Is Hitting the 300 Yard Long Drive the Best Advice to Take?

By Mitch Durkin

I love golf. I've been playing the sport since I was 12 and I've seen it grow by leaps and bounds. Heck, when I was a young lad, I could ride my bike to the county course and play 9 for $9. The remaining dollar was stamped for fries at the halfway house down the street. The driving range was a "stop and sock" and golf carts didn't have roofs. Those were better days and better times.

In a moment of clarity, I compared how golf was taught and what you need to do to shoot great scores against the marketing materials being fed to us nowadays. This game has changed into this slick power machine where hitting the long drives outweigh touch and feel. Party goers wear their Fedoras and believe that buying a $300 driver with screws in it will change the way they play golf. Believe me, I'm not bitter whatsoever. I applaud all advances in technology...but for the common golfer I know, without a doubt, that what is being preached by marketers is really not the answer to shooting better games.

Now I am going to speak my mind. I've played this game for 30 years. I've taught it. I have won more than my share of rounds. To begin guys (and girls), if you really want to know how to improve your game, with no doubt in my mind, you need to P-R-A-C-T-I-C-E (ok..I can hear the groans from here)! Yep, the magical cure is so simple, practice. Now I'm not talking about the hitting the long drive. In fact, don't even think about the long ball UNTIL YOU CAN CHIP-PITCH-PUTT! If you need help, please pay the $50 and get a lesson with a pro. Left to our own devices, we will only spin and develop terrible golf habits. Get the basic mechanics and work on your chipping, putting and pitching. Now I know there are no thrills with this activity...you don't get to see the ball fly into the Heavens which we all love to see. But, I promise you, if you can just chip the ball by the hole and putt it in consistently, you will see a dramatic difference with your score and your game GUARANTEED!! Furthermore, this type of practice develops "touch and feel" perception, which is an attribute all great golfers have. How do they get it? They practice, on real grass, chipping, pitching and putting, ball after ball until that shot is consistently "in the bag."

Because I have the audacity to mention practice, you may now be thinking, "How long does this take?" or " When will I see results?" These are both fair questions and very human of you to ask. My answer has always been this: "When you know that you no longer need to guess, then take it to the course!"
Lastly, while there is a ton to practicing with purpose, here are a couple of quick tips.

1. Be present when you are practicing. Imagine you are on the course shooting a round when you are chipping, pitching and putting. There's a HUGE difference from practice to playing. Put yourself in position that you are making these shots during a practice round.

2. We are human. We process a billion different things at any given moment. Give yourself time to quiet down and relax. Before you go play a round, make sure you warm up, to calibrate your mind and body on the range. That means to "wake up" all the effort you made during the week practicing. Please don't just run out on to the course (as all weekend warriors do) expecting to shoot a great game. Warm up, see what is up with your swing for that day...because it's always changing....thus the beautiful game of golf.....

I apologize if any of you think this was a rant. I just want to help develop players and contribute to the game of golf. Most of what I see changing in the industry, doesn't make sense to me! The game is not about hitting the long drive or a putter with moon rocks in it. The game is about YOU and what you have inside. All the great golfers know this...and now you do too...
~Mitch

Mitch Durkin is an avid golfer and golf coach. He works with clients of all skill levels and is able to help everyone with their game. For a golf tip-sheet that's pretty funny, take a look at http://www.mentalgolfhelp.com/15-practice-blunders.html It's a comical look at 15 blunders made at the driving range! It's free. It's fun and it will help you out.