What’s The Difference Between a Tour Player vs Scratch Golfer?

Played a 9 hole Game with PGA Australasia Tour Professional, Ben Wharton, at Moonah Links GC in Victoria! Very Very very nervous playing with him if you haven’t noticed but WHAT A DAY!

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Have you ever wondered what the difference is between a scratch golfer and a tour player we’re here at moono Links Golf Club and you’re going to find [Applause] [Applause] Out [Applause] All welcome back to my channel guys I’m here with PGA to austrasia professional Ben Walton Ben thank you very much for coming on today I really appreciate it playing here at Links Golf Club let’s get straight into it okay we’re here at Muna links on the first hole we’ve got

Uh shortish Par Four for Muna standards you got a bunker on the right out of bounds on the left but then neither of those are in play for me today it’s into the wind a little bit and I’m just going to hit it straight over the left edge of

The Trap wow that was such a good description is that going over uh yeah it’s fine it’s well over yeah beautiful thank you wow you can just hear the strike it’s just so much crispier yeah I’m going to just try and do the same um I’m scared I’m going to snap hook this

Into those houses just be Confident nice swing a plate is that going to get a that’s it that’s all right yeah all right good start it’s obviously offseason for you how long have you been on tour uh I’ve been on Tour 18 years now uh give or take a couple I turned Pro in 2006 got

My tour card through Q School finished top 10 I believe my first year out and then uh I’ve kind of been playing on and off ever since currently I’ve got a 2 we break we start back up in 2 weeks time at uh Heritage Golf Club and then we’ll

Have kind of 8 weeks in a row and I’ve just had 8 weeks in a row so I’m enjoying the Christmas holidays in a couple weeks of course yeah so obviously he’s a really good player yeah um hopefully he can give me some tips uh maybe I’ll go from scratch to I’ll get

You the plus two you got 80 M here mate uh we’re in the bunker you got a pretty low lip there but uh it’s it’s a shot over trees so where’s the place not to miss here uh the place not to miss is short right as it kind of funnels on if

You miss it short right goes 50 m is long left okay long left is fine left spine okay the got this is definitely long left yeah that’s fine there bit long yeah don’t stress yeah I’ll take it though I think that’s all right caught it a bit too thin but Ben’s location is

Where it where I needed to go yeah middle of Fairways place okay we got 98 M uh it’s uphill probably playing 103 three and into the wind so I’m going to play it about 108 M little right of the pin and uh knock it as close as I

Can stop drawing it’s okay it’ll hit the bank and come down probably that’s right spun off the green but that’s okay see a good posy there yeah good all right just went a little bit long um I think there’s a slope that goes right hand side so I might have to

Land it somewhere right hand side little let it just trickle up to the pin is that right yeah absolutely yeah it’s a little right to left turn and once it gets on the green it’s pretty quick it’s quick okay yep got it sit sit sit sit it’s very quick once

It gets gone wow I thought I hit that pretty good had no zip on it the poter would have been the professional play there yeah so you would have putted that as well if you were in that position absolutely yep now after I just told him to uh putt

His I might um I might do what I have advised him to what you should be doing around the green that’s it yeah moona linkx is very shaved and it’s kind of comes back into the grain here so put is probably the better play just take my four and uh go to the

Next yeah that’s a good lag oh thank you that’s really good so I don’t think the Green’s too quick the last course FN this was like a cement I could not get that ball staying on the green but I think this one’s running out just the way I like

It whoa whoa whoa who sit a little quicker than they look I think I’m just really nervous playing with you then no need to be nervous mate just a human being almost straight if anything I’ll just aim right lip double double all right little two footer for the par yep thank you

I hope you can already tell the difference after the first though all right so Ben obviously playing on tour extremely stressful even playing with you today I was shaking my legs I was really really nervous um how do you overcome or what is your process to get

Through that mental barrier um there’s a lot of ways to get through it I believe confidence is number one or self-belief self-tour um a lot of positive reinforcement of selft talk um I like to meditate before my round to kind of lower my heart rate down a little bit

Cuz we all do get nervous and anxious I was a little nervous playing with you too mate but it’s Li it’s l it’s too nice um but do you ever get to the tea and you’re extremely nervous what is one thing that really helps you to get over

That and calm yourself down um again selft talk positive selft talk telling yourself you’ve done that this before it’s just a golf shot um like I said on the first hole picking out a a small Target I picked out the edge of the bunker and hit it there um but another

