10/27/13

Choosing the Right Clubs

As you can imagine, purchasing the wrong golf clubs can be almost as bad for a golfer as purchasing the wrong car for a race driver. Without the appropriate tools and equipment, you are not going to play well no matter how skilled you may think that you are. If you know what you are doing in terms of golf, you already have a step ahead of most others. However, learning all of the various factors that can alter your overall game based upon the clubs is very important. There are plenty of club options available and picking a good set for your needs does not mean you have to spend thousands of dollars. You can spend very little and still get a set of clubs that meets your needs perfectly.

As a beginner, you are going to need to focus on purchasing irons. These are the primary types of clubs that you will be using, and thus where you need to focus the majority of your efforts. If you are concerning yourself with numerous types and styles, you are more likely to become overwhelmed with information and much less likely to make a good decision when you do purchase your clubs. The first thing for the irons that you need to keep in mind is how they are made. For a beginner it is much better to look for a set of clubs that are cast irons. This will provide you with a much larger sweet spot on the head of the club, which will allow for a bit more error in your swing without hindering you badly.

Once you have mastered your swings and greatly improved your skills then a set of forged clubs are much better because they allow the ability to influence the trajectory much better. However, with a much smaller sweet spot on forged clubs you will find that they are highly inappropriate for beginners. Never buy forged clubs with the idea that you will be needing them in the next few weeks. If you really think you will be moving to them that quickly you can just turn around and buy the cast iron set that you have just purchased to recoup some of your money.

The next consideration is the size of the head. Typically, golf clubs have a very small head; however, this gives you a noticeably smaller sweet spot and in turn demands a much higher skill level in order to play well. If you are a beginner or intermediate level player, you should look at using a medium head club. While larger or oversized heads are available, choosing these is generally a bad idea because you will not be able to control the club as well. Overall, this will cause numerous problems in terms of being able to really improve your game.

Selecting the right set of clubs is essential in order to actually ensure that you are playing a good game. A poor set of clubs, regardless of whether they are top quality will cost you numerous strokes on the green and make you quite frustrated. Choosing the right set of clubs does not mean you need to purchase custom made clubs, but you do need to take your skill level into account to ensure you buy clubs that can actually help you improve your game and play well.

10/23/13

How to Incorporate Golf into Your Life

Many people struggle with the problem of how to incorporate their family into their favorite sport. Many others struggle with how to incorporate their favorite sport into their life in general. What may seem trivial to some is a huge problem to others. After all, with schedules becoming busier and busier the idea of actually working to spend time to yourself is growing by leaps and bounds. It is very important to always ensure that you do not stress yourself out in the process of trying to enjoy your hobby, after all that is never any fun and will result in hard feelings in the end. But this does not mean you must choose between your hobby or your family and life. With some special considerations, you can blend them together.

If you live near a golf course, make sure you set aside some time each week for a quick game. Even if you are not able to really enjoy the luxury of playing as often as you want, you should still make a valiant effort to play at least once a week. Set this as a specific schedule and stick to it. Having an activity that you enjoy which can help you have a bit of stress relief will be quite helpful when you are feeling highly stressed out.

An additional way to pack in some extra time on the green is to ask a client if they enjoy golf. If they do you could perhaps arrange your next meeting out on the green. Many, many, many business deals have been arranged on a golf course. When people are enjoying each other’s company and actually making friendships rather than just discussing business you would be surprised at how much more successful meetings can be. Golf is the perfect sport for a sports meeting since it allows you to get out of the office, get fresh air, and still stay at a slow enough pace that you can clearly talk to the client without sounding breathless.

For those who are planning a vacation to a fabulous golf resort who have a family a good idea is to look for a golf course located close to activities that the rest of your family will enjoy as well. While going to that fabulous golf course may seem absolutely perfect, taking along a family who hates golf and does not want to be there can really put a damper into your plans. If you ensure that your travel destination has some options for those in the family who dislike golf you will be able to enjoy the entire vacation much more. This ensures that everyone has a great time.

