7 Secrets to Consistent Golf

1. Take Professional Lessons

PGA professionals know the game better than an other group of golfers in the industry, hands down. If you truly want to get better:

• Stop listening to your amateur buddies that can't break 90 or 100 

AND

• Find a highly experienced golf coach

2. Practice with a Purpose

The only thing worse than not practicing is practicing all the wrong things without knowing it (and you probably practice this way!). Please, please, please read this post if you haven't already.

3. Develop a Routine

Your routine is what gives comfort mentally when put under pressure. Watch the men and women on tour - they just do the same thing over and over again before every shot.

Should you be lucky enough to be able to attend a tour event, follow around a slightly less popular professional for 9 holes. Take note on how they physically move through their routine from shot to shot. (It will be the exact same every time)

4. Work on your Short Game

Simply put the fastest way to lower and more consistent scores is a better short game. Practice short chips, long chips, short pitches and long pitches. Practice bunker shots, flop shots, uneven lies and 50 yard wedges.

If you only have 10 minutes a week to practice, putt for five minutes (more on this in a minute) and pitch for five minutes. 

5. Work on your Putting

Did you know that amateurs shooting between 85-95 use 40% of the total strokes per round on the putting green?

If you shot between 85-95 and want to shoot between 75-85 work on your 2-5 foot putts, and putts from 30-50 feet. This combination makes up 80% of putts taken. 

6. Play a lot of Golf

A round a week at a minimum if you want to play your best is the requirement I place on my full time students. You should do the same. 

7. Become Unconsciously Competent

Avoid thinking about your golf swing on the course, and instead play golf (not golf swing!). If you arrive on the first tee thinking about hinging your wrists, turning your shoulders and lagging the club into impact, you are in for a long round of golf.

Bonus point - have fun! If it isn't fun, why are you doing it?!

Learn How to Practice with a Purpose

There are three major forms of practice

            1. Random – hitting a difference shot every time

            2. Blocked – hitting the same shot over and over again

            3. Competitive – practicing against someone else

Random practice is best used for gaining skills like touch, tempo or balance. An example of random practice would be to take one ball and drop it anywhere around the green and to then proceed to chip the ball onto the green and then putt the ball into the hole.

Blocked practice is best used when needing to gain skills like mechanical improvement or to ingrain any habit on a subconscious level. An example of blocked practice would be working on keeping your left wrist flat at impact when hitting a chip shot.

Competitive practice is best used when the new skill that has been worked on in random and blocked practice seems to be easier to apply than it was when it was first being learned. An example of competitive practice would be challenging someone else to a game of HORSE on the putting green.

In addition to the forms of practice…

            1. Always have a goal for the practice session. Have at least one goal if not three or four specific goals that you are working toward. Some general goal examples might be to have a mechanical goal, a results goal, a ball flight goal, a tempo goal, or a confidence goal. Any goal that you have, make sure it is the right one – work with a coach that knows. (soon to come in another post – picking a qualified instructor) Only a live coach can really tell you what your goal should be.

            2. Consider how much time there is to practice. Will it be five minutes, five hours, or one hour? Whatever that amount of time is, break down the time that  you have to practice and make mini goals within each time “chunk.” For example, the first 10 minutes you will work on putting and executing your full green reading routine and mental routine, followed by making twenty three foot putts in a row in the next 30 minutes.

            3. Always ask yourself before the practice session what mental state will you be in and for how long will you be in the trusting or training state (for more on trusting or training, reference the post entitled “How to Take Your Range Game to the Course”). Will you be training for 10 minutes or 30 minutes? Will you be         trusting for half of the amount of time or the whole time?

Have a plan. Ask yourself these major questions and write it down if you have to so you can have a reference to come back to and keep your focus on Practicing with a Purpose.

Any comments, questions or suggestions for topics are welcome; enter them in the comment box below. Your topic might be the next post! New posts everyday, so get some help from a PGA Professional for free! Scroll down below and enter your email under the heading “Follow by email” so you don't miss a single new golf skill! (You will probably have to change your preferences under the "basic" tab to choose to get email notifications of newsletters/updates)

For more, visit http://www.gibbsgolf.com