Junior Players Golf Academy Blog

There is nothing like the pressure one faces over a short putt to win a golf tournament.  Your hands start to sweat and your heart beats so hard against your chest that you can barely grip your putter.  Your mind begins to wander, “What if I miss this putt?  Everyone is watching me.  I’ll look like an idiot if I don’t make it!” 

STOP!!!  Back away and take a few deep breaths.  Focus on taking long breaths.  Allow your stomach to expand fully and return.  Talk to yourself, but in a positive way.  Encourage yourself that you will make the putt and remind yourself that it is just a game.  It does not matter if you miss, because you can always tee it up tomorrow.  This will help calm your nervous reactions to the situation and help you perform better under pressure.

For more tips and golf instruction, please visit us at the Junior Players Golf Acadmey (JPGA), located on Hilton Head Island, SC.  We offer junior golf schools and junior golf camps year round to help you develop a better golf game!

While golf may not be the most strenuous of activities, especially if you are riding in a golf cart, long practice sessions and tournaments in the summer heat can quickly drain you of your energy.  Therefore it is important that your body receives a sufficient amount of sleep.  Rest and relaxation between golf sessions allows your body to recooperate from the physical and, more importantly, mental taxation you will face when trying to compete at the next level.  Make sure that you eat a well-balanced diet and receive at least 8 hours of sleep per night.  You body will thank you by giving you the endurance to play at peak performance.

The Junior Players Golf Academy (JPGA), located on Hilton Head Island, SC, conducts junior golf schools and junior golf camps year round to help juniors achieve the golf games they desire.  Through quality instruction and personalized attention, we know that we can help juniors of all ages and skill levels.  Come see what the JPGA can do for you!

Tired of standard stroke and match play between your buddies?  Try waging war against each other in some Battle Golf!  Battle Golf adds a twist to your typical match play format.  Whoever wins the first hole has the choice of any club to take out of play from his or her opponent’s bag.  If that opponent wins a hole, he or she has the option of removing a club from his or her opponent’s bag or replacing any missing clubs in his or her own bag.  This format is continued throughout the entire match.

There is some strategy to when and what clubs to remove.  For example, you could remove a driver right before a long par 5, or remove a 7-iron before a par 3.  Out of courteousy, you and your opponent may want to agree not to remove the putter.  Either way, have fun with it and show no mercy!

At the Junior Players Golf Academy, located on Hilton Head Island, SC, we encourage every student that attends our junior golf schools and junior golf camps to keep golf fun.  Students learn how to incorporate a proper blend of work and play suited their games.  This will allow for the greatest improvement without taking things too seriously.

The Junior Players Golf Academy (JPGA) is proud to announce the establishment of the Junior PGA Tour.  The Junior PGA Tour offers a series of one-day events throughout the Hilton Head area to challenge junior golfers seeking competitive and affordable tournament venues.  Tour events are open to juniors ages 10-19.  Age divisions consist of Boys 10-12, Boys 13-15, Boys 16-19, Girls 11-14 and Girls 15-19.  Awards will be given to those finishing in the Top 3 in their age division.

Participants are permitted caddies at any event, which adds another unique element of enjoyment to our Tour.  Participants may call upon a friend, sibling, or parent to share in the experience as they contest their medal against other juniors on world-class golf courses! 

The Tour Season runs from October through February, with the 2008/2009 Season Opening Event held at Old South Golf Links on Saturday, October 11, 2008.  For more information on membership, registration, and a schedule of events, please visit JrPGATour.com.

The Junior Players Golf Academy (JPGA), located on Hilton Head Island, SC, also conducts junior golf schools and junior golf camps daily for those looking to improve their golf games through quality instruction.  Come spend a few days with us before your next tournament and you will see why the JPGA and Junior PGA Tour are where you need to be!

Golf is rarely enjoyable if it feels like work.  So make your practice sessions fun!  Challenge your friends to different types of contests using every club in the bag.  For example, try hitting shots within 50 yards of the green using nothing less than a 5 iron.  See which one of you has the most creativity in their short game.  You can also try playing a game of ”HORSE,” calling and then executing a particular type of shot (i.e., low draw).  These types of contests offer a nice blend of competition and comraderie.  All the while you are still working on your golf game!

At the Junior Players Golf Academy (JPGA), located on Hilton Head Island, SC, our instructors focus on keeping golf fun.  Students who attend our junior golf schools and junior golf camps walk away with valuable lessons on how to find enjoyment and satisfaction in their practice sessions and time spent on the golf course.

