FAULTS & FIXES
Consistency of Strike.
The ability to gather the ball correctly on a regular basis.
Distance.
The ability to propel the ball the required distance
Direction.
The ability to keep the ball on line
Timing.
The correct sequence of events at the
appropriate speed.
Repeatability.
The ability to repeat the learned swing on a regular basis.
That's it, only five points to satisfy and you will become an accomplished striker of a golf
ball! (scoring can be another matter).
Unfortunately golf is just not that easy and those five points can take a lot of learning.
This section looks at the above five criteria in turn and offers Fixes.
All you have to do is priorities which area you need to learn first.
For specific faults (hooks or shanks etc.) look in the blue frame on the left of this text
for the direct link for help.
Consistency of Strike
The ability to find the ball with each club, hitting woods on the up and irons before the
bottom of the downswing (so as to take a divot) is mainly a matter of spatial orientation.
That is the ability to locate an object with a golf clubhead traveling
at speed
using your hands and eyes. It takes a lot of repetitive practice before this can be
achieved.
The
second area
of consistency of strike involves not the angle of ball gathering but the position on the
clubface where the strike is made. The first four fix suggestions deal with ball gathering, the second set of fixes handle the strike on the clubface.
(1)
Ball Gathering:-
First fix:
Repetitive practice:-
Sustained over a number of months. On average a new player will take (depending
on amount of play and personal co-ordination etc.) 18 months before consistent ball striking
is a feature.
Therefore your first Fix is to get onto the range and do some dedicated practice.
Second Fix:
Check on swing centering:-
Practice swing over your shadow, you can watch to see if there is excessive upper body movement (sway)
or not. Stand in front of a tree and have a friend sight your swing centre (your head will do as a sight for ease)
and see how far it moves during the swing.
Some players can operate a sway during the swing
without ball striking being a problem. Personally, I never could manage it and always took the
view that a movement off the ball of 4-5 inches during the backswing means that the same amount of movement must
be made on the downswing to compensate. That's up to 10 inches of unnecessary movement!
If you are new to the game it is also likely that your swing centre is being moved because
you are looking for the ball too soon. By the time you have located the flight of the ball
it should be at least 70 yards away. If you see the ball almost straight away (dribbling along the ground etc.)
then "Keep your head down"
Third Fix:
Check swing speed
Ball Gathering:-
First fix:
Repetitive practice:-
Sustained over a number of months. On average a new player will take (depending
on amount of play and personal co-ordination etc.) 18 months before consistent ball striking
is a feature.
Therefore your first Fix is to get onto the range and do some dedicated practice.
Second Fix:
Check on swing centering:-
Practice swing over your shadow, you can watch to see if there is excessive upper body movement (sway)
or not. Stand in front of a tree and have a friend sight your swing centre (your head will do as a sight for ease)
and see how far it moves during the swing.
Some players can operate a sway during the swing
without ball striking being a problem. Personally, I never could manage it and always took the
view that a movement off the ball of 4-5 inches during the backswing means that the same amount of movement must
be made on the downswing to compensate. That's up to 10 inches of unnecessary movement!
If you are new to the game it is also likely that your swing centre is being moved because
you are looking for the ball too soon. By the time you have located the flight of the ball
it should be at least 70 yards away. If you see the ball almost straight away (dribbling along the ground etc.)
then "Keep your head down"
Third Fix:
Check swing speed.
Try and keep the speed sensation in mind during the swing. Swinging too fast will
definitely make ball striking difficult.
As a practice drill the player should make several different swing speeds.
The optimum
swing speed is the one that retains control whilst developing aggression.
Having determined the optimum swing speed the player needs to recapture
that speed sensation during each swing. This is expounded under the repeatability section at
the foot of this page.
Fourth Fix:
Angle of Attack
The Angle of the swing will
have a bearing on ball gathering, if you have a swing with a very steep V shape
it will require especially good
hand/ball eye co-ordination and spatial awareness to locate the ball. For those players
where consistency of strike is an issue, the shallower arc as a flat bottomed U shaped
will be a much better swing option.
Think of the problem as being similar
to that facing a pilot landing a plane. The plane must be brought down onto the runway
at an angle where the plane can stay on the wheels without bouncing or digging into the runway.
A pilot using the V approach would probably only make the one landing!
(1)
Position of strike on the clubface:-
First fix: Improving Balance
Poor dynamic balance will have a bearing on position of strike. If the player is falling
to one side during the swing then it will obviously be harder to locate the ball with the middle
of the clubface:-
Practice swinging with both feet together. Once the practice swing can be made without
losing balance and the player toppling over, start to hit balls with both feet together.
The results can be amazing with up to 80% of normal distance being achieved.
Having established balance from a restricted stance the player should be able
to introduce some dynamic force.
The body weight should transfer in the same direction as the club is being swung and at the
same time.
At the top of the backswing about 60% (this is a preference and is open to negotiation)
of the body weight should have shifted to the right foot.
During the downswing, that weight
should be moved (maintaining
balance at all times) toward the left foot. Upon conclusion of the
through swing the player's weight should have transferred to the left side.
