Three Priceless Tips From a Golf Legend
- By Grant Young
Getting into golf can be quite daunting for several reasons. First, mastering the sport demands unwavering dedication and a willingness to invest time and effort in honing your skills. Secondly, navigating the multitude of equipment options can be overwhelming for beginners.
Plus, the cost of golfing (particularly when factoring in green fees and equipment expenses) can be a deterrent for many. Understanding the intricate rules and etiquette of the game (and getting into a proper golf mindset) might also be difficult for newcomers to comprehend.
Despite these obstacles, the gratification and enjoyment that golf offers make overcoming these challenges well worth the effort, proven by golf becoming the preferred hobby for countless people worldwide. It's a sport that can be enjoyed at any age, making it a lifelong pursuit that offers opportunities for continued growth and improvement. And the beauty of golf courses and the sense of accomplishment that comes with mastering a difficult shot all make the experience incredibly fulfilling.
All of this is to say that overcoming the initial struggles of getting into golf is incredibly worthwhile if you decide to stick with it. And with a few fundamental golfing tips, you can get over your rookie woes and fall in love with this magical sport even sooner.
And Kathy Whitworth has a few tips that will speed up your path to golfing expertise.
With 88 career wins, Kathy Whitworth holds the all-time record for both men's and women's U.S. Golf Tours. She also finished in second place in 95 tournaments. Kathy's professional golfing career spanned 32 years, from 1959 to 1991. She is the first woman to earn a million dollars in LPGA tournament play. Kathy Whitworth is a seven-time LPGA Player of the Year and has won six Major Championships. She was the Associated Press Athlete of the Year in 1965 and 1967 and was inducted into the LPGA's Hall of Fame in 1975.
With her professional career now behind her, Coach Whitworth now spends her time passing her decades of elite gold knowledge on to future generations of players. And her ‘Golf Tips and Techniques Featuring Kathy Whitworth’ course is a gold mine of information about how you can boost your golf skills.
How to Aim
Coach Whitworth has a few great tips on how to improve your aiming so that your golf shot is more accurate.
She notes that a common mistake many beginner golfers make is that, while they’re looking at a target before shooting, they’re not actually aiming at that target.
Once you do decide on a target to aim for, Coach Whitworth notes that you should then line your club’s blade up with the ball then square your body off to an imaginary straight line to where you are aiming.
Another important lesson Coach Whitworth imparts is that the habit of aiming must begin on the driving range. Often golfers will just be focused on their swing while at the driving range and won’t care about where the ball goes. While it’s important to be feeling attuned to your swing, you should also be aiming for specific targets while shooting. If you don’t do this, you are going to get on to the golf course and not be used to aiming for a specific target, which will make your accuracy suffer.
When trying to decide where to aim, it’s best to stand behind the ball (like you’ll often see professional golfers doing on TV) to get a clear, straight-on view of the course in front of you, and how you should approach it.
Pre Shot Routine
Having a pre-shot routine is integral to any golfer’s success. As Coach Whitworth mentioned previously, the first part of any golfer’s pre-shot routine is standing behind the ball and taking a look at the course before them, which will help forecast where the golfers should aim their next shot.
On approaching the ball, the golfer will want to square themselves up to the target they are aiming at.
From there, the golfer should have enough of a basic pre-shot routine to get themselves ready to shoot. But golf is also a superstitious game, and many golfers have habits or other things they will want to do before lining up for a shot. This could be establishing a steady breathing pattern, stepping up to the shot a certain way, adjusting their hat, or anything else.
These types of rituals are going to be different for any golfer and certainly aren’t necessary for succeeding. But because golf is such a mental game, anything that a golfer can do to make themselves confident in themselves and their next shot is worth doing — even if it may look like a silly habit from the outside looking in.
Long Putts
For higher-level and professional golfers, being able to make a long putt can often be the difference between winning and losing a tournament. And for beginners, all it takes is one made long putt for a whole afternoon at the golf course to feel worthwhile.
One of Coach Whitworth’s tips when approaching longer putts is to trust her eyes when it comes to what the shot’s distance is and how hard she should hit the shot.
In addition, Coach Whitworth explains that a major key is to have one’s eyes over the ball while they’re putting to have a perpendicular stroke.
At that point, the golfer will want to take a good look at their club to ensure that the blade is square, and is going to connect with the ball straight on.
Reading the green is also important because it will help you figure out how to adjust your putt. Just like when gauging distance, your best bet in doing this is by trusting your eyes.
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