PowerStroke for Beginners
I'm not a great PowerStroke player by any means. I shoot around -3 on average at the Champ level (hopefully I'll be getting
better, of course) - nothing spectacular. So what gives a non-star like me the authority to tell you why you should play PowerStroke
and how you should approach it? Well, the answer is simple: not too long ago, I used to be a horrid PS player... I mean +10
every round at best. Over the past two months, I've cut a good 12 shots off my average score. Indeed, I have learned many
basic PowerStroke tactics that can get any PS player off on the right foot instead of struggling and giving up PS too soon.
We need more PS players, and maybe an article like this can help. So, let's start at the beginning...
WHY SHOULD YOU PLAY POWERSTROKE?
Yes, yes, I know that Joel B has covered this, but obviously some people have not gotten the message ;) So, to reiterate,
here's a condensed list of reasons to play PS:
1. It's more realistic. We all know that PowerStroke brings scores back down to earth. But if you think about it, PS is a
much better simulation of both the physical and mental aspects of playing golf. PS is all about a consistent rhythm and tempo
of the swing, as is the case in real golf. Playing PowerStroke, you have to think your way around the course, just like in
real golf - no more firing at every flag as is done with 2-click. PowerStroke is a much greater mental challenge, just as
real golf is. You have to focus on every single hole - you can't play a passive round. There is no such thing as a "ho-hum"
PS round, even when you're playing well. Furthermore, with PS, you WILL mess up. It's nearly impossible to escape a PS round
without at least one bad swing (as is the case in real golf, even for professionals). The challenge is recovering from your
mistakes and not letting one bad hole ruin your entire round. With 2-click, there is no great mental challenge aside from
the "can I break 60?" question. 2-click is dream golf... PS is real golf (or at least a lot closer to real golf heh).
2. It's more rewarding. Sure, PS is a struggle. But after you grind out a good solid round of 69, you feel quite satisfied.
You have to truly work for your score with PS, and anything good that comes as a result of hard work is always rewarding.
3. It's more fun. Put #1 and #2 together and it doesn't get much more fun.
Now, on to the stuff you've been waiting for...
HOW YOU CAN BECOME A DECENT PS PLAYER
· MENTALITY
1. Get an attitude adjustment. Ok, so you've decided to try PS. It can't be that different... grip it and rip it 300 yards,
then fire right at the flag, right? You've heard Mr. Doty say it before, but I'll say it again: PS doesn't work like that.
You have to choose which holes to attack and choose which holes to play for the middle of the green. My goal is to always
have a birdie putt... I'd rather have a 20 foot putt than a difficult bunker shot that comes as a result of being too aggressive.
I'm not saying that you should never fire at pins... just choose wisely and don't go for an obvious sucker pin. Also, remember:
you will make bogies. Par is good... just chant that over and over again... a round of 18 pars is not a bad PS round by any
means.
· THE SWING / CHOOSING CLUBS
1. Get a consistent swing. This is critical. Before you begin playing a lot of PS rounds, practice your swing. Find the mouse
sensitivity setting that allows you to get about 115 mph on a good 3W swing and about 85-90 mph on a 7I. After that, you just
have to groove a swing. I obviously cannot tell you how to make a perfect swing every time, but I can give you some bits of
advice. First, realize that everyone's swing is not the same in PS. You can be a good PS player without hitting the snap all
of the time or having a straight club path. Just as real golfers have natural shapes to their shots, so do PS players. For
instance, I usually have a swing of open = .5 or 1 and in-out = 2 or 3... this is a little draw shot. It's not a perfect swing,
but I end up hitting the ball where I aim, and that's all that matters. You might develop a straight open =1 swing, and that's
fine as long as you do it consistently. If you have a consistent swing, not matter how ugly you think it is, you can compensate
for it and know where the ball is going. That's the point, right? If you know where the ball's going, you can't possibly do
that badly. Look at Allen Doyle on the Senior PGA Tour... he has one of the ugliest swings I've ever seen, yet he wins major
tournaments with it because it's consistent.
As you practice your swing, remember: don't swing too quickly. If you overspeed the mouse, you'll actually LOSE clubhead speed.
