Many golfers have a difficult time mastering golf swing mechanics.

For some golfers, it seems, the more they practice their golf swing mechanics the more confusing their swing becomes.

This is because, left to their own devices, golfers have a tendency to make this process more complicated than it has to be.

Let’s remember to always keep golf swing mechanics simple.

In his book, “Golf Can Be an Easy Game”, author Joe Novak offers some useful advice on how to approach the sometimes illusive topic of golf swing mechanics. He explains to best manage golf swing mechanics, golfers need to narrow their focus of attention to two items, the body action and the hands.

Novak writes;

“Let’s consider golf from the positive standpoint, and from this positive standpoint simplicity and conclusiveness can and will be reached.

The first point of understanding that one must have in regard to golf is that various clubs were designed and added to the golfer’s bag in order to automatically produce different shots or different effects. Having these different clubs reduces the game to the simple task of using the same swing on each and every club.

If the player has a good swing they will play well; if they have a bad swing they will play badly. The perfect golf swing is something that is basically done with the body. Naturally, the arms and hands enter into a golf swing most importantly, but the actual swing of the club, the actual movement of the club, is done with a movement that originates in the body.

Bobby Jones, the great golfer, once expressed it as follows: “My golf swing is a something that starts within me.” I thoroughly agree with this notion—that the golf swing starts within the player—it is a something that is done with the body.

However, in every golf stroke there are two swings: an upswing and a downswing. The upswing is accomplished by using the right side of the body, and the downswing is done by using the left side of the body, and therein lies a catch.

To use the right side the player must be balanced with their weight on their right foot. To use their left side they must be balanced on their left foot. And this is the first lesson in golf. A player cannot use their body any better than they can shift or transfer their weight to the right foot, so that the upswing can be made with the right side, and then back to the left foot so that the downswing can be made with the left side.

Once the player has learned to handle their weight so that the right side can be utilized to raise the club to the top of the swing, and the player has learned to reshift their weight to the left foot so that the left side can be utilized to pull the club down into and through the ball, they will be in a position to learn lesson 2, the only other lesson they have to learn.

Lesson 2 pertains to the hands.

As the player swings the club up and down, they will soon discover that there is a need to keep the club in the proper position as it is being swung up and swung down. This keeping the club in position is something that is done with the hands, but they can never be utilized to perform this important function unless the player has first established the ability to use their body as the basic means of motivating the club.

That, in a nutshell, is what the golf swing is all about. Just as there are two basic requirements to every golf shot —distance and direction—so, likewise, are there two things to learn. First, a sense of body control and body action with which to swing and motivate the club, and it is with this that the power or force in a golf shot is determined and controlled. Second, the direction of a golf shot is regulated and determined by the position of the club as it contacts the ball, and this club position is something that is created and controlled by the action of the hands.

Actually, this business of club position is the crux of each and every shot in golf. As the club is positioned, so the ball flies”.

Mastering golf swing mechanics does not have to be a troublesome and complicated process.

Try using Novak’s advice to help you gain a working command over your golf swing mechanics.

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Question…What elements of the swing pattern are essential to master for a player to truly improve golf swing performance?

Most professional instructors would agree BOTH timing AND mechanics are the two critical components which make up a winning golf swing.

These two components together help guard golfers from faulty swing patterns, swing planes and power leaks. Should any of these faults exist; a golfer will never improve golf swing performance or play golf to their fullest potential.

Any student of the game looking to improve golf swing performance should concentrate their practice and efforts on these two facets of the swing pattern.

In the book, “On Learning Golf”, author Percy Boomer agrees too that, to improve golf swing performance, a player must master both their timing and mechanics.

Boomer goes on to write;

“Now for our grosso modo exposition of how the swing works.

The beginning of the movement is in the feet; the movement passes progressively up through the body, through the arms, and out at the club head. What we try to do is to make the club head come down in the same path time and time again—in such a way that the face of the club comes squarely into the back of the ball every time. We have one fixed point (the feet) and one moving point (the club head) which we desire to move along the same line time after time. So the golf swing might be compared to the drawing of arcs with a pair of compasses. The reasons why we cannot be so precise in our stroking as the compass can, are that we are supported on two legs instead of one and we are full of flections and joints!

