Whether you just want be able to hold your own with friends, feel comfortable at a golf day or play well in a club competition a similar process is involved. To play reasonably consistent you generally need to do a repetitive routine just as you do to get to and from work or the shops and even when making a cup of tea.

 The routine for a golf shot as I have covered in previous articles has 3 basic parts

 1.pre-play (everything you do that helps you visualise the shot) 2. Play (the mechanics, feel and sound of the intended shot) and 3. positive replay (basically putting closure on the shot so you can move onto the next one, this could be the satisfying feeling of playing the shot as intended or reconfirming what you should have done), generally the better the player the more effectively this is carried out.

 WHEN LEARNING GOLF EFFECTIVELY AS A BEGINNER most of your attention is in 2.play (the mechanics) and some in 3.positive replay (i.e. what you needed to do to get your intended result) with very little in 1. Pre-play. As you begin to accomplish what you intended in 2.play you will begin to see the ball fly with a shape, let’s say right to left, as this happens you can begin to start putting more attention into 1. pre-play because you can now start to visualise as through experience you now have a knowledge of the height, distance and shape the ball fly’s  AND YOU ARE NOW BEGINNING TO HAVE A ROUTINE THAT IS USED BY MOST RESONABLY GOOD GOLFERS AND ALL TOUR PLAYERS.

Reaching this level means you are beginning to have some control over the movements needed to hit good shots and the next stage is to continue to develop your skill by practising the areas you need to practise to maintain and improve the sequence. THIS IS AN AREA THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE TRIP UP AND GO OFF AT A TANGENT IN TO ANOTHER TERRITORY, ideally at this point if you haven’t already begun learning you need to begin to under stand that THE BALL NEVER LIES AND BODY PART FEELS DO! That is you might feel your doing what you have always done but if the ball is flying differently to that, your not. GET INPUT FROM SOMEONE WHO CAN AT LEAST EXPLAIN HOW ANGLE OF APPROACH, SPEED AND CLUBFACE EFFECT THE FLIGHT an understanding of this is very important for good development and solid progression as regards to 2.play by keeping to the territory.

Consistently good golf shot are a product of using the right amount of attention to each part of the routine i.e. if you hit your best shots when pre-play is 60%, play 30% and positive replay 10% if you change the balance of this you will not hit as good a shot. Now I know this explanation might sound difficult and technical that’s because you don’t plan or learn it like this but this is the difference between feeling good over a shot and hitting it good or bad over it and hitting it bad, YOU LEARN THIS BY EITHER, ALL OR SOME OF THE FOLLOWING :- FEEL, SIGHT,INTERNAL CHAT AND SOUND.

 You will often hear Tour players when interviewed say “this course fits my eye”, “I felt very comfortable out there”  or something similar and this in effect is what you do when you hit a good shot basically it is easy for you to keep to your % and WHEN YOU DON’T FEEL RIGHT OR ITS HARD TO SEE WHERE YOU WANT IT TO GO THAT’S YOUR BODY TELLING YOU YOUR ATTENTION %’S ARE OUT..

 TO PLAY CONSISTENTLY GOOD GOLF AT WHATEVER YOUR LEVEL OR HANDICAP YOU NEED TO PRACTISE AND LEARN YOUR BASICS AND FROM THIS LEARN TO KNOW WHAT PART TO TWEAK TO BALANCE YOUR %’S.

 ENJOY THE JOURNEY!!!

For those who are just beginning I believe it is very important to have a solid foundation so they can get the most enjoyment from this great game. Why do I believe this? Simple if you spend some time at the beginning learning correct sound basics you can progress at a steady to rapid pace around your life style and prevent any stumbling blocks along the way.

Alas most people begin by having a well meaning friend taking them to a golf range or field and giving them tips. Unfortunately these tips are normally so far from what the person should be doing they would have done better without this help and when the person finally books some lessons it makes the job of the Professional much harder than if they had gone for lessons in the first place. IF YOU WANT TO GET THE MOST FROM THE GAME OF GOLF BOOK LESSONS FROM THE START!

By having lessons you will have a solid foundation that will help you hit the ball effectively and make steady to rapid progress. A good professional should explain the concept for swinging the club and playing the game, how to practise effectively and the attitude needed to stay focussed and improve. MOST PEOPLE FAIL TO IMPROVE OR GET THE MOST FROM THE GAME BECAUSE THEY ARE LACKING AN UNDERSTANDING IN ONE OF THE ABOVE AREAS (see  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MgBikgcWnYfor an insight to learning).

