Advice from Nicklaus - approaching greens

Taken from "The best of Nicklaus' golf (1992)" here are some points worth discussing.

Lesson 50 Principles of position Play
-"when you pass a hole you'll be playing later do you note the pin position? I'd bet that not 5 in a hundred weekend golfers do it habitually"
-"there is an ideal route for playing every hole of golf"
-"go to the movies"

Lesson 51 Iron shot strategy
-"always and I mean always tee the ball up on par-3 holes"

Lesson 52 Distance factors in approaching
-"On all approach shots I take a club that I believe will get me up, even if I miss it slightly"
-"trouble behind greens is frequently less severe than hazards in front"

Lesson 53 When to gamble on approach shots
-""working in from the middle.""
-"by aiming say 20 feet to the left or right of the pin and trying to fade or draw the ball in toward it, I give myself a much greater margin for error. Now I can miss the shot by 40 feet and still keep the ball within 20 feet of the hole."

I doubt these points will have been raised with McIlroy but definitely most of them I rarely see my playing partners doing in Club golf.

My routine is:
1. Think about the approach before the previous shot.
2. Work out the distance to the front, middle, and back of the green.
3. Consider the best side to miss the green. (not that I usually do)
4. Consider the behaviour of the ball on the green.
5. Check the lie of the ball (tight,rough, divot, downslope etc.)
6. Check the wind (grass, tree tops, flag)
7. Pick a spot that will leave an uphill putt if possible.
8. Once decided on the yardage and effect of the wind I pick the appropriate club and programme the swing length with a few practice swings.
9. Choose a shot shape into the green depending on the pin position.
10. "Go to the movies"
11. Set up for the shot shape.
12. Hit the ball.
13. Watch the ball land and stop near the flag.

Top ten Open champions

1. Harry Vardon

Younger Golf fans may not know the name but you should - he won six Opens, more than any other. A record that I doubt will be broken for a very long time.

2. Tom Watson

Waton won five Claret Jugs on five different links golf courses. A fabulous player, his highlight being the "duel in the sun" victory at Turnberry in 1977. It lives long in the memory as the sun hasn't been spotted in the region since.

3. Peter Thomson

Thomson won five Opens and richly deserves his spot at number three. The victories came in just a twelve year span too.

4. James Braid

Braid won five Opens from 1901-1910 and retired in 1912. Some record!

5. Young Tom Morris

Admittedly Young Tom did compete in a different era with less competition but he still won the title four times and also holds the record for youngest winner - 17 years and 181 days.

6. Old Tom Morris

Old Tom also won four titles and holds the record for oldest winner - 46 years and 99 days.

7. Jack Nicklaus

The greatest golfer of them all surprisingly only notched 3 Opens in his 18 major haul. Jack always gave it his best and was unlucky not to add more titles.

8.Tiger Woods

The man who would be king has three titles - so far. Who'd bet against Woods adding more before his career is over? Not me.

9. Seve Ballesteros

The charismatic champion won three Claret Jugs and his extraordinary recovery game earned him the nickname of "car park champion" in 1979.

10. Nick Faldo

Faldo won three Opens and put Britain back on the golfing map. The abrasive Englishman has more under-par rounds at the Open than anyone else.

Golfers with most second place finishes in majors

Sure, sure, everyone is interested in the big guys - the 18 majors for for Nicklaus or the 14 for Woods. But what about the guys that have finished second a lot? Is second place first loser or just the guy who challenged hard and missed out?

Who would you think had finished second the most? Take a look at the list and see for yourself:

Jack Nicklaus - 19
Greg Norman - 8
Sam Snead - 7
Tom Watson - 7
Ernie Els - 6
Ben Hogan - 6
Phil Mickelson - 6
Byron Nelson - 6
Gary Player - 6
Harry Vardon - 6
Ben Crenshaw - 5
Raymond Floyd - 5
Byron Nelson - 5
Arnold Palmer - 5
Tiger Woods - 5
Billy Casper - 4
Seve Ballesteros - 3
David Duval - 3
Sergio Garcia - 3
Walter Hagen - 3
Bobby Jones - 3
Tom Kite - 3
Gene Sarazen - 3
Fred Couples - 2
Nick Faldo - 2
Jim Furyk - 2
Retief Goosen - 2
Bernhard Langer - 2
Davis Love III - 2
Nick Price - 2
Curtis Strange - 2
Lee Trevino - 2

Only players that have finished second twice or more were included. If we missed anybody then leave a comment and we'll check the history books!

Tiger Woods: Jack is still the best

Tiger stated what we all already knew today - the Golden Bear is still number one golfer of all time. When asked who he thought the best was, Woods modestly answered "Jack. He's got 18. I'm at 14."

True enough, Tiger, true enough. But Woods is only trailing by four majors and who would bet against him adding to that total at this week's US Open.

"It's always nice to play well going into a major championship, no doubt," Woods said. "To get a win always adds to the confidence, and no matter how you win, if you can win this way, ball-striking, hitting it that well, especially going into a US Open, it always makes you feel pretty good."

Is Tiger back to his best?

Is Tiger back on his A-game? It would appear so after his latest victory at Jack Nicklaus' Memorial tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Club.

Some facts about the tournament:

• This was Tiger's 67th Tour win
• Tiger has won this tournament four times - another record
• This was Tiger's second win in just seven starts this season
• Woods hit 87.5% of fairways - his best showing since 1998. Has Tiger added accuracy to his immense mental game?
• It's looking ominous for the upcoming US Open at Bethpage - Tiger won the last open there in 2002.