Junior golf development - It takes time not talent

Junior golfers are competitive little things. Junior golf lessons mainly evolve around competition, who can hit is furthest? Who can get the most ball in the hoop? Who can go lowest around the putting green?
These little competitive edges are great and essential as a part of a junior golfers development.
What is also common however is feeling the need to succeed. This tends to become more apparent in junior golfers once they start to take the game up on a more serious level. There is always a role model. Someone that the junior golfer will look up to and often compare themselves to. 'When he was my age his handicap was 15'....... 'She has been playing since she was 4 so i will never catch her up'.....a couple of common phrases no doubt heard on the range or golf course with junior golfers.

It isn't a race for junior golfers to achieve their ultimate goal

Junior golfers, and adults for that matter, do not need to be in such a panic. If you take the 10,000 hour rule for instance, then you may just be making your way nicely into becoming an expert player at golf. The theory of the 10,000 hour rule was devised by Anders Ericsson in the early 1990's. His beliefs also fall in line with the beliefs of , Daniel Coyle author of the Talent Code. This is a must read by the way, describing how talent isn't something that you are just born with, it is something that is grown and developed.
Basically bith these guys are saying that developing talent and becoming an expert takes time. Taking this time is acceptable and beneficial in regards to future success. To break it down to more understandable figures then the 10,000 hours could be averaging 4 hours practice a day over 2500 days. This amound of practice would take about 7 years. If 4 hours is unrealistic then 3 hours will equate to about a 10 year window.

Golf is not all about who gets the lowest handicap the quickest. Okay so one 13 year old plays off 3 and the other off 18. But there is no reason for the higher handicap player to catch up down the line of their golfing development. In fact, those who improve gradually over a longer time period tend to achieve more in the future at elite levels. One of the key reasons for this is a constant, but gradual learning that allows them to accept failure better and develop patience and belief. In general a more level headed look at the golfing past, present and future. Constant success early on obiously feels great. But what happens when you lose or people catch up? How and how well do you deal with this? Gradual success teaches you to deal with this mentally. This links back to goal setting in previous posts of mine. It is important to feel challenged and learn to except failure at times.

As always there are going to be some exceptions. Tiger Woods is the obvious one in the golfing world. Tiger Woods was very good very young and continued to develop well throughout his junior development phases. This lead to him ultimately becoming the worlds number one player and may lead to him becoming the most successful golfer of all time.

Tiger Woods has was certainly one of the exceptions...

However Nick Faldo is an example that you do not necessarily have had to start playing the game at a ridiculously young age in order to succeed. 4 years after taking the game up at the age of 14 he was crowned the English Amateur champion. And look at Ian Poulter, not much of an amateur resume to be scared of. However he has gone from pro shop assistant to a Top 10 player in  the world.

Golf undoubtedly is a sport that requires skill to be developed. It takes practice and plenty of playing to improve and step up to the next level. But there do not have to be any time barriers. No races to be at a certain level at a certain age. Patience is a hard thing to develop in golf, but use the 10,000 hour rule, or 10 year window as a positive. Your long term goals can be achieved and you can succeed by being patient and improving yourself gradually over time.

One final note though. Obviously this doesn't mean just play golf for 10,000 hours or 10 years then you will just turn pro. This is a theory, and the theory assumes that you are practicing the right thing, with the right people, with the correct targets.

Good luck. Prfactice well, play well and be patient.

Dan Gale PGA Professional

Dan is a PGA Professional and TPI Certified instructor

Check out his website at www.dangalegolf.com

The golf swing - different but the same

Watching golf on TV every evening and swing sequences on YouTube it is clear to see that at the top levels of the game there are no two swings the same. Put Tiger Woods golf swing next to that of Jim Furyk and visually the swings are miles apart. On first impressions there is no way in hell Jim Furyk should be competing with Tiger Woods given the difference in golf swing motion between the two. These differences therefore lead us to asking the question, "why do i keep chasing the perfect swing?".

Earlier blog entries that i have published have led to the conclusion that there is no one model. The number of swing theories out there today is uncountable. Each professional seeming to have there own belief on what makes the most efficient action to hit good golf shots. When it comes down to it however the goals of every single coach are very simple and the same:

'To teach every player to have a consistent shot shape & strike through a repetitive
and physically efficient motion. Hitting the ball long enough to get the ball around the
golf course in the lowest possible score'

Now, whatever your teaching philosophy, this is the aim for every golf professional. The magic word in any golfers vocabulary is 'consistency'. If i got a pound for every lesson who came to me seeking just that magic word, then i would already be a rich man. Everybody knows they have the good shot in them, they can kill a 7 iron 160yds or hit the driver with that elusive draw, however doing it on a regular basis and lacking the consistency is the major downfall.

So what makes an efficient and consistent swing? What allows somebody with the golf swing of Jim Furyk to compete with that of a player with the god given athleticism of Tiger Woods? The answer is their swing sequencing on the downswing.

Kinematic Sequence

Ok so Tiger and Furyk's golf swings look nothing alike. However there is one big similarity and that is their kinematic sequences. This is the sequence of movements on the downswing which lead to generating speed and transferring that speed through the body and eventually to the clubhead. Ignore the fact that Jim Furyk looks like he is swinging a lasso around his body, the sequence back to the ball is the same.

