Neil Tappin is joined by PGA Professional Alex Elliott look at the keys to breaking one of golf's biggest milestones - 100. Alex offers some simple guidance on how think while you are out on the course, what to practice and he also offers some practical advice on the shots you'll need to develop. These tips are designed to be simple and achievable for any golfer looking to break 100.
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00:00Hello and welcome to the London Club. Now in this video we have 10 top tips
00:05that are going to help you break a hundred. We'll look at everything from what clubs you
00:10have in your bag, some mental tips and how to get out of trouble. Yeah, let's head
00:14out onto the golf course here at the London Club and look at our first tip on our list.
00:18So the first tip on our list, number 10, is about relaxing between shots. Now golf is,
00:28for a lot of people, myself included, quite stressful at times. I can join that club.
00:32Yes, but it's crucial that you don't get caught up and try to focus for large periods, isn't it?
00:38Yes, I mean like golf's one of them sports we perceive there's a lot to think about over the
00:42shot and sometimes there is. So it's about concentrating at the right point. Okay,
00:47so how do you do it then? How do you switch off? Because that's the key, isn't it?
00:50We've seen a trend of all the top players now, they have one of their best friends on the bag
00:54or a companion on the bag. So having someone that you can relate to and talk to is key. Now,
00:58for most of us, we don't have a caddy. I don't have a caddy. But we play with our
01:01friends on the weekend, right? Yes.
01:03So having a chat with them whilst walking around from the tee to the green and then
01:07when you get close to your ball, then switch off. You're not having to concentrate for four and a
01:11half hours, you're just doing 30 to 40 second stints. And I guess it's important to remember
01:15this, particularly when you start to get nervous, you've got a good score going,
01:18maybe with a few holes to go. I can imagine this shot, one of the last few holes here in your round,
01:22you've missed the rune of par 3, it's a difficult chip. You want to be fully concentrated on it.
01:27Yes, you could have been thinking about it for five minutes while you're walking here,
01:29it's maybe not a great preparation. No, definitely not.
01:31Yes, so a really simple tip, try and focus when you need to and relax when you don't
01:36need to be concentrating. So the next tip for golfers looking to break 100 is to avoid three
01:46putting. Okay, we all do it, it doesn't matter what handicap you are, everyone does it. But Alex,
01:50what do you think the mistakes are that cost people in this scenario?
01:53I think when we get to a distance like we've got now, we just sort of go into the green,
01:58oh yes, it's about this, hit the putt away. A bit of autopilot comes into play.
02:02Yes, so we've put up some alignment sticks around the flag, and what are you trying to do then from
02:08here? All I want you to focus on is getting it inside that bin lid, that three-foot range,
02:13where actually we make our next putt as stress-free as possible.
02:17Okay, go on then. So this is a little bit uphill, right to left, so I know I'm aiming a little bit
02:23right of the hole, I'm trying to die it into that space. I always picture that ball dying near the
02:28hole, not accelerating too far past. Yes, okay. Perfect. This just shows you, if you can get the
02:40pace right, the odd one will drop in the hole, but the crucial point is scenarios like this,
02:44make them stress-free, get it down in two, you'll keep the score ticking over.
02:53Tip number eight is so important, and it's about developing a fairway finder. So every golf course
02:59you'll ever play, there will be holes on that course that you don't fancy the look of off the
03:03tee. You're worried about losing the ball off the tee, or you're just worried about hitting a bad
03:06shot. So every golfer needs to find a fairway finder. How do you do it, Alex? I think there's
03:12two scenarios we can look at here. Doing it with a driver, preferably. Now, if you're not comfortable
03:16with driver, finding a club, like maybe a fairway wood, that allows you to hit that fairway, you've
03:21got more confidence. But I guess the main thing is, is just go in the range, finding a swing with
03:27some nice rhythm, with a club, that gives you a repeatable shot. Okay, so what are you going to-
03:33I'm going to go down that route of, I think most golfers have a bit of a love-hate relationship
03:37with driver, but their fairway wood, their five wood, their three wood, it's probably something
03:41that they get on with more often than not, just because it's a bit shorter, a bit more loft.
03:45Okay, so what's the swing thought that you would have when you're a fairway- like a hole like this,
03:49bunkers everywhere, tricky shot. What's the fairway finding swing for you? I just put my seven-iron
03:55rhythm on it. So for me, getting good rhythm gives me a better chance of squaring that face,
04:01with driver, I'm more prone to giving it a bit of a welly. So rhythm is key, and don't
04:07overcomplicate it too much. Most people, if you're balanced through the shot, you're going
04:11to hit a better shot than if you're unbalanced. Okay, well show us your seven-iron rhythm then.
04:15So I have two practice swings, one, two, most people are comfortable with seven-iron, right?
