Opinion & Analysis

The Wedge Guy: Ball striking vs. Shot making

Published

4 years ago

Mar 24, 2020

We often hear these two terms used to describe a given golfer’s particular skills, and sometimes they are used interchangeably. Today, I would like to discuss the difference and then pose a question to all of you to weigh in on, if you would please.

To get this conversation started, here’s how I would define each and explain the difference:

“Ball striking” refers to a golfer’s ability to make extremely solid contact with the ball shot after shot, club to club, with remarkable consistency. It is the core essence of the game, actually, because until you get reasonably consistent in making solid contact in the center of the face of the club, you really don’t know
what the ball is going to do.

“Shot making” on the other hand, is the golfer’s ability to make the ball do what he or she wants. Shaping shots to move the ball around – fades and draws, high and low, take a little off of it, amp it up a bit, etc. – these are the skills that define the highly accomplished player.

In discussions of “ball striking”, the same names come up time and again for the “legend” tour professionals–Hogan, Nelson, Tommy Bolt, Lee Trevino are maybe the most noted. One of the more common is also the legendary Moe Norman. It was said by those who had the opportunity to see him that he almost never mishit a shot, and every one took off on the same trajectory and flight. It was said that Mr. Norman never achieved financial fame on the golf course, and I have read it was because of his nerves and quirky nature. Nevertheless, he is the subject of countless legends.

In the modern game, I think nearly all the top professionals are great ball strikers, and maybe the LPGA Tour even takes that consistently solid contact to the next level. They simply have to, as they don’t have the physical strength to play their courses with too many unsolid hits.

Moving on to “shot making”, again we see many of the same names from the history books, but I would put Tiger Woods on a completely different level from most of his peers. For over two decades, he has shown us some remarkable imagination and execution of shots most wouldn’t even have the ability to see.

It was said about Ben Hogan that he was one of the very few that combined both skills. Ben Hogan was noted for this insightful piece of advice about how to approach a pin location:

”You work the ball toward the flag. If it is on the right side of the green, you hit a fade, and hit a draw to any left flag location. Pins in the front require a high shot with spin, and those toward the back of the green require a lower shot with less spin. You always work the ball flight from the center of the green toward the edges.”

Now that’s serious insight into how the game can be played…at least if you have complete control over the ball flight. Or at least want to. And that brings me to my question today; I would like for as many of you as possible to chime with your answer to this:

Do you ever try to hit various shots–draws, fades, high, low, “carve it”, etc.– and how often? Only when necessary, frequently, often. Please also indicate your handicap with your answer, OK?

Let’s have some fun with this.

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Terry Koehler

Terry Koehler is a fourth generation Texan and a graduate of Texas A&M University. Over his 40-year career in the golf industry, he has created over 100 putter designs, sets of irons and drivers, and in 2014, he put together the team that reintroduced the Ben Hogan brand to the golf equipment industry. Since the early 2000s, Terry has been a prolific writer, sharing his knowledge as “The Wedge Guy”. But his most compelling work is in the wedge category. Since he first patented his “Koehler Sole” in the early 1990s, he has been challenging “conventional wisdom” reflected in ‘tour design’ wedges. The performance of his wedge designs have stimulated other companies to move slightly more mass toward the top of the blade in their wedges, but none approach the dramatic design of his Edison Forged wedges, which have been robotically proven to significantly raise the bar for wedge performance. Terry serves as Chairman and Director of Innovation for Edison Golf – check it out at www.EdisonWedges.com.

11 Comments

ChipNRun

Apr 7, 2020 at 8:48 am

I’m now about 20 HDCP (as per initial report under new system).

For a long time I tried to hit “whatever shot shape was needed,” but a few years back I settled into the draw as my stock shot. I had problems with a recurring overswing + Over The Top move, and the in-to-out of the draw helped prevent this.

