WEBVTT

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In this concept video, we're going to go over the introduction of how to

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practice and how to play golf.

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So I put this in the fundamental section because I want you to be able to start

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thinking about our long-term goals right away.

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Yes, I'm going to cover a lot of the details of the movements that build a

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swing that's going to get you hitting the ball the way that you want.

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But I've done enough playing lessons to see that there are often struggles in

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taking that driving range swing to the course.

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And I find that a lot of those struggles come from how to practice.

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So in the rest of the video, I'm going to go over the details of what's

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different on the course and what's different on the range.

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And I'm also going to go over the details of how to structure a practice

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session so that you're maximizing your time and not wasting it just putting in

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mindless reps.

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When you practice on the range, you have a number of things going for you. You

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have flat lies pretty much all the time. You have nothing creating any real

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visual stress.

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And you have the security of knowing that you can always hit another one if you

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don't hit the ball well.

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Also, the time delay between each shot is as much or as little as you would

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like.

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For example, you could hit a ball every five seconds if you really wanted to.

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These advantages instantly disappear when you go to the golf course. Each lie

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is slightly different.

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The distances change for each shot. There is consequences for bad shots, and

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you have to negotiate about five minutes of downtime between each shot.

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So practicing on the range can be great, but you need to devote part of your

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practice to mechanics and an equal or greater percentage to practicing playing.

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We now know that muscle memory doesn't really exist as it was once thought.

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Simple repetitions of the body parts does not teach you a skill. You need to

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integrate the brain in a whole experience.

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Here are some ways to make your range practice more effective while you're

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going through the positions and movements.

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First, mix it up. Change clubs and change targets often.

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It's often amazing how you could take your seven iron and hit 20 shots in a row

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beautifully. But then, if you hit five drivers and switch back to your seven

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iron,

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there's a good chance that the next swing will not be as solid as those

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previous 20. You should think why.

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It is important while you're working on these movements to practice with

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different clubs.

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You should practice going from long clubs to short clubs and vice versa.

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Secondly, never miss an opportunity to learn.

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Let me ruin the ending of this movie for you. You are going to hit bad shots,

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but that doesn't mean that you can't learn from them.

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Before you get emotional and just reach for another ball, take a second, hold

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your finish.

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Imagine what the club did to hit that shot and what you are going to do

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differently next time.

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Make a single rehearsal of this new correct swing and then approach another

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ball.

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This helps with two skills of playing golf. One is visualization and the other

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is the ability to recover emotionally.

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Elite golfers, even the ones who get mad and throw tantrums, are able to accept

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the shot that they hit and let it go.

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I've played with a lot of good but not elite golfers who have a hard time of

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letting go of a single bad shot.

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They will talk about it holes later.

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When learning a skill, you want practice to provide repetitions with specific

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feedback, but you also want to use it as a chance to experiment with overcoming

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challenges.

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Think of learning a movement more like training a muscle than memorizing a list

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of words.

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To memorize a list, you could just read it over and over again.

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When really matter where you are reading it, you could just read it.

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To train a muscle, if you wanted to keep growing, you have to stress it with

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increasing weight.

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You can't just lift the same five pound weight every time you go for a workout

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and expect to gain a whole lot of size or strength.

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The true can be said for a movement.

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Here are some benchmarks or milestones that you can look at to know that you

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are ready to challenge your skill.

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Number one, if you are hitting it well a couple times within a practice session

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.

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Number two, if you are hitting it well most of the time, let's say better than

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50 or 60 percent within a practice session.

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Number three, hitting it well on the range with someone watching.

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Number four, hitting it well on the course with multiple balls, basically

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having mulligans.

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Number five, hitting it well on the course with a single ball but playing by

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yourself.

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Number six, hitting it well on the course with a single ball and playing with

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playing partners.

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No mulligans. Number seven, hitting it well on the course with a single ball in

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a tournament with people that you don't know.

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And then the last would be hitting it well with a single ball on the course in

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the most important round of your year.

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Whether that's with your father-in-law or in your club championship or the back

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nine at the Masters, whatever is important for you, that's where the most

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pressure is going to be.

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So when you go to the range, make sure that you don't just do mechanical

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practice, but did you also focus on skill transfer?

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Some examples for skill transfer would be playing imaginary holes, scrimmaging

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with yourself on the range, playing games that have consequence.

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You'll learn more about these in the fine tuning session.

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But if the skill breaks down on the course, it could mean that your

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expectations are unrealistic for the level that the skill is at right now.

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If you've only done successfully during that first stage of hitting it well

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within a practice session, then you may not be ready for in a tournament.

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Be patient with yourself as you go through the process and as you challenge the

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skill to increasing difficulty.