"Reading furnishes the mind only with materials of knowledge; it is thinking that makes what we read ours." – John Locke, philosopher

When practicing, develop a good routine and think through every shot. Take a break if you get tired. Every shot should have purpose.

But if you’re practicing more when you're playing badly as opposed to when you're striking the ball well you should take a lesson. Don’t keep practicing a bad swing over and over again.

The road to achieving lower golf scores isn’t rocket science. Like most things in life, good old-fashioned hard work, constructive practice and lessons get you on track. Money spent on a lesson is money well spent and is both rewarding to your game and an enjoyable experience. The words and eyes of an expert get you on a sound platform. You'll benefit for their training and experience that can pinpoint your strengths and weaknesses and give you realistic goals to reach.

It’s a great opportunity to discuss equipment, practice drills practice drills to help you on the part of your game that you’re working on. You'll not just don't get advice on your swing but new insights on the psychology of golf, possible fitness and nutritional endurance advice and even creating a network of friends and future playing partners

Having an occasional lesson with a local professional will improve not only your golfing technique but give you more golfing knowledge and most importantly more golfing enjoyment.

"Ingenuity – plus courage – plus work – equals miracles." – Bob Richards, Olympic gold medalist