Our favorite drills for beginner golfers are:
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Fix Your Grip - Learn the proper way to hold the club
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Pivot Drill - Master body rotation for a fluid swing
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Arm & Body Connection - Sync your arms and torso movement
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Contact Drill - Train yourself to hit the ball before the ground
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Face Control Drill - Learn to manage the clubface for straighter shots
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Master Your Alignment - Set up correctly for straighter drives
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Slow-Mo Driver Drill - Improve face control and rhythm
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4-Out-of-5 Fairway Challenge - Build consistency under pressure
Starting your golf journey can feel overwhelming. With so many moving parts in a golf swing, it's hard to know where to focus first. But here's the good news: you don't need fancy equipment or years of experience to build a solid foundation. The right practice drills make all the difference.
Think of these drills as your roadmap to better golf. Each one targets a specific skill that beginners often struggle with. By practicing them regularly at the driving range or even at home, you'll develop muscle memory that carries over to the golf course.
Drills for Proper Setup and Swing Mechanics
Building a solid golf swing starts with mastering the fundamental swing mechanics. These three foundation drills focus on the essential elements that every beginner needs to learn: grip, body rotation, and the connection between your arms and body.
Drill 1: Fix Your Grip
Purpose: The grip is your only connection to the golf club. A proper grip gives you control without tension and sets up everything else in your swing.
Step-by-Step Guide:
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Hold the club in your fingers, not your palm. The club should run diagonally across your fingers.
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Place your left thumb slightly right of center on the grip (for right-handed golfers).
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Wrap your right hand over your left thumb, forming a "V" shape with your thumb and index finger that points toward your right shoulder (Optional: Interlock your right pinky with your left pointer finger).
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Check that you can see 2-3 knuckles on your left hand at address.
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Practice this grip repeatedly without a ball—just pick up and regrip the club 20 times.
A good grip feels strange at first if you're new to golf. Many beginners grip the club too tightly in their palms, which restricts wrist movement. Keep practicing until this finger-based grip becomes second nature.
Drill 2: Pivot Drill (Body Rotation)
Purpose: Many new golfers try to hit with just their arms, but proper body rotation is the engine of your golf swing. This drill teaches you how to turn your body correctly.
Step-by-Step Guide:
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Cross your arms across your chest and rest a club or alignment stick across your shoulders.
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Take your stance as if you were holding a 7-iron.
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Keeping your head relatively still, slowly rotate your upper body away from the target.
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Let your hips and knees move naturally with your shoulders.
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Rotate back through to a finish position with your chest and belt buckle facing the target.
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Practice feeling your weight shift to your back foot during the backswing and to your front foot in the follow-through.
This drill helps you build a strong foundation for your swing by training correct posture and lower body weight shift without even using a club or worrying about hitting a ball. Practice this movement slowly 10-15 times during each practice session.
Drill 3: Arm & Body Connection
Purpose: This drill teaches you how to sync your arms with your body rotation, one of the most important aspects of a consistent golf swing.
Step-by-Step Guide:
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Hold a soccer ball or volleyball with both hands, arms relaxed.
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Take your golf stance and hold the ball in front of you.
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Make a backswing pivot, raising the ball to ear height with arms wide.
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Feel your arms drop naturally to begin the downswing.
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Rotate your body through to the finish position.
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At the finish, the ball should be in your left hand (for right-handed golfers).
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Do this drill slowly in front of a mirror until the movement feels natural.
Many beginning golfers struggle with timing—either the arms lead too much or the body turns too quickly. This exercise creates the feeling of your arms and body working together. Practice 10 repetitions daily, even at home without a club, to build this critical connection.
Contact and Control Drills for Better Ball Striking
Now that you've built a foundation with proper grip and body movement, let's focus on making solid contact and controlling your shots.
Drill 4: Contact Drill (Ball Striking Basics)
Purpose: Learn to hit the ball first, then the ground for clean iron shots.
Step-by-Step Guide:
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Place 3 golf balls in a line—one to hit and two as guides.
