Practice Like Jack Nicklaus Short Intervals Drill
The practice like Jack Nicklaus Short Intervals drill is from the Golf Practice Planner.
Name
Practice Like Jack Nicklaus Short Intervals Drill
Category
Golf Mindset Practice Drills
Difficulty
1 out of 10
Time
15-minute practice intervals
Overview
One of my guilty pleasures in life is watching YouTube videos by Quick Fix Golf. I love his sense of humour and no-frills teaching concepts.
Today I watched one of his videos (see below), and said, “Yes” out loud to myself when he said this:
“You do it (ingrain a golf drill) by nagging your body at short intervals again and again and again, until finally it (your body) catches on and says, I’ve had enough. Stop it. I’ll do what you’re asking.”
Jack Nicklaus knew the power of short interval golf practice.
The mistake I made when playing college golf in the 1990s was the thought that sweating blood, toil, and tears on the range for hour after hour after hour would hone me into a golfing machine. Boy, was I wrong! Instead of becoming a machine, I just got tired and cultivated a sore back. In the 1990’s we used to think there was such a thing as muscle memory. We now know this isn’t true. That’s why short, focused practice is the way to go.
The best practice is achieved in short, focused intervals. Less is more.
Steps
Step 1: Watch
Watch the video.
Step 2: How short is a short interval?
It could be a minute? It could be 5 minutes? Research is clear on this matter. The brain starts to fatigue if it has to concentrate for more than 15 minutes at a time. My definition of a shot interval would be 15 minutes or less.
After every 15 minutes of practice, train yourself to step away and relax. You could do some stretches, focus on your breath (yogic breathing), watch birds flittering about, nimble on a banana, drink some water, visualise the drill you’re practising, etc. Make sure your break lasts a few minutes before resuming your golf practice drill.
Step 3: Keep Score
On the practice ground, hit 10 balls. Give yourself one point each time you go through your entire preshot routine, rest several minutes between shots, and give yourself a longer rest every 15 minutes.
On the course give yourself one point each time you go through your entire preshot routine, and give yourself another point on the hole if you remember to smell the flowers when walking between shots.
If you enjoyed this free golf practice drill, you might like my Golf Drills Practice Planner. If you're a golf nerd, you're gonna love it.
