When I was working at a private course in the L.A area I had the
privilege of talking with a gentleman that played on the European
Tour and was in the process of earning the right to play on our
tour.
When I was working at a private course in the L.A area I had the privilege of talking with a gentleman that played on the European Tour and was in the process of earning the right to play on our tour.
His name is D.A Russell, and the topic of our conversation was the key to scoring.
I was picking the range and cleaning up the chipping green. I noticed these beautiful pitch shots coming over the practice bunker landing in a ten-foot radius of the pin. To my amazement they weren’t pitch shots but sand shots being hit by Russell.
I stuck up a conversation and asked what the average pro’s practice regiment was. The reason I asked the question was because as much as I enjoy hitting balls at the range when I’m going well I don’t like hitting a lot of balls.
His reply was one that you should take to heart as well. He said that most guys on the PGA tour hit balls but spend most of their practice time somewhere around the practice green, chipping, pitching, putting or working out of the sand
At the time Nick Faldo was the big gun on tour. We all knew that he spent a lot of time on the range hitting a ton of balls.
Russell said that Faldo’s deliberate ways made him stay on the range longer than most – he wouldn’t hit a shot until he felt comfortable.
Understand that even if you are having a poor ball-striking day (which we all have even the pros), you can still score, which is the object of the game.
Take a short game lesson. I can’t tell you how much you’ll benefit from it.
