AddThis Social Bookmark Button

Tom uses:

WebSite Site Promotion LeadsLander
 

WHY DO I SAY GOLF IS EASY?

Easy is a relative term. Almost anybody can play golf. Young kids, old people, men, women, amputees, blind people, special needs people-the list goes on. I don’t think the same thing can be said of hockey or lacrosse to name two sports. Ben Hogan said in his famous book FIVE LESSONS, The Modern Fundamentals of Golf on page 15, paragraph two, ”Up to a considerable point, as I see it, there’s nothing difficult about golf, nothing. I see no reason; truly, why the average golfer, if he goes about it intelligently, shouldn’t play in the 70s-and I mean by playing the type of shots a fine golfer plays.”

So why do so many people think golf is hard? Well, a lot of golfers fail to go about it intelligently. Most of them start with clubs that don’t fit. Many of them start right out on a golf course without first learning to hit golf shots. Many of them get all kinds of advice from people who don’t hit the ball well themselves. I also believe that the way the game is taught, in many instances, makes learning the game harder, not easier. Yogi Berra says you can’t think and hit at the same time. Albert Einstein said that learning is experience, everything else is just information.

So, how can learning golf be easy for you? First, learn how you learn. Read Tim Gallwey’s book, THE INNER GAME OF TENNIS .Yes tennis. I like this book more than his golf book, but that will do, as well. You will learn that trying hard is not a good idea. You can also read George Leonard’s book, MASTERY. This book gives you five keys to mastering anything. The first key is to find a teacher, not just any teacher. Shop for a teacher the way you would shop for anything else. Find a teacher who gets results. Talk to other students. Don’t rely totally on a teacher’s personality. Performance is what we’re interested in. The second key is practice. Now this doesn’t mean you have to leave your wife and kids and hits balls all day, but you do need to practice some things, at least a little bit. small a mounts at regular intervals.

Golf is also a physical activity. It is easier to learn to play, once you’ve learned to hit the ball, if you walk (as long as you can). If you are as least somewhat physically fit, golf is easier. You don’t have to be a triathlete but a little flexibility wouldn’t hurt. Check out http://www.stretchmate.net. This site has a chart with some easy, golf specific stretches that you can download.

And finally, let me touch briefly upon visualization. Jack Nicklaus says that a golf shot is 50% visualization, 40% setup and 10% swing. Almost anybody can learn to visualize. There are many books on the subject. Anybody can learn to set up effectively, although most people don’t. I’ll discuss more on these subjects in future postings. If you have any questions in the meantime e-mail me and I’ll do my best to help you out.

More Golf is Easy