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Bubba Watson Do You Need Golf Lessons?. Mark Crossfield talks golf lesson and if Bubba Watson has the answers with a golf swing that has never had a golf coach at it. Play your best golf and watch Mark's fun and easy to watch golf lessons. Taking golf lessons is a hot topic at the moment with the current Masters champion not having any golf lessons to win his two major championships. PGA professional Mark Crossfield AskGolfGuru talks about who should and should not take golf lessons to play their best golf.
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completely agree with with you. A healthy person doesn’t need go to see the
doctor regularly. Coaches help us fix swing problems that we cannot fix by
ourselves
bubba is a special case in that he has the makeup for self instruction:
intense drive, opportunity, confidence, athleticism, and thinking like a
champion. the average schlub who plays once a week will see very little
improvement without lessons, simply because they don’t have the mental and
physical abilities to figure it out themselves.
The problem with the golf swing is that it last 1-2 seconds. And for
players like myself who have built there own swing over many years the
swing is more of a muscle memory instinct that is probably impossible to
really change. Sure I could make a nice rehearsal swing but when it’s time
to really hit a ball, that all goes out the window. And habit and “feel”
take over. And there’s my ugly swing. Everyone’s got one. As unique as a
fingerprint.
I do think Lessons are less needed now because of the Internet and TV, you
can learn from it !
How do you take mental game lesson? When playing in tournaments or gamble
with friends, I always choked on crucial holes. How do you over come this
fear mental game and what is the best way to train yourself to play
fearless golf?
He is exactly right. If you know exactly why you missed a shot, and you
know exactly what you need to do to fix that shot, and repeat it. Then No,
you dont need lessons. However, if you are like 99.9999% of golfers and
are NOT quite sure what you did, or how to fix it. (like myself, i know
exactly what causes a slice, yet i keep doing it). Then YES. you need
lessons.
Its also not mentioned that Bubba had access to golf in a more than average
way. He didnt develop his swing and take it to two major wins by just
playing 18 on the weekend. Most ams cant hit a 1000 balls a week and then
go to the putting green plus play 36 holes or more per week. Most of us
either dont have the time or the money to ever know how good we could be.
What is that computer system that tracks his ball flight?
If you don’t have the time to devote literally hours a day to the swing
change which every golf instructor seems to want to force upon you, you
shouldn’t take them, because you will just get worse. I was steadily
lowering my scores for 6 months or so and I thought taking some lessons
would accelerate that, WRONG! My scores are now going up and as an added
bonus I’m now shanking the ball on occasion which I hadn’t done in years.
If you’re already a decent golfer shooting in the high 80’s to low 90’s
just go to the range and work on your accuracy, you will get way more out
of it.
I completely agree with him .. his fundamentals are 100% correct. Can’t
find target = hit shite shot.
im 15 years old, and play for my highschool and play in many tournaments
and shoot low-mid 70’s on a solid day (usually higher than 70 but rarely
over 78) and my scoring average this year is 75.2 for the 9 tournaments ive
played and ive never taken a lesson and I have 2 wins on my resume this
year and a lot of people say I play like bubba, I flare my left knee in my
swing, I play a natural cut, and I don’t have a range finder like the other
kids, im a feel player
I’ve not had one lesson in my life and yet I manage to break 120 without
fail, every time I play!
It takes the Pro to identify flaws, that will never change.
I teach a tennis. I know some kids that play pretty well that never had a
formal lesson – as in they never paid for one. But they certainly got some
instruction from myself and others. So when people say they never had a
lesson, don’t believe it for a second.
I’m currently playing my 2nd season and currently have handycap 11
I have never taken one hours I’ve always tried to align itself again and
that has until now always worked out well.
