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Practice for the better player


Red4282

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I was watching a recent video from a prominent youtuber, a “road to pro” type video where there was a lot of grinding practice… and it got me thinking…. Isnt alot of that really just a big waste of time?
 

Once you get to a certain level, like around scratch, isnt most of your technique fairly solid?  I get making a change to a swing or something, beating buckets to “memorize” the change, but just beating balls as if reps will help with no focus on anything cant be helpful. Wouldnt it be more helpful to practice each ball something different? Like fade, draw, low, 80%, even different lies, sidehill, rough etc. On the course rarely does back to back shots require exactly the same thing. 


I see people hitting dozens and dozens of balls at like say a 50 yard pitch shot. Ok maybe you have got that shot down, but 55, 45? Rarely will you have exactly 50 with flat fairway lie. Again wouldnt it be more helpful to change every shot everytime to train your “mental judge” or feel of the shot, simulating course play?

 

Another one that I dont understand is the 3 foot “clock” drill where you have to go around and make so many in a row. After the first few, you have established a rhythm, something that is useless on a course. On the course making putts is about speed control and reading… something that is all feel based. I would think just picking a random putt on the green, reading it and trying to execute it ONCE would be better… 
 

Anyways just thinking how I could better use my practice as im sure like many of you get stuck around that scratch mark with very little improvement and no return on practice investment. Any good practice routines you have found?

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2 hours ago, Red4282 said:

I was watching a recent video from a prominent youtuber, a “road to pro” type video where there was a lot of grinding practice… and it got me thinking…. Isnt alot of that really just a big waste of time?
 

Once you get to a certain level, like around scratch, isnt most of your technique fairly solid?  I get making a change to a swing or something, beating buckets to “memorize” the change, but just beating balls as if reps will help with no focus on anything cant be helpful. Wouldnt it be more helpful to practice each ball something different? Like fade, draw, low, 80%, even different lies, sidehill, rough etc. On the course rarely does back to back shots require exactly the same thing. 


I see people hitting dozens and dozens of balls at like say a 50 yard pitch shot. Ok maybe you have got that shot down, but 55, 45? Rarely will you have exactly 50 with flat fairway lie. Again wouldnt it be more helpful to change every shot everytime to train your “mental judge” or feel of the shot, simulating course play?

 

Another one that I dont understand is the 3 foot “clock” drill where you have to go around and make so many in a row. After the first few, you have established a rhythm, something that is useless on a course. On the course making putts is about speed control and reading… something that is all feel based. I would think just picking a random putt on the green, reading it and trying to execute it ONCE would be better… 
 

Anyways just thinking how I could better use my practice as im sure like many of you get stuck around that scratch mark with very little improvement and no return on practice investment. Any good practice routines you have found?

I hear what your saying. Though, you're looking at others practice sessions from your own lens. It's possible these guys are keeping strokes gained stats and maybe they are seeing a trend of losing strokes from 3 feet or from 50 yards against their competition. But also possible that they aren't and are just practicing something without considering the law of diminishing returns.

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I’m watching that you tube series as well.  Interestingly his swing coach introduced a number of changes in his swing and like many of us he’s struggling to implement those changes on the course. I would be interested to hear if his practice routine was self developed or provided by his coach. 

Edited by CaptainPat
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16 minutes ago, Habitual Flipper said:

I hear what your saying. Though, you're looking at others practice sessions from your own lens. It's possible these guys are keeping strokes gained stats and maybe they are seeing a trend of losing strokes from 3 feet or from 50 yards against their competition. But also possible that they aren't and are just practicing something without considering the law of diminishing returns.

Oh i agree with that, but i question the method of some in trying to address that. I just dont see how how robotic pitches or putts over and over and over again is helpful unless you are trying to make technique changes. My weakness in my game is that 30-80 yard partial wedge and its not because of contact or technique its because i often misjudge the distance, lie, wind, the spin/check, etc. I guess there are all kinds of “good” golfers, some may have bad technique but a good judge of shots, where others may be vice versa.

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2 hours ago, JohnnyCashForever said:

It sounds like you're advocating just playing a practice round with one ball, trying to play each stroke with the "required" shot shape, and holing everything out.  I like it.  

Yea ultimately in a perfect world constant playing golf is probably the best practice you could get but, its not practical for many, some days I may only have an hour or two to give. I do actually do that before rounds sometime, after about 12 balls to get loose, i then picture the course and hit shots as i would on the course. Its very comfortable on first tee have rehearsed and hit the shot already.