For tee shots, I vary tee height (for the day) based upon turf conditions. It it’s drier, I’ll tee it down so I have a flatter descent angle and can pick up more rollout. If it’s wet, I tee it higher to maximize carry.

That said, on tee shots I can produce a decent fade when needed. I mean, the tee surface is flat and the ball is on a wooden peg which you can adjust the height of. Anyone who understands the basics of ball flight should be able to hit a basic fade or draw under these conditions.

And, if I’m in the right first cut (typical miss for draw), I can hit a low slap slice to get the ball up toward the green. (A skill I picked up playing blades in the previous century…)

For partial wedges, I use a square or ever-so-slightly open set up. With a midspin ball (i.e. Callaway Superhot, TopFlite Gamer Tour), I can generally drop a partial wedge on the green with maybe three yards of rollout.

For really shaggy shots around the green, I get better control with SW than with a LW.

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Roejye

Mar 27, 2020 at 12:27 am

I don’t have an official handicap as I didn’t really keep score, and when I did there were quite a few mulligans thrown in. Going by the calculation of score over par, I was about a 13 with my scoring so I’ll say minimum 18. I play a course where there isn’t much reason to shape my shots, and my ability level isn’t there yet, so I focus on ball striking. Closest thing to shot shaping is using a more lofted club to get over a bunker or mound to a tight pin.

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Jim

Mar 25, 2020 at 11:36 am

Current index 8.8. I consider myself a pretty good ballstriker but not much of a shot maker. My natural ball flight is a draw and I can hook and slice it at will but I find a fade very difficult to hit. High and low shots are a bit easier to hit. Lucky for me, I’m a lefty and most of the courses I play (local green fee courses) have far more dogleg rights than dogleg lefts to accommodate slicing right handlers. When I do have to make a “shot” and pull it off, it’s very satisfying—and surprising!

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Tim M.

Mar 24, 2020 at 2:06 pm

My index is 3.3. As I’ve gotten older, and the balls spin less than the old balata balls I grew up with, I’ve been more confident in hitting draws/fades. My stock shot is a very slight fade…and I agree with the idea that many times, it’s better to hit the stock shot to middle of green rather than trying hit something I’m not as comfortable with. I pay a lot of attention to my warmup, and how the ball is moving. Some days, I can see that my short irons are being drawn a bit…so I work with that. I think it’s fun to hit shots with various curves, and I always think about on the course. I just try to make good decisions about when to try a shot, and when to “settle” for safe, middle of green shot.

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Mark M

Mar 24, 2020 at 1:20 pm

One of the main reasons I love golf is exactly what you’re talking about Terry … SHOTMAKING!
I’m definitely in your OFTEN + category – what’s more than often? When I’m on the course, I look at all the available ways to get the ball to go where I want. Sometimes it’s a stock shot but most of the time I’m trying to create a shot that fits the situation as I see it. Sometimes that can be up to 4 or 5 different shot options. Friends have told me that I might lower my scores more if I limited my options to one or two main shots, but what’s the fun in that?!

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2waymiss

Mar 24, 2020 at 12:14 pm

Handicap- Hacker! If the toe was the center of the face then I’d be the best ball striker on the planet. I’d love to be able to execute 1 of each shape in the 9 ball flights w/ predictable control. Heck, I’d settle just for a draw (no gear effect) w/ my driver! Lol

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- Dill Pickelson
  
  Mar 27, 2020 at 11:59 pm
  
  I tweeted Adam Young and asked him how to not toe it and he had me put the ball inside of the rubber tee and hit both. The body adjusted and I could sense the difference. I immediately went from a 6 to a 2 and have been there for about 3 years now. Crazy simple solution for a life long problem.
  
