Although I love playing my golf in the UK, I can't deny that nothing beats a golf trip abroad.
The perfectly manicured turf, the sun beaming down as you glide over the fairways, that first sip of beer on the terrace... Go on, list me something better!
Okay, they can be intense. Let's be honest, golf trips away are sometimes associated with alcohol. Late night outs and getting in at the crack of dawn are mixed with copious amounts of greasy food and unhealthy drink.
I've fallen foul of a few heavy nights in the past, which inevitably led to mornings where I'd wish the ground would swallow me up as I took the bus to the golf course to do battle on a hungover 18 holes.
Those were the old days, though, and as I've grown older, and wiser, a golf trip away is actually being used for its main purpose... golf!
Just recently, I had a week away in Türkiye and, following an awful winter in the UK, the combination of good weather and pristine conditions have me excited for the upcoming summer, something that I've not felt for some time.
I learnt a lot during my time in the sun, so here's why I feel rejuvenated ahead of the warmer months and what I'm going to focus on before tournament season.
Emphasis On The Correct Spots Around The Greens
Those greens... I have nightmares about them. They didn't so much resemble a putting surface, more like something you'd find in the ski jumping at the Winter Olympics.
Over the week, I lost count the amount of times I missed the green on the wrong side, thus leaving myself chips with almost no green to work with, and then following it up with putts of 40-feet with 10-foot of break on them.
How many shots I lost around the greens is a quandary, but what I do know is that I will be making every effort to play the percentage game and leave myself in the right spots, especially with approach shots.
This is obviously easier said than done, as I don't possess the ability of Scottie Scheffler, where I have my golf ball on a string.
I'm thinking more along the lines of taking the flag into consideration. In fact, I might even consider buying a yardage book pre-round or invest in a GPS, just so that I know where the major slopes are, and what position would leave me with the best chance to produce a lower score.
Missing A Fairway Isn't The End Of The World
This might sound like a contradiction to what I've spoken about above, especially as I've mentioned finding the correct spots, something that a fairway falls under, but it's not the end of the world if you miss one.
The courses in Türkiye were tree-lined and littered with water. If you kept the golf ball on something green, then the scorecard would be missing those double and triple bogeys that really destroy your round.
In my mind, you're more likely to make a par from the rough than taking a drop from the water. You might be out of position from off the tee in said rough, but you have the chance to recover from it with your approach.
It's so simple on paper, but leaving yourself some-sort of follow up shot from the tee will make a big difference to the overall score.
Booking A Yardage Session
I've read many stories about how much yardage varies in cold and warm conditions and my week away was certainly no different.
Throughout winter, my new 6-iron had been going 160 yards and, standing in the fairway during my first round, that was the yardage left to the flag. Perfect, I thought, I know what to do here.
Keeping my routine, I struck the club perfectly, only to watch it fly over the green by 20 yards. Obviously, I hadn't factored in the sunny and warm climate, which made me think how far are these new clubs actually going when the temperature is high?
Prior to the summer start, I've decided to book a quick gapping session at my club to work on my yardages so that, for the peak months, I will have more of an idea of what's going how far.
Again, it's simple, but playing abroad prior to the summer has helped me realize I need to get exact yardages on these new clubs now, rather than when we're in the middle of the golf season.
Keep The Water Levels Topped Up
Many people think about the golf swing, but not many think about how you can improve your performance when you're away from the golf ball.
It might not look it, but golf is as much of a physically demanding sport as it is mentally, especially in tough climates where dehydration can play a big part in the outcome.
Throughout my week in Turkey, I made it my goal to drink around 1.5-2 liters of water on the course. What happened, you might ask? Well, after doing this, I felt more energetic and mentally sharper, which is why I'm continuing to carry on the trend when I tee it up in the summer.
I struggled to consume enough water back home, but after feeling the benefits, I'm bringing plenty of H2O with me for my future rounds. You may call me crazy, but it played a big part in my success abroad.
