Golf Tips & Quips

I got to the scrimmage portion of my practice session and I was hitting the ball really well. That is until I got to the one hole that always gives me trouble. I can play this hole as short as 105 yards or I can move back to where I can play it to 165 yards.

When I play the hole short I have no problems. The tee box sets up so that it is a straight shot into the green. Two bunkers guard the green on either side and it falls off over the back to an area that is 7 feet below the green. Not too difficult from this position. I still have to make the shot but there is not much to think about. Just hit it straight.

Problems arise however when I move it back to the 165 yard range. From this distance I actually tee the ball up from the tee box that is going in the opposite direction. From this angle, the green is off to the right a little bit. For some reason I have trouble getting myself properly aligned from this position.

When I am practicing I always lay down a club like Ian Poulter does in this video. It really helps to get myself aiming down the right line. When I have the the club down, I have no problem hitting a shot to a target that is off to the right. The shaft is there so I just trust that I am properly aligned and make the shot.

If I have to hit the same shot without my alignment aid, I struggle mightily. I feel like my stance is too closed and I have trouble completing a proper one-piece takeaway. I come across my body and hit a humongous hook. It happens every time I get to that hole.

Maybe it became mental after a while, but I also believe that poor technique or actually not knowing what to do is the main contributor of my poor performance on this particular hole. When you have poor mechanics or lack of knowledge, there is no way you can be confident in what you are doing. Especially in a game where everything is a matter of inches.

I often hear professionals say that a certain hole doesn't fit their eye. This is what is happening to me. I just don't feel comfortable. Rory McIlroy has been in the news recently for thinking about skipping the Players Championship held at TPC Sawgrass. It is considered golf's 5th major, but the 21 year old star says he may not be there in 2011. This is what he said about Pete Dye's infamous layout...

"I don't like the course," McIlroy said on the eve of the Dubai World Championship, the final tournament of the European Tour season. "That's one of the reasons I'm undecided whether to play it or not.

"It's a Pete Dye course. It creates angles, a bit like Whistling Straits," he said. "He designed that course as well, where the tee boxes are sort of lining you up in the wrong direction. Visually it's very tough off the tee. It makes you feel uncomfortable because it looks like you've only got a little bit of fairway to hit but actually once you get up there, it's a little bit wider. It's just very demanding visually," added McIlroy.