Hack It Out Golf

Welcome to the "Saturday Morning Golf Stat" from the Hack it Out Golf Podcast. Today's topic: long putting for average golfers. How often will a 10-index player three-putt from 40 feet? Once again, Mark puts his guess up against our audience, and Lou shares some of his favorite games to make lag-putting practice enjoyable—to shave wasted strokes from your scores. Each of these will be a mini-episo...

Today's episode is wide-ranging: we begin with a recap of one of Mark's old tournaments and conclude with Mark and Lou's thoughts going into Scottie's final round of this past weekend's Open Championship. But in between, the heart of the discussion has to do with commentary on golf—including a shockingly inaccurate explanation from last week's major. How important is good information in golf comme...

In this episode, Mark and Lou take a listener question: what are some ways in which we might approach match play strategy differently than we would stroke play? For American listeners, who play less match play than in other countries, this might be helpful on a subject you haven't thought much about. For others, you will find pointers for a style of golf you play more often and want to succeed at....

Welcome to the "Saturday Morning Golf Stat" from the Hack it Out Golf Podcast. Greg is back, and today's question is one heard on ranges and tee boxes around the world: how far do you hit your 8-iron? Lou asks Greg and Mark about scratch and 15-index players, and then both of them talk about how far they hit their 8-irons, and how that can vary tremendously based on the situation. Each of these wi...

Gregulators: Mount up! In this episode, Mark and Lou come to you live on course, following Greg and offering running commentary on his second round of the Dick's Open. Follow along as Greg puts together a really great round of golf, getting himself near the top of the leaderboard. Also in this episode: snack breaks and an informative series of hand gestures from Dougie to Lou. Where to find us: Ma...

Lou talks a lot about expectations on the course. But golf has a built-in system of expectations: when you get to a new hole, the first two bits of information you normally want are yardage and par . That par number sets some expectation of how the hole should be played. In this episode, Mark, Lou, and Greg talk about whether the concept of par helps or hurts your approach to playing a hole. They...

Welcome to the "Saturday Morning Golf Stat" from the Hack it Out Golf Podcast. Greg's day job has him occupied again, so Mark and Lou turn to the audience for some competition. Today's question in straightforward: a scratch golfer is in the fairway, 7 iron in hand. What percent of the time will he hit the green? This is a great benchmark number to keep in mind as we aim to have informed expectatio...

Without question, modern golf is established on a foundation of traditions. But what if it weren't? What if golf were new, and we were building a course today? How would elements of course design and play be imagined if it began today? In this episode, Mark and Lou consider ways that golf could be different—if it is willing to be. Where to find us: Mark Crossfield's weekly newsletter: https://www....

How technical should golf instruction be? In this episode, Mark and Lou discuss whether learning the specific facts of the golf swing will help or hurt golfers. You need to find what works for you—and that might not be what you expect. Where to find us: Mark Crossfield's weekly newsletter: https://www.crossfieldgolf.com/subscribe Mark Crossfield on Twitter: https://twitter.com/4golfonline Mark Cro...

Welcome to the "Saturday Morning Golf Stat" from the Hack it Out Golf Podcast. In today's episode, the question is straightforward, but the format is not. Greg is absent, so Mark is taking on a few of the podcast listeners. The question: from 125 in the fairway, how many strokes would it take a scratch and a 10-index golfer on average to finish the hole? Can Mark guess better than our (very educat...

Do you take a practice swing? Or ten? Why? Out of habit, or are you accomplishing something on purpose ? In this episode, Mark, Lou, and Greg analyze the value of the practice swing. Is it technical—or too technical? Does it help with producing the upcoming shot—or is it itself a distraction and an excuse? What about practice swings for chipping and putting? Whatever your current practice on pract...

We all want to have better control of our face and path on the course, to rein in the big miss. But knowing that not all shots will go exactly as we intend, are there other things within our control that can limit the damage of a shot that goes offline? In this episode, Mark, Lou, and Greg give very practical advice for keeping control of your game, even without perfect control of your ball. Where...

Welcome to the "Saturday Morning Golf Stat" from the Hack it Out Golf Podcast. You're going to miss greens. But can you miss them better ? In this episode, Lou quizzes Greg and Mark about the effect of short-side misses on the score of an average golfer. This is information that you can put to practical use when you choose your targets in your next round. Each of these will be a mini-episode (10-1...

