Golf Lessons
Golf is a difficult sport that can be intimidating at first, but anyone can learn.
The real origin of modern golf comes from Holland. In 1297 in Loenen aan de Vecht, during a commemoration, a game was played called colf where one had to hit a ball and send it towards a precise goal.
In 2005, the number of golf courses in the world was 32 000, half of which are located in the United States. Therefore, the ranking of countries according to the course/population ratio is as follows: Scotland, New Zealand, Australia, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Canada, Wales, the United States, Sweden and England (ranking includes only countries with more than 500,000 inhabitants).
With the number of courses, the number of golfers is also increasing, reaching more than 61 million golfers in the world in 2003.
Golf Tips for Beginners
What if you took advantage of the beginning of autumn to take up golf? Concentration, precision, mastery: it’s an ideal activity to get into the green, enjoy the beautiful colours of the summer and work your head and legs. Discover our tips for beginners.
Golf Setup
Setup is a common term in golf and functions as the building block of your golf swing. Golfers who have these fundamentals well under control increase the chances of a good impact moment and a good ball flight. But what does the setup actually consist of?
Ball position
Assuming a right-handed golfer, you can assume that the shorter irons (more loft) are played off-center or more to the right of the tee. Thus, the ball position mainly influences the angle of attack of the club and the ability to hit the sweet spot.
A steeper angle of attack gives a lower flight, a flatter angle of attack gives a higher ball flight.
Stance
Do you want to hit the ball from the center of the blade with as much speed as possible and a good angle of attack? Then always keep checking your stance! A good stance gives you more chance to hit the ball correctly!
Stand width
When we think of stance width, we should actually immediately think of stability and balance. In general, with shorter swings, the stance width does not have to be wide. Think of a chip where you always stand narrow, the movement is short, and your weight should be on the left (for the right-handed golfer).
If you play a pitch, the stance should preferably be a bit wider, hip width, for example. The swing is now longer, and we want to stand a little firmer during this swing. Irons again require a longer swing, so we look for more stability by placing the inside of the feet shoulder wide.
Weight distribution
When chipping, most of the weight is on the left foot (about 60%) compared to 55% during pitching and 70% in the bunker. All this extra weight on the left foot is done to make the angle of attack of the club steeper towards the ball and therefore promote contact.
Activity
Activity actually means being ready to take action (swing) behind the ball without being too tense. Some golfers are completely tight and rigid behind the ball. It is then, of course, difficult to properly execute the swing.
Golf Swing
What should you pay attention to in order to improve your golf swing successfully? As crazy as it sounds, but every golf swing is different. If you look at the various golfers on tour, you will see a lot of different golf swings.
In itself, this is logical since almost every person has a different physique. For example, some golfers are very limber, others less so.
There are tall golfers and short golfers. All have a slightly different golf swing.
These fundamentals are the same for all golfers. If you understand these fundamentals, then you can structurally improve your golf swing. These are the most important factors to hit a good ball.
There are four fundamentals that determine the success of your golf swing. If you want to improve your golf swing, you will have to work on these fundamentals.
You must ensure that the basis is always constant.
The fundamentals I am talking about are these:
- A good basic attitude
- The right golf grip
- A good ball position
- The position of your club head
Can you make sure that you get these fundamentals fully under control? Then you will have the ideal golf swing!
Golf Drills
Want to learn to hit further from the tee? Then read these four tips from various PGA professionals.
Baseballs
Most people start out talking about using the hips to hit far drives. However, the fact is that the arms generate the most speed. This makes sense because your arms also have to travel the greatest distance in the swing, and therefore move the fastest. If you want to hit farther, it is easier for many amateurs to move their arms faster.
Drill:
A good drill to create more speed in your arms is to hit balls where everything stays still except your arms. So as little rotation as possible. Almost like a baseball player. Take your normal stance and experiment. See how far you hit. You’ll see that you hit almost as far without hip rotation or upper body rotation!
Resistance
The desire to generate more length from the tee is something that is frequently asked about. More length depends on a number of factors. One of the most important factors is club head speed.
Drill:
First, swing five times as hard as you can and feel the heavy resistance.
Next, swing a club without a head or an aimstick as hard as you can, hearing a high “swoosh” clearly at the bottom at the deepest point of your swing.
Next, swing your own club without a ball twice and try to hit the tee.
Finally, you now hit three balls off a tee, trying to hit the ball as hard as you can.
Wide swing
Make a wider swing for more swing speed! There is a common swing mistake where a lot of speed is lost: bending the left arm in the up-swing. Because of the flexion, the left arm will have to stretch again quickly in the down swing, or else you will top the ball. Unfortunately, this stretching of the left arm causes a too early peak speed, which causes the club to slow down considerably at the moment of hitting. In addition, stretching also causes the club to enter the ball from the outside and cause a slice.
Drill:
Practice with your normal swing tempo and make a swing where you move the left hand away from your left armpit (do not squeeze). The wider swing will automatically provide more swing speed but also more consistent ball contact.