  Reply Report comment
Brian Terry

Mar 24, 2020 at 12:05 pm

I play to an 8 and only work the ball when I need to. However, I PRACTICE those shots regularly so that I have the confidence to pull them off when needed. I use trajectory manipulation far more than curvature. I like to work the trajectory and spin to control the rollout for front and back pins depending on the firmness of the greens. I usually only use draws and fades if a pin is tucked and I can depend on the release of the shot to get it back to the pin after landing. I plan the ball to land 10-15′ from the pin and roll to it as opposed to landing right on the pin. Nothing is worse than hitting a shot to curve the ball perfectly to the pin, only to have it hop off the edge of the green leaving me short-sided.

BT

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William Terry

Mar 24, 2020 at 10:25 am

I’ve gone multiple routes over this in 20 years of playing golf fairly seriously… I’ve ranged from a 12-4 over that time, and currently sit at a 5.5. I’m now 38 and have less time to play and practice… I’ve also decided this season to spend more time on chipping and putting and less time on the range hitting full shots.

Tiger talks about 9 “windows” High, Low, Middle, Straight, Fade, Draw… and can hit all 9 of them. I can hit about 5 different shots with varying degrees of success… High, Low, Draw, Fade, “straight”. I default to a fade and have tried to eliminate a left miss from my game… This allows me to aim left and worry less about hazards.

I can hit a draw, but it lacks control… I’ve stopped “going for it” and forcing a draw and it has helped eliminate mistakes from my game… I will rarely flight the ball on a regular shot into a green. I will use trajectory to get around obstacles, including a higher shot to get over a bunker into a tight pin. That’s about as close to shot making as I get right now.

If I ever succeed in getting my short game to “good”, I will probably spend more time working on a dependable draw, just to add a shot to my bag. It would be nice to have confidence in different shots, but right now I play what I know… Honestly, I don’t think this will shave a significant amount of strokes off my game (other than working on shot making will improve my ball striking). I can’t see how mastering a “second” type of shot would shave more than a half stroke off my cap.

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Brian

Mar 24, 2020 at 10:23 am

I play to a 6 and my stock shot – and really only shot – is a draw; I can’t hit a [decent] fade to save my life. Trust me, I’ve tried, but it ends poorly. Luckily, I can repeat a pretty similar [draw] ball flight shot after shot, so what I’ll change up is the height based on the conditions: windy – keep it low, wet – keep it high, etc.

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Bart

Mar 24, 2020 at 9:48 am

I try to put a bit of “english” on every single shot outside of 100 yards. It makes the game more interesting to me and also makes the winds influence more predictable. Also if you know the slope of the green it gives you a better chance of getting it closer since you have an idea of the roll after it lands. 9.9 out of 10 shots will have some sort of bend so might as well have control over it.

Wasnt it Hogan that said “straight hitters NEVER hit it straight”?

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19th Hole

Vincenzi’s LIV Golf Singapore betting preview: Course specialist ready to thrive once again

Published

4 days ago

Apr 30, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

After another strong showing in Australia, LIV Golf will head to Sentosa Golf Club in Singapore looking to build off of what was undoubtedly their best event to date.

Sentosa Golf Club sits on the southern tip of Singapore and is one of the most beautiful courses in the world. The course is more than just incredible scenically; it was also rated 55th in Golf Digest’s top-100 courses in 2022-2023 and has been consistently regarded as one of the best courses in Asia. Prior to being part of the LIV rotation, the course hosted the Singapore Open every year since 2005.

Sentosa Golf Club is a par 71 measuring 7,406 yards. The course will require precise ball striking and some length off the tee. It’s possible to go low due to the pristine conditions, but there are also plenty of hazards and difficult spots on the course that can bring double bogey into play in a hurry. The Bermudagrass greens are perfectly manicured, and the course has spent millions on the sub-air system to keep the greens rolling fast. I spoke to Asian Tour player, Travis Smyth, who described the greens as “the best [he’s] ever played.”

Davis Love III, who competed in a Singapore Open in 2019, also gushed over the condition of the golf course.

“I love the greens. They are fabulous,” the 21-time PGA Tour winner said.

Love III also spoke about other aspects of the golf course.

