Why is it a lot of golfers are ashamed of the golf swing they making every time they play a round of golf? Because they don’t know the basics of the correct golf swing and instead swing like they have never played the game before. A good golf swing is the backbone of a golfer and needs to be practised if you have any dreams of becoming a professional.

If you were to ask any of the top professionals such as Vijay Singh, Phil Mickelson, Karrie Webb or Tiger Woods they would all agree that the golf swing is the most important fundamental of the game of golf.

First thing first, what is the right way to begin the correct golf swing? The first thing you do when picking up a golf club is hold the club. So how you grip the golf club will have a large bearing on making a good swing. The grip is vital as it serves as the only thing between you, the golf club and striking the golf ball.

There are a few basic grips used by most golfers. It is important that the golf club sits at the right angle thus stressing the need for the correct grip. For right handers the left index finger should interlock with the right hand pinkie finger. The hands should fit comfortably on the grip just firm enough to maintain control.

The posture of the golfer also has a big influence on making the correct golf swing. It is not difficult to obtain the right posture and can be learned in just a few minutes. Feet should be at shoulder width apart for most shots and slightly wider for the driver. Bend forward at the hips forming a straight back and maintaining spine angle. Knees slightly bent with arms hanging down over the ball at a comfortable distance.

Finally, where you position the golf ball is the last piece of the puzzle to achieving the correct golf swing. Most golf shots should be performed with the golf ball positioned in the middle of the stance. The only variations of this are for the driver when it should be moved closer to the lead or front foot. In difficult conditions such as heavy rain or strong winds there can be case for moving the ball slightly back in the stance. This helps achieve a lower, descending ball flight keeping the golf ball beneath the elements.

By: Troy V

About the Author:

When we look at golf club design since 1990, we see the movement to a larger clubface. This has resulted in clubs that are significantly easier to hit, meaning more good golf shots, even for beginners. This is due to the creation of a larger “hitting area” or “sweet spot” on the clubface where the ball can be struck solidly for maximum distance. Beginning golfers absolutely must start their golfing careers with large head metal woods and oversize irons.

Club manufacturers have also added the element of “perimeter weighting” to the larger irons. Perimeter weighting is the term used for moving weight from the center of the club to the outer edges. This club design is known as “cavity back.” With this weight distribution, the clubhead is less likely to twist when the ball is struck outside the sweet spot. The resulting shot will travel farther and straighter than a similar shot hit with a small clubhead.

Golf clubs with large clubheads and perimeter weighting are known as “game improvement” clubs, or forgiving clubs. These are clubs that will produce the best possible shot results when the ball is not struck precisely. Beginning golfers should rely on this element of forgiveness to get the most enjoyment out of their learning experience.

Additionally, these larger clubheads should be paired with a regular flex or graphite club shaft to further increase the chances of success. These club shafts are more flexible and will enable the beginner to accelerate the clubhead through impact with the ball. The greater the clubhead speed, the greater the distance the ball will travel.

One last tip on buying golf clubs for beginners is to take a good look at used clubs. Golfers have a propensity to abandon their old clubs in a never ending attempt to buy a better golf game. Consequently, there are lots of used clubs available with the characteristics of size, flex, and forgiveness mentioned above. Just check out garage sales, golf pro shops, and golf superstores. Often times these clubs are in very good shape and at very decent prices.

By: Gary Jack Palmer

About the Author:

If you were to compare today’s golf clubs to clubs from the 1980′s, the most obvious difference would be in the size of the clubhead. Today’s clubheads are significantly larger. And this size increase makes the clubs much easier to hit. So a used set of today’s clubs is much more advantageous to the beginning golfer than a like-new set of clubs from 1980.

Of these clubs with larger clubheads, there are models designed specifically for the beginner. These clubs are often referred to as “oversized, forgiving, cavity back, or perimeter weighted” when describing the clubhead. This clubhead should be paired with a regular flex or graphite shaft to increase the chances of success.

