How You Can Lower Your Golf Handicap - Focus on Golf Swing Tempo

Most amateur golfers generally swing too fast. This is all very well if you are continuously striking the ball correctly every time. If you are not, you will see horrendous results and many lost golf balls. The secret when focusing on the golf swing is tempo NOT speed and by getting this aspect of your game right you can definitely lower your golf handicap.

In trying to emulate the world's great players it is easy to forget that that it is swing tempo and not swing speed that matters. But, what is the difference between golf swing speed and golf swing tempo. Swing speed is just the speed that the club head passes through the ball, regardless of how fast it is during the different parts of the swing. For example, a golfer might have a very slow back swing but a much faster through swing. This can lead to a very disjointed swing. On the other hand, swing tempo means that the swing is fluid and not disjointed. Here, fluidity is the key where all parts of the swing appear to be in perfect harmony

Often a golfer's swing can appear extremely fast just because he doesn't have the correct swing tempo. He might usually have a very deliberate take away and back swing, attempting to place the club head in the correct position. He might even have a deliberate pause at the top of the back swing followed by a rush down towards the ball attempting to gain the momentum that was lost during the back swing phase. Nest time you are on the course watch out for golfers like this as there are plenty of them around.

Tour players are most likely to swing faster than club golfers but what separates them from the rest is that their swing tempo is always fluid without any element of being disjointed. They also swing to an exact tempo ratio. The tempo ratio is the glue that binds together all of the disparate parts of the swing - swing plane, take away, follow through etc. All of these fundamental but separate parts of the swing must be learnt if you are to lower your golf handicap. It can be a long process but when all are combined the result is the perfect swing at the perfect tempo...simple? Essentially, it IS simple, but like all goals there is effort required to reach it and you must be prepared to put in the work and effort if you are to be successful.

About the Author

Stuart Young is a keen club golfer who has successfully achieved a single figure golf handicap, although he readily admits to spending too much time on the golf course.

Similar advice on how to lower your golf handicap and other great tips can be found at www.loweryourhandicap.info.