TWG50

I learned by teeing the ball very low to the ground and gaining confidence in the club. Once I had a bit of confidence, I would lower the tee until it was even with the turf. Then I removed the tee altogether. I follow the same process today if my fairway woods are getting surly. Good luck.

Great thread. After years of on-and-off golf growing up and through college, I took my first lesson early last year and was quickly hooked. We worked hard on the basics, but could not warm up to the instructor. So after 3 months of pounding sand at the driving range, I took another lesson at the Biltmore. A couple of tweaks to my set-up and a new, simplified swing thought helped me shoot a 79 the next day. I guess the answer for me is much the same as everyone else: - A bit of instruction - Lots of hard work - A touch of OCD

No affiliation, but I recently purchased a TinCup product and am pretty happy with the product. When playing with stranger's' it is a good conversation starter. It's a bit steep for something to 'just' mark my ball, but it will last forever and I have given serious consideration to starting to use them for client gifts. http://www.tin-cup.com/product.php?productid=16176&cat;=3&page;=1

Ian, I recently broke 90 for the first time and empathize with your frustrations. A couple of thoughts that helped me: Avoid the 3 putt. I went from having 4-5 a round to 1 or 2 by changing my swing so that the tempo is the same, but I adjust the length of my backswing to the distance from the cup rather than trying to hit the ball harder/softer. Also, practice your lag putting from 30 + feet as this will help you develop 'feel' and make those long putts easier once you are on the course Don't be afraid of playing a long iron off the tee. It's better to hit the fairway than be playing out of the woods/desert, especially on short par 4's, long par 3's, and holes with narrow landing areas. Constantly work on the short game and practice situations you run into on the course. Get comfortable with 2 or 3 clubs from 50 yards and in. It helps to know when and how to hit the high wedge shot in addition to your normal bump & run. Get your iron shot distances dialed in so you know that from XXX distance, you know you can get there with X club Again, practice real situations when you are on the range. Imagine you have to hit a low draw 150 under tree branches, a lob shot over a small tree or water. Practicing these shots has helped me tremendously. once I get on the course. Good Luck! Paul

I have tried a few instructors over the years and before committing to a series of lessons, I would try a couple of instructors to see who best fits your game and learning style. With that said, one 30 minute lesson can go a long way when it comes to addressing the basics - set-up, grip & alignment. For example, during my first lesson, my instructor was able to identify a couple of issues with my grip and alignment that made a world of difference. After working on those at the range & on the course, I returned a month later to start a series of lessons, 6 for $200 which were spread over 10-12 weeks. As you begin to correct certain areas of your game, you will see other flaws that may have gone un-noticed. I fixed my slice and realized my short game was horrible . . . then I could not find my putting speed etc. As another member said - know what you want to work on, otherwise the instructor may be continuing the same thought progress as the previous student. Describe the problem and what you hope to achieve. If you get nothing from the lesson, at least part of the blame lays on the student. Good luck.

I have used this style for quite some time and thread the cord through my shirt to the pocket where my ipod/mp3 player is. They have different sized ear 'cones' and tend to stay in pretty well.