Of all the tips on buying golf clubs for beginners, I strongly suggest looking at used clubs. Golfers have a propensity to abandon their old clubs in a never ending attempt to buy a better golf game. Consequently, there are lots of used clubs available at garage sales, golf pro shops, and golf superstores. Often times these clubs are in very good shape and at very decent prices. The beginner should investigate used clubs while keeping in mind the clubhead and shaft recommendations made above.

If the beginning golfer wants to buy new clubs, I recommend a club fitting so that the player is properly “measured” for the new clubs. This service is available at pro shops and at most golf superstores, usually for a fee of about $35 that normally can be applied toward a purchase of clubs. During the fitting, the golfer will be able to hit several brands of clubs to find what he or she hits best. The selected club can then be fitted for length and “lie.”

The “lie” of a club is the angle between the bottom or sole of the club and the shaft. If the lie angle is too upright, the ball will typically fly left of the target. If the angle is too flat, the ball will normally fly to the right. All you need to remember is that the lie of the club makes a significant difference and you need to have it checked by the club fitter.

A putter isn’t normally included in a set of clubs. My tips on buying golf clubs for beginners would always include spending some extra time selecting a putter. Putting is a very individualistic part of the game, and the putter should look and feel right to the player. So much of putting is confidence, and you need to be very comfortable with your putter selection. A club fitting can also include the putter. Remember, about 43% of the strokes in an 18 hole round of golf are made with the putter. It may be the most important club in the bag.

By: Gary Jack Palmer

About the Author:

Putting new grips on your golf clubs can be a inexpensive and effective solution to quickly give you more consistency in your game.

Most amateur golfers never change the grips on their clubs. They play for years with a set of clubs without ever changing the grips!

Whereas, some professionals have been known to re-grip their clubs at the end of every competitive round. They do this so their clubs feel exactly the same. Chances are that they don’t need them re-gripping that often, but in today’s tour competitions there is so much money at stake that they do not want to leave anything to chance.

How often should you re-grip your clubs?

A good general rule is:

if you play once a week, then you should change the grips on your clubs once a year. Play twice a week, change twice a year etc.

Of course, if you do a lot of practice on the range you should consider changing your grips even more frequently. You could easily hit 30 shots with your driver in a range session. In a round of golf you may not use your driver more than 10 times. So one range session a week hitting 30 drives, would equate to 3 rounds a week, implying re-gripping 3 times a year.

You will also find you have certain clubs that are used far more often than others, especially if you only play your home course the majority of the time. This is because you play the course in a certain way – same clubs for same shots, mostly governed by the length of the course. So after some months the grips on certain clubs become more worn than others.

What happens when a grip is worn?

Grips are fundamentally just pieces of rubber to enable us to hold the golf club securely. The grips have various type of a textured surface to provide more grip security and feel. As a grip is used over and over the surface rubber begins to wear. The natural oils in our hands also start to affect the grips. You will notice this as it will start to look shiny.

If you look at old used set of golf clubs that have never been re-gripped you will see that the grips are often very shiny.

Shiny grips are a problem. You have to grip the club harder when the grip is shiny so that it does not slip and turn in your hands as you take a swing. You may not even be aware you are doing it! The problem with gripping the club too hard is that it adversely affects the way you strike the ball. Your hands are simply not relaxed, and therefore, because the muscles in your hands and forearms are tense, they will slow down. In the golf swing, relaxed hands are fast hands. You need fast hands to get good distance.

It is worth checking your golf clubs at least once a month. Compare grips across the entire set. If any are beginning to wear, consider getting them renewed.

New grips feel good. They can almost feel “sticky” by comparison to the old worn grips. This can give you real sense of confidence.

Confidence builds success.

By: Mark Pearson

About the Author:

Top golfers today take time out for flexibility exercises along with their golf swing training. For a golfer it is an investment in their future. Stretching exercises are a key factor to both injury prevention and peak performance. In today’s competitive golf scenario, the golfer with poor fitness levels gets left behind in no time. It’s therefore important for the competitive golfer to stay free of golf related injury, as much as possible.

Golf swing drills and exercises will not only improve your range of motion and flexibility but directly result in a better golf swing. Improved motion and flexibility will easily help your game to reach its full potential. Greater flexibility will allow you to move the club head, generate more club head speed, and as a result the ball will travel a greater distance with less effort. In fact the better your body can turn, the more the power it imparts to your swing.