There are many ways to swing effectively... I personally take the mouse back slowly, quickly pull it back as far as it will
go and continue accelerating through. This is a consistent swing for me. Others have a different tempo and pull the club back
a shorter distance. I can't tell you what will work best for you... that's your job. Once you find a good swing, though, practice
reproducing it. If you're not getting enough chs or distance, change the sensitivity settings and try again. This might take
awhile, but if you go into a round knowing you have a consistent swing, it'll be a LOT easier. If only I had bothered to try
this method before I started playing PS... ah well.
2. Learn how far you actually hit the ball with each club. With PS, your irons generally travel farther than they would in
two-click. Figure out how far you hit each of your clubs... you might be surprised when you hit a 5W 240-260 yards (I certainly
was). As you figure out your distances, make sure that you're getting consistent clubhead speed, especially on the short irons.
You'll find that controlling distance on short irons can be a challenge, so you might as well start practicing now.
3. Use a 3W instead of a Driver in champ mode. In PS champ mode, there is simply too much to lose by using a driver. The Driver
requires a perfect swing to be effective, something that is hard to do consistently. Further more, I find that I can often
hit my 3W 270-280 yards with a good swing, and that is plenty of distance.
4. Carry a 5W. The PS 5W is amazing. You can hit a 5W 260-270 with a full swing, but you can hit it 210-220 with the right
settings. It's a huge advantage to be able to hit 250 yard approaches to par-5s with a 5W instead of a 3W, as the ball will
stop much more quickly. The 5W is also much more forgiving than the 3W, so if you're confident that you can put a good swing
on it, you can use it to hit a tee shot to a narrow fairway without giving up an unreasonable amount of distance.
· PRE-SHOT TIPS
1. Know what you're doing. It sounds like an obvious tip, but often times I'll find myself rushing into a shot without taking
enough time to assess all of the variables that I'm facing: wind, elevation, lie, and the condition of the green. There are
plenty of great resources that can aid you in calculating the variables of the game, so I won't go into detail about that.
The purpose of this article is to give you general strategies, after all. My point is that, just as in real golf, you need
to have total confidence in the shot that you have chosen to hit, and you need to focus before you hit that shot. YOU, and
only you, control the PS shot... there is no automated meter involved. If you're not confident in a shot, or if you're not
focused, your shot will be adversely affected most of the time. Make sure you know what you're doing before you hit your shot.
2. Don't let a bad situation get worse. If you've played a few bad holes and made a few bad swings, especially with the 3W,
stop and take a few practice swings before your next shot (unless you're playing online). A bad swing will only get worse
if you have doubts about it, and a practice swing is a quick and easy way to erase any doubt from your mind.
3. Be realistic about choosing your shot. Face it, some rounds are going to be better than others. You'll be swinging effortlessly
in some rounds and struggling just to hit the ball straight in other rounds. You've probably encountered what I'm talking
about in your real life golfing experience, and it's the same with PS. Take into account how you're playing before you choose
a shot to hit. If you're not swinging your woods well, don't go for a 260 yard second shot to a par-5 and risk putting yourself
way out of position. Instead, leave yourself a wedge and at least a shot at birdie: remember, always try to give yourself
a birdie putt. If you don't have confidence in your 3W or Driver on a relatively short par-4, hit a 3I instead of risking
another shot ending up in the trees. You're not going to bring your "A" game to every round, so compensate accordingly.
4. Avoid the temptation of sucker pins. With two-click, you'd fire at any pin, regardless of where it was located. But with
PS, you have to guard against the worst possible mistake. If a hole is located close to water, aim further towards the middle
of the green, away from the water. Sure, you might pull of a great shot occasionally, but if you DIDN'T hit a perfect shot,
you'd be staring at a senseless double bogie. You don't have to birdie every hole. Instead, identify the holes that you KNOW
you can birdie, and just try to par all of the rest. You'll probably hole a few putts and make a few birdies on the "non-birdie"
holes, anyway. You're going to make some mistakes in most rounds that you don't have control over, so guard against making
mental errors that lead to unnecessary bogies.
