The Basic Steps to Perfect Golf.

Masterfile.

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No Head movement.

Jack Nicklaus was taught the finer points about golf by Jack Grout, a well known golf instructor of his day.

One of the many things Jack Nicklaus remembers about the instruction, was that in order to teach him to keep his head firmly positioned slightly behind the ball and in the Fixed Frontal condition whilst he performed the golf swing, Jack Grout would have an assistant grab the hair on Jack Nicklaus`s head so tightly that if the head moved at all it would be very painful.

Sam Torrance, a former Ryder Cup Player and Past Captain for the European team, said that his father used to do exactly the same to him when he was young.

Therefore in both cases it clarified the importance of totally eliminating any lateral, vertical or rotational head movement until the club head has reached the bottom of the swing arc.

I cannot state this fact too strongly. -- It is absolutely vital that once the position of your head has been set at the address position you must concentrate in order to eliminate any lateral movement away from the original address position throughout the complete golf swing movement.

However, although some golfers deliberately allow the head to move away from the original address position during the back swing movement, the head must not move laterally past the original address position as the down swing/follow through movement is performed.
You will not stop any lateral movements completely, but if you can dramatically reduce any lateral movement of the head away from the original address position as you perform the complete golf swing, your golf shots will dramatically improve.

See "Head Alignment device"-- available for purchase as shown below.

You must try to hold the head in this position throughout the back swing, the down swing movement and into the follow through movement - with extra care being taken to hold the head in this position as the club head swings through the contact area.

I can speak from experience, having just won an important knockout competition by sticking rigorously to this principle that I promote, so make it a priority to master this basic principle.
( If you fix your focus on the back edge of the golf ball from the moment you address the ball and hold it throughout the complete golf swing you will find this task easier to do.)

I can assure you that once you are aware of how important it is to hold the head firmly in this position at all times, the accuracy of your shots will dramatically improve.

Absolutely vital actions.

The ability to keep the head held in the original address position throughout the complete golf swing movement is not easy at first, but with concentration this is achievable.

Therefore if you wish to play consistently good golf it is important that you force yourself to stop any lateral movement of the head throughout the complete swing movement and ensure this happens every time you swing the golf club. ( See weight distribution.)


When this is coupled with the action of watching the ball until the precise moment the it is struck by the club head and also maintaining the upper body angles until the end of the golf swing, you will see a dramatic improvement in the quality of your golf shots.

In order to understand what is meant by holding the head firmly positioned so that the left eye is slightly behind the ball, carry out the following exercise, which slightly exaggerates the ball position :-

Take your normal address position with the head positioned directly over the centre of your stance, but place the golf ball on a tee peg adjacent to the big toe of the left foot.

As you look directly down to the ground at the centre of your stance, you will note the golf ball appears to be well to the left of your head position.

Make a very slow half back swing movement keeping the head firmly positioned over the centre of your stance -and then whilst performing the down swing movement, keep the head firmly positioned over the centre of your stance and ensure that the head remains in this position whilst the club head swings past this position in order to strike the ball.

That is how it feels when you perform the full golf swing movement. However, during the full golf swing the ball position will be nearer the centre of the stance than the example as described above, but the feeling you must have is of the passive arms/club head swinging past the position directly below your head -- before the club head strikes the ball.

The left eye must be slightly behind the ball at the precise moment the club head makes contact with the ball.
You must concentrate on the task.
If I can do it -- so can you.

Therefore the critical point in the golf swing is at the precise moment the club head makes contact with the ball.

At that point you must ensure that the head is firmly held in place so that the left eye remains slightly behind the ball position -- and if you wish to play very good golf it is absolutely vital that the head is held in this manner with "pinpoint accuracy" until well after the ball has been struck.
( Imagine your head being held firmly in place by two wooden posts fixed into the ground and placed either side of your head thus holding the head very still.)

Therefore regardless of the position of the ball at the address position, either to the left of the centre of the stance for the driver, or nearer to the centre of your stance for the short irons, adjust your stance accordingly so that the head is always positioned so that the left eye is slightly behind the ball at the address position and subsequently at the impact position.

You have to concentrate very hard to keep the head positioned so that the left eye is slightly behind the ball at the precise moment the club head makes contact with the ball, but the effort is very worthwhile.

**See below on how to purchase a device I invented.
This device will enable the golfer to understand how the lower body should feel as they hold the head firmly in the original address position as the golf swing is performed. **

Top View. ( Perfect impact position.)

This is a series of photographs to illustrate the importance of keeping the head firmly in the original address position

.

