A Driveable
1 Shot shaping
I tend to find a fade fairly easy and a draw almost impossible. I’m always working hard to hit it dead straight and that’s what I’m trying to do with every club apart from my driver, which I know fades a little more. My natural shape would be a fade, but that’s a sign that I’m swinging poorly. If I’m swinging well, the ball tends to go straight. This is just a simple case of aiming at the flag, trying to put a good swing on it and trusting it.
2 Lofted chip
The drive was downwind so I’ve gone a little bit long. I could have hit my 5-wood, but as it turns out, I don’t have the hardest shot in the world. I’ve just got to loft up my 60˚ a bit, but I don’t have to hit a flop. It’s a fairly simple shot that requires good commitment and feel. I’ll open the face up by aiming it a bit to the right and I’ll aim my feet a little to the left to work the club across the ball a touch.
3 Putting routine
Routine is very important and in fact is probably why I play worse when I’m at home. I often feel like doing my routine with friends is almost offensive – it’s for tour only! It focuses your mind and you perform much better. Of course, you don’t want it to take too long – it has got to get to the point quickly and get you focused. I recall holing a couple of really important putts last year at the Players Championship and British Masters on the last. They were both very similar putts – 5ft, left edge – and I knew they were crucial. Over the ball, it was the same routine – the same number of practice strokes and a deep breath out and into my putt. When you do it right once or twice under pressure, it becomes a reinforcing thing and really adds to your confidence.
2 Fairway finder
When I really want to try and hit a low cut – whether it is into the wind or a tough tee shot like this – I’ll tee the ball down and grip down the club a little. By teeing it down, I can cover the ball better. When I tee the ball up, I have a tendency to back up through impact and then I can start spraying it. I hate doing that!
1 Staying in rhythm
I don’t often think about my rhythm because I rarely try and change it. The best thing you can do is hit the centre of the clubface – it’s always more important than speed. If you swing 5mph faster and hit it much more out of the heel or toe, you are actually going to lose distance despite all the forgiveness.
Assess the situation
This is a shot I might take on in a tournament, but possibly not. I’m going to try and hit a high 3-iron and fade it, but if it goes straight, it will probably end up in the rubbish. It’s fraught with danger, but if
Take a fairly wide stance to help get the ball up
I’m playing well, I might take it on. To hit this shot, lay the face open – aim sightly to the right and have your hands behind the ball as you need more height. Then, open your feet up and take a fairly wide stance to make sure you generate the speed you need to get the ball up.