One of the emails I receive from time to time is from someone who has been hitting the ball well and playing great golf when all of a sudden they’ve lost their swing.  This tip explains what the likely cause is and how to correct your golf swing (even Tiger Woods is in this category right now this just may be a very timely tip).

1.  Slow Down

The most popular thing that causes people to lose their swing is simply trying to hit the ball too hard with their arms.  I’ve seen this time and time again.  Once people hit the ball well for a while they always want more and more power.  In looking for more power golfers will try hitting the ball harder with their arms.  The problem with hitting harder with your arms is the harder you hit, the tighter you get, the narrower your swing arc, the slower your wrist release, the slower the club swing, the more you will manipulate the clubface, the more over the top you come down etc.  So you don’t want to keep hitting harder with your arms to increase your power.

A good swing thought to help you slow down and stop hitting with the arms would be to swing at no more than 50% of your ability both at the range and on the when you go to play.   Once you start hitting better shots you increase your power by turning ONLY your body faster NOT by hitting harder with the arms.  Increasing the rotational speed of your body will make your arms swing faster which whip the club faster giving you more power because they are connected to one another.  Ideally, you never want to swing at 80% of your ability so slow down to 50% then rotate your body faster until you are swinging at a maximum of 80%.

Here’s a drill you can do (I have mentioned in previous tips).  Go to the range and pick out a target.  Then using a full swing hit each club at 3/4 of it’s actual distance.  For example, let’s say you normally hit a 7 iron 150 yards.  You simply try to hit it 100 yards.  Doing full swings at 3/4 speed will get you to slow down because your normal swing speed will hit the ball too far.  Try this drill a few times for a practice session or two.  If you do, you will recognize that you have been hitting with your arms which will allow you to slow down and feel your body powering the swing.

2.  Remember Back

The next thing you want to do to correct your swing is try to remember back to what you may have been working on right before your swing fell apart.  For example, maybe you were trying to draw the ball, may be you were trying to learn how to hit punch shots or maybe you were trying to increase your lag angle or work on some other position etc.  These things may give you clues as to why your swing fell apart.

Take trying to hit a draw for instance.  Maybe you were trying to aim your body out to the right (closing your stance) while having the clubface aimed at your target.  In doing so, your alignment got out of whack and you’re now aiming your body out to the right on normal shots.  In this case, correcting your golf swing may be as easy as setting up an alignment station and checking your set up for each shot so you know that you’re perfectly aligned.

If you were trying to hit punch shots maybe you were favoring your weight on your left leg or picking up the club in order to hit down on the ball.  So you double check your weight distribution at set up and work on the proper takeaway.

As you can see the list can go on an on.  So think back to what you have been working on recently and what changes you made to your swing in order to hit these new shots.  Check your set up and alignment first to make sure they are perfect then move on to fixing your swing positions if necessary.

3.  Video Your Golf Swing

As I have been doing my golf schools this year I’m amazed at how many people have never seen their golf swing on video.  With today’s technology you can easily record your swing literally on your cell phone or you can buy a Flip Ultra Video Camera or Kodak Zi8 for under $200. Once you do you can play it back to see if you can recognize what you are doing wrong.  Better yet, you can can take this video and compare it to the pictures in your Swing Machine Golf book or freeze-frame the DVD series and compare your swing to the positions I’m in and get back on track.

NOTE: If you have an iPhone you may be interested in this app.  iPhone App Store > Search >  “Video Instruction Pro” or follow this link: Video Instruction Pro

4.  Watch Your Ball Flight

Within the Swing Machine Golf Book there is a whole section entitled, Self-Diagnosis.  In the Swing Machine Golf DVD Series I also talk about diagnosing your swing flaws on the 3rd disc.   The whole reason I did this was so that you could correct your golf swing on your own instantly.  To correct your swing just watch your ball flight and recognize the contact you are making.  Then go to the book or DVD and find out what is causing the problem and apply the fix that I recommend.

5.  Take a Lesson

If you still can’t figure out how to correct your golf swing then maybe it’s time for lessons.  I would hope that you would come to Las Vegas to join one of my golf schools or book some private lesson time with me one-on-one.

Conclusion

Hopefully you’ve learned a lot from today’s tip.  Correcting your golf swing doesn’t have to be difficult.  Just think logically about it and track down the cause.  Then, apply the correct fix or drill and you will get it back in no time.

All the best,

Paul Wilson
Creator – Swing Machine Golf
Director – Paul Wilson Golf School Las Vegas

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Well, it seems like Christmas is rolling around again. You know what that means don’t you? It’s soon going to be time to unwrap that brand spankin’ new driver that’s sitting under the tree. Oh boy! Maybe this one is going to be the answer to all your prayers. Hmmm … If you think back, didn’t you get a brand-new driver last year as well?  I guess that one wasn’t the “one.”

What Am I Getting At?

Well … if you think that new driver is going to miraculously change your game then you’re just looking for a quick fix (sorry to spoil your Christmas). Sure, this new driver may make you hit the ball a little better at first, but after you give it a few weeks, you’ll be right back to where you started. I say this because picking up a new driver for the first time feels different than your old driver. Because of this new feeling, you won’t be thinking about your golf swing. After a few weeks go by though, this new feeling will disappear which means you’ll start thinking about your swing again. As soon as you do, you’ll right back where you started.

If you don’t believe me, just think about that last demo day you went to. I’m sure there was a driver (or putter) that you picked up that you hit amazingly well compared to your old driver. So what did you do? You bought it. Once you took it to the course, you played lights out for a few weeks. Then, all of a sudden you went right back to your old ways. In disbelief, you started searching for the answer and never did get your swing back. This left you scratching your head wondering what went wrong. Well, as I said, you were hitting the ball so well with the new driver because it took your mind off your swing. It did not change your swing. Big difference.

Now don’t get me wrong, having the right equipment is vital. The problem is when the person thinks that buying a new driver is going to be the magical answer to all their problems.

Bonus Tip: If you want to make a lot of money, come out with a driver or putter and go around selling them at demo days.

So What Is the Answer?

The answer is to stop looking for the quick fix. What you have to do, is get to the root of the problem and work on it until you’ve mastered the new move, or position, that is the cause of the problem. This doesn’t mean that you can’t apply a quick fix or tip that will get you hitting the ball a little better right away so that you can finish out your round and not shoot a million but when you have time to work on your swing, you should do so with the thought that you’re going to work on mastering the right fundamentals.

For example, let’s say you were midway through a round and all of a sudden you start pulling the ball to the left. If you didn’t know how to fix your pulled shots, it may be a good idea to aim a little out to right to compensate for the shots going to the left. In doing so, you would be applying a quick fix which isn’t going to cure the problem, but it will allow you to finish out your round with a half decent score. In order to fix the pulled shots properly, you would have to go to the range and work on your fundamentals.

Hopefully, you see that these are two different approaches to work on your golf swing. If you just keep applying quick fixes you will continue to to be inconsistent.

Getting to the Root of Your Swing Problems

In order to get to the root of the problem, you have to have a firm understanding of the golf swing and how it works. You should also be taking lessons or following a method so you can learn the correct positions and fundamentals. Yes, this takes practice but if you’re serious about improving your game then you have to take this approach. If playing great golf with a simple as applying a quick fix every now and again, would be a lot more great golfers out there?

All the best,

Paul Wilson

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