Answers To Some Common Golf Questions

The first question is the hardest on to be definitive about as there are many different aspects to take into account. People have different motivations for taking up golf, they have varying amounts of time at their disposal to devote to lessons and practice, skill levels are different, some people are more keen or dedicated or even become obsessive about it and of course finances will have to be taken into account. I am sure there are other factors too but these are probably the main ones.

My general answer is that lessons are best booked in 60 minute slots and ideally spaced out no more than 7 days a part. In my experience the shorter the gap between lessons the better, this is especially true for the beginner who doesn’t have the experience yet to practise effectively on their own. Some of the most productive periods of learning are when people have attended our tuition breaks where they will receive 2 or more hours of coaching everyday for 4 -5 days, we really start to see a big improvement in peoples understanding and performance over this time.

When it comes to private lessons I feel that after 6 x 60 minute lessons taken over 4-6 weeks a new golfer can learn and start to understand the fundamentals required to play on a golf course. This would include set-up and swing and short game including chipping, pitching, bunker play and putting.

In terms of actually playing your first round of 9 or 18 holes it does partly come down to the confidence of the individual. So as not to be disheartened or put off if things don’t go well it certainly pays to have reached a reasonable amount of consistency on the driving range and although the often quoted maxim of “ Drive for show, putt for dough” certainly applies to the majority of golfers looking to improve their score, the beginner will get far more satisfaction and enjoyment by being reasonably proficient with their tee and fairway shots.

Having said that I do encourage my pupils to get out and play even just a few holes as soon as possible just to get a feel for “real” golf as it’s a very different thing to being on the driving range and in my opinion its quite good to experience this early on and start to understand a bit more about playing the game rather than just trying to improve their swing and hitting balls.

The very best way to do this is to have a playing lesson on the course. At Dukes Meadows we have two great facilities for this. The 5 hole academy course which is great for children and for adults who are making their first venture onto a golf course. The holes measure no more than 100 yards, it has shallow bunkers and greens kept in good condition, for this reason it does feel like proper golf but it affords you some mistakes as you are never too far from the hole. The 9 hole course offers longer holes up to 160 yards long, much more challenging bunkers, undulating greens and a large water hazard that comes into play on 3 holes.

As for playing on your own my best advice is to play with understanding people on golf courses that suit your ability – basically the course is your opponent so for a beginner to play a championship course would be a bit like a beginner tennis player taking on Roger Federer , nice to say you did it but neither of you is really going to get much out of it in terms of enjoying the challenge.

We are very fortunate in the UK to have such a diverse range of courses available to us right from very basic pitch and putts like the ones found by the seaside to absolutely world class championship courses such as Wentworth in Surrey. In fact probably the most well known course in the world and the “Home of Golf”, St Andrews is a public golf course available to be played by anyone as long as they can produce a handicap certificate of 24 or less.

In Summation golf lessons can be conducted at a frequency to suit the individual but generally the closer together and the more often they are taken the quicker the progress.

If you are interested in any type of lesson either on the driving range or on the golf course please contact me.