How much does fitness play a part in golf?

[duncan mackie]

I completely disagree that this is either a fair comment, or a new contribution to the thread.

It's as easy to list 10 000 people who almost certainly play golf better as a result of paying attention to fitness - and there's no evidence that the 5 listed wouldn't fall in that category either.

There's a clear parallel with the issue of 'lessons' here - it's impossible to be definitive ie player A would be a better golfer if he had lessons, but it's equally impossible to prove that he wouldn't.

 

[Hobbit]

I think the question is far too simplistic. How does fitness play a part in Tom Watson's ability to shoot under par on some really tough courses? How does fitness play a part in Tom Watson's ability to get around the course in under two hours? No doubt you could go right through the various handicap brackets and find great golfers who couldn't run for a bus and marathon runners well capable of air shots.

Yes fitness, flexibility & stamina will help, especially if its 36 in a day, but it isn't the prerequisite of good golf.

 

[One Planer]

It's as easy to list 10 000 people who almost certainly play golf better as a result of paying attention to fitness

Go on then :smirk:

The point I was trying to make is not that fitness isn't important, but that fitness is not a pre-requisite to play good golf. I believe my examples highlight this.

Again, to use your analogy, I could probably name a few more folks that are overweight but still knock it round a course in under 70 blows on a regular basis.

 

[duncan mackie]

Go on then :smirk:

The point I was trying to make is not that fitness isn't important, but that fitness is not a pre-requisite to play good golf. I believe my examples highlight this.

Again, to use your analogy, I could probably name a few more folks that are overweight but still knock it round a course in under 70 blows on a regular basis.

but this isn't the question asked

the capabilities of disabled golfers categorically prove (far better than your examples) that 'fitness' isn't a pre-requisite to 'good golf', but unless you are suggesting that better fitness won't make a difference I fail to see the relevance of your post then, or now.

 

[One Planer]

but this isn't the question asked

It's EXACTLY the question asked. JC asked:

I was wondering what your thoughts were on fitness levels in the game of golf?

I know with the pro's you see manyof them at a good if not great fitness level but there are the few that dont conform to this - the old John Daly springs to mind.

He doesn't mention

the issue of 'lessons'

Nor

the capabilities of disabled golfers

He asks for peoples opinions, specifically on fitness levels in golf. I gave my opinion that fitness is not a necessity to play good golf and gave examples as such.

Of course I'll agree that fitness levels in any sport will help more than hinder, take probably the best example in golf, Tiger Woods. Then compare him to John Daley, then compare both to a club golfer.

 

[Alex1975]

Umm because you smoke does not make you unfit, because you are large does not make you unfit! The list of pros above... I would bet they are all quite a bit fitter than any of you, they have spent there lives walking and playing, even without a fitness program and with lots of beer and smokes they will be at a good level.

@op google the harvard step test, fitness has been defined, it's about recovery for the most part as I recall from my GCSE PE.

The fitter the better for golf but you can get away with being more unfit than most other sports ( is darts a sport? ) is my opinion.

 

[deanobillquay]

I must admit, the 4 beers and 3 cigars during a round does have an effect on my golf fitness

 

[jcooper5083]

Good to see individual opinions on this - Alex, you are correct on the recovery time being a lot to do with the definition of fitness, I too recall this now from the GCSE PE days

 

[WideEyedFox]

I'm not fitness guru (far FAR from it!), however I think fitness is all relative to what it is being used for. The "fitness" required for a fast paced sport like tennis and martial arts would be different to what would be required for football and rugby, and of course the slower precise game of golf.

If you play no other sport than golf your body will naturally become "fit" to performing the function of swinging a golf club efficiently. Muscle tissue, tendons, fine motor skills, hand eye co-ordination will all develop through repetition to deliver what you need to hit the ball with what you have available. Be it skinny, fat, tall, short, young or old good golf is achievable by all (which is why it is popular).

At its most basic a darts player can be clinically obese, yet possess great "fitness" in their hand/arm to eye co-ordination in throwing a dart. This is honed and developed through practice and repetition. Their muscles etc. have all become "fit" at performing the function they need to throw a dart accurately.

If you're struggling walking the course and this is causing you to play badly on the latter holes (or the long par 5's), then improving your fitness would probably help. Would it improve your swing and impact? Probably not, in fact it could make it worse while your body adapts and adjusts to the changes. As you either lose weight and/or become more flexible so you could see tempo changes in different parts of your body that could alter your swing.

