The 5 Most Common Mistakes in Golf

1. The Exaggerated Twist: most people erroneously believe that the more they turn their backswing, the more they will be able to gain distance.

Actually, to gain distance you should find the perfect posture and perform a fluid swing that will ensure a solid contact with the ball. On the contrary, by exaggerating the twist in the backswing, you will go out of the "ideal" swing plane, hence, you will need quite some compensation to strike the ball correctly, see picture 1 below:

Tip: watch out for the critical phase when you make the transition from backswing to downswing: in fact this is the point where you need most to be in control !

Our Book suggestion: the basic, fundamental book on how to improve your swing is this one: "Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf" by Ben Hogan (see right)

2. Missing the Putting Line: the secret of good putting is to ensure that your mind is able to visualize the line between the hole and the ball.

However, the most common mistake in doing this, is to start analizing the "potential" trajectory starting from the hole backwards to the ball stance: wrong…!
You have to do exactly the opposite, you have to mentally visualize the ideal route of the ball from its position towards the hole (as at the end this is going to be the actual route of the ball….).

Tip: when putting, always accelerate at the moment you impact the ball, this will guarantee straight shots.

Our Book suggestion: like we already mentionned, the secret of good putting lies in the power of the mind. By reading this book, you will understand the rationale behind solid sustainable putting scoring: "Putting Out Of Your Mind" by Bob Rotella

3. Swing Misconceptions: many amateurs spend a lot of time and money (in golf lessons and sophisticated equipment) trying to improve their swing with the conviction that the backswing is not straight, the swing plane is not consistent, the finish is not high enough. All good reasons for sure.

However, nearly 100% of the swing could be corrected just improving only the first 3 steps of the swing sequence:

o Step 1 - the grip: the right positioning of the left and of right palms (see picture for reference) is fundamental for a correct swing. Ensure that your grip is smooth but solid (nor too tight, nor too "fluffy"). Let me tell you that the importance of the grip in the overall swing movement cannot be over-emphasized.

o Step 2 - the clubface is right on the ball: start positioning yourself based on the distance given by the right alignment of the clubface to the ball towards the objective.
Don't do the opposite (deciding where to locate your feet and after aligning the iron………).
o Step 3 - get the right posture (stance): nor too curved, nor too straight. The trick is to use a back mirror to check your posture and compare it with an ideal one (any golf book has a picture of it !!!).

Tip: while you probably remember that you should avoid gripping the club too much in the palm with your bottom hand (the right hand il you play right-handed), most people fail to find the correct grip when it commes to the left hand (the top hand, for right-handed players). Indeed, one of the most common errors among golfers is a weak top hand (the left hand, also called the lead hand) grip. Even though the left hand grip is slightly different from the right hand it shouldn't be too much in the palm neither. Gripping the club too much in the palm reduces wrist action. This produces a shot that slices and lacks power. As your fingers are the most sensitive parts of your hands, placing the club more in the fingers rather than in the palm produces more feel and increases the amount of wrist hinge, which results in longer and more powerfull shots. Pls check the picture for reference and don't forget it !!!

Our Book suggestion: If you have read the previous book of Ben Hogan on swing basics, you can move towards the second fundamental book: "Golf swing Basics" by Olivier Heuler

4. Lack of acceleration: It is fundamental to accelerate the club through the ball. A lot of amateurs make the mistake of decelerating trough the swing eventually trying to scoop the ball. These errors cause the ball to land short of the target.
Instead, you need to learn how to accelerate through and under the ball.

Tip: the key for gaining distance when swinging is the finish, not the backswing. And you will only get a right finish, if you really accelerate your club at the moment of ball impact.

Our Book suggestion: If you have read the previous two books on swing basics, you can move towards the third fundamental book: "Tour Tempo: Golf's Last Secret Finally Revelead" by John Novosel, John Garrity