It’s been a while since a dedicated golf update…
…there’s been some weather getting in the way of practice and play. More broadly, I’ve not been feeling great (mentally), which leads to a lack of motivation and energy to practice. In the reverse of the well known L’Oréal catchphrase, I’ve been feeling that “I’m not worth it”. I have been playing though, and weeknotes attest to competition play including charity day events at other clubs with my regular partner J.
Better weather and a better mood means I’ve been getting back to practice in the last week and a bit, so I’ve got some new thoughts to record. My first session involved about an 1 1/2 hours on chipping, with some putting for dessert.
Chipping practice
My chipping practice was based around the work I did with my coach ages ago, but also drew on the concept of release 1 and release 2 from Dan Grieve. The cover image for this post is a still from the video, although the differences in setup are difficult to see and another key thing is the follow throughs. I was concentrating on the shots I most often need on course (leaving release 3 for emergencies only; a feel shot that I can attempt quite successfully when I have to, although it doesn’t always work out).
I found that with some care I could work across clubs (8 iron down to 56 degree) and ball flights (from low chip and run to a higher, softer shot). I was playing towards the pins on the practice greens in the western practice area. My aim really was to get more feel for each of these, the clubs I like to use for them, and the effect of shot style and club loft on flight and run out. When I’m out on course I often see a particular shot, low or higher, and sometimes you don’t have a choice, with the lie making a lower shot easier to execute well or the need to cover some deep rough or a bunker forcing you to go higher.
I noticed that channeling release 1 meant I could get a bit stiff and stuck over the ball, but really thinking about moving my chest through the shot helped. As usual, having a sense of rhythm is vital for me, even though this is a short swing.
When switching to release 2, the higher shot, I found the key was to relax my hands. This can be difficult to do when you’re on course (and potentially a bit wound up about the shot you’re about to take). The rhythm of these shots is naturally a bit easier to dial in, I think, because the swing is longer.
I still take a great deal from my personal feel for chipping. I’m not prescriptive in following the releases, but some of Grieve’s other videos have backed up up my understanding of lie and its relation to shot choice, for example. They’ve also helped me when dealing with slopes.
Putting “practice”
After chipping I did some half-arsed putting practice, which just consisted of some short and then longer putts at random holes. I was a bit undirected and didn’t really feel I was working anything out, so I went home for lunch!
On course results
The first competition of the week had some good chipping and this trend continued in subsequent competitions and on course practice sessions. I’m making better contact with the ball most of the time, with either excellent or good results. Now I just need to keep up the practice and build my feel for weight, flight and run out across even more situations.
My putting that first competition was often rather poor (in weight and direction). The greens have been changing a lot over the last few weeks, sometimes very sandy and slow. They’re running better now, so I was a bit disappointed by my lack of smooth putts, although the recent practice session was never going to have helped that much! I’ve found a more directed putting practice now (more on that in another post).
