Harvey Penick's little Red Book
As a coach and a player, I’ve seen how easy it is to overcomplicate golf. There are plenty of books that add more layers than most golfers need. And then there are books like Harvey Penick’s Little Red Book, simple, clear, and filled with timeless insight.
You don’t have to agree with every piece of advice or try to apply it all. But if you love the game and want to keep learning, this book is absolutely worth reading.
Here are three takeaways that stuck with me when I first read it before I ever started coaching.
The Grip
If you have a bad grip, you don’t want a good swing.
With a bad grip you have to make unattractive adjustments in your swing to hit the ball squarely. (Most compensations and misses in the swing come because on the downswing the club face is not in the right position to hit the ball square, the body will find ways of making this adjustments for you, like he says, usually in an unattractive way).
Changing a bad grip into a good grip requires a great amount of practice. (Out of all the swing changes, this is the one that people feel the most uncomfortable with but the one that produces very positive results quickly).
Don’t think that because you move your left hand you must automatically move the right hand to make it match. Often its enough to move one hand and leave the other alone.
One trip does not fit all.
A top plater can change his grip enough to cause a draw or a fade, a slice or a hook and observer can’t even see the change.
Keep grip pressure light. Arnold palmer likes to grip the club tightly, but you are not Arnold Palmer (I see more player be successful with a light grip than a tight grip).
How to knock five strokes of your game
How to knock five strokes of your game
The average golfer does not improve stroke by stroke.
The higher you score, the faster you can lower it with the short game, there is no mystery to it. Anybody that plays much golf knows that about half of his strokes are struck within 60 yards of the flagstick.
For a month devote 90% of your practice time to chipping/pitching and putting, and only 10% to the full swing and the watch the results come.
the practice swing
the practice swing
How many times have you seen an average golfer take two or three beautiful practice swings and then step up to the ball and make a swing that Is totally different and cause an ugly shot.
The average golfer says “If I could just hit the ball with my practice swing, I’d be a terrific player”. The reason he doesn’t hit the ball with this practice swing is simple, with his practice swing he doesn’t have to square the face at impact. (This is one of those things no one explained to me and I learned it in this book when I was learning how to golf, squaring the club face on impact is the whole goal of the swing and if your face is not moving towards that, your body will work in strange ways to square it up.)