Jul
16
2008

Creativity in Golf

Posted by Double Eagle in Mental Game

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When I first set out to write this post, it was going to be a list looking at some of the more creative players in golf history.

That plan changed some as I leafed through the August 2008 issue of Golf Digest.  In Jim Flick’s column (p. 48) he related a story that I found so fascinating that it made me want to shift gears and talk about the role of creativity in golf.

Flick shared a story where his colleague Mike Malaska was on the range practicing next to Johnny Miller a few years ago.  Malaska asked Miller what club he’d hit to a green 100 yards away.  Miller’s response: “I could use any of 14 clubs.”

Sensing that he was misunderstood he tried to clarify his question.  Miller stopped him and then went on and hit the green with every club in his bag, including the driver and putter.  After that display, he went on to add that the minds of the most talented players are programmed to think creatively and that they’re problem-solvers at heart.  They see many ways to execute a shot and then pick one.

Obviously, I was fascinated that Johnny Miller could hit a green with every club in his bag.  I mean, come on, if that doesn’t impress you, then you may want to take up another game.

I was more drawn, however, to his thoughts on the role of creativity in talented players.  I’ve said before that golf is both art and science.  Creativity definitely falls onto the artistic side.

How many of us have the sort of creativity as players that we might find in top players?

The player that’s probably at the top of the list in terms of creativity is Seve Ballesteros. His creativity and shot-making ability are the stuff of legend.  I’ve heard stories of him hitting 3-irons out of greenside bunkers.  I’ve heard his contemporaries remark, only half jokingly, that they thought he was wild off the tee just so he could get himself into trouble that he could then work to get out of.

Think about that for a moment.  How many of us would even consider hitting a 3-iron out of a greenside bunker, even as a low-percentage, last resort?  Not many.

I bet a vast majority of you reading this wouldn’t even set foot in a greenside bunker with anything other than a sand wedge.  Some players don’t even consider the other wedges in their bags, let alone longer irons.

In some ways, creativity is a gift.  I know I certainly don’t think I could paint or sculpt anything worth looking at.  At the same, creativity in golf is a little different.  As Johnny Miller put it, talented players are problem solvers.  It becomes like a mathematical problem to them.  There’s the science creeping into art.

Creativity in golf is about seeing the alternatives. Really, it’s about seeing them and then boiling them down into the best choice, when the best choice may not be the safest or most obvious.  It’s about seeing the risk and reward.

When I first read Flick’s article in Golf Digest, I was briefly disheartened, because I don’t consider myself to be all that creative.  My thought was, where is the limit of my golfing potential, if I’m not a creative person?  The trouble was, I was thinking about it in terms of artistic creativity, not in terms of considering all possibilities, which is more mathematical.

After thinking about it some, I think being creative golfers is something that most or all of us can do. All we need to do is open ourselves up to many possible alternatives on every shot.

This is something we can work on in practice.  Never hit a 3-iron out of a greenside bunker?  Why not give it a try?  Never hit every one of your clubs to a 100 yard green?  Try it.  (As an aside, hitting 100 yard drivers is a great way to work on tempo.)

Hitting odd-ball shots in practice is a fun diversion.  Even more so if you have someone to compete against.  Challenge yourself to hit wild hooks and slices, intentional worm burners, sky-high flop shots, 100 yard drivers, long-iron bunker explosions.  Hit the things that you’d never consider on the course.

By doing that sort of thing, I think you’ll find that you expose yourself to possibilities on the course that you never dreamed of.  Open up those alternatives and you’ll allow yourself to become a more creative player by building confidence that you can pull off things that are not considered to be the “norm”.

What do you think?  Can creativity in golf be honed like any other skill, or is it strictly a gift?

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There are currently 10 responses to “Creativity in Golf”

  1. 1

    Lane said:

    I think that, as in most athletic endeavors, skills can be learned. It just takes LOTS of practice.

    Lane

    Posted on July 17th, 2008 at 12:19 am

  2. 2

    Robert Green said:

    Creativity can be both a skill and a gift, either way, practice is needed to hone it.

    -Rob

    Posted on July 17th, 2008 at 12:29 pm

  3. 3

    TP Golf Online said:

    “They see many ways to execute a shot and then pick one”

    I agree with that statement. For Tour player I have seen them being more “creative” in made for TV events than regular tour events. For the most part they still choose the easier shot to execute while in serious competition. Johnny Miller can hit a green from 100 yards with a driver but how many times have you seen him do this. Maybe this is why I still like watching Corey Pavin because he likes to hit creative shot and is not afraid to try the shot in competition.

