A few days ago I had the pleasure of playing with an old friend who I grew up with playing Junior tournaments with.  This friend had been a good player for a long time but he hadn’t been playing much the last few years and the first thing that usually goes is the feel.  Feel is so important around the greens when putting or hitting lob, pitch or golf chip shots.

After 5 or so poor shots from him very close to the green, I had to chime in with a quick tip.  What he was doing was something I have seen many players do and even I hit these shots for a few years before I got much better at the short game.

Since he hadn’t played much the last few years he was holding the club WAY to tightly.  This caused all the small muscles in his hands, arms and shoulders to tense up and made him look really stiff while trying to execute the shot.  I got him to grip the club much lighter then he was by doing a simple test.  I had him hold the club out directly in front of him so it was parallel with the ground.  From their I grabbed the club head and while he was holding the club I would twist the head around.  If I am able to to move the club head without his hands moving then his grip pressure is good.  If I am having a hard time moving the club head and his hands aren’t moving then he is gripping the club to tightly.  So this is a great drill to test your grip pressure and all you need is someone to help you.

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The  next thing I had him do was simple and that was to accelerate through the ball.  As he was about to hit his golf chip he was slowing down his swing speed and this caused ALL sorts of problems.  An easy fix to ensure you accelerate is to make sure you swing through and not at the ball.  I always tell my students that they should think of the ball getting in the way on their swing or stroke and not to be afraid of hitting the ball.  Also, be sure that your follow through stroke is as long if not longer then your back swing.

So be sure to grip the club lightly when chipping and to accelerate through the ball!  These two things will no doubt improve your short game and for more short game tips and drill, sign up for my free golf instruction email newsletter here.