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.

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. 

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. 

When Should Golfers Play It Safe?

Phil 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

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!

3 Steps to Achieving YOUR #Golf Resolutions

Resolutions 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!

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.

Picking Your Wedge With Confidence - guest #golf post

This guest post is courtesy of golf aficionado Brian Adams, whose bio is below. Thanks for giving Stacy Solomon this week off for some R-and-R (and golf, of course), for which she is grateful!

These golf tips are on the short game, from one-hundred yards and in...probably some of the most important tips you will read this year. Learning about your golf clubs is the first step to mastering them.

(Editors notes) Before "digging into" this article, let's address a few terms, specifically BOUNCE, which is, plainly put, where the bottom of the club, or sole, touches the ground and LOFT, the number of degrees that the face of your golf club is angled upward.

Bounce is a measurement of degrees; the higher the number, the more the leading edge of your golf club will be off the ground at address. Thoughtco.com discusses bounce as, "The more bounce a wedge has - the higher its bounce angle - the better it will resist digging. Another way of saying it: Higher bounce equals smaller, shallower divots."

Picking Your Wedge With Confidence

Not all wedges are created equal. Some fly high, some get you distance, and some are left in your golf bag for the rest of eternity, never again to see the light of day. It doesn’t have to be that way, though. Let’s get you the basics on when to best utilize each wedge to your full advantage.

The Pitching Wedge

This is the old standby. Of the standard selection of wedges, the pitching wedge will get you the most distance but offers the least loft.

Recreational golfers are likely to be most familiar with their pitching wedge distance, using it for any and all occasions that call for a wedge. To that, I ask: would you use a fork to eat soup? And you might answer “Only if all the spoons are dirty and it’s not my turn to unload the dishwasher.” To which I would reply “I think we’ve lost the idea behind this analogy.” The point is that the pitching wedge is not your only option. There’s also...

The Gap Wedge

The Gap is not only the place where your little sister worked part-time during high school; it’s also a wedge that can help you form a more complete short game.

It’s called a gap wedge because it covers the yardage gap between your (longer) pitching wedge and (shorter) sand wedge. Not every beginner will necessarily have a gap wedge in their bag, as it’s not always included in a set of irons. As you begin to dial in your distances more accurately, a gap wedge may be worth adding to your bag to make sure any yardages are covered.

The Sand Wedge

For many beginners, the sand wedge doesn’t offer much distance for the average player, but it can provide some extra loft from the 40-70 yard range.

You’ve likely become acquainted with the sand wedge during some trying times in the greenside bunker.

Although the sand wedge is designed to hit out of the sand, it’s not the only time you can use it. The sand wedge can be just as effective for short distances from the rough or the fairway as well.

The Lob Wedge

You may have seen one of Phil Mickelson’s famous “flop” shots around the green, where he takes a full swing to get maximum height with within a short distance. This type of shot is typically executed with a lob wedge.

The lob wedge is perhaps the least common wedge for a beginner to carry and is arguably the most difficult of the wedges to hit as intended. To achieve the desired height, you’ve got to swing hard.

The main issue with the lob wedge is that, if you take a full swing and fail to get under the ball properly, your fellow golfers may be calling you Captain Sully Sullenberger. (As a reminder, golf balls don’t float on the Hudson River.) Overall, the lob wedge is a high risk/high reward club that you may want in your arsenal some day. Whether or not today is that day...I’ll leave up to you.

Watch Phil Mickelson's amazing golf flop shot at Deutsche Bank Championship: http://bit.ly/2B37E4c



READ: Improve Your Short Game in 2 Easy Steps


Brian Adams Bio:
Brian is a left-handed golfer who lives in the Greater Boston area with his wife and their adorable baby girl. He is a regular contributor to the comedy website RECYCULUS and, when not on the golf course, occasionally directs music videos and performs stand-up comedy. For more info, visit https://brianadamsmedia.wordpress.com/page/.


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Golf Club loft chart: Golfalot.com
Golf Ball in bunker: PXHere.com