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March 27, 2018
7 ways to help you prepare for the 2018 golf season
The 2018 golf season is just around the corner, are you ready?
Shake off the cobwebs, folks. Spring is finally here, temperatures are rising (trying to), and it’s time to get out on the course soon, and start playing some golf. Silvertip Golf Course plans to open mid May.
We’ve come up with a list of 7 ways to help you prepare for the 2018 golf season:
1. Start with putting
According to an interview with PGA Master Professional Michael Doctor (the 2013 National PGA Golf Professional of the Year):
PGA.com: For those folks in colder winter climates, what advice would you offer up as they prepare for a new golf season?
Doctor: Start with putting. You don’t even have to leave home to work on putting, which is one of the most important elements of the game. Set up an area in your house or office to practice. Invest in a few teaching aids or ask your golf professional if he has any putting aids you might be able to use to help develop your stroke during the off season.
Work on your short game. If you have a place to hit golf balls indoors — like a dome or even into a net — spend the majority of your time on the short game. Most domes have targets set up throughout the facility. Work on hitting different kinds of shots to those targets. Most importantly: make your practice session fun.
2. Regain your touch & focus on fundamentals
When focusing on your golf swing, try to only think of one or two key thoughts. The trick is to begin at the setup and work your way forward until you find something that clicks. Here’s one tip at each stage of the swing, from Golf Digest Teaching Professional Todd Anderson:
Setup: Push your hips back, and angle your spine toward the ball.
Backswing: Turn into your right side, and feel your left lat stretch.
Impact: Keep your head behind the ball, and straighten up your left side.
Finish: Point your chest at the target, with your right foot up on its toes. Work on these keys at the practice range, and create a short list of swing thoughts to bring out on the course.
3. Exercise
CPGA professional, Joshua Davison stresses rotational flexibility, hip flexibility, lower back muscles, and shoulder strength. These all play a role in each golfer’s swing. And working these areas will also help you avoid getting spasms in your leg or back muscles during a long day on the course. The rotational power in your torso relies on the hips, buttocks, thighs, abdominal, and lower back muscles all working in coordination. So begin by stretching those core areas.
Great exercises you can do to prepare for the golf season:
- abdominal crunches,
- gentle trunk rotations,
- gentle torso twists,
- lower back stretches such as “cat” arches and hunches,
- hamstring stretches,
- and side rotations using resistance.
4. Practice, Practice, Practice
Alberta’s long winter seasons prevent outdoor golf courses to open until the Spring, so this is where indoor golf comes into play. But do these golf simulators actually work?
Yes! These simulators are high-tech machines that can analyze your swing and use computerized models of real courses. Using radar and light sensors, they detect countless factors that go into your shot and swing. They sometimes utilize standalone screen and realistic 3-D graphics. Most indoor golf simulators have sophisticated golf swing tracking are are able to identify swing fault with every different golf shot you play.
X Factor Indoor Golf in Calgary is a great place to test out your pre-season swing.
5. Don’t fear the sand
We all get it, it’s the dreadful bunker shot. Everyone can relate to bad memories that stretch back for years. Here’s how to get you out of that rut:
- hit the sand, and follow through
- don’t quit on it – this is the major fault
- play the ball just inside your front heel, swing back about three-quarts, and accelerate the club down and through.
6. Set realistic goals for your game this season
Making goals is always a good idea. It will help you get excited for the season to come, and challenge you to improve your game. Whether is has to do with your swing, your putting, or your overall golf score, remember to keep these goals realistic and achievable, so your frustration doesn’t get the best of you.
Our golf professional Scotty Holland is available for lessons during the 2018 Silvertip Golf Season. Scotty is a Class A member of the PGA of Canada with over 26 years of teaching experience. Working with students of all ages and abilities from those just beginning the game to top competitive amateurs, Scotty has been awarded PGA Teacher of the Year for Alberta as well as being nominated as one of the Top 100 Teachers by Golf Magazine.
7. Book your first round at Silvertip Resort Golf Course
Stay tuned for the exact course opening day in early to mid May, however you can now book your Silvertip Resort tee times for the 2018 golf season online. After all this preparation, you will be itching to get outside!