Coaching notes
Play the shot.
A useful swing gives you shots you can trust. Start with where the ball needs to go, then work on the contact and flight that can get it there.
Choose a flight, not a pose
Picture an approach to a green. Where do you want the ball to land? Is there something to carry, or room to let it run? What is the wind doing? Those questions give your swing a job.
John’s approach is to work with your natural swing and improve what happens at impact. The purpose of a change is to help you hit the shot you need. More about John’s coaching philosophy
Build useful options
You don’t need to produce every possible flight before you can play better golf. Begin with a shot you can repeat, then add an option that solves a problem you actually face.
- Height: a lower flight might help when the wind is up or a branch limits the space above you. A higher flight might suit a shot that needs to carry an obstacle. The lie, landing area and your ability still matter.
- Shape: straight, left-curving and right-curving shots give you different routes. Choose a manageable amount of curve, rather than trying to bend every ball around a corner.
A familiar shape aimed with room for your usual miss can be a better choice than a new shot you’ve only hit once on the range.
Connect the flight to impact
Clubface direction, the club’s path and the strike work together. For centred contact, the face’s direction relative to the path is a key influence on curve. Pointing the face square to the target is not a universal instruction for every shot shape.
An off-centre strike can change the result too. Describe what happened before deciding what to change: start direction, curve, height and contact. How to read that feedback
Technical background: Trackman’s explanation of face to path.
Give practice a purpose
Here’s an optional way to make a range session more specific. Pick a clear target and one flight you’d like to improve. Choose a generous landing area and notice how often the ball finishes within it.
Try your familiar shot first. Then explore one change in height or shape. Keep track of contact as well as where the ball finishes. A flight you can produce several times tells you more than one spectacular result.
If the strike becomes unpredictable, take those observations to John. You don’t need to force a different swing position to prove you’re practising. Planning practice between lessons
Work on a shot with John
Bring a shot you’d like help with to a private lesson on the undercover range at Thurgoona Country Club Resort, Albury. No membership needed. Lessons are $100 an hour, or $80 an hour for juniors under 16.
Call or text John on 0417 682 008. Lessons and booking details All coaching notes