How many lessons will depend on your coordination about 80% of the beginners I help can take an introductory course of lessons where on the 5th Lesson they will play 2 or 3 holes, for some it will take twice as long because the need to improve their balance and coordination. Regardless of which category of the above you fall into to really have a solid foundation you should have as a minimum of 15 lessons (35/40  if ½ hour  lessons) ideally with 3-5 practise sessions between each lessons (worst case every 2 weeks) at the beginning. This would be the absolute realistic minimum for the person to get a solid start, unfortunately most people don’t do this which is crazy when you consider 3-6 months as a portion of how long you will be playing golf.

If you have been playing a while and want to improve your game you first need to consider how long you’ve been playing?  How much time you can practise? And what would be the best area(s) to improve considering these questions. For example if you have been playing a long time with certain flaws and will not have a lot of time to practise you probably should be looking to better understand or find ways to tweak the flaws so you can hit a consistent shape of shot or improving your short game  or both so you can get the most from your time. On the other hand if you can devote more time and you haven’t been playing a long time you can look to eradicate the flaw so you can hit more effective shots. LET THE PROFESSIONAL EVALUATE YOUR GAME AFTER DISCUSSING THE TIME YOU CAN SPEND PRACTISING, WHAT YOU CONSIDER ARE YOUR STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES AND PLAN A ROUTE TO IMPROVEMENT THAT YOU ARE BOTH COMFORTABLE WITH.

A lot of people believe they must see their swing on video, having used video in various forms since the late 70′s and being the first to use it on the European Tour I feel reasonably well placed to make the following observations.

To have a video lesson that is accurate the camera should be in a fixed location at least 15 metres from the golfer with a consistent light if you are using it to compare against previous sessions. How many of you have had video lessons that fit these criteria?  I would suggest none of you.

Light is an issue because of reflection and therefore what you are seeing is not  what’s really happening, so for a lesson outside the coach would need a light monitor, reflective equipment and lots more to have consistent light so you can compare and really see what’s happening. So again how many of you have had a lesson outside with this equipment and a fixed camera at least 15 metres from you?  I would suggest none of you. Some of you might say oh yes but I have my lessons at an indoor facility so the light is controlled, to which I would say great and the camera is at least 15 metres away only problem here is you’ll be hitting into a net and therefore not visualising the shot (hitting into your picture/image) so your muscle tone is different to on the course or practise ground and therefore again you’re not really seeing whats happening. So again how many of you have had a lesson indoors with a fixed camera at least 15 metres from you? I would suggest hardly any of you.

NOW HOW MANY OF YOU STILL BELIEVE YOU MUST SEE YOUR SWING ON VIDEO?

I generally only use video to compare body movements and to show people who are swinging better but feel they are doing something wrong, so they dispose of the conflict and commit to the improvement. As ever in golf there is reality and then there is what you need to do (your reality) to give you reality – concept and you match.

Only if the person insists will I use video for swing plane and when I do I get as many of the above criteria as possible right and still mainly use it for body movement.

IF THE ABOVE CRITERIA IS MET VIDEO CAN BE OK BUT THEN YOU ONLY HAVE TWO DIAMENTIONAL DISTORTION TO DEAL WITH (which I discovered early on and why I seldom use video), IF NOT IT IS BEST USED FOR BODY MOVEMENT AND REAFFIRMING YOUR ON THE RIGHT TRACK. OTHERWISE BALL FLIGHT, LAUNCH MONITORS (which are not as  accurate as you might think or believe, but that’s a whole other subject which I’m sure will come to light in the future and golfers will learn how limited the “evidence” they are being presented with really is) SOME SWING ANALYSERS AND THREE DIMENSIONAL ANALYSIS WITH 6 DEGREES OF DIFFERENCE ARE A BETTER WAY FORWARD.

BY NOT DOING THE ABOVE AND HOLDING THE CAMERA OR TABLET I CAN IMPROVE THE GOLFERS SWING WITHOUT SAYING A WORD, BY JUST MOVING A LITTLE RIGHT OR LEFT, UP OR DOWN, DEPENDING ON THE CHANGES REQUIRED.