Little trick I like to do friend of mine former all black player mentioned about wiggling his toes in in his boots oh interesting yeah it just kind of takes your mind away from um what you’re doing in that moment and let your subconscious U mind kick in it’s distracting your

Mind to not think about necessarily being at a tournament but just yeah 100% just getting you back into the moment into the into the present time so you can hit the golf shot interesting maybe I’ll start wiggling my to all right second hle 510 m to the pin par five I

Got the double bogy out the way so I’m good for the rest of the round what’s the play here Ben um it’s in the wind today so it’s not really reachable it might be for me um the play there’s a bunker in the middle of the Fairway so

I’m just going to try and bombit over that basically it is Into The Wind but it’s a probably a 26 carry maybe me I won’t be getting there today yeah so try and hit over that if not you’re going to have to go down the right and pl as’s a

Bit of a three shot hole but right okay here we go straight over the bunker that is so good thank you straight over it this perfect has that gone over yeah I hope so a confidence all right I’ll do the same just aim maybe bit more right allow for the

Little drawer when I said draw it could be a hook but we’ll see how’s right right’s fine okay yeah oh good shot there threw it into the perfect spot yeah nice let just the left hand side perfect beautiful I like the amateur golfer side you ask where all

The trouble is yeah no oh like it got a long way you can either hit at 175 believe it’s shorter the bunker on the left I think yeah I don’t really want to go for it if you hit it you got about 175 and it’s into the wind if you

Play a 180 shot and then you then you sweep down the left and you got like a 9 iron yeah okay might just H like a five iron yeah that tree on the left’s probably a good play or just Tree on the left yeah yeah left edge of the bunker

Easy just a little layup yeah nice swing there that’s pretty good perfect exactly where you exctly what I wanted to do nice so I don’t know if you noticed it yourself Ben but when you strike the ball the sound is different yeah uh I suppose timing I time the ball slightly

Better than you would I suppose or an amateur golfer and then ball speed uh swing speed as well right okay it creates that sound I would be able to create yeah hitting that the the ball out of The Sweet Spot time with a high swing speed I suppose yeah I guess so

Even if I try and rip one I wouldn’t be able to get it like dead center so that’s still not achieve that sound but I’m sure you could it’s a long hole this one and i’ I’ve hit it over the bunker but I’ve still got 250 uphill into the wind um

Par five I can get over the bunker just short of the green so I’m going to hit three-wood right up there close that sound is so mesmerizing it’s ridiculous thank you I would hate to be that ball I’m not the longest hter in the world I’d hate to be Bryson dambo

Bow that’s for sure yeah I think also to answer your question about the the difference in the sound before I think a lot of amateur golfers which they have a tendency to slice create that casting kind of motion right early early that early uh kind of hit at the ball I

Suppose instead of swinging the body and I think that the noise comes more from the lag that I create or professionals create through the swing we just try and just swing at the ball but or swing through the ball it’s a golf swing not a golf hit so we’re swing true yeah is

There a lot of room to work it’s kind of into off the left a little bit this way the wind would be this way I’d say is it better to be short or long uh probably long slightly long to this pin I’ll hit it slightly long allow for

The little spin it’s uphill so it’s was going to play 5 m long right okay yeah go go go it’s spinning it’s good it’s on yeah P High we’ve hit driver 3-wood still long PA five and I’ve got a little little Chip Shot just up the hill little

Let’s see if we can spin it left to right and knock it in nice Eagle go go wow oh not too bad little shot it’s definitely uphill yeah it’s a little left to right I’d say not much I’d say it’s probably maybe a cup

It just goes at the end last 8 ft up there nice little lagen you going to need it you two down already go oh wow that’s really bad clearly my short game needs a bit of work that’s not even halfway oh Bang that’s how it’s done nice P thank

You good stroke very nice aggressive all right I saw his move a little left to right just bang it in the back oh smashed it bit of meat on this one y oh I was nervous over that one never in doubt I reckon the big difference there was clearly Ben’s hit

Is a a second shot a lot closer so giving himself a lot shorter approach to the green and leaving himself well birdie Putt and my birdie putt was a lot longer but yeah interesting yeah interesting same score though yeah that’s true I think that was the right

Play for me anyway 100% 100% in all honesty if I was probably where you were was a tournament I would have done the exact same thing I just knew I could get over exactly I’d rather have a a wedge a wedge in then having to hit a miraculous

