LEAVING IT SHORT
If you are the “blue right-handed golfer” playing a shot (“White Arrow”) to this flag, your ball will wind up short and right or where you see the “Red X.” This is common to most golfers most of the time. Even the PGA Pros make this same mistake.
It doesn’t matter if it’s a long, medium, or short iron. It doesn’t matter if it’s a short pitch with a wedge. It doesn’t matter if it’s a chip. It doesn’t matter if IT’S A PUTT. Most of the time we will come up short and right of the hole.
Next time you play a practice round, experiment. Instead of doing what you always do, make yourself pick a target somewhat long and to the left of the hole as indicated by the “Yellow X.” The distance long and left is up to you. On a ten-foot putt, the distance might be a foot long and a foot left. On a 50-yard pitch, the distance might be six feet long and six feet left. On longer shots, use longer distances. Simply give this a try for a full round on every shot and maybe even your driver. Just see what happens.
Make up your mind to give this a serious try and accept the results. By “serious try,” that means to really pick a new target longer and more left and consciously try to make that target the real target in your mind. If you get better results, you know what to do next time. If the results aren’t better, go back to what you normally do.
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Fun Fact: Even when you aim for the ideal spot, you're probably not taking enough club. According to Arccos, 15+ handicap golfers are coming up short almost 30 percent of the time from 50 to 75 yards — and more than 52 percent of the time from 125 to 150 yards.