Pre-Shot Routine: The 30 Seconds That Actually Move Your Score
TL;DRThe most underrated technique change in golf takes no swing work and zero range time.
Pre-shot routine is the cheapest stroke saver in golf. No swing change, no equipment, no lessons. Most amateurs don't have one, and it shows up most painfully on the first tee, after a bad shot, and on any shot they "have to" hit.
Why it works
The routine forces a target. Without a routine, amateurs aim at "somewhere over there" — and the strokes-gained data is brutal on that. Players who aim at a specific 4-foot-wide target hit 11% more greens than players who aim at "the green." That's roughly one extra GIR per round, or one stroke.
It also short-circuits the bad-shot reaction. The next swing after a duck-hook usually has no routine — and is therefore another duck-hook. A routine breaks the panic loop.
The test
Next round: pick three specific targets per shot. Note how many full shots you hit without one. That number is your fix. Get it to zero by round five.
FAQ
How long should a pre-shot routine be?+
20 to 30 seconds from picking the club to starting the swing. Longer than that and you over-think; shorter and you skip alignment, which is where most amateurs lose shots.
Should every shot have the same routine?+
Yes. The point of a routine is repeatability. Putts and full swings can have slightly different versions, but the structure — pick target, set line, commit, swing — should be identical.
Stop guessing what to work on.
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