Golf myths revealed on website, sort of

I saw those, too. I saved all seven in an attempt to simplify the game for a simple soul. Hoping against hope that he could provide some wisdom that had previously eluded us all, I forgot to read them. Now I'll return to the collection, searching for the elusive needle.

No comments unless it's a WIe blog. This blogger doesn't get it

Hi Kiel,

First I want to thank you for taking time and reading the myths and secondly for mentioning my site here.

I appreciate it.

On to the meat and potatoes now.

You are correct that I would consider pulling down with the right arm to be a tension inducer as well. Having taught too many students to remember since 1986 I can boldly say that most players that I have seen are way too rigid and mechanical, trying so hard to do this or that with the club, that they never learn to swing the club freely down the target-line and square the face at impact and really that's all there is to it. These types of mechanical thoughts doom many to years of frustration.

If a particular thought works long term for you, then by all means use it. For most however, these well meaning bits of info are real swing killers.

My mantra, for lack of a better word, is really to keep it simple, develop solid fundamentals, and then focus on squaring the club face to the intended target line at impact.

Oh and practice your chipping and putting at least as much as your full swing.

I do have a couple of products on the market as you suggested. One is a interactive multimedia Windows application that combines detailed written instruction, illustrations, and 3 hours of on-on-one video into a single easy to use interface. This particiular product is a complete game tutorial.. set-up, full-swing, short-game, sand-play, putting, and special strategies.

http://www.EasyGolfInstruction.com

The other product which I've just released is for people who aren't up for a lot of fundamental instruction but who want to fine tune their full swings.

http://www.thegolfswingsecret.com

Thanks again for taking the time to write about my myths series...

Feel free to contact me with questions or comments. I always enjoy talking golf.

your friend in golf,

Ben

Ben--You're right about the short game practice! That's by far the easiest way to take strokes off one's score. And I agree with the tension thing, too, especially at set-up. There must be a fine line between tense and poised for action, though, that the best players arrive at more easily than the rest of us.

Kiel,

I have included the "keep your head down" myth below for anyone who may be interested in reading it.

Keep Your Head Down and Follow Through:

Everyone, at one time or another, has heard this old adage during their golfing journey.

Most people hear this statement when they are having trouble making solid contact with the golf ball..usually from well meaning instructors or playing companions who are tired of watching the struggle and hoping to help.

The only problem with this is that nothing you can do will inhibit solid contact more than keeping your head down. Here’s why....

For your swing to flow in the correct sequence, producing solid contact and long, straight ball flight, your shoulders must be allowed to turn freely to the right and then back through impact and into your finish. If you bury your chin in your chest or even turn your head downward toward the ball, your chin gets in the way of your shoulders when you try and turn them as you should. When this happens, most players tend to move up off the ball and laterally to the right in an effort to get themselves into a position from which they can swing back through the ball. Lateral movement must be kept to a bare minimum if you are to achieve solid contact with the golf ball.

So if you are trying to improve solid contact, don’t keep your head down! Instead keep your chin up and turn your eyes downward to the ball.

Now to the follow through portion of this myth.

A good follow through is a thing of beauty and a joy forever. Take a look at Ernie Els swing and you’ll see exactly what I mean. Having said that, your follow through is a direct result of what has gone before so without your swing flowing in the proper sequence, your follow through suffers. If you bury your chin in your chest, it becomes impossible to follow through because you can’t turn shoulders through the golf ball and into your finish. This “head down” position produces a follow through that, like the back swing, encourages the head to move up and the body to slide laterally through the ball.
This type of movement is absolutely not conducive to solid contact.

“Keep your chin up and allow your shoulders to turn” would be a much better phrase to quote to those who are struggling with making solid contact.

If you’re having problems with contact, distance, or direction visit http://www.EasyGolfInstruction.com and learn how you can improve your entire game.

Give me 1 hour a week for 4 weeks and I guarantee you’ll improve your current score by at least 10 shots.

Here’s to better scores and more fun for all,

Ben

I just added this feed to my bookmarks. I have to say, I really enjoy reading your blogs. Thanks!