Again, we have not only to bring the club head down through the same line time after time; we must bring it down so that the club face is square with the ball at the instant of impact—and because the path of the club head is a curve, this means that impact must be timed correctly to an infinitesimal fraction of a second in the sweep of the swing. Also the club head must be accelerating at the moment of impact.

So we have not only to set up the mechanism to make a good swing, which we can all soon do if we only swing at the daisies, but we have to time this swing to the fraction of a second. Now I think that most of us overrate the value of good mechanics in golf and underrate the value of accurate timing. I was once watching, with a pupil of mine who had a most perfect swing, a fellow whose action was not pretty—to put it kindly. But he kept hitting nice long shots down the middle. “Not much to look at,” I remarked to my pupil. “I would not care a damn what I looked like if I could repeat like that chap!” he replied.

The awkward one could repeat his best shots time after time. His mechanics were ungainly but his timing was near perfect.

Well, you may say, if that is so, why should you go to so much trouble to give us a good mechanical swing? The answer is that good timing plus a good swing is better than good timing plus an awkward swing. The best swing, mechanically, is the one that pulls the ball a little and then makes it turn a bit to the left at the end of its flight, but if you get your maximum golf happiness out of a swing which slices the ball all around the course, there is no reason to alter your mechanics!“

A solid command of both timing and mechanics are necessary to improve golf swing performance.

Try following Boomer’s advice and focus on improving your swing timing and mechanics.

Check back soon for more posts and tips to improve golf swing performance!

Beginner golf swing instruction programs try to convey how important timing is to a successful golf swing.

For many student golfers, learning to correctly incorporate proper timing into their swing pattern is truly a challenge. Beginner golf swing instruction programs do their best to overcome this obstacle.

Beginner golf swing instruction programs commonly use analogies to assist their students’ functional understanding of timing and rhythm in the swing pattern.

In the book, “How to Master the Irons, an Illustrated Guide to Better Golf”, authors Gene Littler and Don Collett offer some beginner golf swing instruction of their own – a short piece on timing. They explain how the subject of timing should be introduced to the golfer only when the mechanics of the swing have been mastered.

They write;

“At the risk of getting ahead of myself, and putting the cart before the horse, there is one more important function of the swing that I would like to discuss here very briefly before proceeding into the actual mechanics of the swing. It concerns developing a rhythm for swinging, sometimes referred to as “timing.”

Timing The Swing

After you have reached a point where you feel that you have mastered the mechanics of the swing, you should begin to develop a rhythm for swinging. This is generally referred to as timing. Very little is ever written on timing the swing, compared to the fundamentals of the swing, but I feel it will merit your close attention sooner or later.

Learning to time the swing is like learning to dance or play a musical instrument. You have a certain rhythm or “beat” which you must swing into—and so must you when playing golf. Some players have a fast swing tempo, others a slow one; it all depends upon their physical makeup and habit patterns.

By experimenting and trying different speeds, I have developed a set rhythm of swinging the club. I try to maintain this rhythm with every club, trying not to change the tempo of my swing when I change clubs. Naturally, I am swinging faster with certain clubs, say with the long irons and woods, because I take a fuller body turn with these clubs. Thus, the speed of the clubhead increases with the longer-shafted clubs, owing to a fuller clubhead arc, but the tempo of the swing remains the same. This is an important thing to remember at all times“.

Beginner golf swing instruction programs know the importance timing plays in a successful golf swing.

To get the most from your swing pattern, try incorporating Littler and Collett’s professional advice into your practice routines!

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Learning to execute a proper golf swing could take a lifetime, or two!

Many golfers try in vain to accelerate this learning process by incorporating useless or even worse confusing methods which deliver empty promises of overnight success.

A proper golf swing unfortunately is something which cannot be rushed, it follows no calendar. In order to make lasting progress it requires a golfer to be “Patient”, “Persistent” and to “Practice”.

