How to break 90
Top 5 ways to break 90 this summer
#5- Don’t fight your slice! I look up and down the driving range tee daily and see many players working to eliminate the slice from their driver. While it makes perfect sense to work on the ball flight that you covet, the golf course is not the best place to work on your swing. A left-to-right ball flight has worked very well for some of the best players so try the following tips when you play next and make that slice your secret weapon: 1) Move to the far right side of the tee box. This will allow you to start your ball far enough left to allow for the curve of the ball. 2) Pick a specific target left of the center of the fairway. It’s easy to overlook the importance of a small target when hitting to large fairways. The more focused you are pointing the clubface at the left edge of the fairway you should find the short grass with more regularity.
#4- Don’t be afraid to ‘Choke.’ Choking on the golf course carries with it many negative connotations, but it’s not always costly to choke now and again. The kind of choke I’m referring to relates the placement of your hands on the grip. Players battling control issues can do themselves a huge favor and experiment with grabbing one extra club and choking down on the club up to an inch (maybe more.) Choking down on the club offers added accuracy because shortening the club can aid in your ability to square the clubface.
#3- Putt the lights out. High handicappers give a ton of strokes away on the greens. The most common errors that I witness are failing to hit the ball hard enough and play enough break. To this day, a putt has never gone in the hole that didn’t reach the hole. That’s pretty obvious to most but keep track of how many putts you leave short the next time you play and start to make a point of striking the putt with enough speed to travel 18”-24” past the hole. A well struck putt holds it’s line better and best yet, HAS A CHANCE. Judging break and speed is everything when putting but keep track of how often you’re missing putts on the “Low” side and adjust accordingly. As a tip, train your focus away from the hole when you’re faced with a breaking putt and use an imaginary hole on your intended line. This should help keep the ball tracking on line and lead to more 2-putts and periodic 1-putts.
#2- Swing aggressively to conservative targets. If you watch enough golf on television, you’re likely to see some extremely brave shots to pins tucked into lonely corners of the green, surrounded by watery and sandy graves. Most times when a pro sticks a shot into difficult location it’s actually a miss. Professionals have extreme control over their ball but I’d bet some of the best shots you’ve seen over time have actually been shots wandering away from an conservative target. When you play next, focus your attention to the fat part of the green and make an aggressive swing. A tentative swing to a dangerous pin location often ends up as an impossible up and down. Don’t be a hero unless the circumstance calls for something extraordinary.
#1- Arrange a lesson with our PGA Professionals! A lesson with our professionals will get you on a program specific to your needs. A 1-hour lesson is a great investment for your game and can be arranged 7 days a week. Visit our website to meet the instructors: http://www.peacockgapgolfclub.com/golf-lessons/instructors
Author: Rod Ghilarducci, PGA
Rod joined Peacock Gap as the Head Golf Professional in 2013 and has been a member of the PGA since 2012. Email him directly:headpro@peacockgapgolfclub.com