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57 minutes ago, Abh159 said:

Now that my serious competitive days are over (was a D-I golfer and high level amateur when I was younger) I rarely practice anymore. I'd much rather spend time playing. My livelihood doesn't depend on my golf game so I can go out and shoot 65 and win some $$ or shoot 80 and lose some $$. Neither is going to drastically change how I feel about myself or affect my day one way or the other.

 

Sure I may go out to the club and hit some balls or spend an hour at our short game area from time to time, but I'm not going to grind it out on the range pounding balls like I used to. 

 

If you are truly looking for ways to practice, I'd suggest figuring out what part of your game typically costs you the most strokes (short putts? pitch shots? missed fairways?) and working on that. 

 

Agreed. 

 

I have a similar background. No interest in beating balls in the heat anymore.

 

Obviously, if I notice a tendency creeping up on the course, I'll try to iron it out on the range. But that's more of a 10-20 ball type process these days. Whereas in the past it might've been 100 balls. 

 

I would say that, overwhelmingly, the best practice for me these days is going out on the course by myself and playing 2 or more balls. See exactly what's working in real time, with real targets, and real consequences. 

 

 

 

 

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I'm not a good player yet so I might be completely wrong and talking out of my butt, but I imagine at your level if you feel you have the technique down, random practice would be good, with the goal of hitting or approaching the Tour average in proximity to the hole for those pitch shots. 

 

I would think you would try to match the up and down percentages with the putting probabilities listed.  For example, 30 yards from the fairway is 52%, so how close do you have to hit the ball to get within 52% 1-putting probability?  It looks like the answer is just outside of 7 feet.  From 50 yards in the fairway, about 10' is your target. 

 

Now, since they are the best players in the world it may be difficult to hit these targets without a ton of distance control practice, but it's a guideline for deciding what your own personal goals are and what outcomes you should expect.

 

Strokes gained: How it works (pgatour.com)

 

UP-AND-DOWN PERCENTAGES
Yards From fairway From rough Difference
30 52% 39% -13%
40 44% 32% -12%
50 39% 27% -12%
60 36% 24% -12%
70 34% 21% -13%
80 33% 19% -14%
90 31% 18% -13%
100 29% 16% -13%
110 26% 15% -11%
120 25% 13% -12%
130 23% 12% -11%

 

PUTTING PROBABILITIES
Distance (feet) One-putt % Two-putt Three-putt + Expected putts
1' 100% 0% 0% 1.001
3' 96% 4% 0% 1.046
5' 76% 24% 0% 1.245
7' 56% 43% 0% 1.440
10' 38% 61% 1% 1.625
12' 31% 68% 1% 1.701
15' 23% 76% 1% 1.784
20' 15% 83% 2% 1.874
25' 10% 87% 3% 1.931
30' 7% 88% 5% 1.977
40' 4% 86% 10% 2.058
50' 3% 81% 16% 2.138
60' 2% 75% 23% 2.214
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As someone who's spent a ridiculous amount of time on the range with professionals, I will say that the OP is correct.  The world's top golfers have a purpose with every practice session.  If they struggled with a high cut during the last round, that is what they work on.....the intent is to duplicate the precise shot shape at different yardages with different clubs.  

 

In tournament prep, they hit dozens of balls from different spots on the course trying to simulate lies and angles and judge sand conditions, etc....  

 

Mindless ball smacking is useless once you get "the feel" down in your swing.  

 

My $0.02 worth.

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I stole this routine from a very good player and can take no credit for it. 
 

The course we play is monumentally different between a northerly or southerly wind. Excluding putts, being a par 71, there are 35 full shots to be played. With the opposing winds, this leaves you 70 shots which he stuck on a piece of paper and laminated. 
 

At the range use a random number generator set 1-70 and repetition excluded. This tells you what shot to hit with each ball. E.g. #1 is hole 1 tee shot with northerly wind. 
 

I’ve used the above for a while and it’s helped immeasurably in stopping me just beating balls. We’re lucky that our range is circa 350 yards + 50 for the uphill gradient and is line marked @ 10 yard widths. 

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7 hours ago, huskydawg said:

I'm not a good player yet so I might be completely wrong and talking out of my butt, but I imagine at your level if you feel you have the technique down, random practice would be good, with the goal of hitting or approaching the Tour average in proximity to the hole for those pitch shots. 

