How Not To Spend Much On Golf Training Equipment And Achieve Great Results

A deluge of tools

In many ways, this is the most exciting era in golf for those who want to improve their game. There are all sort of resources: books, websites, videos, etc., along with tools and gadgets that promise to help you break 80.

This plethora of options can cause problems however. Players can feel overwhelmed and end up "playing golf swing" rather than "playing golf". This article will give you some tips on how to improve you game without losing time and money on golf training equipment.

Stay low-tech

Ask yourself, "What did the golfers from the past do?" They played really well and didn't have any fancy training equipment. Golfers and golf instructors from 50 years ago used belts, beach balls, umbrellas, towels, walls, garden furniture, and so on. So before you get carried away with buying the stuff you've seen on the home shopping channels, here a few everyday items you can use to improve your golf game:

• Coins

Place a coin under your ball when you putt. Once the ball is on its way to the hole, keep looking at the coin. This will train you to keep your head still.

• Tee pegs

When chipping, mark out a "landing zone" on the green with tee pegs. Aim to land your chip in this zone for better chipping.

• Tee peg

Hit iron shots off a tee peg and keep looking at the tee after the ball is gone. This will train you to keep your head level during your swing.

• Umbrella

Place an umbrella in the ground outside your right heel and "bump" the umbrella during your backswing. This drill will improve your weight transfer.

• A wooden board

Place a wooden board in a practice bunker and cover it with sand. Place your ball on top and proceed to hit bunker shots. Aim to "bounce" your sand wedge off the board to improve your bunker play.

Short circuits

Don't get overwhelmed with trying to work on too many things with your golf technique. Doing this will lead to paralysis by analysis, similar to what ruined the tail end of Nick Faldo's career. Focus on one fault and fix at a time. Once you have corrected one fault, move on to the next. By practicing in this way, you will only need one gadget at a time.

Focus on the fundamentals

Many golfers buy too much equipment when they try to work on complex, technical things aspects of their game. If you focus on the golf basics (your set up and your turn) you don't need fancy gadgets and equipment.