“The greens are great; the fairways are perfect. It is a wonderful course, and it’s tricky off the tee.”

“It’s a long golf course, and you get some long iron shots. It takes somebody hitting it great to hit every green even though they are big.”

As Love III said, the course can be difficult off the tee due to the length of the course and the trouble looming around every corner. It will take a terrific ball striking week to win at Sentosa Golf Club.

In his pre-tournament press conference last season, Phil Mickelson echoed many of the same sentiments.

“To play Sentosa effectively, you’re going to have a lot of shots from 160 to 210, a lot of full 6-, 7-, 8-iron shots, and you need to hit those really well and you need to drive the ball well.”

Golfers who excel from tee to green and can dial in their longer irons will have a massive advantage this week.

Stat Leaders at LIV Golf Adelaide:

Fairways Hit

1.) Louis Oosthuizen

2.) Anirban Lahiri

3.) Jon Rahm

4.) Brendan Steele

5.) Cameron Tringale

Greens in Regulation

1.) Brooks Koepka

2.) Brendan Steele

3.) Dean Burmester

4.) Cameron Tringale

5.) Anirban Lahiri

Birdies Made

1.) Brendan Steele

2.) Dean Burmester

3.) Thomas Pieters

4.) Patrick Reed

5.) Carlos Ortiz

LIV Golf Individual Standings:

1.) Joaquin Niemann

2.) Jon Rahm

3.) Dean Burmester

4.) Louis Oosthuizen

5.) Abraham Ancer

LIV Golf Team Standings:

1.) Crushers

2.) Legion XIII

3.) Torque

4.) Stinger GC

5.) Ripper GC

LIV Golf Singapore Picks

Sergio Garcia +3000 (DraftKings)

Sergio Garcia is no stranger to Sentosa Golf Club. The Spaniard won the Singapore Open in 2018 by five strokes and lost in a playoff at LIV Singapore last year to scorching hot Talor Gooch. Looking at the course setup, it’s no surprise that a player like Sergio has played incredible golf here. He’s long off the tee and is one of the better long iron players in the world when he’s in form. Garcia is also statistically a much better putter on Bermudagrass than he is on other putting surfaces. He’s putt extremely well on Sentosa’s incredibly pure green complexes.

This season, Garcia has two runner-up finishes, both of them being playoff losses. Both El Camaleon and Doral are courses he’s had success at in his career. The Spaniard is a player who plays well at his tracks, and Sentosa is one of them. I believe Sergio will get himself in the mix this week. Hopefully the third time is a charm in Singapore.

Paul Casey +3300 (FanDuel)

Paul Casey is in the midst of one of his best seasons in the five years or so. The results recently have been up and down, but he’s shown that when he’s on a golf course that suits his game, he’s amongst the contenders.

This season, Casey has finishes of T5 (LIV Las Vegas), T2 (LIV Hong Kong), and a 6th at the Singapore Classic on the DP World Tour. At his best, the Englishman is one of the best long iron players in the world, which makes him a strong fit for Sentosa. Despite being in poor form last season, he was able to fire a Sunday 63, which shows he can low here at the course.

It’s been three years since Casey has won a tournament (Omega Dubai Desert Classic in 2021), but he’s been one of the top players on LIV this season and I think he can get it done at some point this season.

Mito Pereira +5000 (Bet365)

Since Mito Pereira’s unfortunate demise at the 2022 PGA Championship, he’s been extremely inconsistent. However, over the past few months, the Chilean has played well on the International Series as well as his most recent LIV start. Mito finished 8th at LIV Adelaide, which was his best LIV finish this season.

Last year, Pereira finished 5th at LIV Singapore, shooting fantastic rounds of 67-66-66. It makes sense why Mito would like Sentosa, as preeminent ball strikers tend to rise to the challenge of the golf course. He’s a great long iron player who is long and straight off the tee.

