Do you have everything you need for the golf season?  Are you wondering what swing thought to use for the first few rounds of the season?  Here are some tips that will help you get off to a fast start to the 2015 season.

As we come out of winter, attempting to chip the rust off the game can be an arduous and frustrating task. The first key when starting out the golf season is to set realistic goals and try to be patient. Understanding that it can take a few weeks to get your swing in rhythm and your short game tuned up will help you mentally focus on what is important- seeing gradual but positive improvement. I recommend starting to work hard on your short game early in the year. This will help establish your touch around the greens and keep your scores reasonably within your handicap range even when you may be struggling a little bit with your swing out of the gates. Work on your putting stroke and chipping and pitching. I would also encourage you to practice a lot in the bunker as that can help hone the muscles in your wrists and forearms.

After a couple of weeks of expending 75% of your practice time on your short game you are ready to start concentrating on your full swing. The most important thing to concentrate on are the fundamentals especially your posture and alignment. Remember it may have been a while since you touched a club and tried lo hit a golf ball at a target and things change over time. Our eyes have a tendency to fool us so make certain that you establish some visual aids for your self when you are hitting full shots on the range during your first practice sessions. If you don’t already have alignment rods get some. Sailing that, use a long iron to establish your target line (the line you want your ball to take) by placing it a couple feet in front of your ball directly at your target. This will help you square up and aim your club squarely. Take another long iron and place it beside and parallel to the first club as an alignment aid for your stance. You want your feet, hips and shoulders to be aligned parallel and left of your target (for a right handed golfer). These alignment aids will definitely help you.

Working on good athletic posture will also be helpful. I recommend getting in front of a mirror so that you can see exactly what it is you are doing. In practicing good posture one should start in a straight standing position and bend from the hips until your arms start to hang in a relaxed fashion. The hands will be about a fist width away from the belt buckle when assuming this position. When you bend forward you need to counter balance the weight of your head by letting your back side get over the middle of your feet. Try not to let your back arch too much here. Now unlock your knees. You should be in a fairly athletic and balanced position here. It should feel like the starting position in other sports you have played. Imagine guarding the hoop in basket ball, receiving a serve in tennis or volley ball or getting ready to bat standing over home plate (head in a proud position, weight centered, arms relaxed and very rooted to the ground).

Another thing a golfer should do is to have a CPGA Professional check their set of golf clubs to make up to ensure that the clubs they are using are ready to go. This would involve using a lie and loft machine to check the lie angle and loft of your irons to ensure there are no gaps and that the lie angles of your irons have not flattened over time. The grips of clubs should also be checked and changed if they are worn.

The beginning of the season is an exciting time so be sure you are working on the fundamentals and get your equipment checked. If you are looking to be fit or need any additional pointers remember to visit the Palmer Golf Institute at the GBC Academy at Olympic View.