As I’ve discussed previously, I think that golf should be taught similarly to how the martial arts are taught….more gradually.
Just think about this. In my martial arts training, as part of my curriculum leading to my blackbelt, I learned forms for nunchaku, bo staff, and broad sword.
These were not overly complex forms, but it typically took about a month to get through learning the basic movements. We would learn about four to six movements in a class, and about eight to twelve in a week.
Once we got through learning the basics of the form, we would begin the slow process of learning the form application. That process would take another three or four months.
In golf, you are basically learning one very complex movement. I would equate the golf swing to learning a more complex kick, like a spinning outside crescent kick.
You can learn such movements in a day, but it takes quite a bit of practice to maket it effective.
This is why the first thing I personally teach are the movements of the golf swing, without a club. Once that movement becomes somewhat second nature, then it’s time to move on to the fundamentals of the golf swing.
The Grip
After the Kinematic Sequence, the most important fundamental in golf is the GRIP.
While some tour pros, such as Jim Furyk and Fred Couples have somewhat unorthodox, or less than perfect grips, if you are a beginner, or you’ve never broken 80 in your life, you should work on having a PERFECT grip.
At this stage in your training, may as well get it right…it will make everything else that much easier.
The Setup
After the Grip and Kinematic Sequence, the Set Up is the next important fundamental.
A poor set up, such as poor posture, can lead to swing flaws. Having proper alignment is also critical to getting the ball started on the proper path.
Let me make a comment here….yes, Jim Furyk has been a great golfer for a long time with an unorthodox grip, set up and swing.
But, who’s been the best player in the world over the last 20 years? Tiger Woods. And, quite frankly, Tiger does everything just about perfectly. Use Tiger as your model for the grip and set up.
Remember, you can find more details about these fundamentals here.
Build Your Swing With Short Shots
Just to start getting a feel for making contact with the golf ball, I highly recommend you head on over to the practice green at your local driving range or golf course with a pitching wedge or sand wedge and just start hitting some short shots around the green.
The purpose here is two-fold…learning how to make proper contact with the ball, and to start developing some touch and feel around the green.
Remember, you don’t need a big swing for these shots…in fact, the swings should be quite short for most of these shots.
This is also an opportunity to focus on your grip as well. The setup is somewhat different with these short shots, as described in my video, but you’ll definitely want good posture.
For your FIRST PRACTICE SESSION, I highly recommend you practice short shots around the green, and nothing else. Practice from the short grass, and from the rough as well.
Feel free to practice with different clubs…sand wedge, pitching wedge and 8-iron, to see how the ball reacts from different clubs and lies (fairway or rough).
If you struggle, then make this a focus of your first few practice sessions before moving on to building your full golf swing.
That does it for this particular step in the Hacker to Scratch program.
Now, get to work!
