The #1 mistake amateurs make with approach shots is ... ?


ENJOY GOLF MORE & PLAY SMARTER

Hi Reader,

Well that was some start to the major golf season at The Masters!

We hope you enjoyed watching it as much as I did and and that it’s got you fired up for the season ahead. 🔥

And if you read my last email (and I hope you did!), you’ll know we’re on a mission to help you play smarter this year, not just harder.

Today’s insight might just be the game-changer you didn’t know you needed…

🚨 The #1 mistake amateurs make with approach shots?

They come up short.

A lot!

In fact, 40% of amateur approach shots finish short of the green - not long, not left, not right ... just short.

Why?

A huge analysis of over 6 million tracked approach shots shows that every level of amateur golfer—scratch players to 20 handicaps—overestimates how far they hit their irons.

That distance gap is even bigger with longer irons and for higher handicaps. And while it might seem minor, it stacks up—leading to missed greens, wasted strokes, and mounting frustration.

🎥 In our latest YouTube video, we break it all down:

✅ How far amateurs actually hit your irons vs. what you think
✅ Side-by-side data from Arccos and Shot Scope
✅ What distance benchmarks look like across different handicaps and ages

👉 Watch: How Far Should You Hit Your 4-iron to PW?

🏌 Bonus: PGA TOUR Superstore April Deals

We're trialling a new feature in our emails - scanning the web for trusted golf gear deals. Here are a few standout offers available until the end of April:

Should we keep doing this?
Let us know if you find these gear alerts valuable:

Good luck out there on the course - we hope those scores are coming tumbling down!

Stay Golfing Focused 👍

Graeme and The Golfing Focus Team

Golfing Focus Limited, 73 Maple Road, London, KT6 4AG
Unsubscribe · Preferences

Golfing Focus

Golf isn’t easy and life is busy. So at GolfingFocus.com our focus is simple. We spend the time you don’t have researching the game and the gear to leave you free to simply enjoy playing and improving your golf! Whether you are a beginner just taking up the game or have been playing for a long time there’s something at Golfing Focus for you! So a big welcome and please do subscribe. It helps us help more regular golfers like you enjoy their golf more and hopefully get better at the same time!

Read more from Golfing Focus

In this Issue ⛳ How far do you really drive it — and the distance dilemma every golfer faces 🆕 The 2026 drivers that quietly landed — and who they’re for Plus: the “I drive 350” guy, distance vs accuracy & the Shotscope chart Hi Reader, ⛳ You haven’t lost the distance you think you have A lot amateur golfer believe two things about their driving: that they used to be longer, and that everyone else is longer than them. The data says otherwise. Arccos has just released its largest-ever Annual...

What Shafts Do Pros Use?

Hi Reader, What Shafts / Balls / Grips Do Pros Use? Most golfers ask the wrong question about shafts. They want to know what flex shaft pros use when there's a bigger lesson to pay attention to. I told my daughter to change her grip the moment she picked up a club. Turns out three top-100 PGA Tour pros are still using the exact grip I told her to abandon. Did you also know that Tour-only balls exist that you can't walk into a shop and buy? If you've ever wondered whether you should copy Tour...

ENJOY GOLF MORE & PLAY SMARTER Hi Reader, What Can We Actually Learn From The Pros Club Choices? The golf season is well and truly back in full swing! Rory McIlroy has made more history winning another green jacket and Matt Fitzpatrick has got his hands again on that signature red tartan blazer at the RBC Heritage. Scottie Scheffler's wardrobe meanwhile remains bare having been pipped at both events! And with all that Golfing Focus is also back with our in-depth updates analysing the bags of...