Blog

1 Aug 2015 Corina Pelloni

RELAXED CHIPPING MEANS LOW SCORING

I was fortunate to go to one round of the Masters and two rounds of the Heritage Classic, in Hilton Head, this Spring. As always, I spent a great deal of time watching the pros practice. I noticed a trend or change of thought in short game theory that is worth noting and passing to our students. Remember, tour pros base technique decisions on the best general result because it translates directly to money. They don’t chase theories that produce spotty results. In years past the tour pros felt like they were better off, when chipping, becoming adept with one or two clubs and then picking different landing spots. These clubs were generally some form of wedge. Now I see them using more of a Paul Runyan type of theory, which asks the player to refine a chipping STROKE and choose the right club to fit the length of the chip. Think of the reasons. They play on increasingly slick greens. They need a stroke that has the ball moving slow. To have deft touch, you must choose the club that allows the swing to be short and the clubhead to move slowly, on a shallow path along the grass. With the new, tight Bermuda grasses, understanding the grain is very important. Northern players are learning that their method developed on lush grass doesn’t travel well on tight Bermuda. A wedge swing that has the clubhead raising quickly and and using speed is very dangerous, especially against the grain. A less lofted club employed with a putting type stroke is much more reliable. I explain it to my students like this. If it is a younger student I know they are probably addicted to too much loft. I teach them that tour pros don’t shoot low because they pick difficult shots to play. They use their considerable talent to play easy shots, with less lofted clubs, because they know that they are very comfortable using a small, slow swing. Why select a bigger swing that worries us? This Spring we saw many tour pros chunking wedges (not just Tiger )because they didn’t know how to deal with the grain in the grass. I convince my younger students to use their increasing skill to open their mind and develop a menu of shots. Why take a talented athlete and make them one-dimensional? It isn’t hard to show a student that chipping up a hill with a lofted wedge is silly. You have just  selected a club that is fighting your intent. Older students are better served to find a chipping stroke that is comfortable. Ask them to imagine their stroke on a six foot putt. If it is smooth and disciplined, show them what that stroke will do with different lofted clubs. It is a real eye opener. It can quickly breathe life into a shaky chipping method. The technique is simple. Raise the handle up until the club is almost sitting on the toe, with the heel slightly in the air. You are putting the handle between your forearms and under your shoulders, much closer to the line of the shot.  It will likely feel more comfortable to use your putting grip. Standing this close to the ball, the path of the swing becomes very precise. Stand with the feet close together. Play the ball nearly on your right toe. Lean the shaft toward the target until your hands are over your left leg. Put your weight on the left foot. Now imagine that you are putting a six footer, with a smoth STROKE instead of any hit. The ball will come off rolling slowly, which is exactly what we want for chipping. Soon a 50 foot chip is nothing more than the right club selection and the same comfortable stroke we always use. If our decision making process keeps us relaxed and confident, we have set the stage for a level of performance that we can sustain for many more good shots and holes and rounds of golf. Why would we torture ourselves with risky decision making?

16 Jul 2015 Corina Pelloni

RAIN DELAYS

I was recently caddying in our local State Amateur qualifier for one of my young golf students.  After 10 holes, the skies opened up and the rain began.  We rushed to the clubhouse and saw the radar on the TV; it didn’t look good.  The golf course staff thought it would be at least a few hours’ delay. So, what to do during this time?  We ordered some food, talked about the round so far and small-talked.  After about 90 minutes, the staff said it would be another two hours at least.  After an hour of watching TV, I decided to play a little putting game in the clubhouse.  I set up a few folded napkins in an area with very few people.  We played a nine-hole putting match.  I made him go through his putting routine on all putts, so it took about 45 minutes to complete the “match.” Once we were done, it was time to loosen up again.  He went through his warm-up routine on the range and they sent us back out onto the course.  He played the last eight holes in -1 to make it into the State Amateur by three shots.  Talking after the round, he thought our putting game got his focus back on track. There are many things you can do during a rain delay.  Getting rest and eating food are the normal two.  But make sure you do something to get your mind focused back on the game before you leave the clubhouse.  I hope these tips will help you and your students in the next rain delay you encounter.

9 Jul 2015 Corina Pelloni

US OPEN ILLUSTRATES HOW MUCH THE GAME HAS CHANGED – AND MAYBE NOT FOR THE BETTER

During the recent US Open, I can’t recall the exact hole, but a graphic came on the screen, showing that the carry distance to clear a set of bunkers and reach the fairway was 270 yards. There seemed to be quite a few holes like that at Chambers Bay. As a fellow who in his best times never hit the ball more than 240 yards, it hit me how much different today’s game is than the one I grew up playing. Whether golf today is better can be debated, but the gap between a tour pro and an average golfer has increased exponentially. One of the great appeals of golf used to be that the average golfer could try to play the same shot a tour pro would play on a given golf course. Other than pitching and putting, that train has sadly left the station. I have been a single-digit handicap golfer just about all my life, and there is no way I could reach the fairway from the tees the pros played at Chambers Bay. Imagine the 20-handicap golfer and what his fate would be. Many will argue that the pros play a different game and leave it at that. Problem is, human nature is such that most golfers want to attempt to play that same game, or at least feel like they can. Most sports are spectator-oriented. You’re not going to get a chance to hit a 90 mile-an-hour fast ball in Yankee Stadium or return a 100 mile-an-hour serve at Wimbledon. But for years, anyone could try to hit shots on golf courses where pros played for a living. In those days, the pros did not hit the ball that much farther; they just hit it better. A 400-yard hole was a good test. Today it is considered pitch-and-putt for the best. I’d hate to see the professional golf game become a spectator sport similar to others, because that could result in people losing interest in playing the game. It remains to be seen, but if it happens, blame is squarely on the shoulders of the USGA. They have let the game get away from its roots. Poor regulation of equipment standards, course lengths, and setups are not helping golf. They are supposed to be the watchdogs. Problem is, no one is watching them.