Things you would tell someone just starting out w/resp to improving

[nevets88]

A proper strike - ball first, divot in front, hands forward, forward shaft lean, flat/bowed leading wrist. Slow mo closeup vid of iron strike. Show where the sweetspot is on irons, woods, putter. Bring person to professional event range - men, women, minors - to see ballflights and swings in person. Also short game area and how good they are. Mats vs grass. Start with small swings and chips and pitches. Used clubs are out there for cheap. Show slo mo vids of good swings from both angles. Outline the philosophies out there - TGM, SnT, Rotary, 2 plane, etc... How to use video to teach yourself and for online lessons. Play par 3, then exec course, then reg course twlight, then reg course.

[iacas]

Weight forward. Shoulder down. Hands in. Arms straight. Tuck the butt.

How'd I do?

[NI4NI]

Originally Posted by iacas

Weight forward. Shoulder down. Hands in. Arms straight. Tuck the butt.

How'd I do?

Classic S&T; preachin'.

Also add:  keep a positive attitude, and don't quit or look for the easy way out.  Put your time in, and try to enjoy yourself.

[iacas]

Originally Posted by NI4NI

Classic S&T; preachin'.

Yeah, it is. Truthfully I'd stop at "weight forward, shoulder down" and then teach a new beginner how to chip and putt.

[MiniBlueDragon]

I'm in this situation currently with my grandfather who has never taken proper lessons. At the moment his "major" flaws are:

- Swaying back on the backswing

- Literally no wrist cock (he bends his elbow instead!)

- Trying to hit the ball as hard as humanly possible

- Scooping at the ball

I know it's very much the blind leading the blind but he refuses to take a lesson from a pro and I'd like him to enjoy the game more so a step at a time we're working on:

- Half swings with the wrist cocking

- Weight on the front foot

- Shoulder down

- Loose grip

- Less effort

I think eventually a lot of the info in the OP will be mentioned but for a beginner I think that's a little overwhelming.

[golfernc]

Wow it seems like a lot of info for a beginner...  Most of the time, many of the things people do in their swing are a result of one main problem...if you just work on fixing the results then there will always be 2-3 things to "fix".    Another issue about giving someone that much stuff to think about, is this....

Guy gets up and remembers he needs to put his weight here, then when he is taking it back he needs to do this, then he needs to do this to transfer his weight....OK so now he shanks it....which one did he do wrong?  When he hits it good...which one did he do correct?  Its hard to learn golf when you have no idea why your ball goes the way it does....so I would say just have the person work on one thing at a time, and if their balance is off....that's what I would work on first. :)

Also evaluating their clubs is crucial to be able to identify the root of the problem...if the guy has clubs that are 5 degrees to upright for him, then he will be doing things in his swing to compensate for that....so you have to know that you cant teach this person to make changes in their swing, if the clubs penalize them for a good motion. They will always revert back to what their ball flight is telling them. Make sure the clubs are rewarding them with proper ball flight.

[The Recreational Golfer]

Learn to putt. Getting the ball in the hole is the fun part, and beginners should learn how to do that right away. This stroke can be adapted to chipping strokes near the green.

Learn to hit a pitching wedge. It gets the ball in the air easily, and you can play with just it and a putter when starting out. This stroke is a wonderful way to build your full swing for the longer clubs.

[Paradox]

Let your body rotate when you swing..

Let the club do what it was designed to do and don't worry about your distance.  It'll be all over the map for a while until you get your swing repeatable.  I don't think getting technical with a beginner is gonna do them a lot of good.

[johnclayton1982]

A few thoughts from someone who just recently broke 90, and usually is around 94-95.

1.  You can score remarkably high by making good contact and having a good short game (i.e. you don't three putt, and you don't chip or pitch more than once to get on the green).  The short game is not to be neglected.  In fact, to get under 90, nearly every single "found" shot I had came in the short game (6 one-putts, 12 two-putts as oppossed to the usual 3 three-puts, 14 two-putts and 1 one-putt).  It is very difficult to improve your score through your irons as a beginner, but it is relatively quick to improve your score via your touch, chipping, pitching and putting.  Don't neglect it during practice.  In fact, we have a guy at our club who can't hit hard at all and never hits driver, but routinely breaks 80.  4 wood or low iron off the tee and a very good short game.

2.  Take 2-3 lessons.  This did absolute wonders for me.  The swing gets much simpler.  Get the right grip from a pro.  Get a short backswing.  Make clean contact and follow through.  With a decent short game, you will be amazed how theses three things (grip, simple and repeatable backswing, clean contact) can make you score decently.  The longer you go without a lesson, the tougher it will be to do it right when you finally decide to take lessons.

