Weekend Tip: 10 Tips on How to Play Better Golf in the Cold

It’s a beautiful day outside, the sun is shining and it’s 5 degrees. Still nice enough to play golf and have a good time, but I am thinking to myself how can I prepare better for my game, especially as it gets colder through January. So after a bit of research gleaned from other sources, here are a few tips which I hope will help you maximise your potential out on the course this weekend.

Photo Thanks to Michael Bonhert

1. Get some thermal underwear. Trust me, good thermals will keep you toasty in a variety of cold conditions. Galvin Green offer a great range. They fit skin tight and allow you to dress in layers over them.

2. Warm your feet up too. Wear an extra pair of socks, I find thin socks to be better to keep the bulk down.

3. Buy some dry-chemical hand warmers. Put them in your golf bag then before your round, open and shake them, then put one in each pocket. Keep your hands in your pockets between shots when you are playing and open a new pair somewhere in the middles so they don't get numb on the last few holes.

4. Do some stretching while you're still at home. Take a hot shower or ride an exercise bike first to get warm and flexible. Stretching on a cold practice range or at the first tee won't cut it when it's really chilly.

5. Wear a ski cap or good thick hat. Most of your body heat disappears through your head. Keeping your head warm will help you stay warm.

6. Invest in a pair of cart gloves. I prefer cart gloves to winter golf gloves, because you can continue to wear your normal gloves and just wip them off to hit your shots.

7. Keep walking instead of riding round the course. This will help keep the blood flowing so you stay warm. If you have to ride, perhaps bring an extra coat--even an overcoat--and put it over you when you're in the cart.

8. Alternate golf balls on each hole. Keep the ball you're not playing in your pocket against your hand warmer so it stays warm. It's even worth keeping the balls you are going to play with inside the house overnight so they don't get cold sitting in your car or garage.

9. Remember to take more club. The colder air temperatures will reduce the length of your shots by at least 10 percent. It's better to be a little long than a little short for most approaches.

10. Finally, save the booze until after your round. Drinking a shot or two of brandy might make you feel warmer but that's only an illusion. It might cause you to think you're playing better, too. Well maybe that might not be too bad!

Winter golf: the range

January – don’t you just love it? Last year it was snow, this year torrential rain and gale force winds. Even before Christmas our course was totally sodden so today there was nothing for it but to head to the localrange especially as it’s Tuesday when for a mere fiver you can hit as many balls as you like and get some decent swing advice from the friendly pro. What's more, I have a shiny new hybrid to try out, (thank you, Santa!) so there was no stopping me.

Until I found the entrance road to the golf range under several feet of water. I might be keen, but I have my ailing suspension to consider!

Still, I’ve been going on and off to this roll-up class for the last year and my swing really has improved so that while I may still be playing off a ladylike 23, I’m out-hitting the 16-20  handicappers I go out with on a regular basis.

But am I taking the money? Well I have had my moments, but truth to tell, I’ve never looked like getting below my current handicap, because as Jonty says, at the end of the day it’s the short game that counts. Getting close to the green in two is no good if it takes another three (at least!) to get the wee white ball in the cup.

The range is fine for sorting out the swing but the temptation is to keep on wellying it as far as the eye can see, ignoring the bit that will really lower your score. There are things you can do, like playing consecutive shots with different clubs (there wood, six-iron, pitching wedge) to replicate the experience of being on a course, but  chips and pitches don’t feel the same off the manicured mats of the range. The club’s practice area is much better for getting the feel of the shorter shots, except that practising outside in winter leaves me cold in more ways than one!

So it looks like it’s back to putting on the carpet for me, and maybe some of these drills will stand me in good stead for when I next brave the elements.  

The Green Goddess in warmer weather! 

Meanwhile I might do some virtual golfing, so if you have a golf blog and interesting things to say, leave a comment so that we can check you out. 

Happy practising!

How To Choose A Golf Club - Beginners Guide Part 2/10

In part 1 we talked about the merits of starting with a traditional golf set. So what does a typical golf set include? A set is collection of no more than 14 clubs, and what you put in your bag depends on your choices - for example, substituting long irons for hybrids.

A set of irons will include a 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9-iron, plus a pitching wedge (PW). It will probably also include a driver (1-wood), and a 3-wood and 5-wood, and a putter. On top of these will be able to 2 more clubs, and you might for example decide to carry a sand-wedge (SW) for getting out of bunkers, or a hybrid, which is an iron made with wood technology, and easier to hit with than either a driver or a long-iron.

As a beginner you'll probably find that you rely mostly on your 7-iron and pitching wedge at first, and as you get more confident you will reach for the longer clubs, tackling the longer shots with hyrbids which are excellent for this kind of thing. To begin with it's worth putting a good deal of time into your short game as most shots are lost here, and you will use your putter two or three times as often as your driver!

