Best Way to Practice the Simple Swing

The basic golf swing is so simple that a child of eight can do it. Ironically, most adults can’t! Young children have no inhibitions and learn by copying – something for novice women golfers to remember.

Adopt a good address position, feeling comfortably tall and relaxed. All the basic learning should be done with a 7 iron. Ensure that your left thumb sits slightly down the right side of the grip. Focus your attention on the left thumb. Turn your back slightly towards the target and lift the club with the arms, supporting it on your left thumb. Stay looking down at the grass.

Swish the club through, brushing the grass at your starting point. Feel the club bouncing on the ground or brushing the grass and don’t be afraid of damaging it – or yourself! Don’t try the swing with a ball until you can comfortably keep brushing the grass in roughly the right position. Once you can achieve this successfully, perch the ball about 1.5cm (3/4in) off the ground on a tee peg and try the same thing. Don’t be surprised if you miss the ball first time. Get confident at hitting the ball from a tee peg. Don’t try with it on the ground before you can cope with it on a tee. Practice hitting tee pegs in the garden – just up on the left thumb and through on the left shoulder.

Swish the club through and land it safely on your left shoulder, somewhere between the left shoulder joint and your neck. At this point your right knee should be round against your left leg and the right foot round on the tips of the toes. Just repeat the movement backwards and forwards, backwards and forwards. Gradually learn the feeling of brushing the grass and start trying to feel that you brush the grass at the spot you mean to. Develop freedom in the movement and see it as a simple swing.

• Address – At address, you should be standing tall and relaxed, with the arms and club hanging in a Y shape.
• Takeaway -Make sure the toe of your club is pointing upwards at takeaway.
• Top of the backswing – Your back should be facing the target and the club supported on your left thumb.

• Impact – Good impact is all about brushing the grass and ball at exactly the right spot.
• Throughswing – The toe of the club should be pointing upwards, matching the takeaway
• Followthrough – Your body should be facing the target, with the club shaft settled neatly on your left shoulder.