Conversation with DP World Tour winner Adrian Meronk on the ways he likes to practice, and tips for our game

Alright, Gerrit Johnston out here at RTJ with Adrian Moranck, and Adrian, I want to talk about your practice for a little bit. I saw you there putting, and it seems like you putt with one ball, which is kind of fascinating to me. Is it more that you're looking for consequence on your putts, or...? Yeah, I mean, I'm just trying to imitate the playing conditions, you know, on the course. You use one ball, and I have a couple of games that I usually do before a play, when I practice, so yeah, that's why I use it. When I'm practicing like a block practice with the mirror or with the mat I'm using usually more balls. When you're playing these games, like, what are they called, and like, how do they help you? So, usually I start with like a pace drills, pace games, and I like 8 putts from 5 feet to 30 feet, and I put the stick 2 feet behind the hole, and if the ball touches the stick it's a bogey, if it stays between the hole and the stick it's a par, if I make it's a birdie, and if it's short it's a bogey. And I usually try to make at least 2 under on that game, so that's my goal to get going. How many putts is that to get to 2 under? Well, you get 8 putts, so if I'm below 2 under I start again, and I just do it as long as it takes to make it. Does your caddy kind of help you kind of be creative with these games out there? Yeah, I'm pretty much using the same games every week. You know, the greens change every single week, so I'm doing those games, it just helps me to adjust with the speed and how the ball breaks with the grass. This week there's no grain, so it's a bit easier to read them, but sometimes we have grain as well, so we have to take that into consideration. But yeah, I just feel like those games give me confidence to play well on Friday. I saw you with some longer putts, so you had a bunch of white dots that were lined up every foot and a half or two. Is that a different putting game that you play? No, it's the same. I just use coins instead of tees. Oh, the coins, huh? Yeah, exactly. So it's just the way I'm using those instead of tees. What helps you when you're on the range to stay creative, and are there certain games that you're able to come up with that help? Yeah, most of us just use Trackman to play some games, like distance games. You get the constant, instant feedback from Trackman, and yeah, that's what I do. Or finish the session to try to hit a couple of different shots, try to visualize the target and kind of imagine that you're on the course and hit different shots. Does it help to think of holes that week that you're playing, or what's the best way to kind of visualize it? Yeah, definitely. Definitely. Especially when you play practice rounds, you know how the holes are shaped, so then on the range you can kind of imagine what kind of shots you need to hit. Obviously, it's the same kind of wind direction on the range, so you kind of have to take that into consideration, but yeah, you can still imagine a couple of different shapes and different shots, and that usually helps. Are there any drills on the range that can help you with your transition, like to have a smooth transition or to have a smooth takeaway, anything like that? Well, I'm doing a lot of slow-motion takeaway just to get a nice, smooth takeaway. That's what I do. I mean, every player has different kind of drills, but yeah, I'm using those. I have this little rotation ball in between my arms, which helps me stay connected throughout the shot as well. So yeah. It's the feeling of keeping things centered, is that what it is with the connection? More trying to feel the arms connected to the body and moving as a unit, more than anything, yeah. How long have you been using that ball? I started last year, but I've been on and off, to be honest, but constantly I've been doing it for the last six months, yeah. What about chipping around the greens? Are there certain things you're able to do in practice to help you stay creative with chip shots? Well, again, I have a lot of block drills that I go to, like only right arm, left arm, towel in between the arms. Those drills I do every single week just to get the technique and all the basics in order. And then, as always, every week is different, so you have to chip a lot, get used to the grass, get used to the greens, how the ball is releasing, try different shots, low, high, short-sided. And yeah, just trying to hit a lot of different shots just to get prepared for a week as well as possible. Speaking of low, high, short-sided, variety of things. When it comes to bunker play, how are you simulating things out there in your own practice time with bunker shots? Again, it depends on the sand. This week it's a lovely sand, quite compact, it's quite firm, so you can be quite aggressive and put a lot of spin on the ball. So sometimes you have soft bunkers that you have to just play like a splash shot. Also depends on the green if they're firm or soft. So it's a lot of variables that change from week to week. But this week the bunkers are super nice. You always get a good lie. The greens are quite soft, so you can spin them quite a bit. Has there been a coach for you over the years, or maybe a player that's older than you that's kind of giving you a good attitude, thought towards practice, or in the way you look at practice that you could model after? Yeah, well, my first coach kind of installed in me those technical thoughts and I treat them like a religion. I always do all the block practice, so I never take it for granted. So sometimes it's super boring, but I don't know, it's just like a part of routine of mine. I just believe in block practice and solid, basic technique. It's interesting. Now, as I wrap up, I just want to ask you, though, I've got to put you on the spot, your clubs 1 through 14. What's the make and model of each of those clubs? What model? What brand is it? What brand and what model of it? I have a pink putter, it's a catch model, Vokey wedges, 58, 54, 50. And then I have I-blades, pink irons, from pitching wedge to 4-iron. I have a pink hybrid, 19 degrees, I have pink 3-wood, 15 degrees, and currently I'm using GT2 tireless driver. Pink 5-wood and 3-wood, what brand, or what model of it, of pink is it? The newest one, the G440, Max. Is there a club that goes in or out of the bag the most? Like, do you go with a long iron for a 7-wood, anything like that, or do you swap out the most, do you feel? Usually 3-iron with the hybrid, depends on the week. If I play a firm, lengthy condition, I use 3-iron instead of hybrid. Very last thing I was going to say, what's your advice to amateurs at home when it comes to just having good feel in their short game? You know what I mean? It's something I feel like they overlook. Yeah, I think chipping just comes to solid technique, and then when you have a solid technique and hit a lot of good shots on the chipping green, then the confidence rises and you can take it to the course, I think you have to start from there. It's simple then, right? Yeah, always. I mean, golf is complicated enough, so we shouldn't make it more complicated, I think. Well, Adrien Mourang, appreciate the time, and good luck this week. No worries. Thank you. Appreciate it. Appreciate it, buddy.