Before you attempt to strike a golf ball it
is important to have the correct set up.
THE ADDRESS POSITION.
Begin the set up by standing tall and erect with
the feet at least shoulder width apart but ensuring that the feet are parallel to the
target line, but also ensure that the hips are very slightly
turned towards the target area.
( If your stance is too narrow, the lower part
of your body will sway.)
Your right foot should be slightly angled to the right
at about five degrees from the straight position.
However the left foot should be angled towards the
target area at approximately thirty degrees.
From this position introduce a very slight bend in
the legs and simultaneously allow the upper body to
lean slightly forward.
( Just stand tall, with a very slight flex at the
knees - you must not bend over too much.)
At this point, the ball position depends on what club you intend to use.
The next important step is to set the right shoulder so that it
is much lower than the left shoulder.
(This allows
the right hand to comfortably grip the club whilst
still maintaining a slight bend in the right arm.)
This slight tilt of the upper body to your right
will also assist in setting the head so that the left
eye is well behind the ball position.
However once you have set up the forward angle
of the body and the slightly tilted angle of the upper body to the right,
these angles must be maintained throughout the complete
golf swing movement.
When you addressing the ball correctly you will feel as if you are holding your head well behind the ball and you are looking at the back of the ball.
Next, allow the shoulders to slump before pulling
the elbows close together, thus forming a very compact
upper body unit.
To set the arms in the correct position, allow the
elbows to move away from the body as far as possible
but still keeping the elbows held very close together
and the upper arms touching the chest cavity.
When you have completed the action of forming
the upper body unit into a compact unit, the next
important step is to form the lower part of the body
so that it creates a solid foundation. (See Lesson
2)
I cannot stress how firm the muscles of the legs,
the thighs and the buttocks must be held throughout
the complete golf swing movement so that the flex/bend
in the legs can be maintained until well into the
follow through movement.
Now that we have established a solid foundation
on which to rotate a very compact upper body unit,
let us deal with the other parts of the set up.
The Golf
Grip.
The golf grip is one of
the most important aspects of the golf swing therefore
it is important to get this right if you wish to play
very good golf, therefore have a good look at the section
on the golf grip
The method that I prefer
is the overlap grip with a slight variation.
( The hands are only used to hold the golf club, therefore
the actual grip must remain as a light pressure throughout
the complete golf swing.-- It is the combined action
of the movement of the hips, the rotation of the upper
body unit, the shoulder muscles and the action of
straightening the right arm that delivers the power.
)
Hands Position.
The hands should be set slightly to the left of the centre of
your body so that the left forearm and the golf club form a straight line.
So whilst keeping the hands in the correct position, place
the club head behind the ball whilst ensuring that your head remains well behind the ball.
(To hit the ball straight, set the feet, hips, shoulders
and the head Parallel to the target line and with
the face of the club square to the target line.
If you are addressing the ball correctly it will
feel as if you have adopted a slightly open stance,
you have not, but that it how it should feel.)
If you dropped a plumb line from the left eye
directly to the ground, you will notice that the hands are well to the left of the position of the plumb bob, whilst the club head is only slight to the left of the position
the plumb bob is hovering over.
Therefore during the down swing movement and
the follow through movement, you must keep the head
firmly held in this position so that the left eye
remains well behind the ball position.
Formation of the Upper Body Unit
After you have set the upper body at the correct
angles, the elbows must drawn as close together as
is physically possible,
thus ensuring that the shoulders and the arms rotate as a solid
one piece unit.
(Once the upper body has been set in this compact
condition, it is absolutely vital that the upper body
unit remains in this condition throughout the complete
golf swing movement, especially as the club head swings
through the contact area.)
Head Position.
It is absolutely vital that the head does not
move laterally away from the position it is set at
the address position at any point in the golf swing
movement.
You must learn how to perform the golf swing without
allowing the head to sway away from the original address
position.
It can be done, you simply have to concentrate
on the task.
