So how do you know if your swing is O.K.? If you are eating with a knife and fork and you are getting the food to your mouth in proper bits, assuming no bodily injury, then you are probably wielding the eating tools properly. I know, I have seen it too, the off person who holds their fork like a bicycle grip, but the food is consumed, and these folks are not losing weight, so they know how to wield a fork. The same is true of golf; we have seen many different swings, with different looks, but they cannot be called wrong if they produce the desired results. So the determining factor as to an efficient swing and a bad swing can be pared down to results. Does the swing in question produce good results? This is a simple concept, but some may argue what constitutes good results, and I must say this is an individual thing. A beginner may consider his swing a success if he can get the ball airborne. An expert would only consider his swing sound if he can consistently and on command move his shot as he has drawn it up in his mind. Ben Hogan said that he only hit about 3 perfect shots per round. Ben would move his ball toward the hole; if the pin was on the left he would draw the ball in, starting it at the center of the green and working it toward the hole. Likewise with a right side pin placement, Ben would fade the ball into the pin location, starting the ball in the center of the green and curving it toward the hole. If Ben decided to fade a ball into a right hand hole position and the ball ended in the middle of the green he would consider that a miss hit shot.
You are not Ben Hogan, but a good golf swing for the average player, needs to accomplish a few basic requirements;
- • The swing must allow the player to hit the ball first and flush, meaning ball then ground.
- • The swing must allow the player to produce adequate distance.
- • The swing must allow the player to adjust and control trajectory and spin.
Some of you may want to add to this list and please feel free to do so, but I believe these three elements make up the basic criteria of a good swing. If you can do these things, you can play golf. Before we move on to how to accomplish these basics, I must point out that if you cannot do these things, it does not necessarily mean your swing is incorrect, it may mean that you have not mastered the skills yet. Remember, golf is an athletic action which requires some athletic timing and ability. Kicking a football is an athletic action that most of us can do, but as an athletic movement it can truly be mastered only by a great athlete. Golf is like that as well; only great athletes can ever hope to be top players. But unlike football kickers, average golfers can actually become quite good and compete at very high levels. Just remember that golf is an athletic movement and a lot of our failure in golf can be laid at the feet of poor athleticism.
