Real golf tips thread

[hammers1man]

I have massively improved my game the last 2 years from a 23 to an 18. Picked up a runner up and a 3rd place trophy last year in my society, my game was as good as it's ever been. Looking for tips from our more experienced golfers on my weaknesses which are alignment, but not in putting which is by far the strongest part of my game. Pitching is my weakest , how do you set up your shot for a pitch , do you hinge the wrist early. Do you rotate your swing or play it more like a chip but with more wrist brake?

[andersnm]

A good practice is to start with half swings. You swing like normal, but you stop the backswing halfway. Next is to shorten the backswing even more. Picture a 1/3 shot and practice that. Always start the backswing like you would on a normal shot, and use the body as you would on a normal shot. Always the same effort on the swing. The only variable to change is the backswing length. Then you should get the feel for distance. Important to practice on targets so you get the feel for distance.
One question Paul - how is your ball striking and ball contact? Do you hit your ball before ground? This is key to good ball striking in general, but even more so on pitches. You should have solid ball contact.

My weakness is chipping - I don't feel confident on it, and my hands get a little tipsy so I can struggle on ball contact - because I don't want to use my body on chipping (gives too much power).
Pitches, chipping, flops - all shots from 90 yards to the green is where I am going to use most time in the coming year. I hope that gets the results so I get below 10 hcp.

[hammers1man]

My ball striking on irons is very good. I always try to leave 100 yards to the pin on par 5's as that is my PW distance with an easy swing. Just don't feel comfortable with pitch shots or any partial full swings. Use my SW but my feel for distance is bad with that shot. I feel I'm caught between a chip and a full shot.