Instruction resources on television

[dave67az]

Originally Posted by EmGee

New to the forum... Hi folks.  I have always been a true duffer...  honestly... 140 shots a round... I was just out for the walk in the park.  I finally decided to either learn to play the game or get rid of the clubs.  In March of this year I started recording and watching School of Golf, The Golf Fix and The Haney Project (just fast forward thorough all the extraneous stuff with Hank Haney and his 'students').  I now shoot consistently in the 90's and my best round to date is 87.  If i can ever get control of my driver.....

These shows can be very beneficial.  Yes, Martin Hall uses some strange contraptions, but instead of thinking "I'd never take that to the range" I instead pay attention to the concepts he's demonstrating as far as weight shift, balance and angle of attack to the ball, etc.  As far as The Sky Caddy SGX Infomercial Golf Fix, I agree... I will never delete his Putting Special from my DVR... but someone give Michael Breed a Xanax, PLEASE!  Hank Haney says very little of true importance during his Projects... but those things he does say truly seem to be golden nuggets ("It's not a HARD swing... it's a QUICK swing" - Hank to Sugar Ray Leonard).

The other video lessons I watch a lot are "Phil Michelson's Secrets of the Short Game."  Not that I did it well, but when I first learned to play (I worked part time at a practice facility 25 years ago) the style of his chipping matches what I was taught back then by the owner (a PGA club pro.)  I have been able to get more and more 1-putts lately thanks to these DVDs.

I think the main purpose of these and other instructional videos is not to try to imitate the presenter... rather to truly pay attention and learn to understand the concepts (easier said than done) involved with golf physics.  I'm finding lately that I can self-diagnose a bit better... and when I can't... I've found this forum...  and I know where I can get a lesson or two now that I've managed to build a fairly repetitive swing.

End of Essay

EmGee, I totally agree.  Everyone learns in different ways.  Some people learn just as well by reading as others do by watching.  Other people need one-on-one instruction before things really hit home for them.  The simple fact is that we're all different and we all learn differently.

When the pros themselves can't tell you the "one best way" to construct your swing, the message seems clear: there is more than one way to skin a cat.  I love it when the strict "if your swing doesn't fit this mold then you're doing it wrong" pros just can't explain how someone like Bubba Watson can be successful when he breaks so many "rules" of the golf swing.  Now, that's not to say that we don't ALL have room for improvement and just because we're comfortable doing something doesn't mean it's going to be effective (much less good enough to get to a single-digit-handicap).

I guess when I started this thread, I wasn't talking so much to those of you who already know everything and don't learn anything from these types of TV or YouTube video instruction.  I was talking more to the people who realize that not every golf tip is going to benefit everyone.  Since everyone's swing is a little different, it stands to reason that some golf tips and some thought processes are going to work for some and not for others.

As for the knock on Martin Hall not knowing how a golf ball slices, I didn't see the episode but I did find the "Cliff Notes" on the Golf Channel Website and I'm wondering where the discrepancy is.  Here's a quote from the show notes:

"Ball flight is the product of the direction you're swinging at impact in relation to the angle of the club face."

(http://www.golfchannel.com/news/school-of-golf/martins-blog-may-30-2012/)

What exactly is incorrect here?  A club face that's open to the club path at impact produces side-spin thereby creating a higher air pressure on one side of the ball than the other, thereby causing a slice.  Works the same way an airfoil does on the wing of a plane.  I thought this was pretty elementary.  What are these "old ball flight laws"?

- Dave

[dondiegojr]

I think that's a valid point. I've found Shawn Clement's videos to be helpful with my swing. At least he attempts to back up his theories with anatomical facts/explanations and is not just regurgitating bad information. Phil, I hear what you're saying about how his swing looks, but anyone who has played to scratch both right and left handed probably has some good things to share. To the original question: I'd recommend spending a lot of time here on TST, and going to see a PGA pro instead of looking for a show or a video to help you. There is an ocean of bad information out there as people have already mentioned. It took me a long time to understand that just because something is on the Golf Channel, that doesn't mean it's right for me and my swing.

I think that's why I following his teachings. He uses other ballistic movements like throwing a ball, skiing, swinging a sledge hammer. Really anything having to do with weightshift and momentum. I never noticed, but Rory, VJ, Els I even saw Noh this week using a little forward press to start the swing. About a year ago I almost gave up on him becuase of my inability to grasp it. A year later I'm glad I stuck with it.

[dave67az]

Originally Posted by dondiegojr

I think that's why I following his teachings. He uses other ballistic movements like throwing a ball, skiing, swinging a sledge hammer. Really anything having to do with weightshift and momentum. I never noticed, but Rory, VJ, Els I even saw Noh this week using a little forward press to start the swing. About a year ago I almost gave up on him becuase of my inability to grasp it. A year later I'm glad I stuck with it.

Not sure which video has his "throwing the ball" move but that's straight out of Ben Hogan's "Five Lessons" if it's what I'm thinking about.  I'm still working hard to master the weight shift and use my lower body to start my swing and get away from the armsy swing I created for myself 30 years ago.  Sad that it took me 30 years to see a video of my swing and realize how bad it looked.

- Dave