Perception Versus Reality

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One thing I’ve learned from my video lessons over the years is that what I perceive that I’m doing is usually very different from what I’m really doing. The interesting thing about the golf swing is that our bodies are really smart about committing repetitive motions to muscle memory. Unfortunately, they don’t bother to figure out if those motions are good or bad.

Typically, we all find out that we have some bad swing motions and go about changing them (with the help of a professional, I hope). What we eventually realize is that the tiniest change in the golf swing feels like a monumental difference. This is where things turn sour. At that point, our perception often is that the problem we set out to correct has been corrected, especially if we see some improvement in our shots.

What I’ve realized over the years is that my perception lies to me. I think because it also represents my lazy side and wants to just stay in the nice comfortable groove (rut, really) that I’ve worn for myself. So I think, “all fixed” and move on to something else.

These fixes that we set out to make are usually incremental, and those increments can be very small. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t some night and day fixes that can show instant results. Most often though, changes are slow to achieve.

When we try to implement changes in our swings, we have to be diligent about making sure that we continue to work the changes until they are complete, then we have to continue to work them some more until they become part of our muscle memory.

This is one reason why video is such a valuable tool when working on your golf game. Video lessons are great. They let us see beyond our own perceptions because the video doesn’t lie. Plus, once we see our faults and understand why they rob us of distance/consistency/etc. and understand what the fixes are, then we can even record our own swings in between lessons to be sure we continue to progress toward the goals that our teachers help us set for ourselves.

If you go several weeks or months between lessons, then it can be hard to tell how well you’re progressing with a specific technique until the next lesson rolls around.  Recording some shots during each practice session will help you tell if you’re actually progressing as much as you think.

Keep in mind that analyzing your own swing on video doesn’t make you David Leadbetter. You need to coordinate with your pro to make sure you understand what you’re seeing as well as what you should be seeing as you make corrections. It’s still a good idea to maintain your normal lesson schedule instead of trying to completely self-diagnose problems. But it certainly can help you make the maximum progress at your practice sessions between lessons if you understand what to look for.