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Short game

Discussion in 'Anything goes' started by Dick Whitman, Jul 20, 2011.

  1. Dick Whitman

    Dick Whitman Well-Known Member

    I've been using Ben Hogan's "Five Fundamentals" to get my tee and iron game into gear, and it's really helped, and was wondering if anyone has any advice on short game instructionals?

    I bought "Short Game for Dummies" this week for $0.01 from Amazon.com. I passed on the Pelz "Bible" because reviewers said it can be pretty dense for a novice.

    I figure that the short game is a great way to get better because it's free to practice.
     
  2. Madhavok

    Madhavok Well-Known Member

    Find someone who is great around the green to help you out if they so choose to. For me, it's my friend RJ who is probably winning the club championship right now - he's also a +2. This is my routine, thanks to him.

    Anyway - find the right clubs for around the green. For me, it's my PW, 54 and 60. 60 for some flops to get over humps, bunkers etc - 54 to do some nice pitches off the fringe and in the first layer and the PW for longer pitches.

    I like to take six tees and set them around the hole, three feet away. I then take three balls and just go at it until I get three balls to sit within that circle.

    I work on different sort of shots and lengths.

    Once I'm done chipping - which is usually an hour or an hour and a half - I work on putting.

    I do the exact same thing I did with chipping, but this time putting. Six stations, three balls - three feet away from the hole. I don't call it quits until I make all of the 18 shots in a row. If I miss one I start over.
    This gives you the mindset and muscle memory for these short putts and as well as the mindset of seeing putts being made, not missed.

    After that, I move back to six feet and do about 10-20 of those from one or two spots.

    There's no point whatsoever in trying to make a 30' putt on the practice green. You're just going to get frustrated and also used to seeing putts not fall. Sure, you'll get speed dialed but you can get that done before a round by just putting three balls across the green.

    I do all of this either before or after the range - but usually after. My range session with my irons, hybrid and driver is about 15 minutes long unless I'm working on something. There's no point in overworking your swing - you'll mess it up.


    If you want other books to read, please grab copies of all of Bob Rotella's stuff.

    Good luck!
     
  3. Freelance Hack

    Freelance Hack Active Member

    I think it was Harvey Penick who said a short putt is worth the same as a long drive, so if you master the short game (putting and chipping) it will help your game more than if you can bomb it 300 yards down the fairway.

    I would start with putting and work your way away from the hole, similar to a basketball shooting drill. Start a couple feet away from the hole. Once you've made a certain number of putts, move back to 5 feet, then 10 and so on until you're off the green.

    Then work on your chipping, following the same regimen. Fringe out to about 50 yards from the hole.
     
  4. qtlaw

    qtlaw Well-Known Member

    Stan Utley wrote a great short game book, easy to read and follow. Fairly easy to execute too.
     
  5. Dick Whitman

    Dick Whitman Well-Known Member

    This is interesting advice and well-taken. It seems that my range sessions definitely follow a curve where, by the very end if I've been out there too long, it's almost like my body just won't stay to form any more.
     
  6. Madhavok

    Madhavok Well-Known Member

    I hit 20-25 balls max and give the rest to some kids I see since I get them for free. Just keep the flow of things on a day-to-day basis. Even if I end on a bad shot on one of my irons, I go right to the next one and go from there -

    Also - while I'm at the range and since I'm only hitting a very small amount of balls, I approach every shot like I would on the course. I want to get a routine on lock that I do on course and off. That way, it all becomes muscle memory - the approach, setup, and aim.
     
  7. CentralIllinoisan

    CentralIllinoisan Active Member

    Tic-Tac-Toe is a short game. As is Rock, Paper, Scissors.

    Let me know how they work out for you.
     
  8. Kermit McManus

    Kermit McManus New Member

    I Practice a lot, on Tiger Woods; helping me get timing down.

    Try this Dick - it is very excellent.

    I olny wish there were Video Game to help me with my heading skill's.
     
  9. CentralIllinoisan

    CentralIllinoisan Active Member

    The absence of a comma in the second graf sends the mind whirling in many directions. Especially given the subject of the first graf and the last two words of the last one.
     
  10. three_bags_full

    three_bags_full Well-Known Member

    Good job, CI.
     
  11. holy bull

    holy bull Active Member

    Agree 100 percent on the range routine. I'm better off hitting half a dozen junkers out of my own bag before a round than hitting a bucket.

    Plus, my delicate Lord Fauntleroy hands got a blister once, prompting my brother to mutter, "Pencil-pusher can't take it."

    Practice green, meanwhile, I'll spend an hour over there, inventing games like chip from a ridiculously tough spot and two-putt, say, three balls in a row.
     
  12. John

    John Well-Known Member

    I take about a dozen practice swings, but I never hit any balls before I tee off. This works for me.

    I don't visit the practice green, either. This doesn't really work for me.

    My handicap's around a 12 and would be half that if I spent more (or any) time on my short game.

    Of course as a college football beat writer I'm about to put the golf bag in the closet for the next four or five months, so it probably doesn't matter much now.
     
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