When it comes to looking at touring professionals we love to analyse their game, their swings, the putts they hole, and of course their statistics, but how often do we sit down and look at our own?
One thing I consistently find with golfers is they are rarely willing to take a deep look under they hood of their own game. By this I mean take a very black and white approach to their game and use statistics to assess where their game is rather than feel or emotion. As a result I often find many golfers can have a major misunderstanding of where they actually lose strokes on the golf course. This to me can be a significant barrier when it comes to improving scores long term as often practice time can me misspent and potentially even wasted with little to no focus or outcome.
The first step in tracking your statistics is to find an application to measure your statistics on. There a a huge number out there that you can look at, but when looking there are a number of criteria that I would look for:
Strokes Gained Analysis is a must!!
Filter according to dates, tournaments, and even shots
Simple, understandable information
The ability to give your coach access
Track your dispersions from various distances
To date the best statistics app I have found is "Upgame" which I have used for the last 2 years or so. Upgame essentially can give you everything that you need to know about what you have done on the golf course from how close you hit each club to how many putts you hole from each area. There are two subscription options for golfers, the first is the standard app which is exceptionally easy input and only takes about 15 minutes, or you can availa of the pro version which for Elite Players will give you the most detailed analysis anyone has to offer. For me as a coach it is even more valuable that it notify's me every time a student enters a round.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR?
When you are looking at statistics people often are attracted immediately to their weaknesses, yet for me it is just as important to highlight and admire your strengths! Using a statistics software will allow you to instantly identify both, and ultimately guide you in the right direction when it comes to improving your game. It also offers a great way to measure improvement over a long period. Rather than guessing or potentially ignoring improvement, it is simply there in black and white for nobody (Including yourself) to argue with!
According to Brendt Snedeker:
“The lines between a good and great season are so thin, so I’m trying to find any edge I can get. We, as professional golfers, have a tendency of thinking we are strong in certain areas, and that may not be the case at all. Mark (His Statition) does a great job of identifying what I need to work on, what my strengths are so I play to those, and what my weaknesses are, so I can play away from them.”
USING IT IN PRACTICE
Having regular, up to date statistics can really help you plan your practice time efficiently. Knowing what areas of your game need the most work means you can highlight those areas within your practice sessions and spend a little more time improving them, rather than spending your time only working on the things you like to practice.
Having your statistics readily available will also make your coaches job far easier. By knowing what areas need prioritising before your lesson, your coach can be prepared with what information to deliver, and potentially some tests or challenges to finish off and test the work you have done.
USING IT IN PLAY
Using statistics in play is all about knowing your patterns. Once you know your patterns and habits, it becomes very easy to build a game plan around them.
Let’s use recent example of a professional that I work with. After analysing his statistics early on a Monday we noticed he was losing an unusual amount of shots from 150 – 200 yards. After delving deeper into his “strokes gained” statistics we noticed that when he missed a green in regulation, 85% of the time he would miss left, and only 15% of the time he would miss right. This information can become extremely useful if you know how to use it.
We begin the week by focusing on first of all reducing the pattern itself, improving his technique and reducing the miss left. As time draws closer to tournament day we will then reassess the pattern wither in the practice round or via some range tests using Trackman and decide if the pattern is still there, and if so how much?
Finally using that information we will decide how aggressively he can attack certain pins on the course. For example if the average miss is 8 - 10 yards left, we would then declare any right pins or centre pins as "Go Pins", while any pins located on the left side of the green within 10 yards or so of the edge, they must be directed more towards the centre of the green. This allows us to maximise the opportunities we have for birdies based on the results of our pattern, while limiting the chances of making any bogeys or worse.
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