Golf's 7 Essential Skills

Golf is a sport that you learn and keep learning. You don't just learn it in a few days. There are seven skills that help build a solid golf game. These skills are based on strong fundamentals, which fit your body well. The golf website has a lot of information and tips about golf that will be of interest to you.

Pre swing fundamentals - grip, aim and setup

Golf is a hard sport. Most golfers do not hold the club right and they don't line up to their target. They also try to correct how they hit the ball in their swing.

To get your grip right, hold the club with your fingers and not in your palm.

To aim, use two clubs on the ground about 18 inches apart (make sure one is closer than the other) and make sure you are lined up with them when you swing.

You should also position yourself like an athlete by loosening your knees and standing up tall with weight on the balls of your feet. Most people squat too much when they play golf which makes it hard to hit well because then weight is on their heels instead of their toes.

Club face control

Accuracy is a combination of aim and clubface control. But even if your aim is correct, the ball will not hit the target if your clubface is pointed in the wrong direction on impact. Make sure you square up your clubface to improve accuracy.

Strike, don’t scoop

Golfers must understand how to get the ball up in the air very early in their game, but most don’t understand what impact should look like.

Most golfers try to lift the ball up in the air. Their hands are behind the club head at impact and they subconsciously think they have to help the ball get up in the air by scooping it. Great players have their hands ahead of the club head at impact, creating a striking blow. The angle of the club is what produces loft in the ball.

Swing plane

Keeping the club on the same plane throughout your swing will help you hit the ball straighter. It can be tough to do this, but I found a video by Mike Bender that can help you understand it better.

Pivot

On the backswing, you swing up with your arm going behind your body. The lower part of your body is still. On the downswing, you get a strong position by using your legs and hips to hit hard.

Effortless power, not powerless effort

To make your club faster, swing faster than the end of the club. This is like when Ginger Rogers danced with Fred Astaire. You want to make sure that you are swinging much more slowly than if you tried to kill, or jerk, the ball.

Width in your golf swing

When you are swinging, keep the same distance between your hands and your body as when you are in your set up. This way, you swing smooth. If your arms collapse to touch the chest at the top of the swing, then you will need to go back down to fix it.

Finally, don't worry about all of these things at once. It's too hard to work on them when there are so many.