3 Golf Tips For Beginners

As a beginner golfer, it can be tough to feel like you’re making progress and improving your game, which can be extremely frustrating. If you can’t afford lessons, trying to lower your score consistently on the golf course and be challenging, and sometimes demoralizing, especially if you play with friends who have more practice.

When you’re new to the game, you can use all the help you can get. We’ve compiled 3 golf tips we think can help any new golfer improve their game, and start to lower their scores more often.

Establish a Pre-Shot Routine

The pre-shot routine is something that is very often overlooked by beginners, but it’s an extremely important part of the game, both physically and mentally. To define it for you, the pre-shot routine is everything you do from the moment you’ve approached your next shot right up until you start your swing to hit the ball.

When you watch the Pros on the PGA Tour, pay attention to what they’re doing before they actually hit their shots. They will do the same routine every time, which brings a level of consistency to their game. It’s not just the pros that do this; any mid to low handicapper you know definitely has a pre-shot routine that they go through before they hit the ball. This routine helps you gain confidence, and remain consistent.

Here’s an example of a good pre-shot routine:

1. Start by standing at least 5+ feet behind the ball, looking to where you’d like to play your next shot. This helps you visualize what you’d like to do and how your shot may come out.
2. Pick a target of where your shot will be played, and still standing 5+ feet behind the ball, stand parallel to the target line and take a few practice swings, getting a feel for the swing you’d like to execute.
3. Approach the ball and begin your swing setup; pick a spot 2-3 feet in front of the ball on your target line that you can aim your club and body with.
4. Get settled into your position, and execute your shot.

Practice Your Putting

Putting is an under practiced and overlooked aspect of the game, but can save you a ton of strokes during your round. If your swing needs a lot of work, putting is usually something you can work on to bring quick, tangible results to the course. To practice putting, you’ll want to make sure you practice 2 things: speed control and direction control. Direction control comes from making sure you start the ball on the right line, hitting it in the center of the putter face. Speed control comes with practice, but there are drills you can do to improve these 2 aspects of your game.

Here are 2 quick drills you can use to practice putting control, and help you show off to your friends on the greens:

For Speed and Distance Control:

For Accuracy:

Play Your Own Game

There’s not a tangible takeaway from this tip, but it’s definitely a good mental tip for any golfer. When I first started playing golf, I was told to “play my own game” by several Pros that taught me the game. When you play golf with others, they may have better or faster swings than you do, which can cause you to naturally want to swing faster to produce a better result. Doing these last second changes mid round will likely cause you to play much worse, and ruin your mental game.

When you’re out there with friends, stick to your plan. Don’t start swinging fast trying to compete with others, play your swing the way you know how to, and you’ll be able to put together a better round.

For more golf tips and instruction, head over to our friends at Fairway Approach for the latest tips and advice on improving your game!