 

I would think you would try to match the up and down percentages with the putting probabilities listed.  For example, 30 yards from the fairway is 52%, so how close do you have to hit the ball to get within 52% 1-putting probability?  It looks like the answer is just outside of 7 feet.  From 50 yards in the fairway, about 10' is your target. 

 

Now, since they are the best players in the world it may be difficult to hit these targets without a ton of distance control practice, but it's a guideline for deciding what your own personal goals are and what outcomes you should expect.

 

Strokes gained: How it works (pgatour.com)

 

UP-AND-DOWN PERCENTAGES
Yards From fairway From rough Difference
30 52% 39% -13%
40 44% 32% -12%
50 39% 27% -12%
60 36% 24% -12%
70 34% 21% -13%
80 33% 19% -14%
90 31% 18% -13%
100 29% 16% -13%
110 26% 15% -11%
120 25% 13% -12%
130 23% 12% -11%

 

PUTTING PROBABILITIES
Distance (feet) One-putt % Two-putt Three-putt + Expected putts
1' 100% 0% 0% 1.001
3' 96% 4% 0% 1.046
5' 76% 24% 0% 1.245
7' 56% 43% 0% 1.440
10' 38% 61% 1% 1.625
12' 31% 68% 1% 1.701
15' 23% 76% 1% 1.784
20' 15% 83% 2% 1.874
25' 10% 87% 3% 1.931
30' 7% 88% 5% 1.977
40' 4% 86% 10% 2.058
50' 3% 81% 16% 2.138
60' 2% 75% 23% 2.214

You are right on the money, strokes gained gives a very good insight to strengths and weaknesses. Off the tee and putting are my strengths, so you wont see me spending a ton of time on a putting green other than to calibrate my speed control. Iron play is a minor weakness but getting better, but my big weakness is that 30-100 yard range. So thats where I should focus my efforts for sure. 

Edited by Red4282
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I'm in a different camp than others on this. But my camp may be circumstantial. 

 

I hover between scratch and +1.5. I break par often. Been playing for 31 years. I get 1 day a week to practice...for about 3.5 hours. 

 

Range time for me is all about repetition. I probably hit 150 balls in a range session. I basically work my way up my bag, hitting every other club (start even or odd). My goal is to get loose and then get video of my swing to check setup, key positions, key faults, and tempo.  I'll adjust based on video feedback and then validate "feel to real" on video and then hit balls to repeat that feel. Rinse and repeat for every club in the bag. I don't do a lot of drills. But I'm also not really changing anything. I don't have time to make drastic changes so my key is repetition. 

 

Same with chipping. I just want to go to different spots, find my landing spot, and then rep out 10-12 balls trying to hit that spot. Pick em up and go to a different spot, rinse and repeat. I hit flop shots, low runners, and a ton of basic chips and runs. Then I'll hit about 30 balls out of the bunker to various pins with my 54 and 60. 

 

I have full swing drills that I will do if something is really off. So I do some drill based stuff but it's usually just for a small correction. 

 

I'm not saying this is right. Just how I've gotten along. There are times I'm 75% drills. There are times I'm just trying to get a feel.right with a full swing. For example, a key of mine is to stay compact in the backswing. When I get a little arm overrun then I'll hit about twenty 3/4 shots to feel more compact. If that's a drill then so be it. 

 

I guess what I'm saying is how you practice really should depend on how much time you have. If you have a lot of time then I could see a lot more drill based stuff and a lot of on-course stuff. If you're like me, limited time, then my thought is repetition is key if you have a repeatable swing.

Edited by getitdaily
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49 minutes ago, getitdaily said:

I'm in a different camp than others on this. But my camp may be circumstantial. 

 

I hover between scratch and +1.5. I break par often. Been playing for 31 years. I get 1 day a week to practice...for about 3.5 hours. 

 

Range time for me is all about repetition. I probably hit 150 balls in a range session. I basically work my way up my bag, hitting every other club (start even or odd). My goal is to get loose and then get video of my swing to check setup, key positions, key faults, and tempo.  I'll adjust based on video feedback and then validate "feel to real" on video and then hit balls to repeat that feel. Rinse and repeat for every club in the bag. I don't do a lot of drills. But I'm also not really changing anything. I don't have time to make drastic changes so my key is repetition. 

 

Same with chipping. I just want to go to different spots, find my landing spot, and then rep out 10-12 balls trying to hit that spot. Pick em up and go to a different spot, rinse and repeat. I hit flop shots, low runners, and a ton of basic chips and runs. Then I'll hit about 30 balls out of the bunker to various pins with my 54 and 60. 

