The 45% Putting game

It is often not realized but 45% of the game of golf is made up of strokes on the putting green.

If you equate that to how much practice you devote to Putting, then its time to hit the practice putting green and master a number of key areas.

The Set up

Grip

There are many different grips used when putting, however, each one of them is trying to achieve basically the same thing;

The hands should be parallel with the putter face. (Diag. 1)

The hands should be placed on the handle with the palms facing each other and the shaft running between the 2 fleshy pads on the palm (Diag. 2). The hands are then wrapped onto the club with the thumbs running down the flat portion of the handle.

Stance and Posture

Your stance should be moulded around certain fundamentals of the Putting set-up, firstly, your eyes should be directly over the ball, this is so the putter blade will move back and forth in a straight line. This can be tested by dropping a ball from the bridge of the nose and it should hit the putter head. (Diag 3)

Your arms should be hanging loose beneath your shoulders so that they are relaxed and extended creating a tingling feeling in your fingers (NB: when in this position the putter should be cut to length) (Diag.4)

The putter blade should strike the ball slightly on the up-stroke hence the Sternum should be placed behind the ball in the set up this will allow the blade to impart top spin on the ball at impact. (Diag.5)

Finally, in the set-up, the point between the shoulder blades at the back of the neck should be parallel with the ground, this is vital and will allow the shoulders to rock up and down and push the putter through square to the target line. (Diag.6)

The Putting Stroke

When dealing with any area of the short game accuracy is imperative. So basically the less moving parts there are the more accurate the stroke will become. This is why, when putting, the only moving part of the stroke is 'The Putting Triangle'.

The Triangle runs up both arms and across the shoulders with the sternum being the central pivot point, whilst the rest of the body (legs, hips, wrists, chest and head) REMAIN STILL, the shoulders will rock up and down. (Diag.7)

This will allow the putter to move back and forth in a straight line making contact with the ball at 90 degrees. A good way of checking the stroke is firstly to place a club under the arm pits and rock the shoulders the club should move up and down and not side to side. (Diag.8) Secondly check that the putter head, left hand and left shoulder move away from the ball simultaneously, if they are not then the stroke contains too much wrist action...

The putter should be placed stationary, as close to the ball as possible at the address position, the length of stroke is of course dependent on distance, however, I do recommend that the back stroke is half the distance of the Follow-through this will encourage a smooth tension free stroke.(Diag.9)

When dealing with such small margins of error on the putting green, the set-up and stroke should feel rock solid, however that is only half the story. Next time we will deal with the 'Feel and Finesse' elements of putting which will train the brain to become accurate at judging distance and direction, this is achieved through sub-conscious drills and games that over a period of time I have developed for all standards of player.

Chipping and Pitching

The greatest golfers in the world average hitting approximately 13 greens per round. That means that 4 to 5 times a round a Chip or Pitch is needed to save par. At that level of competition the difference between winning and losing can be only 1 shot.

The high handicap player whose golf is for "fun" may hit only 3 or 4 greens in regulation per round. This means a good Short Game provides him with plenty of great opportunities to save par and cut that high handicap very quickly.

Hence this Top Tip session will give you a good understanding of 2 elements of good Short Game:Chipping and Pitching.

Chipping

When to Chip?

I always say, "When you can chip, CHIP" The reason for this is that the chip is a far more accurate shot than the Pitch simply because a ball running along the ground is a lot easier to judge than a ball that is in the air.

The situation however in which to chip must be governed by the terrain and the time the ball is in the air, compared to rolling along the ground. So my third to two third rule almost always applies. This means when weighing up the shot your first priority must be can the ball run on the ground twice the distance it's in the air.

Set Up

Grip

It is important to remember that when chipping the clubface must remain square to the target line throughout the stroke alot like a putter does, so I advise when chipping you simply adopt your putting grip, making sure the back of the top hand is facing the target.

Stance

Assume a stance, such that the ball is central in the stance with your sternum slightly ahead of the ball this will ensure a slightly downward blow onto the ball. The eyes should be directly over the ball this will mean the club shaft will be extremely upright compared to that of a normal iron shot. Again similar to putting if the eyes are over the ball the club will swing back and forth in a nice straight line. (Diagram 1 and 2)

Club Selection

You can use any club to chip, but generally 7,8,9 irons are favoured; however do not hesitate to experiment with the PW and SW for those shots where not much roll on the ball is required.

Stroke

The chipping action is always played with just the shoulders and arms, very similar to the putting triangle action (see Easter top tips). The body remains very still and the hands are very passive throughout with no wrist action.

For maximum accuracy the stroke must be short and sharp with a rapid tempo. The backswing will be equal to the follow-through in length. The quick tempo will allow the ball to be collected by the Clubface without having to scoop the ball in the air. (Diagram 3)

Pitching

When to Pitch?

