I know that when I first starting learning this game it was really just an endless succession from one swing fault to the next.? I'd apparently fix one, but the compensation patterns that I adopted to do so would lead to another...and another...oh friggin' brother! ? I began to study this frustrating issue from a neuro-muscular (brain-muscle) standpoint.? And then it all began to make sense.? It was somewhat de-moralizing, but at least it made sense. ? What I discovered is that our bodies and our brains put together what is called a "motor engram".? This is basically a movement pattern that becomes programmed into our computer (brain). ? You develop motor engrams all the time for repeated tasks.? For example,?most everyone can stick their car?key into?their?ignition without?one bit'of thought.? Your body/mind has a motor engram?that knows the height and angle for the key to fit perfectly, without you thinking about it. ? Get a'new car, however, and you're going to miss quite a few times.? At the?very least you are going to have to think about it, until you establish the new motor engram. ? That's exactly what happens in the golf swing.? Your body/mind has a motor engram of "golf?swing".? And then you go and change?the position of the ignition!? Of course there is going to be trouble. ? And here is the really sad news - science tells us that it can take up to 10,000 repetitions of a movement to UNlearn a motor pattern and RElearn a new one. ? So there you have it...when an instructor or golf magazine tells you that it takes TIME and PRACTICE to change your?bad habits, they have science on their side. ? Fortunately for all of us, there is a better way. ? The emerging field of energy psychology (EP) can quickly and easily accelerate your golf swing changes.
EP can ?clear? negative feelings and emotions by ?tapping? on certain points on the face and body, while focusing on the feeling. ? What I realized is that the major problem with implementing new golf swing mechanics is that?they usually felt awkward, uncomfortable, weird, etc.
So EP can eliminate those feelings, by-pass your current motor engram and dramatically reduce your learning curve. ? Instead of 10,000?repetitions, your golf swing can feel comfortable and confident in 1 minute. ? By getting past your imperfect motor engram, your learning curve will be dramatically reduced. ? Change is good.? Change at lighting speed is even better.
If in the past you've struggled to know if your golf backswing is correct or not then today I've got a great golf drill that will allow you to quickly and easily check it.
To do this golf drill you simply have to swing back to the top of your backswing and stop and hold your backswing position for a couple of seconds.
Then from this position simply slowly loosen your grip and let the shaft fall down. If the golf club hits you on the tip of your right shoulder then that strongly indicates that the top of your backswing position is good. If the golf club misses your body when you do this then that is a sure sign that your backswing is too flat. And conversely if your club hits your head or neck that indicates that your swing is too upright.
Now if after doing this backswing exercise you find that your top of the backswing position is not where it should be then please don't do this:
Do not try to manipulate what is happening near the top of your backswing to get the club in a good position, because you must understand that the golf swing is a chain reaction. Let me explain that some more by looking at what happens when you impact the golf ball.
The impact position you get into when you swing is a result of the downswing position that you were in. The position you get into in the downswing is a result of how you transitioned from your backswing position to the downswing. The position you get into at the top of your backswing is simply the result of the position you were in half way into your backswing. Where the club is half way into your backswing is simply the result of how you took the club away. And finally, the way you took the club away is largely a result of your setup.
You see, you can't take one position in your golf swing in isolation and then try and fix that because the positions that you got into before that determined the future positions. Instead what you need to do is systematically work on getting each phase of the swing the best it can be, working from the setup, take away and on from there. If you do that you'll naturally and automatically get into a great top of the swing position.
Both C & Shawn Hickman are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
C has sinced written about articles on various topics from Health, Recreation and Sports and Pregnancy Problems. Stephen Ladd is a Golf Performance Coach pioneering breakthrough energy psychology techniques, and the creator of Renegade Mindset Techniques for Golf. Visit