Golf's major championships are often held at some of the sport's most iconic courses, and it has Mark, Greg, and Lou discussing whether the extravagant setups and course conditions for these tournaments are having a bad effect on golf more generally. Whether its green and fairway sizes or rough depth, there are elements that have cost in money, environment, and pace of play. Should these tournamen...

Lou's been back to focusing on fitness and mobility, and he's wondering: how will gaining range of motion in his hips and legs affect his swing? Mark offers some answers, and he and Lou and Greg talk about how physical limitations change swings, how they work on those limitations, and Lou's recent form of play. Where to find us: Mark Crossfield's weekly newsletter: https://www.crossfieldgolf.com/s...

Welcome to the "Saturday Morning Golf Stat" from the Hack it Out Golf Podcast. Being in the fairway is better than being in the rough—but by how much? In this episode, Lou asks Greg and Mark how close in the rough golfers of differing skills levels would need to be to average the same number of shots to hole out as they do from 200 in the fairway. The answers might surprise you; they certainly sur...

Mistake-free golf is an always illusive grail. In this episode, Mark, Lou, and Greg talk about mistakes in golf. First, they talk about kinds of mistakes, from mistakes in planning to execution. Then they talk about the inevitability of mistakes—and how handling mistakes well, rather than hoping to eliminate them altogether, might be the recipe for your best golf performance. Where to find us: Mar...

From the range to magazines to social media sites, swing tips have been—and will likely always be—a key element of golf culture. In this episode, Lou, Mark, and Greg each share the best swing tip they've encountered. From three very different perspectives (an avid amateur, a coach, and a touring pro), you're likely to find something here that will help improve your golf. Where to find us: Mark Cro...

Welcome to the "Saturday Morning Golf Stat" from the Hack it Out Golf Podcast. Today's episode has it all: a grab-bag of stats, Mark misunderstanding the question, an epic rules controversy, and solid knowledge about golf that will help you improve. Is it the last Saturday Stat episode ever? Each of these will be a mini-episode (10-15 minutes long) about an interesting golf stat. We will discuss w...

What's in Lou's bag? In this episode, Mark and Lou answer that question. From Lou's love of high-lofted fairway woods to his left-handed putter (when all of his other clubs are right-handed), they discuss not only what Lou plays, but what kinds of choices you can make for your own club setup to play your best golf. Where to find us: Mark Crossfield's weekly newsletter: https://www.crossfieldgolf.c...

You want to get better at golf. Where is improvement to be found: on the course or the range? In this episode, Mark and Lou give answers to this question—and there isn't one simple answer. Play on course has advantages: ultimately, scoring better in the goal. But it can be hard to use the course for practice, and there are questions about posting scores. Range practice might be better for certain...

Welcome to the "Saturday Morning Golf Stat" from the Hack it Out Golf Podcast. From 150 in the fairway, most golfers are hoping for a pretty decent outcome. But what about the bad outcomes? How often with a scratch player and a 15-index end up with a shot 30 or more yards from the hole? The answer might surprise you (like it did Mark and Greg), and the discussion might help you play some smarter a...

Greg joins Mark and Lou to talk about his recent performance at the Principal Charity Classic. Greg began with two underwhelming rounds, but caught fire in the third. In this episode, he talks about what worked, how to weather the ups and downs of golf, and then the guys talk about some of the players still competitive for decades on end, and what leads to their success. Where to find us: Mark Cro...

Even as we're right in the middle of major season, the Ryder Cup looms. Not only will it be the biggest event of the fall, but performance now still has a massive effect on who qualifies to play for Teams Europe and USA. In this episode, Mark, Lou, and Greg discuss the intriguing prospect of Keegan as a playing captain, the role of chemistry in team golf, and the lack of inspiration in American sp...

Welcome to the "Saturday Morning Golf Stat" from the Hack it Out Golf Podcast. In today's episode, Lou asks Mark and Greg what percent of the time a 10-index is going to make bogey or worse on each kind of hole on the course. After settling the answers, the guys have a good discussion on avoiding big numbers—which can be a problem for professionals and not just mid-handicap golfers. Each of these...