Effortless Golf

Basically, a set of clubs consists of ‘woods’ and irons and a putter.

WOODS
Woods ( a generic term for the shape of the club as these are often made of other materials) are the more bulbous headed clubs with greater clubhead density, designed for propelling the ball longer distances. Originally, these numbered from 1 (Driver) to 4-wood, but these days it seems that woods can have any degree of loft and can number down to the higher iron numbers.

IRONS
A normal set of irons consists of numbers 3 to 9, together with a pitching wedge and sand wedge for use around the greens and from bunkers. The lower the number on the club, normally the longer the shaft to give a bigger swing arc, and the less the degree of loft on the face. These are designed to hit the ball lower over longer distances. The higher the number, the shorter the shaft and greater degree of loft. These are intended to hit the ball higher and over shorter distances.

There are a number of additional clubs, such as a 1 or driving iron, and a lob wedge with a very high degree of loft, which is intended to get the ball very high, thereby reducing the amount of run on the ball once it lands.

THE PUTTER
Has a flat face, and is designed to cause the ball to roll along the ground in places such as the putting green.

Basically, the golfer is free to choose his/her optimal selection of clubs, the only provisos being the maximum number (14) which may be taken out on a given (competitive) round, and the fact that the design of the club must conform to the rules as laid down by the authorities and amended from time to time as part of the rules of golf.

Pick up any golf magazine, and you will be presented with a bewildering array of clubs and balls even clothing all of which are guaranteed to put additional distance on your drives or spin on your pitch shots. The reality is that for the vast majority of golfers they will probably make very little, if any, difference.

WHAT DO YOU NEED TO START?
When you start out in the game, a good basic set or half-set is as good as anything. Ok, if you are abnormally short or tall, you may experience some difficulty with standard sizing and may have to have something specially made. Other than that, there is no real requirement for heading to your local leading brand specialist and having a set made up of special lengths, shaft types, grip thickness and all of the other variables that can go into club design.

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taken from “Beginners Guide to Golf” download from www.cheapestebooksaround.co.uk

Golf is a game enjoyed by millions of people worldwide. Whether you are seven, seventeen or seventy, golf is a game that is both challenging and fun. As with many other things in life, starting is the most difficult part. A beginner golfer has several choices to make, and one of the most important of these choices is what kind of clubs to get. These days, it is very easy to spend a lot of money on state of the art golf clubs. However, the game of golf can also be played and enjoyed with a set of more inexpensive clubs. There are several aspects to consider when you are picking out your first set of golf clubs.

If you are new to the game of golf and are not sure whether you will like it or not, or if you are the type of person that tends to take up a hobby and tire of it quickly, an inexpensive set of golf clubs is probably your best option. Not only is it a more affordable approach, but choosing an inexpensive set also gives you the option of replacing them with a better set of clubs at some point down the line. Most stores and websites carry several varieties of inexpensive golf clubs.

If you do not want to spend a lot of money on a golf club set, you can also consider buying a half of a set of clubs. This option is more reasonable for beginners, as well as for many experienced players who want to save a few dollars. As the name suggests, a half set of clubs contains about half of the standard number of clubs. If you are choosing a full set, keep in mind that the rules of golf allow a maximum of 14 clubs to be carried at one time.

Your skill level will greatly influence the specific clubs that you decide to use during your game. If you are new to the game, you may want to carry more of the lower numbered irons (7, 8, 9, PW), which tend to be easier to control but have less distance. If you are just starting out, you probably do not need more than one wood. In most cases for a beginner, a three wood is generally easier to control than a driver, and the difference in length will not make much of a difference. The putter will be one of your most important clubs, and since there are so many different styles of putters, it is usually not sold as part of a set of golf clubs. You can simply go to a good golf store and spend some time trying out different putters with the help of a golf professional.

Most standard golf clubs are designed for a right handed male who is about 5 feet, 10 inches tall. If you are close to this in height, you probably do not need to be measured for your golf clubs. Being measured or fitted for golf clubs is similar to being measured for a suit. If you are taller or shorter than the standard height and are picking out your first set of golf clubs, you should definitely consider being measured. This way, you can be sure the clubs you have chosen are just right for you. There are golf clubs designed specifically for left-handed individuals, women and for children as well. Keep in mind that custom clubs usually come with a higher price tag.

Another thing that you may want to consider when picking your first set of golf clubs is whether to use steel or graphite shafted clubs. Steel shafted clubs are generally more affordable and more durable whereas graphite shafted clubs are lighter and can also help produce a faster swing. Wooden drivers are all but a thing of the past, as most modern drivers now have heads made from metal such as titanium, or a composite such as carbon fiber. Titanium is ideal for golf clubs as it is lighter, stronger, and more resistant to corrosion. Most importantly, however, it has an increased hitting area, or sweet spot, which can provide greater accuracy. If you are taking the game seriously, you may want to buy metal woods. If you are just starting out, older wooden drivers are adequate.

