No matter what causes the need to improve your golf swing, be it balance, body position, power, rhythm or speed, there’s always a way to make it better and reap enjoyment and successes on the golf course. If you’re a beginner, forget about what other players might think or say about your swing; the best you can do here is to develop your skills over time until you are fully confident with your proficiency with the game
Common misconceptions
A common boo-boo many amateurs commit when driving the ball is to hit it as far as possible. Although this will be great at sending the ball flying across the course, however, they’re losing out on things that are far more essential: consistency and accuracy.
It’s easy for a beginner to get overwhelmed. More often than not, they get a wrong sense of where the power to drive the ball should come from. Don’t be deceived by what other people think about golf not being able to give you a total body work out. The truth is, a golfer needs to utilize the major muscle groups in his arms, trunk and legs in order to give their swing power and consistency.
Improving is the key
There are many ways to get better each time with your golfing skills. The first step is finding out what you need to improve, especially with your swing. For this, you might need to seek advice from your friends who have had ample experience on the course. You can always choose to make the most out of swing lessons, instructional videos and store-bought golf aids. There are also a variety of golf magazines which you can purchase, wherein tips in achieving that perfect swing are provided by professional golfers themselves. However, you should bear in mind that without consistent and efficient practice, your golfing skills will continue the way it has been.
It’s not a secret that professional golf players enhance and improve their skills through constant practice. Although it’s true that practice makes perfect, then again, one should not stop practicing once perfection is achieved. Confidence on the course can either make or break you.
Ample practice
Golf workouts will greatly change the way you play the game. Through them, you’re able to condition your golf muscles, letting you attain straighter and self-assuring swings. A regimented workout can make you hit with your golf driver spot on each time; your brain will remember the correct number and series of muscular relaxation and contractions each time, what is known as muscle memory.
Putts and short chips are played without much movement of the muscles. It’s easy to practice such in your living room or in your lawn. But a game of golf is not merely comprised of putting and chipping. You definitely need to practice at a driving range or indoor golf training facility to improve your full range of swing, especially those long range shots.
Your upper body, arms, lower back muscles and upper legs are impacted the most when playing golf. Each time you practice or before you head out on the course during a tournament, it’s best if you do warm ups. Do a set of stretching exercises followed by your practice swings, from putting, chipping to driving.
With constant golf swing practice, optimistic attitude and repeated affirmations, you’ll surely become a consistent and successful golfer.
The best way to start a golf game is with a good golf swing. That way, the ball will land near the hole so it is just a matter of putting it in.
In scientific terms, this is all about physics because the twisting swing produces torque on the club. When this happens, the kinetic energy that is collected for the club head will go to the club causing it to fly a great distance.
Professional golfers that make the ball go very far achieve a club head speed of about 100 miles per hour. Tiger Woods is an exception because he was once clocked at 125 miles per hour.
But the proper golf swing has another component and that is the lie angle. For those who don’t know what this is, it is the angle between the club shaft and the club face. If you have a golf swing monitoring machine, you will notice that most golfers strike the ball at 12 degrees. One scientist believes that players can do better if they hit the ball at a 7.5 degree lie angle.
To do that, you need to know the 4 elements.
First, at the back of the swing, you should stretch as far back and extend the range of motion while keeping your rotating torso directly over your right leg.
When you begin your swing, turn your torso quickly and press down on your right leg.
Next, drive through the ball using your hips, shoulders and wrists which will all help increase your ball speed.
Lastly, let the club head’s momentum extend to the follow through far around the back so you get to complete a smooth club head rotation.
You have to remember that the golf swing mentioned is far different when you are stuck in a sand trap because there is something blocking your way and you have to go over that. To do that, you have to hit the sand behind the ball using the club head. How far will the ball travel depends on the distance between the club head and the sand.
In both instances, a good golfer must be able to adapt with the surroundings and the weather. If the winds are strong, you cannot hit the ball at 7.5 or 12 degrees every time. The rule of thumb is that when the wind is coming from behind you, you have to use a club that has a greater lie angle. If the wind is coming to you from the front, you should use a club with a smaller lie angle. If you do not follow these rules, the ball will not travel far or you may end up with a slice or a hook.
Making the proper golf swing is not easy. If that was the case, almost everyone will be able to hit a hole in one. This is why professionals practice more than 8 hours a day because they know that there are things beyond their control and the weather is a very significant factor.
Now that you know what to do, it is just a matter of practice so you can put theory into practice. If you are still having a hard time, get some golf swing aids to help you out.
Golf is a sport of luck, chance and lots of skills. It involves all of these three things working together to have a perfect game. It is an individual sport where everyone who aims to play it starts with the same skill set as everyone else. Compared to other games and sports that are played by people, golf highlights the differences in the styles of the athletes with every golf swing.
Speaking of golf swings, one of the most obvious differences in the playing style of different champions in the game of golf is their golf swing. Because of the differences in body type, arm length, shoulder length and arm strength, each individual golfer have different kinds of swings. The fundamentals of the game are the same for everyone with the exception of the swing. Some people hit hard enough to send the golf ball flying over 300 yards without much effort and for some people sending the ball 100 yards seem to be harder than finding a decent wife.
Even though the discrepancies in the swing usually determine the playing style of the golfer, there are ways on improving your golf swing good enough for professional tournaments. One of the most important steps to follow is the position of your neck and head during the swing. This is the most common tip given by coaches and it is one with the immediate results. The technique is to keep your head and neck in the same straight line with the rest of your spine.
