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Magical Mystery Tour, Part 1

© Bill Howard

This week we set out on our search for intelligent golf instruction on the Internet. I visited three of the "big name" golf sites to see what they had to offer.

My first stop was ESPN. I was confronted with a staggering amount of material. You'd be best served by visiting and investigating the instruction topics of particular interest to you. As usual with ESPN, they have all bases covered. I wandered about their instruction section for far too long.

Several articles at the ESPN site are worthy of note. The first is an excellent piece on a putting feel from Jack Nicklaus. There is also a video clip by Jimmy Ballard (a former boss of mine) detailing the role of the left side in the golf swing. Robert Baker's thorough, if somewhat flawed, analysis of the swing of Sergio Garcia is worth a look because of its exemplary description of his backswing. Mr. Baker's explanations get shaky beginning with Key #3 which involves Garcia's downswing. Don't overlook the "Golf 101 Beginner's Guide". The "Steps to Avoid Humiliation" are something every golfer should read.

The ESPN - Golfonline instruction section has a wide assortment of material. There is even a "Work On A Specific Area" option that offers you a choice of instruction articles based on your own problem areas. I highly recommend you visit the site.

Golf.com was my second stop. Here you'll find half a dozen instruction articles. Two of the better ones are "Buttons To Ball" by T.J. Tomasi and "Zero in on the 'Zero Break Line'" by Geoff Mangum. I've had occasion to read a number of instruction articles by Tomasi, and he is consistently good. The Zero Break article offers an interesting perspective on reading breaks. The quick tips section is also well worth your time.

Sadly, this site also contains "Natural Golf - The Four Basics". I have three strenuous objections to this piece; It's wrong, it's confusing, and it's little more than a recycled version of Natural Golf's promotional material. Don't waste your time. I'm still bitter about having wasted mine.

My final stop was at PGATour.com. Frankly, I didn't expect much. I was very pleasantly surprised. The "Pro Tips" are just the kind of short, simple, helpful advice a player is liable to employ out on the golf course. I can highly recommend the tips from Gil Morgan and Paul Azinger on bunker play and the tip on punch shots by Bradley Hughes. There are other subjects covered as well. Go, and use PGATour.com's well done contribution to your advantage.