pga tour golf game tips

PGA TOUR Golf Shootout Guide: Tips, Cheats & Tricks to Level Up Fast

By: Author Sean O'Reilly

Posted on Last updated: April 27, 2019

Any self-respecting fan of golf should know what the PGA Tour is all about. That is why it comes as no surprise that PGA TOUR Golf Shootout has quickly become one of the top sports games since it was launched. Available on Android and iOS platforms, the game lets you experience what it is like to participate in the PGA Tour competition. You can sink birdies and hit holes in one in perfectly manicured courses.

Enjoy the stunningly realistic visuals are you compete in the most respected tournaments in golf. You can hone your skills by taking on the TPC courses in single-player mode while completing multiple Daily challenges. If you’re feeling a bit competitive, you can go against some of the best players around the world in Versus mode. There is a lot of content waiting to be unlocked, and you will need the help of our PGA TOUR Golf Shootout tips, cheats and tricks to get them all for free!

1. What Are Levels For?

You are probably wondering why there is a level system in a sports game like PGA TOUR Golf Shootout. First off, you get to have bragging rights as a veteran player if you have a higher level. More importantly, however, you gain access to more features of the game. Even though the game can be downloaded for free, a lot of its content is locked behind level requirements. You will need to level up quickly in order to fully enjoy everything that the game has to offer.

The level system also isn’t like more other games where you just keep playing and you automatically get experience for nearly every tap you make on the screen. Here you need to level up golf clubs in order to gain experience. You will have to put in a lot of work if you don’t want to spend real money in order to level up.

2. How To Level Up Clubs

If you are familiar with games like Clash Royale , you would be able to understand the club levels more quickly. Clubs are acquired mostly through opening packs. When you open a pack, you will see a countdown timer. You will need to wait until the timer reaches zero in order to get the contents of the pack. You can spend real money to skip the countdown timer, but that would be a waste. Packs contain random cards, so you will need to open up a lot of them in order to get what you need.

To level up a club in PGA TOUR Golf Shootout you need silver coins and enough duplicate cards of that club. You gain experience every time you level up a card, but the costs for the next level also increases. The good news is that you get access to even better clubs while you grind for experience. This makes you stronger while allowing you to unlock more content.

3. Open More Packs

Since the contents of packs are random, you won’t always get what you need to level up your clubs. That is why you need to open up as many packs as you can. If you have unlocked Challenges, you should complete all that you can in order to get more packs. Some Challenges reward you with packs that can be opened instantly. You should also check on your Clubhouse rewards for more packs.

If you are tired of waiting around for packs to open, you can speed up the process by spending premium currency. You get some premium currency for free from time to time, so you won’t have to spend real money. A better way to speed up packs, however, is by watching video advertisements.

4. Claim Your Freebies

When you have free time, you should drop by the in-game store. You can watch video advertisements from the store in order to get some freebies. Tap on the Free Rewards button at the bottom of the screen to watch the ads. This is an easy way to gain resources needed for upgrading your clubs. Try to watch a few videos every day in order to maximize your resource gain. You can watch up to five ads per day, and we recommend that you watch all of them because you get premium currency after the fifth video.

Another freebie that you can get your hands on comes every 24 hours. You can claim this from the game’s main screen, and it can be opened without having to wait for timers. Even if you don’t have time to play for the day, make sure you still try to log in every 24 hours to claim your free reward.

Finally, you get free packs whenever you win in Versus mode. These are timed packs, so make sure you open them up as soon as you can. You should also set an alarm in order to claim them as soon as their timer is done. You can only have one pack queued up to open at any given time. That means every second that there isn’t a new pack queued up is wasted.

5. Improve Your FedEx Cup Rank

Gold is the premium currency in PGA TOUR Golf Shootout. Every pack you open has a small chance of containing some Gold. We also mentioned earlier that you can get some more gold by watching five ads per day. If you want more Gold, however, you will need to increase your FedEx Cup Rank. You can do this by simply playing more matches against other players. The game gives out rank rewards at the end of each season. The reward pack you get improves every 10 ranks. The better the reward, the more cards, coins, and Gold you will get when the season ends.

6. Play In Solo Mode

Everyone wants to play live PVP games, but there is some benefit to playing in solo mode. Aside from providing you a good way to practice your shots, you also earn a decent amount of loot in clearing single-player stages. This will help you level up more clubs and raise your player level even faster. Remember, the key to leveling up is getting as many resources as you can, even if it means playing against the AI once in a while.

7. How To Win Matches

How good you are in the game influences how fast you level up since you need to keep winning in order to get more cards, coins, and Gold. While the game relies heavily on skill, there are still a few things you can do to improve your chances of winning matches. First off, understand how the game works. Before you take a shot, you will need to choose a club. The game sets a default one for you, but you can choose a different one if you like. The game’s recommendation is usually a solid choice, so switch only if you know what you’re doing.

Once you have a club selected, you can drag on the ball to get a bird’s eye view of the course and see where your ball will most likely go. Keep in mind that wind and other conditions can still affect the final position of your ball. You can also influence the behavior of the ball by choosing where to first touch it before you drag. Touching the top side of the ball will give it a topspin, allowing it to bounce and roll when it lands. Touching the bottom side will make it roll backwards depending on the surface it touches.

Clubs also have a great impact on your gameplay. That’s the whole point of collecting them and leveling them up. They have different basic stats and special abilities. Make sure you pay attention to the descriptions before making your choice. You should also have multiple bags assembled, so you can switch between them depending on the kind of course you get. For example, if you are up against a narrow par 3 course, you should pick a Driver with higher accuracy. Power isn’t needed as much since it’s a smaller course. Packing bags with clubs that are designed for specific courses make it easier for you to gain the upper hand during a match. You get to have two bag slots for free. If you have the extra currency, you can unlock even more. For now, you can stick to one bag for smaller courses, and another for bigger ones.

A final tip for winning more games is to stop yourself from getting tilted. Golf is just as much a mental game than anything else. If you get a bad shot, don’t give up right away. If you’re lucky, your opponent might mess up even worse, giving you a chance to catch up. Even if you don’t win, you still have the chance of getting a tie. The game gives out Tie Tokens which gives you the chance to earn better packs if you win next time.

Leveling up in PGA TOUR Golf Shootout is easy, especially when you rely on the tips, cheats and tricks we have listed above! If you have anything to add, don’t hesitate to let us know using the comment box below!

Thursday 21st of September 2023

U have a club in my bag that has a red x through it and i cant use it. What is this about?

Saturday 10th of June 2023

What's the best clubs for low gravity and high gravity?

Monday 22nd of May 2023

How does the blue search clubhouse key work at bottom of display located on clubhouse selection

How does the clubhouse key work on finding a clubhouse

Monday 27th of February 2023

I have been playing and have lots of birdies on am nearly top of my group but I never get cards to help me progress my clubs are nearly the same as when I started playing so the game is getting boring as win after win and no progress and the same holes everyday also I am getting a black silhouette I have to clear when starting a new game paul

PGA TOUR Golf Shootout cheats, tips - How to level up and FAST

Unlock the Clubhouse, Challenges and more

PGA Tour has landed on Android and iOS, and it brings golfing glory to players wherever they are. And online too, against other players. It’s always so good to assert your dominance online.

PGA Tour offers quickfire golf rounds that you can play while waiting in a queue, and it’s loads of fun too. Right here, we offer you the essential tips you need in order to level up fast.

Levelling up in important in PGA Tour, as you need to do it to earn better golf clubs, and access challenges in addition to the Clubhouse.

Why you need to level up, and why it’s hard

Levelling up is essential to progression in PGA Tour, especially when you first start. When you first boot up the game all you’ll get is your basic tutorial, but only when you get to level three will you unlock a Clubhouse, and much more.

Not only that, but the larger variety of clubs will be locked off to you until you level up. Damn, it can be frustrating having such a barebones game.

Once you get to level three things will open up much faster, which is why this guide is here. Obviously.

Levelling up should be obvious too, but in reality, it’s not that simple. You should just be able to play games online and get experience, right? Wrong. You’ll need to level up clubs in order to get experience.

This makes things awkward, as you’ll need to open card packs to earn the necessary cards to level up, and of course, card packs are on timers which prevent you from opening them quickly unless you pay up premium currency. Very cheeky.

This makes levelling up a bit more awkward than you would like, but with these tips you should be able to level up pretty quickly and efficiently.

1 Better clubs

Okay, so you need better golf clubs, we’ve already mentioned that. To level them up you’ll need some silver coins, in addition to enough cards to level up the clubs.

You should of course level up clubs as often as possible to get more experience, and naturally, you’ll get access to even more cards and clubs as you level up.

This can make it tougher to get the cards you want, but it’ll all make you stronger in the end.

2 Open packs

Okay, so we need to open packs now. You can of course open packs by queueing them up and opening them one by one, but this is slow.

Make sure to grab your Clubhouse rewards whenever you can, and solve all of the challenges available to you. Some will give you card packs to open instantly instead of waiting around.

Don’t hesitate to use a bit of premium currency to speed up card pack openings early in the game. If you haven’t got access to challenges yet, it’s the best way to level up quickly. You can also speed up card pack opening times by watching ads.

3 Free rewards

On the store page you will find multiple rewards you can get for watching ads.

Yep, if the game isn’t pushing you towards premium currency, it’s adverts. But honestly, the rewards are worth it if you want to improve your equipment quickly.

I never want to recommend watching ads to players, but in this case, with the limited options available, you should be watching those ads every single day.

PGA Tour 2K21 tips with 8 essential things to know before you play

Master driving, putting and club selection with these PGA Tour 2K21 tips

PGA Tour 2K21 tips have become essential once again following the news that rival game EA Sports PGA Tour is delayed indefinitely. Fancy picking up PGA Tour 2K21 at a budget price and building yourself into a virtual club-swinging phenomenon? Then all your key scouting intel can be found below, right down to intricate strategic details such as understanding wind and use of the Scout Cam. Don't tee off until you've fully mastered these eight vital PGA Tour 2K21 tips.

1. Swing straight

The very first thing you need to do is master your swing. To the bottom right of the screen, you will see a white bar (Swing Plane) that highlights the straightness of your drive. Spending time at the practice range is so important in making sure you master this skill. If you are facing a heavy wind resistance, a precise swing can be the difference between landing on the fairway or drifting into the rough. Pulling back on your chosen analogue stick is the backswing and pushing up is the downswing. Doing this as straight as possible provides the most accurate shot.

2. Time your swing correctly

Another important aspect of your swing is getting the timing right. If your downswing is too fast, you hook the ball and reduce the power of the shot. Hitting the ball too slowly slices the ball, and overpowers your shot. Again, if you are not familiar with PGA Tour 2K21’s controls, spend time at the practice range to get this down to a tee (no pun intended).

3. Scout Cam is your friend

The most useful tool in PGA Tour 2K21 is the Scout Cam. Pressing Triangle/Y before every shot automatically moves the camera to where the ball is going to land. The point of impact can affect every shot you take, so scouting the area makes a difference to your next move. You can assess whether the ground is flat or uneven, and whether there are any obstacles you need to avoid, such as a bunker, tall grass, or a body of water.

4. Pay attention to the wind

At the top of your screen, you can see the direction of the wind, as well as the speed in which it is travelling. If you are facing a heavy gust, your shot will blow away from your chosen landing spot, so it is vital you take the effects of Mother Nature into account. For example, if the wind is blowing in from the right at 8mph, hit the ball a couple of feet to the right so that the wind carries it to the spot you initially intended the ball to land on. 

5. Make use of True Shot

One of the best tools at your disposal is True Shot. By pressing and holding L1/LB, you activate True Shot, and from here you get a couple of options to refine your shot. If you are facing a protruding tree branch and need to ‘bend’ your shot, you can move the left trigger to apply draw or fade, essentially bending the curve around the obstacle so that you avoid hitting it. Not only that, but in True Shot you can adjust the angle by moving the left trigger up or down, meaning a high arch stops the ball from gliding across the fairway or putting green upon its landing. A more direct angle moves the ball further when it lands.

6. Putt to perfection

A myriad of factors can cause a putting attempt to miss the hole. Wind speed is one of them, as is the angle of the ground, and the distance from the ball to the hole. The most useful tool is the ability to watch the path of the ball, and you can do this by holding in X/B. This shows where the ball is likely to end up, as a white line simulates your shot. If it ends up a few inches away from the hole, you know to hit it slightly to the left or right, and if the ball is going to end up falling just short, you can increase the power of your shot by moving the right trigger forward.

7.  Tailor the difficulty to suit you

PGA Tour 2K21 has a wide range of difficulty options, meaning you can customise exactly how much help you receive when playing. HB Studios has made sure your experience is as satisfying as it can be by including the ability to adjust various settings to tailor its difficulty. You can make swinging more challenging by decreasing the scale of timing and power. The option to remove the Scout Cam and Lie Grid takes away the information you have on the terrain, and disabling various Pro Vision options means you can’t activate True Shot or include the Shot Suggestion.

8. Manage your Golf Bag

Whilst there are a range of different shots to get your head around, picking the right clubs in your Golf Bag is just as important. Throughout your career, new clubs unlock, and you can spend Virtual Currency on a range of drivers, sand wedges, putters, and more. Pay close attention to the stats because they make a huge difference once you are on the course. Clubs with better Forgiveness allow for more error when swinging, improved Shot Shaping gives you wider draw and fade distances, and better Distance Control provides more range in your shots.

