As we all look ahead to playing more competitions, here's a little help for anyone suffering with first tee nerves. Did you know cricketing legend Sir Don Bradman used to practise batting with a golf ball and a cricket stump? He knew that if he made his practice sessions tougher than the game itself, that hitting a cricket ball with a bat would feel relatively easy.

Compare that to the golfer, who typically spends his practice sessions standing on a nice, level lie at one end of the widest fairway in the world! It's hard to miss a practice ground, though I dare say we've all achieved it at some stage. No wonder so many golfers feel twitchy on the first tee when those wide, open spaces are suddenly replaced by sand, water and timber.

It's important to make your practice count. Toughen up your range work and you will become better-prepared for the challenges of the course. There are many effective ways to do this, and we'll be only too happy to explain them to you. Be sure to ask us about them the next time you are in; as well as sharper scoring, you'll feel a lot less jumpy on the course. Click here to contact me about how we can make your practice more effective for your game.