Sports Realm

Attempt my 4 iron chip shot. Simply bump it past the fringe, & allow it roll on out. Use your putting grip and advise choking down a few inches.

From adding more golfclubs to my available chipping selection, my short shots have lately gotten a lot better. In particular, during those long shots in which you only have to get the golf ball to the green in order to let it just roll on out, I’ve had a good deal of success using a 4-iron . This last weekend, while out golfing with a buddy, I played with that shot and it wound up being an easy 2 putt from about twenty yds out.

I prefer to use a reverse overlapping putting grip because it helps me to make sure and keep my hands working as a single unit. Pretty much everything else that I do is fundamental to chipping – I place my weight to my left foot, & put my ball slightly back from center using a less than shoulder width but somewhat open stance. These things help me make a descending strike into the back of the ball. But before I start to do anything, however, I look over the break in the green and pick out a spot on the other side of the fringe where I’d like the golfball to hit.

I attempt to hold my head still after striking, just like when I putt – which will help me to strike the golfball cleanly & on target. Think of the path as being the width of the cup & aim for one hole after the other in order to lessen the pressure.

Far too many of the players I meet are too worried with the accuracy of their line. Most tell me they picture a narrow line along the green running from the ball to the cup – but, the more they think about hitting that target line, the more tense they become – and as a result, it prevents them from being able to make a relaxed stroke, and the golf ball rarely stays on the inteded target path.

Alternately, I tell people to imagine a path from your putter to the hole like a series of sequential holes. This mental image will help you imagine an overall path to the target, & allows you to remain relaxed to simply let it go smoothly. When you are ready to put, think of striking the golf ball into the first hole only a few inches in front of you. Think only about the real hole when striking for distance control only. Doing this should help to ease off the pressure and make putting easier & more productive.

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