Play the Texas wedge: your putter is an underrated weapon from off the green. Mine won me the British Open at St. Andrews
Tiger Woods
One of the things I like most about Pinehurst and St. Andrews is that you have to be creative around the greens. That means sometimes putting through swales and over mounds instead of chipping. Negotiating them is part of the fun of playing those great courses. Of course, St. Andrews was more fun for me because my touch was much better there.
You learn touch around the greens with practice. Tour pros spend countless hours developing their chips and pitches–not true for most amateurs. That’s why you should putt instead of chip when the situation favors it–short grass, with no obstacles. I walk off the distance to the green and from the green to the hole to get a feel for the putt. Everything else in my setup–light grip, ball slightly forward, head still–is the same. Getting quick or short with your stroke in either direction will hurt your distance control and prevent you from hitting it solid.
Tiger Woods writes instruction articles only for Golf Digest. Contributing Editor Mark Soltau is also the editor of tigerwoods.com.
COPYRIGHT 2005 Golf Digest Companies
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning
