Golf Swing Problems

In this article I intend to show that the problems golfers have with their swings are totally avoidable. To my mind golf swing problems are a result of over analyzing - paralysis by analysis!

The golf swing is not complicated.

In most other sports where a ball and a bat/racquet/club/stick are involved the ball is usually moving at a very fast pace and, unless it is totally out of reach, a player can usually get the bat on ball.

But in golf we have a stationery ball, a choice of fourteen clubs and ample time for playing the shot.

So why then do we even have golf swing problems?

I think I have outlined the reasons above: too many choices and too much time to execute resulting in us having too much time to think!

As a coach I have had my most success with total novices, children, women and then men.

Why? I think it is because our minds are open and receptive when we first play the game and then we hear and start believing how difficult it is!

If you have played golf for any length of time and have suddenly found you have golf swing problems - be they bad old habits creeping back or totally new problems materializing - you may find the solution is in the basics - the stuff that happens before you even hit the ball.

Here is a quick check list:

• The first thing you do when you are getting ready for a shot is grab hold of a club. Check your grip! Many golf swing problems solved right there.
• The next thing you do is aim the ball so check your alignment and make sure you are aiming where you are aiming. If not you could land up with all sorts of horrific (and inconsistent) results.
• Next you address the ball. Are you well-balanced? Are you stretching or do you feel all cramped up? Are your arms hanging freely or are your forearms tense?
• Now the back swing! Are you taking the club away with your arms? If so there is your problem. You should start the back swing by turning your target shoulder (left shoulder for right-handed golfers) away from the targer and simply allowing your arms to move with your torso. Are you going too far back - over swinging? Check to make sure your target arm never bends on the back-swing. If it does you are over swinging.
• Check your weight distribution at the top of your back-swing, this should be on the inside of your non-target foot (right foot for right-handed golfers), directly over the ball of your foot. Which muscles are working? There should be no tension in your arms, you should feel tension under your left shoulder-blade and down the entire left side of your back. The tension in your legs should be on the inside of your right thigh. It should be tense but not over tense.
• Initiate your down-swing by turning your hips towards the target and transferring your weigh to your target leg - using the tension from your inner right thigh as you come through (still not using your arms - they will get there please believe me) as they follow your body through to impact. The tension built up in your back will then kick in giving you maximum club head speed as you go through to a high follow through.

That might be lot to think about but children and novices do most of it without thinking!

Note that the arms play very little part in the golf swing - other than being a connection between the body and the club.

If you can stick to the basics and not get all technical you will soon learn that many of your golf swing problems are a result of too much thinking and trying too hard (usually a result of striving for greater distance).

relax and enjoy the game, doing what comes naturally will get the best results.