Golf is a highly competitive sport, and it can be difficult to know what tips will work for you. That’s why it’s important to listen to a variety of sources and find the ones that fit your game.
There are some golf tips that are good but don’t fit everyone. Conversely, there are some tips that might not be the best for your game but could work well for someone else.
But how do you know which golf tips should you listen to?
The answer is simple: just because someone has a lot of experience doesn’t mean they always give sound advice. From my own personal experience, I found that the best pieces of advice come from professionals who have been playing for years or even decades longer than the golfer.
What Golf Tips Should Beginners Listen To?
When I first started playing golf I was given a lot of golf tips from friends, family, and even strangers. I was also reading every golf magazine I could get my hands on. This was quite confusing because I was hearing conflicting advice from different sources.
And it didn’t make sense to try and incorporate all of these golf tips into my game at the same time. I needed to focus on one or two things at a time in order to improve my golf game. Luckily I had friends who are professional golfers and they helped me to focus on the most important golf tips for beginners.
There are a lot of golf tips out there. So, it can be difficult to determine which ones are worth following. Beginners often have a lot of questions and aren’t sure where to start. From my own personal experience, I would recommend booking some lessons with a golf pro.
They will be able to assess your game and give you some specific tips that will help improve your swing and lower your scores. This would be a great start in the game of golf.
Listen to Tips from your Golf Professional
Even though a lot of golf advice out there is good, it’s important to take whatever you’re being told with a grain of salt. I am sure that you have heard phrases on a golf course such as “take the club back on a downswing” or “keep your head down”.
These are some of the most common golf tips that you will hear, but they are not always good. The biggest problem with these tips is that each individual golfer will interpret them in their own and unique way.
This is why it’s important to listen to your golf pro, as he will have a much better understanding of how you play. He also has access to video analysis and can help you correct your swing in a way that is comfortable for you.
Your golf pro will also be able to give you advice on the best clubs to use and what type of golf ball will work best for your game. It’s in the best interest of a golfer to listen to his or her golf professional, as this is the person who knows them best and has their best interests in mind.
They know what it takes to get better and may have a favorite technique they want to share. If for example, your instructor asked about your body alignment during your swing, he may be trying to make sure you’re doing everything properly in your setup before attempting any shots.
Golf Advice from Fellow Golfer
I am sure that you have encountered individuals trying to give you some advice on the golf course, and they may seem like an expert but quite often you will find something that doesn’t fit your game.
Then you have those other people who just want to be nice and give you some tips, but you know it won’t work for your game.
I find this quite frustrating and it can lead you to not wanting to play with others. It is good if people want to give you advice, but the truth is, unless you have asked for it or they are a professional, don’t take any notice.
You should only give a player a golf tip if you know that they want it and if you know that the tip will benefit them.
At the end of the day, it is up to the individual player whether they take any golf tips on board or not, but if you are new to the game of golf and are looking for advice, you should be very careful about who you listen to.
Bad Golf Tips You Should Stay Away From
When on the golf course you’ll often hear players giving each other golf tips. While some of these tips can be helpful, others can actually do more harm than good.
According to golf.com some of the worst golf tips ever are:
Keep Your Head Down
This is possibly the most common golf tip out there, but that doesn’t make it any less bad. Hank Haney explains:
“Keeping your head down and maintaining a steady position throughout the swing will work for some people, but it can also lead to severe mis-hits.
Every great player I’ve ever worked with has had a moving head that remained still only at the very top of the swing – and then it moves all the way through impact”.
If you want to improve your golf, keep an eye on these common mistakes.
Finish Through the Swing
Don’t forget to follow the ball! This is another piece of advice that might be very common, but it can actually make your game worse.
According to Hank Haney, the ball should be left behind, not followed through.
Haney explains: “It’s better to have your weight on your front foot and let the clubhead pass the ball. That way you’ll be in a much better position to hit it solidly”.
Keep your Lead Arm Straight
Another example of bad golf tips you should stay away from is the advice to keep your lead arm straight. According to Hank Haney, it’s actually better for your game to keep it bent.
He explains: “When you bend your lead arm, the clubhead drops down behind the plane and strikes the ball on the upswing, which is the ideal way to hit it”.
Hit Down to Help the Ball go Up
Hitting down to help the golf ball go up has been called the most common bad golf tip out there, and for good reason.
This advice has its roots in older forms of golf when balls were made of wood and hitting down would create a backspin.
However, with today’s golf balls, this is not the case. Hitting down will actually cause the ball to go down, not up.
You’ve Got to Get Your Body Into It
Haney says this is one of the worst golf tips he’s ever heard. “This is terrible advice, and it will hurt your game more than help it.
All you’re doing is trying to create tension in your body, and that will only make it more difficult to swing the club properly”.
All this bodywork is important but if you don’t get your hands and arms going, you’re going to struggle”.
You’re Swinging Too Fast
According to Haney, this is another common bad golf tip. It’s not speed but acceleration that matters, and slowing down your swing can actually be a counterproductive way to improve your game.
Haney explains: “It’s true that you should swing slowly, to begin with, but as soon as possible it makes sense to speed up your swing because that will help you to develop more clubhead speed.
The harder you hit the ball, the greater distance it’s going to travel”.
Listening to All Golf Tips Out There
Golf is a sport that takes time to master – even for those who have been playing for years. Be patient, listen to what others have to say, and always be sure to take in what they suggest with a grain of salt.
In today’s world, there is so much information out there that it can be difficult to know who to listen to.
Select your sources carefully and you’ll be on your way to improving your golf game.
Think of the great players that relied on their coaches’ vision and swing thoughts to win major championships.
Tiger Woods worked with Butch Harmon for a very long time, and now Rory McIlroy has been working with Michael Bannon. Nick Faldo’s relationship with David Leadbetter leads to a few green jackets.
This shows you that having a coach is a great way to improve your golf game no matter who you are.
Final Thoughts
What are the best golf tips? According to Hank Haney, there are some terrible ones out there that you might be willing to believe. If you want to improve your game, it’s important that you take in as many different opinions as possible and then decide for yourself which of these pieces of advice will work for your swing.
In today’s world where information is readily available at our fingertips, we have the opportunity to learn from those who have been playing this sport their entire lives – but only if we listen!
Selecting a reliable source or course mentor can help guide your decision on how much weight you should put into various pieces of advice. Ultimately though, what matters most is whether or not something makes sense logically with respect to physics and human biomechanics.
