Strive to finish in perfect balance

The proposed US$10 million match between Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson managed to ‘push my buttons’ and I’m only hoping that they are playing for their own money or everything goes to charity — let’s see.

Upon hitting the practice range, work on two things: balance and contact. Tee up the ball and choke down on a 7-iron. Make three-quarter swings, and don’t worry about how far the ball travels because your goal should be just solid contact. In addition, strive to finish in perfect balance no matter where the ball goes. Soon, your brain will get the message — balance and solid contact are the order of the day.

Another important element of practice before a round should be to determine what sort of game you feel you have on that day. If your practice shows that you’re hitting the ball solidly and accurately, your master plan is to play with some slight aggression. But if your practice is not too good, understand that your shots won’t carry as far. Resolve perhaps to take one more club and pick your spots to be aggressive. If you have the feeling that you can’t hit a ‘cow’s backside with a cricket bat’ on the range, then it’s time to concentrate on your Short Game, where the plan should be to play safe and get that little round ball up and down.

Out of Bounds: When you start any round, just hang in there until something good happens. If you get aggressive too early in the round, you’re undoubtedly in for a long day.