Today, many professional golfers use rotational exercises to improve their flexibility. This primarily involves loosening the joints and strengthening muscles used in the golf swing drive. Stretching exercises can range from touching your toes to twisting from side to side with a dumbbell. You can also exercise with you club round your shoulders with both arms resting on it. Twists with your arms extended will also give you good results. These exercises improve the rotational muscles and improve the flexibility of the shoulder, back and hip region eventually resulting in a much better golf swing.

In this another golf swing training exercise, you move your hands over the inner circle of the swing. The hands cut a specific arc through the impact zone during the swing. If the arc is consistent, the club head will also describe an arc to meet the ball squarely. Another way to improve the rotational strength is by using swings with a weight in your hands. As we try to drive against a resistance for example using a weight as clubs, we will build up strength in the entire muscle group which comes into play during a perfect golf swing. As there are around 14 groups of muscles which come into play, the best way to exercise them is to swing with a weighted club or a dumbbell. The rotational strength is bound to improve. In fact Golf weight training exercises are the simplest and the quickest ways to better your golf swing.

Click here for more golf swing aids

By: John Davenport

About the Author:

Do you sick of seeing your ball start on the left side of the fairway and end up in the trees on the right side of the fairway? This is a frustrating thing to deal with and can take a lot of the joy out of golf. There are golfers that actually refuse to hit a driver because of their ugly slice. So what do you need to do about it? Read on to find out how to get rid of your nasty slice.

You need to start by understanding why you slice off the tee and in many cases in the fairway as well. The myth is that you must be cutting across the ball with your swing, and in some cases this is true, but there is actually a way to slice without cutting across the ball at all. Basically if you are slicing it is because you are bringing the club through in a way that causes the face of the club to hit the ball while angled to the left. This causes the ball to shoot off the the left and have a spin that causes it to come back to the right at almost a 90 degree angle. This is no fun so read on to learn a few tips to fix your slice.

Usually the first thing you need to check when you have an ugly slice is your grip. Your slice can be caused by your hands slipping even just a couple of millimeters and causing the club face to end up at an angle other than square to the ball as you come through with your swing. You may be gripping the club too strong or too weak. Both of these can cause you to slice the ball. So check your grip, make sure it is comfortable, but also strong, and make sure it is not too strong.

The second thing you can do is practice on the range with an open stance. This is done by placing your front foot a few inches further back than your back foot and pointing your front toe away from your back foot. This will cause you to have to swing inside out and will help you build a swing that will have less of a slice and more of just a fade.

The last thing you can do to help cure your slice is you can learn to keep your back elbow in. a Drill to help you with this would be to hold one of your headcovers under your back armpit. The idea is to be able to swing without dropping the headcover. If you can learn to do this on a regular basis, then you will be well on the way to curing that ugly slice.

So in order to cure that nasty slice you should start by understanding what causes you to slice, check your grip, try practicing with an open stance, and learn to keep your back elbow in. If you still have trouble curing your slice, then you should seek a club pro and spend the money on a series of lessons to learn how to swing correctly.

By: Benjamin R. Ehinger

About the Author:

How can you develop more power in your golf swing? This is probably a question that all of us want an answer to. Most of us go to great lengths to do whatever it takes to get that power into our drives off the tee. I think we probably all have some ideas of where 300-yard drives come from, but I want to give you the answers without any fluff.

Golf swing power is the result of three specific factors. Two out of the three are much more important, but the third does have a bearing on the outcome of how far you hit that ball.

The first and probably most evident of the three is your swing mechanics. I bet you are not surprised by this one.

The second one is probably the least recognized of the three, but for many is the key to longer drives and the category that is given the least amount of attention. Number two is what we term golf strength. This is defined as how well your body is conditioned (i.e. fitness) to swing a golf club with maximum power. Probably the least understood of the three, and maybe the most needed by golfers in general. We will talk more about this later. Let us move on to number three in regards to power for your drives.

