Social Media Golf Celebrities and their Impact on Golf

Do you follow Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Bubba Watson...Paige Spiranac... on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook? If so you are not alone as followers are in the millions for these golfers. Is it because of how they play or what they say?

From professional golfers becoming popular via contentious tweets to phenom beauties making a name for themselves on Instagram, the impact golfers have on social media has been an enormous game changer.

Advertisers are jumping on board the social media express, tying into the celebrity to get their product noticed; the monetization value of a single tweet from Tiger Woods was calculated at $33,911 while a single McIlroy tweet was $16,161 with Ian Poulter valued at $11,982. So, the next time you are reading posts from your favorite golfer, think about the subliminal impact it is having on you.

Golf, the once exclusive pastime for the rich and famous, has gone mainstream but has it abandoned its core values to gain visibility and does it now have to right the ship?

Listed below are a few Social Golf moments to consider: do you think, overall, that social media has helped or hurt the game using these examples? 

1. There are different levels of enjoyment within the game of golf for the fan, from watching great tournament shots to learning about the new equipment from Ping, TaylorMade and Titleist and looking for the upcoming great stars who can be "the next Tiger Woods". Instagram has helped launch the career of Paige Spiranac much like the way Justin Bieber was found on Youtube.com. A million social media fans have catapulted this good golfer into the Dubai Ladies Masters despite not officially qualifying for LPGA or LET status.

One of the top female golfers and 4th in the Rolex Rankings, Shanshan Feng has only 933 Instagram followers (2,556 Twitter followers) compared with the 1 + million (884,000 Instagram) Spiranac followers. Although Feng lets her sticks do the talking on the golf course, she needs to gain similar influence or she may be watching from the sidelines over time as others line their pockets via the power of well-placed photos and tweets. Global publicity for the LET and LPGA increases purses and the internet has been chosen as the delivery vehicle.

Happy holidays! Ready for gifts🎅🏻🎄🎁 #merryxmas pic.twitter.com/HnQJSDqTf1

— Shanshan Feng (@shanshanfengCHN) December 24, 2016

2. Did we really need to know that? Is it interesting to you to know what a golfer had for breakfast and/or do we really need to see guys like Jordan Spieth or Rickie Fowler hamming it up, shirtless on vacation?

Thousands upon thousands of fans follow the top guys in golf (Spieth has 1.71 million followers) which is also great for his sponsors who help strategically place their equipment in threads and posts; Titleist ProV1x and Under Armour. The tweet below for the Titleist ProV1 golf ball received 294 retweets and over 2,000 likes:

First week with the new 2017 @Titleist ProV1x was a success. No surprise it's the #1ballingolf pic.twitter.com/ZSN6tEVzyV

— Jordan Spieth (@JordanSpieth) November 30, 2016

Have you tried these any of these golf brands because of a post tweeted from a famous golfer? If so, you are not alone. Advertisers, who once saw results in a TV commercial during a round of golf, are finding that well-placed posts and online videos are equally effective, using brand ambassadors to relate to consumers. It's easy and cost effective to get the message out using Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, and, you get a lot more bank for your buck.

What may be a boon to advertisers may also hurt them as we can also "read" the thoughts of golfers when they are at odds with the game. One very candid, prominent social golfer, Ian Poulter, lets fans know when they (or the system) are out of bounds but this type of power can also be dangerous.

For example, after calling Ian Poulter an unfavorable "name" on Facebook, an average-joe deliveryman was the recipient of one of Poulter's effective posts causing the man's place of business to apologize to Poulter and to re-rout the driver to a different office. Ian Poulter nearly cost a man his job; it's easy to get attention when you have over two-million followers and the power of social media in your corner. He is heard, seen and can get someone fired with words as he has previously done.

Although the man was clearly wrong costing Poulter his shot to land in the drink, Poulter, who makes millions each year, could have cost this worker his livelihood...one-upmanship in the social sphere? 

Lesson learned...watch what you say and to whom you say it on social media.

3. Good can come of it! Golf social media celebs can also make a positive impact on the game. Many players post about their favorite causes, foundations and those of the PGA Tour, bringing great visibility and more donations to help others in need.

My pop would be proud of how the #heroworldchallenge has grown. We’ve raised more than $26M for youth programs. –TW pic.twitter.com/aAETXVMEyf

— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) December 1, 2016

Do you think professional players' social media impact on golf has been positive? State your case in our golf blog comments section below and tag/follow us on Twitter @Golf4Beginners.

Golf for Beginners wishes all of our friends and followers a very Happy New Year.
Thanks for reading our blogs; we look forward to your thoughts, shares and retweets for 2017.