 

I have full swing drills that I will do if something is really off. So I do some drill based stuff but it's usually just for a small correction. 

 

I'm not saying this is right. Just how I've gotten along. There are times I'm 75% drills. There are times I'm just trying to get a feel.right with a full swing. For example, a key of mine is to stay compact in the backswing. When I get a little arm overrun then I'll hit about twenty 3/4 shots to feel more compact. If that's a drill then so be it. 

 

I guess what I'm saying is how you practice really should depend on how much time you have. If you have a lot of time then I could see a lot more drill based stuff and a lot of on-course stuff. If you're like me, limited time, then my thought is repetition is key if you have a repeatable swing.

Interesting. So out of curiosity, if you go to the range and you are hitting it perfect are you still breaking down video looking for swing flaws? 

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42 minutes ago, getitdaily said:

I'm in a different camp than others on this. But my camp may be circumstantial. 

 

I hover between scratch and +1.5. I break par often. Been playing for 31 years. I get 1 day a week to practice...for about 3.5 hours. 

 

Range time for me is all about repetition. I probably hit 150 balls in a range session. I basically work my way up my bag, hitting every other club (start even or odd). My goal is to get loose and then get video of my swing to check setup, key positions, key faults, and tempo.  I'll adjust based on video feedback and then validate "feel to real" on video and then hit balls to repeat that feel. Rinse and repeat for every club in the bag. I don't do a lot of drills. But I'm also not really changing anything. I don't have time to make drastic changes so my key is repetition. 

 

Same with chipping. I just want to go to different spots, find my landing spot, and then rep out 10-12 balls trying to hit that spot. Pick em up and go to a different spot, rinse and repeat. I hit flop shots, low runners, and a ton of basic chips and runs. Then I'll hit about 30 balls out of the bunker to various pins with my 54 and 60. 

 

I have full swing drills that I will do if something is really off. So I do some drill based stuff but it's usually just for a small correction. 

 

I'm not saying this is right. Just how I've gotten along. There are times I'm 75% drills. There are times I'm just trying to get a feel.right with a full swing. For example, a key of mine is to stay compact in the backswing. When I get a little arm overrun then I'll hit about twenty 3/4 shots to feel more compact. If that's a drill then so be it. 

 

I guess what I'm saying is how you practice really should depend on how much time you have. If you have a lot of time then I could see a lot more drill based stuff and a lot of on-course stuff. If you're like me, limited time, then my thought is repetition is key if you have a repeatable swing.

I was about to write about this pro or scratch am routine but you did it for me @getitdaily.  The three kids at my course that turned pro plus most club champions and scratch golfers I know practice that way.  Once they are past the swing grooving process they just do a lot of repetition.  The pros used to hit like 400 or 500 balls a day plus playing.  And the time comes when they only need to check stance and posture at address, grip and rhythm.  Once they found their swing they simply don't change; they only search for a feel sometimes and mostly dedicate a lot of time to the short game.  And they always pick a target on every shot they rehearse.  

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Just now, Red4282 said:

Interesting. So out of curiosity, if you go to the range and you are hitting it perfect are you still breaking down video looking for swing flaws? 

If I'm striping it then I'll record swings with every club so I have video reference to go back to. But yeah, I still check things. 

 

What I've learned from doing that...

 

1. Very, very low cap (like no worse than a 2) can resolve a ton of issues with setup and tempo. I have a couple of moves that can cause an issue but those moves have been mitigated by setup. If my setup gets loose then my striking does too. 

 

2. You probably have 2 things that cause havoc in your swing as a very low cap. If setup and tempo are solid those moves can still cause issues. Best to make sure everything is in the right place.

 

As faldo said, feel isn't real...the days when I'm striping it are usually because I have no issues with #1. When I make sure my couple of flaws are solid as well, just makes for a fun range session.

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8 minutes ago, naval2006 said:

I was about to write about this pro or scratch am routine but you did it for me @getitdaily.  The three kids at my course that turned pro plus most club champions and scratch golfers I know practice that way.  Once they are past the swing grooving process they just do a lot of repetition.  The pros used to hit like 400 or 500 balls a day plus playing.  And the time comes when they only need to check stance and posture at address, grip and rhythm.  Once they found their swing they simply don't change; they only search for a feel sometimes and mostly dedicate a lot of time to the short game.  And they always pick a target on every shot they rehearse.  

Exactly...see my other reply. 

 

Setup and tempo...overlooked by most, hugely important. 