How To Choose A Golf Club - Beginners Guide Part 1/10

A golf club is for playing with, not sitting in! Although I do rather like the design of this club in Sempachersee, Switzerland

To a beginner, making head or tail of what's needed in a set of golf clubs can prove a real obstacle to getting on with learning the game. There are so many different club options - a golf driver, irons, fairway woods, hybrids, wedges and putters. Some golfers  prefer to play nearly all their fairway shots with fairway woods or hybrids instead of irons, and in fact you can now get entire hybrid iron sets! Then there are lofts to choose, and shaft flexes to decide upon and numerous other things to think about. It can be bewildering! So it may come as no suprise that my advice to beginners would be "keep it simple". What does simple look like, you may ask? Well I think a golf set is a very good place for a beginner to get started.  A golf set will provide a good combination of clubs to get you going and as you begin to develop your playing allow you to work out what you really need. Try starting with a set that includes a couple of fairway woods and at least one hybrid, and ideally a mallet putter.  Good examples include the:

Masters MC Z540
Wilson Staff X31 Club Set 

Time to get trollied!

One thing has come clear to me over my extensive golfing and drinking career - it is not natural for a human being to lug a big heavy bag of golf clubs around a golf course, particularly the hilly variety without some kind of electrical assistance. It could just be that I'm getting that little bit older but when the weather is as hot as it has been, the sweat patches under my arms do not get any less embarrassing. For this reason I have been scouring the malls virtual and worldly for some golfing wheels and have decided that I like the look of the Powakaddy Sport Trolley. Now I have to admit being an Big IPAD fan, I can't help but be pulled into the orbit of any bit of kit that has dials and flashing lights - but I think you might agree this particular trolley does seem to have everything but the kitchen sink thrown in, or more importantly does anybody know if a booze cabinet is provided?

Nike VR STR8-FIT Tour Driver - Nice!

The VR Tour is a great blend of engineering precision and sleek design excellence. The Nike VR STR8-FIT Tour Driver has an assured and classic style which helps to provide a low spin rate and therefore greater penetrating ball flight.The new Compression Channel tied to high moment of inertia, means you won't lose any distance with off centre hits. Allowing you to shape the ball a little easier, by adjusting the loft and lie with 32 different positions is the true value of this driver.

Nike has designed the VR STR8 Tour with a 440cc head, which is also a more conventional 'pear' shape. This is a marginally smaller head than Nike's previous drivers, but once you start hitting balls you certainly won't notice the difference. With red, black and 'chrome' styling this driver follows on the classic but contemporary design of the VR range. The most noticeable feature of the club head is the hollow red channel on the sole, this is the Compression Channel. The Compression Channel is what drives this club. It acts like a catapult and springs the ball forward once the channel compresses. Found on all Nike drivers, the reconfigured face technology produces improved ball speeds.

If the Compression Channel propels the club, then the STR8-FIT technology provides the guidance. There are 32 different positions to play with, 15 draw setups, 2 neutral, and 15 fade setups. See Metal Fabrication London for more details. Close the face and see the ball draw, then open the face up and the ball will fade. All 32 positions lie between 2 degrees open and 2 degrees closed. The Nike Victory Red STR8-FIT Driver allows the golfer a chance to play with the same quality clubs used by the pros.

Gadgets for the Golf-Mad

Men are notoriously more swayed by gadgets than women, and most sports offer plentiful opportunity to satisfy that itch for a new piece of hardware or software that claims to go where no gadget has gone before… so here is our selection of new golfing gadgets. Purely for the fun of it, you understand. (And you can add them to your birthday wish-list…).

1. The Bushnell Tour V2 Slope Laser Rangefinder. This handy gadget not only gauges distance for you, it will also compensate distance measurements based on the degree of incline on a slope, while the PinSeeker technology will pick up the flag without capturing other background targets. Its range is 5 to 1,000 yards, and promises +/- one yard accuracy. All it doesn’t do is make the tea...

2. Lost your pencil, dropped your score card? The Digital Golf Scorecard keeps track of your strokes, calculates scores and even saves your best round. It conveniently attaches to your golf bag or belt and is shock and water-resistant. What more do you want?

3. Fed up of practicing putting because you spend most of your time bending down to pick up golf balls? Look no further. The RoboCup Golf Ball Return Robot makes practicing quick, fun, and painless, sending the ball back to you over distances of 14 feet or more, with each battery taking care of up to 12,000 returns. There’s even a caddy-cord to gather up your mis-hits and send them back where they came from…

4. Psst! Fancy a drink? The Deluxe Electronic Golf Club Kooler Caddie is the perfectly discreet way to enjoy hot or cold drinks right from your golf bag. It looks like a regulation driver – haha! – but its secret is the one-button dispensing pump. Designed to sit unobtrusively in a side pocket so it doesn’t take up space inside, you can fill it with hot or cold beverages, and they’ll stay at the right temperature for hours. (And no, it’s not a good idea to take your favourite wine, beer or cider around with you. Just to be perfectly clear.)

5. And finally, the most gadget-tastic of all, for the pure golf perfectionist, the hands-free Golf Swing Video Recorder. This allows you to correct your swing while you're on the course as it mounts to your golf bag, push, or golf cart. With one button recording and frame-by-frame playback, it captures your entire body and swing from six feet away. Play back through the built-in screen, your TV, or computer… you’ll be playing like a Pro in no time.

Note to our dear readers: This piece has been unashamedly aimed at the guys. This is because most of the women golfers I know – and I’m one – would prefer a week in the sun with a little golf thrown it. It’s that simple!