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To
Get Better Feel in your Golf Swing,
You Need a Golf Fitness Program
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by: Sean
Cochran
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Probably
what separates the PGA Touring pro and
the amateur golfer is “feel.”
Every pro I know can “feel” where
the club and clubhead are at any point
during the swing.
Not an easy task, especially for the
weekend golfer.
Many amateurs struggle with the idea,
concept, or understanding of how to
develop “feel” for the swing. It
is a process that requires time,
patience, and practice.
Part of the process of developing
“feel” for the golf club is
through proprioception. This may or
may not be a term you have heard, but
it is vitally important to the golf
swing.
Proprioception is a big word that,
simply put, is defined as “knowing
where your body is in space.”
Essentially, it means consciously
knowing where your body is when
moving, what your limbs are doing, and
in what order. To simplify it further,
it is feel. Some of us are better at
it, others worse.
The good news is that you can improve
your proprioception, or your feel.
Think about this for a moment: what is
one of the most important aspects of
improving your golf swing?
It is “feel” for the golf club at
every position within the golf swing.
Beginning with address, into
take-away, your backswing, downswing,
and follow through. “Feeling”
where the club is at every moment is
key.
PGA Tour pros “feel” the club
during the swing, or in other words
they have excellent proprioceptive
abilities. As a result, they have the
ability to make the little adjustments
that are crucial in the golf swing.
Additionally, their outstanding level
of proprioception allows them to know
what is going on with their golf swing
the majority of the time.
How do you develop your ability to
better “feel” the golf club and
clubhead?
First and foremost, your development
of better golf swing mechanics is
center stage. Understanding the
mechanics and where the clubhead
should be is the first step.
This allows you to consciously know
and practice the positions of where
the golf club and body should be at
any moment in the golf swing. Mentally
understanding golf swing mechanics
allows you to have a “map” to
refer to when developing your golf
swing.
Secondly, when it comes to golf swing
mechanics we look at practice. We all
know the body learns a new movement
through repetition. The mind and body
learn either the correct or incorrect
golf swing through practice.
This is the point where the
proprioceptive or “feel” abilities
of your body for your golf swing begin
to form. The movement pattern begins
to be ingrained as you continue to
practice your golf swing.
This is where the third component of
developing “feel” comes into play.
The third component of developing
“feel” is the body.
Golf swing mechanics are performed by
your body, and, as a result, the body
is critically involved in developing
feel in your golf swing.
Developing feel is linked to your
nervous system and the ability of the
brain/nerves to input/output
information efficiently.
Improving the process by which your
brain and nerves input (learning the
golf swing mechanics) and output
(execution of the golf swing) has a
direct effect on your ability to feel
the club.
How do you improve the proprioceptive
qualities of the body that directly
affects your ability to feel the golf
club? Improvement in this area lies
within performing exercises that
increase the efficiency with which the
nervous system operates.
Exercises that improve proprioception
and “feel” during the swing are
called balance exercises. Balance
exercises challenge the nervous
system, creating more efficiency in
the input/output system of the body.
Better balance allows for the body to
learn new movements (i.e. golf swing)
more quickly and efficiently.
Additionally, these exercises increase
the ability of the body to “feel”
athletic movements like the golf
swing.
In summary, we have three components
that improve our “feel” for the
golf club. Number one is an
understanding of golf swing mechanics.
You must have a conscious “road
map” of the golf swing. This allows
you a reference point to develop the
correct swing mechanics.
Secondly, practice is required. The
body learns through repetition.
Practice allows the brain and the body
to learn the movement sequence of the
golf swing. Practice is also the point
where the body begins to develop the
proprioceptive qualities required for
the golf swing.
Finally, you need to develop the
proprioceptive capacities of the body
itself through balance exercises.
These types of exercises improve the
input/output system of the body
allowing for improved learning
capacities by the body, better
“feel” of where the body is in
space, and a greater capacity to
“feel” the golf swing.
All in all, it is a combination of
developing these three entities within
your golf swing and body that creates
“feel” for the swing. They all
work together and cannot be separated.
If you truly want to develop a PGA-Tour-type
swing, you will need to have a better
understanding of the golf swing,
practice, and development of the body.
Sean
About the Author
Sean Cochran is one of the most
recognized golf fitness instructors in
the world today. He travels the PGA
Tour regularly with 2005 PGA &
2004 Masters Champion Phil Mickelson.
He has made many of his golf tips,
golf instruction and golf swing
improvement techniques available to
amateur golfers on the website
www.bioforcegolf.com. To contact Sean,
you can email him at support@bioforcegolf.com.
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GOLF SWING :: Improve
your game by improving your swing. Check our
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EXERCISE :: Strength,
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to play golf.
PRACTICE :: Practice does
not make perfect. Perfect Practice makes
Perfect Performance. Are you practicing your
game the wrong way? Read these articles to
find out the best way to practice and
improve your golf game.
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