3.  Put the driver away.  Hit 4 or 5 wood off the tee, then move to 3 wood.  Hit driver at the range, and add it for Par 5s at first.  I played a course this weekend that was very long, and hit 5 wood off the tee.  On a long par 5, a 5 wood off the tee, then a 3 hybrid and 6 iron with clean contact, correct grip, and short backswing, i was *over* the green.  As a beginner, you don't need  a 300 yard shot off the tee, you need to be in the fairway.

4. This is a very hard game and it is very, very easy to get frustrated (the ball is just sitting there!! ARARAAGAHA!!!!).  Find a way to make it fun.  Check out my thread on skins for new players, that makes it really fun for me and my group.

Good luck!

[nevets88]

Quote:

Weight forward. Shoulder down. Hands in. Arms straight. Tuck the butt.

How'd I do?

Works for me. I guess slide the hips forward is part of tuck butt?

Quote:

Truthfully I'd stop at "weight forward, shoulder down" and then teach a new beginner how to chip and putt.

Yeah, I think small swings first makes things so much simpler. No full swings, maybe 3/4. Most people want to take a full swing though. The urge is irresistible, but that urge doesn't subside with repeated failed swings unfortunately.

[JackLee]

Clubs that fit.

Correct grip and setup.

Teach him about swing plane, clubhead path, and clubface angle.

Then I would teach him the body powered swing that I use.

I have done this with 2 beginners, with excellent results.

[Cut68]

- Find a grip that's comfortable and let's you swing through the ball

- Take it away slow, but hit it hard

- Don't hit it as hard as you think you want to

Don't make it too complex for a newbie. Let them hit the sweet spot a couple times, and when they feel it, they'll want to learn.

[B-Con]

"Hit down on the ball." Then in order to do so: "Focus your eyes on the ground about one to two inches beyond the ball. Try to hit the ground there with your swing." Not only does it give you a better target to aim at (if you look at the ball they you're trying to hit the ground where you're not looking) but it takes away a little of the pressure to wail into the ball, which helps combat the desire to cast ever so slightly. It helped me a lot with my chipping and my iron play. My wife, who only plays for the social aspect of it with me and rarely at that, was having -- as many beginners do -- a hard time chipping. Skulling it, hitting it fat, etc; very frustrating. I gave her that one tip and she showed remarkable improvement. It helped with her irons too.

[Ctp722]

Learn to chip and putt 150 and in.

So many strokes are lost in the beginning by going back and forth over greens. If a newcomer can play around the greens, it will shave a lot of strokes.

Basics of the swing are important, opening and closing of the face, not coming across over top the ball, etc.

[Paradox]

Originally Posted by Ctp722

Learn to chip and putt 150 and in.

So many strokes are lost in the beginning by going back and forth over greens. If a newcomer can play around the greens, it will shave a lot of strokes.

Basics of the swing are important, opening and closing of the face, not coming across over top the ball, etc.

I dunno about that..with newcomers I see just the opposite.  I think that the more dialed in your game becomes, the more short game is important.  For people just starting out, getting the ball in the air is an accomplishment and hitting what resembles a golf shot is something they can hang their hat on for the round.

[B-Con]

I dunno about that..with newcomers I see just the opposite.  I think that the more dialed in your game becomes, the more short game is important.  For people just starting out, getting the ball in the air is an accomplishment and hitting what resembles a golf shot is something they can hang their hat on for the round.

I think it depends. The typical expectation for the bogey golfer (which is what the beginner starts by striving toward) is to drive, approach, chip on, then two putt (for a par-4). I can skull half my irons and still follow that model for the large part. But the beginner turns a 10-yard chip into a 20-yard chip and 3-putts from 20 feet far too often. The short game for the beginner isn't about getting up and down from 40 yards, that's what improving the short game for the 13 HCP looks like. For the beginner, the short game is about actually chipping onto the green from 10 yards and correctly lag putting from 20 feet. It's really about not taking 5 strokes to go the last 20 yards -- and for someone not taking mulligans, that happens easily. Skull the first chip, barely get on with the second chip, then 3 putt. That will play itself out several times for the beginner. As far as short game vs long game, I'd advise that the beginner learn how to chip/pitch and hit the green every time from 5 - 25 yards and how to 2-putt from within 30 feet. I think that's a priority that could save 15 strokes. That allows you 3 strokes on average to get to within 25 yards of the hole -- at that point you can focus on the long game getting to close to the green. But... I think this is off topic. I think the OP wants actual swing tips, not general topics. So to redeem this post, I would definitely advise: Don't chip with your wrists, use your shoulders and your torso. And use your putter to chip whenever possible.

[nevets88]

The more I think about it, the more I think if a beginner truly wants to get better, putting and chipping and small pitches first, like iacas said. So much easier to teach  proper contact with small swings. I know other people who agree, but you rarely see it out there.

[TourSpoon]

Anchor your head while putting and listen for the ball to drop in the hole.