The 50 Greatest Teachers Tee Off
Diverse opinions on popular instruction debates
The 50 Greatest Teachers Tee Off Diverse opinions on popular instruction debates
Should you chip with one club or change clubs?
Rank: 17. Mike Mcgetrick
Most golfers should chip with different clubs. It's much easier to land the ball on the front of the green and let it roll to the hole. If you use one club, you'll have a different landing area for every chip shot. Having a different landing area every time makes it difficult to be consistent. But when I'm teaching beginner golfers, I'll start them out chipping with one club, a pitching or sand wedge, just to learn the proper chipping technique.
9. Stan Utley
My preference is to learn a skill set that allows me to have a favorite club and predominantly use that one club. It's about learning to control trajectory. Good players could hit 14 different shots. They're that good. But hitting one shot, it focuses your attention. It also gives you one shot to practice, which helps you get really good at it, as opposed to practicing a little bit with
three or four clubs. I played 36 holes this week and haven't chipped with anything other than a
58-degree wedge.
T45. Dana Rader
I like to see golfers use a variety of clubs to chip with. Everything from hybrids to wedges is what I like to see my students use. I think this gives them more dimension in their games and makes shots around the green less challenging.
16. Randy Smith
I like switching clubs depending on the shot required and the amount of green. The running shots get the ball on the green sooner. It's a closer stroke to a putting stroke, if the player lets it be. I'm not a big advocate of a bunch of wedges in the bag. Learn how to open the 56, close it, use the bounce properly. I like being able to use that club for a variety of shots. But if you've got 40 feet of green to work with, hit it with that 8-iron and let it run like a putt. It's a much easier shot for the average guy to learn.
Why do golfers miss short putts?
T45. Todd Sones
First, they take the club back too far and then decelerate at impact. Second, the hole is within their peripheral vision, making it that much more tempting to peek, which causes them to move and mis-hit the putt. Third, sometimes they rush short putts because they feel silly going through a routine, or they're aware of the group behind them.
22. Rob Akins
The first reason is a lack of proper technique, and the second reason is a fear of missing. Many times both reasons are connected, but I've also seen players fall short because of one or the other. A great example of this is Phil Mickelson, who has won all three of his majors because of his ability to hole short putts. By practicing making hundreds of short putts, it probably has helped his technique, but more important it has raised his confidence level so he no longer has the same amount of fear.
