Practicing the short game is far more important than practicing the full swing. This is especially true for beginners. The novice however, will be more inclined to practice the full swing and neglect the short game. This is probably due largely in part to the stress that the tee-box causes the beginner, as it can be quite embarrassing to chunk or skull a tee-shot. So, most practice is devoted to assuring this doesn't happen again.
Over half of the shots during a round of golf occur on or around the green. Therefore, it makes sense to me to practice the short shots for over half of your practice sessions. Yet you will see most golfers go straight to the range, pull out their driver, and pound balls relentlessly for an hour. These sessions rarely go well, as the driver is the hardest club to hit, so many bad shots occur - thereby reinforcing bad habits and causing the golfer a great deal of frustration.
The driver is a club that a new golfer should work towards patiently, as it is very difficult to hit good drives without first learning the fundamentals of the short game, and then learning how to hit more lofted clubs. You will see better golfers going through a practice session that begins with putting, chipping and pitching. They move on to partial shots with lofted clubs, then full swings with lofted clubs, then full swings with less lofted clubs, and lastly the fairway woods and driver. Once the driver is pulled out of the bag, the golfer is warmed up, stretched out, and ready to practice with the longest club in the bag.
Also, as I've stated many times (as have others), when you practice the short shots you are really practicing the full swing too. This is because practicing the short shots involves the 'contact point', where the club contacts the ball on a very small scale. Given that novice golfers have difficulty contacting the ball on the sweet spot with any regularity, it makes sense to me to practice getting the face of the club on the ball on a small scale before moving on to the full swing. If you ain't got the small shot, you sure as heck ain't gonna get the big shot!
The chip shot is the most important shot for a beginner to practice. When a golfer practices chip shots they are practicing everything. They are practicing putting because the chipping motion is so similar to the putting motion (only with the hands kept ahead of the clubface rather than flush to it). They are also practicing putting because they are getting a feel for distance control, which is what putting is all about. They are also practicing the full swing because they are getting a feel for the club contacting the ball properly, thereby gaining feel and building a solid foundation for the full swing. The chip shot (at the contact point) reinforces all the things that are important about the full swing at contact (hands are ahead of the ball and clubhead at contact, clubface is contacting the ball on a descending blow, the feeling of 'lag' is imparted, the importance of keeping the eyes down through contact is imparted, the necessity for a lighter grip, letting the club swing and not forcing it, etc., etc.).
So, practice that short game obsessively, especially if you are a beginning golfer. Chip shots around your house or yard with golf 'whiffle balls'. Go to your closest public course and utilize the practice green (remember, this is always free!). Practice simply brushing the grass with the clubhead (with no ball), mimicking a chip shot. Remember that if the club doesn't brush the grass at the right spot then the club wont contact the ball at the right spot either.
The more you practice the short game, the better your whole game will get.
