With more and more women hitting the ball farther each year, it made me wonder on a few things during my practice session this morning. Should we work on length more than short game now. Most men playing seem to, and to compete in this “golf club world” we want to beat them at their own game. I love when I can occasionally hit it past the men I am playing with off the tee. I love the fact that at my home course I can play from the men’s tees also. But ladies, lets be real for a second. We should focus more time on our short game. Here are a few reasons why.
For some reason (I think its ego) men do not practice short game as much as they should. They all want to hit it a mile. They want to be the long hitter in the group. Then when it comes to chipping and putting, the rules go out the window. This is where we can make up strokes with anyone. If we can 2 putt every green its a start. If we can perfect our game from inside of 75 yards we can flat out compete with anyone. In the last 3 months I have altered my practice routine to dictate this and my game has changed dramatically. First, I understand that not everyone has the same amount of time I do to practice, so I will try and make this simple for everyone.
If you have 2 days a week to practice, 1 hour each time, here is the routine for you.
Day 1: Spend the first 30 minutes on the range hitting a variety of shots. Concentrate on longer clubs such as driver and hybrids. This will give you the confidence off of the tee to really feel good when you step on the 1st tee box. Take the next 15 minutes or so near the chipping green. Take 9 balls and aim at 3 flags. Hit 3 balls at each of the three flags only working on chipping. Try and get every ball within 5 ft to start with. Don’t worry about putting the balls out. Just work on chipping for a good 15 minutes. Each time trying to get closer to each flag. Then for the last 15 minutes work on nothing but putting. Practice putts between 10-20 feet for the first 10 minutes and 10 feet and in for the last 5. All of the while going through my pre-putt routine for each putt. And of course, dont leave until the putts have been made.
Day 2: Spend the first 15 minutes at the putting green working on putting from 10 feet only. Again, go through your entire routine for each putt. Concentrate on making each one and judging speed more than anything else. Shift focus over to the range. Find 2 targets on the range. One at 75 yards and one at 50 yards. Figure out which club will be used for each target and then have at it. The goal is, that you are not finished until 5 in a row land within 15 feet of target. Work on aim, setup, and follow through to make sure that the routine becomes the same for every shot. Do this for the rest of your session at the range.
I think you will find that if you do this for 1 month straight you will see a dramatic improvement in your game. You will also see a dramatic improvement in your score. Ladies, we can beat them if we work on the things that matter. See you next time.
Golfer Gal
