For Your Swing by Dave Ramsay - April 2011
Addressing Alignment
For the past, oh, I don't know, about a hundred articles or so, I've been talking about poor golf advice that is commonly overheard or read. It's made for scintillating reading, I'm sure! Maybe it's time for a change to talk about the little things that you can do to help lay a foundation for improved practice or an improved swing. I've already talked about finding the right grip (with possible assistance from a professional), so I think that another setup key - alignment - is beneficial to discuss. Yeah, yeah, I know... it may not be captivating, but it is critical.
It's been said that over 80% of avid players line up significantly offline from their intended target. That seems about right, and I'd also venture that half of them line up at least 20 degrees off target. I won't waste time convincing you that improper aim is terribly detrimental to not just a shot, but also your swing - all of us get that. What I will say is that everyone (and I do mean everyone) needs to check their alignment now and then. Nobody with bad aim ever realizes that they are aligning poorly until actually confronted with the evidence. It is always a surprise to them. And if that's the case for them, it would be a terrible assumption that you'd be any different, right? Right? Could you be one of those poor, unaware souls?
Okay, so the next time you're on the range warming up, try to stop yourself every now and then after you're already addressing the ball. Set your club down at your feet and step back so that you can sight down the line of the club and see where your feet were aligned. You've got to actually set the club down, because the lazy trick of holding the club against your chest or thighs assumes that those parts of your body are lined up correctly - and just like looking down at your feet, your perception of what you think you see as a straight line is very often wrong. You must be able to sight down the line to truly see where you're set up. And besides the feet alignment, you can still have knees, hips, and shoulders off line as well - even going to different lines from each other. This helps explain some of the pretzel swings that you occasionally see.
Professional golfers constantly check their alignment (including having others check it for them). Just like everything else in their setup, they are aware of how quickly (and subtly) things can shift without awareness. Get another pair of eyes for yourself, just like they do. I'd be happy to help you check your alignment, including not just your feet but also your hips and shoulders. I'll even show you a little more you can do to help change your visual perception of your alignment to be more proper. It only takes a couple of minutes of my time (and yours) and it can only help!
Hope to see you on the range!
For the past, oh, I don't know, about a hundred articles or so, I've been talking about poor golf advice that is commonly overheard or read. It's made for scintillating reading, I'm sure! Maybe it's time for a change to talk about the little things that you can do to help lay a foundation for improved practice or an improved swing. I've already talked about finding the right grip (with possible assistance from a professional), so I think that another setup key - alignment - is beneficial to discuss. Yeah, yeah, I know... it may not be captivating, but it is critical.
It's been said that over 80% of avid players line up significantly offline from their intended target. That seems about right, and I'd also venture that half of them line up at least 20 degrees off target. I won't waste time convincing you that improper aim is terribly detrimental to not just a shot, but also your swing - all of us get that. What I will say is that everyone (and I do mean everyone) needs to check their alignment now and then. Nobody with bad aim ever realizes that they are aligning poorly until actually confronted with the evidence. It is always a surprise to them. And if that's the case for them, it would be a terrible assumption that you'd be any different, right? Right? Could you be one of those poor, unaware souls?
Okay, so the next time you're on the range warming up, try to stop yourself every now and then after you're already addressing the ball. Set your club down at your feet and step back so that you can sight down the line of the club and see where your feet were aligned. You've got to actually set the club down, because the lazy trick of holding the club against your chest or thighs assumes that those parts of your body are lined up correctly - and just like looking down at your feet, your perception of what you think you see as a straight line is very often wrong. You must be able to sight down the line to truly see where you're set up. And besides the feet alignment, you can still have knees, hips, and shoulders off line as well - even going to different lines from each other. This helps explain some of the pretzel swings that you occasionally see.
Professional golfers constantly check their alignment (including having others check it for them). Just like everything else in their setup, they are aware of how quickly (and subtly) things can shift without awareness. Get another pair of eyes for yourself, just like they do. I'd be happy to help you check your alignment, including not just your feet but also your hips and shoulders. I'll even show you a little more you can do to help change your visual perception of your alignment to be more proper. It only takes a couple of minutes of my time (and yours) and it can only help!
Hope to see you on the range!
