I remember the expression of disgust levelled at me whilst admitting, to a teenager, I really only use my phone for texts, emails and occasionally phone calls.
I read the other day that the flight deck of a 1970’s Boeing 747 had less computing power than that of an iPhone 6. Kind of scares the sensibilities a little doesn’t it?
We are living in an age where the youth of today are technologically more advanced than their elders. The youngsters are bored with Facebook and have moved on to the latest Snapchat-Instagram sensation.
The good news is that this technological advancement has really helped the golfer understand what on earth happens during the golf swing. As a coach it’s unbelievable the quality of the images a tablet can produce from its video function. Download the V1 app onto it and you now have a fully portable coaching suite which would have cost thousands twelve years ago.
Coaches can now be coached remotely. At 0800 last Monday I was at my desk for a five-hour coaching seminar on how my putting analysis system works and how to get the most out of it. Most importantly, how to best pass the information onto my clients. This is only Level One of Three Levels. Now in the 21st Century it’s possible to sit in the Algarve, receive up to date, state of the art putting coaching from somebody in his putting studio in Germany.
And ‘they’ once said that putting was about feel and touch and couldn’t be taught. What a load of nonsense those myths now seem. Now I won’t bore you with the two hours of set up procedural advice, however, there were a couple of gems which came out of it which I thought would be of interest to you.
Firstly, this 3D coaching technology analyses instantly the twenty-eight most important areas of your putting stroke. It can do it indoors or outdoors and is to the degree and millimetre accurate. I spent the five hours mesmerised at the detail these guys could go into and thinking at the same time, would you, the amateur golfer, be interested in this level of detail?Then quickly coming to the conclusion that you wouldn’t enjoy the detail. It is after all my job, as the coach, to translate the information in the most effective way possible.
The little bombshell which my man in Germany came up with was the difference between perception and reality with regard to ball and hole alignment. Most players struggle with perfect alignment because they just can’t see the straight line. So here is what you should do to test your ability to align yourself correctly. First off, place a ball on the green or carpet, floor, whatever is easiest and presently at hand. Secondly, use a pole, tape measure, stick or golf club and place it on the floor in a straight line towards the hole or your target.
Sounds simple enough so far… Now get your putter and place it squarely behind the line. This is the important part, take your address position over the ball. There will be a position which suits your eye better than others where you see the straight line better. This could be with your eyes more over the ball, or your feet side of the ball or the other side of the ball. The advice given by the expert, who has spent years just coaching putting, was this simple: everybody has their optimal eye line and they should find it. To coach just one method, the one with your eyes perfectly over the ball only works for players who see the line perfectly that way.
Apparently that way is so 20th Century. Please have a go at the method, work out where you see the straightest line and stick with it. You will hit more putts on line, so my man says. I’m not about to argue with him either.
Of course if you would like a total putting health check to see how far putting analysis has come, please give us a call on 912 263 555. Hope to see you at our studio soon.