Most of us who play golf are challenged by the difficulty of the game and are on a constant quest to improve.  We are always looking for a lesson or tip to help us play better golf; but, very often we miss the important lessons that golf can teach us.  Throughout all the changes and evolutions the game has undergone, changes which very often result from technical advances or economic influences, one of the traditions that has never left the game is: "It is your honor".  The simple yet highly civilized act of waiting one's turn, of recognizing a competitor's honor to play first has been a hallmark of the game since before anyone now playing was born.  Due to some economic factors and poor social skills of people who play golf, the tradition of "honor" is being replaced by "ready golf".

Economic influences are immutable and no where is that more evident than in the game of golf.  I understand and accept this.  Golf is an expensive hobby for most who play the game.  Golf courses require a lot of real estate which is growing ever more expensive and golf course operators feel the pressure of public demand for better turf grass conditions and more aesthetically pleasing landscapes all of which significantly increases the cost of operations.  In the early to mid 1990's the demand for tee times was at its peak (at least in the U.S.) and golf course operators wanted to get more players on the course and decided that one way to do this was to increase the speed of play.  They did this by encouraging golfers to play "Ready Golf".  I saw a proliferation of clubhouse posters, golf cart plates and scorecards with instructions on "Ready Golf".  I can support many of those "Ready Golf" tips.  Tips like "be ready to play when it's your turn" or "don't spend time looking for a ball that is clearly in a hazard" make sense and I encourage every golfer to follow; but, "play when ready even if it's not your turn"  threatens the very foundations of the game and sets a poor example for life away from the golf course.

Living in a civilized society requires all of us, in some way, to abandon actions which are motivated by self interest in lieu of actions which benefit everyone collectively.  We do not charge to the front of the line at the bus stop, bank or grocery even if we are the strongest, most violent or quickest.  Yet, very often I am playing with someone that gets impatient and wants to hit before their turn and they will announce loudly "let's play ready golf!" as they go ahead and hit out of turn.  "Ready Golf" has become a justification that some people use to cover their rude behavior.  These are the same personality types that are in line at the grocery, bank, etc, and cannot wait patiently for their turn.  They constantly fidget, rock from side to side, blow air out their nose, cluck their tongues or in extreme cases rudely say, "I only have one item, let me go first."  In many cases these personality types have learned these rude, self serving behaviors before they took up golf; so, they bring these behaviors to the game.  In some cases I have seen parents, when they introduce their child to golf, always defer to their child by letting the child hit first.  I always wonder if the child will develop an over blown sense of self-importance and expect such deference from everyone they might encounter in life.

Golf has a code of honor; one very important rule of this code of honor is to wait one's turn - always afford your playing partner or competitor the honor of hitting when it is their turn.  Those of us who love the game should always encourage every golfer to honor this code.  As a society we generally acknowledge the lessons that children can take from team sports.  The idea of team work, cooperative effort in pursuit of a common goal, etc. are good reason to encourage and support team sports.  Golf also can teach some valuable lessons.  Patience.  The simple act of waiting one's turn is important to golf; but, more importantly it is important to living in a civilized and ordered society.  Encourage everyone to play golf by the honors.  Bring honor to the game.  When we honor golf, we bring honor to ourselves.

Keep on good golfin'.

We have all heard the tired old real estate joke.  What are the three most important things about real estate?  Answer: location, location and location.  Well, with the golf swing the four most important things are rotation, rotation, rotation and rotation.  I can't emphasize this too much.  The golf swing is rotational.  If you want a good golf swing, you must rotate.  The four rotations are: 

1. Hip rotation,
2. Shoulder rotation,
3. Forearm rotation; and,
4. Club face rotation

To say that the golf swing requires these four rotations is, of course, an over simplification.  The devil is in the details.  How much rotation?  In which direction; on which plane do I rotate?  When or in what sequence do I rotate?  These are all good questions.  What I would like every one to understand about the golf swing is that all motion needs to be on a rotational vector; the center of which is the front thigh.  WOW, let me say that again: the front thigh (the left thigh for right handed golfers).

A few years ago, I heard Jim McLean, a smart and gifted golf instructor, explain that a good golf swing rotates around the back hip (right hip for right handers) on the back swing and the front hip (left hip for right handers) on the down swing.  Thus achieving a lateral weight shift - moving the mass of the body in the direction of the shot, throughout a distance equal to the width of the hips.  For some of us, this would be a greater distance than for others.  Mr. Mclean's point, I think, was that this weight shift was critical to maximizing the power of the golf shot.  For most of us, this image of rotating around the back hip on the back swing simply gets us in trouble.