It is important to remember that golf is as much a game of practice and positive thinking as it is of skill and accuracy. For most golfers, golf is not a game that you can quickly master. It takes time, dedication and plenty of practice. Some golfers, even after improving their game to an acceptable level, develop a hitch in their swing which can throw their entire game off. As stated before: whether you are seven, seventeen or seventy, golf is a game that is both challenging and fun. Choosing a set of clubs that feels comfortable in your hands and practicing often will help you get the most enjoyment out of golf, and will help your score as well!

Jason Nichols is a freelance writer who writes about sports, often focusing on a particular product used in sports such as golf clubs .

The handicap basically allows people of very different golfing ability to compete with each other. Other sports do have a handicap system, but nowhere does it work as effectively as in the game of golf.

Lets take an example of a 9 handicap player meeting a 16 handicapper in a Matchplay singles match. They would take the difference between their handicaps 7 and apply the (a three quarter) of difference principle if their club uses this rather than the full difference (equals 5.25) rounded to the nearest full number (Equals 5). The 16 handicap player would get an extra stroke over his opponent at the first 5 stroke index numbered holes on the course.

Handicaps are administered by the Golf Clubs themselves, according to rules laid down by their responsible national union.
Officially, there is no other way, despite the claims of a number of bodies to being able to award official handicaps (except where low handicaps are administered by a regional body rather than a club)

Most golf clubs have a committee (council) member responsible for this. A players handicap can be varied upwards or downwards as a result of his/her performance in qualifying competition. The committee also has the right under the rules of golf (rule 19b) to make merit adjustments to a members handicap.

Handicaps fall into 4 categories for men and 6 for ladies, as follows:

Category Handicap range
1 0 5
2 6 12
3 13 20
4 21 28
5 29 40
6 41 45

Clubs often have names rather than category numbers for the different levels, ranging from the Gold/silver etc to the Tigers and Rabbits and the like.

Stroke Index
All golf clubs are required to publish a HANDICAP STROKE TABLE, indicating the order of holes at which handicap strokes are to be given or received. This always appears on the course scorecard under the heading stroke index. This is a list of numbers from 1 to 18 where handicap strokes are taken. The lower numbers indicate a higher degree of difficulty, hence a person receiving, for example, 9 strokes, either in a handicap competition or from a playing opponent, would receive an extra stroke at each of the holes with a Stroke Index from 1 to 9 inclusive.
The degree of difficulty is a relative term, as the Club Committee is requested to observe a number of recommendations when setting the stroke index such as balancing the numbers between the two nines of an 18 hole course. This is especially noticeable if you visit a course which has 3 or more nines which can be played in different combinations allowance must be made for the balancing and other factors, when wondering why a hole played much easier (or harder!) than its stroke index would indicate. One thing you can guarantee the stroke index 1 hole has been given that status for a very good reason!

Qualifying competitions
These are normally club competitions which qualify for handicap adjustment purposes. These is a complex area and not for these pages! Purely as an example, a competition may be declared non qualifying if it is played when many temporary greens are in use, affecting the overall length of the course.

Standard Scratch Score (SSS)
This is a fixed number agreed by the Club with the ruling bodies. This is the score it would be expected a scratch golfer would go round in. This can differ from the course par by anything up to plus3 to minus 3 of the course par. It is this number which is used for handicap adjustment, rather than the par of the course.

Competition Scratch Score
This is arrived at as a result of calculations on the day of a competition, taking into account the degree of difficulty (climactic conditions) size of field and generally how the different handicap categories performed. If this is different to the SSS, it replaces it for that day

Qualifying score
Any score, including a no return returned in a qualifying competition

Net differential
Is the difference plus or minus between the nett score returned by a player in a qualifying competition and the competition scratch score

Buffer Zone
Adjustments. Changes to handicaps are made in accordance with a set of rules administered by the national regional authority. For simplicitys sake, a players handicap may increase or decrease by a tenth of a point for every full shot that player is above or below the CSS multiplied by the number of their category. So a 10 handicap player (category 2) coming in 3 below the CSS would expect to see his handicap reduced by 3 multiplied by 0.2 shots equals 0.6.

There is a so called buffer zone which prevents handicaps increasing quite so directly. Again, the category number is used, but this time as a whole number, and this is applied before any adjustments are made. So a score of 3 over CSS for our 10 handicapper (category 2) would result in an increase in handicap of just 0.1.

Exact v Playing handicap
It will be immediately apparent that there is no point moving handicaps up and down by the odd decimal place if there is no record kept of other than round numbers. Every player has an exact handicap as well as a playing one. The playing one is simply the rounded whole number of the exact one. Thus 8.4 equals 8, 8.5 equals 9

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Taken from The eBook “Beginners Guide to Golf” download from www.cheapestebooksaround.co.uk