Almost An “A” But Golf.com Gets An “F” From Me On The Top 10 Fundamentals Of The Golf Swing

Have you ever heard the concept of, “so close to being great, but one omission makes it a failing grade?”

That’s my opinion on the Golf.com article featuring Kellie Stenzel, outlining the top ten fundamentals needed for a great golf swing.

It’s a shame, because just about every point in the list would be in my personal Top 10 fundamentals, so let me explain to you how one omission takes the article from a certain “A” grade to an “F” grade.

There are actually 2 omissions, now that I have looked at the list again and discovered the second.

Let’s look at Kellie’s Top 10 and the ones with which I agree, I’ll bold and italicize, then I’ll give you mine.

Kellie’s:

  1. Lead Hand Grip
  2. Trail Hand Grip
  3. Posture
  4. Stance Width
  5. Backswing Path
  6. Backswing Length
  7. Down To The Ground
  8. Proper Release
  9. Speed
  10. Balance

So, I have indicated that I agree with 8 of 10 in Kellie’s list. The problem is in where I think there are fundamentals missing.

They are huge and glaring misses, and you may agree when I point them out.

First and foremost, this list of K.S.’s is a “Fail,” because it is a Modern Golf Swing fundamentals list.

How do I know or why would I say this?

Because of the 6 in that list – there is no mention of a pivot action at all, and the only way you can pivot with a “too-long” backswing is if you’re swinging Modern-style and begin to twist the lower back as if you’re wringing a wet dish towel to get a longer backswing than your body is designed to make.

The first missed fundamental that I’ll point out is the lack of a mention of alignment – the very first thing you do (or should do) when setting yourself up to the ball is to ensure that you’re properly aligned to your target line.

That is a glaring oversight in any list of fundamentals, if alignment is not included.

The second oversight or omission (which was actually the first thing I noticed, and I only caught the missing “alignment” after I began to actually write my own list), is that of the actual Pivot Action.

That is how you know this is a Modern Golf Swing list, because not talking about the pivot means you’re not even thinking about a mechanically-sound pivot using the hip and leg action.

Moving past 6, I would change the wording of 7 to “Down & Through” but they are essentially the same thing – swing down and through the impact zone without trying to scoop or lift the ball.

8 is fine as well, although the proper release is ensured when you have employed the proper fundamentals, and 9 is not even a fundamental – you create speed by employing the necessary fundamentals.

10 would also be in my list, but far earlier than the last point – Balance is an essential fundamental that you take into account before you even begin the back pivot, so it should be in or near the top half of any list.

Now, DJ’s Top 10 List, if there had to be one given even though I haven’t been asked, and in the rough order of progression:

  1. Lead Hand Grip,
  2. Ball Position Related To Feet, For The Club In Hand,
  3. Alignment To The Target Line,
  4. Trailing Hand Grip,
  5. Stance Width,
  6. Balance (Posture over the feet, weight distribution & the “Leaning A” tilt for stable head),
  7. Pre-Swing Trigger (slight press of trailing knee and/or forward press),
  8. Backswing Pivot Using Hip & Leg Action,
  9. Transfer Back To The Leading Foot,
  10. Swing Down & Through (This includes the proper release of the club through the swing bottom).

You’ll see that when I talk about “setup,” I’m talking about 6 of the total 10 fundamentals – in fact, I used to call the total setup the Fundamentals Trifecta (Body Posture/Stance Width, Grip & Ball Position).

You can also see that, as far as my own list goes, the golf swing is more than half completed just by ensuring the proper setup in 1 through 6!

I’ll restate that Kellie’s list has a good many of fundamentals with which I would fully agree, but the failure to include alignment (which is part of the overarching setup) and the obvious omission of any talk about the actual pivot action, which is the Omega to the Alpha of the proper setup, receives a failing grade in my view.