This was not always the teaching pro's fault, when they saw so many problems they probably became overwhelmed and just picked out one thing to try to correct. Of course these band-aid fixes were not the answer.
At about age 50 I finally decided to see if I could actually change my swing, I went for a few more lessons, one of which actually corrected my slice. Researched what a golf swing should be, and went about teaching myself a good golf swing step-by-step.
I found that the classic modern golf swing is a very complicated collection of basic physical and mental building blocks. But when assembled and executed correctly becomes a very precise, and powerful golf swing.
I started with the raw basics of stance, alignment, ball position and grip, I saw the rest of the swing as a series of building blocks that should actually be learned in order and then built on top of each other until the end result is achieved.
The building blocks I identified and the order I took them in are;
Weight shift - At its very basic level the golf swing cannot work without an adequate understanding of the weight shift. A proper weight shift enables the big powerful muscles of the legs and torso to supply the power needed for a quality swing.
One piece takeaway - The idea of taking the club back and into exactly the proper position by moving the shoulders, and allowing the arms to just ride along never occurred to me before.
Backswing - It took me awhile to realize that the backswing is the true engine that powers the entire swing, everything that comes before is just preparation, and everything that come after is directly influenced by the backswing. The reality is that many players struggle for years trying to improve their golf swing and trying to beat their personal best. If you're like most golfers who shoot in the 90's and 100's the core focus of any practise is not usually golf swing basics and consists of hitting balls with reckless abandonment (who doesn't like gripping it and ripping it!). In this article we'll highlight golf tips that will help you improve your golf score.
High handicappers (18+) without the proper golf swing basics usually hit about 3 greens in regulation, meaning that there are 15 holes in which you are required to chip onto the green. Professional golfers get up and down from off the green about 85% of the time, whereas the high handicapper is closer to the 20% range. Now, we can't expect that you'll become the next Tiger or Phil, but if practise your chipping and can increase from 20% to 50% you'll share about 5 strokes off your golf score. How many times have you practised chipping, other than the 5 minutes prior to a round of golf?
The one club in your golf bag that you'll use more than any other is the putter; with a high handicapper taking roughly 36 putts in a round. It is important to get your shoulders lined up with the intended trajectory. If you are right handed, you will need to bring your right elbow down to ensure the head of the club is at the right angle.
