W L
GOLF
NEW YEAR - NEW YOU - BETTER GAME
BY TOM ATKINSON , PGA GOLF PROFESSIONAL
Happy New Year readers , here ’ s to your most enjoyable year on the course to date !
We all make New Years resolutions and promise we will stick to them , but to usually renege by the end of January . Don ' t let this happen with your golf , New Year is the perfect time to get ahead of the game for the upcoming season . Promising yourself that you ’ ll play more regularly will certainly make a difference , but guidance from an experienced PGA Professional is only going to elevate your game further .
Make a list or a table of what you ’ d like to achieve , a checklist of your golf game . Have a look at the example below .
But make sure it ' s realistic , for example this golfer has described their putting as GREAT , in my opinion everyone can improve their game with better putting stats , this is a GREAT place to begin your journey to better golf .
Gapping your Clubs Fitting then leads in to gapping . I play in Pro Am ’ s throughout the year , in almost every case the amateur golfer will come up short of the green ( where most of the trouble is ) with their approach shots . There ’ s an easy fix , a gapping session will ensure you have a club in your bag to cover every distance , and then , to back it up , be sure to take your pro up on the following .
On Course Lessons If you ' ve never had one then make sure it ' s the first thing you do . The golf professional hasn ' t stumbled their way to where they are , they have done it through having a sound understanding of the golf swing but more importantly being the best at managing the two most important factors when playing , themselves and the course . You ’ d be surprised to know that a top level Tour Professional will take on about 70 % less flags than you will , not because they don ’ t have the skill of course , but they ’ re more in tune with the consequences of missing on the wrong side , you ’ ll have heard the saying “ look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves ”, this is exactly the same for the pars and birdies .
My top tip for the readers is to draw 18 circles on a piece of paper after your next round , this represents the 18 greens you ' ve just played , now mark an X on each green highlighting where your approach shot ended up . I ' d be surprised if more than 25 % of them were in the top half of the circle ( past half way up the green ) and , if this is the case then the easiest solution is to play to the yardage that your range finder gives you to the back of the green , not the flag . TRY IT and see then whereabouts your X ' s end up .
Club Fitting 80 % of single-figure handicappers have been fitted for their clubs compared to just 51 % of 20-28 handicappers , that ' s all the evidence you need , having a thorough fitting from your PGA Professional will guarantee that you are using the right clubs for your game . These are widely available across the region so get yourself booked in .
Using all of these tools will without doubt help you to play better golf and therefore enjoy it more .
Lessons are available at Heswall Golf Club , please contact us on 0151 342 7431 .
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