Instruction
Struggling to take it to the course? Try the “20 in 20” drill
By Carson Henry, GolfWRX Contributor
Stephen, a student of mine, walked into the clubhouse with a desperate look on his face:
“I just don’t get it Coach, I hit every single shot that I wanted to on the range today. What happens to me when I tee it up on the course?”
As a golf instructor, this is a question that I encounter almost on a daily basis. And it is one that is relatively easy to answer.
To understand why some golfers seems to deteriorate on the short walk from range to tee, first we must look at the differences in atmosphere. The driving range is usually about 100 yards wide and scattered with target greens and pins. Almost every shot hit on the driving range will be moving in the general direction of one target or another. Yet, if a bad shot is struck, there is no one present to witness, as everyone else on the range is preoccupied with their own practice.
When you move to the first tee, you are staring down a 40-yard wide fairway, maybe even smaller, and three other players are there to witness whatever shot your nervous swing may produce. The sense of pressure this shot produces usually feels much heavier than any of the shots on the practice range.
In preparation for these pressure filled moments, golfers must recreate a sense of the pressure, and one of the most accurate way of doing that is by using a drill called “20 in 20”. The drill’s name comes from the practice of hitting 20 balls in 20 minutes, and is being used by many great players across the globe.
Properly executing this drill requires a few things:
- Hit only 1 ball per minute (no more, no less).
- Hit to a different target for each ball (never the same target back to back).
- Hit a different club for each ball (never the same club back to back).
- Every third shot have a peer watch you execute a shot (explain the shot to them before you hit)
Note: For more novice players, this may only mean hitting toward the intended target. For more advanced players, this should include trajectory (height) and ball flight (draw or fade).
Following these steps, the “20 in 20” drill will most accurately recreate a pressure filled atmosphere for each shot. Drill users will subconsciously know that they will not have another chance to execute the same shot following the first attempt. This will shift the bulk of the focus on hitting the next shot well, much like it would on the course. As much as it pains golfers, they must not give themselves another chance at the same shot, no matter how poor or embarrassing the first was. That kind of practice is best done before or after the drill.
I challenge you to try the “20 in 20” drill during your next range visit and see if you can do it. Trust me, it is much more difficult than it sounds.
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Instruction
Clement: Laid-off or perfect fade? Across-the-line or perfect draw?
Some call the image on the left laid off, but if you are hitting a fade, this could be a perfect backswing for it! Same for across the line for a draw! Stop racking your brain with perceived mistakes and simply match backswing to shot shape!
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Instruction
The Wedge Guy: The easiest-to-learn golf basic
My golf learning began with this simple fact – if you don’t have a fundamentally sound hold on the golf club, it is practically impossible for your body to execute a fundamentally sound golf swing. I’m still a big believer that the golf swing is much easier to execute if you begin with the proper hold on the club.
As you might imagine, I come into contact with hundreds of golfers of all skill levels. And it is very rare to see a good player with a bad hold on the golf club. There are some exceptions, for sure, but they are very few and very far between, and they typically have beat so many balls with their poor grip that they’ve found a way to work around it.
The reality of biophysics is that the body moves only in certain ways – and the particulars of the way you hold the golf club can totally prevent a sound swing motion that allows the club to release properly through the impact zone. The wonderful thing is that anyone can learn how to put a fundamentally sound hold on the golf club, and you can practice it anywhere your hands are not otherwise engaged, like watching TV or just sitting and relaxing.
Whether you prefer an overlap, interlock or full-finger (not baseball!) grip on the club, the same fundamentals apply. Here are the major grip faults I see most often, in the order of the frequency:
Mis-aligned hands
By this I mean that the palms of the two hands are not parallel to each other. Too many golfers have a weak left hand and strong right, or vice versa. The easiest way to learn how to hold the club with your palms aligned properly is to grip a plain wooden ruler or yardstick. It forces the hands to align properly and shows you how that feels. If you grip and re-grip a yardstick several times, then grip a club, you’ll see that the learning curve is almost immediate.
The position of the grip in the upper/left hand
I also observe many golfers who have the butt of the grip too far into the heel pad of the upper hand (the left hand for right-handed players). It’s amazing how much easier it is to release the club through the ball if even 1/4-1/2″ of the butt is beyond the left heel pad. Try this yourself to see what I mean. Swing the club freely with just your left hand and notice the difference in its release from when you hold it at the end of the grip, versus gripping down even a half inch.
To help you really understand how this works, go to the range and hit shots with your five-iron gripped down a full inch to make the club the same length as your seven-iron. You will probably see an amazing shot shape difference, and likely not see as much distance loss as you would expect.
Too much lower (right) hand on the club
It seems like almost all golfers of 8-10 handicap or higher have the club too far into the palm of the lower hand, because that feels “good” if you are trying to control the path of the clubhead to the ball. But the golf swing is not an effort to hit at the ball – it is a swing of the club. The proper hold on the club has the grip underneath the pad at the base of the fingers. This will likely feel “weak” to you — like you cannot control the club like that. EXACTLY. You should not be trying to control the club with your lower/master hand.
