Anyone who is trying to improve their golf swing will know that what they feel they are doing and what they are actually doing can be quite different.
This can cause problems when trying to make a changes, because we can often believe that we are really doing what we are supposed to even when we are not. Old habits are hard to break after all!
I have seen many golfers completely mis-read where they have struck the ball on the face – they think they have hit the toe end of the club when they have actually hit the heel end.
I wrote an article previously with a really good example of this https://nealgranville.com/you-shanker/ Check it out later.
Imagine the problem this causes people when they now try to fix the fault. This is why golfers often get frustrated when practicing because they haven’t a clue what is actually happening.
FEEDBACK
One of the most powerful tools I use is simply giving the student factual feedback.
I see some golfers improve instantly, purely as a result of the feedback, without any technical intervention having to be made because they now understand the real problem.
As an example, I had a golfer complaining of inconsistency and poor feeling at impact. As a result they were starting to list possible causes for this. Guess work really. I started the session by looking at his strike pattern using some dry shampoo sprayed on the face of the club, and we quickly noticed that he was striking everything out of the toe end of the club.
(Check out this article to see the dry shampoo in action! https://nealgranville.com/become-a-better-ball-striker/)
Within minutes, he was able to quickly adjust and shift the strike more towards the sweet spot. Trackman showed us that he gained 12 yards of carry distance and tightened the dispersion of the shots. One of the key things that the best players in the world work on is to improve their centerdness of strike as it pays dividends in respect of consistency and distance.
Why wasn’t he able to do this on his own? Why did he start off that session creating a list of possible problems? Simple – he wasn’t looking for factual feedback.
One of the most amazing things about your brain is that, as long as we know the outcome we are looking for and are then able to understand whether we are doing it or not, our subconscious brain has an amazing ability of recreating that outcome, or at least getting much closer to the result.
It is really important to keep those 2 things in mind when you practice and they are good questions to keep asking yourself. “What is the outcome I am looking for?” “How will I know if I am doing it?”
To speed up the learning process, you need FEEDBACK.
Imagine a blind golfer trying to learn. The feedback is the key to them processing the feelings from the previous shot.
FEEDBACK
I think now, more than ever, there are lots of ways to get good feedback. Here are a few examples:
- face spray/face tape for strike location
- a tee or a coin on the ground to look at divot/grass brushing location
- video phones with Swing apps or slow motion camera
- training aids (the list is endless!)
I think that ultimately the ball flight is one of the best forms of feedback but you have to know what you are looking for or it can just lead to guess work.
TRACKMAN
There are many different options to really measure ball flight. I use Trackman because I think it is the most accurate and gives data on what the ball is doing and also what is happening with the club.
I have just installed a new large TV screen in my coaching bay so that you can see your numbers instantly and keep gaining feel for the changes from the numbers.
Remember to check out those other articles I mentioned:
neal granville golf 