Nervous beginner!

[seagull]

Hi all,

You all seem a friendly bunch, so I created an account to ask for some help. New to this golf malarkey. Been to the pitch and putt and I want to take it up a step.

I'm 21 and dad's given me his antique, half set of clubs. The bag, too, is heavy and ancient. Will I look an idiot carrying this round the course? Can anyone recommend a decent, lighter bag, given that I don't have a car with me at uni?

Also, I'm a bit nervous about being really rubbish/being too slow. Any advice for playing on my own whilst improving and building confidence in my game?

Cheers!

 

[paddyc]

Welcome to the Forum and the madhouse mate.

Would recommend you find yourself a good pro who can put you on the right path,Lessons would be good to start with, find a local pro who could sort you out a decent half set more suited to your swing. get down the range and practice. Find youself a little 9 hole course or par 3 as a step up from the pitch and putt..Bags you can pick up cheap from golf retailers,online or ebay. Depends on your budget, but dont spend too much initially.



Good luck

 

[Yer Maw]

Hi all,

You all seem a friendly bunch, so I created an account to ask for some help. New to this golf malarkey. Been to the pitch and putt and I want to take it up a step.

I'm 21 and dad's given me his antique, half set of clubs. The bag, too, is heavy and ancient. Will I look an idiot carrying this round the course? Can anyone recommend a decent, lighter bag, given that I don't have a car with me at uni?
Also, I'm a bit nervous about being really rubbish/being too slow. Any advice for playing on my own whilst improving and building confidence in my game?

Cheers!

Get along to a car boot sale or pick up a second hand bag of gumtree for peanuts. Enjoy it and remember thin shot goes further than a fat shot so don't drop the shoulders!

 

[guest100718]

Depends how old ancient is.... if they have wooden shafts and names like mashie then yes probably worth getting something newer.... as for bags there are always some excellent deals to be had . 50 quid should get you a decent stand bag probably less

 

[Dannyj1984]

Definitely recommend gumtree, I got a stand bag for £15 and inside it had a few balls and also a new glove plus iron covers so you never know what bargain you'll get.

Go and get a lesson take your clubs and the pro will be able to tell you if the clubs are suitable to carry on with

 

[virtuocity]

Hi all,

You all seem a friendly bunch, so I created an account to ask for some help. New to this golf malarkey. Been to the pitch and putt and I want to take it up a step.

I'm 21 and dad's given me his antique, half set of clubs. The bag, too, is heavy and ancient. Will I look an idiot carrying this round the course? Can anyone recommend a decent, lighter bag, given that I don't have a car with me at uni?

Also, I'm a bit nervous about being really rubbish/being too slow. Any advice for playing on my own whilst improving and building confidence in my game?

Cheers!

I'd say you're in the fortunate minority of new golfers. Loads of people start when they are young (e.g. 8-16), then give up and come back to the game much later.

You, like me, are a student and should have enough skiving time to get to a course during weekdays when it is quieter. That's good. Rocking up to a packed course on a Saturday is quite intimidating!

Intimidation will still exist though. Fears of looking rubbish, doing the wrong thing, affecting other golfers' enjoyment, taking too long, scoring 150 on your first round, hitting the clubhouse on your approach to the 18th green, losing 20 golf balls. Scary thoughts.

However, you can't control your score at this stage, nor your pace (unless you army crawl around the golf course). You have enough to think about out there, without worrying about what you can't control. Let it go...

What you can control:

-Your self-awareness. Take a look around the green fields. Enjoy the view. Enjoy and mentally record the good shots you hit (you'll have at least one in a round!)

-Your awareness of others. Anyone behind you closing up fast? Step aside, give them a wave. As they pass, they'll thank you. They won't ask you about how good you are at golf and what age your clubs are. They will be grateful (and sometimes relieved) to get past you. The thing is, those golfers will forget about you forever. They don't really care about you- in the nicest sense- as they aren't out playing hoping to bump into you.

-Improvement in the game can come in many forms. These include playing lots of golf, plenty of range time and golf lessons. It's up to you. You'll have lots of people come on and recommend lessons. Not a bad idea at all. Consider group lessons- they are cheaper, help you learn the basics, and you're joined with beginners that share your raw-ness!

-As for gear, yes, gumtree, eBay etc are handy. I'd say you're in no rush. If you can learn that brand spanking new gear makes a very small impact on your game (at your level), then you're years ahead of most beginners. Of course, there will come a time when you want or need to replace clubs etc. The forum will give you guidance on what's a good deal. Stick your budget up and us saddos will happily do online shopping on your behalf- it's what we do!

-Enjoy it. Never, ever stop remembering why you are standing alone in a field, sometimes in the wind in rain.

Good luck.

 

[Face breaker]

Hello and welcome to the house of fun, when I first started playing (seriously) all them years ago (2.5) I started out with an old set of graphite 'Wilson Fatshafts' naturally as I progressed I thought that I needed newer more spangly sticks so I bought a 5yr old set of 'Tour edge/XCG3's' off a mate and rapidly proceeded to go backwards as I couldn't hit the damn things for jack, I'm now rocking a set of 15/16yr old 'Mizuno T-zoid pro II's' (a freak discovery born out of pure frustration) my point is newer doth not nessecarily mean better, one of the chaps at our club actually rocks an old 'hickory stick putter' and wouldn't change it for the world, bags can be picked up for a fist full of change if you look in the right places charity shops/car boots etc. even the pro at your selected venue may well be able to help you out, anyway enough of the rattlin on, good luck, hope it all goes well and finally remember to enjoy it for what it is, a game, nothing more, nothing less...:thup:

 

[seagull]

Thanks all for your encouragement! I'm buzzing to improve and play some golf!

I'll start having a hunt for some lessons. There's a par 3 course near me which I'll check out too. Wish us luck.

Cheers!

 

[BesCumber]

Pm sent.