Monday, February 26, 2007

Ogilvy: "I lost my golf swing."

After the Accenture World Golf Match Play Championship, Geoff Ogilvy said that he lost his golf swing during the first round, got it back, and lost it again during the second round of his match with Henrik Stenson.

WOW, I thought that only happened to amateurs! Actually, I know better, but how can it happen to golfers who practice every day and hit hundreds of balls? It's because of how they have the golf swing memorized in their minds. They are also relying on memory and slacking on focus.

Here's the dilemma with memorizing the golf swing. Most golfers hit golf balls and passively memorize their swing patterns. Once they feel they have their swing, they want to protect it like a newborn child. Modern golfers don't want to change anything or experiment with different shots because it might ruin their swing... Horse Puckey!

The fact that they want one swing is the problem. Ben Hogan was once playing in a pro-am where one of his partners asked him all day what club he was using. Finally, on the eighteenth hole, a long par 3, after hitting his regulation shot, Hogan proceeded to put a ball on the green with every club in his bag. He looked at his astonished amateur partner and told him that it didn't matter what club he used, but rather what the shot had to be in order to make club selection.

Why was Hogan so accurate? He wasn't worried about the swing, but rather the shot. Hogan's secret was focus. He focused on the variables that had to come together to make each shot. His body would make the swing he needed through his focus on picturing the variables coming together.
No, Ben Hogan's secret was not his swing... Get over it.

Do you want to play like Hogan? Learn to make shots using focus. Yes, you need a good golf swing, but you need to make it work for you and should be able to change it when needed. The swing should be a result of focusing on the elements that make the shot, not the other way around.

One more thing... Is everyone else as bothered by Johnny Miller's comments as I am? He was talking about how accurate the old "reverse C" swing was... Are you kidding me? Between that and the old "rock on the club face" out of the bunker comment, I think they need to make him listen to the inane things he says during a telecast for about 48 hours... But that could work against us.

Hogan' secret? Click her to remember your golf swing better.

Free golf swing lessons: Click here for a better golf swing.

2 comments:

Wood Nut said...

thanks for your opinion. It wakes me up from the lost of swing.

Wood Nut said...

thanks for your opinion. It wakes me up from the lost of swing.