Best Golf Courses in Canada
While courses in the United States are highly regarded, and most courses in Europe are historically significant, Canada’s finest courses are among the world’s most popular “golf vacation” destinations.
From the windy shores of the Atlantic Ocean to the green valleys of British Columbia, you’ll always find an option to suit your taste. Here is a shortlist, in no particular order, of some of our favourite courses in Canada.
Cabot Cliffs – Inverness, Nova Scotia
Located on the west coast of Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, these sister courses are among the most recognized in Canada.
Year after year, since its inception in 2016, Cabot Cliffs has been in constant competition for the title of the highest rated course in the world.
Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge – Jasper, Alberta
Nestled in the scenic beauty of the Canadian Rocky Mountains, the scenery you’ll see is worth the price of admission alone. With snow-capped peaks towering over the lanes, you’ll find yourself losing focus on several occasions during your round because of the breathtaking beauty that surrounds you.
Fairmont Banff Springs – Banff, Alberta
Just over three hours south of The Fairmont in Jasper, Fairmont Banff Springs Golf Course is located at the base of the Canadian Rockies. Like its northern counterpart, Banff Springs offers some of the most breathtaking scenery on a golf course. If you can keep your mind from wandering to all the nature around you, you will be able to enjoy the challenge this course presents.
Highlands Links – Ingonish Beach, Nova Scotia
Along the eastern coast of Cape Breton Island, Highlands Links is a combination of ocean and mountain views. Often referred to as the Canadian version of Cypress Point, it’s not as difficult as Cypress Point, but you’ll still have to navigate the fairways if you want to keep your ball out of the water.
Tobiano Golf Course – Kamloops, British Columbia
Completely on the other side of the country, in the middle of British Columbia, you’ll find Tobiano Golf Course on the shores of Kamloops Lake. After opening its doors in 2007, the course has gained notoriety and offered an interesting challenge to golfers from around the world.
Rates and Rentals
If you would like to visit one of the golf courses listed above, check out this section for rental rates:
- Cabot Cliffs - Peak Rate: C$442.75
- Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge - Peak Rate: C$239
- Fairmont Banff Springs - Peak Rate: C$313.95
- Highlands Links - Peak Rate: C$155.25
- Tobiano - Peak Rate: C$157.50
Tournaments
The RBC Canadian Open is one of golf’s strongest and most recognizable events. It is a golf tournament held in Canada and one of the few events on the PGA Tour. However, it is a very significant tournament and the third most prestigious in the sport.
Speaking of less high-profile golf tournaments in Canada, it’s worth mentioning NextGen Championship, a tournament held at different levels and in different cities.
And a series of championships among different categories of players:
- Canadian Junior Girls Championship and Canadian Junior Boys Championship, a competition between juniors.
- Canadian Women's Amateur Championship and Canadian Men's Amateur Qualifier - amateur competition
- Canadian Men's Mid-Amateur Championship
- Canadian University/College Championship - competition between universities from different provinces.
With the support of
Schools
Golf is one of the most popular sports in Canada. Unfortunately, it is also very expensive. Therefore if you are serious about taking up golf professionally, it might be worth your money to invest in lessons from some of the best schools in Canada. Our list below has some of the most reputable schools for golfers frustrated by their game.
Alberta
Stonecreek Golf Academy Wolf Creek International Golf Schools
British Columbia
Gallagher's Canyon Golf Schools Musqueam Golf and Training Centre Okanagan School of Golf Westwood Plateau Golf Academy
Nova Scotia
Rick Morley's Golf School
Ontario
Five-Star Golf School
Prince Edward Island
Canadian Golf Academy
Additional Golf Tips
As with many other sports, when it comes to golf, certain orientations are necessary if this is your first time playing golf or if you are new to the game.
Forget your preconceptions about golf
More accessible and younger, golf has become more democratic. It is now very far from an elitist discipline that can sometimes give the impression that it is reserved for a few pensioners or retirees. Instead, think of it as a complete sport that allows you to work on your flexibility, balance, coordination, and concentration while getting away from it all.
Learn golf with a real teacher
Rarely do you learn to play golf by watching videos online or on the job with friends? The game of golf is very precise and requires perfect placement. In order to get started, you should take at least a few lessons with a real golf instructor who will show you the right moves and correct your posture. This is essential to gain self-confidence, not to get discouraged from the start and to avoid injury!
Don't try to skip steps
Mastering golf skills requires patience. Don’t jump right into a long game – wait about three months of practice. Take the time to perfect your swing on the driving range and empty a few buckets of balls on the putting green. In order to familiarize yourself with the course, you can “caddy” for someone who knows more than you do.
Familiarize yourself with the game and its language
In addition to all the tips for golf beginners already mentioned, you should know that familiarizing yourself with the game, its techniques and language would help you a lot from the very beginning. There are many ways to learn about it, and there is something for everyone. You can consult information on the Internet, watch how other people play (live or on video), enjoy a good golf book or even attend courses given by professionals of this sport in one of our prestigious golf academies. The latter will help you, especially with the language that is usually used, the different techniques, postures, etc., in the most practical and, above all, the most fun way.