Golf Tips - Recent Threads

Gamesmanship

Caleb w — Sat, 31 Jan 2026 18:09:17 GMT

I've got a foursomes matchplay match coming up and I've heard that this certain pair might be quite competitive. Anyone got any good gamesmanship tips or anything else that might help?

RE: Gamesmanship

Randy M — Wed, 13 May 2026 00:40:18 GMT

Your ball won't move unless you move it. Ignore what the other team is doing or not doing. Keep your head clear, focus as much as possible on what you are there for, remember your fundamentals, and execute the shot that is in front of you.

RE: Translating non competitive scores to tournaments

Randy M — Wed, 13 May 2026 00:32:47 GMT

Break down your failings, identify and work like crazy on those things that you find that are biting you in the neck.

Hole by hole, are you falling down because course management problems (bad target selection, incorrect risk assessment, undertaking too many hero shots, etc.), your putting (missing makeable putts 4-8 ft, three putts, etc.), your short game (getting up and down, chipping from off the green, poor bunker play, etc.), your irons play (accurate execution to needed yardage, missing the green, short siding or leaving the ball on wrong side of the hole, etc.), poor driving (too much dispersion, missing the fairway, incorrect placement - wrong side of the fairway, etc.)?

Work hard on those things that you don't do well first --- and then touch on those that you already do well from time to time to make sure you keep those skills sharp.

Translating non competitive scores to tournaments

Braylon G — Sun, 30 Nov 2025 06:04:28 GMT

I have been taking golf seriously for about 4-5 years, and every time I go to play competitively I shoot my worst scores, how can I improve them?

Hitting on mats

Greg B — Fri, 10 Apr 2026 23:37:03 GMT

Hey guys, I just came back from the range. The grass hitting area was closed and I had to hit off the mats which I hate doing. I think it gives you a false sense of hitting the ball first. Antone else have a comment on this.

RE: Hitting on mats

pulplvr — Tue, 12 May 2026 21:11:12 GMT

With so many simulators now available, I would think many are hitting indoors (especially in the winter) and off mats. I recently joined a simulator facility (Back Nine) near me and have been using it to work on carry distance, swing path, and face angles, particularly in the scoring clubs (Vokeys, P, 9, 8). I will play a course (simulator) almost every time after doing that for a warm up session. I can truly tell when I hit the mat first (feel it, and the simulator actually shows the club going through the ball). One interesting point associated with that is I can see the club head move when the shots are off-center, something I've never gotten during a fitting or a lesson. With no real off season here in SE Texas, the simulator gives me options for those rainy days or the super hot ones when being on a course just is not a good idea. Also works well for days when the course I am a member of has an event and I cannot play there, or I just don't have time for a round.

RE: Hitting on mats

Matthew U — Sun, 10 May 2026 12:39:37 GMT

The driving range(LJ's Lexington, SC) near my house doesn't let you hit off the grass but they will let people park on it when they have bands play. I now refer to it as the "drinking range".

RE: Range mats vs grass

Chuck Zirkle — Sat, 09 May 2026 14:43:41 GMT

We're lucky. Our mats seem to be soft and absorb the the ball striking. Not as soft as the grass but not elbow shocking. Am a picker so no worries. I warm up before each round working on tempo and alignment. See what I brought for the day. At my age and back issues cannot spend a lot of time practicing on the range, like I use to . The price is just too great. Just work on the short game in the area designated for that. Need to put a bed in the sand trap practice area. My worst enemy right now. 90 percent mental and the other 10% in my head. Have talked to my instructor and that's the bottom line.

Range mats vs grass

Jimmy S — Sun, 12 Apr 2026 22:03:58 GMT

Hitting off mats just doesn’t translate the same for me as real grass, and I’m starting to feel like it’s actually hurting my on-course performance. Mats seem to let me get away with slightly fat contact where the club just bounces into the ball and still produces a decent shot, but on the course those same swings turn into chunks or inconsistent strikes. I’ll leave the range feeling solid, then it doesn’t show up when it matters. Curious if anyone else in the Team Titleist community has dealt with this and what you’ve done to make mat practice more effective or better transition to real turf before a round?

RE: Hitting on mats

Chuck Zirkle — Sat, 09 May 2026 14:35:25 GMT

I am a picker of the ball. Hakuna matata. We hit off soft mats M thru Th to save the driving range. Our course does around 73,000 rounds a year and the range stays busy, do large number of events and tournaments.

The Annual three day City Amateur next weekend. Last year's winner set our course record (64) and is playing at the Myrtle Beach PGA event this week, Connor Doyal. His fulltime job is a caddy at the Ocean Course, but lives nearby and practices at the Muni. #19 ranked Muni by golf.com of top 50 muni's in US. Getting a tee time, VERY DIFFICULT. We are proud of our little muni.

