Learning Golf? Go Pro

by Bob Augustine

In more than 50 years of teaching and playing the great game of golf, I realize that most people who try to learn the game without professional help hinder their progress tremendously. As a result they may get so discouraged that they may even give up. Being taught by non-professionals will also be discouraging, as the student may be bombarded with tremendous amounts of useless information. I would encourage aspiring new golfers not to make that mistake and to take instruction from a qualified teaching professional.

Golf is a game that is very counterintuitive. As an example, a golfer who swings to the right will usually hit his ball to the left and vice versa. When you hit down on the ball, you pop it up and when you hit up on the ball, you will top it along the ground.

When you actually play the game on the course, you start from the tee hitting your longest shots and finish the hole with your shortest shots, the putts. However, when you learn the game, you should start with the shortest shots, the putts, and end with the longest shot, the drive.

To be able to play reasonably well, you have to learn how to control the flight of your ball. The easiest and fastest way to do that is by starting with small swings and progress from there. My goal as a teacher is to have my students progress as easily and quickly as their time and effort will allow. Believe it or not, the easiest person to teach is the person who has never hit a golf ball. They have no bad habits to overcome.

The rules of golf generally will slow down a new golfer’s progress and may ruin their confidence. If this is you, try this. When you go to the course to play, if you are unable to launch your ball into the air eight times out of 10 off the ground, tee up the ball everywhere. When you can reach that goal, the next step is to play preferred lies everywhere. When you reach that point, you are ready to play the ball as it lies. Seeing the ball sailing through the air is fun.

Bob Augustine is a PGA instructor at Peninsula State Park Golf Course.