Golf Tips: How to Play Like a Pro

Many golfers start out with dreams of playing like a pro. Many then settle for even mediocre play while out on the course or for beating their buddies in a round here and there. Still others watch the pros on TV, mesmerized by the fact that it seems every other shot they hit is an amazing shot. While truly playing like a pro takes years of practice and dedication, it is possible to learn to play your very best.
The first step to playing like a pro is to think like a pro. If you want to play golf seriously, then you have to take it seriously. There needs to be a plan of action, complete with goals and the steps needed to get there. You need to be realistic about how much time you have to invest, what your current skills are and what your equipment can do for you as well.
With that in consideration, here are some golf tips on how to play like a pro:
Develop a consistent pre-shot routine.
Consistency will ensure you automatically know what you're doing before each shot. You don't have to over think it. You just walk up there, consider the conditions and the shot and then do what you need to do.
Practice with a purpose.
Don't just "play around" when you go out to practice. Always have a purpose and a goal in mind when practicing golf or a golf technique.
Know how far each of clubs will hit.
Test it, learn it and memorize it. This will be vital in choosing clubs while on the course. It will also give you confidence in your choices.
Keep the club in front of your chest.
At post impact, the club should be in front of your chest and you switch the weight of the rest of your body accordingly. This helps you maintain consistency in the swing.
Divide the green into thirds.
To determine how to move the ball on the green, divide the green into thirds. Then you will establish whether you putt, chip or pitch.
Don't think about where you don't want it to go.
When you approach a shot and think about the worst case scenario, you're setting yourself up for disaster. Never think "I hope it doesn't go in the water/trees/sand." Instead, focus your thoughts on where you want it to go.
Work on problems one at a time.
If you face problems in your game, you need to take them one at a time. Trying to change too many things at once can affect other areas of your game and even create new problems. So fix one thing at a time and let the rest go.
These are just some basic golf tips but they are fundamentals that will become a regular part of your routine. By doing so, certain techniques become "second nature", as they are with the pros.

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Golf Tips - Driving

Have you ever watched the British Open or the Masters and wonder just how the pro's managed to smash the ball 350 yards even though none of them seem to be very well built, yet you can only muster 300 yards if you're lucky? Between this report and the video that accompanies it I am going to share with you golf tips driving that most of your opponents or instructors don't want you to know. It gives them the edge knowing they possess valuable information that will gain them extra yards on their drives, or be able to correct a slice if it starts to occur.
The drive is probably the most important shot of each hole. Master this shot and notice the difference between a round of 70 and a round of 100. There are many things that can be done to dramatically improve the quality of your driving and lower your handicap. Golf tips driving can be hard to find among the masses and masses of golf tips available to us on the internet.
This is not a lesson on the mechanics of the perfect golf swing, it is not a lesson on how you should stand when swinging the club, however it is a golf tips driving lesson on connecting with the ball correctly, hence eradicating the slice and hook off of your shot and gaining you valuable yards on your shots.
If you sit down and think about the golf swing logically you should come up with the answer that the shaft of the club is basically an extension of your arms and it is the head of the golf club that does all of the work. The trick to figure out is what golf tips driving you can use to get the head of the club to do what you want it to.
Let me try and explain it another way and use baseball as the sport instead of golf. The first tip I will discuss involves knowing a little bit about baseball. Now if you recall in baseball when a batter wants to place a bunt the bat does not swing through the plate, this results in the ball travelling a short distance in a relatively controlled manner. But on the other hand, when a batter wants to hit a home run he has to swing the bat completely through the plate transferring the energy from bat to ball making the ball travel as far as the energy will take it. If the bat is too late at connecting with the ball then the ball will veer off to the right for a foul ball, if the batter is too early with his swing then the ball will hook off to the left resulting in a foul ball. These issues are the same in golf. This is why we slice or hook the ball, the club head has to meet with the ball squarely and the transfer of energy correct for the ball to travel straight.
Many golf tips driving focus too much on the stance, or how you actually swing the club when more emphases should be placed on how the club head meets with the ball. We have to remember that the shaft of the club is an extension of our arms and it is the head of the club that does all of the work. The head of the club needs to open fully on the backswing and then progress to being closed on the downswing, making contact with the ball right in the centre. To get the club head to do this we need to use our hands to rotate the shaft of the club clockwise on the backswing for right handed golfers, on the downswing rotate the hands anticlockwise to close the club head.
I hope these golf tips driving have been helpful and improve your golf game the way it was intended.
The head of the club is essentially the baseball bat trying to hit a home run. Take a club out of your bag right now and practice the motion of opening the club face and closing the club face. Most golf tips driving do not teach you this drill, but it is very important to keeping the ball straight down the fairway.
When you are comfortable with the motion of opening and closing the club face, take it to the driving range and practice these golf tips driving and getting into a comfortable stance and swing that will enable you to connect with the ball with your tool (the club head) just like a baseball player uses his tool (the bat) to swing through and hit a home run.
Good luck and I hope I helped.

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Cyprus Golf

The beautiful island of Cyprus is fast becoming a golfer's paradise. Here on the island the ideal Mediterranean climate makes golf a game that you can enjoy all the year round. The island has three international standard 18-hole golf courses all set in tranquil surroundings away from the busy tourist . All of the courses are located in the Paphos area on landscaped hills that are easily accessed from the surrounding areas.