Disregard the ball adjacent to the club head, and focus on the two golf balls in the top of this photograph and you will notice that the top ball is almost covering the ball behind it.

This picture was deliberately constructed so that the bottom ball can be seen which is for the simple purpose of showing that the two golf balls are laterally aligned.
If this photo was taken in actual practice conditions, the bottom ball would be completely hidden by the top ball.

Therefore as long as the top ball completely hides the bottom ball as club head moves through the contact are, it indicates that the head is in the original address position at the precise moment the club head makes contact with the ball.

Side View. ( Perfect impact position.)

This is the side view of the above photograph.
(In the perfect set up position, the imaginary line that dissect the two balls is the line of site from the golfers perspective.)

The ball that is fixed to the device and the ball on the ground is separated so that any lateral movement of the head away from the original address position - or/and any lifting or dropping of the head during the golf swing will give the golfer an immediate visual feed back of any head movement whilst the golf swing is performed.

The following photographs illustrate if the golfer`s head has moved towards the target area and therefore away from the original address position at impact ( Photo 1)

Photograph 1

The two balls at the top of this picture are now out of alignment .

This indicates that the golfer`s head has swayed away from the original address position, to a position of being slightly forward of the original address position at the precise moment the club head strikes the ball.

Therefore because the head has moved slightly forward of the original address position, this has caused the whole body to be ahead of the original address position thus forcing the hands to be slightly ahead of the original address position, thus causing the club face to be slightly open to the target line at the moment of impact and therefore creating a slice or a push to the right, depending on your swing path.

In addition, the bottom of the swing arc position has moved forward from the position it was at the original address position, possibly causing the golfer to strike the ball thin.

Photograph 2

The two balls in the top of this picture show how the balls are again out of alignment but is a reverse situation of the previous picture.

This indicates that the golfer`s head has moved away from the target area and therefore is slightly behind the original address position at the precise moment the club head makes contact.
Therefore because the head has moved slightly backwards from the original address position, this has caused the whole body to be behind the original address position thus forcing the hands to be behind the original address position, thus causing the club face to be slightly closed to the target line at the moment of impact and therefore creating a hook or a pull to the left.

In addition, the bottom of the swing arc position has moved backward from the position it was at the original address position, possibly causing the golfer to hit the ground before striking the ball.

Therefore as these photographs indicate, during the down swing movement you have to be obsessive to ensure that your head remains firmly held in the original address position at all times but especially whilst the club head swings through the contact area and on to the bottom of the swing arc.

We are only talking about the golfer allowing the head to be only a fraction of an inch either side of the original address position at the precise moment the club head makes contact with the ball, but this is enough to cause the ball to be sliced to the right of the target or hooked to the left of the target.

Another reason for maintaining the head in this position with "pin point accuracy" is that any lateral movement of the head at the point of impact, no matter how minute, will cause the whole body to be out of alignment, thus causing the position of the bottom of the swing arc to vary.

For instance, if your head is beyond the original address position at the precise moment the club head makes contact with the ball, the bottom of the swing arc will automatically move forward in the stance, resulting in the ball being struck with the leading edge of the club, thus possibly causing a "thin" shot.

However if your head is behind the original address position at the precise moment the club head makes contact with the ball, the bottom of the swing arc will automatically move backwards in the stance, resulting in the club making contact with the turf before hitting the ball, thus possibly causing a "fat" shot.

I cannot emphasis how important it is to hold the head steady throughout the golf swing, so consider buying this practice aid, you will benefit by it.

See below to purchase.

Practice Device.

I have developed this device as shown above so that you can understand how the lower body feels whilst the head is firmly held in place as you perform the golf swing
If you wish to purchase an "Alignment Device" as show in the Photographs, press the buy button as shown below.

The device costs £ 15.00 which includes postage.
( The package includes one golf ball drilled for fixing to the device and instructions.)

As long as you give this aspect of the golf swing your full attention and watch the ball as the club head swings into and through the contact area, also keep your head in the Fixed Frontal position until well after the ball has been struck and maintain the upper body angles, the probability of the golf shot going where you are aiming is dramatically increased.

However, failure to adhere to this basic principle will result in the golf shots ending up well to the right or the left of your intended target point, so if you are prone to "slicing"/"hooking" or hitting the ball "fat"/"thin" check out this basic principle of keeping the head firmly in the original address position and in the Fixed Frontal condition until well after the ball has been struck.

This principle of making sure that your head remains firmly positioned slightly behind the ball and in the Fixed frontal condition is relevant whether you are playing a full shot, a pitch, a chip or simply putting.

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