British Open 2024: Why players are so stressed about their 'windows'

TROON, Scotland — There's a lot to distract you at Royal Troon, especially during the first round. The wind; the rain; the ocean flanking the sides of holes; the pot bunkers hiding everywhere.

Then, there's the imaginary window players see right in front of them.

Listen for the word "windows" this week. Pros are deeply attuned to them during most weeks, but especially this week at the Open Championship. Many amateurs don't think about them at all—but they should.

Here's a quick rundown of what they are, why they matter, and how you can use them to play better golf.

They're imaginary, but think about the golf shot you're trying to hit. Let's say a straight shot right down the middle of the fairway. Now pick a spot in the air about 40 yards in front of your ball, and envision a little window there.

Players who adopt this mindset treat that window as a kind of checkpoint: They want to see their ball flight right through the middle of that window, basically as soon as they hit it.

Once the ball gets up in the air, it can succumb to the elements which you can't control. But the window is there to reveal the things you *can* control

Sending the ball left or right of your desired window? Clubface isn't square

Ball flying above your window? It can balloon high into the wind.

Below? Your ball won't carry far enough.

Working backwards from your window can help you dial-in both your distance, and direction, as CBS golf analyst Trevor Immelman explains:

"Hitting 'the window' is more about controlling the height of your shot for distance control," he says. "If you see it's coming out too high or low, you know it's flying shorter than it should."

If your good shots move from right-to-left, the window you envision will probably be to the right of where you want your ball to end. Brooks Koepka moves his good shots from left-to-right, which means his ideal window is slightly to the left. When he struggles, he tends to miss to the left of his windows.

"If I don't see it come out of the right window I kind of struggle," Koepka says. "It's nice to see the ball start where I want it and then move in the right direction."

All of which is to say, start trying to envision windows when you're on the golf course, and then try to hit your shot through that window. It can help, for a few reasons.