Golf Digest January 2016

JERRY TARDE Chairman and Editor-in-Chief I had a 10-foot putt for a birdie, and my crouching partner, Tom Watson, was telling me that it broke right to left. “Play it half a cup on the right,” he said. But I was seeing it break the other way. “I think it’s half a cup on the left,” I replied. At this point, Tom had had enough. He stood up, all 5-foot-9 of him, and said incredulously, “Wait a second. I’ve won five British Opens, and you’re not going to listen to me when I read your putt?” “If you could read this putt, Tom, you’d have won six British Opens,” somebody said. Watson looked like I’d skulled a shot to his solar plexus. He paused like Jack Benny. And then he laughed. If only his…

MOST AMATEURS I PLAY WITH understand the fundamentals of pitching and chipping. They know to set up in a slightly open stance and to favor the front foot. They know they should accelerate through impact and let the loft on the clubface provide the height and spin they need to stop the ball close. They understand all of this, yet they still hit some really bad short-game shots. Why? I think it’s because they get caught up in trying to control the distance the ball goes without really knowing how to do it. On short shots, they decelerate and dump it. On longer ones, they swing too wildly and skull it. Assuming your technique is fairly sound, I’m going to give you my blueprint for distance control around the greens.…

Whenever I evaluate a golfer’s ability, I first check for a proper grip and a balanced, athletic setup. Then I watch the footwork, which ultimately determines how efficiently the player creates clubhead speed. Proper footwork is a necessity for consistency and power, and there’s a sequence you should strive for. Start with your center of gravity directly between the balls of your feet. Then as you take the club back, let your weight transfer slightly to the inside of your right foot and eventually toward the heel. As you start the downswing, plant your left heel firmly to initiate the forward rotation of your hips. Replanting the left heel is an important lesson that my teacher, Stan Thirsk, taught me when I was growing up. It allows you to accelerate your swing…

Can you gain a full shot? That’s your first question. The recovery is among the most beautiful shots in golf. That’s why I like courses where the player has the opportunity to make one. If the natural vegetation is such that you usually have no choice but to chip your ball out sideways, well, that can be boring. The great architect Donald Ross would periodically go around Pinehurst and identify spots where golfers commonly missed drives. If he saw that a tree or bush had grown so it prevented the playing of a recovery shot toward the green, he ordered it removed. Hitting a low draw or high fade, or whatever shot is available to escape, takes skill and nerve. Knowing when to try it is just a basic calculation. Let’s look at…

During the offseason, I play a lot with my amateur buddies in Atlanta. I have a big edge in the short game, and bunker play in particular. These tips are for them—they know who they are—and for you, too. (1) At address, lean to your front side. Push 80 percent of your weight to your forward leg, enough that you feel pressure in the thigh. That sets up a descending blow. A lot of golfers hang on the back foot, sensing they need to help the ball up. But you’ve got to hit down. (2) With the clubface slightly open, take the club back to the outside. Then swing down on an out-to-in path, but not too steep. You don’t want to dig. You’re looking for a sliding action. Let the bounce,…

“Attention, yippers: My grip starts with the right hand already flipped.” We all know the USGA has made it illegal to anchor the club to your body during the putting stroke. But what a lot of golfers don’t know is how they’re going to putt if they’ve been anchoring and now can’t. Three years ago I came up with a grip that helps stabilize the stroke, like anchoring does. I call it the Gator Clamp because you use your right hand to clamp the top of the grip against your left forearm (above). Your right hand looks like an alligator chomping on your left arm. (Truth is, it’s the Gator Clamp because I played for Florida, and we Gators love our mascot.) You might remember me playing Tiger Woods in the 1996 U.S.…