Welcome to Home Practice, a 5-part weekly series where one of our GOLF Top 100 Teachers will take you through a series of simple drills you can do, from your home, and still keep your game sharp. This week our host is Jonathan Yarwood, a world-renowned coach. First, he had some advice on practicing your putting on the floor and how to make a grip change. Now, he explains how to practice short-game fundamentals at home.
If you’re like most people in the world these days, you have lots of time at home on your hands. And while this might sound like this will be a detriment to your golf game, it doesn’t have to be.
We enlisted the help of GOLF Top 100 Teacher Jonathan Yarwood to craft a five-part plan for improving your game while stuck at home. Today’s lesson is a short-game fundamentals refresher. Watch the video above or read below for more.
The setup is a key foundation for any good short-game player. At address, get your feet close together and point your toes ahead of the ball.
“Your feet, knees, hips and shoulders are aiming at 11 o’clock if the target is 12,” Yarwood says.
When making your swing, think of a gentle turning motion; nothing too exaggerated. Your wrists should be what “creates the artistry.” This slight body turn will lead to a slight and proper wrist hinge.
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“You’re speeding the shaft on the way down so it starts to catch up,” Yarwood says. “There is still lean in the shaft. There is still lead in the handle. If you get that handle too far forward, too much lean and lead, you’re going to have your club stuck behind your hands.”
If you let the shaft angle get too far forward, you will not make a consistent strike. You’ll have to make an adjustment at the bottom of the swing, and you will either hit it thin or fat.
“Hit a few little chips in your back garden,” Yarwood says. “[It’s] really going to help by the time you get out of self isolation.”
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