But i dont understand why it works out always o.O
FIRST: lessons are not required, of course, but i advise people to find an
instructor they like, and make at least a short term commitment (~4
lessons); see what happens. in my case, i’ve golfed 30+ rounds a year for
8 years, lowering my handicap from 30+ to 16. but then i plateaued for 2
years. i made a change this year (lessons, more practice, less rounds),
and although my HCAP is only marginally lower, i know that i’m better:
more consistent. and an instructor helps me fix flaws faster than if i
were to go it alone. SECOND: it’s great that bubba won 2 majors, and it’s
cool that he did it on his own. BUT tiger has 14 majors, rory 3, phil 5…
and those guys still use swing coaches. so, if the argument is that you
can play good golf without lessons (ie, bubba), what would be the statement
made when considering these other great golfers who’ve not only won
multiple majors, but different ones at that? do yourself a favor… skip
the new driver… that’s not really going to help your “unintentional snap
draw.” a few lessons might, though.
Here’s my thought… (Vastly generalizing) Physical therapists generally
look down at chiropractors because they use non-medically proven methods to
“treat” their client’s various body malfunctions. (Again, vastly
generalizing) Would it make sense that masters in Kinesiology/Bio-mechanics
look at MANY golf instructors teaching concepts (Foley, Haney, R. Smith
etc.) and conclude that they are simply selling top shelf snake oil? Maybe
the issue isn’t instruction vs. non-instruction. Maybe it’s simply terrible
advice vs. no advice…
I tried a golf teacher once and turned out I had to quit him in short
order. When he asked why I was giving up so soon I told him that I was
told long ago that I have a learning disability: I cannot stand anyone
telling me what to do.
That and the amount of conflicting “how tos’ on every facet of golf, from
when are the greens keepers supposed to stop and move out of the way, all
the way to how to create the Phil Mickelson Flop Shot.
The many millions of entries just on Youtube are all over the map and the
only thing I have ever seen where two or more people agree is: the club
face, on a straight shot, MUST be square to the ball. Other than that the
variety of tips, tricks, procedure, sequence, weight shift, lateral motion,
etc. is endless.
Truly he word golf stands for: Game Of Life Forever.
Mark how about you give me a free lesson and i’ll tell you afterwards if I
needed it or not.
I dont like lessons because the instructor is basically gona teach to you
what works for him, and it may not work for you, you should just practice a
ton and find what works for you, take little tips and tricks here and there
but do what works for you, not what works for another person
Never had a lesson and I’m very comfortable with the way I play. I just
spend a lot of time on the course.
Bubba is the exception that proves the rule.
ive only had 3 or 4 lessons when i was younger and was in a junior golf
clinic for a few months. i felt like it only made me play worse when
different pro’s tryed to change things in my swing and in turn i played
worse. now im teaching myself and getting references from videos like marks
hear and i feel that doing it myself and fixing the falts on my own is more
rewarding than someone changing your swing for you. btw im striking and
working the ball better than i ever have in my whole life. it my not be
perfect but no player is perfect in the world of golf. best to play to your
strengths not someone elses
I dropped my handicap from 19 to 12.6 in one year internet videos are great
understanding club path is important if u can’t feel what your doing film
your self and see a good grip nice posture I.e strong athletic one and most
important thing don’t think to much get down n whack it plus I play three
times a week and practice my swing with or without a club practice makes
perfect good luck this season to all golfers
My favorite swings on tour are the ones that you can see are their natural
motion. Jim Furyk’s swing is amazing and different.
I know who needs a lesson :- Rick Shields ( I mean open club face at the
top)
as for Bubbbba he missed 1 fairway in last 2 rounds, incredible in itself.
distance control excellent. Drive + gap wedge to 13th. Who on this planet
can teach Bubba about hitting the ball
The Masters in 2013 inspired me to start playing golf and for the first 3-4
months my scores were always well over a 100. I took a package deal on 8
golf lessons with my local pro. I now shoot 80’s or low 90’s pretty much
all the time and my handicap is 15. I am 100% confident that I would not
have achieved such massive improvement in one year without the lessons.
Lessons work, that’s just pure and simple. Lionel Messi doesn’t need a
football lesson just as Bubba doesn’t need a golf one but for everyone else
who doesn’t posses that raw skill we do. Get booked in, it’s money well
spent in my opinion.
Mark you’re dead-on! It depends on the individual. Some are more intuitive
about the golf swing and may need a minor adjustment from time to time.
