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Golf Practice: How do you Practice, Block or Random?

As they say “Golf practice makes perfect”. But what do you want to be perfect at? Start practicing the with the goal of being you best at the course.

Published

5 years ago

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Recently I had a conversation on Instagram about why it’s so hard to transition from the range to the course. Many people think golf practice is going to the range and banging balls until you have blisters. The trick I have found is to practice my golf game smarter and not harder.

In the world of golf practice there are two main types of practice. Block and random and each has their place and are both effective.

Block Golf Practice (AKA bashing balls)

When I was going through swing changes last year my coach talked to me about two kinds of practice. When you are trying to get a feeling you have to keep doing the same thing over and over. That is block practice. He gave me a good example, to illustrate the point.

He asked me math question, to which I needed to think about the answer. After I answered, he immediately asked the same math problem again. Thinking it was a trick question I hesitated but gave him the same answer. But it was easier than the first attempt. He asked me one more time, and that response was faster than the previous two.

Admittedly this math problem is way more simplistic than the golf swing, but it illustrates how something can become easier over time after repeated use.

Once you have the right feels, you have to transition them to the golf course.

Random Golf Practice

When you are playing golf, how many times do you typically hit the same club and the same shot back to back? Save for a penalty or a bad shot, the likely answer is once.

Have you ever heard “Practice the way you play”? I grew up hearing my Dad say those words over and over.

So if you want to get your game ready for the course, why wouldn’t you practice with random distances, shots and clubs.

Practice the way you play.

How I Practice

When I have an hour of practice, this is how I like to break it up.

  • 5 minutes – Warm up with half swings usually with a 7 or 8 iron
  • 15 minutes – Block practice with odd or even irons
  • 10 minutes – Block practice with Driver or Fairway wood
  • 10 minutes – Block practice with wedges
  • 20 minutes – Random practice game (See details below)

Random Practice Games

During random practice, you can certainly just pick yardages and try to hit it. But you want to be able to track your progress. That is why I created a skills challenge game. It not only helps me track progress and find strengths and weaknesses, but it also puts a little pressure on me to perform well. Because this way each shot matters.

Skills Challenge

Many of you might have already seen the FSX Skills challenge on YouTube channels like Peter Finch or Rick Shiels. It’s a great example of random golf practice that I modeled my practice after.

While I do have access to a GC2 launch monitor it’s not tied to the new FSX software. So I have to track my progress on my own. But it’s pretty simple.

The main point is to pick a number of increasing or decreasing shot lengths. For me I go with the following:

20, 40, 60, 100, 120, 150, 165, 180, 200, 215, 230, 240+ (Driver)

Like the FSX Skills challenge, I give myself 5 points for being with 5 yards of the target, 3 points for 10 yards, 1 point for 15 yards, 0 for anything outside of 15 yards.

I have found this process extremely useful in taking my game from the range to the course. Hopefully you find the same.

To help track I have created a downloadable speadsheet to help you track your progress. Check it out below for FREE.

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That’s it… I’m pulling the pin

Published

4 years ago

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September 3, 2019

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This year started with so much promise. Everything was pointing towards a great season on the greens. Least of which I wasn’t going to be pulling the pin because the new rule that would allow leaving the flagstick in the hole.

See I’m a big believer of the scientific method, so when I saw these results from the guys at MyGolfSpy, it was clear to me. The pin stays in!

MyGolfSpy putting stats

But here is what the test missed. These results assume that you hit the hole/pin.

Now it’s not all bad. Anecdotally I think not pulling the pin has helped with my lag putting. The pin gives me a much better target to aim for and get my first putt nice and close. Well, maybe close enough, or what should be considered close enough. But more on that next. So, for now, I will continue to leave the pin in for longer putts.

But here’s the rub. When I am faced with a 3-5 foot putt I have been missing way too many. And I think I know why… or at least it’s what I have come to believe. When I stand over a short putt the goal is to hit the back of the cup with a confident stroke. However, when the pin is in I think subconsciously I fell I need to now enter one of the sides because the hole seems to look a little smaller.

I’ve never been a lights out putter but I tended to still average around 1.9 putts per hole. In 2018 I average 34 putts / round. But this year I’m at about 37 putts / round. not

Putts Per Round

0
2018
0
2019

For a more concrete example, let’s looks at my recent club championship rounds where I left the pin in for almost every putt. Hoping that it would give me a competitive advantage. Instead I now believe it may have been a competitive disadvantage.

In the 2 day tournament I shot rounds of 77 and 78. It both rounds I played fairly well tee to green. But in round two when I shot a 78 I was lights out. Hitting 92% of fairways and 78% (14) greens.

Looking at these numbers it would be easy to assume that the first putt lengths were longer. And that might be right, but when looking at my second putts there were usually 3 feet. In my opinion, well within the range of must make. If I could just hit the hole, as the MyGolfSpy data suggested.

Of course it must be taken into account that these putts weren’t always flat. But each time I felt like I hit a good put but I would constant lip out. 5 times in fact, in the second round. And 4 times in the first. But it was certainly more pronounced (read, aggravating) in the second.

Moving forward I'm pulling the pin... sometimes

I have and still find it helpful to leave the pin in for long putts. So I going to remain leaving the pin in there. If not just to speed up play like the USGA had originally intended.

On short putts of around 3-5 feet I will be pulling the pin from now on. Right or wrong, this will be my latest experiment to see if I can turn this bus around. #no3putts

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2019 PGA Golf Season in Review

The 2019 PGA Tour Season has come to a close. Let’s have a look back.

