Having recently returned from a trip abroad the highlight was to further my coaching knowledge which this year was based around Golf Statistics.

I was very privileged to listen to the guru of Golf Statistics Mark Broadie, the author of Every Shot Counts. The book details his renowned  strokes gained system widely used on the PGA Tour coupled with some excellent putting and chipping games.

Golf is a game full of promises of improvement with the latest and newest pieces of equipment which can sometimes be confusing for the club golfer.

I am all for technological advancements and innovations but I believe we need to have a starting point and if only we

understood and set ourselves a realistic gain can we then monitor our improvement.

I recently held a couple of putting clinics at Three Rivers Golf Club  based around the groups perceived expectations and current practice habits. By the end of the clinic each player departed with a number of interesting, motivational drills and skills tests which they could benchmark their progress which is where Golf Statistics come in to the equation.

Golf Statistics

Golf Statistics

Going back to my seminar with Mr Mark Broadie, the one surprising statistic which stood out in my mind was “The Tour player on average holes 1.4 putts per 4 round Tournament over 21ft ”

I asked my clients to estimate the number, as you would expect numbers ranged from 8-15 putts so a much higher value.

Mark calculated “The Tour winner of a particular week holes on average  2.4 putts over 21 feet which is still less than 1 putt per round”.  According to Broadie last weeks winner at Doral Adam Scott made just two putts over 21 feet which falls within the expected statistic from a Tournament winner.

This information provides us with the knowledge that putts over 20 ft are really not a distance which I would recommend we spend the majority of our practice time or expect to hole for that match play half!

The numbers give us an idea of what exactly we are trying to achieve then we can monitor our improvement and work on specific areas. The other purpose of Golf Statistics is to provide us with the confidence and knowledge of our strengths.

It is surprising that the areas of our game which we feel let us down can actually be one of our strengths!

I provide numerous drills and skills incorporating the following elements where I would like to see the majority of practice centred.

• Aim
• Green Reading
• Pace of Putt
• Technique/ Tempo
• Pressure putts
• Routine

I have spoken to numerous club golfers who when asked the question;  How many putts do you “expect” to hole from 8 feet? The response is generally in the region of 80%.

According to the PGA’s Tour ShotLink  the average number of putts holed by Tour players from 8ft is approximately 50% which really surprised the group. This one tiny element of Golf Statistics information can really help to manage your expectations and focus your practice.

The one distance which I now recommend  my clients to work on is the 3ft-10ft range, again this golf statistic originates from the incredible research relating to the shots gained figures carried out by Mark in conjunction with the PGA Tour and ShotLink.

If you would like to learn more and enjoyed this blog,  I can highly recommend “Every Shot Counts” by Mark Broadie it is an outstanding book of knowledge. I am very grateful of Mark’s on-going support and assistance.