Gripping too tightly
Nearly all golfers hold the club too tightly, which tenses up the forearms and prevents a proper release of the club through impact. In order for the club to move back and through properly, you must feel that the club is controlled by the last three fingers of the upper hand, and the middle two fingers of the lower hand. If you engage your thumbs and forefingers in “holding” the club, the result will almost always be a grip that is too tight. Try this for yourself. Hold the club in your upper hand only, and squeeze firmly with just the last three fingers, with the forefinger and thumb off the club entirely. You have good control, but your forearms are not tense. Then begin to squeeze down with your thumb and forefinger and observe the tensing of the entire forearm. This is the way we are made, so the key to preventing tenseness in the arms is to hold the club very lightly with the “pinchers” — the thumbs and forefingers.
So, those are what I believe are the four fundamentals of a good grip. Anyone can learn them in their home or office very quickly. There is no easier way to improve your ball striking consistency and add distance than giving more attention to the way you hold the golf club.
More from the Wedge Guy
- The Wedge Guy: Golf mastery begins with your wedge game
- The Wedge Guy: Why golf is 20 times harder than brain surgery
- The Wedge Guy: Musings on the golf ball rollback
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Instruction
Clement: Stop ripping off your swing with this drill!
Not the dreaded headcover under the armpit drill! As if your body is defective and can’t function by itself! Have you seen how incredible the human machine is with all the incredible feats of agility all kinds of athletes are accomplishing? You think your body is so defective (the good Lord is laughing his head off at you) that it needs a headcover tucked under the armpit so you can swing like T-Rex?
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Andy Nelson PGA
Mar 15, 2013 at 4:11 pm
Good tip Carson! Is that the range at Methodist?
GO MONARCHS!
Carson
Apr 4, 2013 at 10:54 am
It is the MU range! Small world!
lobstah
Mar 15, 2013 at 2:39 pm
This drill was good enough to draw out my first comment as a member ! It is similar to a drill a buddy and I used to do on the range: We would create imaginary holes and play them.
Carson
Apr 4, 2013 at 10:55 am
That is virtually the same drill. Very difficult task to complete!
Carl
Mar 13, 2013 at 3:30 am
Thanks for the great driving range/drill tip! More of these please, whenever possible.
Going to try it out as soon as the snow melts here in Finland…
Tasha
Mar 7, 2013 at 10:43 am
Anyone looking to try this sort of methodology at the range should look in to an app call Practice Pro Golf. Essentially challenges you to complete different shots based on certain criteria.
I find it pretty useful if I can get myself to stick with it. My bf swears by it.
NO. I DONT WORK FOR AN APP COMPANY!
Carson
Mar 7, 2013 at 4:37 pm
Great recommendation! Downloading now!
-Carson Henry
Drew
Mar 7, 2013 at 10:15 am
What a great drill!! Thanks
Carson
Mar 7, 2013 at 4:37 pm
Thanks for reading!
-Carson Henry
Craig
Mar 6, 2013 at 5:05 pm
I have this same issue and I think the drill in the article helps I think it leaves out a good reason why this happens. Set up, posture, alignment, and ball position are very important to hitting consistently repeatable shots. I think when you are on the range you are able to unknowingly improve these aspects of the golf swing and magically you start hitting more consistent shots. When you get out the course you are forced to rebuild your whole setup for each shot. I think this drill helps in that respect because by grabbing a new club and setting up to a new target it forces you to rebuild your setup every shot. I think the key thing to do is realize that your setup is probably being groomed unknowingly while you are on the range so its something to work on and perfect.
Carson
Mar 6, 2013 at 10:17 pm
Great observation Craig, that is exactly the drills purpose. Creating a habit out of approaching/addressing each shot individually and uniquely so that it becomes second nature.
Jive
Mar 4, 2013 at 1:29 pm
Ha, my dyslexia kicked in while ready this post and when I got to point 4, I read, “Every third shot have a Beer watch you execute a shot (explain the shot to them before you hit)”
I think I will try that next time on the range, hope they have deals for 6 packs
Gary Kimsey
Mar 2, 2013 at 6:12 pm
I very much enjoyed your “struggling” article. It is obvious that repeating a bad fundamental in a golf swing only makes it harder to correct later (as the HS coach has seen). I would think the final swing of the 20 should mimic the opening tee shot (confidence if you hit it well, “mulligan” on first tee if not).
Ray
Mar 2, 2013 at 12:25 am
Thanks, Carson!
Sounds like a great way to add some mental training to an otherwise mechanical practice.
Nate
Mar 1, 2013 at 1:04 pm
I like this, thanks Carson. I’m going to do this with my HS golf team. I do my best to help them understand that beating as many balls as you can during their range time isn’t going to help them. This will work nicely in accomplishing that.
Carson
Mar 1, 2013 at 3:58 pm
I know that “beating balls” mindset well, my HS golf days were not that long ago. I’m sure they will enjoy the challenge, Glad to help!
-Carson Henry
purkjason
Feb 28, 2013 at 1:36 pm
Sounds like a very challenging but fun test for us all. Thank You
Carson
Feb 28, 2013 at 2:40 pm
You’re welcome. It is very challenging for most players, but the amount of improvement is exponential!
-Carson Henry