    I was able to see the Canadian version of The Skin Game in 2000. Mike Weir, Fred Couples, Sergio Garcia, and Phil Mickelson were the participants. On the second on a par 3 Phil and Mike switched clubs with Sergio and Freddie. So all players were playing thier opposite hand. This was probably the highlight of the event.

    I think most tour player have the ability and know how to be more creative but are afraid of looking foolish if the shot does not work out. I would definately like to see players try shots other than their bread and butter shots.

    Posted on July 17th, 2008 at 4:40 pm

  4. 4

    Double Eagle said:

    You’re right, TP. Actually hitting those shots is an extreme rarity. Just because a Tour pro can hit a shot 100 yards onto a green with a putter doesn’t mean that there’s ever a reason to try.

    At the same time, I think the average player’s mind is closed to too many possibilities. Sure, the putter scenario will never come up. But how many times do players see their ball 5 yards short of the green and just grab their “standard” 5 yard pitch/chip club out of the bag?

    Just from watching Playing Lessons from the Pros, I can see that most players at that level consider a handful of choices. They might hit a lob, a pitch, a running chip, etc. They’re running through all the variables and coming up with the best choice.

    That, to me, is creativity in golf. You can take that a step further to the odd shots that only a select few players would ever even try. But it still boils down to seeing the options and executing the best one, even if it’s not the safe choice.

    Posted on July 17th, 2008 at 5:04 pm

  5. 5

    Greg B. said:

    Of course creativity can be honed.

    I’ve mentioned that I play with a guy on the local par three where we state that we will hit draws to the even numbered holes and fades to the odd numbered ones. Sometimes we play with just a 9-iron (holes range from 88 to 216 yds) and a putter. I actually shot one under the second time I did the 9 iron thing (ties my best score there).

    My latest thing is that I will rotate what I chip with from LW to SW to GW to PW and then repeat.

    These types of playing/practicing force you to be creative.

    These also force you to trust your judgement.

    I once saw a couple of guys who played nine holes with just their putters. Now that was just stupid because they ruined their putters.

    Posted on July 18th, 2008 at 5:18 pm

  6. 6

    Double Eagle said:

    I remember you mentioning that before, Greg. That’s great stuff. Challenges like that are sure to expand your creative boundaries.

    After I originally wrote this, by unbelievable coincidence, I read further into the issue of GD and there’s another story that actually refers to the Seve 3-iron incident that I talked about. He was practicing out of a bunker prior to the US Open. Jack Nicklaus and another player (I can’t recall who, but Ben Crenshaw comes to mind) came over and he challenged them to a closest to the pin. When he showed them that he was using a 3-iron, they jumped at it. He beat them both.

    Posted on July 18th, 2008 at 5:39 pm

  7. 7

    Artful Golfer said:

    I picked up golf 3 years ago when I was 46 years old. Being a very left-brained analytical type, I decided I wanted to approach golf differently. I wanted to avoid a focus on technology and technique. Reading Fred Shoemaker’s “Extraordinary Golf” early on inspired me to play creatively. I’ve avoided taking lessons and using pre-shot routines, and instead simply try to pick a shot, visualize it, and trust my body to pull it off. Playing “artfully” has helped me get down to a 2.5 in just over 3 years!

    Posted on July 19th, 2008 at 12:00 am

  8. 8

    Double Eagle said:

    Wow, Artful Golfer, that’s great!

    A lot of the all time greats learned the game similarly. Just see, trust, go.

    Posted on July 19th, 2008 at 8:06 am

  9. 9

    Nick Fogelson said:

    Nice article. Creativity can be helpful when you’re looking for your swing too.

    Sometimes when I’m struggling to hit it pure I’ll just try to hit different shots. A high fade. A low fade. A punch. Etc…

    Focusing on a very specific shot gets the fundamentals out of your mind and makes you think about how that clubhead is going to come into the ball. Usually once I start being able to hit the shot I’m calling out, I find it easier to hit solid straight (or my usual slight fade) shots.

    Posted on July 19th, 2008 at 5:17 pm

  10. 10

    hank said:

    I’ve always been pretty decent at golf but I wouldn’t consider anything athletic a “gift” - people that are good practice just harder than the rest

    Posted on July 19th, 2008 at 11:46 pm

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