Mito has some experience playing in Asia and is one of the most talented players on LIV who’s yet to get in the winner’s circle. I have questions about whether or not he can come through once in contention, but if he gets there, I’m happy to roll the dice.

Andy Ogletree +15000 (DraftKings)

Andy Ogletree is a player I expected to have a strong 2024 but struggled early in his first full season on LIV. After failing to crack the top-25 in any LIV event this year, the former U.S. Amateur champion finally figured things out, finished in a tie for 3rd at LIV Adelaide.

Ogletree should be incredible comfortable playing in Singapore. He won the International Series Qatar last year and finished T3 at the International Series Singapore. The 26-year-old was arguably the best player on the Asian Tour in 2023 and has been fantastic in the continent over the past 18 months.

If Ogletree has indeed found form, he looks to be an amazing value at triple-digit odds.

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Opinion & Analysis

Ryan: Lessons from the worst golf instructor in America

Published

4 days ago

Apr 30, 2024

Brendan Ryan

In Tampa, there is a golf course that boasts carts that do not work, a water range, and a group of players none of which have any chance to break 80. The course is overseen by a staff of crusty men who have succeeded at nothing in life but ending up at the worst-run course in America. However, this place is no failure. With several other local courses going out of business — and boasting outstanding greens — the place is booked full.

While I came for the great greens, I stayed to watch our resident instructor; a poor-tempered, method teacher who caters to the hopeless. At first, it was simply hilarious. However, after months of listening and watching, something clicked. I realized I had a front-row seat to the worst golf instructor in America.

Here are some of my key takeaways.

Method Teacher

It is widely accepted that there are three types of golf instructors: system teachers, non-system teachers, and method teachers. Method teachers prescribe the same antidote for each student based on a preamble which teachers can learn in a couple day certification.

Method teaching allows anyone to be certified. This process caters to the lowest caliber instructor, creating the illusion of competency. This empowers these underqualified instructors with the moniker of “certified” to prey on the innocent and uninformed.

The Cult of Stack and Jilt

The Stack and Tilt website proudly boasts, “A golfer swings his hands inward in the backswing as opposed to straight back to 1) create power, similar to a field goal kicker moving his leg in an arc and 2) to promote a swing that is in-to-out, which produces a draw (and eliminates a slice).”

Now, let me tell you something, there is this law of the universe which says “energy can either be created or destroyed,” so either these guys are defying physics or they have no idea what they are taking about. Further, the idea that the first move of the backswing determines impact is conjecture with a splash of utter fantasy.

These are the pontifications of a method — a set of prescriptions applied to everyone with the hope of some success through the placebo effect. It is one thing for a naive student to believe, for a golf instructor to drink and then dispel this Kool-Aid is malpractice.

Fooled by Randomness

In flipping a coin, or even a March Madness bet, there is a 50-50 chance of success. In golf, especially for new players, results are asymmetric. Simply put: Anything can happen. The problem is that when bad instructors work with high handicappers, each and every shot gets its own diagnosis and prescription. Soon the student is overwhelmed.

Now here’s the sinister thing: The overwhelming information is by design. In this case, the coach is not trying to make you better, they are trying to make you reliant on them for information. A quasi Stockholm syndrome of codependency.

Practice

One of the most important scientists of the 20th century was Ivan Pavlov. As you might recall, he found that animals, including humans, could be conditioned into biological responses. In golf, the idea of practice has made millions of hackers salivate that they are one lesson or practice session from “the secret.”

Sunk Cost

The idea for the worst golf instructor is to create control and dependency so that clients ignore the sunk cost of not getting better. Instead, they are held hostage by the idea that they are one lesson or tip away from unlocking their potential.

Cliches

Cliches have the effect of terminating thoughts. However, they are the weapon of choice for this instructor. Add some hyperbole and students actually get no information. As a result, these players couldn’t play golf. When they did, they had no real scheme. With no idea what they are doing, they would descend into a spiral of no idea what to do, bad results, lower confidence, and running back to the lesson tee from more cliches.