RE: Hitting on mats

Randy M — Fri, 08 May 2026 00:53:52 GMT

There is quite a bit of variability in mats, and how they react to iron shots. Some are thinner and not at all forgiving --- you pay a price for using those mats over time. They do not absorb dissipate or absorb the energy of your swing as hitting off the ground does. For these types of mats, the energy of your swing is absorbed by key parts of your body --- elbows, wrists, hands, fingers, and their respective ligaments, tendons, etc. Overtime, you begin to hit the ball without hitting down on it --- or those joints mentioned above will suffer. Not so for the thicker, softer mats. They don't reflect real world conditions --- you can hit anything off those mats (up to and including even a driver), and it takes off like a rocket --- but at least your joints won't suffer.

RE: Translating non competitive scores to tournaments

Greg S — Thu, 07 May 2026 21:37:20 GMT

I just started playing serious amateur competition tournaments this year and those rounds have been some of the worst golf I’ve played in years.

My golf coach said: “the only way to improve your competition scores is to compete more often”.

RE: Hitting on mats

Dan K — Wed, 06 May 2026 02:46:39 GMT

Hitting off of mats is also not good for your clubs. It can effect your lie angles.

RE: Mental Aspect of the Game

Randy M — Sun, 03 May 2026 19:43:01 GMT

Practice your short game so that you take some of the pressure off of your tee to green game. Having the ability to get up and down from anywhere is a great skill to have, and an unbelievably BIG confidence booster.

Mental Aspect of the Game

Austin S — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 14:36:02 GMT

I have set a goal for myself of qualifying for a USGA sanctioned event by the time that I am 35 (I turned 30 this past October). The last time I played in an actual competitive round was my qualifier for the Texas Golf Association Mid-Am in 2022 and before that it would have been when I was in high school. I shot a 77 (par 72) for my practice round four days before. Morning of, I was feeling great and hitting great on the range. The minute I stepped up to the first tee I was like a deer in headlights and felt like I had never swung a golf club before. It was so bad I opted for a No Card. What tips and advice do you have on managing the mental aspect of the game and maintaining confidence from the work you've put in leading up to that moment?

RE: Mental Aspect of the Game

Greg B — Sun, 03 May 2026 13:04:32 GMT

Get the book Zen Golf by Dr. Joesph Parent, read it and then read it again.

RE: Hitting on mats

CJ H — Sat, 02 May 2026 19:25:12 GMT

Mats never really show you your bad shots, club bounces of the mat!

RE: Driver Slicing

Samuel M — Sat, 02 May 2026 17:43:21 GMT

You can try putting your drivers head cover or a towel in you back armpit and try to keep it there for most of the swing.

Driver Slicing

Lee S — Tue, 03 Jun 2025 21:10:03 GMT

Hi all, I’m new here.

My topic is a known one but maybe a bit odd - Driver is always a Slice but Hybrids, Fairway Woods I hit with no Slice same stance and swing pattern etc. Myself and others have said surely if I Slice a Driver, why am I not Slicing a Fairway or Hybrid considering everything is the same etc.

Any help, advice welcome, thank you.

Lee

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At home practice aids

Ichabod — Wed, 05 Jun 2019 16:00:54 GMT

I have searched google to no end but I wanted to get some opinions from the members here, more personal than reading an article (that may very well be essentially an advertisement disguised as an article).

In regards to 'at home' practice...what items, gadgets, training aids do you utilize when you do not have the time to make it the driving range let alone a course?

I'm a single father of three young children and do not always have a chance to take personal time, so to speak.

I've tried to find things that would not only assist in honing some skills but would also slowly introduce the kids to it in a fun way that they would enjoy as well.

I have pulled out an old putting practice green that is about 9 ft in length to putt around here and there, the kids love it.

RE: At home practice aids

Samuel M — Sat, 02 May 2026 17:39:28 GMT

I got some plastic golf balls that I can just hit in my yard and they won’t go far, but you can feel when you make good contact

RE: Wedge chart

DGreely — Sat, 02 May 2026 14:47:57 GMT

I love to implement the clock system into my wedges all the way up into pretty much any club. My stocks are P:150 52:135
56: 120 60:100, all though I do not swing fully with a sixty as Ben Hogan said I do work the clock as many great golfers do. You pick a yardage and try to find out where your left arm goes to on the clock on your backswing. Example is if I had a 60 yard shot with a soft I will go to around 7:30 on the clock with a smooth tempo, which achieves a 60 yard shot for me, now it is different for everyone but it’s one of the best wedge charts ever. Thank you for listening ️ Happy Golfing

Wedge chart

Dan B — Sun, 08 Mar 2026 17:23:10 GMT

Does anyone use a wedge chart?

If you do, how many yardages do you have for each club? 3 or 4?

Also do you use it for PW through to LW?

I’ve decided it’s something I’m going to do for this season, instead of trying to gauge the distance and hope that it will give me more confidence over those sub 100 shots

RE: Wedge chart

ERisch — Sat, 02 May 2026 13:44:13 GMT

43* / 49* / 54* / 58* — all mapped by 1/4 swings (ie 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 and full swings). 58* is for touch to 1/2 swings only.

RE: Wedge chart

Chris92009 — Fri, 01 May 2026 14:11:21 GMT

I have 3 distances for each wedge 1/2, 3/4 and Full.

Cheers!