JohnHayesGolf Newsletter Golf Tip – December 2014
For your golf game: Manuel de la Torre said that his “father’s parting words to him (after working on the golf swing) were always, ‘OBSERVE YOURSELF.” So you have to pay attention to your swing as you produce it and, when you are done, then you should ask yourself – did I do what I intended? This sounds easy but once the ball has been struck it may be hard to say whether you did your job or not. Students will say, “I must not have done it because it was not a good shot.” This is not necessarily true. One thing you know for sure, if you do not know what you did, you did not OBSERVE YOURSELF very well.
I want you to go out and start by making some small swings and then gradually increase the size of the swing if you are still able to observe yourself. I want you to pay particular attention to the club at the end of the backswing. I want you to observe that the coil (angle created in the backswing between the lead arm and the golf club) is retained as you start to swing forward. This is because you use the arms (the arm is the section from the shoulder to the elbow, not the forearm). If you cast the clubhead using your hands then the coil is lost right away. If you use the arms from the top then the coil is retained. So THE COIL IS RETAINED DUE TO ARM SPEED. You do not retain the coil because you try to hold it back using strain and tension. The swinging motion will uncoil the club for you if you remain flexible. So go out and observe that you retain the coil due to arms speed. You may not be successful every time but you can OBSERVE YOURSELF on every swing! Did you do what you intended to do?
Upcoming clinics and events: I have a Holiday Special where you receive my golf instruction book, Learning Golf with Manuel, for free when you purchase a lesson series gift certificate from now until December 24, 2014. You can purchase a series of 4 one-hour lessons for only $210 or a series of 6 half-hour lessons for only $200 and get my book for free! Come by Chi Chi’s, call or email me to get your Holiday Gift Certificate.
I will conduct my next GET GOLF READY LADIES BOOT CAMP on Thur., Dec. 4 through Sun., Dec. 7. There will be 4 hours of golf clinics (Thur. & Fri. from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. and on Sat. from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.) and then we will finish on the golf course on Sun. from 2:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. This is perfect for beginners who want to feel comfortable on the golf course in a short time. Total cost is only $99 and includes everything! My next LADIES-ONLY GOLF CLINIC will be held on 2 consecutive weekends – December 20, 21, 27 & 28 from NOON to 1:00 p.m. on all four days. Cost is only $40 total for all 4 sessions! It is good for beginners or newly dedicated golfers.
Please call (727) 692-4679 or email, jh@johnhayesgolf.com, to sign up as space is limited for all clinics. Go to www.johnhayesgolf.com for more details.
As always, please contact me with any questions or comments and I hope to see you soon on the lesson tee at the Chi Chi Golf Range & Family Sports Complex in beautiful Clearwater, FL.