Why is it difficult for players to take their swing from the driving range to the golf course? I’ve seen players who hit the ball relatively well on the driving range and then once on the course, they can’t break an egg with a hammer.
While watching many players hit balls on the range, I've noticed they often don’t grasp a rhythm and begin hitting good shots until half the bucket is gone. As they become frustrated with hitting poor shots, I’ll see them take a break, drink some water, take in the scenery around them and try to relax.
A breather often is what it takes for players to begin hitting good shots and finding what I call their life rhythm. Many players think rhythm means how fast they swing the club or keeping a nice tempo, but by life rhythm, I mean having flow to your game — the time it takes you to approach your shot, how you walk down the fairway, how you breathe, how you take in the scenery around you.
On the golf course, many players rush themselves and are so focused on wanting to hit perfect golf shots or worrying about certain holes that they forget this life rhythm. Besides making a point to relax and slow down on the course, I have some specific advice about how to take the good shots you hit in rhythm on the range to the golf course.
On the course, pick out some common targets you hit at the range, such as 100 yards, 150 yards, 200 yards and 250 yards. Picture yourself standing on the driving range as if no one were there, hitting balls to these targets. Don’t think about the water on the left, the bunker on the right or the tight fairways; just think about the target.
Whether you have a 4 iron in your hand or a sand wedge, allow yourself to feel as if you’re hitting toward the target in your mind’s eye rather than hitting the ball 121 yards or some exact distance. You will be amazed by how quickly you will find your rhythm and, even more so, how you will hit your target with your mind’s eye. Simply pick the target in your head and make the swing.