Do you think that swinging a golf club is somewhat complicated?  For many people it certainly can be!  No doubt a majority of amateur golfers are overly concerned with virtually every aspect of their swing, wondering if their grip is correct, if their stance is correct, and so on.  But in many cases, a simple golf swing is often the best and most effective!  How can we say this when a golf swing involves so many different elements?  Let’s consider for a moment what it means to have a simple golf swing and how this can be the best for you.

Of course you want to understand and employ the basics of a good swing even when using a very simple golf swing.  If you’re holding the club incorrectly or coming down too vertically on your forward swing you’ll hook or slice or get virtually no distance on your shot no matter what else you do.  However those basics are just that – basic.  You need to hold you club with a firm but loose grip, keep your elbows in alignment, and remember to swing in an arc as if you’re standing inside a barrel.  Following these steps is just about all you need for that simple golf swing and if you do, you’ll probably have a very decent game.

Unfortunately many people go well beyond these basics when it comes to a simple golf swing and become obsessed with every little part of their swing; this soon becomes a problem.  Are their hands spaced far enough apart or too far apart when they hold the club?  Does their backswing go back far enough?  When do they cock their wrists?  Is their follow-through going far enough or are they pulling their club?  While specific problems need to be addressed, when you get too far past a simple golf swing you can begin to overcompensate or overcorrect problems, or correct problems you don’t even have.

When you get past your simple golf swing and begin to pick apart every small aspect of your swing, you can soon become stiff and unnatural.  The body naturally tenses up, or you begin to make mistakes along the way as you try to force a swing that’s not good for you.

Very often it’s good to work on a simple golf swing and become comfortable with all those basics before you worry about any other aspects of your swing or your game.  Once you’ve mastered a comfortable stance and a swing that is rounded enough, and are keeping your elbows in alignment, you may want to move on to one other element at a time.  Think about your wrists and make small adjustments, or concentrate on originating the swing from your shoulders.  However if you feel that your simple golf swing is enough for you and you have a decent game, don’t worry about any other aspect of your stance, grip, wrists, or anything else; if it’s not broke, don’t fix it!