Keeping “The Three P’s” in mind will better manage a golfer’s frustration level and maintain their interest in the game.

In the book, “The Master Key to Success at Golf” author Leslie King describes what he believes as the best approach to achieving a proper golf swing.

King writes;

“What is the point of curing a slice by planting the germ of a hook which erupts within the next few days? The wretched golfer, overjoyed at losing their slice, is soon in despair again as they struggle on the left-hand side of the course instead of the right.

Solving one problem by creating another simply adds to the pupil’s confusion and depresses their morale. It is NEGATIVE teaching which can never lead to lasting progress.

The method of instruction to be outlined in this book is not built upon a vague series of hit-or-miss experiments one or other of which may give temporary tidiness to a pupil’s game. My aim is a POSITIVE one to build a sound and lasting technique in which all the fundamentals which go to make consistent stroke-making are fitted together into one cohesive swing unit.

What precisely are these fundamental parts of the movement? How are they applied to the precise task of controlling and building up power in the club head?

Let me make it clear that I am not concerned with individual characteristics and mannerisms, only with common factors some of which were, and are, more distinctly demonstrated by one player than by another.

I am not prepared to waste time on gimmicks or smart tricks, and I will admit at once that I know of no short cut to success at this fascinating game. It demands hard work and practice before one even begins to master the precise art of delivering the centre of the club-face firmly and squarely to the back of the ball and on through along the line of flight.

There is positively no secret tip which can turn a mediocre player into a good one overnight. Yet there are players struggling vaguely along, pathetically looking out for this elixir of a new golfing life in the upper strata of the game.

There is no trick transition from rabbit to tiger class. Its theme will be the gradual shaping of a sound, smooth swing which, once acquired, will stand up under pressure if given the chance.

Such is my objective with every pupil who comes to me. I set out to implant in their mind a picture of the shape they need to acquire, taking them along, stage by stage, until they can sense the shape developing.

Let it be understood that I teach a definite method based on years of experience and proven principles. Various people have their own particular problems arising from characteristics of bone-structure and general build. I note these and prescribe accordingly. But the fundamentals laid down in this book will apply in the main to anyone capable of swinging a golf club through an arc.

The shaping of the swing is all-important. Once you have it keep it. Don’t bend it out of shape by tinkering. This is where many a better than average performer, in fact many a very good one, leads themselves still further off the rails when their game goes temporarily sour.

What happens? They look for a remedy all along the route of the movement everywhere but where they should look. Soon they are pushing the shape out of the swing.

Professionals, assistant professionals and leading amateurs, after striving in vain to recapture form in this groping fashion, come to my school for advice. It is at once clear to me that they have not given themselves a real chance. They have failed to dwell, as they should have done, on the matter of timing and consolidating the DELIVERY OF THE CLUB HEAD TO THE BALL“.

Shaping and developing a proper golf swing is not a quick and easy task!

Try keeping King’s perspective in mind next time your frustration levels try tricking you into believing the proper golf swing is impossible to achieve! Good things come to those who stay the course!

Check back soon for more articles and posts to help you achieve a proper golf swing!

A golf swing tip which correctly addresses this topic would be invaluable.

Why?

Because all golfers, especially amateurs, want to make the best use of their time spent working to improve their golf game. So which method, practice or play, offers golfers the greatest return on their investment?

The reality is no one particular golf swing tip holds the answer to this question but, there is a consensus of opinion among golf professionals that, all things being equal, a larger benefit results from practice.

Not to say a golf swing tip addressing this topic of practice vs. play is unreliable or worthless. A golf swing tip which speaks to this question can still provide valuable insight and direction on the manner and method a golfer should practice.

In the book, “The Winning Touch in Golf, A Psychological Approach” author Peter G. Cranford, Ph.D. offers one such golf swing tip of his own – an expert opinion on the matter of practice vs. play. He explains it is through “concentrated practice” that golfers have the greatest chance to achieve their highest potential.