Number three is your equipment. Yes, equipment does make a difference in how far you drive the ball. The equipment manufacturers have let this fact be known, and I bet we all have gone to the pro shop probably more than twice to pick up a new driver that claims to give us another 20 yards on every drive. That extra 20 yards might not be down the middle of the fairway, but it will give you an extra 20 yards could be left, could be right, or could be in the center of the fairway. That all depends on points one and two of this article. Equipment and technological advances have definitely lengthened the distance of our drives. But without better swing mechanics and your body in better golf shape, new technology will not help your game. A bad swing will produce a bad result, regardless of what type of new driver you may have just purchased.

Swing Mechanics

I think all of us are aware of how important the mechanics of a swing are when it comes to driving the ball down the fairway. It is essential, if you are over the top with your swing or come inside too much, youll see that dreaded slice or snap hook. The drives will be short, too low, too high, left, right, or a combination of these if you are putting bad swings on the ball.

It is essential for a golfer to work on the mechanics of their swing, week in and week out, to improve their game. If it werent important why would all these tour players have swing coaches that work with them on a consistent basis? The golf swing is such a finite, mechanically complex movement, that requires constant work to keep it highly efficient and in check.

One of the most common mistakes I see amateurs make is probably a lack of instruction. I see amateurs over and over at the driving ranges, week in and week out, pounding balls without any improvement. This, I feel, is a result of one of two things: 1) a lack of instruction or 2) low levels of golf strength. A lack of instruction leads to the development and ingraining of improper swing mechanics. This only results in slices, hooks, topping the ball, and hitting it fat on the course. And we all know that those types of swings lead to frustration and bad rounds of golf. I would suggest to most anyone to find a good instructor and take lessons on a consistent basis. This can only help your game in the long run. Now moving on the second point of how to achieve powerful drives and that is golf strength.

Golf Strength (Golf Fitness)

Golf strength is a term we use to describe the golf fitness level of an individual pertaining to swinging a club. This is much different than how much you can bench press or squat, which I like to refer to as weight room strength. Understand that these two terms, golf strength and weight room strength, are very different. If you do not quite understand the difference, ask yourself one question: How many bodybuilders do you see teeing it up on Tour? The answer to that question is quite obvious, none!

It comes down to this idea: the mechanics of a golf swing require specific levels of flexibility, balance, stability, strength, endurance, and power to perform it efficiently. If your body does not have the required capacities of the aforementioned list, then the result will be? Anyone want to guess? Well, let me give you the answer: a less than optimal and less efficient swing than possible. Essentially, your body supports your swing much like a foundation supports the house you build upon it. I am sure that all of you would choose to build a house on a stone foundation rather than a sand foundation, wouldnt you? I will say that many of you make a different choice when it comes to your golf swing. I quite often see amateurs developing their swing on a foundation of sand, not a good thing to do in my book.

Regardless of how much time you work on your swing mechanics, if your body does not have the golf strength to support your swing, you are limiting your potential. I have seen it numerous times, people practicing at the range who struggle, not because of trying to get better, but because their bodies are limiting what they can do with their swing. Quite often I see people with limited flexibility, poor balance capabilities, and low levels of strength and power. The bottom line is that your mechanics will not get better until you fix the body that swings the club!

Up to this point we have discussed the two most important ideas when it comes to power on the golf course. A review of the topics tells us that they are optimal swing mechanics and the proper levels of golf strength in the body. One without the other is going to leave you short when it comes to your potential in the game.

Again, I probably see point number two, golf strength, being addressed less often than swing mechanics when you get right down to it. The pros are all aware of the importance of golf strength, why not you?

Equipment

We have come to the final point, and that is equipment. I think the majority of golfers are aware of the technological advances that have occurred in golf equipment over the last 20 years. I mean, think about the 80s when we were still playing with woods that actually had wood club heads! Imagine that for a moment, and now we are using drivers with space age faces that shoot the ball off of them at warp speed. In addition, we have to mention the advances in terms of golf balls. How manufacturers design golf balls today makes a difference in how far they travel. What a lot of people do not realize is that the USGA has set standards on how hot driver faces can be and how fast balls can come off the face of drivers. Most clubs are reaching this limit, and anything past these USGA rules becomes illegal to play.