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Chris is a freelance journalist, photographer, and charity consultant. He specialises in sports, both in real-life and in the gaming space. He's written for publications including GamesRadar, The Sun, Daily Mail, The Times, The Mirror, and more. 

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PGA Tour 2K23: Beginner Tips Guide

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You don't need to be an expert to golf, learn the clubs, customize your clubs in the locker, grind xp and coins, allocate skill points to the essential clubs, tweak the settings, experiment with the archetypes.

Tiger Woods has once again revived the world of virtual golf with PGA Tour 2K23 , the latest installment to the universally acclaimed sports saga. Like before, players are invited to swing for stardom as an up-and-coming pro golfer over a series of dynamic courses, tournaments, and global events in its ever-evolving MyCareer mode.

PGA Tour 2K23: The 10 Best Golfers

PGA Tour 2K23 features many famous playable golfers and even some surprise guests from other sports that have taken to the links. These are the best.

Luckily, PGA Tour 2K23 has a litter of in-depth tutorials and starter challenges to help you take your first steps out on the green. Learning to master the sport, though, is another story, and one that involves a fair amount of trial and error backhand swings, putts, and tee-offs. But where do you begin in a world like PGA, and how exactly do you build up a certain repertoire that puts you on par with the poster children of the sport?

Updated November 21, 2023, by Sean Murray: These PGA 2K23 Tips are sure to get your golfing career off to a great start. We've tweaked this guide's formatting slightly and also given it more links to other helpful PGA 2K23 topics.

PGA Tour 2K23 does a remarkable job at accommodating both newcomers to the series and seasoned veterans who've followed it since its 1990 debut. Because of this, it's fair to say that you don't need to be an expert with all the answers to hit the grass running.

Of course, previous experience is a major plus in a series like PGA Tour, especially if you're looking to challenge others in its online multiplayer mode. That said, you can learn all there is to learn without having an existing wealth of knowledge already stowed away under your belt.

If this is your very first rodeo with PGA Tour, then rest assured that 2K doesn't expect you to be an elite golfer to make a mark on the green.

It's no secret that a lot of newcomers to the series fail to make their shots because of the clubs they choose to bring to the course. Make no mistake that missing a shot can boil down to a number of factors, but selecting the wrong club is a definite no-no in PGA Tour , and can consequently cause you to struggle to make par.

Therefore, before you hit the green, be sure to experiment with each of the varied clubs until you've grasped the basics.

PGA Tour 2K23 offers a generous selection of clubs, all of which come loaded with their own purpose. The good news here is that your caddie will determine which club you need whenever you're about to tee off.

That said, just because the caddie hands you a club doesn't mean you should always follow up with it . The more you learn about the clubs and their capabilities, the more you can test your caddie's knowledge out on the green by switching up the defaults.

You can change your club by pressing up or down on the D-Pad .

PGA Tour 2K23: All MyPLAYER Archetypes, Ranked

And how to go from a greenhorn to a greensman with all of them.

Your default clubs will only take you so far in a game like PGA Tour 2K23, which is precisely why you should build up enough coins to shop for upgrades . These upgrades come in the form of Fittings , which can be applied to any of your clubs in the Locker section.

You can only apply up to three Fittings for each club , and each one is scaled by rarity .

It goes without saying that adding just one of these Fittings to a club can boost your game when out on the green. Each Fitting has a number of attributes, including shot power , timing , swing path , and shaping .

Applying only the rarest will definitely give you the upper hand when fending off opponents in any of the game modes.

To make it anywhere in MyCareer , you're going to need a lot of top-shelf cosmetics . Unfortunately, cosmetics come at a price, and unless you've stashed away a whole treasury of coins, you won't be able to equip them to help triple your A game.

Therefore, you're going to want to grind XP and coins , which can be done by competing in global events and challenges .

Of course, taking part in any round will help you gain a foothold on the ladder, but to truly make an impact, you're going to want to win events and challenges . Like in PGA Tour 2K22, the higher the difficulty setting, the more XP you will acquire on completion .

Claiming consecutive wins will rack up your XP Multiplier , which will, in turn, fast-track your character to superstardom.

As you shovel your way through MyCareer, you will earn XP from beating events, which can be used to unlock a variety of perks for each of your acquired clubs . However, if you dump XP into skill trees for clubs that aren't used all that much, then you're only shooting yourself in the foot.

It's always best to prioritize allocating points to the essential clubs .

When it comes to building up your skill trees, you will want to focus on the driver , irons , wedge , and putter . As these are the clubs you'll be using the majority of the time, it's best to cram as much XP into developing their attributes and leveling up the tiers.

There is a total of 126 skills to choose from in PGA Tour 2K23, only 50 of which can be collected by leveling up your character. When it comes to picking skill trees to evolve, try and aim for the clubs you favor the most on the green .

PGA Tour 2K23: The 10 Best Courses

Golf courses are impeccably manicured pieces of scenery, but challenging to play on. But which are the best in PGA Tour 2K23?

It may seem obvious at this point, but changing your settings to suit your personal preferences can definitely help you out in the long run. Although it is recommended that you play on a higher difficulty to maximize your chances of netting more XP, it doesn't mean you should never settle for something a little less threatening as and when needed.

If you navigate to the MyCareer Presets , you will find three adjustable sliders: Opponent Difficulty , Conditions Difficulty , and Rounds Per Event . If you're still learning the basics and aren't quite ready to dive into the deep end, then you can change the top two sliders to Very Easy , which will give you more leeway when playing rounds.

You still acquire XP for completing global events and challenges on the easier difficulties .

PGA Tour 2K23 lets you choose from five different archetypes , all of which come preloaded with their own abilities and perks. You can alter your character to accommodate any of these archetypes for free in MyCareer, and doing so can help you get a feel for each respective skill tree.

For example, the Powerhouse archetype is better suited for players wanting to drive the ball with speed and power, whereas the Greensman archetype favors putting over drive .

Before diving into any global event, you should aim to experiment with each of the five available archetypes, which are Powerhouse, Greensman, Rhythm, Sculptor, and Woodsman .

You can change your archetype between events by going to the MyPlayer menu and selecting Golfer . From here, scroll over to the Archetypes tab and pick the one that you would like to equip.

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EA Sports PGA Tour Controls Guide: PS5, Xbox X|S, PC, Swing Technique & more

Master the basics then become the best around

Published: 04 Apr 2023 3:19 PM +00:00 Updated: 04 Apr 2023 3:19 PM +00:00

It's finally time to take to the tees and get on EA Sports PGA Tour, but not before you know the controls!

There will be plenty to get used to regarding the gameplay of the new title, so it is important to get accustomed to the basics of the game so you can progress to become one of the best around.

Table of Contents

Ea sports pga tour control guide, swing technique, gameplay settings.

Check out the controls guide for EA Sports PGA Tour on PS5, Xbox X|S, and PC below.

There are two main areas of gameplay to understand the controls for in EA Sports PGA Tour, Pre-Address and Address, with each as follows:

Pre-Address

Before you take your swing in EA Sports PGA Tour, you must first set up your shot. Position your aim, selecting from a variety of clubs and shot types , and add shape to your shot to manoeuvre around the course and change the spin of your ball.

Once you've lined up your shot, it's time to take a swing at it!

You can keep making adjustments to your aim and shot shape when addressing the ball, take a practice swing, or go back to pre-address if you need to make bigger changes.

Just because you've lined up the perfect shot with the right club and shot selection, it doesn't mean your ball will go exactly where you planned.

This is because there is still the all-important swing to get right, which could make or break your game plan.

When playing a straight shot without any draw or fade, you will want to move the stick in a straight line down to up (to 6 o'clock then up to 12 on a clockface).

If you add draw or fade to your shot, the direction you move the stick in will mimic the shape, either going from bottom left (around 8 o'clock) up to centre (12 o'clock) or bottom right (around 4 o'clock) up to centre.

The closer your swing matches the line present in the on-screen display ball, the better your shot.

Timing is also vital, with every shot in EA Sports PGA Tour based on three components: backswing length, forward swing speed, and swing plane (the path of your swing - which we have just covered).

Backswing length can produce an over-swing, under-swing, or perfect swing. Fast or slow swing speed can also occur. Both backswing length and swing speed impact the power of your shot.

There will be a marker on your golfer's swing meter which is where you should be aiming to change from your backswing (pulling back on the stick) to a forward swing (pushing the stick forward).

You will receive feedback on all the shots you play, allowing you to adjust your style until your tempo is perfect!

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You can also change the gameplay settings in EA Sports PGA Tour, with four options to pick from:

• Arcade: Provides you with exciting, larger-than-life mechanics like Power Boost and Spin Control
• Pro: Gives you challenging gameplay paired with the aids and exaggerated mechanics of arcade
• Tour: Has you playing like a top-tier professional golfer with more challenges and no aids
• Simulation: The most challenging game style gives you the most difficult set of game mechanics

If you want to take full control of your time on EA Sports PGA Tour then you can create your own Custom Gameplay Style, toggling various settings for a unique gameplay experience.

ORDER: EA Sports PGA Tour from Amazon

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How to play golf: Tour pro strategy lessons

Published: 21 August 2020 Last updated: 13 August 2021

Strategy tips from the world's best golfers.

European Tour, PGA Tour, Major and Ryder Cup winners share their golf strategy secrets to help you play better golf, lower your handicap and win those matchplay clashes with your mates.

As amateur golfers so many of us fail to lower our handicaps or enjoy matchplay success because, despite physically knowing how to play golf, we drop silly shots due to poor strategy on the golf course.

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We asked a selection of European Tour, PGA Tour, Major and Ryder Cup winners to share their professional golf strategy lessons to help you play smarter golf and achieve your goals. whether it’s to lower your handicap, break 100, 90 or 80 or simply take the bragging rights in your next matchplay clash with your mates.

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Lee Westwood: “Know your average yardages”

Handicap golfers don’t hit enough club a lot of the time, so they often find themselves coming up short. Most of the trouble is at the front of the green, so you’re usually better off being long than short.

It also doesn’t help that most people think they hit the ball further than they really do. Choose your club based on your average carry distance and favour the longer club if you’re in doubt – unless there’s serious trouble just over the green.

I write my average carry distances on my clubheads as a reminder.

RELATED: Best Golf Rangefinder

Soren Kjeldsen: “Leave yourself below the hole”

Shorter par 4s often have tricky greens as one of their main defences, so consult a yardage book to see where the slopes are and how severe they are.

Sometimes eight-feet uphill can be easier than four feet downhill or across a slope – even if it means leaving a chip short on purpose, rather than running it too far past.

RELATED:  Best Putters

Ian Poulter: “How to win at matchplay”

Be aggressive. If there’s an opportunity to get to a green, I’ll go for it. On a short par 4, or somewhere that gives the best chance of making three, I will be really aggressive in matchplay. You’ve got to take on risks. Cautious golf doesn’t win in matchplay.

You have to hit driver where you can to leave yourself as short an approach as possible.  If you don’t, your opponent will, and you don’t want to give him a chance.

Make them hole out I’ve heard this idea about giving putts early to pile the pressure on later, but it’s absolute nonsense. If you give a three-foot putt, a player is entitled to put the ball down and hit it as a practice anyway, so it’s irrelevant. Make them hole everything but a simple tap-in every time.

Expect the unexpected. As much as I’m trying to hole everything, I always expect my opponent to do the same. Even if it looks as though your opponent is out of the hole, you still expect them to hole their next shot.

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However, there are times to be sensible. Birdies are what win holes, but if your opponent has hit it in the water and the best they can do is bogey, there is no point being overly aggressive and bringing in an error for them to get off the hook. Take par if that’s what you need to win the hole – just keep your opponent under pressure.

Ryan Fox: “Choose the best lay-up”

If I’m laying-up I’d prefer to leave myself a full swing, but it depends on the flag.

If it’s at the back and you have a lot of green to work with, the closer you can get to the green the better. But if it’s at the front, a lot of the time you can’t bounce it in, so you’ve got to leave yourself a full shot so you can stop the ball with height and spin.

Francesco Molinari: “Play for the middle of the green”

For the average golfer, the secret to hitting more greens is picking a club that should find the safety of the middle of the green.

You shouldn’t always just go for the flags because, very often, doing so can leave you in all kinds of trouble.Always play to the distance of the middle of the green.

Percentage-wise it’s much simpler and is likely to give you a better scoring chance than going, say, for a short flag and coming up short, or going for a back flag and flying the green!

Chris Paisley: “It sounds obvious, but keep the ball in play!”

It depends on the length of the hole and course, but you don’t always need to take driver on every par 4 and 5

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You can save yourself a lot of strokes by getting the ball in play with a 3-wood, especially if driver brings hazards more into play or you can’t reach a par 5 in two anyway.

Colin Montgomerie: “Take your punishment and don’t make it worse”

Too many amateurs try to do too much, rather than thinking positionally to make the next shot as easy as possible.

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If you find yourself in trouble make sure you get out of it as easily as possible – you don’t want turn a bogey into a double or triple.

Andrea Pavan: “Consider using a driving iron off the tee”

I use my 18° driving iron quite a lot. It’s an integral club in my bag. It’s really good off the tee on tougher driving holes, especially when the fairways are hard and fast in the summer.

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The lower flight is really good when it’s windy and it can go pretty far; it’s also good for hitting second shots into par 5s. I’ve used a hybrid in the past, but I prefer the long iron off the tee, so I stick with it from week-to-week. The only drawback is that it’s not as good out of the rough as a hybrid.

