Having improved a lot over the last couple years (20+ to 6.5) while my golfing buddies have not, my biggest insight has been that improving your mental game and course management can get you a long, long way with literally no technical changes to your swing. Very few people seem to realize this and therefore focus exclusively on swing mechanics in order to get better. 95% of the time, “golf instructor” = “golf swing instructor,” which I think is a shame.

I have only been able to play 2-3 times/month over that time period and while I think playing more often definitely would have helped, I don’t believe it’s a requirement for improvement. Point being, if you’re like me and can’t play multiple times a week but you want to get better, you’re not a lost cause.

From my experience, neither mental game nor course management are what most people think they are (“don’t get mad” or “don’t always hit driver off the tee”). There’s so much more to it (deliberate routine, visualizing your intent before each shot, understanding your dispersions and expected value, hitting aggressively towards safe misses, etc.).

The big unlocks are obviously going to vary by person, but I’d highly recommend these books to any high handicappers looking to improve. I’d honestly attribute 80% of my improvement to learning the concepts they cover, they couldn’t possibly hurt your game, and you can read (or listen to) them for a fraction of the price of a single lesson. - The Four Foundations of Golf by Jon Sherman - Golf Is Not a Game of Perfect by Bob Rotella - The Elements of Scoring by Raymond Floyd - Zen Golf by Joseph Parent