Beginner Golf Tips - Key to Golf Ball Spin
May 19, 2008
Teach me how to put spin on a golf ball, please? Very new to golf and watching my friends do it over and over with ease makes me want to learn how. Many thanks!! - Jim in Trinidad, CO
Strangely enough, putting spin on a golf ball happens whenever you hit the ball. The key here is obvious, learn how to do it when you want or need to. Through practice, practice, practice and a ton of dedication you will know how to spin a golf ball at will. Having golf ball spin is highly useful, especially to keep your score down. So here are some simple steps to apply that are key to golf ball spin.
Stand with your feet closer together. Position yourself in such a way that the ball is as close to your back foot, as possible. Make sure to use a 60° wedge, also known as a flop wedge is recommended for playing such a shot. A sand wedge can be used in emergency. When you take your swing, you need to swing your club on steeper plane to where you make impact directly at the bottom of the ball.
Don’t let yourself become distracted though by watching your friends putting spin on a golf ball. They have definitely worked themselves to the point where they can make it look so easy and that is something that should be admired rather than envied. Remember to let yourself focus on what you want to achieve but don’t be too attached to the result.
Worrying about it while you are taking your swing will do nothing but frustrate you and hold you back. So follow those simple steps you and will have the key to golf ball spin whenever you need it. Also, you may want to check out my other posts on this subject to get more information and a broader perspective of how its done. Check out How to Put Spin on a Golf Ball and Making Golf Spin Happen. Happy strokes!!
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A Clean Golf Club - Beginner Golf Tips
April 16, 2008
Hey Golf Virgin how much effect do you think it has if you don’t have a clean golf club? - Paul in West Point, MS
Oooo… by that question alone I can smell your virginity! Take some beginner golf tips right here and realize the essential need of a clean golf club. Paul, its of vital importance to keep the head of your golf clubs clean because the grooves are what help put spin on the ball.
Now, after playing game after game with out cleaning your golf clubs, the grooves become packed with dirt and the clubface contact with the ball is reduced. The accuracy of your shots will decrease significantly as a result of having all that dirt embedded in the grooves.
The best way I’ve found to clean this is by using a wire brush with some soapy water. By using the brush, you can slide it into those little grooves and get out all of the dirt which I’m positive has built up by now. Click on the link for the exact instructions on how to clean your golf clubs and after you’ve finished reading that click on the following link to learn where you can find golf ball washers out on the course.
Paul, since you clicked on both of those links, which I’m sure you have… both your shaft and your balls will be sparkling clean. Happy strokes!!
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Making Golf Spin Happen
April 11, 2008
What are the conditions needed for golf spin to happen? A few friends of mine say that there are certain things have to be met before you can get backspin on a golf ball. Have you heard of that before? - Kern in Phoenix, AZ
Kern, honestly getting good golf spin is something that is pretty hard to accomplish and not to mention doing so in such a way that you can control it. Also, there are only a few reasons why you would need spin on a golf ball to begin with.
Your buddies were right in saying that there are certain conditions which have to be met prior to even thinking about using this shot. If these conditions do not exist, you’re better off not trying to add golf spin. Here are some tips below on when it would be to your advantage to do so.
1. Both the club face and the ball have to absolutely, completely dry.
2. This shot must be taken on the fairway where the grass can’t get in between the club and the ball.
3. The green has to be cut very short.
4. Its really in your favor to use a new ball, that has a high spin rate with a soft cover.
5. And finally use a clean and again a relatively new club that has good groves on the face.
This is pretty much in a nutshell what you need in order to achieve backspin along with a lot of practice. Refer back to my post on how to get good spin on a golf ball so you can have a better understanding of making this difficult shot happen.
