Many golfers regularly play what they consider to be their home course. However, when they play courses away from home, they often wonder, “Why do I play better on my home course?”
They also try to understand what local knowledge of a course means and how much is it worth. Local knowledge encompasses several aspects: The insight in knowing the proper distance that your shots must carry to reach your target.
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It is the advantage of proper club selection from previous experiences. Less often you will find yourself doubting yourself if you are choosing between clubs for your shot.
You also have the understanding of how greens roll and the best way to read them, which is a tremendous leg up when putting.
Players with local knowledge also are aware of the type and weight of the sand in the bunkers for the proper execution of a sand save.
Home course players also have the added advantage of the memories of their good shots and the experience of rounds played previously at the facility.
There is also a comfort zone from knowing that you’ve been there before.
Going to a new course is like any other corner of Earth: Golf courses are living, growing and ever-evolving acres of real estate. With the forces of Mother Nature, they are constantly changing.
Yet, golfers who regularly play their home course will quickly adapt to these nuances and be able to take advantage of these beneficial factors for play. So it is not surprising that many golfers often play their best rounds right at home.
One equalizer is when a new course is opened or renovated. This is best illustrated with this week’s grand debut of the new Wanamaker Course at the PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie.
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“The new changes this year [to the PGA Golf Club] allow all the players to be in the same boat – without any advantages of having played it before,” said Jim White, a PGA Master Professional at Wilderness Ridge Golf Club in Lincoln, Neb.
Players of similar skill levels will find that everyone is experiencing a fun and exciting new learning curve. This adds to the player’s challenge, enjoyment and love for the course and the game.
And when you come back to your old friends at the PGA Golf Club, the Wanamaker and Ryder Courses will present all players with new challenges as they learn the lay of the land on the new courses.
Similarly, when tour players are unfamiliar with a course or haven’t played it in a long time, they turn to the club’s PGA professional for guidance.
In fact, the last two PGA champions did just that. Last August, Tiger Woods gathered extensive course layout advice from Medinah Country Club’s PGA head professional Mike Scully. Medinah had undergone an extensive makeover by Rees Jones, and Woods was eager to listen to a PGA pro who knew the course intimately.
Meanwhile, Phil Mickelson was the only player to “pick the brain” of Baltusrol Country Club head pro Doug Steffen prior to the 2005 PGA Championship. From that conversation, Mickelson developed a cut shot off his driver that enabled him to control his tee shots and masterfully play Baltusrol.
Bottom line is if you have the opportunity to speak with a club’s pro or have a partner who is rich in knowledge about his or her home course, by all means ask for guidance and insight.
So once you uncover these new challenges, you can develop your own home course advantage.
To find a PGA professional for your home or away course, log on to www.playgolfamerica.com. If you are interested in playing the newly renovated Wanamaker and Ryder Courses at the PGA Golf Club, visit either www.pgavillage.com or call 800-800-GOLF.
Rick Martino is the director of instruction for the PGA of America and teaches at the PGA Learning Center in Florida. Contact him at 800-800-GOLF or [email protected].
Golf World: How to simplify your swing
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I am often asked “How can I simplify my swing?” or “How can I become more consistent?” My answer is to “simplify your movement.”
The object of any golf swing is to come into impact with a square face (club facing your intended target), center face impact, an inside-to-down-the-line approach to the ball, enough club head speed to achieve distance and the correct angle of approach coming down.
I realize this may sound overwhelming to some, but sometimes less is more, and in this case less movement in certain areas may be more productive. First, let’s target two factors for inconsistency and later we’ll move on to elements for inconsistency and corrections in the next column.
A “less-is-more” approach is best achieved by taking excess motion out of your swing. For example, a three-quarter backswing is probably better than going all the way to parallel. Most people swing too long because they turn their hips too much on the backswing.
It’s probably better to keep your left foot on the ground and only turn your hips 45 degrees on the backswing. The best drill I know to cut down on excessive lower body motion on the backswing is the bar stool or kitchen stool drill. Put a stool between the legs to restrict hip turn.
Another area where excessive motion occurs is also in the hips. However, this time it occurs because golfers set up far to the left at address, and then have to sway back to the right on the backswing.
A proper spine tilt to the right allows the golfer to turn around the spine without swaying.
Many golfers create excess motion at the top of their swing by picking up the club on the takeaway or by overextending. Both errors create a long golf swing.
Long swings are hard to time because the hips must slow down on the downswing so the hands, arms and club head can catch up. A shorter swing allows the lower body to work first and work fast and the club can always catch up.
To become more consistent, shorten your swing. In this case, less is best.
Jim Suttie is 2000 PGA Teacher of the Year, a Golf Magazine Top 100 Teacher, who coaches the Florida Gulf Coast International men’s golf team and is director of instruction at The Club at Twin Eagles in Florida. To learn more about his instruction philosophy check out his new book “Your Perfect Swing.”
Source: https://t-tees.com
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