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2 minutes ago, getitdaily said:

Exactly...see my other reply. 

 

Setup and tempo...overlooked by most, hugely important. 

I personally believe lots of amateurs can't transition from range to course because there's a rhythm issue.  Like Nicklaus says: you can have my swing, but if you don't have my rhythm you'll be a poor golfer.

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6 minutes ago, naval2006 said:

I personally believe lots of amateurs can't transition from range to course because there's a rhythm issue.  Like Nicklaus says: you can have my swing, but if you don't have my rhythm you'll be a poor golfer.

100%. Tempo is the primary thing I'm focused on during a warmup before playing. It overcomes a lot of flaws. 

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My practice would look a lot different if I had a better practice facility. As it stands I basically never practice my short game, I'll work through the bag and check fundamentals like alignment and setup. I've been working on a swing change for a while now and my range sessions have become grinding the feel to try and make the new move happen. It's a very slow process especially with the time constraints I have, which is 1-2 days of practice a week. This leaves areas neglected, I'm in desperate need of recalibrating partial wedges but I just don't have a great way to work on it. That said I can still get it around decently most days and I don't feel like my putting and chipping is costing me a lot vs the long game. I wish I could play more as playing a lot is great practice for getting more confidence on the course.

 

When I was able to really work on it, improvement for me came down to improving striking through the bag (repetition, especially if working on a change), and working on areas of weakness or strange shots that could cause problems in a round. Areas of weakness for me are things like long bunker shots or fairway bunker shots that can be difficult to practice. But if I'm able to practice them I will get more comfortable with them. The issue is that practice may not pay off a lot during a round, I may not hit it in a bunker all day for example. But in really good players they are prepared to at least be somewhat successful in most situations. I'm not big on the putting drills either, unless I notice my stroke has gotten out of whack and I need to iron things out. I'm mainly focused on contact (and speed as a result) and rolling the ball where I'm looking. I think a lot of what you see in those drills just comes down to building confidence in you stroke for out on the course.

 

Regarding the different flights, I think most people would be best served not worrying about that, and working only trajectory and speed control if anything. Modern thinking makes the argument working it is probably a bad idea for most, especially if it's not your natural flight. It introduces double crosses which are typically the biggest misses. But trajectory and speed/spin control are still very necessary if you want to improve and play in different conditions. 

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53 minutes ago, getitdaily said:

100%. Tempo is the primary thing I'm focused on during a warmup before playing. It overcomes a lot of flaws. 

As an impatient/nervy person by default, this is numero uno on the list to keep steady during a round for me. I might achieve that 50% of the time. 

On the range, though I definitely need to practice more, I almost always am practicing tempo and setup/alignment. It just goes awry so often, that half the time people are very surprised I am a sub 8 handicap! I somehow cobble together a score, but it ain't pretty.

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When I practice chipping and pitching I start with a sleeve of 20 balls. I'll hit 60 chips going thru the sleeve 3 times from 3 different places.  I'll then take 3 balls and hit a lot of chips from different places.  I then use just 1 ball hitting a lot of chips from different locations each time.  I then use that 1 ball hitting 10 to 40 yard pitches from different locations around the pitching green. 

 

Yes, it involves a lot of walking between pitches.  But it makes me hit that pitch without just standing there and rolling balls to my feet and just repeating a swing.  Each shot has to be a good one. Each shot is different.  Just like on the course. 

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1 hour ago, TLUBulldogGolf said:

My practice would look a lot different if I had a better practice facility. As it stands I basically never practice my short game, I'll work through the bag and check fundamentals like alignment and setup. I've been working on a swing change for a while now and my range sessions have become grinding the feel to try and make the new move happen. It's a very slow process especially with the time constraints I have, which is 1-2 days of practice a week. This leaves areas neglected, I'm in desperate need of recalibrating partial wedges but I just don't have a great way to work on it. That said I can still get it around decently most days and I don't feel like my putting and chipping is costing me a lot vs the long game. I wish I could play more as playing a lot is great practice for getting more confidence on the course.

 

When I was able to really work on it, improvement for me came down to improving striking through the bag (repetition, especially if working on a change), and working on areas of weakness or strange shots that could cause problems in a round. Areas of weakness for me are things like long bunker shots or fairway bunker shots that can be difficult to practice. But if I'm able to practice them I will get more comfortable with them. The issue is that practice may not pay off a lot during a round, I may not hit it in a bunker all day for example. But in really good players they are prepared to at least be somewhat successful in most situations. I'm not big on the putting drills either, unless I notice my stroke has gotten out of whack and I need to iron things out. I'm mainly focused on contact (and speed as a result) and rolling the ball where I'm looking. I think a lot of what you see in those drills just comes down to building confidence in you stroke for out on the course.

