Author’s Note:  Do you want to learn how to hit a golf ball like a pro?  Got a little time to burn?  The next few essays will attempt to capture some highlights from my meandering, perhaps “moon-battish,” and definitely liberal path in search of golf-swing excellence.  Without (much) exaggeration or vanity, I am currently striking the ball like a PGA professional, and I challenge anybody to view the video link provided above and dispute this fact.  The clip was taken on a driving range kiosk system sold by Inpractis, so you can show my swing to your local club pro in the proprietary video format used by Inpractis (email me for a free copy of the .swi file if you like).  My game on-the-course certainly lacks the consistency and putting abilities that characterize even the least-skilled Hooter's Tour candidates, but I’m not trying to beat Tiger Woods.  I just want his golf SWING!

Yes, folks… there is nothing conservative about a good golf swing.  Just ask Tom Watson…  ;)

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Defining Balance:

Plant both feet and stand somewhere on a flat expanse of planet Earth.  Your living room floor, for instance.  Now close your eyes.  Become motionless, not moving even a muscle except for your natural breathing.  Don’t focus on your breathing however, focus on remaining completely motionless in every skeletal joint in your body, including your legs, arms, chest, hips, and head.  Yes, totally movement-free, standing there in your living room with your eyes closed, focused on how strange it feels to not move a single part of your body…

Welcome to the concept of balance. 

If you succeed in achieving a truly motionless position, and turn off the distracting “roving camera picture” presented by your eyes, you may begin to notice a few things.  You may notice that you are swaying, ever so slightly from side to side, like a tall tower on alternating stilts:  your legs are not concrete after all.  Even if you attempt to keep from moving by favoring one leg over the other – standing with the majority of weight on your right leg, for instance, you will still notice a slight swaying from your heels to the balls of your feet.  The heels and balls of your feet are essentially four “surfaces” (two per leg) that are the only things in contact with the most important surface in golf – the ground, and despite your best efforts you may find it nearly impossible to keep your body from swaying in some fashion.  Don’t worry, it doesn’t get any better than this in 3D inertial space…

Welcome to the Twilight Zone.  (Notice that I haven’t made any stipulation about where your feet are, or what direction you are facing.  These important things are irrelevant for the time being.  Just choose a spot, stand on it with both feet, and close your eyes.)

Now let’s make this exercise in balance a little easier.  Instead of just standing there with your eyes closed, concentrating like some guru, relax your body and adopt the best athletic golf posture you can, maybe dredging up an image of your favorite player in your mind’s eye.  Hang your arms heavy from their shoulder sockets, clap your palms together around an imaginary club, and center your weight as evenly as possible between your feet.  Try to feel like you are “hanging” over the ball, held motionless by your flexed knees and shoulder joints, and try to visualize your head being positioned directly above a golf ball on the ground.  Keep your eyes closed, and in this improved golfing posture, once again attempt to achieve perfect balance by becoming quiet in your entire body.

If you hold this position long enough with your eyes closed, you will eventually lose complete track of where you are in 3D space.  You will vaguely remember what spot you chose to stand on in the house (or at the park) to practice balance, and any lights that are on or the sunlight itself coming in through a window may clue you in as to what direction you are actually pointing.  The role of your eyes, and the direction to the target in golf are very, VERY important concepts.  Do not take these matters lightly, I warn you!  We will discuss the mysteries of body alignment in a future piece.

When you perform this drill with a golf club in your hands, you will quickly realize that the club itself is a significant, rod-like “mass” that must be reckoned with and held motionless along with your own heavy limbs and joints.  Adapting your balanced posture to accommodate the golf club, pretend to “cue up” the clubhead motionless behind an imaginary (or real) golf ball on the ground when you perform the balance drill.  Or, get really crazy and start moving it (and yourself) slowly through 3-dimensional space with your eyes still closed… then you will really get an idea of what balance is all about!  Physical balance is not static, it is dynamic.  Our bodies are exquisitely sensitive control systems capable of actuating thousands of tiny muscle-fibers every second -- merely to keep us standing upright.  Balance is basically about not falling down (when you get right down -- and funky -- with it).  And I’m not kidding in the least.  You’ll probably find yourself using your leg muscles and a certain intrinsic “awareness” of where your center-of-gravity is to accomplish this basic human function -- standing up.  The position of your CG can be visualized very effectively as merely a spot on the ground which moves in accordance with your body.  Try to find a more “centered” and balanced posture that keeps your “CG spot” from moving much.

Balance is independent of anything your eyes see, including how the ball appears to lie and the direction to the target.  Your pre-disposed optical picture of the world – a simple ball on the ground in this case, and your understanding of the geometric relationship of your own body to this picture – especially during a complex dynamic movement like the golf swing, are perhaps the biggest obstacles in your way right now.  Because they are most likely quite WRONG.  In other words, right now you may be able to perform a smooth-looking practice swing, but I know that you have absolutely no idea what you’re doing when a ball is placed on the tee!  And this is the ultimate key, because when you comprehend where the clubhead is during your swing, or better yet have a consistent mental “model” that provides you with this pivotal information, you will be able to intuitively TIME your inertial acceleration (“fast moment” as Al Geiberger calls it;  “release” in David Leadbetter terminology) so that the path of your clubhead approaches impact “from the inside” and smashes completely through the ball, literally collecting it and carrying it away perfectly in-sync with your trunk rotation.  My swing is living proof that the pros on the PGA tour, with a few notable exceptions, are not exceptional physical specimens.  What these guys have, which allows them to consistently strike professional quality golf shots – is all in their head.  Don’t worry, it’s all in your head too, you just have to DIG for it.  (In your spare time, no less, as if you have any...)

“The secrets are in the dirt,” as the great Texan Ben Hogan once said regarding his golf practice habits.  Although it may sound daunting, you will essentially have to write, produce, direct, and star, in a brand new golf swing “movie” in your own mind, one which updates your old “video” and relies on stronger foundations like symmetry, synchronization, balance, and physics.  The best way I can describe this reprogramming process is that even though your eyes never leave the golf ball until well after impact, the current “software running in the background” which presently guides your swing mechanics, must be completely reloaded.  You will need to gradually force your “old eyes” to completely relinquish control of your movements.  Believe me, your eyes are currently much stronger and much more of a hindrance to you than you think.  Your eyes are so used to controlling your swing that your true sense of gravitational and inertial balance is totally overwhelmed.  You must reverse this situation.

It is not an easy task.  I’m here to tell ya!

Understanding your golf swing, and trusting the dynamic view of the ball captured by your eyes during your swing movments – trusting this view even when it “seems” like your body is completely out of position -- is what results in CONFIDENCE.  When you trust WHAT you are doing, then you can swing confidently and start hitting some really, really good golf shots.  Trust then builds rapidly into intuition and feel, and soon you may be striking golf balls as naturally as Ben Crenshaw.

Try practicing balance with your eyes closed.  After you have achieved it, then start MOVING IN BALANCE WITH YOUR EYES CLOSED.  We’ll continue along this elliptical pathway to golfing excellence next time.

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