One good tip is to make yourself as comfortable as possible. So, if you are planning on playing a full round, go to the toilet before hand. This is no joking matter. The most off putting problem on a round is needing to pee whilst trying to play a shot. Yes, you can go somewhere behind a bush, but there is no guarantee there will be an opportunity to go on every hole, so empty yourself before you go out and don’t drink to much when you are on the course.

Despite what some say, golf can be a fairly tiring sport, both physically and mentally. Some ice cold water and a packet of fruity sweets never go a miss on the course.

If it is cold take as much warm clothing as you can. Ideally, your warm clothing should be as light as possible, as wearing three thick jumpers will affect your maneuverability.

If it is raining do not forget your waterproofs, or a hat and gloves. Some people neglect to bring gloves, because of the golf glove they already wear. It is much better for your hands to be warm when playing, as it gives you more control and power when playing a shot.

This brings me on to my next point. Be prepared.

The night before you go to play, you should organize yourself as much as you can.  If not, you could end up running around two minutes before you are up on the tee, which will put you off your first few holes. This could have an adverse affect on the rest of your game.

Another tip is to read our game mentality section. Game mentality is the most important part of your game, absolutely no bones about it. Read some books on the mental side of golf, buy any golf related books that interest you.

Playing golf can have a widespread affect on the rest of your life, by helping you to remain more mentally focused and to discipline yourself. Golf is a excellent way of escaping from the toils and pressure of modern society.

This is because, you total mind needs to be focused on the game, so you can forget about any troubles you may have off the course. To become a good golfer, you must be able to do this. You must be able to put everything else out of your mind. Professional golfers have psychologists and mental trainers. This is obviously not appropriate for an amatuers golfer.

I would however strongly recommend reading some professionally written material on this subject. The best book I have read is ‘Golf is not a game of perfect’ by Robert J. Rotella and Bob Cullen. I would also recommend “The golfers mind” and “Golf is a game of confidence” both by Rotella. I would strongly recommend buying or at least borrowing books on the subject of Game Mentality.

Another tip is to regularly clean you clubs. This is for a number of reasons.

Your wedges for instance need to be clean to be effective when putting spin on the ball. To ensure better contact with the ball the groves and face should be sparkling clean. Also, when looking down at your club, you will not be distracted by any bits of dirt on your club.

It also has the advantage of making you feel more professional. If you feel good about yourself as a golfer, you will play better shots.

You should try to find a golf buddy, perhaps someone who stay near you, that you can give a lift or whatever. Set a time to play every week and set yourself a time to practise every week. If you can not fit in time to practise, you can just play, but you development will take much longer and will be no where near as good as it would be were you to train on specific aspects of your game.

You also need to play with someone you feel comfortable around. Try also to play with someone who is just a bit better than you. This will push you to do better.

However the last tip is slightly contradictory to this. Lastly, even in competitions play against yourself, not others. By all means play with someone better than yourself as I have just said, but do aim to beat them or expect that you can wipe the floor with them. Golf is naturally a competitive sport, but when you are just beginning you aim to beat yourself. This way you will achieve more and get a greater sense of satisfaction out of the game.