I hope last months article helped you improve your consistency with your ball striking. This month I will show you a useful tip for your setup when driving and also a game to help you when you’re practicing your putting; which will make it more interesting. There’s a saying in golf "Drive for show: Putt for dough". You have probably heard a colleague say this at some stage but it’s very true. Having recently watched Phil Mickelson win at
Pebble Beach, I have to say he was very impressive off the tee but his putting was awesome. It is great to be good off the tee but if you’re making a lot of three putts you will not shoot a good score.
I hope that this months tips combined with good tee shots and more consistent putting will allow you to better your handicap with great scores.
LONG DISTANCE PUTTING
Are three putts costing you a lot of strokes? It is important when you finish a game of golf that you work out your statistics. If you think back about your round add up all the putts you took whether it was 9 or 18 holes. 36 putts would be the equivalent of 2 putts every hole for 18 holes for example. The best putter on the European Tour is Jamie Elson who finished 2nd in the Madeira Island Open last year. His average so far this season is 26.5 putts per round. This is a very impressive stat but if you’re averaging 36 or more putts you will only shoot an average score and rarely beat your handicap.
But continual putting practice can become a bit monotonous and this is a good game for you to play when you’re practicing your long distance putting on the putting green. If you can consistently get down in two putts from outside
25 feet you will see a massive improvement in your putting stats. To become a proficient long distance putter you need to create a pressure situation like you would have on the course. Pick a hole on the putting green put a tee in the ground measuring out 25ft, 30ft, 35ft & 40ft. The idea is to try and get every putt rolling past the hole. Create a system for scoring by awarding yourself two points for every ball that is within one putter length past the hole, a single point for a putt that is within a putter length short of the hole, and a luxury award of 3 points for every putt you hole. A score of 8 would be average, 10 is good, 12 is very good and 16 is excellent. If you do this every time you’re on the putting green, noting down your scores, you will hopefully see an improvement in your overall putting scores next time you play.
DRIVER
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