By: Mary Chillders

The game of golf can be a very challenging one to learn and master. It requires patience and discipline to develop into a low handicap player. We all want to learn how to lower our golf handicap but the truth is that there is no magic solution. Here are some tips that may help you on your way to shooting lower golf scores.

Swing With Less Effort

It is misunderstanding by many new players that hitting the golf ball far requires a lot of muscular effort. The truth is that developing a more effortless swing where the club is doing most of the work will usually work better as far as hitting the ball well on a consistent basis.

Slowing down the speed of the backswing can be one of the best changes you can make to better your golf swing. When you slow down your golf swing you will find less things go wrong mechanically which means that you will make better contact more consistently.

On the downswing do not try to force the club through the hitting zone to try to generate more club head speed but rather let the club drop through the hitting zone. You want the maximum club head speed through impact and not at the top of the swing.

At the beginning of the downswing you can think about your left hand pulling the club as this will help to create an inside to out club path that is ideal for a straight golf shot and this will also keep the right hand from getting involved.

The right should be passive throughout the golf swing because if you start trying to use it to hit the ball farther the club head will usually end up on an outside to in path which will result in big slices so do not get your right hand involved too heavily.

The Importance Of The Short Game

For most high handicap players their short game presents the greatest opportunity to lower their golf scores. In order to improve the short game you will need to spend some time practicing it regularly.

Ensure that you are spending enough time on the wedge game and shots inside of 120 yards. An interesting point is that if you become very good at the short game it will also have the effect of improving your long game since you will not be as concerned if you do miss a longer shot since you know you have a short game that can get you out of trouble.

A great number of the best players learned the short game first before refining their full swing. Amateurs would be wise to follow a similar path also so spend more time putting, chipping and hitting those wedge shots before you focus on longer clubs like your driver.

Putting is arguably the most important aspect of golf as it can make a huge difference to your scores but you also need to keep in mind that putting is mainly about confidence. It is still important to practice and work on your putting mechanics but do not get obsessed with it otherwise you may risk getting the putting yips. Be consistent with your practice habits and in time your handicap should come down.

Article Source: http://www.bettergolfarticles.com

 

 

 

 

 

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