When To Hire A Golf Pro
Have you ever heard one of your golfing buddies mumble, “I wonder if I should take a few golf lessons?” Perhaps you have mumbled that question yourself. As for me, I am of the opinion that there are three times in a golfer’s career where taking lessons from a knowledgable professional can be extremely rewarding and valuable.
Those three setpoints are:
When a person is first learning the game of golf.
When the average player notices a decrease in his game and simply cannot put his finger on the problem.
And third, when an above average player wants to refine or hone his skills to the next higher level.
The first and third groups of players are fairly self-explanatory. A brand new player needs to learn the basics and a professional golf instructor can instill the proper techniques in that new player faster than the player can learn by himself.
The third group, the more advanced player, can hone his skills more quickly with a seasoned instructor than with his buddies, who may not even know what to look for or know how to articulate the next skill level techniques that this type of player is looking for. So, it is that second group that I would like to write about today.
This group, in my opinion, is the largest group of players who could benefit from a few lessons by a golfing instructor. Now the two important parts of the above statement that I made are: “notices a decrease in his game” and “cannot put his finger on the problem”.
Let’s make an assumption here that we are not talking about the occasional bad day. We all have bad days on the course, and those days happen regardless of what our level of play may be. Instead, we are talking about the player who over the course of a few weeks, perhaps a few months, has noticed that no matter what he or she does the scorecard result keeps creeping up and up and up for no apparent reason.
Well, apparent or not, there “is” a reason for this decrease in ability and it might take the trained eye of a reliable and knowledable instructor to pick it out and help you overcome it. In fact, there is a good argument that some players will ONLY improve if they spend some time with an instructor. For these players, the underlying fault will only get worse or at best stay the same until somone knowledgable comes along and points a finger and says: “There’s the problem right there.”
Some people might ask if lessons aren’t expensive. Well, they can be. The price per lesson would, of course, depend on the instructor. But as with most things in life, you can shop around until you find an instructor who fits your budget. Also, keep in mind, that you may only need two or three lessons to identify your problem and get it fixed. And wouldn’t that be worth the cost?
Robert Partain has been an avid golfer for over 40 years. He publishes a golf blog that is updated 4 times a week with golf club information, techniques, and information.
Tags: golf, Golf lessonsPublished by: admin on October 5th, 2008 | Filed under progolf | Comment now »
Great Balls Of Fire!
When I first started playing golf as a youngster my choice of golf balls was dictated by one thing. Price! At that time, I thought one golf ball was pretty much the same as the next, so with only a few bucks in my pocket, I’d opt for the cheapest ball I could find.
But to be fair to myself and to be fair to other golfers (especially younger golfs) I honestly didn’t think there “was” a difference in golf balls. In fact, I felt I was paying more for the brand name than for any technological differences. Well, I was wrong. There are differences in golf balls and they can make a big difference, depending on the type of ball and how any particular ball is used on any given day.
Let’s face it, most players (or at least the ones that I know) prefer to concentrate on their equipment rather than on the balls they use. They might have in their bag a Big Bertha driver, some space-age high-tech composite irons, or even a handheld GPS unit, but the fact is, if the golf ball does not suit the player or the circumstance (ie, weather), then the outcome of the intended shot may not be what the player expected.
In order to keep things simple and not bore you to death, let’s just say, that there are essentially three types of golf balls: balata, two-piece, or a combination of both.
When you’re choosing a ball, there are two things to consider (not including price, which would make it three):
In relation to your handicap, what do you need? If you are a low-handicap golfer and you’re looking for the ultimate spin and control in a ball then you might want to consider using a balata ball. Essentially, this is just a softer ball, with a softer cover that allows for more spin. Because of this added control ability, this is what many pros play. They are not cheap though–but at this level of play, I doubt many balls are lost in the woods.
Now, if you play a higher handicap, you are probably more concerned with distance and durability. A good two-piece ball will be best in this case. These balls have a harder cover and will create less backspin, which allows you to hit it farther.
Keep in mind it’s important to look at things like the weather and the course conditions when choosing a ball. When the course has been soaked with rain, you will need a ball that will travel farther and that produces less spin. On the other hand, if you are playing on a rock hard, sun-baked course, choose something softer that will land soft with increased spin to pull it up.
Temperature is important, too. When it’s very cold out, the ball will not compress as much, so you would want to play a 90-compression. For reference, there are two compressions for men, 90 and 100. Use the 100 compression when it very hot out.
Using some savvy when picking the right ball for the right circumstances can help you shave a few strokes off your score as well as help keep the ball in play.
Robert Partain has been an avid golfer for over 40 years. He publishes a golf blog that is updated 4 times a week with golf tips, techniques, and information.
Tags: golf, golf ballsPublished by: admin on October 5th, 2008 | Filed under progolf | Comment now »
Golf Teaching Tool — Correct Your Swing Plane
A good swing plane is vital if you want to be a consistent golfer. Today I will explain how to make and use a golf teaching tool to help beginners and advanced golfers get their swing plane on the right track. The golf teaching tool is cheep and very easy to make. Golf teaching tool
Golf teaching tool
You will need
- a piece of PCV pipe about 1 meter long and about 2cm is diameter
- 2 mini torches to fit in the 2cm ends of the PVC piping (cheep as chips on eBay
etc.)
Directions for making the golf teaching tool
Install the torches into each end of the PVC pipe. There are a couple of ways to do this, if the torch fits snug in the piping you can simply use araldite or some type of adhesive to glue the torches in. If the torch is slightly bigger than the pipe heat the end of the piping with a heat gun and install the torch. When the PVC cools make sure the torch is stuck securely. You have now created your golf teaching tool.
How to use the golf teaching tool
By now you may be wondering what the hell this stick is for well the exercise is quiet simple. Turn the torches on and hold PVC as though it were one of your golf clubs, stand facing parallel to a wall with the bottom light shining on the join were the floor meets the wall. This join acts as a nice straight line; we will call the bottom light A and the top one B.
Swing the club back so light A shines along line until the stick is parallel with the line. Cock your wrists taking note of light B, this light should now be shining along the line. At the top of your swing light B should still be pointing to the line this is the correct position to start you’re down swing.
Pull down with your wrists to start the down swing, light B should be shining along the line once again. As you release though were the ball would be light A should shine along the line, keep the light shining along line for as long as possible then, finish with your follow through.
This exercise should be done very slowly for a start, as you feel more comfortable speed up a little, but don’t get sloppy make sure you keep the lights shining alone the line. This golf teaching tool is fantastic in my opinion, it’s a great exercise for both beginners and advanced golfers. If you practice this until it becomes habit you will be hitting the ball straighter and longer as this exercise teaches you to release your power where you should be, at impact.
For more golf tips, and shortly to be uploaded, instructional videos featuring the golf teaching tool in action, I suggest you visit http://www.golf-teaching-tool.net.
Glenn Munn is a keen golfer and the webmaster of golf teaching tool which contains many golfing articles full of tips and advice.
Tags: golf, golf teaching aid, golf teaching tool, golf training aid, golf training impact, tips