One Picture that explains why golf is so difficult
This image is from the Jacobs 3D software and shows all of the external and internal effects on your body and club in one golf swing. If you find golf difficult, you are not alone! All of these arrows, which represent forces and their responses, are with you.
In my study of golf swing biomechanics over the last 14 years with Dr. Steve Nesbit, one fact has become abundantly clear. For me to be truly successful as a teacher and make changes that will stand the test of time, I need to understand every effect that gets put on the system of the golfer. When I say the “system,” I’m talking about the club, the golfer—the whole entire thing. Many coaches and researchers separate themselves from the club and they work on body movements without a club. Sometimes it's good to work on micro movements at the body level, but the club IS a part of the entire system. It eventually needs to be accounted for!
That’s a big part of what makes golf hard to learn, and for a player to make lasting improvements. The graphic here shows you all of Newton’s laws—and the forces that go into them—whether it be from external forces of gravity or support forces or internal force of the golfer. This is everything that goes into making the system do what it does.
So when you play your front nine and you shoot your best score ever and you play the back nine and you're like a completely different person, this is probably why. It's a very difficult sport. It's one of the most complex movements in all of sport. The system has a lot going into it! I wanted to share this image to give you an idea of all the effects that are taking place on the system. Helping players understand the system and how these forces work together is what I do on a daily basis. When you come for a lesson, you have my assurance that there’s a path to negotiating these forces, and we’ll find the right one for you. May the force be with your system!