School of Golf’s Martin and Holly share some practice techniques that have helped professional golfers such as Nick Faldo, Vijay Singh, and Jose Maria Olazabal.

In the show on Wednesday they did a couple of other tips.

One was holding a headcover under your left arm (in the armpit) and hitting half shots (Holly said she had never hit a ball so straight when she did this one). This helped keep your arms and body connected during the swing.

Another was keeping a leaf (or a blade of grass) between your two hands (the thumb pad on the low hand holds the leaf against the top of the thumb on the top hand).  Holly pulled the shot to the left, but I think this tip was to help prevent hooks.

Martin also showed how to set up a perfect practice area.  He used a board (like the ones sometimes used on grass tees to separate the players on the range, and hit the ball right next to it. He also used a alignment stick, stuck into the ground on an angle of about a five iron loft, and used it like an “Inside Approach” to help swing from the inside.

Martin stressed that these are practice tips and not something you’d do when warming up to play.  Practice happens after you play your round, or you practice on days you don’t play.