Second fix: Re-align the Downswing Plane
The downswing plane is obviously poorly aligned. Place three parallel rows of 6,
close together (line) tee pegs about
two inches apart (width) with the central row aligned to the intended target line.
Practice swinging trying hard to gather only the central row with the club.
Several sessions with the lines of tee pegs should help realign the downswing plane direction.
Third Fix:
Check the address position
The distance the player stands from the ball at address can affect where the ball is contacted on the clubface.
The general rule of thumb (again, a preference not hard and fast) is that when the player
is over the ball if the club is placed on the left leg, then the top of the club should be
about 3 - 4 inches above the left knee. A quick check should illustrate if there is a
problem or not.
Fourth Fix: Buy more forgiving clubs.
That's right! Modern mid size, wide bodied woods and cavity backed irons are
a lot more forgiving in terms of clubface position (i.e. sweet spot) than clubs
of older design.
Take a look at the factory shop link to find out more or 
talk
to your local pro or club maker or call the Golf Factory on 01772 252523 for further
advice..
Repetitive practice of the above swing fixes should make a big difference
in the player's ability to locate clubhead position. Once the player is confident
that consistency of STRIKE is no longer a problem, then look at Direction.
Distance
For details regarding
distance Click on
Distance.
Timing
Timing is the ability to carry out all the swing movements in the correct order and at
the appropriate speed.
First Fix: Gradual build Up
It is quite possible to learn all the individual swing movements one at a time and
then combine sequences of 2 or 3 movements together until the whole sequence
has been learnt. It is rather like learning to drive
a motor car:-
Once an action has been repeated often enough then the stimulus of the situation will be
enough for the movement/s to be carried out. Eventually the driver will be controlling the car,
gear changes, steering etc. through second nature or learned movements. The conscious
thoughts going through the drivers mind will be to do with, speed limits, correct lanes
for road directions, fuel supply etc.
The experienced driver, will be able to use "automatic pilot" to such an extent that
all the smooth actions (letting out the clutch, gentle acceleration, steering etc.)
can be carried out at the same time as, tuning the radio and arguing with kids in the
back seats!
The golf swing is the same, once the movements have been learned (one at a time)
a sequential order can be carried out whilst the player uses only 1 or 2 swing
thoughts that will direct a particular part of the swing. All the rest is a natural
consequence of the stimulus of the ball.
Second Fix: Continual Swinging
Having learnt all the moves of the swing it is necessary to carry them out in the
correct order at speed. Before deciding on the optimum speed (the trade off between
speed & control) the player should learn how to add movement.
Continual swinging (all the way through
and then all the way back) as
illustrated left, is an excellent way to learn a smooth sequential order. Practice 5 or 6
continual swings, before making a dedicated swing at the ball.
Third Fix: Identify
the speed sensation.
It is important that the player generates power whilst maintaining
control. Therefore:-
a) Try out several different swing speeds on the practice range until you find the optimum.
b) Having found the optimum swing speed use some way (compare the speed to m.p.h.
for example, with your maximum speed being 100 m.p.h and the slowest 20 m.p.h.) to
mentally identify your best swing speed so that it becomes easier to repeat (see below).
Repeatability
Here is the thesis:-
a) Learn your best swing
b) Repeat it!
The rest of this work should help you to learn your best swing. The flight of the ball will confirm
the good swing and differentiate from poorer swings.
Remember, no matter what a well meaning friend tells you, the flight of the ball
over rules every thing else. If the ball flies long and true, that was a good golf swing.
Repeating the swing can be likened to an every day process:-
a) Work on a document.
b) Retrieve the document whenever it is required.
The successful players carry a mental sensation of their best swings. Before striking
the ball the player will summon up that sensation, thus giving repeatability.
Using the above analogy
the good player saves his swing under a sensation called (for example)
swing.
Upon demand, that player can retrieve the sensation of
swing almost at will, even under pressure. The lesser player doesn't quite get there
instead of
swing that player calls up
swung or
sang
or something even further away.
The crux of re-producing something is firstly to
identify
that thing that you
want to re-produce and secondly to know where that thing is kept in order to
access it on demand.
Whenever you make a good shot take a moment to dwell in order to log the sensation.
Lots of practice will help that essential and difficult problem of recalling specific
sensations of movement and speed in order to achieve, repeatability.
You may recall that the introduction section of this work proposed that four elements constitute
a player's golf swing:-
Concept:
The ideas that a player holds with regard to what actions and
movements will improve that player's swing.
Temperament:
The emotional state of the player will have a dramatic bearing
on the golf swing. For example, an overly aggressive
player will swing the
club with too much force to the detriment of control.
Physique:
Is an obvious contributor to the golf swing.
Experience:
Will make a telling contribution with regard to golf course strategy.
To be a complete golfer, the player needs to master all four elements.
I hope that this work will
help each reader select the best set of individual preferences for their own golf swing.
If that proves to be the case, then at least the vital area of concept will have
been mastered to an acceptable level.