To hit driving iron your ball should be just ahead of centre, but it has to be before the low point of your swing – under your left shoulder – to help you hit slightly down.

Everything else is like a normal iron shot – good balance, weight centred between the feet, and a slight forward lean of the shaft at address.

Peter Hanson: “Aim on the safe side”

Even if you’re feeling comfortable and you have a relatively short club in your hand, I’d still aim three or four yards to the safe side of the pin if it’s near the edge of the green – just left if it’s on the right, just right if it’s on the left, just long if it’s at the front, and just short if it’s at the back.

Never take dead aim at the flag because you always want to give yourself a bit of margin when the penalty for missing the green is so harsh. 

Marcel Siem: “Check the pin position”

It’s vital you walk to a position where you can see the green and flag if the shot is blind, especially if it’s a hole you’re not very familiar with.

The pin position and any hazards around the putting surface will obviously affect the club you need to hit, but also where you can’t miss the green and what miss will leave a simple up-and-down.

Bernd Wiesberger: “Use your shots, that’s what your handicap is for”

If you have a handicap, then a hole’s par is meaningless. Adjusting the par on the card with the shots you get will make a good round seem much more achievable and prevent you making big mistakes.

Target holes where you think you can beat your par but acknowledge holes where bogey (or even double) is acceptable – just not a blow-out!

Chris Kirk: “Increase your margin for error”

Think about the shape of the hole. A straight drive may give you 15 yards to work with in the landing zone, while a draw will shrink your target to five-10 yards, and a fade will increase it to 20-30 yards.

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If the hole doesn’t suit your shot shape, then take a shorter club that puts you in a more generous part of the fairway.

Joost Luiten: “Play the percentages on par 4s”

It’s always tempting to hit driver and get the ball as close as you can to the green on shorter par 4s. But that isn’t always your best chance of making birdie or par, especially when there’s more danger around your driver landing area.

The benefit of a shorter par 4 is you can aim for the wider part of the fairway with less club and still leave a short iron to the green. Sometimes, accept you’ll have a little longer shot in if that makes it easier to hit the fairway with your tee shot.

I’d rather have 130 from the fairway than 100 yards out of the rough or a trap because you can control the ball better.

READ NEXT: The mind game myths damaging your scores

11 PGA Tour 2K23 Tips for Beginners

If you are a complete beginner to PGA Tour 2K23, you might feel overwhelmed with all the things you need to learn.

Golf is a very unforgiving sport because of how bad the consequences are when you make a mistake – even a small one.

In this post, we will give you the best tips and tricks for beginners in PGA Tour 2K23. We’ll help you climb the leaderboards and possibly even win the PGA Tour.

Measuring Putts

The biggest challenge in PGA Tour 2K23 is being good with putting. Putting well is usually the key to avoiding bogeys or getting eagles or birdies.

The best tip for measuring the putt distances and angles is to first look at the terrain. If there is a big downhill slope, the ball will roll sharply to the left or right more.

If the slope is uphill, it should be a lot easier to measure the angle of the putt.

Of course, if the green is flat, it should be the easiest putt you could ever ask for.

As for the distance and power, the game will automatically give you a good target. However, it is best to reduce your distance by 1 to 2 feet and focus on hitting the perfect power swing timing.

Learning how to putt means taking all of these in your head every time you are on the green.

Learning to Chip

Learning how to chip the ball is another crucial part of the game you need to work on. Once you learn how to chip or adjust the distance to make the ball go near the hole as close as possible, you will eventually reach scores around -6 or -10 consistently on the events.

The best tip for doing a good chip is by accounting for the bounce and roll of the ball afterward the swing.

If the hole is 13 yards away, aim for around 6 or 7 yards behind the hole. If the green is uneven, you don’t have to adjust your shot as much because the ball will barely roll toward the hole.

The ball will bounce a few times, and it will unlikely turn to the left or right if your timing is perfect.

Learning When to Add Spin

When you add spin to the ball , you are either trying to make the ball roll farther or make the ball stay once it lands on the grass.

So, when do you want to add backspin or topspin to the ball? The best way to go about it is by looking at the situation first.

Is the maximum swing distance near uneven terrain?

Are there bunkers or roughs within 2 to 3 yards near the green or the hole?

Do you even need to add spin? Because sometimes, you can just lower the power and let the ball roll closer to your target.

The best tip is to always look for big slopes or holes near the roughs. These situations usually require you to add a spin so you can consistently get close to the hole.

There are some cases where fades or draws are better, which will be another tip later on. Always remember that adding spin to the ball will make your swing timing a lot harder.

Always Remember You Can Change Clubs

The default or automated distance, clubs, and shot types used in a game are usually correct. These are made by your caddie in PGA Tour 2K23.

However, you can always switch to whatever club you feel will give you the better chance.

For example, if you hit a rough 200 yards away from the hole with some lie, you will most likely be using a 5-iron club. However, you can switch to a 3-hybrid to give you a little more yardage.

There will be some 3-par holes where your default club isn’t the best club to use for the situation.

Adjust to Your Timing Errors

As a beginner, getting your timings will take a while for you to get them right. As you play the game, you will get better and better.

However, there will be some slight inconsistencies along the way. Even a player with more than 100 hours on the game will still have slight mistakes in timing.

If you can pinpoint what your errors are, you can adjust slightly for them.

When I played the game, I noticed that I tend to have a slow or late downswing. It would either be perfect or a bit too slow. If your timing is a bit slow, the ball will fly more to the right.

Because of this, I slightly aim more to the left to compensate. Since I would get perfect swings, it means that some of the shots would go more to the left.

This tip is mostly applicable off the tee. Since your aim is to get the ball to the fairway, you only have to avoid the roughs, woods, and other obstacles.

Wind Direction

Playing with strong winds is my kryptonite. The game will change drastically, with winds ranging from 10mph to 15mph.

It would feel like you are already putting on insane slopes for your drives. It will take a while to get used to; with strong winds, you want to compensate hard on the direction of your aim.

You can play around the winds by changing where you want the ball to land. In 4-par or 5-par holes, you want to avoid the wind going directly against your shot since you want to reach the green as fast as you can.

Choosing the Right Shot Type

Most beginners only use the chip off the rough, splash out of the bunker, and a normal shot on the fairway. Always remember that you can change your shot type depending on what your goal is on the fairway.

Punch shots are used to try and lessen the effect of the wind. Chip shots are used to get out of the rough. Splash shots to get out of bunkers.

They can all be useful elsewhere if you know how to use them effectively.

Pay Attention to the Lie Angles

Lie angles can be seen on the top-right corner of your screen during a game. These angles are fairly obvious to see if the ball is on a slope.

The lie can affect your shot drastically. It will be much harder to add spin to the ball as well. The timing will be a bit different from a normal shot as well.

Learning Draws and Fades

Draws are done to make the ball curve from right to left, while fades are done to make the ball go from left to right. These are for a right-handed golfer. Reverse them if you are a left-handed golfer.

These shots are usually done to avoid the trees or other obstacles. You can also use them to make the roll from left to right or right to left upon landing.

Using them effectively will help you be in better situations on the fairway. However, the timing and swing path will get much harder as well.

Equip Fittings on Each Club

In PGA Tour 2K23, you can equip fittings to improve your player . Each fitting has a different rarity and stats that they increase.

Each club can have three different fittings. For every fitting equipped, it will cost coins. You will need to earn a lot of coins to get each club maxed out.

You can also make slightly different builds to improve on your weaknesses as a player.

Swapping Archetypes to Cover Your Weaknesses

Archetypes can be changed for free in PGA Tour 2K23. You can try out each of the archetypes and see what you like best.

If you want to improve in putting, you can go for the Greensman. If you have problems with the swing path and timings, you can go for Rhythm.

You can choose the best archetype that fits your playstyle.

More PGA Tour 2K23

• PGA Tour 2K23 Review
• The Best Skills in PGA Tour 2K23
• How to Putt in PGA Tour 2K23
• How Long is the PGA Tour 2K23 Career Mode?
• How to Chip the Ball in PGA Tour 2K23
• How to Earn Coins Fast in PGA Tour 2K23
• The Best Archetype in PGA Tour 2K23
• How to Improve Your Player Fast in PGA Tour 2K23
• How to Spin the Ball in PGA Tour 2K23
• How to Get Sponsorships in PGA Tour 2K23
• Is the PGA Tour 2K23 Tiger Woods Edition Worth It?

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How to Putt in EA Sports PGA Tour – All Tips and Tricks

Playing EA Sports PGA Tour for the first time will definitely put you before many challenges. Even if you are a veteran of this digital golfing experience some moves can be pretty hard to master and can only be perfected with practice.

Putting is one of those skills that troubled many players of the EA Sports PGA Tour. Like for every other shot, there are many in-game parameters to help you make the perfect putt, but even after a couple of tries, you feel like you’re still at square one. Read on to learn some practical tips and tricks that can up your putt game and make you a Major Champion.

Putting in EA Explained

The first advice we can give you for better putting in EA Sports PGA Tour is to practice, practice, practice. I know from my own personal experience that I just got a feeling for most of the games I’ve played and I didn’t really strategize much or think about which buttons I was pressing. It’s the same when you are playing any sport really, the more you kick/throw the ball the better you get and your muscle memory takes over. The same is true for the careful putt shots in EA Sports PGA Tour.

Related: All Courses in PGA Tour 2K23

When it comes to practical advice in the game, the most important thing is that you pay attention to the putt read line as that will be your guide to a perfect putt. It will show you the break and the curvature your golf ball will take when you strike it.

Next, you need to pay attention to setting an ideal weight for your putt. You will want to pay attention to whether you need to hit the golf ball uphill or downhill. Hitting it with either one of those circumstances will require that you adjust your aim distance accordingly.

For example, if you have a 15-foot putt that is 5 inches downhill, you would have to move your aim to 10 feet to get the perfect shot. On the other hand, if it was a 15-foot putt with 5 inches uphill, you would need to set your aim to 20 feet. Hitting the golf ball too strong or too weak is one of the most common mistakes players make when putting.

We hope you enjoyed our guide. If you are a fan of golf games see our articles about PGA Tour 2K23: All Playable Characters in PGA Tour 2K23 and All Swing Options in PGA Tour 2K23 . Meanwhile, follow Gamer Journalist on Facebook if you want to keep up with the latest news from the gaming industry.

5 Expert Short Game Tips From One Of The Top Players On The PGA Tour

Struggling around the greens? Sahith Theegala shares 5 top short game tips to help you become a wizard with the wedge...

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As the golf season gets into full swing, many amateur golfers will be looking for the best golf tips to spruce up their short game. The opportunity to learn from the top players in the game is one that shouldn't be taken for granted, especially when the advice comes from a PGA Tour winner who ranks 12th in the Official World Golf Rankings and 4th in the FedEx Cup standings.

In this article, we share 5 top short game tips from Sahith Theegala to help you take control of this crucial aspect of the game...

1. Chipping

It sounds a cliche, but a lot of people overthink it. I think the main thing is just finding the best way to get the club on the back of the ball. That just comes down to a lot of short-game practice.

I think it’s something a lot of people neglect. I use the same club pretty much with every shot around the green, my 54-degree wedge, and I’ll just make sure I’m putting it in the proper spot in my stance.

The correct ball position is so important for chipping. You never want it in the middle of your stance. If you want to hit it high, get it in the front of your stance; if you want to hit it low, get it in the back. I think if you get it in the middle or a grey area then there’s way too much indecision.

You’ve got to really commit to the high one or the low one. There are certain situations where you have a mid-flight chip but I find them very rare, especially in tournament circumstances. You’re trying to either hit it soft or trying to get it to run.

With greenside bunker shots , all you need to do is pick a spot behind the ball and try to enter that point in the sand. It’s not necessarily a downward dig or anything like that, it’s just like hitting a chip shot out of thick rough – you pick a spot about an inch and a half behind the ball and just focus on trying to strike that point.

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I think with the nature of the club you have and how the sand works, the ball is just going to plop out. A lot of people dig really hard into the sand or try and scoop it up and out of there, which never works. 

3. Lag Putting

Long putts are how I start out pretty much every practice session. I’ll hit 50- and 60-footers all the time, just to get my confidence on the speed of the greens. On the course, I like to look at it in the middle of the putt, so with a 50-footer, I go to 25 feet away.

I then walk pretty far out to the left and pretty far out to the right and give myself a visual of how the putt looks from those angles. I’m a visual player, so that helps me get a better feel for what a long putt is doing.

When you go through those steps on a long putt, it’s amazing the confidence it gives you when you strike it. The bottom line is you know you’ve done your homework.

4. Short Putts

The right mindset on short putts, especially with a lot on the line, is trying to hit your line and speed. Obviously it’s easy to get a little nervous if you have a five-footer that’s turning hard, but make sure you’re sticking to the process and hitting that line. I think people forget how close the hole is.

5. Putting Practice

I’m not a gadget guy at all in my practice, but one thing I love to do is draw a chalk line for alignment purposes. It’s so easy as a feel player to get a little bit out of alignment and that chalk line reassures me that my alignment is right.

It may sound very simple, but that will give you an added boost of confidence going into your round. It shows you’re doing the right things and you’re aligned properly.

