video analysis

USING VIDEO ANALYSIS TO IMPROVE YOUR GOLF SWING

(How Much Should You Expect To Improve?)

Th e G o l f M a d e S i M p l e Gu i d e To:

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f l o R i d a - C a l i f o R N i a - a R i Z o N a

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U S I N G V I D E O A N A L Y S I S T O I M P R O V E Y O U R G O L F S W I N G

www.GolfMadeSimple.comG o l f M a d e S i M p l e, i N C . Page � of 8

WHAT’S ALL THE TALK OF GETTING YOUR GOLF SWING ON VIDEO?

A Golfer recently said to me – “I want to get my swing

on video so I can see what I’m doing wrong. I want

to compare my swing side by side with a PGA Tour

Player’s swing to see what I need to correct.”

And I said to myself – Here’s another Golfer that’s

about to take a drive down the infamously long road

of Frustrated Golfer Lane. Have you ever had a journey

on Frustrated Golf Lane? If not, try to stay off it

because it can be a bumpy ride!

The Results of studies we have undertaken show that

you’ll find many more Golfers that got worse after

video than Golfers that got better! I believe that you

could easily find a Golfer that got their swing video

analyzed and subsequently got 6 or more strokes

worse!

Now, this probably isn’t what you expected to hear

from us? But, if you’ve been thinking of getting video

analysis – it might be worth a few minutes of your

time to continue reading so that you can make an edu-

cated decision on video analysis. Because you might

not have heard all the facts about what happens after

a Golfer gets video analysis. It might not be as great

an experience as it has been sold to you!

Video analysis started picking up steam in the early

1990’s and I was also caught-up with the bug back

then. But I started seeing a disturbing trend after a

few years – Although we could view the video in super

slow motion, pausing at every point in the swing, com-

paring your swing to a comparable sized PGA or LPGA

Tour Player – we started to see more confused Golfers

that were experiencing worse swings and disastrous

scores coming to see us for help.

It’s funny because what’s happening now is that some

of the Top Instructors in the world have stopped us-

ing video analysis with their Golfers. Yet, the lesser

Instructors and struggling Golf Schools are still using

it. Why is this? Some have ventured to say that it’s be-

cause the talents of those Instructors/Golf Schools are

weak and they need Video to help them look smart.

Whereas the Top Instructors have gotten back to help-

ing Golfers ‘Feel’ their golf swing.

How is it that the Golfer is brainwashed to believe

that they need to get on video to get better? Show

me results that prove that Golfers that get their swing

analyzed on video improve faster. Or improve at all!

MANY GOLFERS bELIEVE THAT GETTING THEIR SWING VIDEOTApED IS A RITE OF pASSAGE - THAT GETTING YOUR SWING VIDEO ANALYzED IS LIKE A bApTISM OR bAR MITzVAH FORGOLFERS.

Yet, GMS hasn’t touched a video camera in over 9

years and we’re seeing Golfers not just improve, but

thank us for getting them away from their video ad-

diction. And when I say improvement, I’m not just

saying one or two strokes – we’re talking improvement

that’s much more significant than that.



www.GolfMadeSimple.comG o l f M a d e S i M p l e, i N C . Page 3 of 8

HERE’S jUST ONE ExAMpLE:

“Marc, I attended GMS in St. Augustine, Florida in February. I

was somewhat skeptical whether the three days would really

help my golf game. I was surprised that you didn’t videotape

swings. I played to about a 13 handicap, but was prone to ma-

jor swings in my scoring. Since then, I’ve been playing to an 8

handicap. I’ve recorded personal bests on most of the courses

I’ve played this summer and shot as low as a 74.

The items that helped the most are the following:

1) Focusing on better balance. By focusing on this, I was able

to get a more consistent swing pace which improved my ball

striking and increased distance on my woods.

2) Adjusting my “length of swing” has given me so many op-

tions on the course.

3) I have increased my accuracy and length off the tee signifi-

cantly, effectively shortening a lot of courses. I’m no longer

one of the “shorter hitters” among my peers.

I’ve always practiced year round and have taken video lessons

over the years, but I’ve never had a significant improvement in

my scores in the past. Attending your school has got me play-

ing the best golf of my life.

Thanks,

Bruce W – Indianapolis, Indiana

Now that’s “only” a 5 stroke improvement. Though

when you consider that Bruce was a 13 handicap

– that’s a 38% improvement in a short period of time.

And a 38% improvement for a 20 handicap (mid 90’s

Golfer) would be an 8 stroke improvement – meaning

you’re now breaking 90 on a regular basis!

IS THIS AN ADVERTISEMENT I’M WRITING?YOU bET IT IS!

It’s to advertise to you that video won’t help you to

improve as much as it’s promoted it will. And that it’ll

probably make you worse!