· THE SHORT GAME
1. It's important. The short game takes on a new importance with PS for two reasons. First, you'll need to get up and down
from 20-30 yards out several times in a typical round, especially when you first start playing. Second, putting and chipping
are not very difficult (relatively speaking, of course) in PS. And, of course, as usual, those pesky little 10-20 footers
will always make or break your round. I don't intend to give you a putting or chipping lesson; many people have written great
articles about the art and science of the LS short game already. I just want to make some PS-specific points.
2. Practice putting and chipping straight. While a little bit of draw or fade in a full swing is not bad at all, you must
learn to putt and chip with a straigh club path. The key to this is, of course, practice. Get a PS putting meter chart and
memorize the distances for n/m greens. Before you begin to putt, know what mark you're aiming for, because if you have to
think, you will hesitate, and any hesitation in putting stroke will result in lower speed and an inaccurate distance. Your
putting stroke must be fairly quick... straight back, straight through, with no hesitation between the backswing and downswing.
Chipping works in the same fashion. If you can putt and chip straight, your score will improve dramatically (you must learn
the appropriate distance calculations, of course, but other articles can teach you that stuff).
3. Use a LW or PW chip shot from 22 yards in. I prefer the LW, but others prefer the PW. Either club works fine as long as
you know your distances. On short chip shots (30 feet and in), use a LW with the ball positioned one down from the top position
in your stance. Then add about 15-20 feet to your normal distance calculation. This method allows the ball to stop quickly
and lets you be more aggressive with the shot. After 22 yards, it becomes harder to maintain a straight club path and hit
the snap.
4. Use a LW flop shot from 23 yards - 60 yards. Remember the days of two-click? I used to LOVE shots of about 40 or 50 yards...
all I had to do was release on the correct dot and come within, oh, two dots of a perfect snap, and the ball was within five
feet every time. With PS, these little 40-50 yard shots are much more difficult, because it is hard to control clubhead speed
to that degree. I have a method (actually, I must thank Jennifer D, who, sadly, doesn't play LS anymore, for this one) that
makes these shots much, MUCH more doable. The meter is divided into four marks for a full swing, but only the first three
of these marks are relevant for our discussion here. Try setting up a practice putting and chipping session, and go about
20 yards out. Now, set up a LW flop shot and pull the club back just past the first mark (not far past) and wait for a second
or two. Then accelerate through the shot as fast as you can while still coming close to hitting the snap (it doesn't have
to be as precise with a LW). The ball should have traveled about 20 yards. If your distance is different, that's just because
your sensitivity settings are different and you're getting a slightly higher or lower clubhead speed. The point is that with
this pull, hold, and accelerate method, you can achieve consistent clubhead speed on a partial swing. Practice this kind of
shot and figure out how far you hit a LW flop by pulling back to the next couple of marks. Pulling back to just past the third
mark should give you a distance just short of that of a full LW flop swing. This method can also be applied to other clubs.
I will discuss these other applications shortly.
5. Get your uphill putts to the hole. You can't make a putt if you don't get it to the hole. Uphill putts will need more speed
than you think, even on h/f greens. Don't be conservative on putts from below the hole: it's hard to blow an uphill putt more
than a few feet by unless you are completely off on your distance calculations. Furthermore, it is very likely that you'll
hesitate slightly on short putts in PS, so compensate for this fact when hitting short uphill putts.
6. Greenside bunker shots. I find that the "sand play" chart in the golfcom FAQ applies to my PS game well with my normal
clubhead speed, although I do have to subtract about five feet from that chart. Remember to take an uphill lie or downhill
lie in a bunker into account. Also, take into account the slope of the green. If you're hitting into a hill, use as little
loft as you can. If you're hitting a shot to a green sloping away from you, use the more lofted club for the shot (you can
hit several clubs identical distances with the right settings). Above all, though, MAKE SURE YOU ERR ON THE FAT SIDE. If you
click a little before the snap, your shot will not lose a lot of distance. If you click even a little after the snap point,
though, your shot will gain quite a bit of distance. Therefore, always aim to hit a little before the perfect snap. There's
nothing worse than going from an easy 30 foot bunker shot to a tough 20 yard bunker shot from over the green.
