Your Top Five Golf Myths or Misinformation

[1badbadger]

I come from an equipment background, so these myths/misinformation are equipment related and the ones I have heard the most:

1. Graphite shafts are too "whippy".

If I had a nickel for every time I heard: "when my hands are here, the clubhead is way back here" when a player was explaining why he thought he couldn't hit a driver, I would be a wealthy man.  The truth is that graphite shafts are every bit as stiff as steel shafts, but they are of course lighter. Players are often under the impression the graphite "can't keep up with their swing", but the real issue is the club is too light for them to feel.

2. A higher spinning golf ball will help me score better.

There is an obsession with spin...everyone wants more spin because they can "control it better" or they want to "throw the ball right at the hole" and they think high spin is the answer.  For most mid to high handicappers (around 15 and up), high spin golf balls can cost a player more shots than it saves them.

3. A shorter driver shaft will cost me distance

Day-in and day-out, most players will not only hit a shorter driver more accurately, but they might hit it as far or farther than a longer shaft!  The majority of golfers have an early release (some more than others) which will result in a longer shaft actually slowing down at impact.  A shorter shaft also makes it easier to hit the ball on the screws more often, and when that happens, everything gets better.

4.  I'm not good enough for the golf ball to matter.

Actually, mid to high handicappers will have more dramatic results than low handicappers and pros.  The ball won't prevent you from hitting a bad shot, but the ball can either minimize a bad shot or exaggerate a bad shot.

5. A low compression ball (40, 50, 60 compression) will feel like a marshmallow  

This is usually the thought when guys are still thinking about the old 90 and 100 compression models from 25-30 years ago, and comparing to the modern ball.  Today's golf balls cannot be compared to the old wound ball in terms of compression...totally different animals.