So what does that tell us?

1) Club manufacturers have done a great, and I mean great, job in the advancement of technology, and

2) to increase the distance on your drives you are now going to have to turn to points one and two of this article.

So what does improving your power really come down to?

It comes down to three simple ideas. Number one is improving your golf swing mechanics. Improved mechanics will improve your driving distance. Number two is improving your golf strength. By improving your body as it pertains to the golf swing you will improve your distance off the tee. Finally, equipment does make a difference, if you hit the ball correctly.

By: Sean Cochran

About the Author:

Where can I find best golf aids? This is the most common question asked by the golfers. In this article you will find enough information about golf training aids. Your fellow golfers can tell you a lot about the best aids available in the market. It is a good idea to consult friends before buying something related to the game.

You can spend some time with golf pros as they know a lot about modern tips and techniques. You can subscribe to a popular golf magazine. In these magazines you can find articles written by the professionals. Best golf aids can be found online. On the internet you can find many stores selling golf aids. You can also go through some e-books written by professionals. There are many catalogues which can give information about best training aids. Sometimes best golf aids are available in the form of videos. Golf videos are very easy to understand. These videos can bring your game to a new level.

It is a good idea to discuss everything with your friends before buying anything new. Not all the products are effective. Always look for a reputed and old online store. For improving your game you should stick to a nutritious diet. Your diet should contain vitamins, minerals and fiber. In addition to nutritious diet you should work out regularly. A proper combination of exercise and diet can improve your performance in some days.

Regular practice is the key to better golf performance. A golf player should be strong physically and mentally.

By: Jitesh Arora

About the Author:

when you play a sport such as golf you will know all about how vital practise is to improve your handicap and play the best game that you can. There are many different hints and tips that you could use to try to get a better golf swing, but one way of doing this that is easy and can be performed on the course, on a driving range or even in your back yard. And this way is by practising golf swing drills, these are a set of exercises and movements that you can repeat to perfect your golf swing.

One very useful golf swing drill that can be of great benefit to golfers is the golf swing plane drill, this is performed by either purchasing a golf swing plane trainer and using this to tailor your golf swing plane to perfection. Doing this kind of golf swing drill will condition your body to automatically create the correct golf swing each time.

If this does not suit you then why not try using just your right arm and swing as normal using your left hand to feel how the biceps work as you perform the swing. Doing this will not only strengthen the muscles in your right arm but you will be able to feel exactly how your body moves when performing a golf swing.

Another golf swing drill that you might like to try out is to have a friend standing behind you as you slowly take a normal backswing. Your friend then can see your target line and tell you if your club is pointing at the ball or up to four feet beyond it, if it is then you are almost there to having a great golf swing. Practise these golf swing drills over and over and you will be hitting like a pro in no time.

By: Joe Marquart

About the Author:

If you are a golfer and need to lose weight then it is very important to follow some simple tips. By following some tips you can easily achieve your weight loss goals. For losing weight you need proper diet which includes anti oxidants, vitamins, minerals and fibre. Fiber helps in proper digestion. High fibre food is always satisfying. Never skip your meals. Skipping meals will never help you in losing pounds. It is better to have small frequent meals in place of three big meals. Never opt for junk food when you are hungry. You can eat some sensible snacks in between the meals such as cheese, crackers and raw vegetables. Fresh fruits and green vegetables should be main part of your diet. Avoid processed food as it contains lot of extra calories.

It is a good idea to buy something after achieving a weight loss goal. After every achievement you can eat your favorite chocolate. Replace all the fizzy drinks with plenty of water.Carbonated drinks are having lot of sugar which means lot of calories. Drink at least eight glasses of water per day. Water helps a lot in loosing weight. Water also washes out all the harmful toxins from the body.

Do not eat outdoors as most of the restaurants serve big portions. But if you eat outdoors then try to order baby portions. It is worth hiring a weight loss expert so that he can plan your fitness program according to your needs. Always look for low fat version of the food you eat. Try to live an active life for example you can use stairs in place of elevator. Losing weight is a difficult task but you can lose some pounds easily by following some simple tips and techniques.

By: Jitesh Arora

About the Author: