There is no secret to the golf swing, no perfect way to do it. But there is a secret to playing good golf, as Butch Harmon says: It’s about finding something that you can do repeatedly.
That truth shone through once again in this short-but-sweet interview with Irish Ryder Cup hero Paul McGinley, who holed the winning putt for the European side in 2002 before captaining them to success in 2014.
In the interview, which you can watch in full below, McGinley said he would “love” to be 22 again because he’d take all the things he learned and know what to do differently. Mainly, he wouldn’t try to be something he’s not, and instead set about perfecting what he already is.
“The first thing I would do would be to identify what my DNA is as a golfer,” he says. “What are the characteristics of my good shots that produce the ball flight that I want? That’s my DNA as a golfer.”
This all sounds very buzzwordy, but it’s important and similar to what Butch says. Figure out what kind of golfer you are. Do you hit fades? Draws? Do you have power or are you shorter yet straighter? Figure that out and lean into it. Don’t chase something you’re not; perfect the tools you were given.
And in McGinley’s mind, there’s one player who did it better than anybody else.
McGinley says: Learn from Monty
With 31 European Tour titles, eight Order of Merit titles, an eye-watering Ryder Cup record along with three senior tour majors (and counting!), Colin Montgomerie boasts a career most golfers would dream of. And he’s the player McGinley says he admires the most.
“He hit a baby fade, and that’s what he did,” McGinley said. “He didn’t have a huge amount of clubhead speed, but he was repetitive. He never deviated away from what he did. He just got better, and better, and better at his DNA and at who he was … he never tried to do anything different. He never tried to hit a big draw, he never tried to get more distance.”
McGinley says that while it’s great to admire the Tigers, the Rorys and the DJs, it’s not always the best model to follow for the rest of us.
“We’re not all blessed that way,” he says. “A lot of us are a lot more blessed the Monty way.”
And so, he says to follow Monty’s example. Understand what you are, and perfect it. You’ll be better off in the long run.
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