New to golf - any tips for teeing off?

Question

I was working on my horrible slice time before last at the driving range and thought it was fixed...now the next time when I went to the driving range the balls all went straight, but almost all went about 150 yds on the ground...ugghhh!!! I really do try to keep my eye on the ball and not pop my head up, backswing slowly, and try to follow through well - I dont know what else I'm doing wrong!!! Do those cheesy looking golf videos at the video rental stores help??
I would appreciate any tips that you could give me that I might could concentrate on when I go back out to the driving range tomorrow. Thanks!!!

Answer 1

Here are a few things to think about:

1. Grip. This is the most important part of the swing, and is the only thing that connects you to the club. Make sure that your grip is right -- just because your grip is "comfortable" when you are holding the club does not make it necessarily the correct grip.

2. Weight distribution. Many people think that you should have most or all of your weight on your right side when you take your back swing (assuming you are a right-handed player). No. More of your weight should be on the left side, which leads to #3:

3. The reason to have more of your weight on your left side is because you want to ensure that your body is as quiet as possible during the back swing and down swing. What I mean by this is you want to limit movement of your body as much as possible. Putting a little more weight on your left instep will greatly help you avoid swaying your body.

4. Address. make sure that, on the tee shot, if you are hitting driver, the ball is forward in your stance (near the instep of your right foot (again, assuming you are a right-handed player).

5. Your head. Do not move it until you count to 2 after making contact with the ball. Many people think that they are watching the ball, when in fact they are looking up far too early.

6. Slow down Most golfers, when driving the ball, try to crush it as far as they can (even if they maintain that they are taking an easy pass at the ball). If you think that you are not swinging hard, you probably still are swinging too hard -- make your swing even slower.

7. Don't go past parallel. Most golfers, when taking the backswing, extend the club WAY WAY past paralell on the back swing. What I mean by this is that they take the club back so far that it goes much further than paralell to the ground behind them. If you watch the best players, they take the club back and behind them, but the club never goes past that prallel line with the ground. Just look at Tiger -- he never brings the club over his head too far. On the other hand, John Daly takes it so far past parallel that he can easily see the club out of his left eye when he reaches the apex of his backswing. However, none of us has his skills.

Answer 2

The last time I went to the range I got a tip from a guy who said he was a scratch golfer. The way he hit the ball I believed him.

Set the ball on the tee about an inch off of the grass. Center your body over the ball, spread your feet to shoulder width, bend your waist slightly forward, keep your head down. On your backswing, keep your left elbow straight, come back with your hands close to your body and keeping your head down looking at the ball all the way through. KEEP YOUR FEET DOWN ON THE GROUND, DO NOT LIFT YOUR HEEL OR TURN YOUR FRONT FOOT THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE SWING! Smooth steady backswing, come down smooth and steady, keep your head down and follow through. I struggle to hit the ball 200 yards on a consistent basis but I have been keeping it on the fairway and one of my drives last time out went for 263 yards! Keeping it on the fairway is half the battle.

Answer 3

I had the same problem. I turned my club face more into my body, kept my head down, and didn't try to kill the ball off of the tee. And that helped my slice. As far as the height of your tee shot, it sounds like you are picking your head up, and not hitting the ball flush in the sweet spot. Try to look on your club face to see the mark left from the ball to get an idea of where you are striking the ball. If need be try using a longer tee.

Answer 4

It may help to find teaching pro near you, have had a few lessons and it has really helped my game. Your problem can come from a wide range of things, from grip to alignment, stance, address etc. I also find that teeing off with a 3 wood instead of a driver will give you better results as far as hitting straighter and almost as far, hope this helps and don't give up this game.

Answer 5

shomaliatimalla, welcome to arguably the hardest sport to master. The best advice I can give you is take a series of lessons. There are so many factors that can cause your problems, you will never be able to decipher them yourself. A good pro will recognize and be able to communicate the fixes. I know..I played for 30 years w/o a lesson and now I'm paying the price. I've got a great pro, but way too much ingrained "bad" stuff to work out.

Answer 6

Keep your head down! That will help to keep the ball straight.

Answer 7

head down left arm straight and stay from no it all,when going to driving start with the wedge,9,8, hit then for a couple a time than go to the 7,6, couple of time and so on take your time hey i taught my wife she shot 85 now you can do it

Answer 8

You can find a lot of good stuff at www.playgolfamerica.com I also suggest checking out www.pga.com improve your game section. I have over a dozen links to sites that can help you out on my blog roll.

Answer 9

Tee it high and let it fly.