After about the 17th excellent shot in a row my client turned to me and said, “You make golf so much easier and simple. I no longer have to think about swinging the club on a 37.5 degree plane”.
“What do you mean 37.5 degrees?”, was my instant reply.
“Well, my last golf teacher put my swing on video and then we went out the back and watched it on the TV screen. Then, he drew all sorts of lines on the screen and suggested that the ideal swing plane was 37.5 degrees”.
Cameron: You’re kidding me?
Client: No. It was the focus of the lesson and he really wanted me to swing the club thinking about the swing plane in degrees. It was all totally confusing…
This kinda coaching is the worst kind there is. For a start, it’s all about the golf pro. His thinking (they are normally male) is all about them.
“Look how smart I am by knowing that swing plane is 37.5 degrees”.
But it’s a cop out because there’s really no way of measuring success. The student has no way of knowing if they’re doing things correctly (except for having more lessons and having their swing put on video). It’s an awful way to go about learning the game. Just horrible and no fun whatsoever.
Am I against any sort of swing instruction or golf mechanics like swing plane?
I’m against the horrible teaching that I’ve mentioned above but am I fan of helping golfers learn better swing technique. It’s just a matter of knowing how to go about it.
Look at the photo below.
A better golf swing without confusing golf technique
This was sent to me by Alex, a 90 year-old golf pro from Australia. Alex is a total legend and loves the game. He’s also passionate about learning and trying new things. A highlight for me this year was giving Alex some coaching and watching him belt shot after shot down the middle and seeing the sparkle and excitement in his eyes.
Back to the photo. Alex used my Swing Trainer to help this golfer learn the swing. There’s very little verbal instruction required other than, “Swing your club between the foam blocks”. The coach needs to button up and let the client do the work. Give the student time to feel the swing and let it flow. This takes some patience (and a hint of courage) from the pro but it truly is the best way to get results.
And look at the position! Is this a good or what?
Not bad for a relatively new golfer. And the more she swings the better she’ll get. Her ideal golf swing will find her and she doesn’t have to remember some bullshit number like 37.5.
Below is a pic I took this morning of a very good 14 year old. He was working on drawing the ball and he was absolutely nailing shot after shot. Before the swing trainer he was coming too far over the top and hitting a weak slice or a pull to the left. He’s totally in the go-zone now and swinging with supreme confidence.
And I didn’t once mention swing plane, club path or any other technical golfing term. I got the swing trainer out, coached him on how best to use it and then got out the way. He learned everything himself because he’s the talented one. Teaching golf should not be about the coach. It’s about the student!
This young man has learned to smash a controlled draw with supreme confidence – all without ANY technical talk or jargon!
References: If you’d like to check out my Swing Trainer (with some very brand new videos being added soon on how to hit almost any shot (fade, draw, high low, etc) without changing your golf swing) then please click here.
If you’d like to come for a lesson and experience natural learning for yourself I’d be delighted to host you at my newly renovated Golf Farm. Click here to see more.