Shot out of the Bush y 100% third hole 361 M I’m two behind Ben so Ben what is the most important tip for amateurs like myself and my audience that could apply to themselves today very good question uh swing wise I believe creating a swing structure where you can get your body

Out of the way properly and and kind of hold that that wrist structure as as like we just previously talked about that casting move kind of creating that slide or that that bad shot that fat shot or anything right so it’s not just literally just throwing it no not at all

No you you have to kind of move laterally in a way and then get your hips out of the way at the same time if right and obviously I look at a lot of tool players swings yes and I’ve noticed post impact it’s almost as if their

Right hand is flipping over are they deliberately trying to flip it no I don’t believe ever to try and deliberately flip your hands or to create that that shot obviously unless you’re bending one around a tree like a big hook or something like that but um

In the normal process of a swing I believe you can hit a draw from a position where you’re kind of trying to hold it’ll almost feel like you’re holding your wrist post impact like a like a punch shot right okay yep and then obviously using the body to rotate

Through the shot instead of use your arms to swing yeah a lot of uh the majority of am golf is out out there use their arms from the top and try and hit the ball or when they do get their body out of the way they kind of go backwards

And then it creates their shoulder path to come over over the top as well so that creates which causes that over the top swing as that slice that everyone hates but in this instance I want to hit a slice uh it’s a left to right dog leg

Par Four the way I go around it is I tee it down really low and I aim my feet and body left so and my club face at the intended target that’s so pure just like that wow is that on the green no about

60 short I’d say 60 short so maybe 80 70 80 it does curve to the right doesn’t it yeah big dog leg I might just aim left of that left edge of that bunker and try and hit like a fade hopefully perfect perfect oh how bad is it there we’ll find that one

Okay good drop Kiky get in get wow that was such a good shot I can’t believe that I pulled that out of my eyes I was not expected to do this what do they say a blind squirrel finds a nut every now every now and then you got lucky that was a great shot there I’ll

Take it inside mine is that okay then yeah that’s all right I thought oh I might get you to move it one that way if you can yeah maybe two a little downhiller right to left see if we can make a birdie oh it’s a good roll oh good roll turn much easy

Fall all right it didn’t really turn much did it no not a lot at all get there go oh good try damn yeah nice power anyway out of that long stuff ah left the short on her downhill how’s that possible you near you could have

Got one back on me there so who was the biggest player that you’ve ever played with I don’t know about biggest I’ve played with Rory but uh John Daly was about the coolest I’ve had the opportunity to playing with I played a nine-hole practice round with him was he

Using teas or was he using beer cans no teas yeah but he was I think he was having a cheeky uh Diet Coke with something else in and you told me you were hitting balls behind tiger yeah I’ve hit balls um played a few tournaments where tiger Tiger’s been

Hitting Balls next to me on the Range which is pretty special I mentioned the sound strike is different between myself and your yourself within the tour level was there much difference between you and tiger oh yeah absolutely like they they make me look like a child small just their strikes unbelievable I

Mean I obviously being a tour professional myself I strike it good but they their repetition of doing the same thing over and over and over again just shows how hard this sport is but we love it brings out the worst in you but we

Love it 100% we love it so we got uh the fourth hole at moon linkx it’s a par five 500 M it’s downwind today uh it’s kind of off the right I’m just going to pump it down the right hand side and knock it on in

Two hold it a little bit too far right I’ll find it not ideal but uh I might just aim at the buggies yeah at the bunkers maybe bunker lip yeah nice shot there it’s gone long could be good perfect thank you we got a long way PA five going to hit

Three Wood up the green to the right hand side just got a blind second shot Leave myself in position for a birdie should be close oh that’s such a good strike yeah I’ve hit it nice that one should be shouldn’t be too far away so good down window I think I can

Get six on there yeah you want to hit this one to the right so not quite to the carts but definitely out the right hand side okay yep 24 into the pin the wind is down I’m just going to aimed right of the pin hit a nice

Hopefully high fade and leave myself a pop for an eagle that’d be nice oh that’s a bit too right and really short should should be okay tripping a putt all right I’ve left myself just short of the green got a little pit shot up the hill there just

Going to land it short skip it up go go oh didn’t quite skip just stopped into the bank got a little Ridge just short of the green I might have to just land the just pass that and then this should be good sit sit sit sit

