I love watching golf on TV and learning from what the best in the world of golf are doing with their games. I spent most of last week at Riviera watching the players hit great and not so great shots. Riviera like many tour courses looks much different on TV than it does in person.
The greens at Riviera are much smaller than they look on TV. Most people know the green on #10 is tiny. It is not only tiny but there is very little usable green due to the slopes. The 18th green looks huge on TV, it is not. This is a very long uphill put that all but the longest drivers hit mid irons into. It is also very sloped so there are not many easy puts.
Bunkers, Bunkers, Bunkers everywhere to make hitting the ball accurate extra important. They bunkers at Riviera are strategically placed, large and very deep. The first hole is a very short par five but dead center in front of the green is a huge bunker that is about 5-6 feet deep. There is also a bunker in the middle of the 6th green. So bunker play is a must to win at Riviera.
Hitting the ball long is also very important. There are a few short holes but holes 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 12, 13, 18 are anything but short. I don’t remember when the tour decided that a 450 yard par four was a normal length but it is now. I think #12 and #18 are over 470 yards. So hitting the ball long is important at Riviera and the leader board showed it.
So we need to do well at Driving, Bunkers and Putting to play well at a golf course like Riviera. Here are a few video lessons to help you with that.
Putting
Ben Crenshaw on puttingDave Stockton on putting
Bunker play
How to hit it long
Jim McLean maximize your power
Take a look at these great tips and hopefully it will help you game!
Jim Hartnett
myhome4golf.com