Garrett Johnston is a golf reporter and presenter who’s covered pro golf for 12 years including over 30 majors. His goal each year is always to “grow with the rookies” on Tour. The idea is to get to know the superstars before they become household names. Tony Finau, Gary Woodland, and Patrick Reed are just some of the players Johnston has covered from their early pro careers for their hometown newspapers. Johnston’s favorite event is always The Open, and he credits his unforgettable experience covering the 2015 Open at St. Andrews where he got to interview Tom Watson (in his final Open) and winner Zach Johnson exclusively throughout the week as his favorite event so far. Johnston has also developed a strong rapport with Tour caddies and regularly contributes to Caddie Network and Golf.com. He also has his own podcast: Beyond The Clubhouse

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EA Sports PGA Tour: How to Putt Like a Pro

EA Sports PGA Tour Road to the Masters is a golf video game that allows players to experience the thrill of professional golf and compete in prestigious tournaments such as the glorified Masters Tournament.

Mastering the art of putting is crucial to excelling in the game and achieving greatness. In fact, mastering the art of the short game is instrumental to your golf game and the difference between a birdie, par, or a high-scoring bogie. 

In this article, Prima Games will provide a step-by-step guide on how to putt effectively in EA Sports PGA Tour Road to the Masters. And trust when one says… It takes a lot of experience to get it right.

Understand the Basics of Putting in EA Sports PGA Tour

Putting in Road to the Masters can be straightforward, challenging, or even hard. Depending on where you’ve placed your ball on the green following a long drive, near or far to the hole, will determine the putting task ahead of you. 

To understand the basics of putting, you must first understand the physics and elements that affect it. When close to the hole, it’s hard to miss, but make no mistake, golf is not your friend and will be unforgiving if you’re not precise in most moments.

To learn more about the different shot types in the game, you can read: All EA Sports PGA Tour – Road to the Masters Shot Types Listed

What Elements Affect Putting in Road to the Masters?

Many elements affect your putting and short game. In fact, everything surrounding you impacts the direction and speed of how the ball rolls towards the hole.

Here are the elements that will influence the roll of your ball:

Where You Land On the Greens

The starting point is always the most important. Where you drop your ball on the greens after an approach, punch, or drive can be the difference between an easy or hard back-end game.

Depending on the slope between the hole and you will determine what way the ball rolls. Because the greens’ landscapes are uneven, the ball never rolls true and straight. Only when you’re close to the hole does it run straight-ish.

The wind never leaves but only blows them and will always influence your shot, long or short. Only a stinger defies the laws of wind. But when you putting, your ball’s roll is vulnerable to the wind.

Related: EA Sports PGA Tour – Road to the Masters: All Golf Courses Listed

The Distance

The further you are, the harder you must hit and the more your shot is influenced by the terrain en route to ending your round.

This is where reading the field of play and understanding nature’s function in the game is vital and must become “second nature” to you. In order to go from a young Padawan to a Master Jedi putter, you must become one with nature.

How to Read the Slope

To read the slope or the many different ways the greens can slope, you need to look at the grid and watch what directions the little blue lines are flowing and how fast they are flowing in that direction.

The faster the flow, the bigger the downslope and the more the ball will curve in that direction. If the flow is slow, the slope is not intense, and the role is not fast.

Baby Steps: Use the Putting Guide

If you’re not used to golfing and are a newbie to the game, or even a weathered player, then using the guide will help you read the pitch much easier. The guide plus the grid will help you identify the ball roll, what angle the ball will curve, and how much curve the ball will have. 

Once you’ve identified the length and angle, use the keypad to turn your golfer to the side where the line curves or bends. For example, turn the golfer left if the line has a curve on the left. If the hook of the angle is on the right-hand side, turn your Pro to the right. Don’t be scared to turn your golfer. The bigger the curve, the more you need to turn.

Related: EA Sports PGA Tour – Road to the Masters Pure Strike Explained 

From there, it will take your precise judgement to complete the shot. Once ready, check the power bar behind your putter, pull back the analogue stick, meet the first line of the two, and push up on the analogue stick all in one motion for a smooth swing.

The best way to master your art and get used to all of the above is by practicing like any other sportsman does to improve their talents.

Important note: To enable or disable the guide, gride, and other putting and hitting assists, you must do so in settings. You can access the settings anytime during the game and change them to suit your preference.

Practice Makes Perfect in Putting

Practice, practice, practice, and practice some more! As with any skill, practice is key to mastering putting in EA Sports PGA Tour Road to the Masters. With practice, you’ll be able to familiarize yourself more with the different courses and the slopes on the greens they each possess while improving your accuracy and consistency. 

The best place to get those putts in is by doing challenges; it’s also equally rewarding. To find out all the game modes in EA Sports PGA Tour, you can read: All EA Sports PGA Tour – Road to the Masters Game Modes

While practicing, review your putting performance and analyze your strengths and weaknesses. Take note of the putts you missed and the ones you made to identify areas for improvement. Adjust your technique accordingly, keep practicing, and adjust to the course and its greens. 

Putting is a crucial skill in the game that can make or break you. Once you’ve learned this essential part of the game and improved your entire short game, there’s no stopping you from winning that championship trophy. 

In EA Sports PGA Tour Road to the Masters, putting requires precision and finesse, an understanding of how to read the landscape, and requires expert judgement. After you’ve mastered the putting techniques and basics, disable the guide and start putting as a real Pro without one.

Expert Picks: 124th U.S. Open

Expert Picks

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How it works: Each week, our experts from PGATOUR.COM will make their selections in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf. Each lineup consists of four starters and two bench players that can be rotated after each round. Adding to the challenge is that every golfer can be used only three times per each of four Segments.

Aside from the experts below, Golfbet Insider Rob Bolton breaks down the field at the U.S. Open in this week's edition of Power Rankings.

Betting picks

WILL GRAY (Lead, Fantasy & Betting)

• Winner: Tommy Fleetwood (+3300) – He’s been in the mix before, and this could be the week. Fleetwood has finished T26 or better in each of his last four starts, has plenty of positive experience in the majors and can control his ball off the tee, which will be paramount this week.
• Top 10: Sepp Straka (+600) – The Austrian was on my radar last week at the Memorial and continues to thrive. Straka is among the straightest drivers on TOUR and now boasts six top-16 finishes in seven starts since the Masters.
• Longshot: J.T. Poston (+20000) – Taking a flier with the North Carolina native here in the Sand Hills. Poston is ninth on TOUR in driving accuracy and enters off a pair of top-25 finishes.
• H2H: Xander Schauffele (-120) over Rory McIlroy – Schauffele was a beast in this event even before he got that breakthrough major title. I expect another strong week out of the Valhalla winner, while McIlroy still presents more questions than answers for me.

BEN EVERILL (Senior writer, Fantasy & Betting)

• Winner: Collin Morikawa (+1400) – If you like Morikawa, like I do, the better play is taking him in the “Without Scheffler” market at +1200 just to take the dominant world No. 1 out of the mix. His ball-striking has been great of late and his desire palpable. I sensed a hunger at Muirfield Village to prove this isn’t just the Scottie Scheffler show.
• Top 10: Tommy Fleetwood (+320) – You need a combination of driving accuracy and scrambling ability to play well at Pinehurst and Fleetwood has a great combo of both going this season. Is a proven U.S. Open performer and could give the title a real shake.
• Longshot: Min Woo Lee (+6600) – The first feeling I got when stepping back on Pinehurst was that of homesickness for Australian sandbelt golf. While not exactly like those back home, Pinehurst has a Mornington Peninsula feel about it which should give imaginative Aussies a sense of familiarity. Needs to lift his short game to truly contend.
• H2H: Cameron Smith (+120) over Matt Fitzpatrick – This is a dangerous selection as Fitzpatrick is not only a recent U.S. Open winner but he also played himself into some sneaky form last week on a baked-out Muirfield Village. But I’m choosing to think the Australian’s sensational short game and imagination make him a value choice here.

CHRIS BREECE (Senior content manager, Golfbet)

• Winner: Collin Morikawa (+1400) – Call it stubborn. I’m calling it conviction. Collin Morikawa is going to get a big win at some point. Every metric points to his game doing well at U.S. Opens and this course in specific. His game has been too consistent lately for me to get off this horse now.
• Top 10: Sepp Straka (+600) – His recent form is on point. Since the Masters he’s gone T16, T5, T8, MC, T5, T5. He’s second on TOUR in Driving Accuracy, one of our key stats this week.
• Longshot: Max Homa (+5000) – This almost hit for me at the Masters, so I’ll try it again. Homa has the exact pedigree that fits the mold of first-time major winner you didn’t think was going to happen. He has two top 10s in his last three majors. Perhaps the narrative is coming to an end.
• H2H: Russell Henley (-110) over Sungjae Im – Henley is near the top of our board for the combination of Driving Accuracy and Scrambling. The players also love his game. The U.S. Open has been a struggle for Im.

MATT DELVECCHIO (Social content manager, Fantasy & Betting)

• Winner: Rory McIlroy (+1200) – Scheffler will most likely win this week, and after saying I think he will win three majors this year after the Masters, I stand by that. With that being said, I don’t ever support +333 odds in a 156-man field. This may be the last season McIlroy’s game will be third in the world. McIlroy needs to take advantage of the form he’s in with another major on his resume. I think we see some unbelievable scrambling and dialed driver/iron play to push him towards a win.
• Top 10: Sungjae Im (+600) – Outside of Scheffler and Schauffele, Sungjae Im could make a case for one of the hottest players on TOUR since the Masters. He missed the cut at the PGA Championship but has played the RBC Canadian, Wells Fargo Championship, Charles Schwab Challenge and the Memorial and has no worse than a T12 finish. His SG: Around the Green and SG: Putting is what I like the most from him and should be on display this week at Pinehurst.
• Longshot: Sepp Straka (+8000) – Straka’s proving to be a big game hunter (T16 at THE PLAYERS, T16 at the Masters, T5 at RBC, T8 at Wells Fargo, T5 last week at the Memorial). Watch out for him.
• H2H: Corey Conners (-125) over Keegan Bradley – Both have been playing great as of late, but like I said with Conners last week, he is more reliable. Trust the Canadian to finish high this week.

Odds were sourced on Tuesday, June 11. For live odds, visit BetMGM .

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60 essential tips EVERY golfer will always need to know

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These tips are essential for golfers of all skill levels.

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Golf is back, and it’s imperative you get your game in shape for the summer. So we’ve assembled an all-star cast of GOLF’s Top 100 Teachers , PGA Tour players and social media’s instruction stars to help you shake off the rust and play your best golf. Here are 60 essential tips every golfer needs.

1. Swing with an anti-slice grip

If you slice, it’s probably because you’re not closing the clubface fast enough through the hitting zone. To improve your ability to deliver a square clubface (relative to your path), make practice swings with your hands split apart on the grip.

Hold the club in its normal position with your gloved hand, then slide your lower hand down to where the grip meets the shaft (photo, left). Separating your hands like this makes it easier to square the face through impact and keep the handle pointing at your belly button as the clubhead slings out toward the ball. Make sure to brush the grass aggressively. If you can recreate the feels in the drill on real swings, you’re money. —Krista Dunton

2. Give your backswing a power boost

As you start the club back, make it a goal to get your hands as far away from your right ear as possible and maintain that width all the way to the top of your backswing. A wider swing arc automatically fuels a faster downswing and eliminates the chopping action that causes pop-up drives and slices.

3. Learn the benefits of consistent lag putting

Pros rarely 3-putt inside of 40 feet, but do so almost a third of the time from outside 60 feet. Even for the best players in the world, lag putting is a score-breaker. Make it a part of any practice session.

PGA Tour data courtesy @JJGolfPutting

4. Find the “power slot” in your downswing

My student, Patrick Cantlay , and I have a phrase we use when working on his transition: “The lower body turns out of the way and the upper body stays in it.” In other words, once the club gets to the top of your swing, go ahead and let your legs “go” while holding back any movement of the club and your upper body. This slows your transitional pace and also puts the club in a place to slip down on plane, ensuring not only an accurate hit but a powerful one as well. —Jamie Mulligan

5. One key to consistency

Maintaining good arm structure throughout your swing is a major consistency key. Without it, you’re toast. It’s common to lose that structure by allowing your elbows to separate post-impact, or “chicken wing” (above). The fix? Wedge an object (a headcover or a softball will do) between your forearms at setup and keep it there as you swing. This will help you maintain the correct relationship between your arms and give proper shape and consistency to your swing. —Martin Chuck

6. Insta tip: “Stick” it and rip it

https://www.instagram.com/p/B60qiellu5T/

Once you reach the top, “stick” in that position (if only for microseconds) before you begin shifting back down. It’s a simple move that allows your body and arms to sync up for a powerful strike. @mikebendergolf

7. 3 steps to perfect posture

How you set up over the ball greatly influences how well you’re able to hit it. To correctly prep your posture for action, stand with a club pressed against your thighs. Then bend forward from your hips while slightly flexing your knees. If you do this without hunching your back, your arms will hang straight down. Perfect. Now grip the handle with your glove hand and check that it’s at roughly a 45-degree angle to your forearm. Once you’ve taken hold with your gloved hand, add the other. Congrats! You’re in perfect setup posture. —Sean Hogan

8. Drive your knee toward the target

Jack Nicklaus’ footwork was incredible. All golfers should take note. See all the spikes under his trail foot? That implies a big pressure shift toward his front side. Jack is moving a ton of force toward the target. Even his front foot is coming off the ground — another sign of just how hard he’s driving his trail knee forward through the shot. It’s the ultimate power move, and the secret to a driving ball flight. —Joe Plecker

9. Torque and turn

Need a power boost? From the top, move your left side low and around your body, letting your knees separate in the process. Even better, feel like you’re squatting. Pushing into a squat and pulling out of the ground like this helps clear your entire body and generates more speed. The ball won’t know what hit it. —George Gankas

10. The Finau slice fix

When I first came up on Tour, I often played a 40-yard slice. I didn’t have a choice — I played what I had. The culprit? A weak grip, which caused me to roll the club on the takeaway, leaving the face wide open at the top. With my coach Boyd Summerhays , I worked on getting the face more square at the top by keeping my left wrist more flexed and less cupped. It turned my big slice into a baby fade. —Tony Finau

11. Get square at the start

Often, shots go wayward because of a misaligned clubface at address. Place an alignment stick just outside the golf ball, so it creates a 90-degree angle with the target line (photo, above). As you set up, align the leading edge of the club with the stick, then pull it back to its regular position. It’s a simple way to ensure that the face is square every time. —Mark Durland

12. Optimal distance? Learn from the ladies.

Fact: Most weekend golfers’ swing speeds align more with those of LPGA Tour players than PGA Tour players. Spend a little more time studying the ladies’ Trackman data. Above is optimal launch for every club in the bag. Match these and you have a better chance at maxing out distance.

