Sam Heffer – 6 lessons from a week at The Open

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LESSONS FROM MY WEEK AT THE OPEN

The world of fitness within the game of golf is changing and at this year’s Open Championship I got to experience up close and personal just how much, as I spent the week mixing with the best in the world in their incredible gym set up.

By Sam Heffer

The players loved the gym and it was clear that the modern day golfer is indeed now very much an athlete. I’m sure we’ll continue to see this side of the sport develop on both the professional and amateur scenes as golfers of all standards realise the impact that keeping fit has on their body and the way they play the game.

Here are the six biggest lessons I took from the week that amateur golfers can apply to their game straight away to start improving their scores:

1Career longevity is the most important reason for keeping fit Whilst the pros need to be competing as long as possible to keep earning dollar bills, amateurs get the benefit of exercising a couple times a week plus quality time with good mates and family (picking up the occasional win in the weekly roll up doesn’t hurt either!)

2Emphasis is on training smart rather than hard Leave your ego behind, know your limits and train with the intent to get a little bit better each time rather than try (and fail) to do it all in one hit. The four key areas are strength, power, stability and mobility. Focussing on these areas will help flush out any doubt and ‘paralysis by analysis’ about what you need to do and help to get you started on the right track.

3Someone’s full workout could be someone else’s warm up routine Even at the very top level there are big differences in fitness levels. However, everyone in there is working on getting better for themselves. Comparing yourself against others because you’re not ‘fit enough’ will only move you further away from where you want to be.

4Time is precious so a lot of exercises take care of two things at once Pro golfers have to balance competition, practice, travel and family time, whereas amateurs have the challenge of fitting it all in around working hours. Pairing up exercises or using exercises that cover a couple of the four main areas at one is a great time saver. 5A lot of time is spent maintaining what they are already good at Pro golfers are blessed with incredible flexibility and elasticity in their joints however they continue to work on stretching so they don’t lose it later. In short, if you’re ‘not using you’re losing’ and as an amateur golfer who probably isn’t that flexible you can still get better in that department regardless of your start points.

6If you’re not looking after yourself somehow then you’ll probably be left behind For a pro, the risk of not looking after themselves off the course is reduced amount of competition and a loss of earnings. For amateurs, we run the risk of not playing golf at all as we lose out to aches, pains, low energy and low mood.

Sam is a golf fitness professional who’s been helping amateur golfers improve their game for a number of years. For more on strength training and how Sam can help you with your game visit:

www.samgolffitness.com

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"Absolutely fantastic in every way. Stayed with 7 friends for a golf weekend, course was in superb condition and the food and service was first class. Will definitely be returning at some future date."

October 2020

golf@lanhydrockhotel.com 01208 262571 www.lanhydrockhotel.com Lanhydrock Hotel & Golf Club, Lostwithiel Road, Bodmin, Cornwall PL30 5AQ 2021 09 Surrey Golfer Golf Breaks.qxp_90mm w x 125mm h 14/09/2021 12:54 Page 1

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