A huge percentage of high handicap golfers have swing flaws that cause them to slice the ball. For anyone unaware, a slice is a shot that curves excessively to the right for a right-handed player or to the left for a left-handed player. The basic cause is an open club face at impact (where the club face points to the right of the target for a right hander). But there are other flaws that lead to that [...]
posted in Ball Striking Tips • 4 Comments
When I was first learning the game, a young assistant pro at the course where I worked saw me struggling on the practice green with lag putts and distance control. He shared a tip with me that I’m passing on to you.
When trying to get a feel for distance on lag putts, it helps to pace off the putts and then associate a specific stroke with a specific distance as a way to enhance your muscle memory recall.
On your [...]
posted in Putting Tips • 0 Comments
When I’m working on getting feel for distance in my putting stroke, sometimes I’ll turn to a drill commonly referred to as the “ladder drill”. It’s named that because you putt from (or to) a series of pre-determined distances, each successive try being longer or shorter than the last, similar to the rungs on a ladder. There are a couple of variations that I use, and probably many others that I’ve never even heard of.
The first variation involves [...]
posted in Putting Tips • 0 Comments
Conventional chipping wisdom says that the best plan of attack in a chipping situation is to use a club that gets the ball on the green rolling like a putt as soon as possible. That means chipping with anything from a pitching wedge to a mid or even long iron. It’s not uncommon to see people chipping with woods when the conditions call for it.
Assuming conditions are right for running the ball, you want to land it [...]
posted in Short Game Tips • 2 Comments
Since I began my comeback to the game this year, one thing I’ve noticed is that my putting stroke is very sloppy. I catch a lot of putts flush and a lot off center, but there’s not really a tendency one way or another.
My belief is that a good putting stroke involves a simple pendulum motion that originates at the shoulders. There should be no breakdown of the hands or any kind of motion in the body’s core [...]
posted in Putting Tips • 0 Comments
In the words of Roberto DeVicenzo, “What a stupid I am.”
When I started this journey, one of my goals was to resume golf lessons. I had taken many in the past, prior to my back trouble a few years ago.
When I made the decision to try and become a pro, I had been reading, learning, and studying everything about how to play better golf. To me, it was a given that I’d engage in this continual learning and [...]
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My name is Mike Gray and I'm a software engineer pursuing my dream to become a golf pro.
Life in the Rough is a chronicle of my journey. It covers my progress, my successes, my setbacks. I'll share everything I learn and do along the way, including reviews and tips. Maybe what I learn can help you too.
