short game

Chipping Practice – Always Learning Something

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Practice is the cornerstone to great golf. It allows everyone to try different methods of making different shots. Practice helps players iron out the kinks and create a repeatable swing under pressure. Practice helps players prepare to shoot low golf scores.

Two days ago, I hit the range to work on my ball striking and more importantly my short game. After hitting a large bucket of balls (which really did not help my game much) I headed to the chipping area. I was intent working on my weight distribution and ball position. Continue reading →

The Grateful Golfer Mid Season Review

/ The Grateful Golfer / 7 Comments

It is about that time to review my current progress during the 2016 golf season. Each year, I like to examine how my season is progressing and figure out if I need a mid-season adjustment in order to meet my pre-season goals. I am sure many of you do the same thing and my process is not unique, but it is something I do every year!

This year, my mid-season review is a about 1 month late. Normally, I try to examine everything by mid-July, but due to several big life changes (retiring, moving, starting work again) I did not play as much golf in early July as normal. That is okay, however, because I needed to ensure my priorities were on my life changes and nothing else. So here is what I think so far!

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Persistence is Key to Successful Golf

/ The Grateful Golfer / 5 Comments

Lately, I read many interesting stories from fellow bloggers about the early season challenges. The range of woes very, but for the most part it looks like their challenges are a short term. As a fellow golfer, I am experiencing some challenges, but this is a normal trend considering it is still April. If I still experience the same issues in June, panic might start to sink in. Continue reading →

Golf Wisdom – Schooled By Experience

/ The Grateful Golfer / 7 Comments

Old ClubsGolf is an interesting sport, the young seem to think they can dominate the wily veteran through sheer power, but I am not so sure. Bernhard Langer at this year’s Masters was schooling the young guns until the last round; although he had a tough last round, he did finish in T27, not bad for a 58-year-old! For the first three rounds, he used his guile, experience and confidence to stay in the hunt and that kind of golf wisdom is generally gained from experience.

This reminds me of a game of golf about 25 years ago that taught me many lessons I never want to repeat. The main lesson was to never underestimate my opponent, regardless of what they look like, swing, or equipment they use; and never think that you have them beat before you start to play!

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Want Low Scores in Golf?

/ The Grateful Golfer / 4 Comments

We all want low scores in golf! There are very few players I know who does not want to play better every time they hit the links. Regardless of skill level, most golfers face the real challenge of using our time wisely to develop positive habits that will consistently improve our golf game and produce low scores.

What do you practice the most, thinking it will produce lower golf scores? When you first arrive at the course do you grab a bucket of balls and off the range you go; do you grab your wedge and hit a couple of balls before sprinting to the first tee; or do you grab your putter, hit  couple 15 foot putts to get the feel back, then off to the range or first tee? I routinely see these and other less productive habits at my local course, and unfortunately, I am guilty of some of them from time to time. So what to do?

Lately, I have asked the golfing masses a series of questions about various golfing issues. Most of the time, the answers are in line with my approach to golf. Yet, now and then I am reminded about how to succeed at golf. As a result of a recent question, I was reminded of a lesson I never get tired of learning:

As you can see over 70% of the respondents have an awesome short game when they shoot low scores. I am not surprised because I have always said that to score low, it is important to have a consistent, focused and confident short game.

As I look back at the latter half of 2015, I remember practicing my short game less and hitting the range more. Do not get me wrong, range work is important, but practicing my short game is critical to low scores. I guess I was talking the talk, but forgetting to walk the walk! So I want to thank those who took the time to answer my question and reminded me to focus in 2016 to shoot low golf scores!

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!