When you first walk into a golf shop you will be totally confused at the numbers of choices of golf balls with which you are confronted. Not only are there innumerable brands, but also within the brands there are many choices. But basically there are only three types of balls; the one-piece, two-piece, and three-piece.

A one-piece ball is molded of one material and primarily used as a driving range ball, where a particularly devastating hit splitting the one piece ball into neat halves does not make it a two-piece ball. A two-piece ball is constructed of a rubber core and a cover. A three-piece ball is a complex mechanism, made of a core of some sophisticated material, such as titanium, around which are wound many yards of thin rubber thread.

Golf balls hava a characteristic called compression. When a golf ball is struck it is compressed, or squashed, literally, on the face of the club. The more difficult it is to compress, the higher its compression number, ranging from 80 to 100. Lower-compression balls are about 80 on the compression scale. These balls do not have to be hit as hard to be compressed on the club face.

There are two types of material used in the covers of balls. One, called balata, is a softer material, vulnerable to damage from mishit shots, but it produces a better "feel" for the player. The other material, called surlyn, is a boon to less skilled players because it is cut-resistant and not easily damaged by mishits. Balata balls easily develop what golfers nickname "smiles", gashes in the covers of the ball that look like smiles.

For beginning women players I recommend a surlyn cover,80- or 90- compression ball. The packaging will include words like distance and durable. Do not choose a golf ball because it is pink or fuschia and is called the Flying Princess or otherwise appears ladylike.

You will need to continually update this due to improvement or changes in the yardage you hit each club. It is important to remember that there is no distance you "should" hit each club, but you do need to know how far you do hit each club.

The charts here are examples. You will need to create your own with help of your professional. Do not rely on your husband, boyfriend, or caddy to choose the appropriate club for you. The number of very independent women who will ask their significant other what club to hit in their playing lessons always shocks me. Be self-sufficient and use your yardage chart in your golf. Be as independent in your golf as you are in your life.

The maximum number of clubs a player is allowed to carry is 14, including the putter.

One of my most successful new students, and my friend, a really fun lade named Jeane, took the yardage chart that we madde for her, wrote the numbers down in her computer, made several copies of the chart, took them to an office supply store, and had them laminated. She then punched a hole in the corner of the chart, put a string through the hole, and tied the yardage chart onto her golf bag.