Simplifying approach is key to Black Butte Ranch pro George Mack Jr.’s new Play Like In Your Dreams clinics

Finding proper alignment seems like it would be so easy. After all, what could be so difficult about aligning your body in a way that gives yourself the best chance of reaching your intended target?

Yet, amateur golfers often struggle with it. And even PGA Tour stars work tirelessly on keeping proper alignment.

This is a key element to George Mack Jr.’s new Play Like In Your Dreams clinics, which are two-day clinics scheduled for July 23-24, Aug. 6-7, Aug. 13-14, Sept. 8-9, and Sept. 15-16.

His aim with the clinics?

“It’s very much a pre-shot, target-oriented method of learning,” says Mack, a former Oregon Amateur champion and Web.com Tour player. “The goal is to help students learn more quickly by eliminating many of the variables.”

Case in point: alignment. Working an alignment is an important fundamental drill, but many golfers have little way of knowing where to start.

But it’s actually a simple drill with three sticks set parallel with one another in a way that guides a golfer’s body into proper alignment. Two sticks are set up to ensure the feet are set up properly, while a third is set in between to point to the intended target.

With a ball set a few inches behind the middle alignment stick, a golfer is ready to get into proper position.

“The first thing is I am going to balance my eyes between the ball, my spot, and the target,” Mack says. “Ball … spot … target.”

“Then when I am going to approach the ball, I need to place my club where it is in alignment with my (club)shaft going out toward the target,” he adds. “Then I’m going to settle in my body around it to where hopefully my shoulders, my elbows, my hands, my hips, my knees, and my feet are in alignment to my intended target.”

Utilizing the drill during your practice sessions should help make proper alignment feel more natural. IAnd with practice, that alignment should translate to the course.

Such drills are exactly the point of Play Like In Your Dreams.

“A closed environment makes it easier to feel what a good stroke should be,” Mack says. “That makes it more repeatable.”

For more information on how to take a lesson from George, visit blackbutteranch.com/golf/lessons-and-instructions. The link also includes a calendar of Black Butte Ranch’s golf schools, clinics and camps. To learn more about Play Like In Your Dreams, visit PlayLikeInYourDreams.com.