Rory Sabbatini's 62 & the Simmons Bank Championship: Stay Out of Your Own Way

Rory Sabbatini started Sunday four shots back. He finished with an eagle and three straight birdies, shot 62, and won the Stifel Charity Classic in St. Louis for his first PGA Tour Champions title. This week he's in the field at the Simmons Bank Championship in Little Rock. His explanation was simple: "Just one of those days when you're trying to stay out of your own way." The beginner lesson: one simple aim, one swing thought, then let it go.

Tour week: a rookie's 62

Sabbatini turned 50 in April, which makes him a rookie on PGA Tour Champions, the tour for players 50 and over. At Norwood Hills Country Club on October 25, the first event of the Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs, he trailed by four on the back nine.

Then he played his last six holes in 6 under par. He made a 25-foot eagle putt from the fringe on the par-5 15th, then birdied the last three holes, finishing with a 40-footer up the hill on 18. He won by one shot over Darren Clarke. His 62 tied the tournament's 18-hole scoring record.

He has done this before. In 2021, he won an Olympic silver medal with a final-round 61 in Tokyo.

The win moved him to No. 7 in the Charles Schwab Cup standings, and into this week's 54-player field at Pleasant Valley Country Club in Little Rock, where rounds run Friday, October 30, to Sunday, November 1.

"Stay out of your own way"

Notice what he didn't say. Not "I fixed my swing." Not "I tried harder." He said the job was to stay out of his own way.

For a pro, that means trusting thousands of hours of practice. For a beginner, it means something simpler: stop stacking up instructions in your head. When you're thinking about your grip, your knees, your hips, your head and the water on the left all at once, the body freezes up. One clear target and one thought work better.

Your first-nine lesson: one aim, one thought, let it go

Here's a five-minute routine with your alignment stick. It works on the practice green, and it works with your 52° and 56° on a short chipping area.

Set one aim. Lay the alignment stick on the ground, pointing at your target. That's your only aiming job. The stick does it for you.
Pick one swing thought. Just one. "Smooth." "Low and slow." "Brush the grass." Say it once.
Set your feet along the stick. Toes parallel to it, ball in front of you.
Swing and let it go. No second thought on the way back. Watch where the ball goes, and don't judge it yet.
Repeat five times, then step away. Five balls, one aim, one thought. That's a full session.

On the course, keep the same habit without the stick: pick a target, one thought, swing. If you notice yourself adding a second or third instruction, step back, take a breath, and start over. That's allowed, and it's what the pros do.

Want more? Our putting basics guide uses the same one-aim idea on the green, and the beginner practice plan shows how to fit short sessions into a week.

Watching the Simmons Bank Championship this weekend? Look for Sabbatini on the leaderboard, and notice how little the best players fuss over each shot.

Rory Sabbatini Shot 62 by Getting Out of His Own Way. Here's How You Can Too.

Tour week: a rookie's 62

"Stay out of your own way"

Your first-nine lesson: one aim, one thought, let it go

More Simmons Bank Championship week stories

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