Golf Instruction

Think about the golfers you admire most…Freddie Couples. Phil Mickelson. Ernie Els. What is one thing they have in common that makes their golf swings so great… Most people would talk about their unique. NATURAL golf swings. Everything looks so free. easy. and effortless. Moreover. their swings are unique. idiosyncratic. matching their body types and personalities. One of the most under-emphasized instruction points in golf today is making a natural golf swing. We get so hung up on hand positions. posture angles. and club fitting that we forget something incredible: there are as many ways to swing a golf club as there are golfers. All good golf swings share some major traits in common. such as consistent contact. body rotation. and balance. However. it’s always important to remember that a good golf instructor will work with the swing that is most natural for you. rather than trying to conform you to someone else’s.

To build the perfect golf swing you must breakdown your swing into several parts. First, you need to develop an athletic golf stance. The perfect golf swing will require you to look at your backswing, your downswing, and finally, your followthrough.

The backswing involves coiling your body to provide the torque you will need to drive the ball. It is best to develop a steady backswing that involves coiling your body as opposed to swinging your arms. Most consider the golf stance and backswing to be the most crucial parts to developing your swing. If you have proper mechanics for these two parts of your swing, the downswing and follow through should be successful because of the work you have already done to developing the perfect golf swing.

Would you like to take your golf swing to the next level? Try closing your eyes.

Although this piece of advice is contrary to the old adage – Keep your eye on the ball – closing your eyes during practice swings can actually help you improve your swing. This is especially true if you have trouble with keeping balance or over swing.

Closing your eyes while doing practice swings lets your brain get a ‘feel’ for your swing. With your eyes open, your brain is processing all of the normal visual information it receives, on top of the kinesthetic information it’s receiving from your body’s movement. By closing your eyes, you’re allowing your brain to focus on just the feel of your body and help you overcome the natural tendency to right yourself when your body feels like it’s falling over, during your golf game.

Getting the ball to go where you want it to go has everything to do with the delicacies of your swing. If you are totally focused on how hard you’re hitting the ball, your body, your arms and your hands tense up and you’ll most likely slice, which means sending the ball far off to the side of your target. So worry less about how hard you’re hitting. Focus instead on keeping your left arm straight if you are right handed; your right arm straight if you are left handed. Keeping this arm straight all the way from your back swing to your follow through will keep the club face in the correct position and it will contact the ball at the angle necessary to create a straight, clean trajectory. Once you can control the direction of your ball, then worry about hitting the back wall at the driving range.