In a prior post, it is suggested that you should 'eat your spinach' or in other words, 'practice what you hate. . . what you are not good at.' This of course is not always fun as it can be frustrating to be poor shots while we learn. But what can we do to ensure we learn faster. Here are some good habits that will help.
Create A Golf Practice Plan
A good practice plan not only will help you learn new skills, but it should ensure that you maintain the skills you have already mastered. You should consult with your golf coach or pro to design a plan tailored to your specific needs.
Set Golfing Success Goals:
It is said that Gary Player would go into the bunker and hit shots until he holed at least three. So instead of just going out and hitting shots, set success goals that you must reach before moving on to something else. Some examples follow:
- Make 10 three foot putts in a row
- Make 5 putts from 20 feet
- Hit 20 chips inside 2 feet
- Hole out three sand shots (it worked for Gary)
- Hit 5 good shots of Johnny Miller's 9 Point test (See Video)
What works for you will depend on the amount of time you have to practice and what you need to work on at the time. But the key to setting goals is that you will focus / concentrate on every shot during your practice, or you will never finish! So start with what you are weakest at to ensure that they will not be skipped due to lack of time.
To conclude, you will improve if you just go out and pound balls aimlessly. But why not super charge your progress by being smarter than the average golfing bear!?