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Stretches for Golfers
March 20, 2008
Hi Golf Virgin, do you know of a good golf stretch to help my golf muscles not be so sore after just a few rounds? - Jeremiah in Santa Fe, NM
You’re not asking if there are stretches for golfers because you’re having difficulty holding your shaft with proper form are you? Awww you poor thing… are your golf muscles just cramping up at the worst time possible? Many virgins have had this experience. Jeremiah, I will do my duty and help to alleviate your misery. Read on and I’ll show you a few good ways to get that perfect golf stretch.
For those of you who are not familiar with this sport, believe it or not, there is such a thing as golf muscles. When you take a swing, it uses every major muscle in your body. These golf muscles are absolutely necessary for providing the club head speed that is delivered to the ball at impact. The level of your flexibility and strength is the determining factor in how far you can really hit your drives. I have listed 4 quick stretches for golfers below.
Side Bends
1. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and arms at your side
2. Bend to the right keeping your hips facing forward and letting your right arm slide down the outside of your thigh until a stretch is felt along the left side of your torso
3. Hold each stretch for a count of 10
4. Repeat 3 times
5. Reverse arm positions bending to the left and complete steps 1-4 above
Quadriceps Stretch
1. Stand with one arm holding onto a wall or your golf partner
2. With the other hand grasp your ankle and pull your foot behind you toward your buttocks
3. Feel a stretch in the front of your thigh
4. Hold for a count of 10
5. Repeat 3 times on each leg
Hamstring Stretch
1. Sit with your right leg out in front and your left leg bent so your left foot touches your right knee
2. Reach down your right leg until you feel a stretch in the back of your thigh
3. Hold for 10 seconds
4. Repeat times 3
5. Repeat steps 1-4 with your left leg out in front
Trunk Rotation
1. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart
2. Bend your arms at your elbows grasping the golf club behind your head
3. Twist your upper body toward the right keeping your hips facing forward
4. Hold for a count of 10
5. Twist your body toward the left and hold
6. Repeat each stretch 3 times
Training your golf muscles with these particular stretches for golfers enables you to develop the power needed to achieve a great swing. Remember, this is a highly dynamic sport that requires balance, coordination, stability and body awareness. You can’t get this just by training on machines alone. If you really do put the time and effort in stretching before you play, you will be surprised and amazed with how quickly your game improves. Happy strokes!!
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Are Balata Balls for Virgins?
March 8, 2008
Hey Golf Virgin, I have heard about balata balls from my friends and I wanted to know if they were better? - Ivan in Bay City, MI
Gosh, I love virgins… so naive… so willing to try new and interesting ways of doing things. Has listening to your buddies talk about their balata golf balls and how much better they feel got you curious hun?
Balata balls are covered by a substance derived from the gum of the “Bully” or Balata tree of the West Indies and Northeastern South America. These types of balls are said to have more “action” or spin to them along with a better feel but not necessarily the distance of other balls. Here is something that you should remember though, beginners should avoid these because they are not as durable due to the covering and can be more expensive.
Just keep playing with the golf balls you have right now and soon, one day… you can open your package of fresh new balata golf balls and with your nice and shiny balata putter, sink one deep into the 18th hole for The Golf Virgin. Enjoy!!
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A Golf Slice Cured
March 7, 2008
I have a golf slice but I really want to get better and improve this as much as possible. Do you think this is something that I can work out on my own? - Quinn in Rapid City, SD
A golf slice requires a lot of hard work to improve and if you really are interested in making this cure stick then lets get into the meat of how and why this happens and go from there. I want to pick this apart so you can gain a much clearer understanding of what you need to improve your stroke. Now, to make it perfectly clear, this advice is for righties so you need to reverse this if you are lefty.
If you hit a golf slice to the right, it means that it’s curving in a left-right motion across the horizon and if the ball doing this, it is spinning in a clockwise direction. Right now, imagine that your ball is sitting on a peg. To spin the ball clockwise, the club has to swing more to the left with the clubface pointing slightly to the right. In a golf slice, hitting the ball with an open clubface makes the ball curve across the sky as a slice. So tell me, my virgin friend, how’s your grip in golf?
