IntoTheRough

You hit a shocker, it happens- keep the toys in the pram. Do not swear, test the flight capabilities of your club or appeal loudly to mystical bodies. Your partners are trying to enjoy their day, even if you aren't. Losing your cool means losing the game. Do not scream and do a lap of honour if you play a career shot - others may be concentrating on doing the same near by. If your group falls more than one hole behind the group in front and there is another group behind, you must let them... Read Full Story

Do not take your camera to tournaments. If your trigger finger cannot survive a day without a lens, some tournaments have cameras at the practice ground for you to take pictures of the players. Turn your mobile phone off - you are out watching golf and nothing should interrupt something as enjoyable as that! Do not make any noise when players are setting up to play or making a stroke. Appreciate good play not bad play. If they yip it from two feet then sympathise rather than celebrate. Think... Read Full Story

Know how far you hit each club. I can't go any further here if you don't! Go to a flat practice ground on a calm day, hit 20 balls, pace out the distance, remove the best two and the worst two and work out the average distance. If this is not possible, play a course with a yardage chart and note how far you hit the ball with each club as you play. Play within your yardage limits. Even Tiger does not hit his Sunday best every time. Give yourself a margin for error by taking a club that you... Read Full Story

My club has 750 members so lockers are in demand. After being on the locker waiting list for 4 years I finally got mine yesterday. I dashed down to get my key and was chuffed to find I had a ground level one, no need to lug a big bag above my shoulder. I was also pleased to see my big bag fitted snugly in. So there I was all pleased with myself when i started thinking of the practicalities of it. When I finish a round of golf I like to clean my clubs in my own time, so the clubs would have to... Read Full Story

It may sound overly simple, but the key to a round is usually not in how many good shots you make, it’s how few bad shots you had. A bad shot is not only one that isn't good aesthetically, it’s bad because it didn’t help you at all, takes you from not being in trouble to suddenly being in major trouble or it throws off your whole course management game plan. You don't have to risk hitting that bad shot. Usually, there is a safer way of getting ‘ there” that avoids the unnecessary risk of a... Read Full Story

Unless you're totally “in jail,” here’s one tip which – provided you make the putt – will allow you to get up and down. First, identify the shot you want to make – be it a chip, pitch, Texas wedge, etc – and then pick the area where you want the ball to land. The key is giving it the proper amount of room to roll. Finally, be crisp through the ball – toward the target, and be sure to strike it clean. It is much better to be positive and aggressive in your approach, than weak and tentative. Read Full Story

The following example will help illustrate where and why pros are so superior to the average golfer. Say you happen to get your new, extra-long hitting driver and with your new metal three wood you’re able to bomb two shots and carry it through the back of the green to some light rough in two. If you have a great short game, you hole out the chip for an eagle. If you have a good short game, you chip up close and sink the putt for a birdie. If you have an OK short game, you probably chip up to... Read Full Story

A lot of golfers have a control issue with the game of golf. They think they can influence where a ball goes after it’s been struck. You can't. Once it's been hit and is on the way, it's out of your hands. You can yell at it. You can encourage it. But in reality, your influence over the shot only exists before and during the shot. Once the ball's been struck, it will go where? Right. Where you hit it. Worrying about where it's gonna go immediately after you hit it is often what causes... Read Full Story

You may have heard the adage “your worst putt is still better choice than your best chip.” Try testing this theory someday on the practice green. Take a half dozen of two different types of balls – be it brand, color or numbers. Choose three spots off the green – yet relatively close to the green – which mimic actual situations you might find yourself in during a round. Alternate between chips and putts from each of your various lies. The goal is to get close enough to get up and down. Then... Read Full Story

Take a backswing, and then stop at the top and look down at the ball. Guess what? The ball didn't move. It's still there, exactly the same way it was before you started the swing. So why is there this great need to hurry down and hit it before you've even completed the backswing? There shouldn't be. The ball won't move. It will just stay there. You could take ten seconds to complete the swing and the ball will still be there. Make that simple concept a part of your thinking process. Relax... Read Full Story