Are you trying to work through every type of golf shot there to see if you can master them all?
We hate to spoil it for you, but you will never master them all. In fact, you may not even master any of them.
Spending too much time mastering every golf shot is slowing down your progress. Here are some reasons why.
You’ll skip the fundamentals
If you focus on these specific types of shots and spend too much time perfecting them, you are probably neglecting the core fundamentals.
As great as it is to hit a flop shot, stinger, draw, fade, etc., it’s not much use if your grip, alignment, and setup are all lacking.
The basics improve the game overall and help you hit different types of shots. They deserve the majority of your time.
You are spreading your practice time too thin
You likely have limited practice time unless you are lucky enough to play golf for a living. This time must be spent on the areas of your game that give you the best chance to succeed.
Spending all of your time on the rarely used shot will not help you get anywhere.
Instead, focus on hitting straight drives, solid iron shots, and great pitches. If you have time to hit a few flop shots or stingers, go for it.
Be smart about how you spend your time practicing.
These shots may not work for your game
All golfers have strengths and weaknesses. If you are naturally a fade player, you may spend months working on hitting a draw only to find out you can’t really hit a great draw.
Just stop.
You’ll figure out a way to manage a course that requires very few draw shots to shoot low.
Spend time ensuring you have full control over that fade, and give up on the draw if it’s not a natural ball flight for your game.
You may be overcomplicating the game
Golf is complicated, and it’s difficult. However, for most amateur golfers, there are certain shots that you may not need to hit all that much. You won’t need as much shot-making ability as a professional player.
If you are standing 125 yards from a green and the pin is in the middle, hit a straight shot.
Don’t start overcomplicating this and hitting fades and draws when they are completely unnecessary. You’ll be sorry you did.
Final thoughts
Yes, you will read lots of advice about golf that states you should work on hitting different types of golf shots.
The problem is that your game may not need these shots, and you may be wasting your time. Start tracking your next few rounds of golf and see how many instances there were that hitting one of these different types of shots would have actually lowered your scores.
You may be surprised at what you find.