Others, such as yourself WANTED to know immediately as to not develop a bad
habit to have to needlessly struggle through.
I stopped wasting time & cash keep swapping to latest new clubs hoping for
improvements. Consistent fundamentals & understanding my #Blockey shots,
cause, effect & fix. Finding the right coach for me was the key to enjoying
the learning process & getting better in a way that i could easily
understand & have fun!! Bubba has the talent to make his unique swing work
for him & Golf is the better for it!! if you ever see him Live hit a ball
nobody looks at his positions or feet, everyones Gob is open by how far he
hits it over 320 yrds on the fly.You cannot teach that, but for rest of us
lessons are money well spent. Thanks Mark.
In other words, what Mark can’t say, is stop comparing yourself to a
professional golfer because you are not. If you can’t hit greens, stop
bugging the shit out of your low handicap buddy that puts time and effort
into golf for his thoughts. Get lessons if you want to get better or stay
on the course day in and day out.
Mark, very candid and insightful…obviously touched a nerve with some,
based on the comments!!! Thanks again, always enjoy your thoughts on golf.
Also depends on how regular one plays. If you’re only doing a few rounds a
year and not practicing much in between lots of bad habits can creep in and
new issues arise so a good professional can spot the major things.
On the other hand getting too many different profs to teach you is bad as
they all tend to spot something different. Need someone good to spot the
major things and correct those.
Like I had two guys tell me about follow through hand movements and take
back being shallower etc. but my biggest issue they didn’t spot/correct is
hip sway, which is always costing me consistency and about 5-10 shots a
round.
Ive taken dozens of lessons and have never really improved. I am a 9
handicap mainly because my short game is very good. I have taken lessons
from no less than 6 pga professionals over the last 20 years and can
honestly say that I do not feel as though they have helped me at all. I
have never taken a lesson on the short game btw. I have almost run out of
local instructors to try.
I’m a player who likes to figure out everything on his own, to me it’s a
burden to listen to some instructor who you don’t get along with or isn’t
clear or is full of bollux.
That said, I WOULD like to get a lesson, but only from the best. Haney,
Harmon, Crossfield, etc. If you could sell textbooks on golf, then i’d pay
for golf lessons. Anything else, and it’s a crapshoot.
Hi Mark, What driver and clubs are you using now.
Lessons are important I went for almost a year without a lesson and I was
getting a long just fine but after getting lessons off my pro I starting
dropping my handicap quickly
did bubba win something??……hahaha what a waste of 5 minutes
Lessons act as a catalyst to your skill in golf, I feel.
Bubba is one of my all time great pros. He’s got creativity, flair and
gusto. I on the other hand aren’t sponsored by ping, have millions in the
bank or two green jackets, having lessons are fundamental for improving my
game. I think lessons are a valuable method of improving your game.
I have a golf coach that I have been working with for almost three years.
It’s expensive but my plan and goals require the effort we are putting into
my game. We have had success because we seem to be able to understand each
other pretty well and through the course of our weekly sessions have become
friends. We work in a lab with gc2 shoulder and waist sensors along with
cameras on both the down target line view and front view. Besides the
lessons, I use the bay along with all the technology for practice sessions.
This is working for me and I enjoy the process. My index is down to 7 and
should drop more as I continue to work my plan.
I’m taking lessons from a PGA Pro who is really competitive in his section.
I’ve taken lessons from hacks in the past, but I’m now starting to see some
improvement. I feel confident in what I’m being taught.
Those who are seen to be more successful in any arena, whether it be in the
golf one or any other, have a deep understanding of their chosen sport/job.
A deep understanding that generally arises out of years of hard won
experience.
And from that deep understanding comes a stilled mind and a relaxed body.
They simply ‘know’ what they are doing.
Frustrated, or less successful individuals on the other hand, due to their
clear lack of understanding/knowledge, are consequently more
mind/thought-full, and so tense.
So, in reality, it is ‘knowledge’ (or another individuals experience) that
you are actually purchasing when you have a golf lesson.
Knowledge/experience that will in turn allow you to more understand, be
less thoughtful, more relaxed, and so more successful.
Simple.
Ps keep up the good work.