Golf Skills and Tempo

A golf instruction book would be incomplete without some mention of tempo. Tempo can be defined loosely as the quickness of your swing. Tempo can be related to your speech. Someone who talks fast has a quick tempo and so on. Your tempo is in reference to your pre-shot routine, overall swing, and more particularly, the transition from backswing to forward swing.

I would like to say that while there are probably as many different tempos as there are different golfers, it is best to have a relaxed, unhurried tempo. Even your approach to the ball should be leisurely. You want to have an overall attitude of calm confidence when you hit the ball, and I assure you that rushing into the shot is no way to cultivate that attitude.

Practicing your swing slowly, as you have done before and will hopefully continue to do, is a very good exercise not only to learn the swing, but also to help your tempo. I still hit balls in slow motion and half speed just to keep my tempo from getting too quick. I try to see how short I can hit a full swing driver while making solid contact.

It is true that someone who talks fast, walks fast, eats fast, etc. will probably have a quicker tempo than someone who naturally does the same things slowly, but I maintain that there should be no hurry to get the shot over with. Let me put it this way. I rarely see anyone swing too slowly, but I regularly see people swing too fast.

Good tempo is probably most needed at the transition from backswing to forward swing. The transition should almost feel to be in slow motion, although we begin accelerating the club head immediately. I think of it more like an airplane taking off rather than like a gun shot. It is a smooth start forward and constant acceleration that we are after, not one quick burst of speed.

When I feel that my tempo is getting too quick, I will hit one shot in slow motion, the next at half speed and then next at full speed. Then I will start over. Usually, I will immediately get my swing back under control by doing so.

There are some wonderful players whose tempo you would do well to imitate. Davis Love swings so slowly you'd think he's never going to get to the ball yet he's one of the longest hitters on the tour. Nick Faldo, Phil Mickelson, Fred Couples and Ernie Els are also great examples.