IS SEEING REALLY BELIEVING? If you believe it is, then you obviously think David Copperfield, David Blaine, Darren Brown and Steve Frayne (“Dynamo”) actually do these illusions for real and that looking at your swing filmed at the wrong distance and generally with a fish eye lens and viewed on a flat screen will help you learn and develop your game, then good luck to you, it shows the power of our belief system.

NOW HOW MANY OF YOU STILL BELIEVE SEEING YOUR SWING ON VIDEO IS GOING TO HELP?

A Golf Lesson can be given in various forms, it’s best to consider if you want to learn with an INSTRUCTOR, a TEACHER, or a COACH.

 INSTRUCTOR tells you what to do – these lessons usually last ½ an hour and require follow up lessons close together (e.g. weekly). Some people feel this is a good way to learn because they don’t have to deal with too much information. It’s a bit like doing a jigsaw being given one piece at a time without a picture for reference. But to play good golf and progress efficiently at your fastest rate, it’s important to have a concept of what you’re doing and why- a  map or territory to good golf which can’t be done properly in 30 mins. Although cheaper initially, they cost more in the long run as it takes longer to get to where you want to be.

 TEACHER tells you what to do and explains how to do it – these lessons usually last ½ – ¾ hour and again require follow up lessons close together. These Lessons are usually of more benefit, give a bit of an overview and are more cost effective than an Instructor.  Being given one piece of the jigsaw at a time but with a picture for reference.

 COACH explains what you need to do, how to do it, shows you what to do and helps you do it – these lessons last 45-60 minutes, don’t need to be taken as close together and are a much more efficient and effective way to progress at your fastest rate through solid foundation for learning with a clear way forward. This also represents the most cost and time effective way to get to where you want to be:  Doing a jigsaw with all the pieces, a picture for reference and guidance to finish effectively.

 Whichever of the above you decide suits you best, remember most people slow their progression by thinking what they are doing wrong, MUSCLES ARE THOUGHT FORCES and you will improve quickest by keeping your attention on WHAT YOU WANT TO DO!

​Grip the club and hold it out in front of you – notice how the arms, shoulders and shaft make the letter y (Y) Now bend forward from the hips and take your address position.

As you widen your feet look in a mirror you will notice that if you take a line from your ankles to the label in the neck of your shirt you will notice an outline of a letter “A”. Now draw an imaginary line across your hips and another across your knees, the infill of these two lines creates the cross bar and completes the letter A.

If you eliminate your hands the out line of your body creates a reversed italic letter K. If you have counter balanced properly you will see YAK as you would with most Tour Player set-ups, if you do not you are probably not counter balanced correctly and therefore not swinging at you most efficient.

“THE ONLY STRAIGHT SHOT IS A PUTT AND THAT TURNS !!!!”

Most golfers never reach their full potential because they are trying to hit the ball straight by deliver the clubface square at impact, which with a correct release actually results in a pull draw (ball goes left) but more usual due to an incorrect angle of attack and release action a slice (ball curves to the right).

Remember the winner of an Event isn’t necessary the player who hits the best shots, it is more often the player who hits a fair amount of good shots but more importantly who’s bad shots avoid trouble, this also applies to consistently good scorers. To do this you need to eliminate the trouble areas from your shots, it is therefore imperative you understand and learn to deliver the clubface through the ball at an angle of attack with the correct amount of clubface closing (similar motion to swing door) to result in a shot with the desired shape.

All good players eliminate one side of the course. You’ve probably heard this saying and wondered what it meant or how to do it.

JUST IMAGINE THE FAIRWAY AS A THREE LANE MOTORWAY

A Tour player will generally shape their shot within ½ a lane, a scratch player 1 lane and a 12 handicap or better within 1 ½ lanes. Therefore if a bunker or hazard is reachable on the right side of the fairway a 12 handicap or better can now pick a comfortable area to aim for in the middle or left lane that will allow for their intended shape and taking into account a push or pull thus eliminating the trouble and keeping the ball in play.

So if you want to keep the ball in play eliminate ½ the course by learning how to stand and deliver the club for your intended flight, which incidentally most top coaches and teachers (some you see on the golf channel) I have discussed this with believe, as I do, that beginners should be taught to draw the ball (move right to left) by releasing the club correctly using proper pivot, hand, wrist and arm action.