The 3 Best Ways to Lower Your Golf Handicap
There are many different tips you can use to try to improve your game. Often it all becomes a bit overwhelming and confusion sets in. What tips should you follow and what should you not follow? The secret is to focus on just a select few tips at one time, perhaps just two or three at most. You will overload with any more. Here are three that you may find indispensable.
Focus on Your Shorter Game
When Ben Hogan said “you drive for show and you putt for dough!” he knew that there is no easier way to ruin an otherwise good round of golf than by fluffing a few chip shots or by missing a few short putts. These are much more costly that hitting a couple of less than accurate drives during the round. It is around the greens that good scores are made or lost and it is no coincidence that your putter is your most used club. Improvements to your putting will be the fastest way to help you to lower your golf handicap. A great advantage here is that the short game, rather than the long game, is much easier to practice at home in your own garden. You’ll card much lower rounds as a result.
Don’t Keep Your Eyes on The Ball
Everyone tells you to “keep your eyes on the ball”. And it is true that your eyes are pointing at the ball when you take your stance, as you swing the club back and also at the point of impact. But, perhaps you should TRY NOT to keep your eyes on the ball!
Why? Because staring at the ball means you will become fixated on it and that can only add to the tension you already feel before hitting your shot. The more relaxed you feel, generally the better the shot you will play. Just like on the range when all your shots go straight and long if you don’t make the ball the issue you will become more relaxed. What causes a regular swing to be less effective than a practice swing? It’s the golf ball and to overcome this you need to forget the golf ball is there. Take your mind off the ball and think about the swing. You will see the difference as you start to lower your golf handicap.
Master the Mental Game of Golf
The mental side of golf is perhaps one of the most ignored by all amateur golfers. A golfers mind, as in all walks of life, is the most potent tool that he has. His ability to master his mind is what makes the difference between the greatest golfers in the world and the also rans. For a golfer to believe that when he is competing he is good enough to beat anyone out there is key to competitive golf.
Of course, a winning mindset like this is particularly important for tournament players of all levels and becomes more important the higher up a golfer goes in his career, but even for the average golfer it can make the difference between a poor round or a good round. Develop a consistently positive winning mental attitude and that lower golf handicap won’t be just a figment of your imagination.