STRIKE IT PURE!

Learn the secrets of tour-level ballstriking… and watch your scores tumble

‘JUST A BEAT BEFORE IMPACT, SIX IDENTICAL POSITIONS CROP UP IN THE ACTIONS OF EVERY ELITE BALLSTRIKER’

of all the information given to us by modern shot tracking technology, the most surprising data relates to iron shots. After recording more than a million slices, duffs and pearlers over the past eight years, expert analysts Shot Scope recently revealed that the single biggest contributor to the shots we give up to a scratch golfer is not putting, not even driving, but green approaches. And by a lot. In fact, our poor ironplay accounts for almost half of all the shots we lose. No wonder Strokes Gained inventor Dr Mark Broadie told this magazine that shots from 150 yards were the key score differentiator across all handicaps. “If I watched you hit five shots from this distance,” he asserts, “I would be confident of guessing your handicap to within a couple of strokes.”

In this special ballstriking instructional, TG elite coach Gareth Johnston decodes the actions of the best iron players in the game to show you six areas that will help you strike the ball more accurately, more sweetly and more consistently. Though a lot to take in all in one go, it forms a great resource to return to on a regular basis as you improve your irons technique. We’d say it’s the smart move. After all, the numbers don’t lie; while driving and putting tend to get all the exposure, the best path to scoring progress lies in the clubs in between.

IDENTICAL ACTIONS

“If we really want to unlock the secrets of great iron play,” says Gareth Johnston, “there is only one place to start: with the game’s greatest iron players. These golfers are revealed to us through the Strokes Gained: Approach the Green statistic. Only just introduced on the LPGA Tour, this is a fixture now on the male equivalent. The names at the top of this list are the best of the best with an iron in their hands. Some, such as Collin Morikawa, Dustin Johnson and Jon Rahm, are well known; the likes of Russell Henley and Corey Conners less so.

“But while their techniques inevitably differ, here’s the exciting thing; a beat before impact, their positions are practically identical – so similar, in fact, that we can identify six elements of this position that crop up without fail in the actions of every elite ballstriker. Here, for sure, are the true essentials of great iron play.

“In this article I will take each of the six elements in turn, explaining its importance, how it fits in to the swing and how you can drill it into your own action. But while this article is based on one, single snapshot of the swing, it’s vital you don’t go chasing a position. Every drill and exercise you will read is designed to promote the movement patterns that will see you swing through this position, not arrive at it. Keep this in mind as you work on these six key moves and you’ll be well on your way to becoming a far better ballstriker. Good luck!”