Data source: Trackman

13. How to find your perfect stance width

There’s no universal stance; it all depends on your body dynamics. The wider you stand, the more likely you are to shift your weight onto your trail leg during your backswing—what I call a “rear-poster.” The narrower you stand, the more likely you’ll keep your weight over your front leg — a “frontposter.” Your ideal stance width? Take a normal walking stride, stop after one step and pivot into a golf stance. There it is. Adjust your weight shift accordingly. —Mike Adams

14. Two-second takeaway check

Something I always work on is keeping the clubhead in front of my hands on the takeaway. If it gets too inside, my swing goes kaput. I’ll hit big blocks or hooks. That’s why my dad, who’s also my coach, helped me develop a preswing backswing checkpoint. It’s pretty simple: Get into your address position, then start the club back. Stop when the club shaft reaches parallel to the ground. Look back and check that the clubhead is in line with your hands. Think of it as your own personal waggle. It’ll help keep your swing right where you want it. —Justin Thomas

15. Insta tip: Check your putter path

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-jl7GLlUbX/

Line up your putter just inside a baseboard. Make your stroke. If you hit the board, there’s something wrong with your path. The goal: Miss the board by using a straight or arcing stroke. @michaelhuntgolf

16. Pay more attention to distance than direction

I mean it: It’s better to miss left or right than too long or too short. If you keep the focus on speed, you’ll start to develop a consistent roll. And with consistency, you’ll draw better lines to the target. Your focus will skyrocket, and so will your confidence. —Jason Day

17. Play like a kid

Improving your technique is important, but don’t go overboard. Find something that works for you, and once you’ve done that, follow Jordan Spieth’s advice : “The most valuable advice of all is to ‘play like a kid.’ Just freewheel it and have fun. I tell myself to just keep my head down and focus on why I love this game.”

18. Know your shot shape and visualize it

When it comes to hitting it long off the tee, I always go with my normal shot shape. When I’m driving the ball well, I play a slight draw, so no matter what the conditions I’ll always stick with that natural shape. When I veer off from that mindset, I start missing it both ways and we know how the two-way miss can cripple even the best drivers in the world. I’ll pick a small target where I’d like my ball to end up and try to visualize my shot shape — seeing a slight draw — and go with it.

I think getting off the tee is the hardest part of the game for recreational golfers. I’ve seen many weekenders fight their natural shot shape. I have a friend whose ball flight is a big cut. He aims down the middle of the fairway every time and he’ll drive the ball into the right rough or woods. I finally said to him, “Why don’t you just play the cut? Aim up the left side of the fairway and hit your normal shot.” He started doing that and immediately was hitting more fairways.

Know your shape. Then visualize it and own it. Easy. —Cam Champ

19. Tee the ball at the correct height

We’ve all heard the saying “Tee it high and let it fly,” but for me teeing my ball lower is a key to finding more fairways. Ninety percent of the time I peg it about an inch and a half above the ground. The low ball flight is much more consistent for me and because the ball isn’t in the air as long, it has less time to move.

Sure, the ball would fly farther if I teed it up higher, but I’ve found that my total distance is the same because I get so much roll – out. I’ll tee it half a ball higher if I have a drivable par 4 and I want to carry it farther and land it with less roll, but most of the time I tee it low and see it roll. Recreational golfers looking to find more fairways should try teeing it lower. I bet they’ll actually gain more distance off the tee.

“Cameron could easily fly the ball 340 yards, but he’d lose accuracy,” says his instructor Sean Foley. “Instead he carries the ball 310 yards and then gets 40 yards of rollout because his landing angle is 20 degrees.” —Cam Champ

20. Get wide early for speed where it counts

Speed starts at the beginning of your swing. Whether you can whip it 80 miles per hour or 120-plus like me, the key to generating ball speed is creating width in your takeaway. I see a ton of recreational golfers who struggle to create a full turn or rotation. That problem starts during the takeaway. Many golfers just pick up their driver and turn their shoulders. In order to create maximum speed, you have to create maximum width. This is something I work on a lot.

Try taking the club back almost as far out as you can, creating that width. Naturally, your body will want to turn with you. This will create more speed when you come down from the top. —Cam Champ

21. Rotate everything at the top

I’ve played in dozens of pro-ams over my career and one common mistake I see amateurs make is that they forget about their lower body. They’ll make a big turn with their upper body but keep their lower body still. I like to make a complete body turn. I know all golfers may not be as flexible as I am, but even the most inflexible player can make a turn to some extent. Use your hips, legs and shoulders. Make a full turn, or as full as you can, before starting your downswing. —Cam Champ

22. Get your hips out of the way

Equally as important as the rotation to the top is a full rotation from the top on down. This is done with our hips. Almost all long hitters fully “clear” their hips on the downswing, and do it so aggressively that the club ends up “lagging” behind their body. Sergio García has been the poster boy for this move for years. Other examples: Rory McIlory and Brooks Koepka … their hips are rotating superfast and the club is behind them. Tip: Once you get to the top of your swing and you’re ready to start back down, feel like you’re rotating your hips as hard as you can. That will create the lag. Lag creates speed, and speed creates power.

“Cameron uses the principle of elastic energy to create his speed,” says Foley. “He basically turns into a slingshot by rotating his lower body. The elastic recoil is where his true power comes from.” —Cam Champ

23. “Load” your right side for power

If you’re curious how Jack Nicklaus became the most dominant driver of his generation, this is it! He has rotated deep around his right hip and loaded max pressure into his trail side for a huge turn. (His left foot is mostly for balance.) It’s a full-body, athletic windup that ends up positioning his entire body behind the ball as he reaches the top. Lesson: Don’t cheat your backswing. The wider and fuller you make it, the faster you’ll swing.

24. Smoke it on a downhill

Downhill lies can be tough, but making a few adjustments gives you a greater chance for success. One constant for downhill lies is that they tend to produce shots that come out low and to the right, so you need to make four adjustments: 1) go up one club; 2) aim left; 3) move the ball back in your stance and set your shoulders at the same angle as the slope; 4) stay balanced and centered throughout the shot. Avoid any inclination to “lift” the ball up. Stay in the shot, swinging down with the slope of the hill you’re standing on, and use the lower ball flight to your advantage. —Michael Hunt

25. One drill for better driving

Distance is king, but distance and accuracy is the ultimate goal. To master both, you need to extend your arms fully through impact. Try this: Tee up a ball and place another tee six inches outside the first on a 45-degree angle. Your goal is to strike the ball on the first tee and swing the clubhead over the second. Do this and you’ll automatically hit all the right power positions.

26. Whip up more speed

Imagine there’s a whip connected at the clubhead. To get the whip to crack at the bottom of your swing, you must “snap” your wrists and hands through the strike without overswinging your shoulders. Here, I’ve attached a piece of ribbon to the shaft . (It’s a lot safer than an actual whip.) The trick is to consciously get the end of the ribbon to “crack ” right at the bottom of your swing arc. This drill is a great way to take your mind off hitting balls, and instead hone in on increasing your clubhead speed. —Cheryl Anderson

27. Secret to soft bunker shots

When you’re faced with a short bunker shot and need the ball to land softly, you need to adjust your stance. At practice, place a club or an alignment stick just inside your lead heel. Take your stance and open the clubface. When you make your swing, be cognizant of the stick beneath you, and make sure to keep your weight in front of the stick (i.e., over your left side) from start to finish. Naturally, it’ll help you create the proper descending blow into the sand for high, soft shots. —Bernie Najar

28. Insta tip: Stabilize your stroke

https://www.instagram.com/p/B_LIcZpFCcy/

Wrap a resistance band around your knees and tuck sticks under your arms so they form an “X.” Keep the sticks in place by rocking your shoulders and use the bands to “quiet” your lower body. Perfect. @jasonbailepga

29. Always hit the sweet spot

You don’t need to swing fast to hit the ball far, but you do need to hit it in the center of the face. Try this: Get a can of foot spray or suntan lotion and coat the clubface. Hit balls, focusing only on making centered contact, and take note of where your misses are. You’ll get a better understanding of your impact patterns and how you should adjust. —Tina Tombs

30. A cue for pure impact

Picture a plane on top of the shaft as shown here. If you pull the club too much to the inside through impact or under/ over-rotate the clubhead, you’ll crashland the plane (above left). Work on getting the toe of the clubhead to point up post-impact, with your arms and hands extended (right). See the plane landing safely and you’ll find yourself in a better position through the hitting zone. —Michael Jacobs

31. Stop chips on a dime

The best training aid to help you generate more spin on your chip shots? It’s your golf bag. Lay it on the ground two feet in front of the ball and across your target line. Hit chips over the bag using your sand wedge. The bag’s proximity to the ball will force you to hit down on the ball sharply and with lots of acceleration — two keys for creating max short-game spin.

32. Get in touch with your most damaging swing fault

Although no two golfers are the same, you can use handicap data to spot trends on what you should be working on most when you practice. Beginners and high-handicappers tend to have problems with the grip. A majority of 90s shooters struggle with loading their backswing (see tip No. 34), while lower handicaps typically need help with their body sequencing on the downswing.

Source: Swing Index

33. Go with what your body gives you

If you have limited flexibility, your best bet is to keep your swing in check. Jon Rahm does this beautifully: He keeps his backswing short (yet wide), sets his lead wrist early and keeps his arms in front of him throughout. If he made a longer backswing, he’d come out of his posture and lose his body angles. Rahm may not be the most flexible player on Tour, but he’s learned to max out what he has—a great lesson for all golfers. —Dave Phillips

34. Practice a power coil

From the top, most golfers are looking to “fire the gun.” Unfortunately, they haven’t even loaded it yet. Loading happens before you reach the top, and you have to turn to load. To get it right, hold a medicine ball in front of you while in your golf stance. Swing the ball halfway back, feeling your right hip load and your lead shoulder turning under your chin. Hold this coil for a few seconds, then release. Bring the same feels to the course and you’ll pound it. —Claude Harmon III

35. Nail the 40-yard bunker shot

The 40- to 60-yard bunker shot is notoriously difficult and feared. A slightly mistimed shot can produce fat or thin contact in a heartbeat. Plus it’s difficult to gauge the distance. I started fiddling around with this shot and came up with a method that’s extremely reliable and allows you to judge spin and distance easily via a perfect strike. The setup is the key. Take an ultra-wide stance, to keep your body from swaying. Position about 60 percent of your weight over your front foot, to encourage a downward angle of attack. Lastly, choke up on the handle and lock your arms together tightly. This will sync your arms to your torso and eliminate unwanted wrist hinge. This setup naturally produces a wide, U-shaped swing and will help the club to smoothly skid through the sand. Power your swing using hip and torso rotation—your arms are just there for the ride. Sounds radical, but it works like a charm. —Jonathan Yarwood

36. The secret to a power shoulder turn

If you’re like a lot of amateurs, you tend to slap at your drive with your hands and arms, instead of using the big muscles of your upper body. The result is a power-sapping slice. More shoulder turn is what you’re after, and that’s something you can get with a few small tweaks. At address, draw your right foot (if you’re a righty) two to three inches back, perpendicular to your target line, while flaring the toes of that same foot slightly outward. This will allow your hips to turn more freely, which will help your shoulders turn more freely, too. In your backswing, let your left knee move laterally toward your right knee. You can even let your left heel come off the ground. Taken together, these modest changes will help your left shoulder move farther behind the ball — just the coil you need for longer, straighter drives. —Kevin Sprecher

37. Step up to knock your approach shots closer

It’s hard to hit your irons near the flag if you’re standing too far from the ball. But that’s what a lot of amateurs do. They’re reaching at address, badly off balance, with little chance of catching it flush. To set up properly, hold the club with your arms hanging straight down and the ball so close to you that you feel crowded. Then step back slowly in small increments, just until you have enough room to swing. You should feel evenly balanced heel to toe. Your weight should also be distributed 60-40 between your front and back leg to help you stay more centered during your swing. Now you’re ready to catch it pure. —Debbie Doniger