Published

4 years ago

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August 26, 2019

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With the final putt by Rory McIlroy, we have only the second repeat FedEx Cup Champion. Having hoisted the final trophy the 2018-2019 PGA season has come to a close. And what a season it was! Let’s take a look back.

New rules of golf

Not sure if you heard but the rules of golf changed this year… and it produced some really great storylines.

To leave it in, or pull it out?

Of all the rule changes this was probably the biggest. Would leaving the pin in for a putt help the pros make more putts?

The rule immediately divided the tour. You had players like Bryson DeChambeau and Adam Scott say they would use the pin to their advantage. And guys like Justin Thomas and Brooks Koepka say they would always pull it.

And then science came into the conversation. MyGolfSpy released their findings from an experiment that showed that leaving the pin in would help you make more putts. Not to be outdone Golf Digest released their own independent study that showed the opposite. What was a golfer to believe?

Given that the rule was originally created to help speed up play, I wonder if the governing bodies will reconsider making adjustments to the rule.

At the end of the day, these guys on tour are already such incredible putters that it likely wouldn’t have an effect. I think it was really just a crutch for those guys trailing in the putting category.

Drop it like it’s hot

If you would have told me before the start of the season that the new rule to drop from knee height, was going to cause such a stir. I’m not sure I would have believed you.

But it certainly did…

Both Jordan Speith and Bryson spoke out about how absurd the new rule is. But then Rickie Fowler took a penalty for a bad drop. And then he responded as only Rickie can #savage!

With a year of this new rule out of the way, I don’t expect much more talk about it. The knee drop did feel weird the first few times. As I’m sure dropping from shoulder height did for those guys who had to drop it behind their backs.

Kuchar stiffs his caddie

Admittedly, this should have been a non-story but the way the Matt Kuchar handled it made it bigger than it ever should have been.

Should Kuch have just paid his local caddie as he would have his regular looper? Yes.

Did he think he was going to make it better by trying to explain his reason for not? I’m not sure. But it became clear pretty quickly it didn’t. And in the end, he paid up. However, his reputation may have taken a bit of a hit.

I know one person who didn’t want to let Kuch forget… the FedEx Cup Champion!

Tiger was back!

This year’s Masters was one of the moments in sports history when you remember where you were when it happened. Tiger winning his 5th green jacket was truly special. And up until the second 9 on Sunday, I’m not sure if anyone really thought it would be possible. Well, maybe this guy did.

After the first 2 days, there were a bunch of Major champions within 3 shots of the lead. It was really anyone’s tournament.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BwLTljUlSyg/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet

I don’t think I will ever forget that moment when you realized that Tiger might actually win his 15th major. The second 9 on Sunday was such a special 9 holes. Of course, it was shocking when Brooks, Tony Finau and others in contention for the lead rinsed their tee shots into Raes Creek on the 12th hole “Golden Bell”.

Then, like out of a movie. If there wasn’t already enough drama, Tiger almost makes a hole-in-one on the 16th hole with Michael Phelps watching behind him. So amazing!

Tiger Woods almost holes out on 16 with Michael Phelps in the background

Finally, there was his reaction after making his putt on the rebuilt 18th green. Tiger said the putt didn’t move the way his past experience led him to believe. And as he walked behind the green he shared an amazing moment with his kids, which many contrasted with his embrace with his Dad Earl. As I sat there in shock about what I had just seen, his words from his interview at the start of the week struck me. “I don’t need to win… But I really want to”. Yes, yes he did.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BwQYlGiF995/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet

The next day after I woke up and knew it wasn’t a dream. I was left thinking about what this means for the rest of the year. Could this be the year he breaks Jack’s record? Everything seemed to be lining up. He had won majors at both Bethpage and Pebble Beach, and he could always find a way at The Open. Ultimately, it wasn’t meant to be and he struggled much of the rest of the season. But there was still no doubt. Tiger was back!

Brooks the Major killer

There is no denying that Brooks Koepka is a major player. Yet I still don’t think he gets the respect he deserves. But I don’t think people expected Brooks to come out with such a demonstration of confidence.

First, he was quoted in saying that “majors are the easiest ones to win”. Then he said “I just practice before the majors. Regular tournaments I don’t practice”. Putting a bad taste in the mouth of some. But at the end of the day, you can’t argue with the results. With back-to-back US Opens, almost making it a three-peat with a runner up finish at Pebble this year. Back-to-back PGA Championships, by destroying Bethpage Black. Rounding out his major season with a T2 at the Masters, and T4 at The Open. It was one of the best single year major performances in recent memory.

Given that in the other 16 non-major events that he played in, he finished on average in 31st. So it’s clear where his priorities lie. And yet he is still first on the PGA Tour Money list with 9.68M (before the Tour Championship). So it looks like his strategy is working, and I think we should all leave well enough alone.

Predictions for 2019-2020

Why not make some early predictions for the next PGA Tour Season which kicks back off next month at The Greenbrier. But I don’t think you will see most of the big names until at least October. But here a few predictions:

  • The rules changes will be a non-issue, but we will still deal with slow play.
  • Kuchar will play nice when he returns to Mayakoba and will pay his caddie well
  • Tiger will get reenergized after the Presidents Cup and will start to look for win 82, to tied Sam Snead.
  • I see no reason that Brooks will slow down in majors. He will probably win 1 and top 10 in each of them.
  • With Rory finding success this year, I think he carries that forward and we maybe see him complete his grand slam.

What are your predictions? Leave a comment down below.

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