What/How Did You Practice Today?

[bens197]

24 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

... Really good stuff. I am always amazed at how bad the typical Am is at chipping. It is such an easy shot to execute. Of course it takes time, practice and dedication to get the ball close and be a really good chipper but just making solid contact and hitting decent chips is easy IF your focus is on technique or feel and not the end result. So much of golf is based on trust.

... I had a chip yesterday after pulling a 7 iron and leaving me an almost impossible chip that had to hit a slope that would send my ball to the left, then get through some more Bermuda rough and the fringe and then a little down hill to the hole on a fast green. After getting a good idea of what I thought the ball would do I executed the chip with my full focus on making perfect contact and was rewarded with a 3 footer to save par. I felt like it was the best shot I hit all round. I could hit 5 more and not get it closer and still have 6-15 feet but what I would not have is a chunk or a bladed chip because I looked up too quickly or allowed the thought of a probable bogie (or worse) to enter my thoughts. Just execute the chip and let the results take care of itself. I still have problems with the Bermuda grain late in the day as sometimes it releases and sometimes seems like it hit velcro, but what I don't have is poor contact or improper technique because it is such a short shot and my focus is always execution/feel and never ever the result. 

There’s two philosophies I’d offer for short game. The first one is just to put the ball on the green. Honestly, just give yourself a chance for a putt. It’s reasonable and pragmatic. 
 

That dictates most of my game while the outlier is the Seve inside of my soul. I love to have FUN with the shot. It’s a formidable challenge but I’ll stand above it and just tell myself, dude, you’re so good when you focus and just remember, this ball is going exactly where you tell it to go. 
 

I love the fun of chipping.

[chisag]

12 minutes ago, bens197 said:

the outlier is the Seve inside of my soul. I love to have FUN with the shot.

 

... So true and so much fun when you pull it off. Every now and then I have that shot that requires touch and perfect execution and it is very rewarding when I pull it off. The flip side is it is equally disappointing when I need to clear a bunker if I am short sided and the full flop LW must land on the fringe and trickle to the hole but just catches the top of the bunker and adding insult to injury, it plugs right there. So If I am scoring well I take my medicine an hit past the hole, but if I am not scoring that day I go full Seve. 

[Shapotomous]

@sirchunksalot Looks like you had a real consistent swing going with the face impact so consistent.  You can do some  work with that type of consistency.  

[bens197]

34 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

... So true and so much fun when you pull it off. Every now and then I have that shot that requires touch and perfect execution and it is very rewarding when I pull it off. The flip side is it is equally disappointing when I need to clear a bunker if I am short sided and the full flop LW must land on the fringe and trickle to the hole but just catches the top of the bunker and adding insult to injury, it plugs right there. So If I am scoring well I take my medicine an hit past the hole, but if I am not scoring that day I go full Seve. 

Totally agree...which begs the next question...how are you liking the MG3's?

[chisag]

3 minutes ago, bens197 said:

Totally agree...which begs the next question...how are you liking the MG3's?

 

... As we both know wedges are personal. They are all good if you have the right bounce and shape. But the MG3's just check every box for me. The LB grind works great here in Phoenix, they are both excellent from the sand and full shots are the most accurate I have hit and being honest absolutely loving the shape at address is big part of it. I simply have more confidence in these wedges than any I have played. Feel is a little more crisp than soft but dead center feels as sweet as any wedge aside for Some Scratch 1018 wedges I played. 

[Joel C]

The last 3 or 4 times I been to range I have been working on my short game, hitting my 3 wedges.   1/2, 3/4 and full swings at about 10-12 shots for each swing and club.  I am trying to dial in my consistency inside 130-140 yards.  Hoping when all is said in done that by the end of this year I can knock an average 3-5 strokes off my game.   Finish with a some 6 irons, then hit the 7w and driver a few times. 

After that I go to putting green and work on putting and chipping for about 30 minutes.  

Lucky for me there is a lighted driving range about 10 minutes from where my son practices football, so I have a solid 90 minutes to work on this part of game.

[cnosil]

Worked on long irons and wedges today.  

-  Figured out that I was overswinging a bit and reigned in my swing which resulted in much better ball striking

- Hit different length pitch shots to work on technique.  Need to take this outside to see how it works on grass. 

