Improving
your Golf Swing
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It is difficult to be precise about how your swing should feel. Whereas 20 pupils may all be executing the same movement, each may feel the movement in a different way. I want to highlight some advice that I have found useful both as a teacher and as a professional tournament player. At address, try to make your upper body as relaxed as possible, although your legs should feel a little more lively. One good way to encourage as relaxed an attitude as possible is to have a set pre-shot routine. This should start by standing behind the ball and finding your intermediate target. Address the ball and then if you usually look at the target twice, keep to that routine whatever the situation. You might like to incorporate a few waggles of the clubhead, as this action serves two purposes: it stops the muscles from getting tense; and it also programs the initial move of the clubhead. Many players also build in some sort of trigger movement so that the swing does not start from a stationary position. Some forward press their hands, others move the right knee slightly towards the target, or maybe rotate the head a little to the right. It does not really matter what you do, but if it helps you make a smooth takeaway, then develop a trigger action. You will Also find that it helps to take a deep breath and then exhale prior to making your swing. The art of golf is swinging the golf club in a controlled manner. If you lose that control, you will also lose the opportunity of making consistently powerful golf shots. If your backswing is too fast, thereby ruining your control of the club, then you should feel that in the backswing, you oro positioning the club at the top. In this way, you will become more aware of where the backswing ends and the downswing begins, and you will consequently swing in a Blower and more controlled manner. Make the start of the swing smooth, and it is more likely to be smooth throughout. Jerk the club away from the ball, and you will never achieve the smooth powerful swing that if necessary for long drives. It is well known that players like Jack Nicklaus and Sam Torrance hold the club just above the ground at address, as this helps them to start the backswing smoothly - give it a try.
As the downswing progresses, feel that your arms swing close to your right hip, and away from your left hip. This helps to encourage the correct inside swing path. In golf we are trying to propel an object forward in much the same way as a javelin or a discus thrower. In each pursuit, the weight moves to the back foot as the arm is taken back and then transfers to the front foot, and the arm throws the object forwards. Golfers are often too timid to make a decent weight transference to the right side on the backswing, as they fear moving the head. What happens instead is that they do not move any weight at all and consequently hit weak shots. If you want powerful drives, then you must feel a good weight transference without getting over-concerned about slight head movement, provided that you swing round that fixed point. Pick up a stone, throw it over-arm and just note where your weight moves and where your head finishes. Now I am not saying that there is anywhere near as much movement of the head and body in the golf swing, but you must feel your weight move to the back foot, even if your head moves a little – it will probably rotate, rather than move, to the right. Then as you finish the swing, allow your weight to shift forwards so that your head finishes over your left foot. As I have said, the change of direction from back to downswing is one of the most crucial parts of the swing, and one that is usually rushed. To help in this area, imagine a roller coaster ride as it climbs the steep track. By the time it reaches the top it has almost come to a standstill. When it moves over the summit, it starts to descend the other side quite slowly, but gradually increases in speed until, at the bottom of the slope, it is traveling at full speed. The golf swing should be considered in the same way. Then you will have the power when it matters- at impact. In an effort to get distance, many golfers move themselves laterally too far to the left, and by impact are ahead of the ball. The result is often a skied shot or loss of power because they cannot release the clubhead sufficiently. From the top of the swing, try to imagine that you are hitting the ball away from yourself. The fixed point at the top of your spine and base of your neck will be more likely to remain still, and you will get maximum clubhead acceleration.
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