The 2008 season is already off to a great start!  The students are making wonderful progress with their games and are looking forward to contending in some exciting tournaments this fall.

If you are interested in joining us for our Spring 2008 or 2009 Seasons, we are now accepting applications!  Call us at 843.686.3355 or send us an email, learn@jrpga.com, to inquire about how you can take your game to the next level!

The Junior Players Golf Academy (JPGA), located on Hilton Head Island, SC, prepares students for success in collegiate golf and beyond.  Those who have a deep passion for playing golf come to our academy to improve all aspects of their games, including physical fitness, mental conditioning, and competitve experience through nationally-ranked junior tournaments.  Whether you have dreams of playing college golf or maybe the PGA Tour, the JPGA is where you need to be!

According to the Rules of Golf, a “caddie” is defined as “one who assists the player in accordance with the Rules, which may include carrying or handling the player’s clubs during play.”

But a caddie is more than just the guy who totes a player’s clubs and replaces divots.  A great caddie is a member of a two-man team that supports his player both physically and mentally as he competes against the rest of the field.   Knowing the yardages on every hole and the breaks on every green allows the player to have the best information to execute the shot at hand. 

Sometimes it is not only what the caddie tells his player, but how he says it that makes the difference.  Knowing how to keep a player in the right frame of mind under pressure situations can directly influence whether that player finishes strong or falls apart.

At the Junior Players Golf Academy (JPGA), located on Hilton Head Island, SC, our instructors focus on good course management and mental preparation in all of our junior golf schools and junior golf camps.  Instruction is only one side of the equation.  When you think about it, what good is it to have a great swing on the range if you can’t take it to the course?

While spending hours on the range works for guys like Vijay Singh, most amateurs will not benefit from these lengthly practice sessions.  The reason being is that amateurs think that the number of golf balls they hit correlates to how quickly they will improve.  This is a valid argument provided that you are spending enough time on each shot to effectively work on your swing.  Just whacking balls won’t help. 

You can actually achieve more progress by increasing the number of practice swings you make between hitting balls.  A good recommendation would be to make five practice swings, hit five shots, then five practice swings, etc.  You will get more out of your practice sessions and still have some energy for a round of golf.

At the Junior Players Golf Academy (JPGA), located on Hilton Head Island, SC, we are all about quality over quantity.  With a maximum student-to-teacher ratio of 4:1 in all of our junior golf schools and junior golf camps, we ensure that you will receive quality golf instruction and plenty of personal attention.  Come see the difference the JPGA can make for you!

How many tees do you use in a single round of golf?  The number of tees you break can offer some insight into a common swing fault you might have off the tee box.

When using a driver or fairway wood, you should not break the tee.  If the tee snaps, you are most likely swinging too steeply at the golf ball.  You need to shallow out that swing to catch the ball slightly on the upswing instead of the downswing.  This will require you to feel as though you are trying to sweep the tee out of the ground.  Be sure to take a wide stance (just wider than your shoulders) and play the ball off the inside of your front foot.  This will promote a clubhead that is traveling low to the ground and catching the ball on the upswing of your tee shot.

If you need help off the tee, come see us at the Junior Players Golf Academy, located on Hilton Head Island, SC.  We offer daily junior golf schools and junior golf camps to help you fine-tune your game.  You will not only improve your swing, you will also save a few tees!

You just hit an errant tee shot that could be out of bounds.  You can’t be certain whether or not the ball stayed in play.  In order to save time walking back to the tee, should your ball be lost or out of bounds, you announce to the rest of your group that you are going to hit a provisional ball.  “What is a provisional ball,” you ask?  Well, according to the Rules of Golf, a provisional ball is defined as “a ball played under Rule 27-2 for a ball that may be lost outside a water hazard or may be out of bounds.”

Now that you know what a provisional ball is, let’s carry out this scenario even further.  You hit your provisional ball down the middle of the fairway and begin to walk towards the direction in which your first shot went.  You find that the ball is indeed resting out of bounds.  Now what?  At this point, your provisional ball becomes the “ball in play” and you lie three hitting your fourth shot, under the penalty of stroke and distance for hitting your first shot out of bounds.  Did you get all that?

At the Junior Players Golf Academy (JPGA), located on Hilton Head Island, SC, all students who attend our junior golf schools and junior golf camps are educated on the Rules of Golf and how to apply them to situation while on the golf course.  Knowing the Rules is the responsibility of every golfer.  Take the time to familiarize yourself with the Rules and apply them to every round of golf you play.