Golfing With Will Part Two

The first club I practiced with was a 9-iron. I was shown the proper way to position myself in relation to the ball for both my practice swings and my official swing. My arms relaxed in my athletic stance, I focused on my target and began my practice swings. My mind was free, focusing more on the experience than how far I was going to hit the ball or how high I was going to get it in the air. The club grazed over the tips of the beautifully maintained green grass and I knew I was ready to hit the best ball of my life. 

As I approached the ball, all I wanted to do was replicate my practice swings. Then, I swung the club back at a level four, swung through the ball and watched as it traveled…slightly to the left, barely leaving the ground. 

My first swing definitely did not go the way I envisioned it would. I am an extremely competitive person, so my first reaction was to be frustrated. Will caught wind of this and asked me how I felt about my swing. I was honest with him about my frustrations, and instead of focusing solely on that, he explained to me what he saw.

He asked what my focus was and I told him how I felt I did not hit the ball well at all. He advised me not to worry too much about how far or high the ball travels and instead on how my physical experience relates to the freedom of my swing. I swung at a level four and my shot was actually on target. It may not have gone as far as I wanted, but there were definitely some positives in my swing.

I kept practicing, putting everything we worked on together, until I developed my own unique swing. The approach Will taught me worked wonders. I started hitting the ball better than I ever have in my entire life. I was connecting with my target and focusing more on my experience, rather than the results. There were swings I messed up, that is normal and expected and we analyzed every swing, regardless of the outcome. 

Those discussions helped me tremendously. Will asked how I felt and what I did after each swing. In most cases, I could feel what I did differently. We each shared what we saw in every swing to help me establish a rhythm and remember that feeling going forward.