Consider this. Your grip has little to do with the direction of the swing but has absolutely everything to do with where the clubface is looking upon impact with the golf ball such as being in the opened, closed or square position. Everyone has their own unique way of holding a golf club. To keep this simple, if your hands are turned too far to the left on the club, this will more likely than not return with the face of the club looking to the right at impact.
Something else to keep in mind while preparing to swing is having a correct golf stance. In the course of playing you find yourself hitting a golf slice far to the left, you may find yourself compensating by adjusting your swing over to the right. However, in doing this basically you are not addressing the root of the problem and creating another one from the opposite direction. What do you do to fix this then?
Lay your club on the ground and make sure that it is parallel with your target line so you can check your aim. Make positive that your aim is not too far over to the left and keep in mind the alignment between your feet, knees, hips and shoulders are parallel to the club on the ground and with your target line.
By checking your stance you can determine what is really going on with your swing. Let the ball be your guide. Are you seeing it curving less over to the right? If so then you are getting close and if its curving over to the left or flying straight, then you are starting to make some headway.
Now if you are one of those rare hard to find, self-motivated go getters, then it is definitely possible that with practice and A LOT of hard work you will see an improvement in your score, not to mention your overall enjoyment of the game.
Get out there and experience for yourself if this works go over to all your buddies and tell them how the Golf Virgin helped improve your game. You never know until you try.
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How to Put Spin on a Golf Ball
February 27, 2008
I really want to learn how to get a good spin on a golf ball when I’m trying to shoot over an obstacle or get the ball to land in a position where I can make an easy putt. It’s something I’ve always been curious about but could never get a handle on and I wanted to see if you knew of the best way to make this happen. - Jimmy in Little Rock, AR
Being able to put spin on a golf ball is not an easy thing to do. However, getting the ball to stop almost where it lands can help you keep your score down and ultimately win a game. This becomes especially useful when you’re hitting onto firm greens or when the pin is placed directly behind a bunker or body of water. Listed below are some simple to follow steps towards becoming familiar with the basic technique of adding a good spin on a golf ball.
Step 1:
Stand closer in your stance for a normal golf swing which is a shoulder-width apart, so go ahead and stand about 1/3 shorter of the regular shoulder-width stance.
Step 2:
Also, stand a little closer to the ball so that its closer to your back foot.
Step 3:
Use a 60-degree wedge which is also known as a flop wedge.
Step 4:
Make sure to swing your club on a steeper plane than what you would during a regular shot. Basically hit down at a steeper angle.
Step 5:
Hit directly underneath the ball before taking a divot and do your best to take a divot that is long and shallow.
Step 6:
Follow through as you would during a normal shot.
An easy way to look at is to take an analogy from playing pool. When you put backspin on a golf ball it’s very similar in nature to putting backspin on a cue ball. To accomplish this you strike the cue ball at a steep downward angle with a great deal of force which then imparts this energy on the bottom half of the cue ball and sends it flying.
Perhaps you had the experience of being able to make the ball actually hop up into the air over other balls on the table to achieve a desired effect. Wow, all these different types of ball shots can be a bit mind boggling. But, balls are balls and the harder you hit them, the farther they shoot.
Adding spin on a golf ball allows to hit shots over obstacles such as bunkers, bodies of water, the rough or whatever it is that is in between you and the green. If you put enough backspin on the ball, it takes a couple of bounces and stops. In a perfect world, you would like to be in the position where you hit the ball about 15 to 20 feet from the pin and have the it stop a few feet from the hole and this will leave you a with short putt.
So if you like watching your balls soar through the air and land exactly where you desire then dedicated practice is key to your ability to put spin on a golf ball. But keep in mind that this is one of the hardest shots to master.
Update to Post:
Hi all, recently I’ve had readers take a lot of interest in this particular post and wanted to provide links my other posts on this topic. So go check out my other posts to get a better understanding of this technique by reading Making Golf Spin Happen and Beginner Golf Tips - Key to Golf Ball Spin
Happy stokes!!
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