Rhythm is everything in hitting a golf ball. From a putt to a drive, there has to be rhythm. I spend a lot of time talking about the 3:1 rhythm in this space, how to learn it, how to apply it, but there’s one more little thing I want to mention about rhythm.
Rhythm itself has rhythm.
Whenever you start something abruptly, you’re overcoming the inertia of the rest state. There is bound to be a jerk, however slight, that takes a little effort on your part to smooth out again.
Uncorrected, this disturbance can be enough to throw off your golf swing by just enough to make a difference you don’t want to be made.
We need, then, a way to start rhythmically. The rhythm of the swing is set, but the start of the swing needs to have a rhythm, too.
Think of the swing as a back and forth motion. You swing back to the left, and play off that rhythmically with a swing back to the right to hit the ball.
To start smoothy, the leftward motion needs to have something to play off of, too. That would be a slight motion to the right that we know as a forward press.
Normally that’s a physical movement, but I want you to express it in your mind, where it’s even more effective.
Just before you take the club away, the tiniest split-second before, imagine making a small rhythmic movement to the right, then move right away into your swing and its rhythmic 3:1 counting: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 up, and 5 down.
[See Six Fundamentals for an explanation of this counting.]
Remember that the mind leads the body. If the mind starts smoothly with this mental upbeat, the body will too. Guaranteed.
Try this. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
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