Sit caught that too heavy a that’s a big pot all right I’m going to roll this one in make it birdie up pill right to left go go get in get right in the heart yeah good P thank you easy five all let’s just lag this up there

There nice little L and tap in for go go go go oh had the line we know what this is doing left to right pushed it okay I’ll take it I’ll take it all right fifth hole let’s go all right fifth hole path three 160 to

The pin don’t want to be short no Short’s no good kind of runs back 50 m off the okay I’m going to hit a little aine as it is downwind and I I usually carry my Adine about 150 so I’m going to hit a 3/4 one land about 145 With the

Wind helping and it should go close get in straight at it see that is perfect sit sit sit sit sit oh did that lip out I think that’s staying on That’s So Close nearly went in just dancing pretty good I think couple of good shots Ben yeah nearly

Hold mine looked good yours is good pin High just got to convert it that’s it we need I think we can do it one of us needs to make a birdie I’ll pop one in first okay man all right man I’ll take it out for you yes please you got a

Little right to left yeah it looks good go get there oh oh I was going in that was nice P good screaming you good three okay for the first birdie of the day I missed that one too unlucky then that’s all right another three man another the funny

Thing is it’s like oh nice par Chang and then it’s like unlucky Ben all right all right sixth hole par 4 365 m to the pin what’s the play here Ben um M it’s a no bunkers on this hole the only one the only one on the course but it’s

Quite tough um um off the back to way back there it’s another 60 in it’s hard to reach the Fairway but off here we’re into the wind and it’s just like he can hit like your low little Stinger driver okay get it in play um quite wide

Fairway and then it once you get up to the green you got to make sure you hit the correct Club the low balls espe the low balls the one you need here M so how do you usually hit it lower is it just about the T length uh yeah it can be

With the driver T length I I just I tee it down a little bit lower and I’ll have it um slightly back in my stance and it’s almost like that the transition from the top of the Swing is just a little bit smoother or slower just to

Take the kind of like the spin off off the shot if that makesense okay the old saying it’s when it’s Breezy swing it easy in all honesty I’ll probably hit it further swinging it smooth having a lower trajectory lower uh spin rate it’ll probably go further and run a

Little bit further than than if you were to try and smash it and have it um come up in the in the wind and the and the revs be really high yeah you lose a lot more by swinging hard and staying in the% yeah when it’s downwind you swing

It hard Let Let It Fly but into the wind it’s nice smooth ones get it down there pretty good it’s a little right but it kicks left off that Hill there sh there that’s it how you do it wow that felt really good perfect yeah all right 160 into the pin better

To uh leave it on the left hand side yeah absolutely yep pins pins about three Paces from the right hand Edge so anywhere left of the pins in great shot good shot there exactly where you wanted it oh very short that’s right on the green left of the PIN all right so I

Got 100 left to the pin it’s about three Paces from the right hand side but I’m on Extreme right to left slope normally you’d aim right to bring it back but I’m I’m kind of just going to go at the pin I’m going to try and finish it left of

The hole need to make a birdie I haven’t made one yet it’s definitely left of the hole go go go and it’s it’s about pin high but that’s okay left or right uphill you should be used to 60 Footers by now you long pop for a birdie left or right go honey go

A I should be used to that by now all right little left rer uphill there you oh there we go got a birdie there you go good birdie thank you man that looked so easy I was do one all right left or right there you go good P good four thank

You that’s how we do it good four great birdie Ben Four thank you manate needed it all right seventh hole path three 155 downwind I’ve got 99 in hand I need to hit this pretty well I think to actually get there I’m going to hit a nice

Controlled 99 just left of the pin try and make another birdie it’s left of the pin it’s about pin High I’d say yeah good shot okay little long P for Birdie the wind’s died down no I think it’s still up is it it’s still a 9 for you

Yeah all right commit to this one yeah nice shot thank you go oh right next to each other just next to mine so friendly Battle of the 40 Footers there all right you got a Le Rider it’s pretty windy here about 30t there will be a big pot to Hole

Here speeds the key though or it’s online that looks good that looks really good oh thought I had that one thought I had that so close so almost the same line obviously I’m on a lower slope so I think this is going to break a little bit

Less H good roll there short and low little bit of moona links left in that one absolutely definitely not a gim me there you go nice three there thank you good pair of thre moving on to the next uh so we’re on the eighth hle at moona linkx it’s uh downwind now so

