I can't tell you how many times during a golf lesson, where I am doing my written evaluation, I have been told something like, 'I wish you could be with me all the time because I hit it so good when you are watching.'
The scenario goes like this. The student calls for a lesson because he or she is not hitting it well. The first thing I do in every lesson is question students about what the problem is with their ball striking. We cover all the problems, as well as the good points. I give them their target and they begin their warm up hitting wedges, then moving up to a seven iron. If their complaint or problem shot is through the entire bag, or if only woods and not short irons, I will have them hit a 5 or 4 iron, a hybrid and maybe even their driver. What I am looking for is to see if there are any setup differences between the clubs that will cause the swing problem to hit the bad shot.
Many times the dilemma that occurs is the student starts hitting the ball exceptionally well and gets frustrated to angry because they can't seem to hit that bad shot. Imagine that, a golfer getting mad because they are swinging well and hitting good shots. This now begs us to ask: why are they swinging so well on the lesson tee with me there when they have been swinging so poorly and need the lesson?
The answer is a simple one. They are paying attention to details. They are concentrating on their setup and swing thoughts. They probably checked out their past diagnosis and prescription forms and refreshed their memory on what they are to be working on in their setup and swing. They are paying extra attention to their setup keys and then to their swing thought. And they are likely paying special attention to their target and thus their alignment. I call this paying attention to 'Technical Excellence.'
Remember, the main principle to the PPGS is, 'The setup determines the motion.' This is 'Technical Excellence' (TE) at its best and must be if you want to swing well and hit good shots to shoot lower scores.
The student is hitting it better at the start of this lesson because it is a lesson and I am standing there watching. They are paying attention to their details of Technical Excellence in their setup and swing. So, do they not pay this level of attention to TE and details when playing on the course? The answer has to be yes. Which begs the next question, why?
I would surmise the number one reason is that we are told to cement our setup routine and swing thoughts on the range so that, when we go to the course, they will be part of our subconscious thoughts and actions. We are told to play by 'FEEL' when we out on the course. When we play by 'FEEL,' submersing and keeping the TE too deep in the subconscious, the only result is we get careless and sloppy in our setup. So the swing deteriorates and we start hitting poor shots.
The answer is twofold. First, you can never suppress 'Technical Excellence' to the degree that all you have to think about is feel if you want to play good golf. Feel comes from and is dependent on a correct setup to determine the swing motion you have to feel to hit that good shot. You don't have to get bogged down in your setup routine where you are getting headaches working so hard at it. Just keep quietly focused on your setup routine to be confident your setup 'feel' is right to hit the shot you want.
Second, you need to get an inflatable 'The Surge Monitor Clone' and place it standing in front of you for practice on the range and on the course for all your shots. Feeling my presence will surely keep you in the TE zone, just like on the lesson tee. (Note: if there is enough demand, we'll put 'The Surge Monitor Clone' into production. Heck, maybe we'll put a sound sensor in it so after every good sounding impact it will say, 'good shot' or 'great swing.'
But, seriously, to swing well and hit good shots, you have to pay attention on the range, and especially for every shot on the course, to TE — 'Technical Excellence.'
The Surge
P.S. Even better than the inflatable 'The Surge Monitor Clone” is our PPGS offer. Click here!