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Why the marketing of golf swing philosophies will leave you unsatisfied

Admit it. You’ve tried one of America’s greatest fads, the simple step-by-step weight loss and exercise program. There are dozens of them. Nutrisystem. Slim-Fast. Atkins. The South Beach Diet. Beach Body. Windsor Pilates.

Americans, who also brought us paint by numbers in the 1950s, love a “foolproof” system.

These diet and workout plans aim to make life easy by taking the guesswork out of everyday living. Often people make progress on these plans. But the marketing gimmicks are generally expensive, inflexible and leave little room for the vagaries of life, which means you’re likely to fall off the program.

It’s a vicious cycle: Freakishly abide by insanely strict rules, have some success, burn out and repeat.

Amateur golf has succumbed to the same marketing phenomenon.

“Want to play the best golf of your life?”
“Call now to save your swing.”
“Order in the next 30 minutes and we’ll throw in a dozen balls.” Good thing, you’ll need them.

Jim McLean, a highly regarded golf instructor, introduced us to the X-Factor in 1992. McLean’s theory suggested that the secret to more power and distance was the ability to rotate your shoulders as far as possible, preferably 90 degrees or more, while minimizing the rotation of your hips, less than 45 degrees was ideal. The X-Factor was the difference between the two. A higher X-Factor promised the potential for more power (and, perhaps, a greater need for chiropractic assistance).

More recently McLean has updated his approach with the new Triple-X Factor. Does it deliver triple the distance, or is it three times as complicated? Anything marketed as offering 3X the benefit (now with three times the cleaning power!) should set off your ‘buyer beware’ alarm. Regardless, it helps McLean sell more videos and Golf Digest sell more magazines. McLean did, in fact, uncover some interesting biomechanics and you can’t fault the man for trying to earn a living. He alone is not to blame. Traditional golf media pushes these programs because they are beholden to the bottom line, and other teachers also have their special swing secrets.

Jim Hardy has his Plane Truth approach, which purports to help you settle on either a one- or two-plane swing. Sounds complicated already.

More recently the Stack and Tilt, promoted by swing teachers Andy Plummer and Mike Bennett, has gained awareness after PGA Tour players like Aaron Baddeley and others found some success. Before them there was Jack Nicklaus’ “Golf My Way” book, Harvey Penick’s “Little Red Book” and Ben Hogan’s “Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf.”

There are dozens of other systematic golf swing improvement programs. Many of them, like fad diets, are based in part on real science and proven techniques. You can, in fact, improve by following the steps in a four DVD set, especially if you’re a beginning or high handicap golfer.

But what happens when you’re on the course and away from the reminders, tips and tricks? How will you fare on an uneven lie? Do you know how to read whether your ball will jump out of the rough? Unfortunately, many golfers won’t know how to adapt because it wasn’t in the book.

This is the same thing that happens to dieters when they’re at a restaurant, when there is a birthday party at the office or when they’re traveling and away from the gym. The cravings and complexities of life get in the way.

And, there is the dilemma of what to do when the newest fad comes along.

Read these books. Watch the DVDs. Learn a tip or two. But, to turn over your entire golf game to an infomercial system is as dangerous for your score as some of the so-called weight management programs are for your health. Just like a sensible diet and an active lifestyle will help you keep in shape, a modest investment in a local instructor you can trust and regular practice is as likely as anything to lead to a consistent swing.

If not, there’ll always be a quick fix on the Internet or late night TV.