By the time a golfer finishes her first round of golf, she's probably thinking of ways to lower the number on the bottom of the scorecard. While that's not realistic for most beginners because the most important thing is to learn the fundamentals, once golfers have learned the basics of the swing, having it show on the scorecard is a realistic goal.
Step 1
Take your time with putting. One of the biggest mistakes many golfers make when putting is sending the ball on its path before thinking about what kind of strike the ball needs. Get behind the ball, read the break on the green, take a practice swing and strike the ball. Don't walk up to it and hit it and don't stand over it for 60 seconds either. Take a scientific approach, study the putt and hit it.
Step 2
Learn the finer points of the approach shot. Hitting a pitching wedge, gap wedge or lob wedge takes feel and finesse. You are trying to hit the ball so it lands on the green and stops or lands on the green and roll. You can't squeeze the club tightly on these shots. Hold the club firmly, but not too tight. You want to feel the ball when it strikes the face of your club and then finish your swing.
Step 3
Realize where you are on the course. Lowering your score is not always about making great shots. Sometimes it's about not making terrible shots. If you are in the heavy rough and the green is 220 yards away, you are much better off hitting the ball out of the rough and into a clear area of the fairway rather than trying for the near-impossible shot of going for the green.
Step 4
Hit the ball for accuracy rather than distance. You might feel as though you have to bomb your tee shot when you are facing a long par 5. That big swing might impress your playing partners, but they aren't the ones who will have to hit the ball out of the rough. You are much better off swinging at 80 percent and hitting your second shot from 230 yards down the fairway than pulling out a short club and trying to punch it out of the woods from 280 yards.
Step 5
Take an organized approach when you practice at the driving range. Even good golfers go to the driving range and lose focus after hitting 30 balls or more. However, if you have a plan in mind like hitting 10 balls with your driver, 10 with your 3-wood, 10 with your 3-iron, 15 with your 5-iron and 20 with your wedges, you will stay focused and improve your score more quickly.
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