Players of all ability levels need to remain cognizant of fundamentals: stance, alignment, grip. If one or more of these is faulty, chances are the resulting shot will be faulty, too.

Posture is one of the cornerstones of the swing. A lot of recreational players hunch over the ball or hang back on their heels or stand stiff-legged. None of these postures will allow you to swing smoothly through the ball.

In this video tip, Mark Bereza from Annika Academy demonstrates how to get set up with correct posture and balance. Once these are established, you'll have a much better chance at making an athletic, powerful, and smooth swing.

When golf fans think of the Open Championship, most think of the links style courses and harsh weather conditions. It’s rare to have an Open that doesn’t feature gloomy skies, driving rains and sustained winds.

Because of these conditions, tour players are forced to make slight adjustments to their strategy when competing in an Open Championship. Those same adjustments can be made in our games when faced with windy conditions at home.

The No. 1 rule when playing in the wind is one that you’ve hopefully heard before: “When it’s breezy, swing easy.”

It sounds corny, but it’s true. The temptation to increase the power of your swing, especially when the wind is against you, can be overwhelming.

When you swing harder and are lucky enough to make solid contact, the ball will have more backspin, causing it to climb in the air and ultimately be taken by the wind.

Another side effect of swinging harder is that making solid contact with the ball becomes less likely. Even the strongest winds are less likely to influence the flight of ball as dramatically if you manage to hit the ball solid.

The most basic adjustment you can make in your strategy is club selection. You won’t feel the need to swing harder against the wind if you simply take an extra club or two.

I can recall several times in my college golf career when the wind would alter my club selection. There were some days I could hit an 8-iron on a particular par-3 hole and other days would have to hit as much as a 4- or 5-iron on the same hole.

The opposite is true when you are downwind. There is still no reason to swing harder, because all you need to do is use a higher lofted club to get the ball in the air to ride the wind. However, remember that during downwind approach shots, your ball will not have the usual amount of backspin, causing it to release and roll more than normal after it hits the ground.

When you are faced with a side wind, knowing your typical ball flight and choosing the correct starting line becomes extremely important. I am a firm believer that you should never aim where a straight shot would put you into trouble.

Put a premium on getting the ball on the fairway or green, even if that means you will be far away from the hole. More often than not we aim too far in one direction to compensate for our ball flight and the wind and we end up hitting a shot opposite of our normal tendencies. Remember, if you hit the ball solidly, the wind can only affect the ball so much.

To hit the ball more solid when playing in the wind, follow these few three tips:

1. Use a slightly wider stance to increase your lower body stability and balance. Wind obviously can affect the ball, but it will also affect your balance if you have an unstable lower body.

2. Choke down on the club about one inch. This lowers the trajectory of your shots, reducing the wind’s ability to affect the ball flight. It also makes the club shorter, making it easier to find the sweet spot.

3. For the more advanced player, use a lower takeaway and finish position to keep the ball down. This also reduces backspin when hitting shots into the wind.

And one final note of caution: Be careful when adjusting your ball position to compensate for the wind. A common adage when the wind is in your face is to move the ball back in your stance to hit it lower. However, by moving the ball back too much you will increase backspin and risk having the ball balloon into the wind.

Take an online lesson with Tyrus York.

The driver is the longest and lightest club in your bag, and this combination can make for some quirky swing habits – even ones that don't show up with other clubs.

One problem for lots of amateurs is taking the driver back too far on the inside, sort of wrapping the club around the body. And it's a killer of a swing flaw, affecting direction and power.

In this swing tip video, Martin Hall, Director of Instruction at the Ibis Golf Academy, shares a drill he learned many years ago from none other than Seve Ballesteros. Hall demonstrates how to cock the wrists before taking the club back. The effect is one of getting the hands to move back but the clubhead to move up along the proper path.

It'll take some practice to get used to, but if it starts to feel right, you could even incorporate it into your real swing (as some Tour pros have done when injured or working on swing changes).