| How 10 Minutes in Front of a Mirror Can Improve | | | | club. Keeping the club on your back, stick your |
| Your Golf Fundamentals | | | | butt out, and bend from the knees and hips until |
| Mirror, mirror on the wall, what do I really see | | | | your belt buckle points at the ball. Balance on the |
| after all? The truth is in what you see, not in | | | | middle of your feet (front to back, and right to |
| what you feel. | | | | left). Then, without moving your spine, hold the |
| It might be raining or snowing outside where | | | | club in front of you and let your arms hang |
| you're at, or maybe you've been unable to play | | | | relaxed. Take your right hand off the club and let |
| for a while for other reasons. But that doesn't | | | | it hang to reinforce this concept. |
| mean you can't still work on your game. So here's | | | | Take Some Swings |
| what you do: get your clubs re-gripped and your | | | | Facing the mirror, take five swings (careful not to |
| loft and lies checked. When you get your clubs | | | | hit anything), starting with about 30-percent of |
| back with fresh new grips, get off to a fresh | | | | your normal effort. Before each swing, go |
| start with some basic fundamentals. You can | | | | through your pre-shot routine and check your |
| work on them using nothing more than a mirror | | | | set-up in the mirror. |
| and a club. | | | | Then switch to a down-the-line view (swinging |
| Set up a mirror in a high-ceilinged room in your | | | | toward the mirror). Take five more swings at |
| home (or the garage, or wherever). Bring or | | | | about 30-percent effort. Go through your routine |
| sneak, depending on your situation, a 6-iron into | | | | and check your posture before each swing. |
| the room. The mirror will give you an observer's | | | | After five swings with each view, increase swing |
| perspective on your swing and set-up. Practice | | | | speed for several more swings. Make sure that |
| the fundamentals outlined below in the mirror for | | | | as you swing, you maintain the same tension on |
| 10 minutes a day. | | | | the grip from start to finish. Are you able to |
| Go slowly and observe what you are doing in the | | | | swing without adjusting your grip each time, or is |
| mirror. And every time you see something in the | | | | the club moving in your hands? Close your eyes: |
| mirror you do not like, say, "Thank you, mirror, | | | | How's your balance? Do you feel in sequence? |
| for showing me what I'm really doing." It's a kick! | | | | Can you tell where the clubhead is and whether it |
| Especially for those of us easily entertained. | | | | is open or closed through impact? Is your swing |
| Grip | | | | path on the correct swing plane or outside-in (a k |
| Find a good book and try to match your grip to | | | | a, over the top)? |
| the pictures in the book, based on what you see | | | | Swing Path |
| in the mirror. | | | | Let's say you can't feel if your swing path is |
| Club Face | | | | correct or incorrect ... hmmm. Maybe, just maybe, |
| Take your grip and face the mirror. Look at the | | | | if you could see your path you could learn to feel |
| clubface in the mirror. Is it square, open or | | | | it. And if you could feel it, you would be able to |
| closed? | | | | correct it. |
| Stance | | | | Here's a great swing-path drill for those of you |
| As you sole your 6-iron on the ground, your feet | | | | who swing outside-in: Set-up as if you are going |
| should be slightly wider than shoulder width and | | | | to hit the ball through the mirror. Make a very, |
| the left foot (for right-handed players) flared open | | | | very slow swing and stop halfway through the |
| about 20 degrees. Your right foot might also be | | | | follow-through. The clubhead should appear to |
| flared depending on your flexibility. The less | | | | cover your nose in the mirror (as in the photo). |
| flexible you are, the more open your right foot | | | | Try to accomplish this position with several slow |
| should be. Your balance is 50-percent on each | | | | swings, gently stopping your follow-through |
| foot. | | | | halfway through. Then, take swings watching the |
| Ball Position | | | | blur of the club pass through your eyes (in the |
| Place your club in the middle of your stance with | | | | mirror) on the follow-through. Note: If your head |
| the ball slightly forward. With your ball position | | | | is down, you will have no chance of seeing the |
| slightly forward, your head should appear behind | | | | path of your swing. |
| the ball. | | | | Ten minutes a day in front of the mirror is time |
| Posture | | | | you'll be glad you spent. You'll be able to hit the |
| Place your club behind you and along your spine. | | | | ground running when you're ready to play golf |
| Touch your rear end and your upper back to the | | | | again. |