Mental Training for Golf

How much money are you willing to spend on a new driver to hit it further or more accurate?

How much money are you willing to spend on premier instruction?

The answer is the same for all of us. ANY AMOUNT NECESSARY to gain optimal performance, right?

So, how much have your spent on equipment and instruction?

Next question……how much have you invested into the mental side of golf? Answer………NOT ENOUGH…..

College Golf Camps™ has recently partnered with Winning Mind, LLC in San Diego, California. Winning Mind uses The Attentional & Interpersonal Style (TAIS) inventory- the world’s best assessment methodology to help individuals understand the conditions that undermine performance and help them operate more successfully under stressful conditions. This test allows you to compare your mental skills against other Elite Golfers.

Whether you like the analogy or not, the truth is, sport can be like entering combat. Sometimes your adversary is your opponent. Sometimes the real adversary is yourself. As well all know, golf is played against the golf course and yourself. We can’t help you improve your technical skills (e.g., how to swing the club or putt). This is better left to you and your coach or instructor. What we can do is help you make the best use of your physical talent and skills. It takes more than a long tee shot to win a golf tournament. It takes more than a beautiful golf swing to bounce back from defeat.

What if Junior Golfers could provide the following items to coaches: Rankings, Scores, Tournament Statistics, Swing Analysis(ie TrackMan, Flight Scope) and Mental Assessment. What more could a coach ask for? Physical skills, overall performance combined with your mental performance is a thorough assessment of your golf game.

Concentration skills, and the ability to shift both the width and direction (internal vs. external) are critical determinants of success or failure in virtually any performance situation. You cannot cross the street safely, without paying attention to performance relevant cues. You cannot communicate with another individual effectively without paying attention to the right cues. You cannot problem solve, without shifting attention and focusing on task relevant cues. You cannot get out of the starting blocks in the Olympics in time to win the race, without paying attention to the right cues.

The total package for junior golfers is now available. Email juniorgolf@collegegolfcamps.com NOW!!

Ok, so I have taken the test now what?

College Golf Camps™ is pleased to introduce Dr. Nick Molinaro of drnickmolinaro.com, frequently seen on The Golf Channel’s The Golf Fix with Michael Breed and on SiriusXM PGATour Radio on A New Breed of Golf with Michael Breed. Dr. Nick is the Mental Coach for the Michael Breed Golf Academy, Fiddler’s Elbow Golf and Tennis Academies. He also works with athlete in all sports from Juniors to World Class.

The evaluation will assess 20 mental skills used in your golf performance. Dr. Nick will make a detailed analysis and each golfer will receive a 30 min debriefing video customized for each player indicating strengths and areas that need to be improved with mental tips from him. The assessment will be administered on-line and will take approximately 20-30 min.

Follow-up sessions with Dr. Nick with on-line mental skills coaching and hands-on-club-on-course training can be arranged and customized for the player’s needs.

Dr. Nick is offering the same golf mental skills assessment package that he uses with all of his players on the PGA, Web.com, LPGA, Symetra, Champions’, etc.

Take the test now for a significantly discounted price today. We have pricing available for junior golfers who attend our camps and junior golfer who do not attend.

Normal TAIS Assessment Fee – $395

CGC Camper TAIS Assessment Fee – $195

Non CGC Camper TAIS Assessment Fee – $245

Call 884-884-1551 for more information

Mental Training for Golf

How much money are you willing to spend on a new driver to hit it further or more accurate?

How much money are you willing to spend on premier instruction?

The answer is the same for all of us. ANY AMOUNT NECESSARY to gain optimal performance, right?

So, how much have your spent on equipment and instruction?

Next question……how much have you invested into the mental side of golf? Answer………NOT ENOUGH…..

College Golf Camps™ has recently partnered with Winning Mind, LLC in San Diego, California. Winning Mind uses The Attentional & Interpersonal Style (TAIS) inventory- the world’s best assessment methodology to help individuals understand the conditions that undermine performance and help them operate more successfully under stressful conditions. This test allows you to compare your mental skills against other Elite Golfers.