· RECOVERY SHOTS
1. As good as you think you are, DON'T SKIP THIS SECTION :) Seriously, with PS, you will find yourself hitting from the trees
every now and then after a shanked drive, especially when you first start playing. If you know a few basic PS recovery shot
tactics, however, your score will not suffer too badly from the occasional (or frequent, in the beginning) bad shot.
2. Don't panic. I'm not going to tell you to expect bad shots from yourself, but be prepared. They will happen, let's face
it. So when they do, don't overreact. Even if you find yourself in a seemingly impossible situation, just calm down. View
the shot as a challenge. If you play your recovery shot correctly, you will make no worse than bogie 90% of the time, and
a bogie in PS is not anything to be ashamed of.
3. Don't try to be like the Tiger Woods of two years ago. Look at how Tiger played two years ago. Even if he was in the midst
of some thick trees, he'd go for the green. True, he'd pull off a miracle shot every now and then, but he'd get himself into
more trouble even more often (they just didn't show that on SportsCenter). So, for your own good, don't kid yourself about
your situation. If you're in a position where you have a legitimate opening to the green using a low shot (discussed later),
go for it. But if you're not absolutely sure that you won't end up deeper in trouble, chip out, advance the ball as far as
you can up the fairway, and take your medicine. The key after a bad tee shot or any bad shot is to TAKE DOUBLE BOGIE OUT OF
THE PICTURE. When you're playing well, you want to do no worse than par. When you've made a bad shot, you want to do no worse
than bogie. Besides, if you've practiced the short game, especially from 50 yards in (see above), you'll get up and down a
good percentage of the time.
4. The 3I punch shot: your best friend. Well, maybe not, but it's perfect for escaping from even the thickest forest. Try
a few 3I punch shots and get the feel of its trajectory. Then experiment with the pull back/hold/swing tool I showed you above,
and figure out the distances for a 3I punch and a regular 3I. You can hit a low 3I as little as 20 yards or as much as 230
yards if you know your distances. I don't have to tell you that a low shot like this is ideal for escaping from trees. If
you have an opening, you can advance the ball pretty far down the fairway, and even onto the green if it's sloped correctly.
Don't get too aggressive and go over the green, though, even if there is an opening. Make sure you give yourself a good chance
to get up and down. If you have no opening to the green, rotate and find an opening to the fairway. Above all, make sure you
put the ball back in play with your recovery shot. NOTE: You can adjust the trajectory slightly for a low 3I by going into
the shot setup screen and adjusting the ball position accordingly. You can also use other clubs, but I find that the 3I provides
the best combination of distance and low trajectory of any club. Most beginner PS players complain that they find themselves
in the trees too much. Well, until you get a consistent 3W swing, that's a valid complaint. Being the trees doesn't mean that
you're dead, though. In fact, with a little luck you can save par most of the time.
5. Fairway bunker shots. Remember our discussion about greenside bunker shots earlier? I said that you should err on the fat
side for those shots. Well, rule #1 for fairway bunkers is ERR ON THE THIN SIDE. You DON'T want to accidentally hit an explosion
shot from a fairway bunker and advance the ball only 30 yards. Make sure you aim to hit a little bit past the perfect snap.
Ideally you'll hit the snap perfectly from a fairway bunker, because hitting it thin will give you less height and less control,
but it's better to hit it even a little bit thin (taking off a small amount of distance from the shot) than to hit it even
a little bit fat (taking off a LOT of the distance). Also, make sure that you take a relatively lofted club from the bunker.
Hitting a 3I out of a fairway bunker is not very effective, but hitting a 7W works just fine. Also, realize that you should
add at least one club (10-20 yards usually) in distance from a fairway bunker in most cases. Again, though, only practice
will let you get a good feel for the effect that bunkers have on distance. If you remember these tips, you won't be dead in
the fairway bunker; in fact, you'll be able to hit the green a good percentage of the time and at least give yourself a reasonable
chance to save par.
