Tuesday, January 30, 2018

Outstanding Golf Club Memberships in the Austin, TX Area

If you are a golf enthusiast in the Austin, TX area, you might be asking yourself, "Are there any great golf club memberships near me?" The answer is yes. The Austin area has a number of outstanding golf clubs that feature beautiful courses and local golf tournaments.

Avery Golf Club Texas


Teravista Golf Club and Avery Ranch Golf Club 

Avery Golf Club Texas

One of the Austin area's finest golf clubs is the Teravista Golf Club located at 4333 Teravista Club Drive in Round Rock. This club has an 18-hole course with a total length of 7,200 yards. It has been rated a Beginner Friendly Course by the National Golf Course Owners Association. The club features a large practice facility, and it is home to the J.L. Lewis Golf Academy.

When you become a member of the Teravista Golf Club, you also receive membership at the Avery Ranch Golf Club located at 10500 Avery Club Drive in Austin. The Avery Ranch Club course was designed by an associate of Jack Nicklaus. This is considered a difficult course to play even for more experienced golfers.

Membership in these two clubs allows you to play rounds seven days a week. Members are allowed to use the club's full facilities for activities and events. Both clubs are also open for tournaments held by business and private organizations.

Falconhead Golf Club

Another well-regarded Austin golf club is the Falconhead Golf Club at 15201 Falconhead Drive in Austin. This course has the look of a course one would see on the PGA Tour as it was designed by professionals from the PGA Tour Design Center.

A local golf tournament called the Ergon Masters is hosted at the club every year in April during the time of the Master's Tournament on the PGA Men's Tour. It is popular throughout the local golfing community.

There are several membership levels at Falconhead, but there are really three basic memberships. The Classic Membership allows members to play each day and book 10 days in advance. There is also the Weekday Membership that excludes play on the weekends. The Range Play Plus Membership lets golfers play after 12pm.

River Place Country Club

Located at 4207 River Place Boulevard in Austin is the River Place Country Club. This is a par 71 course that was designed by PGA Tour winner Tom Kite. The course has a rolling design that is a challenge to any golfer.

Signature members of this club are entitled to unlimited golf. The club also has tennis and swimming facilities that all members may use. Members may also use the club's facilities for meetings and events.

Morris Williams Golf Club

Morris Williams is not a membership club. It is open to anyone who wants to play. It does host a number of local tournaments for Austin area golfers. They host the Spring Championship in March and the Austin Senior Championship in September.

This course opened in 1964 and was designed by Leon Howard. It is located at 3851 Morris Road in Austin.

These are just a few of the many private golf clubs in the Austin area. Austin has many places for golf enthusiasts to enjoy a round with friends, family, and colleagues.

Avery Golf Club Texas

Saturday, January 27, 2018

The Texas Hill Country Is Home To Some Impressive Golf Courses

Austin, Texas is a great city for golf lovers. This is due to its vast flat landscapes, allowing for spacious greens, as well as year-round favorable weather conditions that make it possible to golf during every season.

The city’s golf clubs are home to several local golf tournaments that take place at its several golf courses. There are two golf courses near Austin TX that are the most reputable, namely the Avery Ranch Golf Club and the Teravista Golf Club.

Part of the Avery Ranch residential community located 20 minutes northwest of Austin, the Avery Ranch Golf Club was designed by former Jack Nicklaus designer Andy Raugust. The Club’s history is that the region was once home to Native Americans and robbers that were attracted to it due to its dense oaks, creeks as well as wildlife. The club was carved and blasted out of the rocky ranchlands along Bushy Creek – Raugust had to use dynamite to blast rock out of the landscape for five holes.

Avery Ranch Golf Club is known for two holes on each nine, namely holes 7 and 13, each of which has its own charm. No. 7 requires a carry over a ravine and natural area from an elevated tee box and a precise tee shot if one wants to avoid the bunkers and tress in order to position oneself for the dog left to a green with another gully across the front of it. The hole itself is rather short, offering players with a good position to tackle the shot. From this position, players enjoy the Club’s the spectacular multi-level green as well as the huge rock wall fronting it, the large bunker to the right as well as native cacti to the back.

No. 13 at Avery Ranch has been known as the city’s top par three hole. It is charming, featuring water on the right side, beautiful oaks in to its back as well as a unique ridge of rocks to the right of the hole. It is a reasonable distance and offers a bail out area (in case of a miss), all of which makes it a fun challenge. However, despite all its challenges, the course still manages to remain fair, offering an enjoyable, satisfying as well as scenic game of golf. It is part of the Austin Golf Trail that offers impressive stay & play packages.