Whether you like the analogy or not, the truth is, sport can be like entering combat. Sometimes your adversary is your opponent. Sometimes the real adversary is yourself. As well all know, golf is played against the golf course and yourself. We can’t help you improve your technical skills (e.g., how to swing the club or putt). This is better left to you and your coach or instructor. What we can do is help you make the best use of your physical talent and skills. It takes more than a long tee shot to win a golf tournament. It takes more than a beautiful golf swing to bounce back from defeat.

What if Junior Golfers could provide the following items to coaches: Rankings, Scores, Tournament Statistics, Swing Analysis(ie TrackMan, Flight Scope) and Mental Assessment. What more could a coach ask for? Physical skills, overall performance combined with your mental performance is a thorough assessment of your golf game.

Concentration skills, and the ability to shift both the width and direction (internal vs. external) are critical determinants of success or failure in virtually any performance situation. You cannot cross the street safely, without paying attention to performance relevant cues. You cannot communicate with another individual effectively without paying attention to the right cues. You cannot problem solve, without shifting attention and focusing on task relevant cues. You cannot get out of the starting blocks in the Olympics in time to win the race, without paying attention to the right cues.

The total package for junior golfers is now available. Email juniorgolf@collegegolfcamps.com NOW!!

Ok, so I have taken the test now what?

College Golf Camps™ is pleased to introduce Dr. Nick Molinaro of drnickmolinaro.com, frequently seen on The Golf Channel’s The Golf Fix with Michael Breed and on SiriusXM PGATour Radio on A New Breed of Golf with Michael Breed. Dr. Nick is the Mental Coach for the Michael Breed Golf Academy, Fiddler’s Elbow Golf and Tennis Academies. He also works with athlete in all sports from Juniors to World Class.

The evaluation will assess 20 mental skills used in your golf performance. Dr. Nick will make a detailed analysis and each golfer will receive a 30 min debriefing video customized for each player indicating strengths and areas that need to be improved with mental tips from him. The assessment will be administered on-line and will take approximately 20-30 min.

Follow-up sessions with Dr. Nick with on-line mental skills coaching and hands-on-club-on-course training can be arranged and customized for the player’s needs.

Dr. Nick is offering the same golf mental skills assessment package that he uses with all of his players on the PGA, Web.com, LPGA, Symetra, Champions’, etc.

Take the test now for a significantly discounted price today. We have pricing available for junior golfers who attend our camps and junior golfer who do not attend.

Normal TAIS Assessment Fee – $395

CGC Camper TAIS Assessment Fee – $195

Non CGC Camper TAIS Assessment Fee – $245

Call 884-884-1551 for more information

Cordie Walker with Golf Science Lab is joined by Bhrett McCabe, PhD.

Bhrett McCabe, PhD is a performance and sports psychologist that has worked extensively across a variety of settings and athletic groups through his company, The MindSide, LLC. Dr. McCabe has a diverse background of working in the pharmaceutical industry in clinical trial research and education prior to returning to his academic and professional training as a clinical and sports psychologist.

The important thing is early diversity and the early exposure to other sports that teach kids how to sit on the bench and realize that maybe you are not the superstar. And if you are not the superstar, can you be a role player? Can you be the guy that goes into a basketball game and only gets to play a third of the minutes, but you can learn how to play defense and maybe score two points?

The amazing thing about sports is that everybody is on a different maturation schedule and the guy or the girl who is four inches taller and stronger, who grew early may not grow last.

We have to start developing the psychological resiliency, communication skills, and how to deal with failures in juniors. For juniors that play other sports there is a benefit to playing with kids that are better than you, there is also a benefit of playing with kids that are not as good as you we have to allow for as many experiences as possible.
Failure Drills

It’s important to put an athlete through drills that forces them to not succeed and see how they deal with failure. We’re looking for players that go, “That drill that we did, kicked my butt, when are we doing it again? I’m going to get it this time” versus, “I don’t want to do that drill ever again because it made me lose my confidence.”

A drill can’t make you lose your confidence unless you chose to allow that drill to make you lose your confidence.