Additionally it is important to remember that you need to limit the amount of time you spend on the golf course. If you have a family this is especially important. You need to be able to really understand that you are going to have to split your time between everyone and this includes your family. Your overall family life is going to deteriorate steadily if you do nothing but play golf when you are not at work. Even if you are lucky and have a family that enjoys golf, you need to spend time away from the course as well. Family time is just as important as practicing for a killer swing.

10/16/13

Tips to Selecting a Good Golf Instructor

Golf is one of the few sports that is around today that is growing rapidly in popularity and has a huge draw for numerous types of people to play. What may seem like a rather mundane sport has actually started gathering the attention of children and even middle-aged adults as well. In the past golf focused primarily around older adults, but as time has gone on, this has changed dramatically. This brings about the need for even more golf instructors that are teaching everyone to play, yet at the same time, it becomes much more important to select a good instructor. In the past when golf was not quite as popular, your options for instructors may have been limited, now you can choose exactly whom you would like to work with.

This is great news for those who are trying to decide upon the best golf instructor for their needs. If you are trying to pick your perfect golf instructor there are a few things that you should always keep in mind. The first is you need to pick someone who obviously knows what they are doing. This means you are going to need to take a bit of time to look over their credentials. Learning to play golf by playing Nintendo Wii Sports is not an acceptable answer when you ask for credentials. You would like to look for some professional or at the very least semi-professional playing experience. After all, you would ask a librarian for help in learning how to find the books you need at a library so you should follow the same theory for a golf instructor as well and choose a professional.

You want to also look for someone who makes you feel comfortable. If you do not like working with men much you would be best off finding a female instructor, however if you do now work as well with women then a male instructor is best for you. The options for golf instructors now are quite large, which gives you the freedom to really be a bit picky when you are making a decision. However, being picky will ensure that you are satisfied with the results and feel completely comfortable working with the person. In order to really learn golf successfully you are going to need to spend a bit of time working on your stance, this means you need someone who can help you relax, rather than standing always in a very tense and uptight position.

Search around if you are looking for a golf instructor and get some recommendations from the local golf courses, they can often give you some great tips about which instructors are the best and who is most likely going to be a good match for you. While you may not like their suggestion, it does give you a good place to start looking at least. In addition, you can often get good information about which instructors to avoid as well. This is highly valuable information, even if it is not quite what you were looking to get in terms of a referral. Never discount the power of a reference, this allows you to use someone else’s knowledge to make the best decision possible.

If you have been talking to a golf instructor whom you feel is a bit of an incompatible match with your personality then you should feel free to look around. Never settle for a potential instructor that you are not completely comfortable with. The results of working with a bad instructor, or even someone whom you are not comfortable with can result in you feeling as if you have learned nothing, frustrated, upset and even confused. Your time with your chosen instructor should be a positive and rewarding experience. A good instructor can have you successfully playing golf much faster than an instructor whom you are uncomfortable with, take your time selecting your instructor for the best overall experience.

10/15/13

Can You Learn Golf From A Book?

With golf slowly becoming one of the most popular sports around the world, it is only natural that the number of people looking to learn the sport increases as well. With books, videos and even articles freely available online it is just a matter of time before many people try to turn to these methods alone to learn golf. Yet this can be a very huge problem that is quite complicated if you do not already have a good set of foundation skills in place. Learning to balance books and learning golf is important.

The number of people who turn to books each year to learn a new skill is quite large, and while there are plenty of books available that will allow you to improve your golf skills there are actually very few books that can give you the good, solid foundation skills that you need. This is because there is no physical way possible that a book can teach you everything that you need to know about your stance, and even the proper way to swing.

While a book can be useful to help you diagnose any problems that you have with a swing, such as your ball hooking, or even not traveling far enough the book will not be able to physically look at your swing and determine what is wrong. If you are working with an instructor, then using a book to help learn some of the other finer details of the game can be very helpful. It is important to realize that you can learn some advanced skills from reading the books, but only after you have had the lessons to master the basics.