04:25And we're in, account for the wind a little bit, it's off the left today, and then put that rhythm
04:31on. Yeah, very good. I think, actually, it doesn't really matter what the club is or what
04:39the swing thought is, but the key thing is, you need to practice it, you need to go to the range,
04:43you need to groove it, so that when you are stood in a position like this, it's not alien, it's not
04:48new to you, you've done it before, you've repeated it, and then you might just produce a shot like
04:52that one. So this one is about bag setup and the clubs that you choose to carry. Alex, what's the
05:02advice here for people? I think really nice and simple, I prefer most golfers to carry a five-wood
05:07over a three-wood, a little bit more loft, a little bit shorter club, and then hybrids over
05:12long irons, just a little bit more forgiving. Yeah, I mean, it's that simple. If you can do
05:16those things, you should find a setup that's just that bit more forgiving, that's going to
05:20let you get away with the odd dodgy swing and not going to cost you too much while you're out
05:24on the course. Okay, so number six on our list is about pressure and how you handle pressure on the
05:33golf course. It's something that we all need to do, it might well be the first tee shot's
05:38incredibly nerve-wracking, but then there's also going to be holes like this one. This is the ninth
05:43hole here at the Heritage Course at London Club, really tough par four, and you might want to go
05:47for your fairway finder, Alex, we've already discussed, but equally, you might want to just
05:50hit driver because it's such a tough hole. In this scenario, when you need to do it most,
05:56what can we do to get a good shot? That's the golden nugget, isn't it?
05:59Well, I mean, if we're looking to break 100, this scenario here, we're probably going to have two
06:04shots, so that's going to hopefully calm us down a little bit, but the key thing here is not just
06:09to pick your club rush and just get it over and done with because you don't feel comfortable.
06:12Yes, which I have definitely done in my past, for sure.
06:16If we actually look at golf, we want to be in scenarios where we're playing good golf and we're
06:20not feeling comfortable because that means we're doing something different, we're playing well.
06:24I want you to think about aiming really small, so if you aim really at a small target rather than
06:29just a general fairway, if you just miss a small target by a little bit, you're still going to be
06:33okay. We're going to talk later in this video about how to aim, but in this particular scenario,
06:38what are you aiming at and what's your miss, I guess?
06:42For example here, trouble looks to be more left, so I'm going to take something that's a very small
06:47target to the right of the trouble. I'm going to hone really in small, so if I take this tree
06:52straight down, I've got the one that sticks up a little bit more, I'm going to use that. I know
06:56if I miss just a little bit left, I'm okay, but equally, if I miss just a little bit right,
07:00I'm still okay as well. Aim small, miss small, still end up on the fairway.
07:06Exactly. Let's see if it works, Alex.
07:09Here we go.
07:15Bingo. It's like cut off that mark, middle of the fairway, no trouble. Aiming small,
07:20it really is very important and it could help you in a scenario like this.
07:28This one is all about club selection. I think, Alex, we've chosen this particular hole here at
07:33the London Club for a very good reason. We've got water short of the green and most golfers
07:38would know in this scenario to do what? Take one club more, avoid going short.
07:42Yes. The problem is that how often do you take the same approach on holes where there isn't water
07:47short, but there is other trouble like bunkers or other things that might be short of the green?
07:50Well, where do most club golfers finish even on a good strike? Short, right?
07:53Yes.
07:54They don't take that advice. What we're saying here is think that you're always in a scenario
07:59like this. There's water short or the trouble short, put the bunker in the same category,
08:03take one more club and make sure you're in the green.
08:05Yes, so that you are avoiding failing to carry the front of the green, which is the big mistake,
08:11I think, a lot of players make.
08:12Exactly.
08:12So, Alex, you've got 153 and you would usually hit-
08:17Seven iron, usually.
08:18I will look for your six iron. There you go.
08:22Now, being a pro, I expect this to finish close to the flag.
08:25Feel a bit of pressure. And even this is a tough one, the wind into as well,
08:29you might have to adjust that even further sometimes.
08:36Lovely contact. Very good shot. But has it made the green?
08:41Yes, pin high.
08:47So, number four on our list is developing the punch shot,
08:50being able to hit a shot when you're in a scenario like this.
08:53Yeah.
08:54How do you play it?
08:54So, essentially, if we want the ball to go lower, we need to lower the loft of our club.
09:00So, use less loft.
09:01Lower the loft of our club at impact and hit down on it more. That's going to lower the launch.
09:05Okay. So, set up for the ball then. Explain to me what you do at address.
09:09So, how I would do with this is I would put the ball towards the back of my stance.
09:13That allows me to hit down on it more. I'd grip down on it.
09:16Now, with that ball going towards the back of my stance,
09:18that's going to encourage a bit more forward shuffling, taking some loft off the club.
09:22Now, all I want you to feel is you're going to keep your weight left throughout
09:26and just make a bit of a slower swing. I always like to feel it's more like a
09:29curtailed follow-through with my chest pointing to target rather than
09:34this nice full follow-through on a full shot.