We have a putting drill that I do that is really hard called the ‘The Closer’ which is eight stations from five feet away around the hole and you have to make 24 in a row to win it, all from five feet or you have to start over.

The average completion time is over an hour-and-a-half the first time because the nerves start kicking in and the last putts are hard to make.

It’s a failure drill, you are going to fail at it, but can you handle the failure in order and put it in the back of your mind to focus on the success?

Keep Reading, Click here

Cordie Walker with Golf Science Lab is joined by Bhrett McCabe, PhD.

Bhrett McCabe, PhD is a performance and sports psychologist that has worked extensively across a variety of settings and athletic groups through his company, The MindSide, LLC. Dr. McCabe has a diverse background of working in the pharmaceutical industry in clinical trial research and education prior to returning to his academic and professional training as a clinical and sports psychologist.

The important thing is early diversity and the early exposure to other sports that teach kids how to sit on the bench and realize that maybe you are not the superstar. And if you are not the superstar, can you be a role player? Can you be the guy that goes into a basketball game and only gets to play a third of the minutes, but you can learn how to play defense and maybe score two points?

The amazing thing about sports is that everybody is on a different maturation schedule and the guy or the girl who is four inches taller and stronger, who grew early may not grow last.

We have to start developing the psychological resiliency, communication skills, and how to deal with failures in juniors. For juniors that play other sports there is a benefit to playing with kids that are better than you, there is also a benefit of playing with kids that are not as good as you we have to allow for as many experiences as possible.
Failure Drills

It’s important to put an athlete through drills that forces them to not succeed and see how they deal with failure. We’re looking for players that go, “That drill that we did, kicked my butt, when are we doing it again? I’m going to get it this time” versus, “I don’t want to do that drill ever again because it made me lose my confidence.”

A drill can’t make you lose your confidence unless you chose to allow that drill to make you lose your confidence.

We have a putting drill that I do that is really hard called the ‘The Closer’ which is eight stations from five feet away around the hole and you have to make 24 in a row to win it, all from five feet or you have to start over.

The average completion time is over an hour-and-a-half the first time because the nerves start kicking in and the last putts are hard to make.

It’s a failure drill, you are going to fail at it, but can you handle the failure in order and put it in the back of your mind to focus on the success?

Keep Reading, Click here

Do you want to improve focus, confidence and emotional management so that you are able to perform at your best when it counts the most? Of Course, you do, we all do!!

For a limited time, we are pleased to offer the TAIS Inventory test to measure your competitiveness, level of focus, confidence and emotional management. This is a world renown psychometric test that will compare your skills to Professional and top amateur golfers.

The Attentional & Interpersonal Style (TAIS) Inventory measures how individuals concentrate and behave. It is an inventory of style, not ability or intelligence. There are no right or wrong answers.

The TAIS Inventory consists of 144 items. Please allow approximately 45 minutes of uninterrupted time to complete the assessment.

Now, College Golf Camps™ is please to introduce Dr. Nick Molinaro of DrNickGolf.com , frequently seen on The Golf Channel’s The Golf Fix with Michael Breed and on SiriusXM PGATour Radio on A New Breed of Golf with Michael Breed.

Dr. Nick is the Mental Coach for the Michael Breed Golf Academy, Fiddler’s Elbow Golf and Tennis Academies. He also works with athlete in all sports from Juniors to World Class.

The evaluation will assess 20 mental skills used in your golf performance. Dr. Nick will make a detailed analysis and each golfer will receive a 30 min debriefing video customized for each player indicating strengths and areas that need to be improved with mental tips from him. The assessment will be administered on-line and will take approximately 20-30 min.

Follow-up sessions with Dr. Nick with on-line mental skills coaching and hands-on-club-on-course training can be arranged and customized for the player’s needs.

Dr. Nick is offering the same golf mental skills assessment package that he uses with all of his players on the PGA, Web.com, LPGA, Symetra, Champions’, etc.

Save over 55% off this amazing opportunity to learn….

If you would like to receive this test and learn how to improve the areas you need most, email nick at collegegolfcamps.com NOW

Do you want to improve focus, confidence and emotional management so that you are able to perform at your best when it counts the most? Of Course, you do, we all do!!