Ways to Improve Your #Golf Game During the Off-Season

This golf blog, "Ways to Improve Your Golf Game During the Off-Season" is a guest post by Matt Mascarenas (bio below). Thanks for the insight Matt!

The season is winding down and most golfers will be putting their clubs away for the winter but many players aren't considering the importance of off-season training. Sure, playing golf through the snow is next to impossible, however, if consistent progress is important to you, taking time off is not an option. 

Working on your game over the winter will give you the spring edge; you'll be ahead of where you let off in fall, you'll eliminate the early season slump, and your friends who took the winter off will be struggling to keep up!

Here are a few golf tips to keep you golf-ready when the fairways turn green again:

1. Set Goals

It's important to have a clear perspective on where your game stands at the end of the season. You'll need to be able to identify your strengths and weaknesses before you can set future goals. The first thing I do entering the off-season is to review last year's goals. 

• Did I meet the previous year's goals? 
• What did I do right? 
• What areas of my game was I performing poorly? 

Once you’ve answered these questions, you’ll be to identify the areas of your game that need improvement.

2. Exercise

Every new golf season starts with optimism and excitement; that fades once you get on the golf course and realize you're lacking in physical ability. You haven't fully lost your game, but the winter break has definitely taken its toll.

Exercising during the winter is extremely important — not just to stay in shape, but to get into better shape. Improving your fitness will benefit your golf swing, add distance to your hit, lower stress and improve thinking skills. We all know that the mental aspect of golf is just as important as the physical aspect — keeping a clear and healthy mind is key.

Set up a fitness plan for yourself and stick to it. Even exercising a couple times a week will put you ahead of the golf curve, assuring that your progress from the previous season doesn't go to waste.  

3. Practice Indoors

Putting is one of the easiest skills to improve during the winter. I keep a putting space set up at home and at the office and make a regular habit out of putting throughout the day. This will help improve putter face alignment, routine, and eye position — all critical techniques to master on your way to a better score.

Practicing your full swing in the house can be a little more challenging if you have low ceilings like I do. Many sports clubs now offer golf simulators to practice on while the green is covered in snow. Not only are they realistic, but they offer measured data on your swing speed, ball flight, trajectory and spin ratio. Golf simulators also allow you see the distance and shape of your shot so you can keep track of your progress leading up to the next season.

4. Book a Trip With Friends

Book a golf trip with your friends. This is a great opportunity to keep yourself practicing without having to practice discipline. My friends and I plan a trip every January to escape the snow and get back on a real course. This has helped me extend the season in my mind, knowing that the final game of my season is right before the next one begins. More importantly, it keeps golf alive for us during the off-season.

Guest Post Author Bio

This article is work of Matt Mascarenas from TruGolf.com. Matt is an avid Golf enthusiast and spends all of his time on the course. When he’s not working on his fairway shot, you will find Matt writing about his passion for the process of the game. 

How Do You Keep Your Golf Game in Shape During the Winter? 
Comment below in this golf blog and tag us on Twitter @Golf4Beginners.

How Bad is YOUR Bad on the #Golf Course?

Tiger Woods, at his own Hero World Challenge Tournament last week, mentioned a concept that resonates with many amateurs on the golf course: Just "how bad is your bad?"

Do you double bogey after sinking a thirty-foot putt for birdie? Do you choke after looking at your scorecard? Does your round take a downhill spiral and not bounce back or do you recover and shake off the bad golf shots?

Highs and lows have no place on the golf course - a sound and even mental attitude is how to keep the "bad" from seeping into your round.

Here are a few golf tips to get your mind fit for the round and help you to stay focused on par:

1. Stay Positive! Possibly one of the hardest things to do during a round is to keep smiling (like Phil Mickelson does) after flubbing an chip shot when you just struck a miraculous two-hundred-fifty yard drive. Don't beat yourself up - golf is a game of mis-hits and, according to Bob Rotella, it is also a game of confidence and competence. Today, you may not have the most perfectly aligned swing, but your putter might be lightning hot - eighteen holes is a long journey.

Read these Tips for Getting Rid of the Shanks

2. Gimme NOTHING! In order to understand golf tournament pressure, don't accept gimme's during your rounds - MAKE EVERY PUTT. Dr. Joseph Parent say's, "Act like the shot matters, and you'll be more ready to hit it when it really does."

3. What Scorecard? I let my husband score each round and, when I am playing golf in a tournament, I let someone else handle putting my score down on paper...know why? It's too much pressure seeing how many birdies and bogeys I made and calculating what it would take for me to score in the 80's for the round. Focus on the shot right in front of you and let the score take care of itself!

What golf tips can you share that makes your bad on the golf course...better? Comment below in this golf blog and share with us on Twitter @Golf4Beginners.