Aphrodite Hills Golf Course

The Aphrodite Hills development estate includes the award winning 18-hole championship standard Aphrodite Hills Golf Course, a luxury five star , luxury villas and apartments, a village square with restaurants and shops, a tennis academy and a spa. Located near the legendary birthplace of the Greek mythological goddess of love, the golf course is built on two plateaux which are separated by a deep ravine. Designed by Cabell B. Robinson, an acclaimed course architect, the course offers amazing views over the Mediterranean, challenging pot bunkers, beautifully manicured fairways of lush Bermuda grass ad tiered greens. The 7th hole is the course's signature par 3 hole which plays steeply down across a canyon onto a large green which is nestled in an olive grove. The course also has a double ended 350 metre practice range, four target greens with bunkers, short game practice facilities, three residential professional golf instructors and three academy holes. The clubhouse has a bar and a restaurant with terraces overlooking the green.

Elea Golf Course

Designed by Nick Faldo, the world-class Elea golf course is part of the Elea Estate where you will find a boutique hotel, luxury apartments and villas, spa facilities and a great choice of dining options. The course has an excellent location with breathtaking views of Paphos Town and the beautiful Mediterranean Sea. Weaving its way through the rolling countryside where weathered outcrops of limestone add character and contrast, golfers of all levels can explore and unravel all 18-holes of the course. This is a challenging course that meanders through olive groves where some holes are surrounded by Mediterranean grasses, native flora and wild herbs. Next to the golf house there is the Elea Golf Academy which features a full length driving range with bunkers and target greens, a putting green and a short game practice area. The stunning putting green offers amazing views across the whole of the golf course.

Secret Valley Golf Course

The Secret Valley Golf Course is located in a beautiful valley about 12 miles from Paphos near to 'Petra tou Romiou', the birthplace of the mythical goddess of love, Aphrodite. Offering wonderful panoramic views of the area, the course is set in scenic hills and is surrounded by mature trees and dramatic rock formations. This 18-hole course also offers tuition by a PGA qualified resident golf instructor, putting greens, chipping areas, fairway bunkers and a large driving range. The recently renovated clubhouse includes locker rooms, a sports shop offering equipment for hire or sale, bars and a restaurant with terraces overlooking the course and artificial lake.

Minthis Hills Golf Course

The recently refurbished Minthis Golf Course was founded in 1994. The club is set in the grounds of a 12th century monastery and is surrounded by vineyards and orchards. Nestled in a small valley on the outskirts of Paphos, the course sits at an altitude of 550 meters above sea level and is therefore blessed with cooling sea breezes during the summer months. A recent refurbishment of the greens by British golf course architects Mackenzie and Ebert has included all tees being rebuilt and expanded, bunkers reshaped and new bunkers added. The new club house is under construction and is in a traditional Cypriot architectural style with lots of glass and wood as the dominant features. With golf becoming an increasingly popular attraction on the island, there are lots of holiday deals to Cyprus available throughout the internet.

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Golf Tips - Putting

Putting can be one of the most daunting shots you can prepare for when taking up golf as a serious sport or as a hobby. Thankfully there are some great golf tips on putting that will help you no end in your quest to keep a low handicap. In this report about Golf Tips - Putting we will show you a few training drills to get you ready for a confident round of golf.

Around the World is one of the best golf tips for putting to gain confidence.

Around the world or circle putting as it is otherwise known involves you placing 10 - 15 balls evenly around the hole about 1 foot away from the hole. Make sure the hole and surrounding area is flat, putting on a slope is a different drill all together.
Start sinking the putts working your way around the clock or circle. If you miss one, start again from the beginning until you sink all of the balls one after another without missing one.
Once you have sank all of the balls in a row, then place them around the hole again, but this time move them a further foot away from the hole so you are now 2 feet from the hole, and repeat the process.
The aim is to sink a good 100 putts in a row without missing one. This drill will give you confidence when confronted with short putts.

The Four-Points Putting Drill
 

is designed to help with reading the break of a putt.Make sure that the hole and the surrounding area you plan on using is on a slope this time. Now place 4 balls around the hole 1 foot away from the hole in the n/e/s/w positions.
Read the break the balls should take, now sink each putt in order just like in the previous drill. Make sure you sink all the putts in a row before you move them further from the hole by another foot.
Your goal here is to sink as many as you can in a row, when you miss, start over.

Bonus Golf Tip - Putting

When dealing with long putts and it seems impossible to get that little white ball into a hole no bigger than 3 inches in diameter for 25 feet, use your imagination. Exaggerate the size of the hole, imagine that you are trying to putt that tiny little ball into a crater 3 foot wide, this way you have more confidence in your putting abilities as it is so much easier to sink a putt into a huge hole rather than a small hole. If you miss getting the ball into the hole, at least you will know that your ball will be no further than 3 feet from the hole. This way you 2 putt instead of 3 or 4 putt.
Try this trick out and see your handicap drop instantly. Practice these drills on the putting green and you will reap the benefits on the course in no time. Those dreaded 3 foot putts will be a thing of the past, your confidence will be so sky high that you will be sinking 3 foot putts in your sleep.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Paul_Rollo