For a limited time, we are pleased to offer the TAIS Inventory test to measure your competitiveness, level of focus, confidence and emotional management. This is a world renown psychometric test that will compare your skills to Professional and top amateur golfers.

The Attentional & Interpersonal Style (TAIS) Inventory measures how individuals concentrate and behave. It is an inventory of style, not ability or intelligence. There are no right or wrong answers.

The TAIS Inventory consists of 144 items. Please allow approximately 45 minutes of uninterrupted time to complete the assessment.

Now, College Golf Camps™ is please to introduce Dr. Nick Molinaro of DrNickGolf.com , frequently seen on The Golf Channel’s The Golf Fix with Michael Breed and on SiriusXM PGATour Radio on A New Breed of Golf with Michael Breed.

Dr. Nick is the Mental Coach for the Michael Breed Golf Academy, Fiddler’s Elbow Golf and Tennis Academies. He also works with athlete in all sports from Juniors to World Class.

The evaluation will assess 20 mental skills used in your golf performance. Dr. Nick will make a detailed analysis and each golfer will receive a 30 min debriefing video customized for each player indicating strengths and areas that need to be improved with mental tips from him. The assessment will be administered on-line and will take approximately 20-30 min.

Follow-up sessions with Dr. Nick with on-line mental skills coaching and hands-on-club-on-course training can be arranged and customized for the player’s needs.

Dr. Nick is offering the same golf mental skills assessment package that he uses with all of his players on the PGA, Web.com, LPGA, Symetra, Champions’, etc.

Save over 55% off this amazing opportunity to learn….

If you would like to receive this test and learn how to improve the areas you need most, email nick at collegegolfcamps.com NOW

Watch this video with Middle Tennessee State’s, Brennan Webb, Head Golf Coach. One of his favorites drills in golf.

Watch this video with Middle Tennessee State’s, Brennan Webb, Head Golf Coach. One of his favorites drills in golf.

Listen to Dr. Nick talk about GRIT!!

Dr. Nick Molinaro is a licensed psychologist with 35 years experience. He specializes in clinical counseling psychology, sport psychology, executive assessment and performance enhancement. He earned a BS in Psychology from the University of Scranton, Master’s degrees from Kean College and Seton Hall; a doctorate from Fairleigh Dickinson University, and post-graduate training at William and Mary, Temple University, and San Diego University for Integrative Studies. His office is in Mendham, New Jersey.

Dr. Nick is on the Golf Channel from time to time with Michael Breed.

Listen to Dr. Nick talk about GRIT!!

Dr. Nick Molinaro is a licensed psychologist with 35 years experience. He specializes in clinical counseling psychology, sport psychology, executive assessment and performance enhancement. He earned a BS in Psychology from the University of Scranton, Master’s degrees from Kean College and Seton Hall; a doctorate from Fairleigh Dickinson University, and post-graduate training at William and Mary, Temple University, and San Diego University for Integrative Studies. His office is in Mendham, New Jersey.

Dr. Nick is on the Golf Channel from time to time with Michael Breed.

Dr. Michael Gervais serves director of DISC’s High Performance Psychology. As a California licensed psychologist specializing in high performance, he works in the trenches of high-stakes environments, where there is no luxury for mistakes, hesitation, or failure to respond.

With the vision of helping his clients thrive under pressure, he has created a performance model that allows people to achieve their maximum potential, whether on or off the field. Dr. Gervais combines state-of-the-art brain mapping techniques with an approach grounded in high-performance psychology. The result is a completely individualized performance plan that allows each person to train by fully engaging both their mind and brain toward that personal best.

While Dr. Gervais’ roster includes some of the world’s most elite athletes, he is expanding the reach of his capabilities into the broader spectrum.
Connecting to the simple joys… High Performance Psychology at work. Adventurepreneur in action.

He recognizes that, like athletes, all of us are required to perform daily. We all navigate our own high-stakes environments and can benefit just as much with the right training. Ultimately, Dr. Gervais’ goal is to create amazing journeys for clients while exploring their boundaries of human potential.

