Green Reading – The Art and Science of Getting Your Ball to Roll in the Hole
By Mark H Wright

You can apply some science to your green reading which will help you to make better decisions but I believe that this should be done in a fairly passive mode. That is, put the information that you are faced with on the green into your mind in a systematic approach, called a putting pre-shot routine. Observe the steps to feed the necessary information to your brain and then… GET OUT OF THE WAY. Stop analysing. Stop thinking. If you let your instincts run the show and you allow the art through to do its work of sending the ball to the target, at the correct pace, you will begin to tread the road to great putting.

Pre-shot Putting Routine, feeding information to your instincts.

1. Pay attention and be observant when you are walking up to the green. Take in the lay of the land and get a feel of how the green lays in its surroundings. How does the land slope generally? Is there water near or around the green? Greens will very often have subtle breaks toward water even if they are not obviously apparent.

2. When reading the ball to target line you should read it from both sides and also stand side on to the putt line (from the low side) and get an idea of it travelling across to the hole. Here you are allowing you brain to get a “feel” of how the green lays from 3 different sides which gives your instinct great information. How many times have you looked at a putt from the other side after you’ve missed it and realised you never saw the slope? If you read from three areas you will pick up far more of the subtle variances in the green. Again let me emphasis that this is not so much for you to use and analyse but rather it is information you are just gently allowing in so your instincts can use it. With that in mind don’t stare hard at anything. Try to simply observe gently by running your eyes over the areas where your brain can gather its own information about the upcoming putt.

3. Watch your playing partners putts carefully even if they are not travelling on the same line as yours they are still giving you some feedback around the hole in that last critical 2ft at the hole. Naturally if the putt is on your line then pay special attention to it but observe etiquette and rules so you don’t infringe either when trying to watch the other persons putt.

4. The line that you imagine the putt taking and the break on the line is only as good as the pace. Change the pace of the putt and you change how much it breaks. Always commit to the line AND pace. This is also where the art comes in because I don’t believe that you should be trying to make pace. I believe you imagine what you want, allow the instincts to give you a pace that takes the ball into the hole with reasonable roll rate and then allow it to happen. Look at the target and then let the putt go. Don’t delay and “think” about it.

The perfect pace is one that takes the ball 12 to 18 inches past the hole if it misses. In fact scientifically it has been shown that 17″ is the best pace for holing the greatest amount of putts, but I am happy with the pace anytime I am between 12 and 18 inches past. So imagine your putts rolling at that speed into the hole and then trust your instincts to reproduce that pace for you.

5. Weather conditions play a part especially if the greens are wet either with dew or rain. In addition the wind will have a real effect on the ball and remember it is a combination between wind velocity and speed of green as to how much the break or pace will be affected. The slicker the greens, the more the wind can “push” the ball. Not only can wind affect the line but also speed if you are putting with the wind or against it.

6. Pick precise targets to putt to. If you can see it then putt to a blade of grass as your target. Putt to a slight disfiguration at the back of the cup if you cannot make out a blade of grass. The rule is pick the smallest possible target you can without straining to see it.

7. Always have two or three practice putts next to the ball and stand in the same orientation as the putt stance required. This mimics your desired putt for real and gives your brain a chance to “Feel and Figure” what it needs to do to get the ball into the hole. Also, make sure that you are fully focused on your target while making these practice putts.

Remember that putting is in my opinion more an art than a science but you can apply some necessary science in an artful way. What do I mean? Follow a pre-shot routine religiously and give your brain all the info it needs by following the steps I have described, but then get out of the way. Don’t over analyse. Go with your first impression and let your gut instincts guide you. They can make better sense of the science and apply it for you. When you have done everything just focus on your target and let the putt go thinking just of your target.

When you are set to go have one last look at the target and then putt. Don’t wait. Try to putt within 2 seconds of your last look at the target.

Finally let me say that great putting comes from instinctive trust and learning but it is not necessarily an overnight change. Sticking to instinctive putting for a period of 6 months will bring great rewards but do it for a week or two and you are wasting your time. Instinctive putting will get stronger with time as your brain builds a bigger and bigger database of information about how to putt so be patient if you are new to the game. The more time you spend practicing and experimenting with instinctive putting the faster your progress will be.

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Golf Shot Memories – Use Them Wisely Or They Will Ruin Your Card Without You Realising It

By Mark H Wright

What you think about you program into your mind, remember that next time you are recalling poor performance. If you are thinking about the last time you had a shank, or putted 10ft past the hole and ended up 3 putting or sliced it out of bounds off the T, don’t be surprised if you repeat that poor performance. If you are thinking it, it has a really strong chance of happening again and that’s because your unconscious is taking note of the images you are making, even if you are not consciously aware of it.

Your mind works in images and even if you are someone who thinks they cannot visualise let me assure you that your mind still works in images. I have worked with plenty of people who said they cannot visualise and within five minutes we have them visualising like anyone else. Think about making a drink and take note of the images that come to mind. What is a word? It’s just a way of communicating your thoughts and images to another person.

