Beginner questions

[Jd1980]

Hello from a total newbie to golf
So far I have been to a driving range twice
I'm wondering how long people would recommend waiting before I attempt a go on the course
There was a significant improvement on my 2nd attempt at the range (as in i hit more than I missed) but I'll need some time to learn accuracy I think

Secondly I'm currently renting a club every time I go.... I don't want to fork out for a set as yet until I'm sure the game is for me.. But would anyone recommend purchasing a single club (if so which one) just for practice purposes

Many thanks for any advice

 

[bobmac]

Hi and welcome to the forum.
If your not over tall or short, just get a 7 iron off ebay or from your local pro shop. That should do until you're ready to splash some money.
But one thing I suggest you do now!
Have a lesson or two with a PGA Pro
Nothing worse for a pro than trying to undo all the mistakes you have learned on your own

 

[bladeplayer]

As always Bob has a sensible & helpful reply , if your nrar a shop or range , approach the pro , tell him/her where your at & where you hope to get to

Most pros will set u along the right road ,

 

[anotherdouble]

Hello and welcome. As has been said, try your local range. My local one is running a ,Get into Golf scheme. For £36 you get 4 hrs of lessons and a couple of refresher sessions. Great value

 

[Dasit]

Hello from a total newbie to golf
So far I have been to a driving range twice
I'm wondering how long people would recommend waiting before I attempt a go on the course
There was a significant improvement on my 2nd attempt at the range (as in i hit more than I missed) but I'll need some time to learn accuracy I think

Secondly I'm currently renting a club every time I go.... I don't want to fork out for a set as yet until I'm sure the game is for me.. But would anyone recommend purchasing a single club (if so which one) just for practice purposes

Many thanks for any advice

Get on groupon and search golf in your area.

Usually always very good deal for 2 or 3 hours of golf coaching. Then after that decide what you want to do next.

 

[Huwey12]

Hi JD, welcome
I kicked off in golf with 6 1/2 lessons, albeit a xmas present. Prior to attending I bought a half iron set off ebay (Ram irons, very forgiving for £18)
If you don't want to go down the pro lesson route there's plenty of stuff on you tube but you have to filter the content you watch, some is a bit naff
On my 1st lesson i was told to forget distance and concentrate on technique and accuracy with a half swing back and through

Important things to work on are the grip, posture, takeaway and a smooth transition to completion of stroke, easier said than done if you are an aggressive player in any ball sports

Take it slow and easy and you should improve and enjoy the game

 

[Andy]

Hi JD, welcome
I kicked off in golf with 6 1/2 lessons, albeit a xmas present. Prior to attending I bought a half iron set off ebay (Ram irons, very forgiving for £18)
If you don't want to go down the pro lesson route there's plenty of stuff on you tube but you have to filter the content you watch, some is a bit naff
On my 1st lesson i was told to forget distance and concentrate on technique and accuracy with a half swing back and through

Important things to work on are the grip, posture, takeaway and a smooth transition to completion of stroke, easier said than done if you are an aggressive player in any ball sports

Take it slow and easy and you should improve and enjoy the game

Sorry but the last thing you should be recommending to a new player is to try and self learn from YouTube.

As Bob stated, learn the fundamentals from a PGA Pro who can see you and highlight any faults personally.

 

[Huwey12]

I didn't recommend not to see a pro. I was just stating an alternative if the op didn't want the expense of lessons

Bob's spot on with his advice. Lets face it one or two lessons won't be sufficient, i had six at a cost of £20 half hour just to kick me off and a few more at a later stage to get me to a mid teen hcap, that was the cost years ago

The op seems to be caught between taking up the sport seriously but doesn't want to incur too much expense until he decides whether golf is for him or not. I know I would be pretty sick if I forked out serious money on lessons only to find the game wasn't for me

 

[MadAdey]

Stear clear of YOUTUBE, you will not have any idea if the advice you are watching is any good or not. Go get a lesson, you will get taught how to grip it and address the ball correctly. Also you will get some basics of how to start the backswing. Your not going to get much more out of 1 lesson, but at least you will be starting out on the correct lines and you will possibly hit the ball better than you are. Obviously the more lessons you get the more you will learn.

At the end of the day 1 lesson is going to cost not much more than a few pints of beer. If you do find that you are enjoying it and want to start playing more at least you have started on the correct lines and can look at taking some more lessons to learn more about the swing.

 

[Smiffy]

Steer clear of YOUTUBE

Agree wholeheartedly.
If I have a game coming up and watch a YouTube video or read a magazine tip prior to playing, I can guarantee it will mess with my head.
As Bob has suggested, buy yourself a relatively "up to date" 7 iron (plenty on ebay) with a "regular" shaft and get yourself down to a professional.
He has seen it all before so despite your misgivings, he is definitely not going to ridicule your first attempts.
Get the basics right (grip, stance, ball position etc) and hit some balls.
Do not take the advice of well meaning friends, especially with regards what shaft you should have in your clubs.
A pro will be able to tell you this within the first couple of lessons, and getting the right shaft for your natural swing speed, (and believe me, you will have a natural swing speed), is paramount.
Starting with a regular shaft will be the indicator.
A lot of club pro's offer "beginners" lessons, usually a course of say half a dozen at a reduced rate. Much cheaper than booking individual ones.
Let us know which area you are in, and I am sure you will get a few recommendations for clubs that offer this.
This website might be of assistance....
https://golflessonsnearme.co.uk/

 

[chellie]

Check out Get into Golf https://www.getintogolf.org/ and enjoy your golf.

 

[MrBrightside]

Try and look for par3 courses in your area, all you need is a putter and a pitching wedge as the holes are~100yards in length. Combine this with range work, i.e hitting the 100yrd target and chipping into the baskets etc with a 7i to the longer 150yrd markers.

 

[User62651]

When you do venture onto a course, try and go with someone who knows the do's and dont's of general golf behaviour, sounds daft but you will pick up a lot - where to stand when others are teeing off, when to be still if people are putting out nearby, when to play a provisional ball, raking bunkers the right way, where to leave bags, attending the flag for pp etc etc.