GOLF TIP by Casey Eberting
Teaching Professional
Indian Springs Country Club
Broken Arrow, Oklahoma
www.CEgolf.com

You Know You Can Make A Great Practice Swing, but Why Can’t You Swing the Same Way When You Hit the Ball?

You've seen your playing partners do it. You know you've done it. But if it's so simple to make a smooth, fluid, effortless practice swing, why does that same fluid swing turn into a quick, jerky, chopping motion when the intent is to hit a golf ball?

The answer is very simple. When you take a practice swing, it doesn't matter if the clubface is square. It doesn't matter if the club head is traveling down the target line. It doesn't matter what the trajectory of the club head is as it nears the impact area. Because none of these things matter, there is no need for the body to go through contortions in an effort to make them happen.

Put a golf ball in front of a golfer, and it's a completely different situation. When hitting a ball, the clubface does need to be square. The club does need to be traveling down the target line at impact. The trajectory of the club head at impact does matter.

If your practice swing and real swing are different, it's because that seemingly great practice swing isn't really so great—it doesn't work while trying to hit a ball. Your body knows this and attempts to make corrections during the swing.

This also explains why golfers with poor swings hit the ball better when they swing easy—by not hurrying, they have more time to perform their manipulations—last chance efforts to correct improper club positions. Good golfers can, and do, swing hard. They can do this because the club never gets too far out of position during the swing, thereby requiring little, if any, manipulation..