A published, peer-reviewed author and recognized speaker on human performance issues, Dr. Gervais has been featured by ESPN, CNN, NFL Network, FUELtv, Red Bull TV, Extra, The Huffington Post, GolfersMD, South Bay magazine and others. He is currently authoring a book that reveals how human potential is cultivated and developed – by examining the most successful high-risk takers in the world: extreme and action sport athletes.

Dr. Gervais received his undergraduate degree from Loyola Marymount University. He completed his PhD while studying under the father of American applied sport psychology, Dr. Bruce Ogilve, at San Diego University, Integrative Studies.

Dr. Michael Gervais serves director of DISC’s High Performance Psychology. As a California licensed psychologist specializing in high performance, he works in the trenches of high-stakes environments, where there is no luxury for mistakes, hesitation, or failure to respond.

With the vision of helping his clients thrive under pressure, he has created a performance model that allows people to achieve their maximum potential, whether on or off the field. Dr. Gervais combines state-of-the-art brain mapping techniques with an approach grounded in high-performance psychology. The result is a completely individualized performance plan that allows each person to train by fully engaging both their mind and brain toward that personal best.

While Dr. Gervais’ roster includes some of the world’s most elite athletes, he is expanding the reach of his capabilities into the broader spectrum.
Connecting to the simple joys… High Performance Psychology at work. Adventurepreneur in action.

He recognizes that, like athletes, all of us are required to perform daily. We all navigate our own high-stakes environments and can benefit just as much with the right training. Ultimately, Dr. Gervais’ goal is to create amazing journeys for clients while exploring their boundaries of human potential.

A published, peer-reviewed author and recognized speaker on human performance issues, Dr. Gervais has been featured by ESPN, CNN, NFL Network, FUELtv, Red Bull TV, Extra, The Huffington Post, GolfersMD, South Bay magazine and others. He is currently authoring a book that reveals how human potential is cultivated and developed – by examining the most successful high-risk takers in the world: extreme and action sport athletes.

Dr. Gervais received his undergraduate degree from Loyola Marymount University. He completed his PhD while studying under the father of American applied sport psychology, Dr. Bruce Ogilve, at San Diego University, Integrative Studies.

College Golf Camps™ with Chip Brewer, CEO, Callaway Golf talking about junior golf, college golf and Callaway Golf.

Mr. Brewer is very gracious with his time. Great perspective on yesterday and today’s junior golf. Mr. Brewer played college golf at Duke University and then William & Mary University. Listen to more……

College Golf Camps™ with Chip Brewer, CEO, Callaway Golf talking about junior golf, college golf and Callaway Golf.

Mr. Brewer is very gracious with his time. Great perspective on yesterday and today’s junior golf. Mr. Brewer played college golf at Duke University and then William & Mary University. Listen to more……

This past Fall we hosted a junior golf exposure camp in Pinehurst, North Carolina called College Golf Camps™ – BIG 5. Myself and a couple of other college coaches were watching junior golfers play during the competition portion of camp. One particular junior golfer stuck out more than the others. Why, you ask…. this group of coaches all said “he swings like he doesn’t care……” Hold on to that concept for a second.

Virtually, every college coach will agree that they want golfers to swing freely from takeaway to follow through. How can you swing freely without forcing it. The words “freely” and “force” seem like they should not be used in the same sentence.

The coaches all were keen on how this particular junior swung the club so freely. Essentially, there was no difference between his practice swing and the swing when he hit the ball. Did he not care about the result of the shot? Of course not…..as the coaches continued to talk about this junior and others, it brought up a very exciting topic in golf called “ball bound”.

The concept of “ball bound” is relatively easy to understand from this discussion. Others might have a different description but for this discussion it was simple. “Ball bound” was when the golfer limits his/her natural athleticism because he/she is so focused on hitting the ball precisely the correct way. Therefore defeating the bodies ability to swing freely and loose during the swing, specifically at the moment when the club strikes the ball.

As we watched other juniors, you could tell some had a small glitch or hesitation right at impact. The previous junior we spoke about didn’t have any glitches or hesitations…..There “real” swing did not replicate their practice swing.