The number of books that is available to use is actually quite large and with a bit of patience you are certain that you can find the exact book that you want, without having to stress and worry about missing most of the key points to golf. From books that focus mostly on giving tips, to those that are designed to help you troubleshoot problems that you have, to even those that help you learn all of the appropriate golf terminology there are plenty of options that you have and can explore.

The best time to use a book to learn golf is when you are just looking for tips that will allow you to improve your skills. Working towards skill building once you have the foundation is quite easy to do and using books for this purpose is a wonderful idea. However, you should always take a few lessons with a good golf instructor before you start trying to improve your skills further by using a book. There are numerous books available, both in print and even in eBook format that will allow you to choose the best way that you can learn. If you are most comfortable reading a print book there are plenty that you can choose from, just as there are plenty of great eBooks that give you the same options as well.

Always look carefully at the information that is included in the book before you purchase however, many books are not as well written and do not include any good information to help you really learn. Many are nothing more than merely fluff, which result in being a waste of money and you feeling rather frustrated with the lack of results. Always skim over the book a bit before you purchase to ensure that you can see exactly what is included and what you can expect to really learn. If you feel that the book does not offer enough good information feel free to pass and find a different book that will suit your needs better. Finding the book that works best for your needs will likely be a personal decision, but do not be afraid to take some time and ensure you find the best book for your exact needs.

10/14/13

Beginners Guide to Putting

As you can imagine, one of the most important things that you can do to improve your golf game is improve your putting skills. While it may seem impossible, simply practicing and working to improve a few minor things will greatly improve your skills. Once you have learned what you need to do, practice the skills until you have them mastered. Remember, a good putting skill will ultimately translate into a much improved long shot as well so taking the time to practice your putting is very important.

You are of course going to need to practice to improve, but the exact skills that you need to practice tend to vary from player to player. As a general rule of thumb, there are three things that you need to specifically focus on in order to get the best golf game possible. The first skill is ensuring that your swing is proper so that you will contact the ball exactly in the middle of the club head. If you are not dead on the center you will never be able to master putting. You simply cannot hit the ball from the side of the club head and expect it to go straight. No matter how long you practice, this is not possible and will result in plenty of frustration over what you are doing wrong.

Once you have worked to improve hitting the ball from the very center of the club head you need to move onto tonsuring that you always hit the ball in a straight line to the target. This means if the ball needs to go 2 feet away from you towards the lake, you would not want to aim the ball towards the tree beside it. You may think this sounds a bit strange, but many people do not squarely approach the ball to the target. They then stand around and wonder why they are missing their shot. Even if you are off by just a fraction, this can seriously alter your putting skills because the ball is not going to go where you want it to go.

You will likely need to practice this point a lot, most people do not realize when they are just slightly off center from the target. Yet even the slightest difference away from the target will result in a missed shot and an increased handicap. Work on this by ensuring that you take plenty of time to practice. This is even a skill that you could practice in your office, or bedroom at home using a small home putting kit. However, going to the driving range is not going to help you here so avoid them if possible while you are working on this skill.

Your last skill that you need to work on to improve your putting skills is working to ensure that you are accelerating the club head when you are actually coming into contact with the ball. Many players make the mistake of slowing the club down right before they actually hit the ball. This will cause you to lose the momentum that you need in order for the ball to make it to your target. Working to make a conscious effort not to slow the club down will usually be sufficient in order to improve this skill and give you some improved results.

10/7/13

Should You Take Golf Lessons?

If you have ever looked lonely onto a golf course and wished that you were capable of playing just as well as the professionals do, or if you have ever found yourself watching television wishing you could play along with them you may have the idea of golf lessons in your head. This is a sport that almost anyone can play and is appropriate for all ages as well as genders. There are professional levels, amateur levels, those who play for only fun, and even those who are children that play together. Finding someone to play with is generally not a problem, and still others choose to play by themselves. Due to the incredible versatility that golf offers it is no wonder why so many people look forward to learning to play golf.

The major drawback to learning golf can be the lessons. There are times when it is difficult to find a good qualified instructor, and other times when the lessons are not at convenient times and still other times when the prices of lessons is so unaffordable that it is virtually impossible to arrange. Yet if you are considering really trying to learn golf, it is important that you invest in some good lessons. This is going to be one of the times where you need to look for several golf instructors in order to have the best overall results.