When a golfer rotates around the back hip on the back swing, he or she must get back to the front side (left side for right handers).  This movement back to the front side is just too much to ask of some of our bodies.  When we start the down swing we are trying to accelerate the club head by increasing the speed of our "unwinding upper body" or simply rotating our hips, shoulders, forearms and club face as quickly as we can back to impact and beyond.  No matter how much we have heard about the effortless swing, the truth is that during the down swing we are giving it maximum effort.  Thus, if we have moved laterally off the ball, we cannot get back to the ball.  I see people all the time start a very smooth yet deliberate back swing (because at this point in the golf swing we are still in control) shifting their weight to the back heel; and, then all heck breaks out and they either stay on their back foot, get way out in front; or, loose their balance completely and fall away from the ball.

The approach that I like, mostly because it seems easiest, is to stay centered on our front side and rotate around that axis.  I believe it is critical to have most (85%) of our weight on our front foot at impact; so, if this is true, why not simply start with most (60%) of our weight on our front foot?  Let me repeat, we must have 85% of our weight on our front foot at impact; not in front of our foot, not on our toes or heel, not inside our foot, not outside our foot rather centered on our foot.  If most of our weight is on our front foot at impact, then we are centered on the ball.  This means that our rotation is around an axis that is in line with the ball; and, this means solid impact.  So, at address, get the ball in line with your front hip, have most of your weight on your front foot AND keep it there.  Then all we have to do is rotate, rotate, rotate and more rotate all the way through impact. 

Hope this helps.  Keep on good golfin'.

GoodGolfer

Golf is a very social form of recreation.  In a typical 18 hole round of golf we will spend 5 or 6 hours in close companionship with three other people.  I know, the typical round of golf is supposed to take no longer than four hours to play; but, when we include the check in time, the warm up time, the after golf story telling time, we usually find that we have spent 5 or 6 hours at the course.

Whenever we spend that much time with other people certain social conventions should be followed so that everyone has an enjoyable time.  The following list are the rules that I try to follow and hope that my fellow golfers do the same.

• Always arrive early for the tee time.  Allow enough time to get your gear stored on the cart or organized, tie your shoe laces, check in with the golf shop and be at the first tee prior to the scheduled tee time.  If people have to wait for you - even if you arrive just in the nick of time - they will begin to experience anxiety and tension which are two of the biggest enemies of good golf.  If you arrive at the course late - or just in the nick of time - you may be relaxed and in good form but those who have been waiting for you will not be.  So be considerate.  Arrive early.
• Be quiet while other golfers are hitting.  This is such a tried and true rule of golf etiquette that one would think it could go unsaid.  Alas, we feel compelled to put it on this list.  The unconscious or instinctive level of the brain guides the golf club during the golf swing.  Any intervention by the conscious or cognitive brain is detrimental to the swing.  Any loud noise or conversation while a golfer is in his or her "swing state of mind" brings the cognitive side of the brain to the forefront and interferes with the instinctive brain, which in turn interferes with the golf swing.  We will be returning to this "brain dichotomy" theme in other articles.  Also, every golfer should understand that a golfer's "swing state of mind" begins with his or her preshot routine.  I have been with many golfers who will continue a dynamic conversation and only pause for the brief second or two that the golf club is actually swinging.  Please be courteous and remain quiet and still from the time your golf buddy begins to visualize the shot until the swing is complete.
• Always watch your companions golf shot.  Helping your buddy find his or her ball sometimes is the most courteous thing you can do.  It's also in your own interest since it will speed up play.
• Never comment on your companions golf swing. 
• Never comment on your own golf swing.  Remember the activity is recreational - your buddy does not want to listen to your lecture (no matter how profound you deem it to be) of the modern golf swing and how you just missed this one little aspect.  Remember, no one cares about other person's swing, shot or score.  So please don't bore any one with long winded explanations or detailed analysis of your game.
• Never stand behind the line of play of another golfer.  Nothing annoys and distracts a golfer like someone standing in their peripheral vision.  

These are some of the ways that I try to be a good companion on the golf course.  I wish that everyone with whom I play followed the same rules. 

Welcome to GoodGolfin.com, the forum for all who love the game.  We hope that you find this site interesting and informative.  On this blog, we want to stimulate your thoughts on golf related issues and motivate you to use the comments and ratings to express yourself.

We have a lifetime of experience in golf; playing recreational golf, competing and working in the golf industry.  We have seen and experienced much that is good about the game and some things that we would like to see improved.  We know that the number one interest of almost every golfer is to find some way to improve his or her score; and we will provide many tips and tricks to help do that.

We also want to help everyone find more joy in golf; help make the golfing experience fun.  Golf etiquette, on course manners and pace of play have a huge influence over how much fun all golfers have on the course.  Blogs by GolfManners will provide some guidelines that all golfers can use to improve etiquette, manners and pace of play. 

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Thanks to all,

GoodGolfin.com