Simple ways to sharpen your short game, improve your putting and find more from your swing

Golf is a game of small margins. To understand where amateurs can find them, we joined Majesticks’ Team Member Ian Poulter at Woburn Golf Club to put different parts of the game under the microscope. From chipping and bunker play to putting, alignment and visualisation, these are five practical lessons Ian believes can help you take your game to the next level.

You don't need to hit every green to score well. When you miss, being confident around the green can save valuable shots. Ian's advice is to focus on the fundamentals: with a chip, keep some weight on the front foot, open the clubface and focus on striking down through the ball rather than trying to scoop it into the air.

“You actually want to have a little bit of weight onto the left side. The face is open and we're going to hit down through the shot.”

Short-game practice doesn't need to mean hours at the range. Spend time hitting different chips from different lies and focus on making a consistent strike. The more comfortable you become around the green, the more options you'll have when a round doesn't go to plan.

A bunker shot can feel intimidating, but Ian's approach is to stop treating the sand as the problem. Instead, use it to your advantage. Open the clubface, commit to the shot and focus on entering the sand just behind the ball.

“The sand should almost be your friend and you should use as much energy as you can to drive into the sand to allow that ball to come up.”

When practising, draw a line in the sand just behind where the ball sits and focus on striking the sand at that point. This gives you a clear target for your clubhead and helps build confidence in the shot.

Short putts can look easy, but they're often where pressure builds. Ian recommends a simple clock-style putting drill before tournaments to understand the pace and break of the greens. Place balls around the hole at a consistent distance and work your way around, learning how each putt moves.

“You need to understand the green speed, the green break for you to get it.”

The key is repetition. The more putts you practise from inside five feet, the more familiar the distance becomes. And when a pressure putt arrives, you're relying on something you've already rehearsed rather than trying to find a new solution.

Good golf starts before the club moves. Ian describes himself as a visual player, using visualisation to picture the shot before he hits it. Take a moment behind the ball, choose your target and imagine the shot travelling towards it before stepping into your stance.

“I'm a very visual person. I think a lot of athletes would use the visualisation skill of already hitting the shot before you even hit the shot.”

This can also help remove negative thoughts. Once you've committed to a target and visualised the shot, focus on executing rather than worrying about what could go wrong.

You don't need to rebuild your entire game to get better. Ian's approach is to look for small improvements across every part of it, your putting, short game, irons and driving.

“You can work on getting the 1% from your short game and getting a 1% improvement on your putting and a 1% improvement on your mid irons and long irons.”

Identify one area that costs you shots and dedicate some focused practice to it. Then move onto the next. Those small improvements might not feel significant individually, but over a season they can add up to a much stronger all-round game.