What I've learnt during lockdown

It's difficult to play golf when you are confined to your house. However, there were a couple of things that happened just before lockdown worth noting and one realisation that happened 'in-house', as follows.

Connection is king, as I said last time. But connection (upper arms to chest mainly) is something that should become automatic, not forced. It is best achieved in conjunction with a commitment to swinging the club on a good plane - essentially for me this means swinging 'out' to 1 o'clock. The swing plane might not actually follow that path, but that thought and commitment, help the club find a good inside-out-inside path.

And, contrary to the current PGA mania for 'bomb and gouge' (if that's the correct term) where players max out their full swings, I believe that driver and distance clubs should be swung with a realistic carry or distance in mind. This means position play or placement with a full swing that older or not so strong players can manage for a full round of golf. If you are young and fit and can swing hard with control that's great, but not everyone is in that category.

Another realisation I came to just before lockdown was that short iron and pitch shots must be played from a centred, pre-set position. Essentially this means making sure you set up 'over' the ball, making sure that slightly more weight is set forward. That doesn't mean all the weight is on the front foot or side, but during the swing with these short clubs the weight should not transfer to the back foot. There is no loading of the right side (right handers) as there can be with driver and longer clubs. This is very, very important for consistent clubface and ground contact.

Finally, I have decided that both hands must be involved when on the green. My right hand has been too dominant in my putting stroke - even though I have touted the importance of feel with the dominant hand. So, I am going to double overlap my right hand to see how that goes. This is like a Vardon grip, but with two fingers of my right hand overlapping. It feels good, especially as it feels like I am firmly gripping part of my left hand with my right - uniting the hands. Not that a tight grip is desirable; the hands still need to be 'soft' to maximise feel. Lots of feels here.

That's it. Let's see what happens when we get back on course. Maybe my lockdown lessons will pay off?

PS. I finally heard a commentator on TV mention the solution to saving old, classic golf courses from obsolescence - make the golf ball a little bigger (more spin, more curve, less distance). Thank you Radar Riley. And maybe we could further limit the size (volume) of drivers. Make them the same size as the old persimmon ones, and see how much bombing and gouging goes on after that!