Of course there are lots of occasions during a round of golf when your only option is to pitch the ball high in the air.

Such times are generally when you need elevation to eliminate a hazard whilst landing the ball softly on the green, or when the green is above you and you need to eliminate the slope in front of you.

Secondly when the 1/3 to 2/3 chipping rule does not apply you will not have a lot of green to work with hence height is needed to stop the ball quickly next to the flag with minimal roll.

Finally the pitch is generally the only option when the ball is in heavy rough; the SW tends to slide through the rough a lot more effectively than a chipping club.

Set up

Grip

Normal long game grip.

Stance

The weight should be placed about 80% on the front foot; this will allow the club to attack the ball from a steep angle. The Stance will be pointing slightly to the left of the target (R Hand Player) this will allow the arms to swing freely. The hands will be placed in front of the ball at the set up again to keep the club shaft angle hitting down on the ball at impact. (Diagram 4)

Club Selection

Pitching Wedge, Sand Wedge or Lob Wedge.

Stroke

The golden rule to good pitching is to be aware that the clubhead must impart a downward blow onto the ball hitting the ball then the turf. Scooping the ball is not an option. The hands must be in front of the ball at impact to apply the above. The takeaway should again be made with the arms but this time the weight of the club hinges the wrists gently upwards allowing the angle of the shaft to be steep enough to hit the ball with a downward motion. (Diagram 5)

I believe however that the key to consistent pitching is a short backswing with a lot of hand acceleration through the impact area thus the clubhead will be kept in control. (Diagram 6)

The finish position varies according to the length of the shot but it does have a finish, No stabbing the ball. (Diagram 7)

Throughout the swing it is imperative that the body weight remains 80% on the front foot.

The above information will help but remember Chipping and Pitching makes up 40% of the game so individual attention is needed and lots of practice.

Without mastering Chipping and Pitching you will not improve your golf so book your flights and let us help you on he best short game practice facilities in Europe!!

The core of the swing

Here I am going to explain the movement of the inner body (everything but the arms) during the swing. It is fair to say that if the bigger muscles move correctly then the arms and the club head will return to the ball in a powerful, consistent fashion.

When we marvel at the world’s top players we generally surmise that the movements they make are so effortless whilst the ball travels so far and straight. How can that be?

Well the answer is simple - they all have the ability to coil and pivot their inner body superbly well.

With my help you can too, with astounding instant results.

The coil and pivot

For clarification the coil is the winding up of the body top half against the lower half (the waist band being the divide) this creates some torque in the body (spring effect).

The pivot is how the body's weight transfers during this coiling action, being so interlinked we always work on both areas together.

Benefits of a good coil/pivot

1. Gives the body optimum balance, essential in any movement.

2. Creates power through body dynamics and not force.

3. Acts as a control unit for the entire swing helping consistency.

4. Maintains correct shoulder plane and other body angles during the swing, helping to reduce unnecessary compensations.

Drills to help create effortless power and consistent ball striking

1. The X-Drill

Uneven Lies

Most Golf is practiced on a flat surface but hardly any of the game is actually placed there. The 4 most frequently encountered uneven lies are;

Here are the basic considerations and adjustments for these shots.

Uphill lie

The most common tendencies from the uphill lie are pulling, hitting heavy and under clubbing. This is due primarily to gravity forcing the player towards the low ground. To stop this tendency when faced with an uphill lie the player should;

2. Ply the ball to the middle of the stance to make contact easier.

3. Take a stronger club to reach the target.

Downhill lie

The downhill lie shot is difficult because the ball is below the normal stance level. This shot requires more concentration than any of the others. The tendencies are a push or push-fade and the topped shot. A push or push-fade is largely the result of not squaring the clubface. It is difficult to produce clubface rotation and not top the shot while trying to follow the slope of the terrain. Further adding to this tendency to push or slice is gravity pulling the player's swing centre ahead of the ball. Some solutions are:

Ball above the feet shot

All uneven lies create a tendency for the player to make mistakes such as incorrect distance, faulty direction or both. When the ball is above the player's feet, on the side of a hill, the three most frequent errors are chunking, pulling and hooking. The chunk is easy to understand. The ball is elevated and closer to the player. This requires the player to either assume a different body tilt than that to which he is accustomed and/or to shorten his hand position on the grip. If neither is done the club will hit the ground first rather than the ball. Pulling and hooking is basically down to gravity and swing path. The natural tendency when the ball is above the feet is that gravity pulls the body backwards; hence the ball is likely to be pulled in flight. The swing path will also become very shallow which can result in a hook. Here are some solutions you can try to offset these three tendencies when the ball is above the feet.