An often overlooked part of golf is pre shot routine. I define this as what you do before each shot on the golf course. It should be as consistent as possible both in actions and the time it takes to complete the routine.As I watch players on the golf course in pressure situations I tend to see two different types of reactions when watching their pre shot routines. Some players will get faster and some players will get slower. Both of these reaction can cause problems for the player. As humans, we tend to do most things by following a routine. Think about what you do in the morning and I bet it will be the same most days. People tend to follow routines in their daily life so it makes sense to have a routine for your golf shots.
During the latest school tournament here in Nanshan I timed my students while they were playing different shots to see if they were consistent with their pre shot routines. As you can see by the picture they have some work to do on consistency.
Every one's routine will be different but it needs to be the same every time. The first step should be to formally define what your routine will be. Write down each thing you will do before you play the shot. Things such as choosing a target, visualising the shot, when you take your grip, how many waggles you have, how many looks at the target you will have and what your swing trigger is are all things you should write down.
Once you have written it down you should spend some time on the practice range working on your pre shot routine. Practice it with your practice shots until you find a routine that has all the steps you defined and feels comfortable.
Once you have a routine that feels comfortable you need to have a friend time you doing it in practice. Complete this stage a number of times until you find the timing that feels comfortable and relaxed for you. This is your own personal timing for your routine.
Spend some time each week practicing your routine and you will be more consistent when you are on the course and you can have a consistent routine like Greg in the video.
Until next time,
Brent
Hi Brent, (It's Kenji)
ReplyDeleteNice to see your still blogging.
Congratulations on your promotion or new position as head coach.
Joe and I are in Japan at the moment and we've played golf 3 times. We're going again on the 7th which is when dad is coming to Japan. I was also chosen to be in the Colts Pennant team for this year which is going to be pretty exciting.
Anyways hope your having fun, keep blogging and win some trophies.
The Sokiransky Family (Kenji)