Without going into huge detail as to how the sequence works a simple look will show this is what happens:

• The energy builds from the lower body, working from the ground up
• The energy is transferred from the lower body, into the torso
• The energy is then transferred to the arms and hands
• The final energy transference results in the loading of energy into the club/clubhead resulting in the strike of the ball

This sequence applies to all top strikers of the golf ball. if this is created then it will result in you hitting better golf shots. With good kinematic sequencing and good stability through the swing the only factor that can stop good ball striking will be an off - centre strike from the club or poor clubface aim at impact.

The sequence is repetitive throughout good golfswings, the style carried out to get to this sequence however is what can differ. And that is why Jim Furyk and Tiger Woods and compete. 

Entirely different, but exactly the same.

Club player take note

Your lesson to learn from this is that you do not have to have a swing that is a masterpiece. You do not need to swing like Tiger, you do not need to swing like Jim Furyk. You need your swing to simply to be good enough to get the job done. Baring this sequence in mind is great. However a PGA Professional and video analysis will assist you in seeing how close you are to getting the job done. But just remember, your style is great. Your swing can work. You just need to sequence movements correctly.

If you manage that then you too can be completely different but exactly the same :) .

Thanks for reading

Daniel Gale PGA Professional

TPI Certified

Dan is a Class AA PGA Professional & TPI Certified Instructor

Check out his website at www.dangalegolf.com

Golf course is a snow go - head indoors for constructive golf practice

Golf in the snow definately isn't ideal. The golf course is obviously a no go, and the all practice short game areas for putting, chipping, pitching and bunkers are also. However it doesn't mean you just have to become one of golfs driving range junkies in this inclement weather. 

A way to improve your game is to focus on some indoor golf practice. With the use of a digital camera and simple golf swing analysis software, you can focus solely on technique.Sometimes with short game practice, and particularly putting, we can become absorbed in results. Making it hard to work on technical change. However when you head indoors with no hole to putt into, you can focus solely on technique.

 Head indoors with putter and camera for technique improvements

Give it a try. Position the camera directly down the line (behind the putter) so you can view the direction of your swing path. Or also from face on (head on) to view any wrist action or clubface aim change.

Take a look at V1 coaching software at http://www.v1golf.com/products/products.asp to view your practice indoors. If you feel you don't know what you are looking for then seek the advice of a PGA Professional and then you can carry out constructive practice at home.

Get practicing that short game.

Daniel Gale

PGA Professional

Dan is an AA PGA Professional & TPI Certified Instructor

Check out his website at www.dangalegolf.com

Junior golf development - active kids make athletes

Junior golf continues to boom. Golf is becoming more and more fashionable and open to kids all over the country. When i am teaching golf to juniors however, it is apparent early on which children have the best all round sporting background. This assists the juniors to progress with golf at a much faster rate. Whereas those with limited sporting background often find their progress a little slower to begin with. 

Having said this we are not saying that the latter child has no chance. Not at all. However the rate of progression is slower from the start. The danger here is that frustration may lead to a premature ending to their golfing lives.

The benefits of having your kids active from a young age with a variety of sports, other than just golf, is that they acquire an all round physical vocabulary. They learn basic movement skills, stability, mobility, co - ordination and balance at a very quick rate. It is apparent that those children who have learnt these skills already, develop ball striking and good results much earlier when attempting golf for the first time. 

Unfortunately the 'Xbox generation' has now been accompanied with cuts in school sports following the government spending review, meaning our kids are missing out on the vital stages of skill acquisition. As a coach therefore we are making it our objective to assist children in skill acquisition as well as golf. The results are great. By improving functions such as speed, balance and agility through basic games including actions such as jumping, catching and throwing, we are giving kids a better chance to succeed.

If you want to aid your child, as well as others, sporting development then give them the best chance with an active lifestyle. They don't have to become world beaters, but will lead to a healthy and fun lifestyle. 

If you want to support the fight to save save school sports then take a look at SSP (Save School Sport Partnership) on Twitter and Facebook.

Enjoy your golf, and give your children the best chance to prosper in the future.

Daniel Gale

PGA Professional

Dan is a PGA Professional & TPI Certified Instructor

Check out his website at www.dangalegolf.com

Beginner golf instruction - which professional do i see?

The options available to golfers these days is greater than ever. Golf swing experts and theories, custom fitting technology out of this world along with experts there to make golf equipment to measure, and an ever growing field of physical and mental trainers there to fine tune you into golfing robots. However when it comes to golf coaching, what is the right way to go? Which theory is the right one, one plane, two plane, stack and tilt, the list goes on.

The key thing to remember is that we are all different. We all have different strengths and weaknesses when it comes to physical ability and also with our aspirations and goals for our golf. Baring that in mind then it must be fact that there is no one way to swing the golf club. A 13 year old boy is not going to swing the same as a 40 year old woman. Likewise a 17 year old girl to a 60 year old man. Therefore there is no model.
A good coach will be able to teach every person as an individual. We cannot all fall into one bucket and swing like a bunch of clones in the same way.

It is my belief that the golf coach should have as vast a knowledge and the resourses available to cater to individual golfers needs. Admittedly you need to get someone hitting the ball from beginner level. And there will always be fundamentals in every players swing which need to be learnt, e.g. weight transfer, extension of left arm etc. However once these basics are learnt each player can potentially go there own way. Some of the factors which effect our swing differences include:

• Sex                                                       
• Height
• Strength
• Flexibility
• Mobility
• General fitness/health

Bare this in mind when looking for a golf professional. A method coach is great to get you going. However swinging one way is not how it happens out on the tour so it is unlikely to be the way at your club.

Daniel Gale

PGA Professional

Dan is a PGA Professional & TPI Certified Instructor

Check out his website at www.dangalegolf.com