09:36Okay. Go on then. Let's have a look at it.
09:38So, this is a real toughie actually because we're not too far from the green. So, I've
09:42gone eight iron and I'm trying to picture that ball flying through this window here
09:46down and running up.
09:47Yeah.
09:48So, ball back, hands forward, grip down.
09:55Well, it clipped the tree, but it's fine. As Alex said, it's a really tricky shot.
09:59I think the key thing is often in a scenario like this, the punch shot is really important,
10:04but it's about getting yourself back into play. So, not trying to do too much with it.
10:08Just get yourself back in the game and then take it from there.
10:11The punch shot is a really important shot for golfers no matter what their handicap.
10:18Okay. So, number three on our list, it's a simple one, but it's so important. It's
10:24knowing exactly how to aim the club. Alex, what's the advice here?
10:28I mean, what I think is always coming to the range and pressing the reset button occasionally
10:33where you can get into bad habits that creep in at time after time, aiming a little bit
10:38right or a little bit left, and there's nothing worse than the right. Ripping a swing,
10:42feeling an amazing swing out the middle, and the ball's just sailing in the wrong direction.
10:46And I guess the point here is that if you aim wrong, then suddenly your swing path is out and
10:50you can get other faults that creep into the game. So, it really is important to get this right.
10:54100%. Yes.
10:55So, how do you do it? So, I always have a bit of a process.
10:58I always come to the range and I'll place one alignment stick down first. That's my ball to
11:02target line. So, we've chosen this red flag down here. I would then put my feet line,
11:07which runs parallel to that. Now, this is getting me to have two parallel lines. On the golf course,
11:12if we're drawing or fading, we would slightly aim different to that, but use this as a coming
11:18back to neutral reset button. So, now I can stand over here. I've also used the line of
11:23a ball to extend that line, address the ball, make sure everything's neutral. And you know what?
11:30It might feel like aiming a bit left or it might feel like aiming now a bit right,
11:33but it's getting ball to target line, then shoulders, feet, hips, and knees running parallel.
11:38Take pride in getting this part right. If you do, it will definitely pay off.
11:47Okay. So, number two on our list is to have two different short game shots up your sleeve. Two
11:53that you feel really comfortable with. One, Alex, is a chip and run. You'll be able to find advice
11:57on how to hit the chip and run on the Golf Monthly website. Alex, I'm sure you'll have some content on
12:01your YouTube channel about how to do it. But we're now going to look at how to hit a bunker shot,
12:05because this is so important. You're going to face it. A lot of golfers struggle with it. So,
12:09give us a tip, Alex. So, first thing, choose your most lofted club. I tend to buy wedges
12:15that have a lot of bouts. This helps the club sort of glide through the sand. Also, I think
12:20it's all to do with setup, really. If we set up to this club correctly, we've got a better chance
12:24of hitting it good. So, nice, quickly here and simple. Dig your feet in. We've got ball position
12:30a club head inside a left heel. You want to then grip it with the face open, sit down and left,
12:36and all I want you to do is feel like you're sliding that club underneath it with some speed.
12:40Okay. Go on then. Just like that.
12:48Yes, and you'll notice, I mean, Alex has swung at that really quite hard.
12:51Yes.
12:51It's just popped it straight up into the air. Loads of control, not gone very far.
12:56It's a simple way to do it, but it does take some practice. Put some time into it.
12:59It will really pay off.
13:05Okay. So, our number one top tip for breaking 100, Alex, is to break the round up into small
13:12segments. Explain what people should be doing here.
13:15I mean, most people who are trying to break 100, they'll go out there going, right, okay,
13:18well, I've got to do this and this on each nine. That whole focus is coming to that end score. So,
13:24breaking that round into six sets of three, you can set yourself a target on those sets,
13:30reset after one, go on the next.
13:32Right. Okay. So, it might well be that you look at the first three holes and think,
13:35they're three of the hardest holes on the golf course. Try to get away from there,
13:38no more than four over par or something.
13:40Exactly like that. But also, equally, if you have a bad set of three, don't let that impact
13:46the nine holes. Because most people go, oh, I'll reset after the ninth. We'll start again on the
13:4910th. Reset after three, start again. But equally, if you have a good set of three,
13:53don't get too far ahead of yourself and start trying to chase it even more.
13:57Yeah. So, managing a score across 18 holes, it's a lot to do. Managing the same score over
14:02three hole chunks is much more achievable. Give it a go.
14:06Okay. So, that's our look at our top 10 tips to break 100. Breaking 100 is such an
14:11important barrier that so many golfers are looking to get through. If you can just do a few of those
14:16things that Alex said, not many of them very technical, all of them really, really useful,
14:20they should really help. If you think there's anything that we've missed that you have used
14:24in the past that really helped you, leave some comments below. We'd love to hear your thoughts.
14:28But that's it for now from the London Club. Thanks for watching. We'll see you next time.