The old saying “practice smarter, not harder,” is the key to seeing improvement from your practice time.
Quality practice means having a specific purpose to your practice. And that’s only possible if you have a clear understanding and awareness of your strengths and limitations. Don’t show up at the driving range and just randomly knock balls around. Have a plan, pick targets, execute shots.
Don’t practice in the dark – it’s hard to see the way to improvement. Carve out some time where you can really focus on how you can make small improvements to your golf game. Stay away from big, heavy thoughts from swing “gurus” on YouTube, and search for a tiny, easy to remember, and more importantly easy to achieve, goal. When I work with students, I always make sure that we talk about no more than 3 ideas to help them toward their ultimate goal.
Some will come out and request to learn how to hit a draw with their ball only to find out they can barely get the ball airborne. I have to take the time to set some reasonable expectations with the student. If not, they will merely become frustrated and then there desire to play to the game drops.
And we all know what that feeling feels like when we are getting up to the ball and have no clue where the ball is heading. So, to sum it up, stop watching the pros and thinking you can do that, stop trying every game improvement device on the market, stop telling your buddy how to play better when you can barely crack an egg yourself.
Look within yourself and focus on small improvements. Over time, they will stack up and you will improve. Patience is a virtue is one of the strongest things you can whisper to yourself as you practice.
