Quote:It has always puzzled me why a punter cannot kick a football inside the 10 yard line from the 50 consistently, like 9 out of 10 times consistently. From the time a punter laced up his shoes and decided to be a punter, all he has had to practice and focus on is hitting the ball with his foot in such a way as to make it land in a certain targeted area. He hits thousands of practice punts honing that skill, then, in a game, when the line of scrimmage is the 40, he bombs it through the end zone. It's analogous to a pro golfer , 40 yards from the green, hitting a pitching wedge into the adjacent parking lot! Why can a pro golfer consistently land a ball within a few yards of the pin, using a piece of metal attached to his arms, and an NFL punter can't land a football within 20 yards of a target?

 

I don't play golf and I'm not a punter either. But a pro golfer has a quiet crowd, practice swings before actually hitting the ball, and no 200+ lb defenders rushing to block his swing. You also don't have anyone waiting to field that golf ball who can catch it, return it, and score on you if you don't put enough hang time on it or hit it where the coverage isn't going to be. So no, it's not quite analogous to it. You also have to think that these punters have cannons for a leg so that they can flip field position if asked. In golf, if you're 40 yards from the green, you have the benefit of switching to a different club for that distance. A punter can't switch his leg. He probably has to actually adjust his kick to kick it shorter and higher.

---