38. Make a full rotation to pure your short shots

From 60 yards and in, you may be hitting a half wedge. But you shouldn’t be hitting it half-heartedly. On these shots, a lot of amateurs grip the club too loosely and flip at the ball with their wrists. It’s an erratic technique that allows the clubface to twist unpredictably at impact— all the more so on shots played from the rough. Though you don’t need a stranglehold on the club, a slightly firmer grip will create more consistent con – tact. You should be holding the club securely enough that no one could pull it easily from your hands. Similarly, keep your wrists firm on your takeaway, rather than breaking them quickly, and turn your chest and shoulders with your arms. It’s a short shot, but you still need to rotate through it, finishing with your belt buckle pointing toward the target and your arms extended in a mirror of your backswing.  —Debbie Doniger

39. Square up your stance from the bunker

Tour pros make it look so easy. But the way they play their sand shots, with the ball far forward and the clubface wide open, requires more clubhead speed than most amateurs can muster. Make it easier on yourself by setting up with your shoulders and clubface square, and the ball slightly forward of center. From here, you’ll need to dig the blade into the sand to gouge the ball out, as if you’re playing from a buried lie. You’ll be less likely to blade it or catch it heavy, and — most important — you’ll be on the green. —Kevin Sprecher

40. Focus on the hole when you’re putting

When it comes to putting, peeking is a problem. If you look up midstroke, good luck getting the right speed and line. Here’s a better way to direct your gaze: Try looking at the hole the entire time. Jordan Spieth has had success with this on short putts. But the approach is great for lag putts, too. Grinding over long putts can cause ten – sion and overthinking, which makes it difficult to dial in distance. Focusing on the cup helps lessen tension in your arms and shoulders. It also frees your mind so that your instincts can take over. You’re relying on feel, instead of getting bogged down in mechanics. —Debbie Doniger

41. Rotate for a better release

Hitting a powerful draw has little to do with flipping the club over through impact and everything to do with properly rotating your body. Here, I’m using a swing aid (in the yellow circle) to illustrate that my clubface has remained square to my swing path (or just slightly closed for a draw) and that it’s still bisecting my forearms. And check out my body rotation — I’ve cleared my left side, enabling my right side to power through and hit the ball without any need to flip my hands. Both arms are fully extended too, ensuring my rotation was the driving force behind the swing. —Mike Bender

42. Insta tip: At-home pivot check

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-QfZelJ1bs/

Take your stance with your butt up against a chair. Make a swing. Feel the pressure on the chair shift from both cheeks — to the right, back to both, then to the left — as you pivot back and through. @jonathanyarwood

43. Groove a picture-perfect takeaway

If you struggle with accuracy and traectory control, the culprit may be over or under-rotating the face during your backswing. To get things fixed, check your backswing at the point where the shaft is parallel to the ground. From here, look and see if the toe of the clubhead is aligned with your spine. If it’s in alignment, you won’t have to manipulate it as much through impact. Your ball control and consistency will sky – rocket. —Mark Blackburn

44. Punch with precision

To hit a successful punch shot around the green, you must limit overusing your hands and wrists and focus more on rotating fully through the ball. On the backswing, keep your hands in front of the clubhead and your arms in front of your chest. On the way through, simply turn into an abbreviated finish. There’s no need to “snap” the clubhead or release it at the ball. It’s called a punch shot, but it’s anything but a “jab.” —Chuck Cook

45. A foolproof plan for solid chips

Perfect chips happen when you put a good, solid strike on the ball. Here’s how to do it: At address, set your feet about a clubhead’s width apart, which will make it easy to keep your weight on your front foot (at least 70 percent). After completing your backswing, think “rotate and rise.” Simply turn your torso and release the club upward. Good basics like this never go out of style. —Andrew Rice

46. Classic keys to putting consistency

There’s no such thing as “perfect posture” when it comes to putting. The last thing you want is to feel rigid while you’re standing over a five-footer to save par. Take a lesson from Jack: His classic hunched-over position is what allowed him to remain relaxed and tension-free. Check out how the shaft lines up with his lead forearm and how his lead elbow is moving forward and folding up slightly in his follow-through. He’s neutral and balanced, using his head tilt to make sure he started the ball on line. My guess? Nicklaus made this one! —Joe Plecker

47. Putt like clockwork

Picture a pendulum swinging freely back and forth. That’s exactly how you want to motion your putter—with consistent backstroke and through-stroke lengths. A pendulum-like action encourages the putter to travel at an even pace and reach top speed just before impact. Often, players will accelerate at the ball, but this leads to a “yippy” stroke and poor distance control.

48. Take your game’s temperature

Have you ever noticed how the ball seems to be affected by weather? That’s because it’s a real thing. The exact amount your shots will be affected varies, but an average 250-yard hitter can plan to lose or gain about two yards for every 10 degrees of temperature change.

Source: Andrew Rice Golf

49. Groove the right strike

A very simple yet valuable skill is the ability to hit up on the ball with a driver and down on it with an iron. Use a towel to help train both motions. With iron, place the ball in front of the towel, a grip’s length away. With driver, place the ball behind the towel. Your goal with either club is to catch the ball but not the towel, promoting a descending blow with one and an upward strike with the other. —Jeff Leishman

50. Insta tip: Keep a steady head

https://www.instagram.com/p/B_QwLYPJBU_/

Place a ruler on top of a mantel or dresser, one that’s just taller than your head and another that’s about chin height. Make mock swings without disrupting the ruler. Now you’re steady — and solid. #moggacademy

51. The right way to take a speed grip

The more the grip rests in your palm, the harder it is to hinge and create power. The opposite is true when the handle is in your fingers. Set the grip diagonally across your digits as shown in the illustration above right, and then wrap your thumb pad over the top of the handle. Get ready to pour on the speed.

52. Set up for a strong takeaway

Notice Nicklaus’ ball position: It’s opposite the inside of his left heel, and he’s tilted his upper body away from the target slightly. With a higher center of gravity driver (CGs are much lower today), Jack knew he needed to “trap” the ball more to create optimal spin and launch, instead of hitting up on it like current-day pros. Copy the straight line established by the shaft and his lead arm. It’s an easy way to activate your hands, arms and club for a smooth, power-rich takeaway. —Joe Plecker

53. Master tight-lie chips

In Australia, where I’m from, the fairways are usually pretty dry, so you have to know how to hit pitches and chips off tight, hardpan lies. The setup is the same as a normal chip shot, with the clubface slightly open and the ball position slightly forward. The real key to these shots is taking your arms and wrists out of it; it’s a body shot. Turn back and turn through. —Cameron Smith

54. A simple move for perfect balance

Your body’s primary job is to establish balance so you don’t fall down or get hurt when you move. Where your swing is concerned, common errors such as early extension are nothing more than the result of a loss of balance or a means to adjust for poor address alignment. Here’s an easy fix: Set up in a balanced posture where the top of your spine is directly over the balls of your feet. From this position it’s a lot easier to swing in balance. Your ball flight and control will thank you. —John Tillery

55. Level the box

To get a better feel for swinging from the inside on the downswing (and stop your slice-causing outside-in move), grab a pizza box and hold it level at the top of your backswing. From there, simulate your downswing, keeping the box level and your arms soft. To add some more flavor to this drill, throw the box down the target line post-impact, finishing with the palm of your trail arm facing down. This is the rotation and speed you need for powerful strikes. —John Dunigan

56. Putting with consistency

If you struggle with consistency on the greens, it might be because you’re not making contact with the ball from the same position from putt to putt. Improve your consistency by deciding what kind of address alignments work best for you. If you prefer to add loft at impact, align the putter shaft more with your trail arm (A). If you prefer to keep things neutral, set the shaft so that it bisects your arms (B). Golfers who like to de-loft the putter at impact need to align the putter with the lead arm (C). There isn’t a perfect answer. The trick is to pick a style and stick with it. —David Orr

57. Choose the right shaft flex

Based on data from our sister company True Spec, players with 105 mph and more of driver club speed should consider an extra-stiff shaft; a stiff flex for 97- to 104-mph swingers; regular flex for 84 to 96 swingers; senior flex for the rest.

58. The perfect pivot

As a student of the game, it’s important to learn the dynamics involved in your swing. Do this: Get into address and press your right-hand fingers to your sternum. Turn back—your chest should face away from the target, parallel with your line (because your torso is extending). Next, turn through— check that your chest points toward the target and slightly skyward , due to the addition of needed side tilt. Copy these positions and your swing can’t miss. —Jon Tattersall

59. Let the club do the work in sand

Jack Nicklaus was a master bunker player. One of the things that made him great was his ability to exploit the bounce angle on his wedges so that the club would glide smoothly through the sand instead of dig into it. He did it by positioning the ball in line with the instep of his front foot, weakening his hold (called a “finesse grip”) and allowing the clubface to open. With this arrangement, he simply let the “club do the work” once it impacted the sand. He often said, “Don’t let the handle swing past your hands until the clubhead releases.” On shots that needed height and a soft landing, he’d simply increase his wrist hinge. Classic, brilliant stuff. —Kellie Stenzel

60. Keep the putter square — or else

Putterface angle at impact matters a ton. If you need proof, check the chart above. Even if the face rotates open or closed as little as 2 degrees through the ball, you’ll miss from as short as six feet.

Source: @JJGolfPutting

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Subscribe to the magazine, latest in instruction, 1 *big* short game lesson amateurs can learn from this year's u.s. open, peter kostis, gary mccord dissect pinehurst's gnarly 16th hole, the secrets behind scottie scheffler's dominance he's happy to share, what's the key to winning at pinehurst former champ explains, luke kerr-dineen.

Luke Kerr-Dineen is the Game Improvement Editor at GOLF Magazine and GOLF.com. In his role he oversees the brand’s game improvement content spanning instruction, equipment, health and fitness, across all of GOLF’s multimedia platforms.

An alumni of the International Junior Golf Academy and the University of South Carolina–Beaufort golf team, where he helped them to No. 1 in the national NAIA rankings, Luke moved to New York in 2012 to pursue his Masters degree in Journalism from Columbia University.  His work has also appeared in USA Today, Golf Digest, Newsweek and The Daily Beast.

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Course Strategy: How Good Is Your Shot Selection?

• January 9, 2014

David MacKenzie

• Course Strategy

Golf strategy is something we can all do better at whatever level of player we are. Whenever I give a player lesson, I invariably see players lose several shots per round by simply picking the wrong target and the wrong shot. The good news here, is that these lost shots can easily be saved by having a smarter golf strategy. And as with most of my coaching on the mental game, it doesn’t require any physical skill to fix, just a change in your mental approach.

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On a higher level, this comes down to not making the pre-shot routine as detailed as it needs to be. And when I say detailed, I’m not saying that you should take 5 minutes to play each shot. All the steps of a good pre-shot routine should take no longer than the 30 seconds each player is allowed to play each shot.

Make golf strategy part of your pre shot routine

During the analysis phase of the pre shot routine , a player should clearly identify a target. But more often than not, this target becomes the center of the fairway or the flag on the green. This is not the way the top players pick their target. As Ben Hogan once said, he only hit 3-4 shots per round exactly as he intended – the rest were good misses. Golf is about how good your misses are. Watch the PGA Tour at the weekend and something you’ll notice is when they do miss the target (which for approach shots is about 1 in 3 according to the Greens In Regulation stats), they miss it on the correct side, so it gives them the best chance for an up and down. The same applies to tee shots – where invariably, one side of the fairway will be the “better miss”.

You might be thinking “well isn’t it a negative thought to think about missing the target”? No it isn’t. What you’re doing here is playing the percentages. If the best players in the world miss their target 33% of the time over the course of a whole season, you can bet with certainty that you will too. So during your analysis phase of the routine, you’re going to allow for that 1 in 3 shots, that will miss the target so if it does occur you’ll miss it in a spot that will still give you an opportunity of par or better. This is called a “Conservative Aggressive Golf Strategy” that most of the top players use. They swing aggressively at conservative targets.

Where is “the good miss”?

So, firstly you’ll identify your optimal target and then you’ll find “the good miss” and make your new target somewhere between them. The distance your new target will be from the optimal target will depend on how you’re feeling that day. By this, I mean some days you’ll be playing better than others and you’ll have a better chance of getting closer to your optimal target. I like to use the analogy of “Red, Amber and Green”. If you’re having a green day, where you’re playing really well, your conservative target, won’t be as far from the optimal target as it would be on a “Red” day, where you’re not playing great.

Let me give you an example:

Let’s say you have water short left of the green and the pin is cut on the left side about 10 yards from the front. Clearly aiming at the pin is a low percentage shot and could easily result in a double bogey or worse. Missing anywhere left is a bad – you’ll either be in the water or short-sided with very little green to work with.

The good miss here is obviously long right. Being right you avoid the water and by being long you open up the green for your next shot (i.e. you have plenty of green between you and the pin).

So the correct target for this shot would be halfway between your good miss (long-right) and the pin. This will mean you need to take a little extra club and aim 10-15 yards to the right of the pin.

Make sure this kind of thinking if a part of your golf strategy. Judging from a lot of the amateur players I talk to, it’s a missing piece and will save several shots per round.

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Course management lessons from the pga tour.

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This Post Has 3 Comments

This is something I have to start implementing into my game. I am giving myself no other option but to hit the shot I am playing. My misses are not even currently in my golf approach. Looking back after a bad shot I think to myself, why didnt I play that to this side and give myself an easier putt, or why didnt I hit my drive left to give a better line into the green. I know I can shave multiplr strokes in a round by doing this, but as soon as I get to the course it seems as though all my planning goes out the window and I am thinking back to my old way. I am going to have to start putting a mark on my ball or somrthing else to remind me mid round to look at all my options and chooes the right one. Thanks for the article.