6. If you make a big number, don't sweat it. Every now and then you'll hit a shot that you just can't recover from well. If
you make a bad score like a double bogie, don't worry. It's just one of 18 holes. In fact, a big number should motivate you
to do even better on the remaining holes. If you get mad at yourself, though, take a few seconds to calm down before hitting
your tee shot on the next hole. Take a few practice swings. Forget about what's already been done and focus on the work that
you have left. Don't ever let one bad hole (and they will happen) ruin your round.
· POWERSTROKE AND THE WIND
1. I'm not going into a lot of detail here :) Seriously, many others have expounded systems of calculations to adjust for
the wind. For the most part, the wind will affect your PS shots the same way that it affected your two-click shots. The big
difference is that if you get a lot of clubhead speed, the ball will go higher, and the wind will affect it more. Thus, the
ideal way to play in the wind (especially windy conditions) is to hit lower shots with less clubhead speed. You can play without
doing this... if you wish to play normal shots even in windy conditions, read someone else's wind guide. I'm going to show
you another way to play, though, that incorporates the now-famous pull back/hold/swing method.
2. How that stupid-sounding method helps in the wind. If you learn the punch shot distances on all of the clubs (this will
take time, and I can't tell you for sure what they are, since your chs might be different from mine), you can use THOSE in
the wind (especially INTO the wind) and stop the ball from ballooning on you and going all over the place. If the ball is
lower, the wind will obviously affect it less. One of the neat aspects of PS is that you have much more control over the shape
and trajectory of your shot than you do with two-click. If you learn the punch distances and use my pull back/hold/swing method,
you can use more normal calculations, have more margin for error, and lower your score while playing in the wind. The ideal
method in wind play will probably be using a mixture of normal and punch shots. You'll figure it out after you play a few
rounds in the wind. Oh yes, and that brings me to my next point...
3. PLAY SOME PRACTICE ROUNDS IN WINDY CONDITIONS. Again, in case you didn't catch that: PLAY SOME PRACTICE ROUNDS IN WINDY
CONDITIONS. Almost every tournament has one windy round. Nobody likes playing in the wind, but it's not going away. The sooner
you can get comfortable in the wind, the better off you'll be. Arnold Palmer once said that playing in the U.S. Open involves
playing against the smallest field on the Tour, since so many people whine about the conditions and thus take themselves out
of contention by losing focus. Playing in a windy tournament round is the same way, especially with PS. A lot of people whine
and give up, but if you practice enough, you'll be able to post a score in the wind that's close to your score in calm conditions,
and that's a HUGE advantage.
· SOME FINAL THOUGHTS
1. Practice does in fact make perfect... or it at least eliminates those annoying 80s. PS is really a game of individual feel.
You have to practice in order to figure out all of the stuff that I've told you about. I've given you some tips that will
allow you to become a good PS player, but you have to go out and practice those tips on your own. It takes some time, but
it's worth it, believe me. But don't waste your time and play the occasional PS round every two weeks. It won't work out.
I promise. It takes even the good PS players one or two rounds to get their feel back after a long break from the game. The
best players take some time to practice even between frequent tournament rounds.
2. So make the switch, already! You have no excuse. I've spent a good two hours writing an article geared towards beginner
PS players, so the least you could do to repay me is give it a good, honest try for a couple of weeks :) Seriously, once you
make the switch and get the hang of it (and it takes a few rounds to get the hang of it, so don't give up too soon, PLEASE)...
you won't go back. PS is fun because it's the perfect combination of realism and challenge. You'll find that you'll get into
the game much more than you would get into a 2 click game. PS really transforms Links LS into an entirely different game.
I hope this article has been of help to some people. I'm not trying to somehow compete with the great articles that have already
been written about PS by Joel B and Rick D; instead, I'm trying to supplement those articles and add a few tips that should
help beginning PS players get off on the right foot. My hope is that new PS players will be less frustrated if they follow
my tips and thus will be less likely to quit before they get hooked (PS will hook anyone eventually).
Hit 'em straight, and I'll see you on the links (both virtual and real heh).
Andy Jacob
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