If you have started really thinking about learning golf taking lessons from a professional instructor will allow you to get some key information and tips about how to stand appropriately, swing the club appropriately and even learn which clubs are best to be used and when. The information that an instructor can give you in invaluable. Yet if you are just not certain about using an instructor you are free to search the internet for tips, articles and even videos that can give you advice and suggestions. Those who choose to forgo the lessons with a good instructor usually find that they struggle to really learn the basic concepts that are essential.

For children especially it is important to have lessons with an instructor at least for a short period of time to learn the basics. Some of the more advanced concepts can be learned after they have mastered the basics with an instructor and just through practicing playing. This is a good way to save money, however if you are dreaming about your child becoming the next Tiger Woods it would be wise to continue lessons for a good while. If you are an adult considering lessons you may want to pay for a few sessions which would allow you to really get your basics established.

Once the basics are established, you do not have to worry quite so much about taking lessons. However, if you are not working to build your skills using well developed basic skills you are going to be looking at plenty of frustration on the golf course as you try to troubleshoot for yourself what you are doing wrong and why your ball is always going into the trees and sandpits. There are plenty of golf courses located all around the world, which gives you plenty of opportunities to find a good golf instructor to work with.

Investing a bit of money into some good golf lessons will be very much worth your time when you are trying to learn golf. The tips and suggestions that they can offer you will prove to be highly invaluable and you are certain to enjoy the time that you spend improving your skills. Learning on your own is always a great concept and idea, but in a situation like learning golf, it can be a task that is virtually impossible. You are perfectly free to look around for additional resources to help you further improve your skills, but a few lessons will go a very long way to setting you up to play golf successfully.

10/3/13

Improving Your Handicap

Learning how to improve your handicap can go a long way towards improving your overall golf game. However, one of the first things that you need to remember is your handicap is not actually the score of a single game. For example, if you play a single game of a 10 over par, then it is virtually impossible to determine your handicap. However, once you have played several games it is possible to start determining your handicap. Another important note about handicaps is the average score that you have is still generally not your handicap. For a good example, a player who typically has an average of 10 over par will usually have a handicap of a 7 to 9 range. The exact score of the handicap will vary based upon the actual courses that are played and the ratings that accompany those courses.

Most professionals consider the absolute best way to lower a handicap to be the method of simply improving your putting as well as wedge skills. If you are able to drive the ball appropriately but fall dramatically short on the putting then you are going to be looking at a very high handicap for the rest of your life. Simply taking the time to focus heavily upon a good putting strategy can really help you shave a few points off of your handicap and improve your game. Between an emphasis on the wedge or putting you should generally focus more on your putting since virtually all holes are going to need to be putted while not all will need a wedge shot.

Most players also typically tend to find that by improving their putting and wedge skills that their long drive skills tend to improve as well. While this is not always possible, the general idea is that improving your shorter shots will gradually work to improve your long shots as well. As long as you are using proper form for your short shots, you should start to see a dramatic improvement in your score, which will ultimate help to improve those long shots as well. This can overall make a huge impact on your handicap since you can see a huge difference in your rating.

Another consideration that you should keep in mind is your confidence. Have you ever noticed that someone who is not very confident tends to make more mistakes no matter what they are doing? They may be an expert in their field, but without confidence, they usually make small mistakes just because they are nervous, if you discover that you are nervous on the field and are making these small mistakes you may need to work on boosting your own self-confidence before you can really improve your overall handicap.

You should focus on what you are good at and improve your concentration and you are sure to improve your confidence. While you know that you are going to make mistakes, you should always strive to accept it is a learning process. This will allow you to slowly and carefully learn exactly what you can do to improve while still keeping a high confidence level. This combined with the other tips outlined above will work together beautifully to allow you to streamline your golf handicap and improve your whole game. These strategies can be used no matter how long you have been playing golf, even those players who have played for years can always use a bit of improvement.