Generally it plays into the wind and it’s a tough hole but we got downwind so I’m going to hit three-wood uh put myself in position that’s quite tight down there so I’m just going to go with that left green side bunker and uh slot it down there hold it’s okay that’s good

Yeah little left but it’s in the Fairway if I catch this one would I reach the bunker no no okay good just aim straight and I’ll just yeah straight to the bunker perfect y that was not the same smooth temper I think that would be

Playable so Ben I know a lot of people would want to know this as well but just how hard is it to make it on tour um that’s a good question there’s a lot of it’s definitive to uh what make it is but um to to actually get a tour card um

You have to go through stages of qualifying um playing against all the all the pros around Australia that or the wannabe Pros that attempt to do it and then be basically the top 35 in Australia to then get your card um so yeah and also there’s expense that goes

Expenses yeah expenses go with it I mean and then after that once you get your card you’ve got to be the top 50 players in the country for the year to then keep it for the next year there’s a lot of pressure and it’s quite difficult it’s

Not the easiest sport in the world I’ll just continue staying an average joy around the course no you’re a good play You’re a good I’ve hit it slightly left in the rough I got 125 it’s uphill it’s probably playing 130 downwind so I’m going to hit a gap wedge just a little

Right of the PIN little fly lie here so it might come out hot it’s on line got to go little good shot go oh oh go didn’t fly came out soft just short of the green all right 130 to the pin same as Bend got a wedge

Might have to try and catch this one pretty nicely it’s come out nice H good shot just snu on the front of the green there I’ll take it okay got a little Chip Shot here let’s knock it close spin oh Noto pretty good Ben little left

But that’s okay had a little Zip Zip little spinner little r I was trying to breathe in hold my breath every time Ben hits his shot cuz I didn’t want this mic to pick up but then I realized I can just change the channel to his I nearly died on one of the

Shots let’s drain this one oh wow that’s a hard I think I could put a little cut spin on that one I can’t miss this one cuz I can’t make a bogey on a little left or right downhill oh good part thank you that was just so good

Oh W nearly missed that one too nearly did miss that one that hurt you got to go through your process there you can’t be missing two Footers would you say that’s a must on tour from your length from my poot length 100% yep probably 4ot and in you can’t you can’t miss

Those ah damn down to the last hole pretty short Par Four 335 I just realized I have not had an honor to hit first meaning I have not won any hole against Ben which is very fair enough um but hopefully make this one count what’s the play here Ben so

I’m going to hit a driver I think it’s a driver hole it is a short hole but it’s playing longer uh because of that fact and it goes uphill so I’m just going to hit hit my driver in the Fairway I should have about 7

60 70 M up to the flag make a birdie to finish with straight at the pins of the plate leaked to a little right think that’s gone over that it’s safe all right yeah last Drive try and rip this one give it everything yeah I think I will oh got onto it little

Right oh be tough to make birdie from there tough to make birdie from there [Laughter] absolutely got to watch out for the snakes here yeah uh definitely long grass if you hit it just left to the left edge of the tree is your line y y okay there’s a bunker short isn’t there

There is yeah it’s all against me yeah oh that’s the shot it’s a good stri I’m talking about sit need to finish strong here then we got a big right to left slope right to left wind the pins on the right everything against you everything against me normally I wouldn’t try and

Get this close but I’m going to hit a big high drawer over the tree 89 M and try and get one close oh it’s high but it’s gone a little too far left sit down come back it’s on the green yep good bit long left pretty good lie let’s

Just chit this close and tap in propile and finish off well that’s a nice shot thank you oh yeah beautiful beautiful nice shot to finish with there yeah okay you’re nice to finish with a birdie to the line left Edge no soon as I hit it I pulled it the

Fraction that’s okay always nice tapin must be nice all right just got inside left yeah nice four thank you very much well done good up and down there thank you very much nice to play with you absolute pleasure playing with you today and thank you so much for taking the

Timer out of your day to come out and play with me you’re very welcome and if you haven’t checked out Ben please do so phenomenal player and very grateful to be out here and thank you very much Muno linkx golf club for having us out today uh the course is in absolute Mint

Condition extremely difficult I feel like I left a lot out there today but obviously I’m going to be nervous but with Ben there’s no need to be nervous but you definitely did leave a few out there that’s for sure absolutely hope you have a great season next year I’ll

See you guys next time thank you Perfect