The Importance of Fundamentals

If you’re a beginner, intermediate or advanced player you need to understand the importance of acquiring good Fundamentals.  The beginner who achieves sound Fundamentals will develop a better swing motion and minimize compensations.  The intermediate player will be able to take their game to the next level and the advanced player will consistently be able to keep their score low.

The Fundamentals include:

• Grip
• Stance
• Ball position
• Alignment
• Posture
• Balance

The GRIP is essential for maintaining a square clubface throughout the swing, will also allow the wrists to hinge properly and the forearms to rotate correctly.  If you don’t acquire a good grip be prepared to make swing compensations.

The STANCE is simply your foot positioning and the support base of the swing.  Therefore keep you back foot square, forward foot slightly open and always make sure that your stance is slightly wider than shoulder width.  If the support base is solid it will allow you the opportunity to properly load the backswing; and the ability to get into a good impact position and finish.

Identifying proper BALL POSITION can be gained through the knowledge that each club is designed slightly different.  Therefore once it’s understood that varying ball positions is necessary you’ll need to know how to place the ball at the ‘bottom of the arc’ for each club otherwise you’ll hit too many shots ‘fat’ or ‘thin’. Correct AIM is essential to developing a good golf swing and has a direct relationship to the path in which you will learn to swing the club.

Incorrect ALIGNMENT is the major reason why most golfers swing the golf club from ‘outside to in’.  If you don’t learn how to aim properly you’ll definitely learn to make compensating swing errors.

POSTURE is simply the combined angles of your spine, thighs, shins and club which defines the set-up geometry of how you will learn to swing the club.

Once in the correct posture making sure you’ve achieved good BALANCE will reflect the stability throughout the swing.  Loosing your balance at any point means you’ve made a swing error.

Once the above fundamentals are achieved also make sure to tilt your sternum (middle of your chest) slightly behind the ball, which will help allow your shoulders to be square to your feet and allow for a better swing.

Establishing sound fundamentals will simply allow for a better golf swing; which will create more consistency, distance and accuracy.