Archived Newsletters - PRACTICE YOUR "UP & DOWN" SHOTS FOR LOWER GOLF SCORES :
<-- BACK
Newsletter October 2024
If you want to score lower, you need to practice the shots you use the most. Your short game can make or break a round of golf, so it's important to know what you're doing around the greens if you hope to score well. Watch any professional golf event and you'll see every player using a variety of shots to get the ball close to the hole. If your game doesn't have at least a fraction of those skills, you're adding unnecessary shots to your score every time you go out on the course.
How Many Greens In Regulation Does An Average Golfer Hit?
|
Row 0 - Cell 0
|
GIR Percentage
|
Avg No. Of GIR Per Round
|
GIR Approach Proximity
|
|
Tour Player
|
67%
|
12.06
|
23ft
|
|
Scratch
|
56%
|
10.08
|
26ft
|
|
3 Handicap
|
50%
|
9
|
27ft
|
|
6 Handicap
|
44%
|
7.92
|
29ft
|
|
9 Handicap
|
38%
|
6.84
|
30ft
|
|
12 Handicap
|
31%
|
5.58
|
32ft
|
|
15 Handicap
|
27%
|
4.86
|
33ft
|
|
18 Handicap
|
23%
|
4.14
|
35ft
|
|
20 Handicap
|
20%
|
3.6
|
36ft
|
Source: Arccos
For all levels of golfers, full shots from the driver through the wedges are used in only 37% of the total number of shots! The half shots: chipping, pitching, sand, and putting comprise the other 63% of your score.
Chip Shots
Chipping is an important skill for any golfer because everyone misses greens. A missed green means you're going to have to either pitch or chip to get the ball close and save par (or bogey). Without the skill of chipping, you must find a way to putt or pitch in a less-than-ideal situation. The easiest shots for success are in this order: putting, chipping, pitching.
The chip shot is any shot that is up to five yards from the edge of the green A chip shot is one where the golf ball is hit with a low trajectory, stays low to the ground, and rolls for most of its journey. Chip shots are the shots between a pitch and a putt. A chip shot has more power and height than a putt, but less than pitch shots. There's more spin than a putt, but less than a pitch.
The chip shot is executed with any club using the same stroke as a putter. The ball is landed on the green near the edge and runs from there to the hole. The axiom for chipping off the green is "less airtime, more ground time."
Pitch Shots
A pitch shot, or pitching, is the opposite of chipping in almost every way. You play a pitch shot farther from the green when your ball must travel further, about 30-80 yards. When you contact the ball after your swing, your ball will be in the air for a more extended amount of time than it will be rolling on the ground.
Pitch shots are less than a full swing shot where the pitched ball spends most of its time in the air. The chip shot is also less than a full swing shot, but the ball spends most of the time on the ground. The basic intent of chip shots is to create a low shot that gets the ball rolling. Pitch shots fly farther than chip shots and don't roll as far.
The pitch shot is often used when there is an obstacle the golfer needs to hit over like a bunker, pond, or tree. It also might be used when the ground conditions are unpredictable and chipping the ball along the ground is not a reliable method of getting the ball close.
The pitch shot is truly a fundamental short game shot you must have in your toolbox. It is so important for scoring that professionals have several wedges in their bags. Practice half and partial wedge pitch shots into the green as a scoring tool, not just as a recovery shot. It is important to calibrate and know how far you hit each of your wedges.
Short Game Goal
Your goal is to get the ball on the green close enough for two putts, or less.
You can stand on the range or chipping green and hit pitch shot after pitch shot, but that doesn't mean you'll encounter that exact shot on the golf course. When you have successfully gained confidence in your less than full swing, take a playing lesson on course with someone who can show you how to hit pitch shots from unique positions like hitting out of divots, deep grass, wet grass, over water, to severely sloped greens, etc.
Since short game shots require small muscle motor control, you must be more relaxed to hit these shots consistently. Tension results in loss of rhythm and causes thin and fat shots. Quitting on the swing can be a definite problem when shortening your swing, so be sure to accelerate through the ball to a finish. Breathe deeply during your pre-shot routine to relax your mind and body.
Mental Goal
Your mental goal is to believe you can get the ball "up and down" from any place around the greens. Use self-talk affirming that you love to hit these scoring shots.
The first step is to visualize the ideal shot. Create a mental picture of how the shot will look. See the exact landing spot, trajectory, bounce and roll that will work best. Focus on this picture. Pick the best wedge to get the ball to that landing spot with the trajectory and roll that you pictured. Breathe to relax and go through your pre-shot routine trusting that your subconscious will perform as you have imagined. Enjoy your result!
Play "in the zone" with Joan
Entrain Your Heart & Mind for Peak Performances
To train your brain for improving and trusting your short game, listen to "Master Your Short Game for Low Scores" CD/MP3 available at www.pmi4.com/cart as well as eight self-empowering guided imagery self-hypnosis CDs/MP3s in the privacy of your own home.
One-on-one coaching: Call +1-828.707.5478 or contact Joan by email pmi4@bellsouth.net for a free consultation to learn about mental golf in person, or worldwide by phone. Learn what is missing in your game so you can achieve your peak performances.
Please share this monthly mental instruction newsletter if it has been helpful to you. Forward it to your friends so they can have more fun playing the game of golf while lowering their scores. Link to www.pmi4.com to download previous PMI mental golf newsletters from 1999-2024 on the Archived Newsletter page https://cutt.ly/kwMY2jXt
To unsubscribe or change info: If you no longer want to receive this newsletter, or if you want to change the address to which it is sent, please reply with "unsubscribe" or the details to "change subscription" to pmi4@bellsouth.net
"THE HEART OF GOLF, Access Your Supreme Intelligence for Peak Performances" explores and explains negative emotions such as fear and performance anxiety, the four Cs of mind blockage, the four progressive stages of learning the supreme intelligence of the heart, and the way to access the zone in competition. It is a player's guide for developing your true inner self by returning to the joy and love of self instead of seeking praise and rewards from the outside world.
This guidebook for transforming your life and golf game is available at https://amzn.to/3jEMVuv All royalties will be donated to junior golf.
Did you miss the previous newsletter?
Read it on the Archived Newsletters page www.pmi4.com
New newsletters are posted every month.
|
