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 My
philosophy for teaching has derived from knowledge acquired
over the last 40 years. It is based on the fact that every
golfer has different ambitions and is different mentally and
physically. Each golfer therefore requires individual attention
and tuition.
Reducing
a handicap from +1 to +5 or reducing one's scores from 160
to 150 are both of equal importance to the golfer concerned.
A
complete beginner's ambition could be simply to hit the ball.
The philosophy is also based on the fact that golf ball and
club are static and the golfer therefore has to MOVE to MOVE
the club to MOVE the ball.
Golfers,
of course cannot see their own swings. In 1978 however when
I discovered the Magic of Video, it became immediately obvious
that here was a medium which allowed the golfer to see their
swing within seconds of the shot being played. With expert
analysis the improvement in technique was dramatic and hence
improved shots and lower scores.
The
philosophy also recognizes that golfers differ not only in
physique and ambition but in the time they have to devote
to their chosen sport. Young or old, male or female, left-handed
or right handed, able or disabled, every one is encompassed
in my philosophy.
A
central feature of my philosophy is that golfers understand
'what not to do'. There are so many myths in
the game that it is essential to clear the mind of any potentially
damaging ideas.
For
example:
KEEP
THE HEAD STILL
It
is not possible to produce an effective swing with a still
head as the body weight cannot move to the right and then
to the left with a static head. Also as the ball is driven
forward the head tends to drop (just watch Tiger Woods) so
by keeping the head still or level a sound technique becomes
impossible.
MAINTAIN
THE SPINE ANGLE
The 2005 World Long Driving Champion drops his head 7" and
moves his hips 4" to the left as he drives the ball almost
400 yards. Clearly his spine angle has not been maintained.
One
more example (and there literally hundreds):
DROP
THE HANDS INSIDE FROM THE TOP OF THE BACKSWING AS YOU START
DOWN
The following golfers move their hands down outside the line
that their hands took during the backswing: Bobby Jones, Sam
Snead, Arnold Palmer, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods,
Annika Sorenstam, Ernie Els, etc.
It
is essential that you know what to do and toclear your mind
of what not to do.
SHORT
GAME PHILOSOPHY
The
short game is vitally important but in essence it is basically
a shortened version of the full swing.
It
is very rare to find a good golfer with a poor short game
and just as rare to find a poor golfer with a good short game.
This is because the good golfer simply modifies his good technique
for the shorter shots whereas the poor golfer has a less than
perfect technique that will not work for any shots consistently.
ALL
golf shots need to hit the ball at the target. The different
clubs produce different shots because the clubs vary in length
(longer shafts produce more clubhead speed and hence longer
shots) and loft angle (more loft the higher the shots will
go).
With
a good consistent technique golf shots can be hit different
distances and heights by changing the club and length of the
backswing.
PUTTING
The
same principles apply as the ball has to be hit along the
chosen line and the putter is designed to move the ball along
the ground.
Reading
the correct line and understanding the pace are vital. It
is also vital for the putter head to be aimed along the target
line.
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