Page 27 - Golf Champion - January 2022

have the most control over is the amount of dedication lot more practice, but also because they use equipment
to improvement you’re willing to spend in the form of that is suited to their game (often a larger mallet putter
dedicated practice. You simply can’t get better unless with inserts to help create a better and more consistent
you’re willing to put in the time to thoughtfully train. roll) and they take much more time reading the greens,
With that being said, I like to think primarily in terms lining up the putts with alignment aids, and leaving the
of two primary ways to improve your scoring average as ball a foot or so past the hole. Patience and consistency
you age. are required to shave strokes off your game around the
The Short Game. One of my best friends regularly breaks green - and just taking the time to line up short putts and
par despite being in his 70s, but he plays a different game commit to a speed completely can make all the difference
than the one he did as a scratch golfer in his 20s. He plays in the world.
from the forward tees and he makes a lot of putts and Distance. As we age, there is really no substitution for
chips as well as anyone of any age. He doesn’t have as maintaining or keeping distance. The most precipitous
much club head speed as he used to have, even on the falloff in scoring I see is from people who lose significant
short shots, so he plays the ball closer to the ground, swing speed on their tee shots and full swings because of
preferring to bump and run shots with a 9-iron, or to the lack of strength and flexibility that can accompany
keep the ball along the ground with a 3-wood around aging. Hitting a 3-wood into a Par-4’s green is a lot more
the green whenever he can. These shots didn’t come challenging than hitting a mid-iron, and even ten or
naturally to him, and he had to practice from a variety of twenty yards can significantly hurt your proximity to
lies and grasses to figure out exactly when he could play the pin on every hole. What’s the solution: a lot of work
these “safer” shots, and when he would be forced to hit and as much good health as you can control. Whether
a higher shot with a lob wedge. Watching him and many you’re in your 20s, 30s, or 70s, maximizing your distance
other students play, I can share with you that keeping is critical, and I don’t have a single student who doesn’t
the ball lower to the ground consistently gets amateurs know they should be working with a trainer and a
closer to the hole, and shorter putts are preferable to physical therapist. I also have more and more students
longer ones. That being said, I also find that students that utilizing the services of trainers to help teach them a
become better scorers as they age make a lot more short regular stretching routine. Notice I haven’t talked about
putts than they did previously. They do so because of a golf coaches and swing aids yet. As a PGA Professional,

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