Making images is just like giving instructions to your unconscious mind to get it to perform a task for you. That’s why if you’re thinking about something you don’t want, like slicing it out of bounds, your unconscious will “see” the images of the ball going OB and then repeat it for real when you swing. It does not differentiate between what you want and what you don’t want because the image is pretty much the same.

In order to tell yourself NOT to slice your ball out of bounds, you have to first make an image of the ball going out of bounds and that’s when the negative image is in essence “programmed” in to your system. Of course your mind does not perceive the image as negative or positive it simply reacts to the image you have made. Have you ever done something and then said something like, “I knew I was going to do that!” You thought it and your mind/body gave it to you. You “knew” you were going to do it because you recall making the image of it happening first.

So thinking about bad shots you’ve had on the golf course in the past is a really bad idea and these negative memories could be costing you tons of shots and feelings of negativity that knock hell out of your confidence which compounds the problem even further.

Your unconscious mind is listening to your thoughts and watching the images in your mind and every time you recall a negative past performance you are reinforcing it.

Now I am not going to say that you must learn never to think about bad past performances because that’s pretty unrealistic and although it would be nice it is not the way the human mind works, for good reason. If you could never remember something you did which was bad, you would be doomed to repeat it. Recalling past negative events is the human system’s way of learning and avoiding possible threats in the future.

Unfortunately this does not help us when it comes to thinking about the last time we knocked it in the water on a certain hole, when really we have no need to recall that event as it does not threaten our very existence, and if you think it does then I suggest you either quit golf or get serious help fast.

Here’s some advice on how to start helping yourself. Thank your mind for bringing a potential hazard to your attention after all it’s just trying to warn you of a potentially negative event, by doing it’s job, advising you to “watch out!” As soon as you are done thanking it for the warning, say “cancel” or “scratch that” to the negative thought (or something similar) and then immediately begin to strongly think about what the perfect shot would be.

• How would it look if you hit a great shot? What would you see?

• What would it sound like? The sound of the club through the air and the strike of the club on ball. You can even imagine the sounds of people congratulating you on a great shot.

• What will it feel like? What will the swing feel like when you make this great shot? (Rehearse the swing several times) What will it feel like emotionally when you make this shot with confidence and the ball does what you want?

Try to get all three senses of See, Hear and Feel in your positive imaginations and just keep focussing on” what you want” to happen. Don’t try to block out negative thoughts as this will probably just have you inadvertently thinking about them. You must learn to focus on what you want with increasing intensiveness which will then naturally start excluding negative thoughts.

The more you work on positive focus the better you will get at it so don’t worry if you are not Tiger Woods straight away and just keep doing it. The stronger you get at it the more your game will start to improve, perhaps dramatically but it will require that you consciously and consistently practice the principals if you want the great results it offers.

Wishing you FIR’s, GIR’s & Blue Skies.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mark_H_Wright

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Tips For Golf – Hitting Long Irons

By Dazza Walker

If you ask any golfer what the hardest shot you can get is they will probably tell you all of them. The answer that most will honestly give you to the question is Hitting Long Irons. Hitting long irons is maybe the hardest shot to play in a sport that is already difficult. The first problem is unrealistic expectations. You watch people like Tiger Woods, Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson hit these high, towering 3 or 4 irons. Then you golf fanatics go and wonder why you don’t get that same elevation. The simple problem is that with such a shallow angle on the clubface compared to a wedge you need a large amount of club head speed to keep the ball continuing on its trajectory to get it up high. First thing to remember is the professionals can produce such quick club head speed they can get the height in the shot so be sensible with your expectations.

Realistic Golf – Hitting Long Irons

Most budding, mid handicap golfers ranging should really make the decision of not hitting long irons in golf at all if they can avoid it and taking the 3 and 4 iron out of the bag and carrying fairway woods which have a lower centre of gravity and are a lot easier to get into the air. Doing this will give a golfer that rare asset of confidence and build up your ability until you can go on to the long iron hitting.

There will be times when you will prefer to hit a long iron shot for a particular situation and therefore hitting long irons will be an advantage to have in your arsenal. When you are playing an approach to the green and you have a strong cross wind, or you have the threat of over hanging branches the last thing you want is a high airy shot. It is much better to keep your golf ball low.

Effective Steps For Hitting Long Irons In Golf

Try these tips for hitting long irons.

A/ Unlike the driver set the ball up nearer the middle of your stance. This will give a more consistent strike hitting the ball in the middle of the club face. Many players put the ball further forward in their stance because of the length of shaft, but this only allows for a very minor sweet spot.

B/ A massive amount of golf are played mentally. Mentally, you know that the green is 200 yards away and you unconsciously try to hit the ball harder and that’s when you get out of rhythm, and all sorts of results appear. Try to tell yourself to hit every shot like a seven iron, and you will naturally swing smoother and let the angle of the club face do the work for you.

C/ Try to make a full follow through when hitting long irons. Tiger Wood’s follow through is as long as his back swing. This will promote you to sweep through the ball and continue club head speed without topping the ball 50 yards down the fairway.

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