I remember being in a room with Chuck Hogan, a renowned mental guru, when he asked a group of accomplished college players the following question: “Who here is done with their golf swing?” As you may imagine, none of them raised their hand. He then followed up with a second question: “Who here knows when they will be done with their golf swing?” Again, nobody raised their hand. I recently came across a college player who is about to graduate and turn pro. He was so excited because he said that his golf swing was done and that all he was working on now was becoming a shot-maker. How cool is that!
As you can see by the video that accompanies this blog, I talk about the nine shots in golf when it comes to the full swing. There is a draw, a straight shot and a fade. And there is a low, medium and high trajectory of each. I had an opportunity to watch Tiger warm up for a Ryder Cup match and sure enough, he went through the nine shots. I call it playing Tic Tac Toe as the nine squares represent the nine golf shots.
For those of you who are accomplished players, ask your instructor for a shot-making lesson. I guarantee that you will become a better player. An instructor can help you make a swing change simply by teaching you how to hit a specific shot. Instead of bogging you down in mechanics, you can make a swing change by learning to shape a shot. I remember going to golf camp at the PGA junior academy and participating in fun competitions. One contest was trying to hit the ball under a bungee cord that was tied across two posts. I learned how to hit a low shot and nobody told me to put the ball back in my stance or to lean the shaft forward and bow my wrist. The picture of the shot made me do it or I was not going to win the contest.
Playing with your ball flight is not only fun but key to getting your game to the next level. And lets face it, once you learn how to play tic tac toe, you realize that it always ends in a tie if both players know what they are doing. But my golf version of Tic Tac Toe can help you win your match against your buddy. -jz
