Better Golf Swing

Do you need to take golf swing lessons? The answer is “Yes” if you can find a competent golf pro to teach you. You should know that many experienced amateur golfers continue to schedule 2 or 3 sessions throughout the year with a pro. Even though they already know how to swing their golf clubs, they take these extra golf swing lessons to maintain their perfect golf swing. These experienced players treat these lessons like a medical checkup. They find that it is helpful to have an extra pair of experienced eyes making sure they are still swinging their golf clubs correctly.

But what if you are a beginner? Do you still need golf swing lessons? Frankly, that depends on what you mean. If you do not even know how to play golf, then get a set of golf lessons for beginners from your local pro or golf school. By rights, when you take golf swing lessons, you only learn how to swing your clubs – in extreme cases, the only club you train on is your driver. When your local golf school advertises these lessons, you should ask to speak to the actual instructor to find out more. Remember, he is probably not the person who wrote the advertisement.

So what do you learn during your golf swing lessons? Although this largely depends on the instructor, there is usually some theory on correct golf swing mechanics. You will probably learn about things like golf swing planes, and get pointers about your backswing, etc. It is probably a good idea if you can take notes during the lessons, maybe even use a miniature tape recorder. Nowadays, you can buy pretty cheap thumb-sized digital voice recorders for this purpose. If you feel confident about your instructor, you should ask him to recommend some learning materials for you once the lessons are over. You will be able to go to the books or videos he recommends to further master your golf swing techniques.

You may also want to ask your instructor to check your clubs. Let him make sure your clubs are properly fitted to you. Trying to improve your golf swing when your golf clubs are wrong for you (too long, too short, too stiff, etc.) is an exercise in futility. Remember to ask him to check how you grip your golf club as well. Many golfers with high handicaps find that their slices automatically cure themselves once they learn how to correctly grip the golf clubs. And make sure you find out whether you are learning the “one plane swing” or the “two plane swing”. This is important when your lessons end and you want to look for extra golf swing tips on the internet. This is also important if you ever need to take remedial or maintenance golf swing lessons. The golf swing mechanics for these two different types of swing are different. If you try to apply the tips for a “one plane swing” when you are using a “two plane swing”, you will mess up your golf swing horribly.

For you to benefit fully from your golf swing lessons, what your instructor teaches needs to be closely aligned with your purpose. You also need to do some preparation of your own. It is pretty pointless if all you do is show up at the lessons with your clubs without doing any groundwork.

This article on golf swing lessons was also published on EzineArticles.com.