Hemmings On Golf

HEMMINGS on GOLF
The Definitive Word
Introduction

There are only two things you have to get right in Golf; the Easy Things and the Difficult Things.

Chapter 1 - The Easy Things
The Grip, the Stance, the Line (aiming). These are the things you do before you get to the Difficult Things. Anyone with an ounce of concentration and a modicum of instruction can get these things right every time. See your Pro and learn how to do the Easy Things in half an hour.

Chapter 2 - The Difficult Things
Learn and memorise the following mantra: "Slow Back, Watch Ball, Swing Through, Trust Body". Repeat at every shot. These sound easy but can take a lifetime to master.

Slow Back. There are tomes written about tempo, slow swing, good timing. They are all wrong. There is only one thing which will work. Take the club back slowly and pause.

Watch Ball. It is blindingly obvious that you can not hit the ball properly if you are not watching it. This easy rule is the most difficult. Anxiety is your enemy - it causes you to look up to see how successful was your shot resulting in a terrible result.

Swing Through. Don’t try to hit the ball. Don’t use the club like a club. Treat it like a sling. Let the club head swing through towards the target.

Trust Body. Trust your body to do the rest. You can do nothing useful with your conscious brain to assist your hand eye co-ordination and distance judgement. Decide where you want the ball to go and then do (a), (b) & (c). Thinking will only interfere with your internal guidance system. Thinking will only raise all sorts of irrelevant issues like how hard to hit the ball and where is the ball going. Trust me.

Conclusion
These gems will not turn you into the Tiger. But they will allow you to play happily.