Continuing the discussion with the college coaches, one coaches says “how do you get a golfer to swing freely?” One coach immediately said “tell the player to stop looking at the ball”. Another coach immediately says “WHAT?”…..The other coach began to paint this illustration below in our minds……

If you normally fix your eyes on the ball, illustrated by looking at the College Golf Camps™ logo. Move your fixed eyes to the red star, which is about 1 inch inside and 1 inch forward of the ball. The coach went on to say that the distance will vary for every golfer. His point was to get the golfer’s mind off of hitting the ball and onto swinging freely.

Later that day during the competitive practice portion of the camp. This same group of coaches implemented this drill at one station during the practice rotation. You should have seen the campers faces when the coach told them to not look at the ball……Most were shocked, some thought the coach was kidding….. Ultimately, the junior golfers followed the instructions of the college coach(which was wise). Guess what happened? Nearly every junior golfer began to swing freely which created more crisp strikes on the golf ball. No glitches, no hesitations, just precision shot, after shot, after shot.

So here is the drill: Use any club in your bag with a series of 4 balls. With the first 3 golf balls, fix your eyes somewhere inside and in-front of the golf ball throughout the swing. Then on the 4th and final ball fix your eyes on the golf ball. See what happens…….

Stay in touch with what college coaches want, click here

Incorporate this practice drill into your golf game. Remember, college golf coaches all want players who swing carefree and loose…..most of all they want players to be coachable!

Cheers,

Wizard of Junior Golf
CGC Staff

This past Fall we hosted a junior golf exposure camp in Pinehurst, North Carolina called College Golf Camps™ – BIG 5. Myself and a couple of other college coaches were watching junior golfers play during the competition portion of camp. One particular junior golfer stuck out more than the others. Why, you ask…. this group of coaches all said “he swings like he doesn’t care……” Hold on to that concept for a second.

Virtually, every college coach will agree that they want golfers to swing freely from takeaway to follow through. How can you swing freely without forcing it. The words “freely” and “force” seem like they should not be used in the same sentence.

The coaches all were keen on how this particular junior swung the club so freely. Essentially, there was no difference between his practice swing and the swing when he hit the ball. Did he not care about the result of the shot? Of course not…..as the coaches continued to talk about this junior and others, it brought up a very exciting topic in golf called “ball bound”.

The concept of “ball bound” is relatively easy to understand from this discussion. Others might have a different description but for this discussion it was simple. “Ball bound” was when the golfer limits his/her natural athleticism because he/she is so focused on hitting the ball precisely the correct way. Therefore defeating the bodies ability to swing freely and loose during the swing, specifically at the moment when the club strikes the ball.

As we watched other juniors, you could tell some had a small glitch or hesitation right at impact. The previous junior we spoke about didn’t have any glitches or hesitations…..There “real” swing did not replicate their practice swing.

Continuing the discussion with the college coaches, one coaches says “how do you get a golfer to swing freely?” One coach immediately said “tell the player to stop looking at the ball”. Another coach immediately says “WHAT?”…..The other coach began to paint this illustration below in our minds……

If you normally fix your eyes on the ball, illustrated by looking at the College Golf Camps™ logo. Move your fixed eyes to the red star, which is about 1 inch inside and 1 inch forward of the ball. The coach went on to say that the distance will vary for every golfer. His point was to get the golfer’s mind off of hitting the ball and onto swinging freely.

Later that day during the competitive practice portion of the camp. This same group of coaches implemented this drill at one station during the practice rotation. You should have seen the campers faces when the coach told them to not look at the ball……Most were shocked, some thought the coach was kidding….. Ultimately, the junior golfers followed the instructions of the college coach(which was wise). Guess what happened? Nearly every junior golfer began to swing freely which created more crisp strikes on the golf ball. No glitches, no hesitations, just precision shot, after shot, after shot.

So here is the drill: Use any club in your bag with a series of 4 balls. With the first 3 golf balls, fix your eyes somewhere inside and in-front of the golf ball throughout the swing. Then on the 4th and final ball fix your eyes on the golf ball. See what happens…….

