The perfect swing is a myth
 

The key to better golf is all about consistency, or repetition of motion, it is not about perfect motion. All you have to do is look at the variety of swings on the PGA Tour to realize there is not a right or wrong way to swing a golf club. The golf swing is really more about cause and effect. If you have a certain little hitch here or there in your swing you need to have some sort of compensation for it before the club gets back to impact, otherwise you are in for a surprise when the ball leaves the clubface (I'm making an assumption here that contact is made).

While there is not a right or wrong to the golf swing, there certainly are swings which are more "efficient" than others. That is to say, they have fewer moving parts (fewer hitches and compensations). Therefore, those players have better odds of consistently returning the club to a good impact position.

It's in trying to find a more efficient swing where a lot of golfers run afoul. In their quest for a more efficient swing, they try to make improvements by incorporating some motion or position that they read about, or that was mentioned during slow-motion analysis of some tour player on television, without having the slightest idea if that motion will complement the other parts of their swing. Just because those racing tires look good doesn't mean they are the right ones for your car.

Your golf swing has a very individual personality. If you don't think so, just think of the last time you were able to identify someone you know, three fairways over, because of how they swung the club. If you are going to start making changes in your swing you first have to have a good understanding of how all the parts work together in your particular swing. In a bit of shameless self-promotion, this is where a QUALITY golf instructor comes into play. If you try to self-teach or act on some swing tip you recently heard, it is very easy to unwittingly work on some element in your swing and end up doing more harm than good. Sometimes, you can even veer so far off path that you find it difficult to find your way back to where you came from.

A quality instructor not only provides you with and an extra set of eyes, but they also have specialized knowledge of how all the facets of the swing work together. For me, personally, improving YOUR knowledge of YOUR golf swing is every bit as important as improving the swing itself. Make this the season you not only improve your swing but also improve your knowledge of how your swing works.

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