If you have watched golf on TV one thing that should have stood out is that all Golf professionals have a consistent pre-shot routine that they go through for each shot. Pay attention to them and see just how meticulous they can be in this area.

Their pre-shot routine is a series of moves which helps them set up for a correct position at address to make sure that they are lined up correctly to their intended target. There is no point firing the gun if it's not aiming at the target.

One of the best tips that I ever learned was to get myself into a routine. The one person that I loved to watch was Jack Nicklaus and this is the routine that he taught.

This pre-shot routine goes for every shot, putting included. Before the club is selected the first thing that should be done is to stand behind the ball and imagine the shape of shot you want to play. It's important to have a vision of the shape of shot that you are going to execute.

The next thing that should be done is decide on the line of the shot that you plan to take. Standing behind the ball you should follow the imaginary line and pick out something that stands out on the grass within that line.

It may be a distinctive blade of grass or a weed or a blemish, it doesn't matter so long as you find something within two to three feet from the ball that is on your line. The clever part now is to place your club head behind the golf ball square to the target line that you have selected, using your mark on the grass as your guide.

Once you have lined up your club head to the intended line, you now need to line up your feet, hips and shoulders in perfect parallel alignment to your intended target line. You should now have given yourself the best chance of positioning your club behind the ball to your intended target.

It is important now once you are set up to relax by giving the club a waggle back and forth a few times to ease any tension in your hands, arms and shoulders. The relaxation should promote fluidity of movement in your backswing.

Get yourself into the habit of using a pre-shot routine; it should also be used even when at the practice ground or driving range.