 

Regarding the different flights, I think most people would be best served not worrying about that, and working only trajectory and speed control if anything. Modern thinking makes the argument working it is probably a bad idea for most, especially if it's not your natural flight. It introduces double crosses which are typically the biggest misses. But trajectory and speed/spin control are still very necessary if you want to improve and play in different conditions. 

Regarding the flights… i think it’s counterproductive to flight every shot on a course differently. For me, I have a stock shot which is a slight draw that i will use most of the time, but of course occasionally a fade is a must so i work on that as well, and its by altering setup and face angle just a bit. The swing stays the same. So far its been working really well.

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13 minutes ago, otto6457 said:

The most important thing I've learned about practice from my swing coach is that practice raises your floor.  Playing raises your ceiling.  You need both to be a great player.  The higher your floor, the better your bad days.  The higher your ceiling the better your good days.

Yea i really like that thought and makes sense. Ive put in tons of time the last few years and ive notice my bad days arent as bad but my ceiling hasnt moved much. 

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39 minutes ago, Red4282 said:

Yea i really like that thought and makes sense. Ive put in tons of time the last few years and ive notice my bad days arent as bad but my ceiling hasnt moved much. 

Ceilings are hard to move. Takes time. Takes a lot of time over a small window. And i don't think it's uncommon for your floor to lower while trying to raise your ceiling. 

 

But at the end of the window, both get raised...

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I practice my putting daily to ensure I can start the ball on line. This can be done at home. If I visit the practice green it's mostly to work on something specific: dialing myself in at longer range, practicing some tricky short putts that break, etc. 

 

The rest of my afternoons are usually spent either hitting some balls on the range after work (which I advise if only to stay loose and keep rust off) or playing 9-holes which is good exercise and welcome prep for the weekends more important rounds. 

 

On the weekends I play money matches. It's usually a $25 bet between multiple groups. I might play those games up to 3x per week. Between all of that, I'm doing something golf related every single day. I don't do many drills. I've never been that type. I'm a ball-beater. I will dig it out of the dirt when something's wrong. When I'm swinging well, my practice is inevitably more creative and I'll tend to spend less time on the range and more time playing. 

 

Like most golfers, I usually practice what I'm struggling with. I'll spend time on things that need improvement: short game, distance wedges, fairway metal approaches, driver, etc. 

 

 

 

In general, I'm a big advocate of building your practice around critical elements. I like the classic 3: driver, wedge & putter but I'd also add long (fairway metal) approach shots in there because I think reaching Par-5 holes in 2 shots is critical if you want to maximize birdies.

 

If you've gotten to the point you're worried about how close you can hit your 6-iron, you've obviously mastered the majority of the game. 

 

When scoring is our focus, we have to "turn 3 in 2" as often as we can. That means excelling in those ranges were it's most reasonable we might take 3 shots and turn it into just 2. Short game is obviously one place to start, but distance wedges are also key. 

 

Long Par-5: We need a good distance wedge coming in. 

Short Par-5: We need short game to make birdie. 

Long Par-4: We need short game to salvage par. 

Short Par-4: We need good distance wedge to maybe make birdie. 

Par-3: We need short game to ensure par. 

 

It goes without saying that we have to be swinging driver freely and so we're in good positions, but the better our scoring average can be in these "3-shot" areas, the better our scores will be. At that point, the more often we're able to put a mid-iron on the green (such as a long Par-4 or long Par-3), the more often we won't even have to worry about "salvaging par." 

 

And of course, none of the above matters if you aren't pretty deadly inside 10- or 12-feet. That's where we create the most value in Strokes Gained (1-putting where many people 2-putt). And remember, the most realistic way to avoid a 3-putt isn't to lag a 40-footer to 1-ft but to be capable of burying a clutch 5-footer once or twice during a round when you need it. 

 

 

Edited by MelloYello

TSR3 (9o) (Graphite Design Tour AD IZ-6)
TSR2+ (14.5o 3w) (Graphite Design Tour AD IZ-7)

TSR2 (21o 7w) (Graphite Design Tour AD IZ-7)

zU85 (4-6) (UST Recoil)
Z-Forged (7-Gw) (Nippon Modus3)

SM9 56-F / 60-S
Maltby PTM-5CS

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