fullcirclecoach.com.
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