The fact is that poor instruction is about conditioning players to become reliant members of your cult. To take away autonomy. To use practice as a form of control. To sell more golf lessons not by making people better but through the guise that without the teacher, the student can never reach their full potential. All under the umbrella of being “certified” (in a 2-day course!) and a melee of cliches.

This of course is not just happening at my muni but is a systemic problem around the country and around the world, the consequences of which are giving people a great reason to stop playing golf. But hey, at least it’s selling a lot of golf balls…

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19th Hole

Vincenzi’s 2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans betting preview

Published

2 weeks ago

Apr 22, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

The PGA TOUR heads to New Orleans to play the 2023 Zurich Classic of New Orleans. In a welcome change from the usual stroke play, the Zurich Classic is a team event. On Thursday and Saturday, the teams play best ball, and on Friday and Sunday the teams play alternate shot.

TPC Louisiana is a par 72 that measures 7,425 yards. The course features some short par 4s and plenty of water and bunkers, which makes for a lot of exciting risk/reward scenarios for competitors. Pete Dye designed the course in 2004 specifically for the Zurich Classic, although the event didn’t make its debut until 2007 because of Hurricane Katrina.

Coming off of the Masters and a signature event in consecutive weeks, the field this week is a step down, and understandably so. Many of the world’s top players will be using this time to rest after a busy stretch.

However, there are some interesting teams this season with some stars making surprise appearances in the team event. Some notable teams include Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele, Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry, Collin Morikawa and Kurt Kitayama, Will Zalatoris and Sahith Theegala as well as a few Canadian teams, Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin and Taylor Pendrith and Corey Conners.

Past Winners at TPC Louisiana

2023: Riley/Hardy (-30)
2022: Cantlay/Schauffele (-29)
2021: Leishman/Smith (-20)
2019: Palmer/Rahm (-26)
2018: Horschel/Piercy (-22)
2017: Blixt/Smith (-27)

2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans Picks

Tom Hoge/Maverick McNealy +2500 (DraftKings)

Tom Hoge is coming off of a solid T18 finish at the RBC Heritage and finished T13 at last year’s Zurich Classic alongside Harris English.

This season, Hoge is having one of his best years on Tour in terms of Strokes Gained: Approach. In his last 24 rounds, the only player to top him on the category is Scottie Scheffler. Hoge has been solid on Pete Dye designs, ranking 28th in the field over his past 36 rounds.

McNealy is also having a solid season. He’s finished T6 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and T9 at the PLAYERS Championship. He recently started working with world renowned swing coach, Butch Harmon, and its seemingly paid dividends in 2024.

Keith Mitchell/Joel Dahmen +4000 (DraftKings)

Keith Mitchell is having a fantastic season, finishing in the top-20 of five of his past seven starts on Tour. Most recently, Mitchell finished T14 at the Valero Texas Open and gained a whopping 6.0 strokes off the tee. He finished 6th at last year’s Zurich Classic.

Joel Dahmen is having a resurgent year and has been dialed in with his irons. He also has a T11 finish at the PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass which is another Pete Dye track. With Mitchell’s length and Dahmen’s ability to put it close with his short irons, the Mitchell/Dahmen combination will be dangerous this week.

Taylor Moore/Matt NeSmith +6500 (DraftKings)

Taylor Moore has quickly developed into one of the more consistent players on Tour. He’s finished in the top-20 in three of his past four starts, including a very impressive showing at The Masters, finishing T20. He’s also finished T4 at this event in consecutive seasons alongside Matt NeSmith.

NeSmith isn’t having a great 2024, but has seemed to elevate his game in this format. He finished T26 at Pete Dye’s TPC Sawgrass, which gives the 30-year-old something to build off of. NeSmith is also a great putter on Bermudagrass, which could help elevate Moore’s ball striking prowess.

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