As a dedicated golfer, I find nothing annoys me more than thinking I've played a shot well, only to see it drifting way off target. Even more irritating than that is that I often think I've played the shot exactly the way I have before when it worked well.
This is where some proper advice from a real professional can help. Over the past 3 years I've taken many lessons from my golf coach, and I'm putting down some of the best bits of the advice I've been given in a series of coaching articles. I'll start off with the most important of the lot - keep the ball moving forwards.
I learned very early on from my professional golf coach that perfect technique is unlikely to be attainable by all but the most dedicated / most naturally gifted of golfers. Many amateurs obsess over keeping their left arm (for right handed players) straight in the backswing, having their fingers in exactly the right grip position etc.
But above all this, if you can hit the ball the right way - ie forwards and towards the green - perfect technique is almost irrelevant to how well you'll play the game. My coach demonstrated the truth of this to me.
He took a backswing that was certainly not what could be described as textbook, and even let go of the grip with his left hand. But when he brought the club down, the ball left the tee moving in the right direction - admittedly without much power - and towards the intended target.
I realised from this that the key element of the whole shot was the club face hitting the ball. So long as you have this under control, you can send the ball towards the hole. Which is where I started to focus my efforts in practice.
Obviously, the more control you have over the backswing and other elements, the more power you'll be able to get into the shot and thus hit the ball further. And your club selection is going to be important here, too, for getting more distance on the ball.
But the fundamental nature of the game is to send the ball from the tee to the green, so if you can hit the ball with the club head facing the right direction, you're halfway towards achieving this goal. It's a lesson that's certainly helped me in my game, and I hope will also help you in yours.
This is where some proper advice from a real professional can help. Over the past 3 years I've taken many lessons from my golf coach, and I'm putting down some of the best bits of the advice I've been given in a series of coaching articles. I'll start off with the most important of the lot - keep the ball moving forwards.
I learned very early on from my professional golf coach that perfect technique is unlikely to be attainable by all but the most dedicated / most naturally gifted of golfers. Many amateurs obsess over keeping their left arm (for right handed players) straight in the backswing, having their fingers in exactly the right grip position etc.
But above all this, if you can hit the ball the right way - ie forwards and towards the green - perfect technique is almost irrelevant to how well you'll play the game. My coach demonstrated the truth of this to me.
He took a backswing that was certainly not what could be described as textbook, and even let go of the grip with his left hand. But when he brought the club down, the ball left the tee moving in the right direction - admittedly without much power - and towards the intended target.
I realised from this that the key element of the whole shot was the club face hitting the ball. So long as you have this under control, you can send the ball towards the hole. Which is where I started to focus my efforts in practice.
Obviously, the more control you have over the backswing and other elements, the more power you'll be able to get into the shot and thus hit the ball further. And your club selection is going to be important here, too, for getting more distance on the ball.
But the fundamental nature of the game is to send the ball from the tee to the green, so if you can hit the ball with the club head facing the right direction, you're halfway towards achieving this goal. It's a lesson that's certainly helped me in my game, and I hope will also help you in yours.
About the Author:
Mike Jackson runs an online golf equipment store, where you can buy golf clubs, golf balls, golf gifts, golf bags etc.
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