Distance first, accuracy later.

JoeyJoeJo

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Interesting take from Nick Price in an article about becoming a great driver....

If you're a beginner or are starting a kid in golf, make it a key to hit the driver as far as possible. Swing it longer and more free-wheeling than the irons. You can address control issues later.

http://www.golfdigest.com/magazine/2009-02/rulesprice

Five years ago, wonder if he stands by it.

Thoughts...?
 
Seems to be supported by the research in "Every Shot Counts"
 
I completly agree. When you are young you learn and pick up on things so much faster and also have the time to hone in on it. You can teach accuracy but distance seems harder to achieve IMO.
 
I agree as well. I always remember hearing Agassi talk about how his coaches would just want him to hit the balls hard as a junior. They worked on the accuracy later but really wanted to let his power game continue to grow to what it was when he was on tour. It is a growing trend in junior sports.
 
I agree as well. I always remember hearing Agassi talk about how his coaches would just want him to hit the balls hard as a junior. They worked on the accuracy later but really wanted to let his power game continue to grow to what it was when he was on tour. It is a growing trend in junior sports.

Go to the range, or classes and see any junior. They're being taught to take a really, really full turn. The timing and hand eye coordination will improve, but that turn will be engraved.

I was taught exactly the opposite. If you couldn't hit it straight, then you were swinging too hard. Trying to introduce a longer turn in my late 30s has been a nightmare.

The only downside to this that I see is the potential for sports related injuries. A longer, more free wheeling swing stresses the back and left knee (right handed player) far more. Both of my grandfathers played golf for 50+ years and have wrecked left knees.
 
Distance is much harder to "teach" than accuracy. I would tend to agree, but obviously they are no good without the other.
 
I just tell my kid to hit it as hard as he can while he's young enough to not worry about where the ball is going to go. If he still wants to play later in life we'll work on getting those balls going straight.
 
The distance aspect came naturally to me. I never have been able to reign it in.
 
It's not a new philosophy. Jack Nicklaus was taught that way, which is probably one reason why he was so much longer off the tee than many of his contemporaries.

I'm probably the poster boy for short and crooked, but when I try to swing faster (and I don't mean just harder, but getting more coil), I just get more crooked. I'll settle for straighter now at this point in my life. :golf2:
 
No idea who first said it, might have been in Jack's time..."You can't teach distance".
Seems like this would help maintain interest for newbies as well, who doesn't like just smashing the crap out of the ball now and then?

Get as long and powerful a motion as you can, then rein it back in if need be. Makes sense, certainly more than getting a straight ball down and then losing it trying to find more distance.
 
The distance aspect came naturally to me. I never have been able to reign it in.

No offense, but playing to a < 10, then you've obviously reigned it in somewhat. I mean this in a good way.

I also think your post underscores why the distance > accuracy teaching method is good. Even if you're not 100% reigned in, your distance probably helps you play to a < 10. A shorter player has to hit it perfectly almost every time to keep up. That just doesn't happen with amateurs, so it just puts more pressure on the shorter player -- not to mention the fact that he's always playing "from behind."

This is something I've learned the hard way. Yeah, I was pretty straight, but the game is much harder if you're hitting driver, fw into the green as opposed to hitting driver, 7 iron. I'm now later in life trying to relearn after 10s of thousands of reps the "other" way.
 
I just tell my kid to hit it as hard as he can while he's young enough to not worry about where the ball is going to go. If he still wants to play later in life we'll work on getting those balls going straight.

that seems like a good move. I bet it keeps it fun for him
 
I just tell my kid to hit it as hard as he can while he's young enough to not worry about where the ball is going to go. If he still wants to play later in life we'll work on getting those balls going straight.
That's what instructors are for right!!!!

I also think hitting it far creates more excitement and enthusiasm for the kids, who doesn't like to hit a long drive! Hopefully that helps grow the game as a whole and then they get it narrowed down as their games progress.
 
I figure teach a young player to swing hard, especially as a boy, while his hips are still the strongest part of his body. Because once he starts thinking his shoulders power the movement, he'll have trouble, IMO. Also, I kinda feel like while he's young, he'll start to grasp that the ball goes farthest when he puts the middle of the face on it.
 
I think ther is a lot to this. But one still has to be good enough to hit harder, faster and longer and still maintain control. Perhaps when one is younger they can more easily learn such as they develope. But most people even if they dabble in golf early, dont usually take golf as serious or play or practice as much until they are a bit older. Many dont even take it up till they are older. Even around 30 is not so young anymore when it comes to any sport.

But also we are not Greg norman nor nick price or even close to that. In fact many of you here who maintain good handicaps are not the norm. most people imo will struggle with faster swings even with todays equipment. Sure they can now get away with many more less than pefect swings and that in itself is already making people longer simply by default. They are probably already swinging a little faster and already getting away with it more than they would have some 30 or 40 years ago without even realizing it because what they have today is all they know.

If i took a club from back in the day I would bet anything that I would have to slow it down some in order to be in play equally the same. There is no doubt many of those slight misshits that still leave me in or close to the fairway and still out there a cinsiderable distance would then otherwise not be in play and also not nearly as far. So I think its safe to assume I and many of you (even if not realized) are already swinging faster and getting away with more already.

