At some point, every beginner golfer wonders how to break 80. Ah, 80… a number so elusive that even the pros sometimes have trouble breaking it. There are probably as many opinions about how to break 80 as there are golfers to give them.

During a typical round of golf, players make a variety of shots, from driving to putting and everything in between. The secret to how to break 80 is that you must start every hole well and you must finish every hole well. That means you must master both your tee shots and your putts.

Off the Tee
It takes only a few wayward tee shots to ruin your overall score. A hard slice into the deep woods only sets you up for a likely bogey (or worse) at the end of that hole. If you want to learn how to break 80, you’ll have to become very proficient with all of your tee shots.

For beginner golfers, that might mean NOT teeing off with your driver, which is one of the most difficult clubs to master. So begin a practice routine with the easier-to-handle of your tee clubs, especially those you’d use on a short par 3. Practice with your mid-irons and 3- and 5-woods. (To learn more about these clubs, see our article: Irons and Woods — A Brief Comparison for Beginner Golfers.) As you gain control and confidence, start practicing with your driver and long irons.

To break 80, it’s important that you’re able to hit off the tee with any club that’s suitable for the distance. Experiment to discover exactly what works best for you.

The key here is not just added distance off the tee, but also consistent control. When learning how to break 80, a long hit off the tee means nothing if the ball ends up in a trouble spot that costs you strokes. (Go here to learn more about hitting a golf ball straight.) Remember, it’s better to sacrifice distance than control.

Achieving distance control is what sets you up for possible eagles on par 5 holes, and for birdies on all other holes, giving you the scores you need to play consistently in the mid to high 70′s.

On the Green
Distance control is also essential to the other fundamental of how to break 80 — putting. More strokes are lost on the green than most of us want to admit. Embarrassingly, 4- and 5-putts are actually pretty common. Taking back those strokes by consistently making putts is one of the best ways to lower your scores. (See our golf putting drills.)

Learn 4 Proven Techniques to Get You Into the 70′s Instantly!
Click Here Now!

But making straight-line putts on a flat surface isn’t the key to how to break 80. The secret is learning how to read the break on a green. Your ability to read greens is critical to making the kinds of putts that are the reality of the game.

For anyone who’s thinking, ”Hey, I took up golf to have fun, not to do complicated math or reading!” you can relax. Reading the break is simply determining the undulations on the green between where your ball sits and the cup.

There are a few things to look for when you’re reading the green. They are:

• The length of the grass: Higher grass slows the ball, and a slower-moving ball breaks more than a faster-moving ball.

• The grain of the grass: Grass on a green has a grain (growth) pattern to it. You might be putting with the grain, against the grain or sideways across the grain. Putting with the grain results in a faster ball and less break. Putting against the grain results in a slower ball and more break, especially as the ball slows to a stop.

• The slope of the ground: There might be a variety of slopes between your ball and the cup. (For example, you might be putting in or through a “bowl.”) You need to assess all of them and adjust your target line to compensate.

It’s important to note that most breaking putts fall short on the low side of the cup. When you practice putting, keep track of how many putts roll past the cup and by how much. This information can be very useful when you start to work on your distance control for breaking putts.

Learning to read the break is best accomplished with practice and experience. Even the best golf pros struggle with breaking putts, and they practice everyday!

Every golfer NEEDS to have golfing aspirations to work toward and improve their performance. Give yourself plenty of time to learn new methods of hitting off the tee and putting. It won’t happen overnight, but with patience and diligence, you’ll begin to bring your score down, round by round. Before too long, you won’t need to wonder how to break 80, because you’ll be doing it!