A Baker’s Dozen Golf Hints

Craig Sterrett

As a lifelong gym rat, I didn’t get decent at basketball until about 28 years old, when that skill wasn’t worth anything at all. And I didn’t learn the truth about the game until 42. By then, when I wasn’t very good or quick, but my teammates were, I morphed into that space-occupying, aggravating guy-in-the-middle who wanted to win.

Basketball’s simple, I learned while playing in the post, blocking out, passing and setting picks instead of gunning threes. My team needs a good shot every time down the court. My team needs to make the next trip down the court awful for the other team, or force it to settle for a bad shot.

That’s it.

That’s the truth in basketball.

Anyway, there are a few truths about golf that I can share, too. These aren’t lessons on mechanics. Pay a pro for that help if you’re serious. My advice on that, if I provided it here, would equal what you paid for this page you’re reading: $0. 

Here’s one free tip from me, however, that you can take to the bank: Think twice before attempting to teach your spouse or partner to golf. It’s a frustrating game. Let that special person in your life get frustrated with the teaching pro instead of you!

I have never taken a lesson and have no tournament successes – just a couple of second-place, match-play trophies to show for my lack of professional instruction.

But there are truths to the game. For example, there’s a ton of instructional nonfiction literature, but only a few worth digesting. My favorite used bookstore finds include Jack Nicklaus’ Lesson Tee comic collection and Harvey Penick’s Little Red Book and his No. 1 tip: “Take dead aim.” The trick is having golf knowledge but not letting it pollute your swing.

Here are my 13 golf truths. I hope they bring you luck.

1. Visualize your shot, and then while addressing the ball, clear your mind of all thoughts other than making that shot happen. Or, have just one swing thought. If you’ve soaked up a lot of instruction, videos, TV lessons and tips and then think about all of them while swinging, you’ll adjust in mid-swing. Then, nothing good is going to happen.

2. If you need to have a swing thought, keep it positive. Otherwise, you might top a shot. While hitting a fairway wood or long iron, instead of telling myself, “Don’t look up,” I use the swing thought, “Stay with it.” I hate hearing golfers tell their friends, “Keep your head down.” Thinking that way can cause golfers to dig a deep ditch behind the ball, and then they get frustrated while trying to slightly correct that problem.

3. If you get into trouble, get out of trouble on the next shot. That can help keep big numbers off your scorecard.

4. Keep your head still on putts.

5. Know your distances.

6. Unless you’re an old-school wrist putter, don’t let the putter blade get out in front of your hands.

7. Decide how you’re going to hit a shot, and then commit to it.

8. Accelerate on chips and pitches. Don’t decelerate. And keep your eye on the ball so people don’t tell you, “Don’t look up.”

9. Let the loft of the club do the work. I sometimes see friends who are topping shots or having trouble getting a 3-wood or iron shot up into the air. If they ask why they’re hitting worm-burners, I tell them, next time they have a chance to practice, put a bunch of broken tees or acorns on the ground and hit those. If they swing through small objects on the grass and can make those fly, hitting a golf ball is easy.

10. If you’re having trouble hitting wedges around greens or near fringes, don’t do that. Chip with the lower-lofted club that will get the ball onto the green and rolling as soon as possible. I learned that as a kid when our twosome had to join up with a couple of older guys. One of them, my junior high principal, saw me struggling and showed me how to use a putting stroke with a 6-iron.

11. For most of us, it’s easier to get a chip close to the hole than it is a pitch. And average players generally can get putts from the fringe closer to the hole than pitches from the fringe.

12. If you’re slicing or hooking drives, realize that somehow you’re creating rotations, just like the spin you’d use to intentionally curve a ping-pong ball.

13. I can’t fix your slice. A pro might be able to cure your slice. But you might not need to fix your slice. A little curve isn’t horrible if you can repeat it.

Finally, I used to play “golf swing,” working on my swing during rounds instead of focusing on making the best shot in that moment. I’ve learned from experience that it’s valuable to practice after a round or when you’re not playing.

During a round, however, play golf, and focus on your best possible target. Your practice and previous successes on the range or course can give you the confidence to pull off some of the shots you desire.

Practice and warm-up are not the same thing. Warm-up means getting loose, preparing to play and perhaps hitting a few chips and putts to gauge speed and simply to see a few fall into the cup. I don’t know about you, but when I don’t warm up, I double-bogey the first hole just as often as I par it.

Have fun. Treasure this game that you can play for years and years and years.

Pro Enjoying Opportunity in Sturgeon Bay 

Opportunity knocked, and pro golfer Nick Kwaterski opened the door – to a bed-and-breakfast.

The talented former Door County and Western Illinois University golf standout and former caddie services director at prestigious Sand Valley moved home this summer when his wife, Cameryn Ehlers-Kwaterski, took a position as director of Destination Sturgeon Bay.

Kwaterski is still leaving himself open to opportunities at Door County golf facilities, but he has plenty to do after he and Cameryn bought a 102-year-old house near Sturgeon Bay’s West Waterfront. 

They’re looking forward to raising baby Lucy in the home and operating the Prospect House bed-and-breakfast in the former Sawyer House. They had two rooms available for visitors by the Fourth of July weekend, and Kwaterski hoped to finish work on two more this month. 

He’s also practicing for the Wisconsin Open, Aug. 15-17, at the historical Ozaukee Country Club in Mequon. Both the Wisconsin PGA and Ozaukee are celebrating centennial anniversaries this year.