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The 19th Hole
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 Stockton (right) worked with Phil Mickelson at the Presidents Cup (PHOTO: Ken Dennis). The San Bernardino native, whose 25 professional wins include triumphs at the 1970 and 1976 PGA Championship, has long offered advice to friends and select professionals. But a session with LPGA Tour star Michelle Wie in August led to her success at the Solheim Cup, causing Stockton’s phone to ring off the hook with calls from touring pros. In September, San Diego’s Phil Mickelson sought out Stockton and then won the very next week at the Tour Championship. Stockton, who turns 68 this month, has decided to make teaching a side profession, primarily focusing on putting, short game and course management. I’ve always taught, whether it’s been at corporate outings or helping individuals. But after helping people, I used to tell them not to tell anybody because I didn’t want a bunch of people coming up and asking me questions. I was called the “King of Corporate Outings” at various stretches during the 1970s and 1980s because I was doing around 80 or 90 corporate outings a year. That included teaching, motivational speaking and working with groups. I helped Tiger Woods with his short game in September 1996. I saw him at a corporate outing and he walked right up to me and asked me six questions about the short game. I also helped Annika Sorenstam — she went from winning two tournaments the year before we started working together to winning 17 the next two. I’ve basically taught all of my life, but I’ve only gotten paid for it just recently. After helping Michelle Wie, I had rotator cuff surgery September 1, so I wasn’t going to be doing anything for about four months. I said what the heck — I believe this is going to be a nice end to my career. Golf magazines and announcers continually talk about physical moves in putting. I personally think putting involves being able to see what you want the ball to do. I’m more interested in how you line up a putt than how you physically putt. One of the most gigantic areas that people have to work on is chipping. That’s one of the things I showed Michelle, and believe it or not, that’s one of the things I showed Phil Mickelson. His flop shot is fine, but we’ve changed a bunch of things and I think by next year his chipping is going to be totally different. He’s going to rely on a lower chip when it should be a lower chip. Ninety-five percent of what I learned came from my father. I’m an enthusiastic type of person. The opportunity to do this with my two sons, Ronnie and Dave Jr., is really great. It’s just a phenomenal deal. I find it humorous that we’re not listed among the best teachers in the state, let alone the country. I have a hunch that’s going to change, because our client list is a little better than the average teaching pro’s. I’m surprised the 2010 groove rule change deals only with [pros] and not amateurs. I do not like the idea of pros playing one set and amateurs playing another — that doesn’t make a lot of sense. Where golfers stand in history should be predicated on the tournaments they’ve won and not the money they’ve won. Nowadays, a kid can have one or two good weeks and make his year financially, but it doesn’t move him up the list of really great golfers of all time. One tip that can help you play better golf is to have a sense of humor and don’t try. Most people try harder and take longer. Any time you try to do something at a conscious level that’s normally done in your subconscious usually doesn’t work at all. |
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RSS SubscribeReaders Feedback:
Great article on Dave Stockton. How can I get in touch with him for a lesson? Thank you...
| Comment at 11/4/2009 |
I would like to find out if it would be possible to get a lesson on putting for my son Brandon?
| Comment at 4/9/2010 |
I?m not wrohty to be in the same forum. ROTFL
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| Comment at 7/11/2011 |