Pros and even half good amateurs don’t play golf this way. We plan each hole from landing spot on the green to tee shot shape, backwards, this idea of a good miss is silly and such a practice only does irreparable damage to golf longevity. If I need to hit a cut shot past the hole onto a backstop and spin it down towards the hole then thats what I’ll do, I’ll position myself in the fairway to hit that cut shot. The game is played between the course designer and the player/caddie. The designer designs with the idea that I’m supposed to figure out the path I’m suppose to play, but each hole has multiple paths for multiple shot types /skill sets who may play it. The best courses require me to utilize 72 different shots the worst often repeat the design hole after hole or they have features which create to many unplayable shots.

Hi Kevin, I appreciate you reading and taking the time to write a comment. However, I’ve worked with many Tour players and top amateurs over the years and if they are smart players, they will always factor in the good and bad miss. Some will shade areas in their yardage book as part of their preparation to indicate this. In fact, one of my players who recently won on Tour, says (about his approach shots), that he thinks to himself, “If I’m going to miss this green, where would the easiest up and down be from?”. That’s not saying that his intention is to not hit the green, but knowing that Tour players miss 1 in 3 shots into each green, there’s a 33% probability he’s going to be chipping with his next shot. Hence he would move his target (on the green) more towards the good miss. Are you saying that if the pin is tucked back-right that you would always play at the pin, knowing that if you miss long-right you are looking at a bogey vs middle of the green with a chance at birdie? Sure, some rounds you have your A+ game and might feel like you can be more aggressive, but on average a Tour pro will play short-left of that pin location. A good course strategy is about using statistics to choose the best possible target. Every shot has a dispersion to it, so to fire at every pin would on average cost you many shots per round.

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Golf Betting Tips

Golf Betting Tips This Week: Craft Your Success with Expert Insights

Welcome to PGAgolfbets , where golf betting transcends mere chance, and strategic triumphs await. Our mission is to guide you through a week of thrilling opportunities on the PGA Tour, providing insights that go beyond luck. Brace yourself for a golf betting experience like no other, armed with tips tailored for success.

PGAgolfbets is your ultimate destination for mastering the art of golf betting. As the PGA Tour unfolds its exciting tournaments, we are here to equip you with expert insights and strategies specifically tailored for this week’s tournament. Get ready to elevate your game and turn your bets into triumphs with our exclusive golf betting tips.

Expert Strategies for This Week’s Golf Betting

Crafting Your Winning Strategy with Golf Betting Tips This Week

At PGAgolfbets , we understand that success in golf betting requires more than just luck; it demands a strategic approach. Our comprehensive guide provides you with the tools and knowledge to craft a winning strategy for the week ahead. From player analysis to course insights, we cover every aspect to help you make informed decisions and maximize your returns. Our golf betting tips this week are designed to give you the edge you need to outperform the competition.

Insider Insights for Successful Golf Wagering

Strategic Player Analysis: Unveiling the Secrets of Success

Delve deep into player analysis, the cornerstone of successful golf betting this week. Our expert tips dissect player statistics, from historical performances to current form, enabling you to identify potential standout performers on the course. Understanding player form and historical data on specific courses can make all the difference. With our insights, you’ll be equipped to make strategic bets and stay ahead of the competition.

Unlocking Winning Formulas in Golf Betting

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Understanding the nuances of the course is akin to deciphering a secret code in golf betting. Gain a competitive edge by exploring detailed insights into course characteristics. Our expert advice ensures you’re well-versed with the unique challenges each event presents, allowing you to tailor your bets accordingly. This week, equip yourself with the knowledge needed to make strategic decisions based on the course dynamics. Knowing which players perform well on specific types of courses can significantly influence your betting strategy.

Maximizing Returns with Proven Betting Tactics

Diversify Your Bets for Maximum Returns

In the unpredictable world of golf, diversification is key to minimizing risks and maximizing returns. Our tips advocate for spreading your bets strategically across different players, considering their strengths and weaknesses. By diversifying your bets, you increase your opportunities for success and ensure a more balanced betting portfolio. This approach helps mitigate the risks associated with betting on a single outcome and enhances your chances of earning a profitable return.

Stay Ahead with PGAgolfbets

Discover exclusive golf betting tips tailored for this week’s PGA Tour events at PGAgolfbets . From strategic player analysis to course insights, equip yourself with the knowledge to elevate your betting game and maximize your returns. Get ahead of the competition with expert golf betting tips designed specifically for the current week. Dive into player analysis, decode course secrets and diversify your bets for a winning strategy at PGAgolfbets . Maximize your success on the PGA Tour this week with PGAgolfbets’ expert golf betting tips. With strategic insights and comprehensive strategies, you’ll be equipped to make informed decisions and turn your bets into triumphs.

Our goal is to make golf betting an exciting and rewarding experience for casual enthusiasts and fantasy golf players alike. By leveraging our expert golf betting tips this week, you can confidently navigate the complexities of the PGA Tour and enhance your betting strategy. Whether you’re a seasoned bettor or just getting started, PGAgolfbets is here to provide you with the insights and strategies needed to succeed.

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US Open Betting Tips and Insights for Pinehurst Course No. 2 Unlock success at Pinehurst Course No. 2 with our US Open betting tips. Make informed golf bets and fantasy golf picks based on player form and key statistics. The US Open is one of the most prestigious tournaments in … Full tournament preview…

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PGA Championship Betting Tips

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2024 Best Golf Gifts for Dad - Father’s Day Deals at PGA TOUR Superstore

Si golf x pga tour superstore | jun 12, 2024.

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The Ultimate Guide to Golf Gifts for Dad Father’s Day is just around the corner, falling on June 16th this year, and it’s time to find that perfect golf gift for all the golf-loving dads out there. We know that finding the ideal Father’s Day gift can be a challenge, but don’t worry—we’ve got you covered. With the help of PGA TOUR Superstore, we’ve curated a list of top golf gift ideas for Dad in 2024, complete with budget-friendly options and personalized touches to make his day extra special.

Best Father’s Day Golf Gifts PGA TOUR Superstore offers a diverse range of golf gifts that cater to all skill levels. From high-performance apparel to essential golf gadgets, you can always find something that suits your dad’s playing style and preferences. Explore the best Father’s Day golf gifts this year that are sure to bring a smile to his face and enhance his game.

1. LAB Golf DF3 Custom Putter

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2. Scotty Cameron Phantom Putters

3. Titleist Vokey SM10 Wedge

4. Callaway Ai Smoke

5. Titleist Pro V1/X Golf Balls

6. Callaway Chrome Tour LE June Major Golf Balls

7. Rapsodo MLM2PRO Launch Monitor

8. Footjoy LE Wilcox Golf Shoes

9. Blue Tees The Player + Speaker

Best Father’s Day Golf Deals

The best golf gifts don’t have to break the bank. PGA TOUR Superstore offers a variety of budget-friendly options that will delight any golf enthusiast, whether he's a seasoned pro or just starting out. Here are some of the best Father’s Day deals available this season:

10. Golf Lessons: Give the gift of improvement! ($50 off 6 Pack)

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11. Buy 2 Get 1 Free Srixon Golf Balls

12. Cleveland RTX Full-Face Wedge (Under $100)

13. Perfect Practice V5 Putting Mat (Save 20%)

14. Bushnell Tour V6 Shift Rangefinder

15. 25% off Entire Stock of Puma Men's Apparel

16. PGA TOUR Airflux Polos ($19.99)

17. $20 off New Balance Brighton Men's Golf Shoes

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18. $20 off Skechers Vortex Golf Shoes

19. Garmin Approach S70 GPS Watch

Personalized Father's Day Gifts If you're looking for the perfect way to tell your golfer Dad that you care, a personalized gift would do just that. Personalized golf gifts make the golfing experience even more unique. PGA TOUR Superstore offers customizable options which make the perfect Father's Day present for a golfer. From customized golf balls to sport-themed golf gloves, such accessories will make your dad stand out on the course. But why stop at just gear? Why not create a memorable golfing experience for your dad? Whether it’s a custom club fitting, or a pack of golf lessons to help his game, PGA TOUR Superstore can offer a customized experience for your father. Personalized gifts for golfing dads are designed to make your dad feel special and appreciated

Tips to Choosing a Perfect Golf Gift for Dad Selecting the perfect Father’s Day gift for your dad doesn’t have to be daunting. Whether you're shopping online or in-store, PGA TOUR Superstore experts can help you find the ideal gift. Here are five tips to get you started: 1. Know His Golfing Habits: Whether he’s an avid weekend golfer or a casual player, understanding his habits will help you choose a gift he’ll love. 2. Stay Updated on Trends: Shop what’s new in the world of golf to give you ideas for a trendy, functional golf gift. 3. Consider His Preferences: Think about his favorite golf brands and styles to ensure your gift matches his taste. 4. Get Personal: Personalized gifts add a unique touch that shows you put thought into his present. With these tips and the array of gift options from PGA TOUR Superstore, you’re sure to find the best golf gift for Dad this Father’s Day. Happy shopping!

SI GOLF X PGA TOUR SUPERSTORE

2024 US Open: Expert picks, PGA Tour field rankings and fantasy golf tips

T he 2024 US Open is the PGA Tour event this week, and we're back with our PGA Tour field rankings and expert picks for the tournament at Pinehurst No. 2 in Pinehurst, North Carolina.

Every week, we share our PGA Tour player rankings, and they are agnostic of competition. Whether you're playing in a fantasy golf leagues, betting on golf, or competing in a DFS (DraftKings, FanDuel) event, our picks highlight the top PGA Tour golfers to watch this week from our 2024 US Open rankings.

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• PGA Tour results database
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• Quality Strokes Gained
• Strokes gained by round
• Course fit: Player vs. course
• Course fit: Course comparison
• SG:T2G trends
• SG:T2G variance
• Strokes gained by grass
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• Strokes gained by par

2024 US Open Tournament preview

The US Open is this week, and the USGA has brought the national championship back to Pinehurst. The No. 2 course is fantastic, and it will offer a ton of challenge on the approach and short-game.

2024 US Open Tournament rankings: Top 10 teams

1. Scottie Scheffler : There's no debating who is the best player in this field. It's just a debate of whether Scheffler will have anything bizarre happen to him.

2. Xander Schauffele : Schauffele is a better iron player than McIlroy and has a better short game, hence the nod here.

3. Rory McIlroy : If Rory hits a ton of greens this week, he has a great chance, but the short game required to survive at No. 2 is tricky.

4. Collin Morikawa : Morikawa has been striking the ball so well the last few months, and he has managed to give Scheffler a good run for his money.

5. Ludvig Aberg: I worry that I'm prematurely declaring the young Swede back, but I liked what I saw at Muirfield Village.

6. Viktor Hovland : Hovland's title defense at Muirfield Village got off to a great start, but then he shrunk down the board on the weekend.

7. Tony Finau : This venue should work well for a guy that can struggle mightily with putting, and then add in that Finau has been playing well his last three times out.

8. Max Homa : Homa did not close well at Muirfield Village, but there was enough there for me to worry not so much about his form.

9. Sahith Theegala : I love Theegala's imagination, and he has to be willing to use that kind of creativity at a place like No. 2.

10. Sungjae Im : I think I'm ready to believe in Sungjae again, as he's been strong in three of his last four starts. His short game seems to be improving.

The post 2024 US Open: Expert picks, PGA Tour field rankings and fantasy golf tips first appeared on Golf News Net .

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What happens when you allow a scramble-golf duffer onto a pga tour course, share this article.

I didn’t play from the tips.

The championship tees and the 7,200-yard distance they create at TPC Wisconsin were decidedly not on the menu. This was due to several factors, most of which begin and end with the fact I am not good at golf and my bag only holds so many balls. Regardless, my modest work covering the sport allowed me a sneak preview of the PGA Champions Tour’s newest stop.

My golf game exists in fractions of a second. That space between a well-struck drive and the moment physics catches up to allow it to soar like a broken eagle, tailing hard to the right right before crashing into the woods. It’s the thought I have the proper line on a putt before ripping it 12 feet past the hole. It’s my one good iron shot per round that makes me feel like I might just be improving (I am not).

After ensuring my personal embarrassment would not be a problem for the PGA officials visiting Madison, I grabbed my clubs — a mishmash of the finest irons the 1990s had to offer and some woods picked out from garage sales and secondhand stores — and headed to the course.

The day began with a light breakfast and a couple of question and answer sessions. Club owner Dennis Tiziani touted his commitment to growing women’s golf. He also admitted he’s already dropped $22 million turning a “pretty good” course into a championship caliber one, rebranding the city’s Cherokee Country Club with the TPC name. He estimated there was at least $5 million more to be spent.

A big chunk of that went to working around Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources regulations for a course built on Cherokee Marsh, an active 5,000-acre wetland. Madison takes its green spaces seriously, so anything encroaching on protected land — especially one as resource-needy as a golf course — is going to fall under a massive spotlight of scrutiny. We’d get to see how the club mixed sport and nature soon.

Next up was PGA Tour veteran and local legend Steve Stricker, who lives close enough to the course to drive his custom red Ryder Cup golf cart over and play whenever he’d like. Stricker is here after lipping out a four foot putt to lose the American Family Championship in a playoff the day before. I have never related more to him as a golfer.

