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I never take any divots with my irons (all apart from short irons) or usually my woods,
am I supposed to take a divot ??....Is there anything wrong with not taking any divots????

Someone else will give a better answer than I can, g.g., but I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing to sweep the ball or take only a shallow divot, as opposed to taking a bigger divot like you see the pro's (men and women) do on TV. I say this because I think that some good players grew up playing courses that were hard (for example, courses in Texas), where it made more more sense to have a more shallow swing. So it may have something to do with the ground conditions a person learns on.

But as I say, I'm no one to give golf advice. I'm just posting till someone smarter gets here.

yes could be the course hmmmmmmm.....

I play on a 10 hole course, but I'm joining up to a really nice 18 hole course in about a month ....

ahhhh.... It's so cheap to play golf in nz and to be a junior!!! at the 18 hole one I'm joining it's only going to cost aprox $70 us dollars for the whole year wahooooooooo

thanks jim!

It really depends on what your swing is like. The head pro at my course (my boss) takes a fairly big divot on his short irons, and small divots on his long irons. The thing about divot taking is that you are hitting down on the ball, which is good as long as you are hitting the ball first. This usually ensures a proper angle of attack, which in turn promotes spin. However, sometimes I'll swing and take no divot, but keep the same angle of attack. It depends on the turf conditions a lot of the time, and how high you want the ball to go. The more you hit down, the higher the ball climbs.

If you take no divot but kind of clip/shave the grass i would not worry. If you pick the ball cleanly off the grass then I would worry. Picking the ball cleanly would lead to inconsistent distance control.

A divot it not necessary. Jack Nicklaus has said he could practice all day in an area the size of a shoebox. It depends on you swing and type of shot you need.

Yes, I agree, " the divot is not necessary". Many of the ladies on the tour do not take divots. "Clipping the grass" is fine. The shorter the person is, under 5'5", the flater the swing taking less divot.

True, you just need to make sure that you don't pick it clean like shootin said. keep the swing down enough to make good contact.

I just started playing a few weeks ago and I was worried if I was doing something wrong. I can hit the ball great without taking a divot but when I try to come down on the ball and divot like the guys on TV, the divot goes farther than the ball! I guess I'm still learning though.

I used to never take divots unless I hit a bad shot. Now I take divots all the time with the short to mid irons and occasionally with my long irons. Being that I have played under both circumstances I can say that there isn't much of a difference. I do have more spin on the ball with taking divots, which can be a bad or good thing. Just depends on the playing condition. And by that I mean windy conditions, as too much backspin will cause the ball to rise/float into the wind.

I take BIG divots. Always have. Wish I could catch a ball clean like you do. I tend to "nip" my Cleveland wedge however(low bounce). Everything else is "divot city".
There is nothing wrong with wht you are doing.

I believe "hitting down" can be interpreted several ways. I take a divot with my new swing by simply rotating my hands much faster and "into the ball", but from an angle that would be considered "hitting down", not an upright angle by any means.

My old swing had a VERY large divot because I would come over the top and literally chop down on the ball because of how fast I was trying to swing and kill the ball.

Another thread on this subject.

Shade

When I first started, I didn't take any divot. Then, once I began trying to take a divot, I began to make better contact, because I was coming down through the ball.
Jswitchroyale, your problem is you're trying to scoop the ball, which is lowering your shoulders. You must swing smooth, don't dip your shoulders, hit the ball first, and continue into the ground. A lesson can help you if you have problem in you swing (which you probably do. We all have at least one) Good luck with your divot taking. Just remember, clean, good contact is better than a fat divot.

I find I am playing my best golf and holding most greens when i take a nice divot after the ball. A deep divot with my short irons and a shallow divot with my long irons. Fairway woods take a tiny divot and no divot with the driver. When im not playing good....inconsistent divots. Aiiiiiight.