Building your new golf game means identifying swing basics

            As we approach year-end, many of us are looking forward to a new year and a new golf season. While we are blessed to live in a town where we can play golf all year long, there is a difference between just “playing” and working to make major improvements to your game. The next few months is when you can get it done. If you want your golf game to move to a new, higher level in the coming year you will need to have three skill sets that are unshakable. One is a solid, reliable golf swing that you can count on under pressure. The second is an efficient short game that gets results in the scoring zone. And three, you need a high degree of mental excellence where you compete strongly, think properly and are unflappable. In the last game improvement article, we addressed the short game from 60 yards in, leaving putting for later. Today we’re dealing with finding a golf swing that produces the results you want, and holds up under the self-imposed pressure of wanting to measure up to your expectations.

            Those of you who have ever had a lesson from Hall of Fame Coach Herb Wimberly can attest to the fact that he always emphasized the set-up as a paramount foundation for the proper golf swing. Most mistakes with the golf swing happen even before you take the club away from the ball. It’s in the set-up, meaning your grip, your posture, your stance, your ball position and your routine. When you watch the pros (men and women) closely you see they almost invariably step into the stance from the right and from behind the ball. They place the club behind the ball first, aim the clubface and then take their stance. That’s because the aim will probably determine their shot. Aim the clubface, then prepare for the shot. Most pros first visualize their shot by standing behind the ball, facing the target. You should do the same by imagining and picturing the shot in your mind’s eye. If you fail to do that, you’re not giving yourself a realistic chance.

            There are lots of reasons for mishit golf shots. You could be misaligned relative to the target. You could be swaying back and forth or bobbing up and down. Or perhaps so anxious and tense that your movements are jerky and uncoordinated. If you’d like to figure out what your club is doing to produce a bad shot, you must understand that there are exactly five dynamic variables to account for when you swing. These are: clubhead path (to the ball), clubhead speed (including acceleration), face angle at impact, direction of attack (steepness, up or down) and the effective loft of the club at impact. (As for ball flight, there are also nine specific shot variations, such as a “pull fade,” but we will discuss that at a future date.) The actual loft of the club (e.g. a 10.5 degree driver) is important, but the same other dynamics are there regardless of loft. If you develop the discipline to become aware and sensitive to those five variables, you will see progress in your golf swing.

            The hard part of the five dynamic variables lies in the manner in which you make your swing – whether the path, angle, attack, loft and speed are going to produce a nice shot. When the results are disappointing, it’s time to check for swing flaws. Once you have determined where the difficulty is located (kinda like medicine), then it’s time to consult an expert to help you with developing the more correct body movements to get the clubhead to the position it should be at the right speed. That means your local PGA teaching pro. There is no substitute. Some folks are challenged to improve their kinesthetic ability, which is simply the bodily sense of performing an athletically proper move to hit a golf ball, or anything else. For older adults just learning the golf swing can be as awkward and overwhelming as learning a foreign language. Stick with it. I have seen many men and women who are physically uncoordinated, and yet find enjoyment as golfers. What to do? Go to the gym, and get a trainer. Take golf lessons; it’s not too late.

Dr. Charlie Blanchard is a licensed psychologist specializing in sports and leadership. Contact him at docblanchard71@gmail.com.