Coincidentally, my only round of golf this year came at his old home course. Edgerton Towne Country Club is a lovely public track 40 minutes south of Madison. It can be played for less than $50 on a weekend and hacked through en route to bogey golf and the quiet buzz of five beers on a hot day. It has a 250-yard par four with a steep enough dropoff that no one on the tee quite knows where the hole is and you’re not allowed to play until the group in front of you has rung a large bell signifying they’re off the green. TPC Wisconsin offers none of these things.

What it does promise, per Stricker, is pain. Not in those words exactly, but yeah .

Trees have given way to native wetlands, so instead of losing your ball in the woods you’ll have to scare off a colony of box turtles to look for it. The ground has been turned over and raised so several feet of glacial sand lie under the turf — a sentence that meant nothing to me at the time but promised concrete firm greens despite a spring with enough torrential downpours to turn my backyard into a mushroom farm. Sand traps are everywhere, some of which are so new they don’t show up on the course maps yet, merely waiting to ambush the scramble golfer who hardly ever plays these shots (me. That’s me).

I asked Stricker how he balanced the influence of a national brand (TPC) with his Wisconsin roots and where it shows on the course. Expecting a reference to the incorporation of the wetlands, I instead got the most Wisconsin answer possible.

It’s the final stretch of holes, where families will be able to get together and watch next year’s American Family Insurance Championship with a cold beer. Judging by the tap list inside — not a macro-brew in sight but instead a heavy Badger State bent with brews from New Glarus, Hop Haus, Titletown and Stricker’s own Strick9 pilsner from Stevens Point’s District 1 Brewing (terrible name, pretty good beer) — this is more than mere lip service.

I got the distinct feeling I would need several of those to cope with my hot garbage golf game. Well, onto the course.

I am paired up with two local sports media members who, happily, are taking things as seriously as I am. After we, to a man, blast our tee shots into a marsh, we decide on gentleman’s rules. This roughly translates to “hit as many as you want.” I shank another ball into the fescue, mark down a five and wonder how far away the beer cart is.

Total Balls lost : Two

A proliferation of sand traps — at least three per hole, from what I can tell — means I get to do some real Phil Mickelson stuff with my lob wedge. By this I mean losing bets, as I try to carry a 60 yard gap over water and get maybe halfway there. The next ball is chunked into the junk.

A third hits the green exactly where I’d planned, bounces like it hit concrete and rolls off the back with prejudice. I look for a ball mark and find nothing but a surface hard enough to play pickup basketball on.

This is the allure of a championship course. The greens are like putting on your driveway. My chip back lands at the fringe, then races downhill past the hole for a putt I have zero chance making. I write a frowny face on my scorecard.

Total Balls lost : Five

The thing to realize about a championship course is there’s almost no such thing as a straight fairway. Almost everything runs diagonally, leaving even wide landing zones whittled down to a surgical proposition. When you do come across what appears to be a straightforward hole, Stricker finds unsubtle ways to tell you off for merely being good at golf and not great. The 16th hole, with its fairway bunker dead center at 250 yards, is a wonderful middle finger to one of three good tee shots I hit all day.

This one’s a “no fairway” hole rather than a bunker hole; a deceptively straight start takes a lightning bolt zig-zag right where most folks’ drives would land, making this “land your jet on the aircraft carrier” tough. In theory, this shift right should help me. But after slicing the hell out of my first five drives I blast one dead straight and wind up left next to a water hazard. Several balls dot the shores, unplucked from their shallow graves to remind you rich folks play here.

I reload with a couple lake balls, which come in handy after I assume I’m about to short-arm an approach shot out of that rough and instead send my ball over the green and near a family of sand hill cranes. Take care of my tiny hard egg, bird friends.

Total Balls lost : Six

The upside of rock hard fairways is that on the rare case you hit a solid drive the ball runs as if you’ve cranked one off the cart path in Microsoft Golf. I smash a drive from the 520-yard tees to set up a 210-yard approach to set up an eagle, wistfully realizing I just used up my annual 300-plus yard drive on a day with nothing at stake. This depression overwhelms me as I slice a fairway wood out of bounds to the right and settle for a double bogey.

Total Balls lost : Eight

I connect my phone to the Bluetooth display and play Weezer’s Pinkerton album as I drive up to the tee. I briefly consider whether I am the first man to do this at a TPC, then realize I am surrounded by white dudes in their 40s and understand this cannot possibly be the case.

I need a par here to break 50 (while cheating heavily). I double bogey the hole.

Total Balls lost : Nine

While searching the fescue for my ball, a black water snake slithers out from the shore. Cool, cool. Looks like I’m dropping one.

My playing partner uses this as inspiration and birdies what is easily the finest snake hole outside of Pawnee, Indiana. I write down a six, discounting my score due to amphibious distraction. Just like the pros!

Total Balls lost : 10

One of the staffers who has been helping us along the way jokingly asks if I’m under for the day. Just my blood alcohol content, it turns out. Having failed my way through high school golf with one of Rhode Island’s worst teams (thanks for all the free rounds, Valley Country Club!) I kinda grew to hate golf. But as an adult I realized you could drink six beers on the course and write whatever the hell you wanted on the scorecard, which makes things much more interesting.

Today I only have the latter. And I’m still gonna struggle to break 100. Looks like it’s time for a Strick9 (once the round is over and I’m officially off the clock because I am a valued employee of Gannett and its subsidiaries and of course we would never have a beer while working, thank you for understanding).

This long par three is playing at roughly 200 yards, which is just enough to remind me I have two drivers and two three-woods in my hastily assembled bag but nothing to fill the void between them and my four iron. I pick out a rescue wood I’ve never quite known how to hit and proceed to smash my tee shot 250 yards… vertically.

It has all the horizontal distance to clear the ladies tees and that’s it. Sometimes the smart play is to lay up.

I then top my second shot into the hazard.

Total Balls lost : 11

One thing to know about TPC Wisconsin is it’s only two miles from the Dane County Regional Airport. That doubles as the state’s Air National Guard headquarters, so Monday’s round has been dotted with inadvertent flyovers. This sounds like it would be a distraction, but A) the constant hum of jet engines isn’t especially disruptive on a second-to-second basis and B) as long as you don’t have to live underneath their flight path, fighter jets are cool as hell.

I lean in to unintended display of patriotism at 16 and crank one to the left and beyond Stricker’s unofficial “[expletive] you” bunker in the middle of the fairway. I tip my cap to the pilot screaming overhead at 500 miles per hour. He does not recognize my appreciation. Crestfallen, I blast my second shot into a different sand trap to the right of the green.

Total Balls lost : 12

This short par three gives me the opportunity to use the only club in my bag that’s been operating with any consistency. Needless to say, I chunk my wedge and wind up in the dry marsh in front of the green. While looking for my ball I hear the group of golf journalists behind me shout “YOU KNOW THEY SELL THOSE BY THE DOZEN.”

So on top of learning about the course, I’m also getting a lesson on antique golf heckles. Great, helpful, thank you. I slink up to the fringe and finish out my three putt to double par.

Total Balls lost : 13

My final iron of the day is my first good one, as I get the feel, the flight and the line I’d hoped on an eight iron from 140 yards out. It lands at the front of the green and… bounces and rolls 60 feet past the pin.

PGA greens, man.

Upon reflection, it appears both my carded score (51-47 for a tidy but unimpressive 98) and number of lost balls are skewed lower than the actual total. But that’s fine, no one here was going to disqualify me for signing the wrong scorecard. This course whipped my butt, but it wasn’t without the rewarding moments that make us keep coming back to golf.

TPC Wisconsin finds ways to punish you for everything. For slicing your shots. For keeping the ball too low. For keeping it too high (the mostly tree-less atmosphere lends to lots of gusty winds).

It stings you for not being long enough off the tee. For being too long — my playing partner crushed his drive on the 16th hole, a short par four where it looked like he had an eagle putt but instead spent two fruitless minutes searching the fescue behind the green. This is a championship course, and anything less than precision leads to a sliding scale of outcomes that get exponentially worse the sloppier you are.

Still, you see the vision behind each hole. You learn how to navigate greens that make you feel like you’re putting on a parking garage even after a rainy weekend. You soak in the native wetlands and the animals that come with it — cranes, snakes, toads and turtles. If you’re lucky, you even get to marvel at F-35s giving you the opening day treatment while you stand wide-eyed like a toddler staring down construction equipment.

I played terrible golf at TPC Wisconsin. I won’t be among this year’s wave of membership applicants. Still, I appreciated the hell out of being there and getting to hear the process and cost behind rising from good to great.

And make no mistake, TPC Wisconsin is a great course. It’s probably a lot more fun when you’re actually good at golf.

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• Services & Software

US Open 2024: How to Watch and Stream the PGA Tour Golf From Anywhere

It's the third major of the season at the Pinehurst Resort's course No. 2.

Pinehurst Resort's iconic No. 2 course once gain plays host to the US Open this week, with defending champ Wyndham Clark looking to fend off the likes of the in-form Scottie Scheffler. 

Last year's runner-up Rory McIlroy will be hoping to claim an elusive fifth major victory, while recent PGA Championship winner Xander Schauffele will be chasing back-to-back major titles. 

Keep reading to find out the best live TV streaming services to use to watch each day of the tournament live wherever you are in the world.

Wyndham Clark carded a level-par 70 to claim his first major at last year's US Open. 

What is the US TV schedule for the US Open 2024?

Linear TV coverage of the the US Open in the US is on NBC and USA Network.

That means you'll also be able to livestream the event via Peacock for NBC and USA Network's coverage.

Here's the full TV schedule (all times ET):

Thursday 

• Golf Channel, Peacock: 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Saturday 

• Golf Channel, Peacock: 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
• CBS, Paramount Plus: 2:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.

How to watch the US Open 2024 online from anywhere using a VPN

If you can't view the tournament locally, you may need a different way to watch -- that's where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds by encrypting your traffic, and it's also a great idea if you're traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network, and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.

With a VPN, you're able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the tournament. So if your internet provider or mobile carrier has stuck you with an IP address that incorrectly shows your location in a blackout zone, a VPN can correct that problem by giving you an IP address in your correct, nonblackout area. Most VPNs, like our  Editors' Choice, ExpressVPN , make it really easy to do this.

Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US, UK and Canada, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you're streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.

Looking for other options? Be sure to check out some of the other great  VPN deals  taking place right now.

Best VPN for streaming

ExpressVPN is our current best VPN pick for people who want a reliable and safe VPN, and it works on a variety of devices. It's normally $13 a month, but if you sign up for an annual subscription for $100 you'll get three months free and save 49% -- the equivalent of $6.67 a month with code  SPECIALDEAL , which should be automatically applied. 

Note that ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Livestream the US Open 2024 in the US

Linear TV coverage in the US is split across NBC and USA Network with streaming service Peacock also boasting the same coverage. 

Carries full coverage of all four days of the US Open

Peacock offers two Premium plans. The ad-supported Premium plan costs $6 a month, and the ad-free Premium plan costs $12 a month. You can use either Premium plan to watch the tournament.

Read our Peacock review .

Livestream the US Open 2024 in the UK

Golf fans in the UK can watch the tournament live on Sky Sports. The tournament will be broadcast across its Sky Sports Golf and Main Events channels, with further coverage on its Red Button service. 

Watch the US Open 2024 in the UK for £35

Viewers in the UK will be able to watch the US Open 2024 on Sky Sports Golf, with extensive coverage of each day's play. Subscribers can also stream the action via the Sky Go app. Sky subsidiary Now (formerly Now TV) offers streaming access to Sky Sports channels with a Now Sports membership. You can get a day of access for £12 (perhaps just for the final round), or sign up to a monthly plan from £35 a month to watch all four days of the tournament.

Livestream the US Open 2024 in Australia

The US Open 2024 can be watched Down Under on Fox Sports via Foxtel. If you're not a Fox subscriber, your best option is to sign up for the streaming service Kayo Sports. 

Kayo Sports

Watch the us open 2024 in australia for au$25.

A Kayo Sports subscription starts at AU$25 a month and lets you stream on one screen, while its Premium tier costs AU$35 a month for simultaneous viewing on up to three devices.

The service gives you access to a wide range of sports, including F1, NRL, NFL, NHL and MLB, and there are no lock-in contracts. 

Better still, if you're a new customer, you can take advantage of a one-week Kayo Sports free trial.

Stream the US Open 2024 for free in Canada

Live coverage of Saturday and Sunday's action at the 2024 US Open Tournament will be available to watch in Canada via TSN.  

Cord-cutters can also watch TSN's coverage via the network's streaming service TSN Plus. Coverage of the third and fourth rounds starts at 10 a.m. ET on Saturday and 9 a.m. ET Sunday.

Watch the US Open 2024 for CA$20 a month

TSN Plus boasts exclusive coverage of NFL games, F1, Nascar and Grand Slam tennis tournaments. Ideal for cord-cutters, the service is priced at CA$20 a month or CA$200 per year.

Quick tips for streaming the US Open 2024 using a VPN 

• With four variables at play -- your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN -- your experience and success when streaming may vary.
• If you don't see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the "search for city or country" option.
• If you're having trouble getting the tournament after you've turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs -- like Roku -- don't have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you'll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you're using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
• All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network's sports app, you'll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help, since both devices will appear to be in the correct location. 
• And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you're using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend  Brave .

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