Over the years, I’ve seen countless systems, tips and advice on how to swing a golf club and some heated discussions from devotees and coaches of various methods.
But the truth is this… if you cannot turn the information into an actual motion that you can repeat and rely on, any system is essentially useless to you.
So the real secret to the perfect golf swing is this… you also need to know HOW TO LEARN a golf swing.
In a study at John Hopkins University, a team of neuro-scientists found within the first 5-6 hours of practicing a new move, the brain shifts the learning from the short term memory to the areas responsible for permanent motor skill.
Even without practice, after 5-6 hours, the formula for the movement was virtually hard wired into the brain.
BUT… a newly learnt skill can be impaired, confused or even lost if a person tries to learn a different motor skill during that critical 5-6 hour period when the brain is trying to move and stabilise the original task in the brain. You create an INTERFERENCE pattern in the brain.
The research sends a clear message. If we want to make a new skill permanent and automatic, we must concentrate on ONE MOVE at a time.
So whichever golf swing method you are learning, allow your brain the time it needs to ‘set’ each move before moving to the next.
What are your thoughts on this? Let me know below.
Phil Emmling says
September 8, 2011 at 8:02 pmI am 65 years old, 5’8″ and 175 pounds, OK flexible, and in very good health- background information! I gave up golf about 45 years ago for college, work, and fishing. Last October I took it up again and have had 7 lessons from 4 different PGA instructors. I have read and possibly been confused with too much golf information. I shoot about a 95 on the average city course in Madison WI.
While instructors generally focus on 1 aspect at a time in agreement with your above findings, a golf swing has more than 1 motor skill that needs to be “hard wired” before the end result is a straight shot. Therefore, I find continued poor results in practice and on the course making the “one skill at a time” method seem useless. I use some software and my small picture digital camera in movie mode because a person cannot see themselves swing when the instructor is not present. It’s easy to fall back into old habits after the lesson.
Watching various swing tips on the internet has led me to another observation. The instructors don’t even know how to swing poorly. Their examples of poor swings are clumsy while my videos of poor ball striking almost look like good swings. I also find it easier to see faults in other swings than to correct my swing.
I am going to try to do some of the exercises and joga programs designed for golf because I think the books provide good core exercises for life. I am hoping that better golf will be the reward for better golf core fitness. Age must enter into the discussion at some point. I don’t see any 65 year old golfers on the Champions Tour.
Sorry for the long comment!
Karl Morris says
September 9, 2011 at 2:50 pmPhil,
thanks for you comments about your game. you are absolutely right that a good swing needs more than one fundamental to hit good shots. However from a learning perspective it would seem that it is compatible to focus on and work on one move at a time.
Bas Keder says
September 10, 2011 at 4:31 pmHi Karl,
Although I completely agree with the “one new move at a time” idea I would like to add something to it. First of all, to make a move you need an intention. You have to have a reason for making it. Many golfers make all kinds of moves without knowing why they make them or maybe only because the instructor told them to do so. If golfers make a new move because they understand and feel it is going to make the club hit the ball in a way that will make the ball do what they want (and they should have a clear picture of both the club and ball movement) then they would also learn the right move(s) for getting better at this beautiful game!
Cheers, Bas keder (Mind Factor Coach)
Rob Woodgate says
September 11, 2011 at 7:28 amWith a golf swing, it’s a case of learning each fundamental move slowly (one move at a time) and then learning to put them all together as another separate ‘move’.
One problem is that people are often too impatient and try to integrate a fundamental move straight into the swing after practising it, creating that interference pattern.
The other problem I see is speed – golfers trying to learn by swinging at full speed will be (naturally) making mistakes and coding them in memory. It’s like learning to drive a car and then expecting to be able to race a Grand Prix. Concentrate on getting the move and let the speed come later.
Cheers
Rob
(Mind Factor Coach)