Relaxing your head and neck so they find their place in the alignment of the spine and the neck region is important at this stage. Make sure that your arm will fit under your chin as you make the swing to keep the alignment straight. One of the common mistakes about the technique is that some golfer tuck the head into the shoulders to keep the rest of the neck moving. This does not work because during the motion of the swing the arm is forced to go around the chin, bending and affecting the line of flight of your ball.
To maximize the effect of this exercise, remember to put into practice at 25 times in a row. After the 25th swing rest for a while and practice another 25 swing in a row. Maintain your body position and your head and neck alignment. Make minor adjustments to make the position more comfortable. Do the exercise at least an hour to two hours in a day to make sure that your body is remembering the position it is most comfortable with. You might say that this is like conditioning your body to align itself automatically for every swing.
Another great way of improving your swing is to relax your body as you swing. Tense muscle movement leads to limited dexterity and flexibility. Relaxing your body as you swing helps a great deal in improving your game. When your body is tense, the burst of kinetic energy is cut short because it is hindered from moving in a free flowing way. And of course balance.
Balance is important in improving your golf swing because it directly affects the force that ball is hit with. Proper balance during the golf swing helps a great deal in releasing the maximum hit force.
Golf instructors, golfing schools, golf advice, even self-help instructional golf materials flood the media. No matter where you turn, it seems like there is always somebody ready to help you get a better golf swing. But before you start accepting any of this help, you need to think about a few things first.
Separate the Good from the Bad
Like any other sport, the best way to improve at golf is repetitive practice using the proper form. The tricky part is figuring out exactly what the proper form is, and how one goes about acquiring it. The sad truth about this industry is that there are a lot of pseudo-experts and unproven techniques out there. If you apply the wrong advice, you could end up with a worse swing than you had in the beginning.
But isn’t that what golf instructors are for? Don’t they correct your mistakes and set you on the right path? Bad habits are hard to break, so it is really important not to develop new ones. If you take bad advice, it only hampers your progress as you will have to unlearn these bad habits before you can start learning the good ones. What is worse, some “training” tips may cause injuries which can hurt your golf game permanently.
Spotting the Genuine Article
There is no hard and fast way to identify bad advice, but certain things should ring alarm bells. Good advice works for lots of people, so ask around. Try to contact other players who have either been taught by the same instructor or have benefited from the proposed technique.
Look at the credentials of the instructor, if he plays a good game that’s ok, but it is also important to see if he has any formal education. People who have no sports medicine background may be recommending potentially harmful drills without them realizing it. Well meaning individuals have caused great harm before.
Managing the Tangibles
Goal setting is a key component of any training exercise, so what is the goal of this activity? It should not be as nebulous as: ‘you will improve your game’ or ‘you will have better form’. Measurable goals are important, such as average distance traveled by the golf ball, increased accuracy of shot trajectory, or increased golf ball speed.
Some of the problems you encounter may be related to your golf equipment. It pays to make sure that you are using the correct club length for your height, good fitting shoes, and appropriate clothing. You must also practice in a setting which hampers your movements. If you are in an area that is too crowded, this may prevent you from fully realizing your swing.
Keep Your Mental Game Pure
Finally, find instructors and training tips that fit your personality. Golf like any other game involves a lot of psychology, so your mental game must be improved as well. Try to figure out what kind of personality you are and what mental traits you need to develop in order to acquire a better golf swing. This is often the major stumbling block for athletes, be they professional or amateur, so do not feel weird about it.
In the end you will not only get a better game, you may even get a better you.
The only way to improve your golf swing is with drills. In fact, there are so many to choose from so you should use your time wisely when you are on the green.
To do that, don’t just hit the ball. Assess your speed and distance control because these are factors that will affect where the ball will go.
Instead of just hitting the ball towards a hole, try working with ball markers because this will help you focus more on the stroke and not just sinking the ball. Since your ball will not always land in the same place, it is best to try putting at various distances.
That is for the short game but for the long game you have to hit the ball from one side of the green to the other. Again, watch your stroke because how well you swing will determine where the ball will land. When you walk over to where the ball landed, work again on your short game this time towards the hole and not a ball marker.
The last part of practice should always be closer to the hole. As much as possible, work on a flat surface and if you are able to sink 5 or 6 of these in a row, you can call it a day.
Aside from the physical aspect to improve your golf swing, attitude plays a significant factor as well. This will be useful before you make the putt and when the ball did not go where you wanted it to. You just have to tell yourself to do it again so you will eventually get it right.
There are also golf swing aids you can get for the hands and arms as well as markers which you can use to help you putt on a line. You can buy this from the sporting goods store but as for the marker, you can get this from the hardware store.
Practicing your golf swing does not end when you leave the golf course. In fact, you can also practice this at home by clearing a certain part of your home. If you want to practice your long game, try going to a driving range.
Improving your golf game is something that professionals strive to do even if they have won several tournaments in the past because this is the only way for them to be on top of their game. If you are just starting out, this just means that you still have a long way to go so you can be just as good as them.
Whenever possible, listen to what the professionals say during interviews or what sports commentators write about them because you can also earn a thing or two to improve your game. You don’t have to follow everything but if you have tried a few, you will realize which one of these really works.
Being a champion or a professional like one of them will not be easy and this will not happen overnight but with patience and perseverance, there is a chance that your golf swing will become better in the long run so you can be just as good as them. Something that we hope of becoming even if we are not competing in a tour just like the professionals.