Do you know how to caddie yourself into a good round of golf?
The best Players in the world are much better than the rest of us with all facets of golf. Really, to compare ourselves to being anywhere close to as good as a PGA or LPGA Tour Player would be the same as comparing yourself to Eli Manning (in the US) or Wayne Rooney (in Europe) on the football field.
Tour Players have better golf swings, putting strokes, are better at overcoming bad shots, better at reading the golf course based on their strengths and weaknesses, as well as better at controlling their emotions from getting too high or too low during a round of golf.
Would you agree or disagree with me?
Yet, the Tour Player will often listen to the advice of their caddie to help them make decisions on the golf course. And as it may not be possible to play with a caddie … you should learn to act as your own caddie if you want to become consistent with your golf swing. But most Golfers just go to the range and hit driver after driver searching for their golf swing. Yet, regardless of how much you practice … you go out to the golf course, play below your expectations and become increasingly frustrated with your inconsistency.
Do you know anyone like that?
Did you just suddenly lose your golf swing on the walk (or ride) to the first tee? Or could this be caused by not caddying yourself around the golf course? To play consistent golf, you need to be a complete Player. And to be a complete Player … you also need to be a non-biased caddie to yourself on the golf course.
Have You Viewed “The GMS Lefty Righty Golf Swing” Video?
Can You Hit Golf Balls Right Handed as well as Left Handed?
Now … can you do it in the same swing?
Click here to watch the video:
www.default/lefty-righty-golf-swing.html
As most Golfers do not play with a caddie at their side to give the voice of reason, they rarely have the following conversation on the golf course: “You know Bob; it’s about 200 yards to carry that stream of water in front of the green. And I do know you have the ability to hit some good shots with your 3 wood. However, I’m not convinced you could hit a shot where the ball stays straight and in the air for over 200 yards more than 5 times out of 10 attempts.
“So at this time I would suggest laying up with your 7 iron … which would leave you with a great angle to attack the flag with a sand wedge to the green. Rather than risking a penalty shot into the water or hitting into the trees on the right or even more likely … succumbing to the pressure over the fear of both of those alternatives and just making a bad golf swing where you top the golf ball and have it roll 40 yards into the fairway bunker leaving you with an even tougher shot and a blow-up hole.”
Without the voice of reason, most Golfers would take their 3 wood and “roll the dice”. Or maybe it just seems as if they’re rolling dice because after hitting their golf shot, the first word out of their mouth is often a word heard in Las Vegas casinos… crap(s).
Though, if you had a good caddie, he/she would’ve looked at alternative shots and worked to convince you to use those alternative plans. And you would’ve probably survived and made birdie, par or at worst a bogey.
Can you be your own caddie? Can you look at a shot, make an unbiased decision on what should be the correct club you should hit, and then make a commitment to that shot? Or … do you often make bad decisions?
The scary aspect is that most Golfers can’t fathom how many bad decisions they’re making every round of golf. The PLAN most Golfers are making on the golf course has nothing to do with playing to their strengths and away from their weaknesses. Your decisions are being influenced by watching other Golfers … rather than by your own skills and flaws.
Thus, your decisions can be classified as often being terrible!
To back that bold statement up – when we’re on the golf course each afternoon for our 9 holes of On-course Instruction, we always ask our Golfers before each shot: “What’s your PLAN here?”
The answers we often receive tell us why you struggle on the golf course. As Instructors, we’re often speechless with the shots Golfers want to play even after our advice on an alternative PLAN. “Do you realize your chances of getting on the green from here are maybe 2 times out of 10? And you have an 80% chance of having your golf ball end up in a danger zone?”
For example: with a Golfer that can hit their 3 wood over 200 yards in the air and straight 5 times out of 10 on the driving range … would their percentage of good shots increase or decrease on the golf course with water in front of them, trees to the right and deep sand bunkers abutting the green?
In golf, it’s much easier to work yourself into a bad streak vs. getting yourself into a good streak. And those bad streaks will contribute more than 1 extra stroke per hole. These bad decisions that you don’t even know that you’re making are causing you to negatively affect your golf swing and your ability to become consistent.
Someone might say: “how can one bad decision lead me to making multiple bad golf swings?” Well, it is natural after hitting a bad shot to want to make up for it by hitting an excellent shot on your next golf swing … which is just putting more pressure on yourself to make a better golf swing on your next shot. Which contributes to another bad shot … which puts even more pressure on you on your next golf swing to make an even better shot.
Now multiply that scenario by 18 holes! How can you possibly expect to become more consistent when this is constantly building every hole?
The Monkey is going to blame their golf swing and run home to read Golf Digest
The Player caddies himself/herself to a better golf game
Go ahead, learn your game and become a Player!
Regards,
Marc Solomon