Stay in touch with what college coaches want, click here

Incorporate this practice drill into your golf game. Remember, college golf coaches all want players who swing carefree and loose…..most of all they want players to be coachable!

Cheers,

Wizard of Junior Golf
CGC Staff

One of Chris Zambri’s favorite competitive drill for all golfers. Coach Zambri is the Head Mens Golf Coach at University of Southern California.

College Golf Camps™ is excited to have Coach Zambri attend our San Diego Junior Golf Exposure Camp, July 24-26, 2016 at La Costa Golf Resort in San Diego, California.

One of Chris Zambri’s favorite competitive drill for all golfers. Coach Zambri is the Head Mens Golf Coach at University of Southern California.

College Golf Camps™ is excited to have Coach Zambri attend our San Diego Junior Golf Exposure Camp, July 24-26, 2016 at La Costa Golf Resort in San Diego, California.

yourpargolf.com and Preston Combs

Improve Your Putting with tips from Preston Combs

In light of the recent release of Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens, it seems fitting to re-publish this article on the real force that is going to help you make more putts.

How many times have we had a putt power-lip-out or crash into the back of the hole only to see it pop out and come to rest on the other side of the cup? The answer is probably more times than we care to admit, but a simple understanding of the Force can solve those problems. Don’t think you’re a Jedi? Well, good news is there Jedi experience is not required.

We don’t need to be in a galaxy far, far away to learn how the force of gravity affects our putts. We all know what gravity is, but what does it mean for your putting? When a ball is rolling towards and over the cup, gravity needs time to pull that ball down into the cup.

This is where capture speed, the pace at which a ball is rolling, comes into play. If a ball is traveling at the proper pace for gravity to pull it down into the cup, we call that effective capture speed. If a ball is traveling faster, the cup size will become smaller and the capture speed is not as effective. How much smaller does the cup become? Let’s take a closer look.

To the guy in your scramble that hammers it six feet past the cup and exclaims “I gave it a run!”: He had as good a chance of making the putt as a guy that left it short. Six feet by is too much speed for the cup to handle and the ball simply will not go in.

That said, we’ll just make sure every putt drips over the front edge of the cup, right? Wrong. The last thing we want is a minor imperfection in the surface or gust of wind to keep the putt from reaching the hole.

To measure about what proper speed is about, 6 to 12 inches past the cup is a safe reference point. You’ll be making the cup larger and have an element of predictability on your short putts. And if you were wondering…

The Force will be with you. Always.

Preston Comb, Your Par Golf

yourpargolf.com and Preston Combs

Improve Your Putting with tips from Preston Combs

In light of the recent release of Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens, it seems fitting to re-publish this article on the real force that is going to help you make more putts.

How many times have we had a putt power-lip-out or crash into the back of the hole only to see it pop out and come to rest on the other side of the cup? The answer is probably more times than we care to admit, but a simple understanding of the Force can solve those problems. Don’t think you’re a Jedi? Well, good news is there Jedi experience is not required.

We don’t need to be in a galaxy far, far away to learn how the force of gravity affects our putts. We all know what gravity is, but what does it mean for your putting? When a ball is rolling towards and over the cup, gravity needs time to pull that ball down into the cup.

This is where capture speed, the pace at which a ball is rolling, comes into play. If a ball is traveling at the proper pace for gravity to pull it down into the cup, we call that effective capture speed. If a ball is traveling faster, the cup size will become smaller and the capture speed is not as effective. How much smaller does the cup become? Let’s take a closer look.

To the guy in your scramble that hammers it six feet past the cup and exclaims “I gave it a run!”: He had as good a chance of making the putt as a guy that left it short. Six feet by is too much speed for the cup to handle and the ball simply will not go in.

That said, we’ll just make sure every putt drips over the front edge of the cup, right? Wrong. The last thing we want is a minor imperfection in the surface or gust of wind to keep the putt from reaching the hole.

To measure about what proper speed is about, 6 to 12 inches past the cup is a safe reference point. You’ll be making the cup larger and have an element of predictability on your short putts. And if you were wondering…

The Force will be with you. Always.

Preston Comb, Your Par Golf