hi everyone, i'm a total newbie and i desperately want to improve my game., ., hopefully this forum can help me achieving that..

anyway, would you kind enough to answer some of my questions about this game :

1. is practicing with pro a must? should i start right away while my skill's still completely raw or should i wait until my skill reached a certain level?
2. can anyone tell me which golf course(s) suitable for a newbie? i googled some courses but maybe somebody can point me..
3. where is the most complete golf shop in jakarta? i need to search a practice gear for my golf swinging., i searched some of the shops in jakarta and all they have is a putting practice set., do i have to order online for a swing practice gear or can i find it in jakarta? or other part of indonesia perhaps?
4. my swing's quite different from examples i saw in youtube, magz, etc., so far i can fly the ball (sometimes straight). is this a problem? some said that the most important thing in swing is the result and some said the most important is doing it the right way despite of the current result and naturally the good result will come along., which opinion should i follow?
5. i have an endless problems, when i hit the driver good, i hit the iron bad, and vice versa., right now i hit the driver and putter fair but i completely lost sense of hitting irons., i'm talking about a total disaster., can't even fly the ball., is this a normal phase for a newbie? or can somebody give me tips about this probleme?
6. i have only 5-6 months to play this game regularly., after that i probably won't play it on a regular basis or not at all for the next 1,5 years., will my skills completely gone or just reduced a bit?
7. is it ok if i speak in indonesian in this forum? or should i speak english? because my english's not too good and i'm not familiar with golf's terminologies..

Hi kelevra,

Here are just my personal opinions.

1. I presume you are saying whether playing with a pro on the course is a must. Well, it is not a must but it is good have if you can afford it. When playing with a pro on the course, he can point out and teach you allot of situation in how to hit the ball comparing on the mat in the driving range.
However, to be train and take lessons with a pro is a MUST. It will develop your correct swing and techniques. Many beginners developed a wrong habit without going through a proper training and interfere with their improvement in golf in the later stage. I am sure you know, bad habit or swing is hard to change.

I would suggest that you take full lesson with a pro and reach a comfortable level and then pay to play with a pro on the course. You shall try to ask allot of question like how to hit ball when you are in a different lie like down slope, up slope, ball above or below your feet, very thick rough .. etc.

2. Unable to answer this question since I am not in Jakarta.

3. I do not know there was much practice gear available in Asia compare to the States. However, I would think you shall spend money in pro lesson rather than on practice gear. Practice gear only help when you do have a major issue with certain part of your game. Example: putting, swing releases, swing on plane, warm up iron or driver .. etc.

4. Both are correct. Some pro swing look funny and they hit their ball far and straight. I believe we shall develop the correct swing 1st and getting to fix or improve will be much easier in future. Example: with your present swing of a 7 iron can reach about 130 meters. You might stay at this distance for the rest on your life. With the correct swings learned and develop, you may hit further in near future (depending how much do you play).

5. Welcome to golf, this problem is not new to all golfers. We had gone through all that. There is a different swing between Driver, long wood and short iron. I would not like to advise you on your swing seem I did not see how you swing and I think you should not accept any advice from other peoples or golf buddy too as they may screw you up more. There is a golf saying, good player usually do not give much advice, bad player always give you allot of advice ( I do not mean that I am a good player though . I still suggest that you ask a pro and during lesson, he point out actually what went wrong.

6. There is a good question. Your skills will not complete gone but I think you will not play as well as you wish you would. Golf need practice, body muscle lost memory of what they can do after you lie off for too long of a period.

7. I think your written English is fine. In fact, it is better than mine. I realized in this Indonesia forum, you tend to get more response when you write in Indonesia. However, I would able to response to you since I am not from Indonesia. I could only speck in Indonesia but unable to write, which I love this country and their languages.