Cranford writes;

“The greatest pleasure in golf comes from continuous improvement. This can only come about through correct practice. For those who aspire to creditable play, practice is doubly necessary. “Creditable play” implies a competitive element, in that one’s ability becomes “creditable” if it is more skillful than that of others. Other things being equal, the practicer has the advantage…

In general, the great practicers have led the field…

…We now have “practicers” in great profusion. Golf achievement at the highest level is virtually impossible without it. It is a necessity at the amateur level even if one’s ambitions are relatively modest.

Since this is true, it is to the advantage of the would-be champion gradually to build up the length of his practice sessions. If they are aiming high, the amount should compare favorably with the hours found necessary in other sports or enterprises involving expert use of muscles. Many singers, violinists, pianists, and other musicians must devote several hours to practice each day, year in and year out. Ice-skating, the ballet, basketball, dancing—in short, anything that involves the training of muscles to a high degree of expertness requires daily practice over a considerable period of time.

Since much of the time in the playing of a round is consumed with walking, talking, and waiting, very little can be learned by playing 18 holes. In a par round of 72, there are 14 drives, perhaps 4 other wood shots, 18 iron shots, and some 36 chips and putts. This requires a time investment of about 4 hours. During practice, a similar number of shots can be hit in 30 minutes. It is thus considerably less time-consuming to learn through practice than through play.

There are some golfers who have become good players without devoting much time to concentrated practice. However, if their golfing career is examined, it will generally be found that they did considerably more playing than the average person. It must be admitted that, shot for shot, one can learn more golf by playing 85 separate shots in a round than by practicing an equal number. This must be true psychologically because, in playing, we are “practicing” precisely the shots the game requires, whereas when we putt on the practice green there is the great danger that we are not duplicating true “playing” conditions. Still, if we are careful to practice the shots called for in the analysis of our mistakes, much more can be learned in four hours of practice than in four hours of play.

The ideal would be to have four hours of practice that exactly duplicated four hours of play. I know of an amateur who did almost precisely this. He lived in a city that had a municipal course which was not kept in good shape, and hence rules about practice were non-existent. The golfer got two caddies, eighteen balls, and an electric golf cart. For 30 mornings prior to the tournament he was entered in, he played eighteen balls for nine holes. In the tournament he made the best showing of his golfing career.

What practice can accomplish is indicated by the following: I have heard of two instances of exceptionally good first rounds. One young lady shot an 85 from men’s tees on a demanding course. She had taken lessons and practiced for two years before ever going out on the links. A young man who had a job at a driving range shot a 76 on a standard course on his first round, after having practiced for a little more than a year. It is not likely that either one of them would have done nearly as well if the same amount of time had been spent in play that was 99% waiting and walking and 1% hitting the ball”.

Practice is the faster way to better golf!

Try taking Cranford’s golf swing tip into consideration when designing your practice routine.

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Examining the golf swing mechanics of a player requires a specific method of analysis.

Professional instructors use a trained eye to evaluate each component of their clients swing pattern and offer valuable feedback and advice.

Truth is – we can all perform a “self-review” of our own golf swing mechanics using a few simple steps. The three core areas of golf swing mechanics which a player should focus their assessment on are weight shift, body usage and footwork.

Many professional instructors consider these three departments of the swing pattern to be the essence of a successful golf swing. Mastering these three golf swing mechanics can be the key to a winning game!

In his book, “Golf Can Be an Easy Game”, author Joe Novak further expands upon these three aspects of golf swing mechanics using, as an example, one of his students he refers to as D.M.

Novak writes about D.M.;

“What brought his handicap from 13 to 3? What gave him the ability to shoot a 66, and ten years later shoot a 67? It was a simple case of synchronizing the two things every golfer must do if they want to play good golf.

First, there must be a basic ability to swing the club correctly, and the correct way to swing it is with a sense of body control. This ability to motivate or swing the club with the body is impossible unless the player has the proper footwork and a proper sense of balancing themselves, so that they have the full, free use of their body. It is from the body that the power flows, so that the distance aspect of a golf shot depends on just how the body is being used.

