Golf Swing Basics

Golf is a game where your mind, body and clubs combine to produce your golf swing. This is what might be called the foundation of modelling golfing excellence. A golf swing has a series of processes or routines that need to come together from address, takeaway, backswing, downswing through the ball to your follow through.

Many golfers start behind the eight ball with poor physical conditioning, no set routines for pre-shot, shot and post shot.

Focus on playing to the target as many golfers make a mistake of simply focussing on hitting the ball. It should be simple, just hit the ball. Smash the ball should make it go a greater distance, right? Yes it will if you can build club-head speed at impact and the face of the club is true, square at impact and you are playing to your line.

Most golfers make it more difficult than it needs to be.

Are you playing against yourself before you even get started? Here is just a few ways you might be making it harder than it needs to be.

You are not fit, a bit or a lot out of shape, short muscles, tight joints so you are not physically capable of a full golf swing. You guess your golf swing each time trying to find an answer on the course. You don’t have each step as a solid repeatable routine. You are thinking your way through every step of the golf swing completely distracted from playing to your target with a clear mind. Those golf clubs are simply wrong for you, the grip is too thin or fat. There is too much flex in the shaft or the clubs are too short which impacts your posture at address. Your golf ball is cold, it has lost shape or compression. A cold golf ball will always travel less distance.

It is time to get back to basics with your golf swing. Here’s what you can do.

Build a sequence you can follow like second nature without fail so it is repeatable. Break your whole routine down step by step and master each step one piece at a time.

Before every round or practice session warm up – stretch. This includes wrists, elbows, hands of course, your back legs and every joint and muscle in the body. Think of your golf swing and go through your golf bag one club at a time to warm up with 2 or 3 swings with every club.

Start with a solid address of the ball with your feet aligned to the target, your club face square to the ball and line. Once you address the golf ball all the decisions have been made, breathe to manage those emotions or nerves. Breathe to let go, relax, get into your body. Know what shot you are playing and be focussed on a clearly defined target.

Build a backswing that works for you. You might shorten your swing to start with to play more accurate shots and then work on building your strength and power.

Know your trigger for your takeaway into your backswing. Move your hands, arms, chest and shoulders as one unit. A slow backswing will serve you best with your arms fully extended.

You want to build your club-head speed in your downswing. Timing and rhythm comes from a smooth golf swing. Breathing in on the backswing and out through the downswing and through the ball and follow through will help you enormously here.

The golf swing is a rotation of the body around a straight spine as the axis of turn. Keep that in mind otherwise your swing will be all over the place from vertical and horizontal movement such as swaying or your head moving.

It takes time to learn the golf swing basics, take your time, learn in slow motion one piece at a time so your pre shot routine, your shot routine and golf swing is consistently the same each time. Remember your mind, body, clubs and swing all work together to create a result.

Ever wanted more information on golf swing basics? Visit golfing-excellence.com to find out everything there is to know about golfing excellence.