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Stick a tee in the ground just in front of the middle ball.
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With a 7-iron, make a medium swing aiming to:
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Hit the ball first
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Then the ground
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Take out the tee after contact
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Success means removing the tee after hitting the ball cleanly.
This drill teaches proper contact with irons, helping you avoid those frustrating fat and thin shots that plague beginners at the golf course.
Drill 5: Face Control Drill
Purpose: Control the angle of the club face to manage ball direction.
Step-by-Step Guide:
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Tee up 3 balls in a row.
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Using a 7-iron and a shortened swing length:
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First ball: Hit with an open face (ball goes right)
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Second ball: Hit with a closed face (ball goes left)
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Third ball: Hit with a square face (ball goes straight)
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Focus on the feeling in your hands for each position.
This drill develops your ability to control the club face—crucial for hitting straighter shots. Many beginners don't realize they can adjust the face angle to fix their ball flight problems.
Drill 6: Master Your Alignment
Purpose: Proper alignment sets you up for success with any club, preventing easy-to-fix inconsistencies.
Step-by-Step Guide:
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Place an alignment stick on the ground pointing parallel left of your target.
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Set your feet, hips, and shoulders parallel to this line.
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Check that your club face is square to the actual target, not your body line.
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Take your stance with the ball positioned inside your left heel.
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Before swinging, verify your alignment from behind the ball.
Many beginners aim their body at the target, which actually promotes a slice. Proper alignment might feel like you're aiming left of your target (for right-handed golfers), but the club face is what determines your initial ball direction.
Driver-Specific Drills from BRUCE BOLT Partner, George Bryan
When it comes to mastering the driver, YouTube golfer George Bryan offers 2 awesome drills that can help you develop consistency and confidence off the tee.
Drill 7: Slow-Mo Driver Drill
Purpose: Improve face control, rhythm, and balance when driving the ball.
Step-by-Step Guide:
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Set up normally with your driver.
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Swing at only 30–40% of your normal speed.
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Focus intensely on squaring the clubface at impact.
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Gradually increase swing speed with each rep (30% → 50% → 70%).
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Pay attention to how the slower swing improves your control.
Many beginners swing too hard with the driver, sacrificing accuracy. This drill helps you develop timing and club face awareness without the pressure of maximum distance. You'll be surprised how a controlled swing often sends the ball just as far (if not farther)—and much straighter. As the old saying goes, "Swing easy and live with the extra distance!"
Drill 8: 4-Out-of-5 Fairway Challenge
Purpose: Simulate tournament pressure and build consistency with your driver.
Step-by-Step Guide:
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Pick the hardest driving hole at your home course (or create a target at the range).
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Hit 5 drivers, aiming to land at least 4 in the fairway.
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Go through your full pre-shot routine each time, just like on the course.
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Keep score over multiple practice sessions to track improvement.
This drill builds mental focus, routine discipline, and performance under pressure. Great drivers aren't just technically sound—they perform consistently when it matters. The 4-Out-of-5 challenge teaches you to focus on accuracy rather than just distance.
George Bryan's Bonus Advice for Beginners
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Don't overthink it—just go out and play
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Spend time on your putting stroke and short game
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Practice chipping and putting before obsessing over full swings
Following these drills and tips will help you develop a more reliable driver swing, leading to more fairways hit, lower scores, and more enjoyable rounds of golf.
Build Better Habits with BRUCE BOLT
Every great golf swing starts with a solid foundation—and so does your gear. BRUCE BOLT premium golf gloves give beginners the confidence and control they need to develop proper swing mechanics from the first swing to the final putt.
A consistent grip is one of the first skills new golfers need to master, and that’s exactly where BRUCE BOLT shines. Our gloves are designed to support a natural hand position, reduce slippage, and help you maintain feel and feedback on every shot, whether you’re practicing drills at the range or playing your first full round.
When you're learning golf, small details matter. A glove that fits right, feels secure, and holds up over time helps you focus on improving your game, not fixing your grip.
