The greens at the Country Club of Troy are noted for their severe undulations, seldom does one have the opportunity to play a straight putt. If you play putts with severe break, roll the ball over an intermediate target on your selected line. For accuracy, choose a spot closer to your ball than the hole. Once you’ve aimed at the selected spot, think only of speed as you stroke the ball over your intermediate target

Points to Remember:

1. Pick your target based on the speed you intend to roll the ball. Firmly struck putts will break less than those that are lagged to the hole.

2. Guard against aiming your putter at your target but your body toward the hole.Aim your putter squarely at the spot then align your body.

3. Watch your grip pressure. It’s easy to get tense over those big breakers. Grip the club lightly with no tension in your hands or forearms.

4. Hold your head back as you stroke through. Looking up too early forces your shoulders to open and destroys the squareness of your stroke. Your head, in fact, should swivel toward the target as you follow the ball never lift.

5. Keep the putter moving toward the target as you follow through. Few putts are made with a tentive prod.

Our Walter Travis designed golf course presents us with many challenges, especially around the greens. Due to the closely mown “run-off” areas around the greens, it’s important to have a diverse short game with an assortment of shot options. All too often players use their wedges exclusively around the green ignoring one of the most reliable and consistent shots to play in this situation, the “bump-and-run”. The bump-and-run is designed to keep the ball very low with minimal airtime. In order to hit the bump-and-run you’ll need to understand a few basic principles.

• Grip down on the golf club for better control
• Use a less lofted club such as a 6 iron, 7 iron, or 8 iron
• Position the golf ball a couple inches back of center (toward your right foot for right handed golfers)
• Make your stance width slightly narrower than shoulder width apart
• Stand slightly closer to the ball in order to keep the heel of the club from digging into the ground
• Place more weight on your left foot
• Very importantly, make sure the hands lead or stay in front of the clubhead through impact

Following these basic principles will make it much easier for you to hit the bump-and-run and make your short game more consistent. A better short game will lead to lower scores.