[sirchunksalot]

15 hours ago, Shapotomous said:

@sirchunksalot Looks like you had a real consistent swing going with the face impact so consistent.  You can do some  work with that type of consistency.  

Thank you! The swing is coming along nicely, I've just got to be able to take that progress to the course. It's not translating right now, but I believe I'll get there. 

[juspoole]

Not necessarily practice, but not play either.  I have been playing simulator rounds at my local club once a week for the past 4 weeks.  The swing is feeling great right now and I know what the ball is going to do.  Sure I'll still have the occasional over draw or pull, but for the most part I'm in control right now.  

It's crazy how much easier it is when you have automatic putting and gimmes inside 6 feet LOL.  And you always have a perfect lie on the turf.  I think my scoring average over the past couple weeks is around 69.5 lol.  If it were only that easy!

Unfortunately, I have not done much work with putting, I usually at least roll some in the basement, so I need to do that a little bit more.  At the very least, to ensure I'm starting the ball on my target line.

[GolfSpy_SHARK]

I still cannot believe I have not taken ANY full swings with a club since my last round in November.....Lots of short game practice lately so if I play terribly this season short game wise I am throwing my hands up!

Today just rolling putts in the office on the puttout. Been some time since I broke it back out and its been quiet here today. 

Went from 2' to 8' in 1' increments. Rolling 10 per foot. Total putt outs 28/70...I will take it #ER2V & Fujikura MC (did not count just hitting the cup). 

[Bomber]

Went out to practice wedges on the range... ended up getting bored and just hit driver over and over again. Typical haha!

[GolfSpy BOS]

It’s been balmy the past two days compared to the past few weeks (Sunny and around 50*!!!) so besides doing a little planemate work or putting in the home office I’ve also been out to take a few full swings at the melting snow.  

Decided to see how tight I am by taking the swing speed radar out for a few driver swings too… Wasn’t pretty, but wasn’t too bad either.  generally around 100 and upper end around 106, so slower than mid-season form, but not as bad as I was expecting! 

I need this snow to melt and spring to come, golf-fever is starting to set in.

[Tom the Golf Nut]

3 minutes ago, GolfSpy_BOS said:

I need this snow to melt and spring to come, golf-fever is starting to set in.

Quick...Buy something golf related it will make you feel better.

[bens197]

1 hour ago, GolfSpy_BOS said:

It’s been balmy the past two days compared to the past few weeks (Sunny and around 50*!!!) so besides doing a little planemate work or putting in the home office I’ve also been out to take a few full swings at the melting snow.  

Decided to see how tight I am by taking the swing speed radar out for a few driver swings too… Wasn’t pretty, but wasn’t too bad either.  generally around 100 and upper end around 106, so slower than mid-season form, but not as bad as I was expecting! 

I need this snow to melt and spring to come, golf-fever is starting to set in.

Little bro in Hamilton showed me photos of the post-snow and now it’s just puddles errrrywhere.  I’d like to think we’re a few weeks away from some open courses with walking only.

[PMookie]

Went to the course today to test the Srixon ZStar Diamond and the new Bridgestone BX. I didn’t “play 9” but tested the two balls on the back 9 of the course. Had a good time! I hit both balls off the tee, measured the distances, then hit both balls from the same spot as approaches, then dropped them at 35 and 55 yards out, chipped from off the green, putted a couple holes, etc. Put them through the paces. BX was the winner between the 2 for sure. I could play that ball this year and be happy. Really good ball.

[DiscipleofPenick]

Got the practice mat out and started rolling putts again. I looked at my stats from last year and saw my putting had gotten slightly worse. So I really want to focus on that this year. If I have a goal it's to average under 30 putts a round, 2021 I averaged 31.

I noticed I get stabby a little bit, so I'm working on making sure I actually stroke the putt and I set up square and stay there.

[pulledabill]

Working hard on my steep over the top swing after a long lay off. Progress is slow  but its progress and starting to see some positive change. Lots of alignment stick drills to force the change. 

[edingc]

I got out to the garage last night and focused on just making a good, complete backswing. I have just been feeling a slower turn off the ball that allows my hips to move correctly. I don't think it's all that slow of a backswing in reality, it just feels slow to me. But by slowing down my feel a bit, I turn better into the back hip instead of swaying. When I get a good turn I hit the ball so much more solidly.

I worked through the bag and had some really great impact patterns with my 4 hybrid, 5 iron and 8 iron all after about 10 shots.

[BostonSal]

It's February.

I won't be picking up a club until April.

Unless I go for a new woods fitting,

and then I won't have any swing available that's worth fitting to.

All part of living in Boston, but that's where I fit, I guess.

[Haro]

Was our practicing on new green. For some reason on unfamiliar greens I seem to over read breaks.  Trying new routine with putting and chipping. Read behind the cup with my eyes then read the green with my feet walking over the low side. 
Find my spot and practice putt once to that spot 

Setting up over the ball I tried a few different postures.  What seem to work best for me was if I set me front eye over the ball and make slight press with my hands 

I think one of the things I do in practice but don’t do enough when I play is walk around and read from different angles 

Same setup to the ball work well for very short chips inside 30 feet too 

For longer chip shots I’m not liking the modern style of chipping.  I like ball off the back foot hands forward and hit down.  I’m just used to it and it serves me well 

[Shapotomous]

Since we hit 60*again yesterday i went over to the course about 1:30 hoping i'd find an open slot to get in a few holes..  It was a bad omen that I had to park about a 5w from the clubhouse instead of a 9i.  Yep...it was solid tee times until 3. 

So i went over to the practice green and had a good session with 20 - 30 foot putts getting speed dialed in.  That is a distance I can't really practice at home.

I was also practicing chip shot options between 8 & 9 iron bump & run as well as my usual wedge shots.  I got some set up and feel things worked out.  The challenge will be remembering them for the next month or so until we get some more warmer weather and I can play a bit. 

[RichL85]

Tried to work on some drills today but my kids were not having it. It's hard to practice with kids standing 2 feet from you asking 3000 questions. Did manage to get a couple feels that seemed to be working at the time. Might hit the range for a bit after work tomorrow so I can be uninterrupted. It's about time to send updated videos for my coach anyway. 

Did a little bit of putting since I changed up the head weight a bit. Still thinking of adding some more weight because I like that head heavy feel. I'm interested to see how it works for me during my upcoming trip. With very little practice last year I putted surprisingly well with that ugly Spider EX. I'm hoping I don't need to look at a new putter. 

[Haro]

Chipping practice with full swing range time. Still trying to set up a routine that is consistent.  Working  from the feet up today. For chipping and putting feel like if I turn my rear foot  and in toe   That limits my lower body and hips for those chips and putts. Felt like my weight was more my toes. Can’t get lazy.  Read every green. Often I don’t read the green and just putt to the target and I feel if I take the time to find my spot I am more focus in making the putt.    
Spend more time holing putts from 4 ,8 ,12 feet  The longer putts I focus more on reading and speed rather than trying to make. 

Edited February 14, 2022 by Haro

[RickyBobby_PR]

8 hours ago, Haro said:

Chipping practice with full swing range time. Still trying to set up a routine that is consistent.  Working  from the feet up today. For chipping and putting feel like if I turn my rear foot  and in toe   That limits my lower body and hips for those chips and putts. Felt like my weight was more my toes. Can’t get lazy.  Read every green. Often I don’t read the green and just putt to the target and I feel if I take the time to find my spot I am more focus in making the putt.    
Spend more time holing putts from 4 ,8 ,12 feet  The longer putts I focus more on reading and speed rather than trying to make. 

Do you setup for chips the same way you do a regular golf shot?

[Haro]

2 hours ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

Do you setup for chips the same way you do a regular golf shot?

No I find chipping/putting are total different animal than regular shot  When I’m swinging well it bleeds into my short game.  Days when I find my putting stroke, I can’t swing. Arg!   
I’m been trying to toe in with my feet to stop hip motion in the putts/chips 

longer chips/longer putts. Not so much in toeing lets me move my hip just a little 

My gait is a bit odd. I walk like a duck. every shot I have a tendency to flare out each foot at set up.  

Edited February 14, 2022 by Haro

[RickyBobby_PR]

42 minutes ago, Haro said:

No I find chipping/putting are total different animal than regular shot  When I’m swinging well it bleeds into my short game.  Days when I find my putting stroke, I can’t swing. Arg!   
I’m been trying to toe in with my feet to stop hip motion in the putts/chips 

longer chips/longer putts. Not so much in toeing lets me move my hip just a little 

My gait is a bit odd. I walk like a duck. every shot I have a tendency to flare out each foot at set up.  

