Thomas Bjorn is a 15-time European Tour winner who has also emerged victorious in four Ryder Cups as either a player or a captain - making him one of the most recognisable names in European golf.
His career has taken him all over the world, competing against the biggest names in modern history - including Tiger Woods.
When talking to Mark Townsend for Golf Monthly recently, Thomas Bjorn shared a number of superb tee to green tips that will help any amateur to improve their game ready for the 2025 golf season, but one particular golden nugget really caught my eye.
When discussing how to keep a scorecard going effectively around the golf course, Bjorn shared an invaluable scoring tip from Tiger Woods, perhaps shedding some light into a key aspect in the 15-time Major Winner's extraordinary success...
Tiger Woods Scoring Tip
One of the greatest things I ever heard from Tiger was that he looked at 72 holes as one long round of golf with three big breaks. So when you get to five-under in the first round, you don’t panic as you’ve got to get to 19 for the week. So what’s to panic about when you’re at five? Keep going.
Then it also becomes an acceptance thing. If you reach your number and somebody beats you by five, it’s a lot easier to accept that as a success.
How Can Amateur Golfers Apply This?
For amateurs, set yourself a target for the day, then keep pushing towards that target instead of thinking that you’re doing really well and how nice it would be to sit in the clubhouse and tell everyone about it.
You’ve got to set yourself targets. One of the greatest tips I’ve ever had was to set your target for what you want to achieve for the day and then keep moving towards that target. Almost make it an unrealistic one because it keeps pushing you to something.
If I set myself a target to shoot seven-under, if I get there it will be very late in the round. And even if you lose the chance to reach that target, you can still push all the way to the end.
Thomas Bjorn's Tee To Green Tips
1. Swing Within Yourself
My favourite thing with amateurs is that they try and hit it way too hard. I always say to amateurs, swing at 80%.
So when you drive the ball, swing at 80% and swing the arms past your body because it gets the arms going down and then it gets them releasing. Golf is about hitting it out of the middle of the club, it’s not about hitting it hard.
That’s in driving especially, but generally too. The big clubs are made to make the ball go long so why are you hitting it hard?
With old clubs you hit it hard because you had to to get the speed to move the ball but today’s clubs are made to make the ball go far so why are you getting all angry and aggressive with it?
2. Pitching
For club golfers to hit pitch shots well, they need to think of it as an extension of their putting, but with loft on the club. So stiff arms, stiff wrists and move the body only. Then you know where the club bottoms out in the arc.
When I move a club with stiff hands and arms, the club will still ‘set’ going back because of the weight of it. So let the club set only via its own weight.
You don’t have to try and set it, because that set has to come back or unset. The problem with amateurs is that they don’t move their bodies.
The towel under both arms is still the best pitching drill. Hold it close to the chest, because it makes you move your torso. The chest then stabilises the club.
3. Chipping (Ball Position)
Too many amateurs have the ball position too far forward in the stance when chipping. They then have to reach to hit the ball and they don’t have that coordination.
For a 20-yard chip you would want the ball just inside your back foot so you can descend on the ball and hit it first.
Again, it is all about stiff arms and stiff hands and all your speed being in your chest and not in your arms and hands.
4. Putting Pace Control
My fundamental advice on putting is always about pace. If you think about putting from distance, if you have some sort of idea with pace, you’re not going to three-putt too often, so it should be your primary concern and not so much the line.
The brain, in general, will look at it as your left arm being your aim and your right arm, if you’re right-handed, your feel. So putting a lot from distance with your right arm only enhances your feel and putting with your left hand only enhances your aim.
Darren Clarke in his prime would always stand behind the ball with the putter in his right hand. Try it for yourself, it might be the putting breakthrough that you have been looking for.
Join The Conversation...
What's the best tee to green tip you've ever received? Comment below to share the crucial pieces of wisdom that could help others to play better golf - and I'll even share the best advice in a brand new article on the Golf Monthly site.
Come on, golf community. Let's take the fight to the course and make the 2025 golf season our best yet.
