February Newsletter

Helping you Play your Best Golf

At the Academy

I'm seeing fantastic gains from the players on my programmes, so don't miss out on the chance to take your game to the next level this year. I currently have 1 available space on my Development Programme (2 sessions per month for 3 or 6 months), and 2 spaces available on my Annual Programme (1 session per month for 6 or 12 months). As a reminder, the programmes include:

* 1 or 2 hours one to one coaching per month programme dependent (delivered as appropriate e.g. 1x1, 2x1 hour sessions or 1x2 hour session)

* Game development planning/Goal setting

* Full "How to Train" support and 24/7 online assistance using OnForm Coaching App.

* TrackMan 4 swing and ball data as required

* TrackMan 4 putting analysis green reading basics as required

* Course strategy and decision making/mind skills.

* Statistical analysis of any captured game data

* VIP appointment times not available to public

* 10% Discount on any future experience days

February and March are MOT months to get an early season assessment of where your game is at, and tune up any areas that need tweaking to start the season off right and lower those scores! The MOT session is 90 minutes and costs £99. It covers every area of the game, and comes with a TrackMan report and screencast recapping the key points and practice plan. This is not a game rebuild session (very rarely are coaching sessions with me anyway unless requested by the player), this is a check over of your existing game and either give it the all clear or make tweaks if necessary.  

How do  you hold the club?

Most of the time when we refer to holding the golf club, we are relating it to the strength of the grip. Whether it's strong, weak, or neutral but in this case I am referring to the relationship of your little and forefinger on the grip. Are you a golfer who plays with an interlock, overlap, or baseball grip? There are for sure some pros and cons of both, and maybe one is more suited to you than the other. Let’s take a look and see if you could make some performance gains from a change or maybe you have found the right relationship already.

Comfort 

As much as it's very important to have a functional grip that works for you, it's also very important that it's comfortable and pain-free. I appreciate when you make a grip change it will feel strange to start with as we are creatures of habit, but it shouldn’t cause any pain towards the hands or wrist joints.

The Interlock 

The interlock grip is where the little finger of the bottom hand interlocks itself with the top hand's forefinger as shown in the image above.  This grip is mostly favoured for players with smaller hands as it helps create a stronger hold on the club.  It help you feel like you have a more secure hold of the club as all ten fingers are in contact with the grip. This grip was used by the likes of Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus and is very common among female golfers.

The Overlap

The overlap grip is where the little of the bottom hand sits on top of the forefinger of the top hand as in the image below. A grip that is generally preferred by players with larger hands and if you feel like you have a really strong grip pressure and struggle to loosen it, then this grip can help in doing that. This grip can also be helpful if you struggle to change to a weaker grip,  but if you are very active with your wrists in the swing it can help assist with lowering the amount you load the wrists.

The Baseball 

The baseball grip is a ten-finger grip where all fingers are in contact with the grip but there is no locking or overlapping like the previous two options. It’s a great and easy way for people who are just starting to play the game.  It would probably be the least stable grip as it promotes more wrist movement and variations in grip pressure.

Before you look at changing your grip because of your hand size I would check to see if your grips are the right size for you. A change in grip thickness could be a much easier win than changing the way your fingers connect on the grip.

Have you got a basic chip shot? 

Lets look at how we can establish that stock chip shot from the greenside that starts nicely online, is struck relatively close to the centre of the clubface and you can land near your intended spot?  Sounds simple I know, but let's have a walk through.

Try these 3 drills

Strike – Place 2 tee pegs a clubhead width apart with the tee peg closest to you matching the angle of the hosel/shaft.  Place one tee peg directly in the middle where it is just higher than the fairway/fringe.  Try hitting some chips without hitting the two pegs that are placed horizontally and clip the one in the ground (yellow) without taking any turf.

Start line/Direction - Place 2 alignment rods 2 yards in front of your ball to target line at 3 golf balls width apart. Try hitting some chips through the cains to your intended target without hitting them.

Distance control – Place 10 tee pegs on a green scattered apart. Remove each tee peg when you land within a foot or closer to one. See how long it takes to remove all the tee pegs.  

Double down on your routine 

It can often seem the less attractive areas to work on within our golf game. We can get distracted by more shinier objects such as new equipment, or new swing tips on how to middle your driver for an extra 20 yards.  How good are your behaviours on the golf course? Or are you even aware of what your routine is or what a good routine looks like?

Physical 

What is the physical routine you go through prior to hitting the shot? If you are unsure what this is then monitor it when you next play or get one of your playing partners to video it to better understand what you do.

Behaviour

What are your intentions with the shot you are about to hit? This could be as basic as club selection and start line, selecting a target on the floor. The more advanced player may start to calculate the wind and their shot shape and visualisation etc and how long it takes no matter the importance of the outcome. 

I would also add your post routine to this as well. How much are you letting the previous shot affect the next one or even the next few holes? We can all look back and remember a game where we lost our cool and didn’t let it go for a few holes to find ourselves racking up a few high scores from nowhere.

1. I would recommend identifying what your routine is and creating one.  Speak with your coach if you need help with this.

2. Try implementing it in practice on the range then the course.

3. Mark yourself on each hole by circling the hole number on the scorecard on whether you were able to complete your routine for each shot on that hole.   Add some feedback to the session on what caused your routine to differ or why it was good.

I hope you enjoyed this month's update, as always, I appreciate your feedback. Anything you would like to see featured please get in touch and remember to keep me updated with your progress and your challenges. I'm here to support you on your journey to playing your best Golf.

Nick