Stay natural for good swing
By Kim Jeong-kyoo
Korea Times Golf Columnist
For a good swing that produces successful results on a consistent basis you need to swing the club differently from others. Undoubtedly, to make your swing effective it’s imperative to blend your individual swing style efficaciously with swing fundamentals.
Novice golfers tend to hit the ball decently, using their own natural swing based on their gut feeling. Then, they start to ruin their natural swing trying to be like somebody else after hearing or reading some casual remarks or instructions. It is none other than those golfers around or even inept professional teachers that spoil a good beginner.
Also detrimental to your natural, acceptable swing is the desire to have a perfect swing, which causes you to try too many swing keys. That does not do any good as you cannot develop someone else’s swing. Trying to mimic someone else’s swing leads to developing shots that are the opposite of your natural style.
A swing that is not natural is not a swing that is effective. It’s unavoidable to have difficulty in repeating it consistently. It’s important that you should be extra-careful when giving or taking swing tips. Chances are your advice is not appropriate for others and vice versa. A plethora of tips you give or take do more harm than good.
Once you’ve found a decent swing of your own that works for you on a consistent basis, you’d better avoid changing it entirely. Don’t wander from one swing key to another. Avoid trying all the different swing thoughts you hear or read. Trying to incorporate too many different swing keys into your swing does nothing but cause your swing to deteriorate, inhibiting you from getting your ballstriking ability to the next level.
Take care to develop and groove a natural swing of your own and stick to it; once you’ve ingrained a natural swing of your own, it’s time to work on overcoming the fear you will face on the course.
Every golfer experiences a variety of unpleasant feelings during a round. Your fear could be the dread of missing a nerve-racking short putt or hitting out of bounds or into a body of water.
Negative emotions including fear adversely affect you, deteriorating your performance. To be successful you need to have control of your emotions.
Every thought consists of facts and emotions. Each situation you encounter on the course is just fact. It’s not the facts but the negative thoughts and attitude that bring about fear.
Fear stems from being concerned about a future outcome that is negative before it happens. Fear of missing a putt even before you strike it, for instance, damages your stroke mechanics and playing ability. You will miss a putt that you could have easily made if you were relaxed and confident.
The only way to overcome your fear is to stay in the present, focusing on the shot requirements without anxiety about the result.
Most importantly, you need to practice incessantly until you have confidence in your game. Neglecting to practice causes your game to get rusty.
A good way to make your practice more efficient is to practice the way you play a real round. That creates tension and pressure, improving your mental game. That allows you to practice coping with fear.
Incidentally, to learn to deal with difficult situations successfully, find an uneven area on the practice range and hit balls from there. During the round it’s difficult to get perfect lies. The ball tends to sit in a divot, in the rough or on an uneven lie, causing fear or pressure.
Practicing hitting from difficult lies boosts your confidence, improving your ballstriking ability. In cases when you are brimming with confidence, you cannot have any misgivings about what you are going to do, no matter what.