Golf is easy! Advice for beginners

[Maninblack4612]

Well, not easy, but simpler than some make it. The best golf instruction book I ever read is " Play Better Golf" by John Jacobs. I've owned three copies of this book, lent the first two & never got them back!

What JJ says is that, once set up, start the swing with a turn of the right shoulder away from the ball. The hands & arms follow. Half way back, the wrists want to break, let them. Get to the top with the club parallel to the ground, pointing at the target, then reverse the process as hard as you can, without losing control. You don't even need to consciously reverse the process, the natural recoil does that for you.

A few years ago Ian Woosnam gave a clinic at our local driving range and I stood 6 feet from him. The simple way he swung it gave the impression that anyone could do it, just straight back, straight down and whoosh!

Advice for beginners:

Get lessons before you start, bad habits are easily acquired and very, very hard to eradicate.

Look like a pro at address. This is the one place where you can look like a pro. So many beginners & experienced golfers start from a position that gives them no chance to swing properly.

Understand what causes the shot shape you're got. How many experienced players don't know what the clubface & swingpath are doing when they hit an offline shot?

Don't overthink. If you've started from the right position & started the swing properly most of the rest will happen naturally. You've only got time for one swing thought on the backswing & one on the downswing, if that.

Buy a copy of "Play Better Golf" on EBay. It's 50 years old and still relevant today. Really wish I'd been able to have a lesson from him.

 

[Deleted member 15344]

One thing missing - enjoy it and have fun - its a sport and hobby for us.

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

Sound advice indeed. Too many amateurs think too deeply about the swing. As per Woosnam, it is a very simple back and through motion.

 

[MashieNiblick]

My first instruction book too. Still have a copy which I turn to from time to time. I remember watching a short TV series he did as well in the 70's.

 

[Stub]

I have a JJ DVD which is as good today as any more modern coaches. Simple but sensible and no over-complication of the swing etc.

 

[daymond]

If you can find the book by Arnold Palmer ' play great golf' and sub titled 'mastering the fundamentals of your game' you will have a reference book for life.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

It's a great book and the advice is simple to use. I agree with that for new golfers that lessons are important. Get the fundamentals sorted and you've a great foundation to enjoy your golf.

 

[MadAdey]

I will never forget my 1st golf lesson. I was put in the correct address position, shown a nice neutral grip and then he just told me to hit it. Even though the ball was going all over the place he just wanted to get me in the correct starting position and see what happened when I swung the club. He then set about making small changes over the lessons that followed to build me a swing.

Point I'm getting to is the one that has already been said by MIB. Set up like the pros and start from a good position, I learnt to and I developed a nice powerful swing, unlike my current one that is affected by a ****ed up knee and shoulder. Forget reading too many books and getting your head filled with crap that you probably do not really understand anyway.