Most common mis-explained/misunderstood tips

[JML22]

What do you guys think?
I would say
Shoulder rotation, "hinge wrists" and hit down on the ball.
I remember a long time ago one of my friends said not to dip my shoulder and up until like a year ago i kept trying to do a shoulder rotation without lowering the level of my shoulder, which is basically a physical impossibility.

[grizfan]

"Keep your head down."

Actually, that's just bad advice, but boy did it cause me some problems.

[uttexas]

Release the club. --I initially thought this meant to release at the ball. You actually release after striking the ball.
Stay down through the ball.--You should actually extend legs, hips, arms, spine through the ball
Turn your hands through the ball. ---this saps power and makes you cut across the ball.

[B-Con]

"Keep your head down."

I think that bit of advice has two different meanings: 1) Literally don't move your head (generally aimed at mid/low handicappers), 2) Don't raise your body up (generally aimed at high handicappers). The first case seems to be advice that many disagree with. The latter case it is to help the player avoid pulling up or standing up during the swing. If you keep your head in more-or-less the same position through the swing, you keep yourself from straightening your back to "help" pull the ball up with your swing, as many beginners are want to do. Lifting the head a little on the backswing is one thing, but standing up and pulling up and ending with your head 4 inches above where it started as you lift your back and body to "help" pull the ball up doesn't help your swing.

Good hitters have their face pointed down and their head not too far from where it started at and just after impact. Beginners often have their face already moving down the target line and their head 3 inches higher than when it started.

[injury]

For me just about any tip since I tend to take instruction very literal and overdo it. Though another big thing is some are completely contradictory, which I'm sure is from different swing methods but they aren't always defined so you have to figure out if it's something that even applies to you.

Grip. The ideas of laying it across a certain part of the fingers discounts how long someones fingers are, relationship of size of fingers to hands and a bunch of others. Yet all but 1 video, book, tip, instructor, picture that I've seen describes it pretty much the same with just varying on how tight you should or should not hold it. It wasn't till I saw a video of where/how to apply pressure with the tips of my fingers did I feel that control you are supposed to feel throughout the swing. Til then it looked like all the pictures but I was getting horrible calloses and still not feeling real secure with it.

Weight shift gave me problems just due to the sheer numbers of ideas/methods.

I think the worst for me though is the wrist cock. Since depending where I do it in the backswing (and different tips/videos have different recommendations on when where and how fast) I get completely different results. For instance if I start doing it at takeaway I'll cock back in the direction away from target which actually puts the clubhead way behind me at 9 o'clock and usually leads to a really fanned open face at the top of the backswing. Been working on getting a good turn to 9 o'clock then cocking up from there and it seems to be helping a lot...this week.

[max power]

Good hitters have their face pointed down and their head not too far from where it started at and just after impact. Beginners often have their face already moving down the target line and their head 3 inches higher than when it started.

Yep-for the most part "keep your head down" is one of the better pieces of advice, though I guess we could change it to "keep your head in the same position".

[JML22]

If someone were to write a solid article about it and submit it to a magazine it would get published.
Its a much needed topic because stupid little unexplained advice ••••s up so many people

[JML22]

If someone were to write a solid article about it and submit it to a magazine it would get published.
Its a much needed topic because stupid little unexplained advice ••••s up so many people

[zeg]

I don't think it'd be published. The magazines count on your needing the next article with bad advice to "fix" the problems you got from following the tips in the last article. That's how they keep their subscribers.

[KEEPITSIMPLE]

the one that is always kind of irritating to me is keeping the coil of your right leg and over turning your hip on your backswing. It you are having problem with that and someone or pro is emphasizing it and how it allows you to get more coil and push off and generate more power........... it is true except they are not telling you what the fundamental problem is- Your backswing is off and probably too steep and for sure coming way too far on the inside.. Don't believe me. Try different plane on your backswings. Go way outside and up and I guarantee you their isn't any unbending of the knee. Go straight back and their is no unbending of the knee. Golf should be pretty natural and athletic. your hip turn and coil of your knee will be "correct" when your backswing is in good position. If someone is telling you to "hold" or maintain something, chances are their is something fundamentally wrong.

Guess what, if you have a back swing that does not come way too far inside, you are not going to overturn with your hip and you will retain the coil with your knee.