The Teravista Golf Club has its own charm, with a reputation for great golf course conditions as well as the best greens in the Austin area.

Teravista Golf Club scenic view

The Championship 18-hole club is located in the Texas Hill Country, and as such it has impressive views that span over 50 miles. Spreading across 7,200 yards, the yard offers 5 different sets of tees suitable for golfers of all ages and abilities. In addition to the club’s beautiful rolling hills, the Teravista has recently introduced a health-club style membership, namely “The Players Club” that allows its members the convenience of improving their game that suits their schedule. 

Teravista Golf Club Membership Texas

Membership perks also include free practice times as well as two rounds of golf per month and weekly clinics on the Club’s state of the art practice area with several hitting, pitching and chipping locations, all designed to enable its members to become the players they have always wanted to be. Also not to miss is Caldwell Café, the Club’s full service restaurant that is open for breakfast, lunch and happy hour that offers a variety of golf inspired menu items. 

Friday, January 26, 2018

When Should Golfers Play It Safe?

golf playing it safePhil Mickelson, one of the most recognizable risk-takers in golf, asked a kid in the stands during the Dell Technologies Championship for advice; should he go for the green or lay-up?

Mickelson needed a 260-yard club to get him safely on the green and the ball was in the rough.

Whether we are beginners or average amateurs, most of us do not have that shot in our bag, so the decision is slightly easier - go for the green in two shots....but which two shots do we take?

Aside from the two-stroke penalty he should have incurred (Rules of Golf), Mickelson decided to go for the green and made the shot.

What does the average amateur or beginner golfer need to assess in order to play it safe or go for the gusto? Here are a few tips to help you determine your next shot in the least number of strokes.

1. Try looking at the hole in reverse order, from green to tee. If there is water right up near the green, you may wish to lay up in front of the green and make an easy pitch shot.

2. Properly place your shot off the tee, so you take the trouble out of play. If there is sand or water on the right-hand side of the fairway, tee off on the right side.

3. Golf ball lying in a thicket of trees? Your best bet is to get the golf ball back into play. Consider where on the fairway you want to position your ball for the next shot onto the green before you take your next shot.

4. Putting: my playing partners in the EWGA used to talk about the "circle of trust"; an imaginary circle within three feet of the hole that golfers should try to aim for when making a long putt. Although you always want to make the putt, you don't want the ball to roll too far from the hole, leaving you a long, trying putt coming back.

5. Don't go for low percentage shots. Think you won't make it over the water? Are you standing in the trees with no easy way out? Is your ball buried in the sand? Think safe and you won't be sorry!

Share your thoughts on when is the best time to play it safe or go for it on this golf blog and tag us with your response on Twitter @Golf4Beginners!

Photo by Markus Spiske freeforcommercialuse.net from Pexels


Thursday, January 18, 2018

You CAN Be a Successful #Golf Beginner. Here's How

After introducing several of my colleagues to the wonderful world of golf, they caught the bug. It was inevitable - the ball was airborne, the weather cooperated...all things necessary for a successful start.

What steps were taken to ensure success for these two golf beginners and what is needed by the newbie to establish advancement of their golf goals? Here are three tips to help beginners get in, and stay in, the game.

1. Set a plan into motion. Most beginners want to get right out there on the golf course but that is not the best course of action. Time on the driving range is essential and, although practice is good, targeted practice is even better.

You have to be able to move your playing piece before you take the next step, otherwise, playing "military" golf is no fun (left, right, left, right). Step one leads us directly to step two (see below).

2. Qualified instruction is key to success. Although I put my colleague in the correct positions so that she could get started (she was very eager to hit the ball), when the professional golf instructor arrived, he noticed things I did not, such as a weak grip which was causing her to slice the ball. Take lessons but make sure to understand and learn each one before moving to the next.

3. Get custom fit for golf clubs. (This tip goes for all golfers!)
Did you know, it costs the same amount of money to buy golf clubs "off the rack" as it does to get them fit to your exact specifications? Also, a custom club fitter makes sure that the lie and weight of the golf clubs suit your particular swing.

If you are reading this and you are the beginner, remember that only focused practice will allow you to improve. I know you are in a hurry to get out onto a golf course but you will have so much more fun if you learn the basics! Remember, this is a game that will last you a lifetime. Take your time and enjoy the process.

