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Golf Spotlight: Improving The Game

By iZine | 04 August 2009

Having taken up golf at the tail end of last summer, I have found a sport which I both love and despise in the very same breath. For anyone who plays the sport and certainly those new to it will confirm, consistency is right up there with the holy grail.

Now in a quest to improve my game I found myself at the prestigious Bristol Golf club. Help has come in the form of two of the Bristol’s local pro’s Nick and Tom. Over the coming months they will be helping me to improve my game. Their knowledge and guidance will be printed as lesson break downs in the pages of iZine and through www.izine.co.uk for all to read.

Pro’s Notes

Over the next six months I will be working with Matt on his golf swing. He has recently decided to take up the game, and with the enthusiasm he has already shown to practice I believe he will have no problem tackling the game.

In the first lesson we looked at the basics of the golf swing. The set up/address position is the most important aspect of the golf swing. If a player possesses a sound set up position, they will have the foundations in place to produce an efficient swing.

Matt has naturally good posture, and maintains a spine angle throughout the swing. In time this will allow Matt to produce a good swing plane on which the club head can travel.

The main area we concentrated on in the first session was the grip. This is a vital part of the set up as it is the only part of the body that is in contact with the golf club. A poor grip can have a huge influence on both the direction and distance that the ball will travel.

As with many beginners Matt was finding that the ball would fly left from the club face and travel further left in the air. Golfers will know this as a “hook or pull hook”, which can be quite a destructive shot on the golf course.

Matt’s original grip shown on the left is in a strong position. This position sees the right hand sitting underneath the shaft with the left hand very much on top. This grip is commonly associated with the type of shot Matt was hitting at the start of the session, producing a closed clubface at impact.

To solve this problem the hands need to move into a more neutral position, with two knuckles being seen on both hands. This new position will keep the club face pointed straight towards the target at impact instead of left, producing a much straighter golf shot with less or no curve to the left. New grip shown below

In next session we will look to see how Matt has adjusted to his new grip, and also move forward looking at more technical aspects of the swing itself.

Coaches profile

Name: Nick Korynevsky
Age: 26
Golf Club: The Bristol Golf Club
Role: PGA Assistant Professional
Turned Pro: 2005

Nick has been working at The Bristol Golf Club for nearly three years, and has just completed year two of the PGA Coaching degree. Although still actively playing tournament golf on the PGA West region he now concentrate the majority of his time coaching.

“No matter what standard of golfer, it is always satisfying to see a player enhance their technique and performance, whether their goal is to hit the ball 300 yards or to just get it in the air.”

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