Getting on the Green

The most important part of golf is the fundamentals of the golf swing. If a player can build a solid fundamental foundation for their swing, all of the other aspects will be easier. Here are a few steps that will help in building the foundation.

• Step 1- Hand Placement on the Club. How a player places their hands on a golf club is important basis for the whole swing. The players left hand (Right hand if the player is a left handed golfer) must be placed first. Make sure the handle is placed just under the heel pad of the left hand and the runs to the index fingers (Flick). Once the left hand is in place the right hand is placed below the left.
• Step 2- Once the grip is good, the next step is to get into position. Push back your hips bend your back toward the ball and then bend your knees (Anderson).
  
• Step 3- Now to begin the swing. Your right arm should stay close to your right side. As your hands pass your right leg, weight should start shifting to the right Then when the club reaches parallel to the ground, it should also be parallel to the target line which shows that the club is swinging on the correct arc (Anderson).
  
• Step 4- At half way back your weight continues to move to the right while the momentum of the swing and the folding of your right elbow help hinge the club to a 90-degree angle with your left arm (Anderson).
• Step 5- At the top of your swing your left arm should remain straight, but not rigid, and your right elbow should point to the ground. The hands should swing back to 11 o'clock, with the hands and arms under the club, supporting its weight (Anderson).
• Step 6- As you swing back down the arc your weight should shift from the left to the right with the club following the arc you previously made with the backstroke. At impact your hands should be slightly in front of the ball (Anderson).
• Step 7- Finally the last step is follow through. Both arms are fully extended, and the right shoulder is down, not turning level with the left shoulder. Your arms should be swinging back to the inside. be sure to keep the spine angled down in the same angle you began in (Anderson).

In a video featuring golf instructor Conan Elliot, the basics of the golf swing are clearly laid out to use as another resource for learning.

Anderson, T. (2009, May). Fix Your Fundamentals. Golf Digest. Retrieved from http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-instruction/2009-05/toddanderson_swingbasics

Flick, J. (2008, March). Six steps to a perfect grip. Golf Digest. Retrieved from http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-instruction/mental-game/flick_gd0803

Golf Swing Tips : Basics of a Golf Swing. Dir. Lisa Fenderson. Perf. Conan Elliot.YouTube. N.p., 28 Mar. 2010. Web. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pw9_IeOVh8>.