Most golfers are able to easily change their swing after an in-depth analysis, using careful thought, with determined goals in mind. Learning how to change your golf swing isn’t easy, but I’ve included some simple guidelines that you can follow that can help you implement some important changes that can take your game to the next level and beyond.
Table of Contents
Equipment
If you’re not sure what you’re doing wrong, then making important changes to improve your swing can be difficult to pinpoint. Using the best golf launch monitors can show you exactly what you need to do to improve and can allow you to quickly assess your golf swing and make some serious changes that really matter. What’s enough practice, you can easily learn how to reduce the backspin on your drive, improve your distance, and easily control ball speed.
Of course, the type of clubs you use, the balls, and even the tees, can all have an impact on your swing performance and can help to reduce the backspin on your drive. Skimping on quality will negatively impact your swing. If you’re serious about seeing some improvement, then consider upgrading your gear and think of it as an investment.
Develop a Plan
I recommend creating a detailed blueprint for your swing improvement plan. Your plan for change should include a timeline and how to reach your goals. Of course, it’s important to understand that your swing is going to get much worse before it gets any better.
If you can afford it, find yourself a pro that can help you. Talk to some of your golfing buddies for recommendations, search online, and find a skilled instructor who can make a big impact on your swing. If you do meet with an instructor, make sure that you are receptive to their recommendations and the changes you need to make in order to improve your swing. Many beginners make the mistake of hopping from one instructor to the next, but this can have a negative impact on your progress. I recommend sticking with one instructor for at least a year.
Making changes to your swing may seem intimidating and even a little scary in the beginning, but there are plenty of professionals that have done it.
Many golfers will struggle to make these important changes because they’re not able to commit to the change enough. But even the simplest change in technique can feel massive to the golfer. But in reality, you’re only going to need to make some simple very small changes.
For the golfer who wants to make some serious changes to their swing the most common complaint they have is the inability to do it when a ball is there. While a practice swing can seem simple and easy, the moment a ball is put into action the player tends to go right back to their old playing habits.
In order to make a change, repetition is necessary, however, it’s more important to make correct repetitions, have a comprehensive understanding of why certain things happen in your swing, and obtain proper feedback. Unfortunately, their proper swing technique and those important changes that are relied on during practice are out the door as soon as the golfer hits the green, which is why you don’t usually see any improvement.
Additionally, if you’re not taking advantage of your practice sessions this is definitely where you’re going wrong. An efficient practice session will focus first on practice swings that are at partial and full speed in order to achieve the desired feeling.
Next, the golfer should head to the golf course and test out the transition between the course and range. The player will need to pay full attention to the quality of their swing not the quantity.
Changing Your Swing in a Few Simple Steps
Before you get started making certain changes to your swing, ensure that you have a proper understanding of the fundamentals that you need to change and how it can impact your swing. If you’re tired of not being able to hit a punch shot or swing well consistently, then you need to reassess your swing.
Ideally, you’ll work with your instructor and come up with a long-term program. If you don’t have an instructor, then getting off track or losing focus can be easy. Fortunately, there are many programs that you can find online that are designed to help you develop a better swing. I recommend enrolling in a program if you have any issues practicing on your own.
Practice in Front of a Mirror
Using a mirror in real-time visually locate the correct position. This will allow you to begin to understand what feels right for you. While you’re choreographing your new swing be sure that you understand each of the steps that lead to the incorrect or correct moves. Once you have identified the right mechanics and the incorrect ones, you’ll begin to feel the difference between them. This can allow you to implement the correct position into your swing, in addition to being able to easily identify when your swing is going wrong.
In front of a mirror, slowly move into the correct position and hold the position statically for a few seconds. This will allow you to gain a better feel of what you’re trying to do.
Take a slow-motion swing since this will give you a chance to slowly guide the club and feel where its supposed to move. Often, when people try to improve their swing, they don’t make enough high-quality correct repetitions, which is why it’s important to take slow swings. Going slow will increase the probability that you’ll make correct repetitions.
Consistency is Key
Using slow swings consistently, until you develop a feeling for your new swing, you can then speed up the tempo until you’re back up to full speed.
Once you’re back to hitting at full speed, I recommend starting off by using a shorter club. Once you’ve made a few successful strikes you can work your way through the bag. However, if you find yourself struggling at any time, then I recommend going back to using shorter clubs and taking smaller swings.
Make sure that you repeat taking a full swing through the entire bag, all the way up to the driver. Basically, every club will have the same mechanics and feel when they are hitting the ground. While it’s true that your angle-of-attack can slightly change, for the most part, the swing will feel similar from club to club. Since it’s longer, the driver will have the least amount of loft which can make it more difficult to hit it first since misses will be much worse. Fortunately, this will rapidly improve, however, it will take two or three sessions before you see this type of improvement.
If during the practice, at any time you feel like you’re about to lose it altogether, start over and begin taking slow-motion shots and shoulder-high swings.
Positive Changes
You may start feeling comfortable with your new way of swinging and the type of changes you’ve made, however, once you start feeling the pressure, then you may be tempted to go back to your old bad habits. This is especially true if you’re playing in a tournament or a friendly game between a rival. Under this type of pressure, many golfers will revert back to their old patterns. However, if you continue to play and practice diligently that will become an issue of the past.
This is a process that will take time. Just remember that you’ll begin to improve the more you practice and you’ll solve your swing issues more quickly if you follow the steps I’ve included here and take your time.
Final Thoughts
To sum it up, if you want to learn how to change your golf swing, find an experienced instructor who can work with you and come up with a plan. If you can’t afford an instructor, or you simply don’t want to go that route, then you must consistently practice and take your time. This will involve taking a number of practice swings in front of a mirror each day to focus on the mechanics of your swing and identify where you’re going wrong. On the course, you’ll also take the slow-motion swing approach as you practice at the range and warm up, slowly working your way through your bag until you reach the driver.
Form and proper technique is everything. After you’ve identified the issues with your swing, whether you’ve gone to a pro, a friend has assessed your swing, or you can easily identify what the issue is when you’re taking a slow-motion swing in front of the mirror, make the appropriate changes to improve your shot quality. Whatever you do, don’t go back to old bad habits. Improving your swing can take several weeks or months, depending on how often you practice, how committed you are, and whether or not you consistently follow the steps in this guide. Making these changes can be intimidating at first, but over the course of several weeks, you’ll regain your confidence and begin to see some important changes made to your swing quality, which is exactly what every player is looking for.
