25
Jan '12
Create adversity when you work on your game
By Swingpal.com staff
Golfers are always looking for ways to get better and a big part of that process involves the ability to deal with the adversity that they’ll face in any given round.
What many golfers don’t understand, however, is that you can actually practice adversity, and that’s something that everyone should try to do.For example, the next time you’re on the driving range, hit a few balls out of divots or off of bare lies. Or when you’re working on your short game, hit chips and pitches from terrible lies and practice shots from buried lies in a bunker.
The key is to challenge yourself when you work on your game so that you’re prepared for those challenges when you hit the course.
One great way to implement this approach if you have the time is to play nine holes and to hit two balls on each shot you’ll play - a one-player scramble so to speak.
The difference, however, is that unlike in a typical scramble format, you’re not going to play your next shot from the location of the better of the two preceding results - you’re going to play your next shot from the worse spot among the two preceding results.
That doesn’t sound like much fun, does it? And it won’t be at times.
But it’s a great way to learn how to grind on the golf course, something every great player has the ability to do when their game is a little bit off the mark, and it can be an especially fun way to practice with friends given some of the results you're likely to see.
So try this practice approach periodically for an entire nine holes. You’ll get to deal with adversity and it will help your game in the long run.