Second, the player must be able to keep the club in position throughout the swing so that the club will produce the effect for which it was designed, and the ball will fly true and straight towards the objective.

Now, D.M. had (1) the footwork, which gave him the necessary balance so that he could (2) use his body to swing the club, but he was totally lacking in (3) the proper club positioning control so that his shots kept going “hither and yon,” and until he corrected his errors in this respect, his golf game was erratic.

Everybody’s golf game is subject to the following analysis.

First, how well does the player handle their weight; what is their sense of balance; do they know how to work their feet and legs in order to establish the proper sense of balance so that the body can be established as the motivating factor in swinging the club?

Secondly, how well does the player use their body; do they understand that a golf swing is a double-handed, ambidextrous motion in which there is an upswing as well as a downswing—an upswing that is made with the right side of the body and a downswing and follow through that is made with the left side?

Third, if the player has the footwork which will give them this double-handed, ambidextrous motion with their body, do they knew exactly how to use their hands to exert the necessary positioning control over the club so that they can make the ball do just what they want it to do?“

Knowing how to properly assess these three key components of golf swing mechanics is the key to improving your swing.

Use Novak’s three part analysis to help you evaluate your own swing pattern.

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There are no shortcuts to improve golf swing performance. In golf there is neither overnight success nor instant gratification. All golfers must travel a slow and steady path to improve golf swing performance and play.

It is this painfully slow and frustrating learning process which causes some golfers to abandon their efforts to gradually build upon long lasting swing fundamentals. Instead these golfers chase after the false and temporary joy which comes from achieving immediate results. Simply put – this is not a winning strategy to pursue to improve golf swing performance.

In the book, “On Learning Golf”, author Percy Boomer explains the best way for golfers to improve golf swing performance is by exercising “self-control.” He believes focusing on the end result alone causes golfers to slow their progress and lose their confidence.

Boomer writes;

“I suppose everyone would agree that “self-control”…is a priceless quality. But how achieve it? It can only be done by building one’s golf into a closed, self-controlling circle, and then keeping extraneous matters outside that circle.

The reason why the neophyte and the player needing re-education find control so elusive is simply that their golf has not yet been built into such a closed circle. And if they only knew it they make things far worse by trying to learn golf and play golf at the same time. When that happens, pity the poor teacher!

The pupil, let us say, is making good progress. They are beginning to coordinate their game and build up their controls, when they suddenly take themselves off for an afternoon in an entirely different atmosphere—that of competitive golf, in which style means nothing and immediate results everything. Of course their budding style and incipient control go overboard and end-gaining dominates. Everything is subordinate to getting the ball into the hole…It is only an intentionally established set of controls that can resist the temptation to force and guide the ball when much is at stake.

These controls are the tiling! Their creation and development must be the constant aim of both pupil and teacher. Everything helping their development must be encouraged, everything hindering it avoided. Their building up is largely unconscious and unnoticed, indeed even a successful pupil will often feel that little progress is being made—until perhaps quite suddenly they will be surprised to find themselves playing effective, confident golf.

I remember with special pleasure how that happened to a young pupil of mine, Mile Aline de Gunsbourg. She had been in my hands since her childhood and her first experience of a major tournament was when she went over to England for the Ladies’ Open. She actually led the field in the qualifying rounds and was only put out on the last green in the semi-final by Pam Barton, the eventual winner.

On her return she said to me, “I did not know I could play like that! No one was more surprised than I was. I just played—and everything went right.”
I was delighted, but not so surprised. I knew she had the golf in her and that sooner or later the controls we were building would enable her to play it.

But I was delighted, because you would not normally expect a young pupil to play a bit above her best on such a nerve-testing occasion.

So when a golfer says to me, “I must learn to concentrate—concentrate—concentrate!” I counter with: “No, you must build controls—controls—controls!”

To improve golf swing performance golfers must build and practice “control”!

Try following Boomer’s advice when you find yourself tempted to chase after immediate results.

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