But now to swing even faster than that? It still comes down to if one can swing afster and even if they could can they be good enough to do it and stay in control. So i think the logic is still the same. The curve may have certainly moved up but the logic is still the same. You still have to be good enough to do it accurately enough. thats always going to be the difference.
 
Chicks dig the long ball. Distance can't really be taught. There are things you can do to gain distance but if you've got it go for it.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk
 
Being 50, I am not sure I can wait for the accuracy part to kick in.
 
No offense, but playing to a < 10, then you've obviously reigned it in somewhat. I mean this in a good way.

I also think your post underscores why the distance > accuracy teaching method is good. Even if you're not 100% reigned in, your distance probably helps you play to a < 10. A shorter player has to hit it perfectly almost every time to keep up. That just doesn't happen with amateurs, so it just puts more pressure on the shorter player -- not to mention the fact that he's always playing "from behind."

This is something I've learned the hard way. Yeah, I was pretty straight, but the game is much harder if you're hitting driver, fw into the green as opposed to hitting driver, 7 iron. I'm now later in life trying to relearn after 10s of thousands of reps the "other" way.

Haha, haven't looked at it updated that in a long long time. I am not close to a single digit. I do think being long is a big advantage for me, but straightening it out hasn't been as easy as people have made it seem.
 
No offense, but playing to a < 10, then you've obviously reigned it in somewhat. I mean this in a good way.

I also think your post underscores why the distance > accuracy teaching method is good. Even if you're not 100% reigned in, your distance probably helps you play to a < 10. A shorter player has to hit it perfectly almost every time to keep up. That just doesn't happen with amateurs, so it just puts more pressure on the shorter player -- not to mention the fact that he's always playing "from behind."

This is something I've learned the hard way. Yeah, I was pretty straight, but the game is much harder if you're hitting driver, fw into the green as opposed to hitting driver, 7 iron. I'm now later in life trying to relearn after 10s of thousands of reps the "other" way.

I completely agree, I feel like being a shorter hitter severely limits my scoring potential.
 
Well I must be the minority because I don't agree with this at all. I think accuracy is much more important than trying to bomb it on every tee.

I think you teach accuracy while they are young and the distance will come on time. I know from my golf career that I hate having to chip out on 15 holes because I have no idea where the ball is going to go.

Now I am not considered a short hitter but I wasn't always like that. Even today I struggle because while I can drive it longer than most I don't hit many greens because my accuracy is not very good with my irons. It can be quite frustrating always scrambling for par or worse.
 
I kinda disagree, only because technique is so critical in affecting distance. And that same technique is going to eventually improve accuracy. That being said, i do agree with the overall concept to a degree, as i think the distance comes first, and even occasionally hitting a monster drive down the fairway will promote players wanting to come back for more.
 
Well I must be the minority because I don't agree with this at all. I think accuracy is much more important than trying to bomb it on every tee.

I think you teach accuracy while they are young and the distance will come on time. I know from my golf career that I hate having to chip out on 15 holes because I have no idea where the ball is going to go.

Now I am not considered a short hitter but I wasn't always like that. Even today I struggle because while I can drive it longer than most I don't hit many greens because my accuracy is not very good with my irons. It can be quite frustrating always scrambling for par or worse.

Respectfully, you are playing to a < 5 handicap. Even if you're scrambling, you're obviously doing it fairly well.

Let's invert this. Say there's a 450 yard par 4. If someone can only hit a 220 drive, there's absolutely no way to get on in reg. The best he can reasonably hope for is bogey unless there was a miraculous up and down.

If a bomber nails a drive 300, then he's 150 out, which is for that type of player an 8 or 9 iron. The margin for error laterally on an 8 or 9 is much, much less.

I do understand the idea that a bomber who constantly hits out of bounds or behind trees isn't going to score well. That's too wild.

I guess as I think about it, I don't know many < 10 handicaps who aren't long. Longer players are just playing a different game.
 
It's not a new philosophy. Jack Nicklaus was taught that way, which is probably one reason why he was so much longer off the tee than many of his contemporaries.
I learned golf in the 70's and went with the Nicklaus way, hit it hard first. When you can swing through the ball with the driver and hit it hard it translates to every part of your game. This is probably MORE true now than ever with the forgiveness of today's equipment.

When I was starting out, at 5'8" and 125 lbs. soaking wet, my sole goal in life was to outdrive my dad (6'2"/240). After a couple years of lessons and constantly putting every ounce I had into each drive I was able to do that. I still remember that shot like it was yesterday, and the rest was history. I'm still only 5' 9 1/2" (quite a few more pounds) and don't swing out of my shoes on EVERY drive but will get looks from guys I haven't played with before wondering where that 300+ yarder came from. Just my experience though ...
 
I guess as I think about it, I don't know many < 10 handicaps who aren't long. Longer players are just playing a different game.

This is the opposite for my club. Most of the lower handicappers are the guys that keep the ball in front of them and get up and down more often than not.
 
This is the opposite for my club. Most of the lower handicappers are the guys that keep the ball in front of them and get up and down more often than not.

Dumb question, but how far do those lower handicappers who keep the ball in front of them hit their drivers?
- 210 yards
- 250 yards
- 290 yards

It's admittedly kind of a leading question, but I definitely want to hear the response.
 
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