Does your setup and technique look anything like this?

 

[Haro]

10 hours ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

Does your setup and technique look anything like this?

 

Yes that a good method around the green 

I used to be stiff legged and just use my upper body  and arms 

My problems is my knees  i bend them with and point my knees at the same angle gives a bit more rhythm to the stroke. 
Ball above feet is okay.
When I have ball below feet and chip I start straightening my knee again and hit ball too thin.  Someone told me  widen my stance with ball below feet 

Edited February 15, 2022 by Haro

[RickyBobby_PR]

9 hours ago, Haro said:

Yes that a good method around the green 

I used to be stiff legged and just use my upper body  and arms 

My problems is my knees  i bend them with and point my knees at the same angle gives a bit more rhythm to the stroke. 
Ball above feet is okay.
When I have ball below feet and chip I start straightening my knee again and hit ball too thin.  Someone told me  widen my stance with ball below feet 

Correct. Widening the stance helps get you lower to the ground. Also want to be mor balanced in the stance and not too much on the toes but also don’t want to be to far onto the heels

[Syks7]

Back at it today with a renewed focus on putting after last weeks penance.  I started with a drill using parallel alignment sticks from 4 feet on a flat putt.  It took me almost 45 minutes to hole all 21 from the shag tube in a row.  Got to 20 twice and pulled the 21st...  I did manage to find my feel again though by the end so I moved onto a drill I thought up to try and work on my speed control.  I set up my alignment sticks end to end with a gap that puts me out at about 12ish feet with a downhill put then set up on of my wedges 3' behind the hole.  I put from anywhere along the alignment sticks with the goal of either holing the putt, getting it to the hole, or leaving it in between the wedge and the hole.  The goal is to get all 21 in a row from the tube to meet these requirements.  Anything short or that hits the wedge resets the 21.  It's viciously difficult and places a high premium on a repeatable stroke.  I didn't actually get all 21 in a row today, but got to 17 once and 15 another time.  Called it after another 45 minutes and moved onto longer lags.  I was lucky today, hint of rain meant I had the place to myself so I scattered the shag tube in an arc from 25-40 ft from the hole.  The goal on this one was to leave it inside 5' and putt out for a two putt.  Anything outside 5 feet got kicked back to lag range.  Same with anything that I didn't two putt.  It took less time than I thought it would and I finished up in 30 minutes.  

Came away from the day feeling a lot better and feeling like I'd found my putting stroke again along with a much better understanding for the feels that I can lean on to find it the next time I go ice cold.

 

[RickyBobby_PR]

6 minutes ago, Syks7 said:

Back at it today with a renewed focus on putting after last weeks penance.  I started with a drill using parallel alignment sticks from 4 feet on a flat putt.  It took me almost 45 minutes to hole all 21 from the shag tube in a row.  Got to 20 twice and pulled the 21st...  I did manage to find my feel again though by the end so I moved onto a drill I thought up to try and work on my speed control.  I set up my alignment sticks end to end with a gap that puts me out at about 12ish feet with a downhill put then set up on of my wedges 3' behind the hole.  I put from anywhere along the alignment sticks with the goal of either holing the putt, getting it to the hole, or leaving it in between the wedge and the hole.  The goal is to get all 21 in a row from the tube to meet these requirements.  Anything short or that hits the wedge resets the 21.  It's viciously difficult and places a high premium on a repeatable stroke.  I didn't actually get all 21 in a row today, but got to 17 once and 15 another time.  Called it after another 45 minutes and moved onto longer lags.  I was lucky today, hint of rain meant I had the place to myself so I scattered the shag tube in an arc from 25-40 ft from the hole.  The goal on this one was to leave it inside 5' and putt out for a two putt.  Anything outside 5 feet got kicked back to lag range.  Same with anything that I didn't two putt.  It took less time than I thought it would and I finished up in 30 minutes.  

Came away from the day feeling a lot better and feeling like I'd found my putting stroke again along with a much better understanding for the feels that I can lean on to find it the next time I go ice cold.

 

Are you putting those all in a row from the same spot?