Golf Lessons: The Biggest Benefits & Why You Should Consider One

I contemplated and resisted having a golf lessons for many years. But eventually I did. I took lessons to change my swing. Why? I felt like I’d reached a point in my golfing journey where improving would be difficult unless I embraced change. More specifically, through the help of a professional coach. My goal at the time (before lessons) was to be a sub bogey handicapper. I took advantage of a discounted offer for a series of lessons with a PGA coach at my local range (Oulton Hall, West Yorkshire, UK). Below are the topics I’ll touch on, along with a summary that answers the questions, “Should I have changed my swing?”, as well as the positives and negatives of having Golf lessons.

• Making a draw my standard shot shape
  • Adjusting Face Angle
  • Adjusting Grip
• Generate rotation with a stable stance
  • Lifting the back foot
• Is a wristy swing a good thing?
• Compressing the golf ball
• Should I have changed my swing?
  • Negatives
  • Positives

Adjusting Face Angle

To obtain a draw your face angle must be to the left of your club path (the opposite for a lefty; see “How to fade and draw the golf ball”). We looked at videos of Brooks Koepka and compared his take away position to mine. At about a half swing (club parallel to the ground) my club face was open towards the sky, Brooks was closed pointing down towards the ground. Learning to close the face wasn’t easy, but I persisted.

Compression Ball Striking

The final element to help me with better ball striking, with a draw, was to introduce compression ball striking. At impact position, your shaft should be leaning forward (about 10 degrees, you may hear others quote differently), and the divot you create should be after the ball. The idea is that you’re hitting down on the ball at impact, the shaft lean means you’ll be hitting the sweet spot of the club face at impact.

I really wanted to nail this, since I had a habit of hitting the ball fat (divot before the ball), which became obvious in cooler months when the ground was wet, soft and less forgiving; in summer the hard surface, like a range mat, gives some forgiveness meaning you hit the ball fat less often, hiding the issue.

For me this has probably been the hardest thing to install into my swing. Why? Because my Wristy swing wanted to return and run free. This requires me not to use my wrists, instead making them feel rather stiff, forcing them forward at impact. As with all changes, it felt incredibly uncomfortable at first. But the benefits seem huge. When I get it right. I get a lower more penetrating ball flight; the ball goes straighter and I get more distance than I had with Wild Wristy. This is still something I work on pretty much every range session. Specifically, I use punch shots – 1/2 and 3/4 swings – which is how the coaching session started, maintaining wrists forward at impact. Whenever things go awry now, I revert to punch shots. I’ve also seen video clips of Tommy Fleetwood talking about how he transitioned to using punch shots as his standard swing, because he and the coach found them more consistent.

Should I have changed my swing?

My simply answer is yes, I believe it was a good move for me. I clearly had a lot to change. Some changes were easier to make than others. Should you? I’ve outlined some positives and negatives that I hope will help you.

Negatives

Lets start with the negatives:

• I had some of the lessons in what felt like quick succession (six over a three-month period), in hindsight that doesn’t seem that long at all. However, this felt like I had a lot of changes to make with little time to practice between. By the end I was confused, sometimes frustrated, and I didn’t know what to concentrate on. I was trying to do everything at once and didn’t know what I had worked on successfully.
  • In future, I’ll either spread the lessons out more, or take the odd lesson to focus on one aspect of my swing at a time.
• It wasn’t easy. From my experience, don’t expect all changes to stick. Although some of mine did. Straightening my back leg stuck immediately, although it does slip every now and then.
• Old habits may return. Continue to reinforce with range sessions, reflect and persist with reminders of what you’re trying to do. Head back for another lesson to measure progress.

Positives

The process of changing my swing with a professional PGA coach taught me so much and I am a student of the game and love leaning:

• Better understanding of my swing and good technique:
  • Shaft lean and compression at impact
  • Closed face and stronger grip to aid persistent Draw
  • Braced knees, wider stance, straight back leg on take away, raise back foot to aid rotation through impact.
  • There’s plenty more I haven’t mentioned I’m sure…
• More tools – changing wrists to help produce fades or draws, use of punch shots for better accuracy.
• Feel more in control and happy with the outcome – I’ve gained yardage across all my clubs from technique alone
• Commitment to shaft lean has led to better shots out of semi-rough and rough.
• Learned to commit and trust the changes made will result in a more consistent swing and ball striking; shaft lean at impact is the clearest example of this.

Has it led to direct improvement in my game? Yes, without doubt. In three years my handicap dropped 6 shots.

In summary – Is my swing change journey at an end?

I very much doubt it, and writing this blog made me realise how much was covered in so few lessons. I do feel these are the biggest and hardest changes I’ll ever make. I’m glad I made the decision to embrace change, working with a PGA coach. I love the journey of learning and improving, my hunger for both continue. I hope you feel the same if you decide to take a similar journey. Let me know how you get on if you do in the comments below.

With thanks to PGA Coach Scott McGovern.