What is the mentality of any golfer who wishes to become a winner? With so many different skill sets needed, from mental to physical, Golf for Beginners took one section from an infographic from Onlinegolf.uk to show you what, in their opinion makes The Perfect Golfer.




  • 1. Every shot counts, so remain focused on one shot at a time. If you hit a bad shot, it's automatically in the past and you must then focus solely on the shot you face next.
  • Play to your own strengths and try not to overthink shots. Keep it simple: aim to find the fairway and middle of the green every time.
  • Make your practice time a pressured environment. Imagine being in a scenario where that one shot counts. Apply your pre-shot routine and evaluate the success of each shot. This will help you when you play in your local weekend Stableford or medal competitions.



  • Are you a golf beginner who needs answers? Ask away, we're here to help.
    Contact golfforbeginners@aol.com, leave a comment below or tweet us @Golf4Beginners.

    Thanks for sharing Onlinegolf.uk!

    Wednesday, January 10, 2018

    3 Steps to Achieving YOUR #Golf Resolutions

    new year's resolutionsResolutions are made this time of year and, for golfers, the main theme is to work on areas which are weak and need improvement.

    What is your most important new year golf goal?

    PGA Tour players, in general, rely on the short game to get them into contention, so it seems like a just and proper resolution to work on wedge and putter development. Other golfers like Jordan Spieth and Dustin Johnson, may be looking ahead to a certain major victory in 2018., and devising individual goals to get them there.

    One thing is for sure - luck and/or wishing won't make it happen. "You are what you do, not what you say you'll do." - Carl Jung

    In this Golf for Beginners blog, we hope that you set reasonable and achievable targets. Here is how to start this process:

    1. Look at your game and decide where you are at your weakest or where you lose the most strokes. For me, it is in my approach shots and putting.

    2. Put your goals down on paper - make a list and determine how you will achieve those goals. Break down each goal into smaller parts. As I have been told in the past...how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time! SET YOUR GOALS NOW!

    As for my personal golf goals, I need to get to the range more and focus on shots that are 100 yards and in. I also need to bone up on chipping with clubs other than my sand wedge, such as my 8-iron.

    SET GOALS THAT WILL MOTIVATE YOU!

    A good tip I found on Mindtools.com is to write down why your goals are valuable and important to you. Make sure that your goals are: specific. measurable. achievable, relevant and you attach a due date to them. Just saying, "I want to improve my putting this year" or "I want to lower my handicap" isn't enough.

    3. Get out there and make it happen!
    Many a resolution has been broken because we are not determined enough to work our way through our sluggishness ...we also make excuses. After reading this blog, why not work on one of your resolutions?

    Read: Golf Resolutions for a Happy New Year


    Which golf resolution will you be working on this year? Write it down here, in the comments section of this golf blog, and tweet us at @Golf4Beginners, then make it happen!

    Thursday, January 04, 2018

    Just the Facts - 150th World Almanac Features All-Time Golf Winners

    Rankings play an important part in golf and every fan has an opinion.
    This is particularly true when golfers discuss topics like, "who is the best player never to win a major" or the flip side, "who is the worst golfer to win a major".
    "Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence." ―  John Adams
    The 150th Anniversary edition of The World Almanac and Book of Facts for 2018 is a repository for golf facts as well as lists of notable personalities, science and technology innovations, maps and U.S. History.

    With a week off for some R&R, I had the chance to peruse this reference book and it is an eye-opener for anyone interested in learning more about the world in which we live.

    If you are a fact lover and are interested in who won the Olympic Gold Medal in golf (do you remember...seems like a really long time ago) or the Women's All-Time Leading LPGA Tournament Winners, this book may be just what you're looking for!

    "The World Almanac is considered America's top-selling reference book of all time, with more than 82 million copies sold. Since 1868, this compendium of information has been the authoritative source for all your entertainment, reference, and learning needs."

    Many internet aficionados may say, "you can simply search these facts on the internet" but there is something "novel" about thumbing through a physical book that makes this World Almanac a special resource. True, you may consider the 1,000 or so pages a bit of a paperweight but, when I received it in the mail, my husband grabbed it, commenting that he can't wait to read through it. And yes, there is a Kindle edition of The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2018 so, for all of you who prefer to go paperless, there is an option for you.

    Are you a fact lover? Which is the most unique golf fact that you have come across? Tag us on Twitter @Golf4Beginners or let us know in the comments section of this golf blog.