At a professional level a golfer is not just out for a Sunday knock about. He will be playing 4 rounds of golf and for each and every shot need to be able to deliver their very best. Then, once the tournament is over, they're probably on a plane to the next one to do it all again.
They do this for a living. It pays their bills, feeds their family and they know that to be at the top and be consistent means making sure the "machine" that is their body is at its best to deliver the shots they need.
Achieving this level for some may be no more than regular stretching and a good diet. The amount of walking and swinging they do is all the exercise they need. For others it may mean they are doing more "fitness" training, but closely monitoring their golf swing.

For those of us who play weekly, we have jobs, family and possibly other hobbies we partake in. For some Golf may be the only exercise they get each week.
Improving our fitness may help us feel better both physically and mentally which could make us better golfers. The healthy feeling could make you feel more confident, the extra flexibility could speed up your club head speed and add yards to your drive, and the fitness could mean you're still aiming for birdies at 17 and 18 rather than aiming for the meat pie and pint at the 19th.

For some however their body is already fit enough for golf, and all that is required is practice and repetition to fine tune it. Fitness in the wrong direction could alter something that is already going in the right direction.

 

[Robobum]

Thought it was a pretty straight forward question to be fair.

Undoubtedly fitness will help anybody on the golf course. Even if it means you aren't puffing like an old steam engine after climbing out of a bunker!
A bit of strength and conditioning will help avoid injury also, lower back muscles are neglected by nearly everyone, but how many golfers complain of back issues!!

 

[Alex1975]

I would like some coordination please!!!

 

[Robobum]

I would like some coordination please!!!

Ebay?

 

[duncan mackie]

Thought it was a pretty straight forward question to be fair.

Undoubtedly fitness will help anybody on the golf course. Even if it means you aren't puffing like an old steam engine after climbing out of a bunker!
A bit of strength and conditioning will help avoid injury also, lower back muscles are neglected by nearly everyone, but how many golfers complain of back issues!!

:thup:

 

[Barrie2985]

Strength, power, flexibility, balance, core stability, body awareness, even endurance... they're all physical traits that every consistent golfer (even the fair-weather players) must possess.
The golf industry is littered with gadgets and gimmicks for increasing accuracy and shot distance. Yet for all their claims and guarantees most remain independently unproven. Compare that to a basic golf fitness program...
After 5 weeks of completing 30 minutes of very simple home exercises 5 times a week, golfers increased their clubhead speed by an average of 24%. While it could be argued that clubhead speed is only one small facet of a golfer's overall game, it is highly correlated with a player's handicap. In other words, the lower a player's handicap is, the higher their clubhead speed at impact tends to be. In fact, a 24% increase relates to a reduction of 4 shots off a golfer's handicap. This is just one of several studies that proves the benefits of conditioning for golf.
And the benefits of golf fitness training are not reserved for the young. Golfers aged 55-75 have also benefited from strength and flexibility training - both in terms of general health parameters and their performance on the course.For the more serious golfers, conditioning can no longer be seen as an unnecessary add-on to their practise routine. Just as a committed amateur athlete spends time on their technique AND their fitness, so must the golfer who demands to be the best they can. There is a caveat however...
In order to improve performance in any sport, training must be specific to the demands of the game involved. Of the few golfers who do appreciate the importance of physical training, most still make the mistake of following a general fitness routine.
If you want hit every shot consistently further you need to take a different approach. Not a more complicated approach. Not a more time-consuming approach. A more golf-specific approach.

 

[Phil2511]

Something I've noticed at my place is the low men are all quite fit, have active jobs, do exercise at the gym or were very fit before and play enough golf to maintain their swings.
Looking at the higher handicap guys most are either overweight and unfit or only play social golf with no interest in improving. They would be the guys who have old beat up gear, drinkers who would never consider a lesson and have never practiced the game.

I remember Darren Clarke saying he plays his best golf when he's shed pounds and worked on his fitness levels. He just doesn't have the willpower to stick to healthy living.

 

[Phil2511]

This guy seems to know his stuff. Loads more videos but here are a few he did with an old guy for a TV talk show.

[video=youtube_share;GZpOr249m5w]http://youtu.be/GZpOr249m5w[/video]

 

[Phil2511]

[video=youtube_share;HvnUSio7Bow]http://youtu.be/HvnUSio7Bow[/video]

 

[Phil2511]

[video=youtube_share;gufFE8zdWZU]http://youtu.be/gufFE8zdWZU[/video]

 

[Phil2511]

[video=youtube_share;1T6paK-AFWU]http://youtu.be/1T6paK-AFWU[/video]

 

[RGDave]

I can't see the point if doing anything fitness-wise unless you are trying to get really, really good or you have certain medical/physical limitations.

It grinds my gears when people at my club start talking about the gym and diet when I'm far fatter and out of shape than them and yet mysteriously play better golf.

If I lost 2 stone, started jogging and building my core strength, sure I'd be better. Would it improve me by a shot per hole though so I can turn pro?