Best single thing you ever learnt?

tonyj

What was the one best thing you ever learnt about your game? The one thing that opened your eyes and really helped you improve?

For me it was playing a competition format which limited the choice of clubs to three (I think) - For months afterwards I played with just the 8-iron, 5-wood, and putter. Really helped me understand my game instead of getting stressed over not being able to hit a driver or 3-iron. And I enjoyed myself much more as well.

Besides, if you hit one good drive out of 10 on the driving range. Leave the driver at home....

TheDoc

yeah its a fun format played it a few times in mixed scrambles, but then its only fun. Its not going to prove your overall game really.

I've learnt alot of things, but the best thing I have learned is that power comes from the sweetspot not how hard or fast you swing. I have a rather gentle niced tempo swing and i catch all my shots of the sweetspot and i get my yardage. Always take accuracy over power, in my opinion anyway. In my mind its kinda "well if you hit fairway, you can go for pins cause youll get spin, in the rough, you could catch a flyer or duff it"

Trampas

If you hit a bad shot always take your punishment.

Don't try and hit a one in a million shot.

Get it back in play. It will be better than trying to hit the great which if it doesn't work out you are still in the stay trouble

fred funk }{

One day on the range while driving i decided not to ground my driver before my swing but hover it. This has improved my driving alot and i haven't looked back since. Im not sure why it improved my driving but my theory is that when i hover the driver my stance is in the same position as when im actually hitting the ball including the angle of my back.

mag

spend 70%+ of your practice time on chipping & putting

Trampas

fred funk }{ wrote:

One day on the range while driving i decided not to ground my driver before my swing but hover it. This has improved my driving alot and i haven't looked back since. Im not sure why it improved my driving but my theory is that when i hover the driver my stance is in the same position as when im actually hitting the ball including the angle of my back.

If you keep moving before you take your shot reduces the chance of tension building up in your arms.

It is a good thing to do

prospect

Drive for show,
Putt for dough.

Halo

dont try and play while still drunk from the night before

jcoote

grip your putter as tight as u can to keep your line

Tar.Aldarion

prospect wrote:

Drive for show,
Putt for dough.

that's the one.

Halo

gripping your putter tight? have to say id do the opposite!

jcoote

i was told that and it works for me...he said putting is different for everyone but hold onto it like it was gonna run away and you'll keep your line...i'm still crap but its definatly better

Halo

sounds good! ill try anything at this stage. horse-shoed for eagle on 18 today from 3 feet.

:mad:

milltown

Trampas wrote:

If you hit a bad shot always take your punishment.

Don't try and hit a one in a million shot.

Get it back in play. It will be better than trying to hit the great which if it doesn't work out you are still in the stay trouble

Good advice but I have to admit to doing the opposite when trying to catch up sometimes and ending up another three shots down

TheDoc

I have to say gripping the putter tight is a very bad tip and whoever gave it to you.....id question their coaching ability. Gripping the putter so tightly will cause much more tension in the stroke, causing jerkyness and turbulance and also wil lreduce feel.

Putters should be gripped lightly, described as holding a dieing bird. This gives more feel. A putting stroke should be a slow movement not pacy, a tight grip makes it very hard and encourages a fast stroke making distance hard to perceive.

If i was you id try a light grip. Though grip is only really a problem for distance control, most people dont have a good stroke path, and usualy bring the puuter out to in etc etc.

prospect

Tar.Aldarion wrote:

that's the one.

Or in my case:

Drive for D'oh
Putt for D'oh

garred

Loose grip and slow backswing. Improved my game as they both dictate your final swing. The most important thing I've learned is how to curse. Learned all the swear words on a golf course and still use them regularly

swingking

I have learned to let the golf swing happen; many people analyse their swings too much and they are standing over the ball with no confidence. I realise that good mechanics= a good swing, but if you are thinking about a million different things then there is no hope of having a good round.

So to put it short

paralysis by analysis

TheDoc

Today I learned a very valuable lesson for myself.

Today was mens captains. It was horribly windy and course was playing terribly tough. I was 4 over after 13 on a mega buzz and was well thinking myself in the running. But then happend what happens every round on my course. Ill say out my card then you can spot my whore holes.

par,par,par,bogey,par,bogey,bogey,par,par,bogey,par,par,par,double bogey,double bogey,triple bogey,bogey,bogey.

Prize to who guess my worst 3 holes and the holes i **** up every single week =/ Then i had one of those incidents, where you hear people talking bout you although you shouldnt.

He was saying how such a good golfer i was blah blah blah but at the end said, as i was inflating my head " But when the feels start to fall off, he kicks them off"

After weeks upon weeks of racking my head wondering why i keep ****ing up those holes it just hit me, it is because i let my temper take over, i stop thinking and get aggressive and lose concentration.

So im playing Wednesday and im going to ttry be relaxed and not get angry and see how things go, ill inform you of my findings.

But i think it might work, last weds in a comp, i had arrived on the tee box after only 2 hours of sleep and having my debs the night before. I had said to myself and my playing partner, im well going to get .1 back and i should accept it. I played the game relaxed and smooth and chilled and had 39 points and got cut. So it might be my answer.

angry_fox

Just take it one shot at a time, never think about what you should have done with your last shot but concentrate on your next shot.

...and dont get stuck behind a three ball of senior ladies golfers, 3 hours to do 8 holes :mad:

ismynametoolong

if you understand the basics of a golf shot and know the difference between open , closed and square club face , then try the following .
Where applicable endeavour to ensure the same set up and address on every shot and try envisage the shot you want to make in your minds eye .
If playing an iron of any description keeping the ball forward in ones stance promotes a cleaner strike . It works for me !!!!
Also jiggers are not golf clubs and will not improve your game practice chipping etc with different short irons and your game will really improve

damienom

Never eat yellow snow........

stringy

jcoote wrote:

grip your putter as tight as u can to keep your line

sorry but stupidest tip ever, gripping tightly only increses tension and reduces feel, ask any pro and they'll tell you the best putters grip as loosly as possiible

Reyman

I notice every single pro takes off his glove when he gets to the putting green. They must think 'feel' is really vital for good putting ? What do others here do?

swingking

I believe that for all feel shots you should take your glove off. I do it for pitching, bunkers, chipping and putting. You can get a constant grip pressure that is crucial for feel

css

angry_fox wrote:

Just take it one shot at a time, never think about what you should have done with your last shot but concentrate on your next shot.

I gotta agree with you there, you just got to get over your last shot, be it good or bad, admiring a good shot can f*ck you up as much as growling over a bad one!

For my game, my putting always used to be my weakest part of my game. I got a tip of an uncle a few years ago about following through on the putts, by picking a spot about 2 inches the hole side of the ball and making sure the clubhead passes over it. The result for me was a much better all around putting stroke, along with improving pace control on fast/slow greens. Putting is now one of my strong points, especially inside 10 feet. Now if i could just get my long game sorted!!