AND WE bACK THAT STATEMENT Up WITH RE-SULTS OF NOT jUST GOLFERS THAT HAVE COME TO SEE US – THIS IS bACKED Up bY THE CONFU-SION THAT pOSSIbLY YOU OR A GOLFER YOU KNOW HAS GONE THROUGH ON THE GOLF COURSE AFTER YOU HAD YOUR GOLF SWING VIDEO ANALYzED.

WHY IS VIDEO bAD FOR YOU?

Think of it this way – Instead of wanting to hit your

Driver like Tiger Woods, you desperately wanted to

be able to dunk a basketball. So you signed up for the

Michael Jordan School of Dunk, to learn how to slam

dunk a basketball through the hoop like the greatest

of all time.

So you’re off to go to The School of Dunk to learn.

They start off by watching you dribble the basketball,

do a few lay-ups to the basket and then test your

jumping skills. Next, they video you trying to dunk a

M I C H A E L J O R D A NSCHOOL of DUNK




basketball through a hoop 10 feet from the ground;

– just like a Golfer getting a video of themselves trying

to hit their Driver 300 yards. And on your first attempt,

you’re not able to dunk the ball, though you do catch

the bottom of the net.

Now you begin the comparison – So they split the

television screen with one side having a picture of you

and the other side being a picture of Michael Jordan.

They then start running the tape and we see some

major differences – as you’re stepping towards the

basket, the strides of your steps are 4 feet apart; while

Jordan’s are 7 feet apart. As you jump to the basket,

you jump from 3 feet away; while Jordan takes off

from 12 feet away.

You then get into the mechanics of the dunk. When

you jump, you bend your knees at a 65 degree angle

and Jordan at a 90 degree angle. They have also found

that as you jump that your posture is bent over about

10 degrees more than Jordan. So they tell you that

you need to increase the length of your strides as you

dribble the basketball by 3 feet, then bend your knees

25 degrees more when you get set to jump, along with

thinking about keeping your posture 10 degrees more

upright as you move towards the basket.

So you spend hours upon hours practicing what you

saw yourself doing wrong on the video. And then you

go to the local basketball court for a game of 5 on 5

with your friends. The friends you want to impress

with your new found dunking ability.

And low and behold – just after the game begins,

you find the opportunity. A shot by the other team

is missed, your teammate grabs the rebound and you

start running towards the other end of the court. Your

teammate sees you wide open around mid-court and

passes you the ball. You catch it and start to move to-




wards the basket concentrating on doing it exactly as

you saw on the video analysis and as Michael Jordan

had done, and as you get towards the basket, you start

to jump from 12 feet away just as Jordan had, as you

think about your strides, your knees and your posture

and, and, and ... you don’t even come close to

dunking. You actually don’t even come close to reach-

ing the bottom of the net and you’re in such a funk

– you can’t even get the ball out of your hands to

make an easy layup!

It’s the equivalent of topping it off the 1st tee with

everyone watching.

WHY DIDN’T YOU DUNK?

Why couldn’t you even reach the bottom of the net

this time? You watched what you did wrong on the

video, you watched what Jordan did correct, and you

practiced. Well, in reality - you’re 55 years old, 5 feet

7 inches tall, spend most of your day sitting behind a

desk, spend more time on your Blackberry than you do

on the court, have a bad back and just started playing

basketball about 4 years ago. While Jordan is 6 feet 6

inches tall, has spent 41 of his 44 years devoted to the

game of basketball, is a 6 time MVP and could be the

greatest Athlete ever.

What makes a Golfer think they can improve after

comparing their swing to Tiger’s swing? Or as the bril-

liant marketers of video analysis say “We’ll compare

you to someone who has a similar body type as you”.

What makes you think you can improve after compar-

ing your swing to ANY PGA or LPGA Player, regardless

of their body type or yours for that matter!

To further illustrate this point, you could join the

Spud Webb School of Dunk – Spud Webb was a real

Professional Basketball Player that was 5 feet 6 inches

tall that could dunk a basketball – try to copy Spud’s

dunking movements and still fail. You could be the

same 5 feet 6 inches tall and still not be able to jump

as high as Spud. So having a video comparison with a

PGA Tour Player of similar size is just as ridiculous.

The thought of video analysis helping you to swing

better is absurd. If you’re being compared to Tom Kite

and trying to do the things he’s doing – how’s that

going to help you? Why won’t you hit the golf ball bet-

ter?

Well, even though you’re the same height, weight and

have a similar physique to Tom’s – he’s been playing

golf for 40 something years on a competitive level.

He’s practiced 7 days a week for 8 hours a day over

those years – what makes you think that by watching a

video of his swing next to your swing will allow you to

do the same as his body?

You can practice getting into the same swing positions

as Kite for hours upon hours – yet there are more fac-

tors that go into hitting a golf ball than just positions:

Practicing swing positions has nothing to do with an

improved swing motion – or in other words: you can’t

practice positions and think that it’s equivalent to

swing motion.

Are your golf muscles as trained as Tom’s – he may not

look like an athlete, but his muscles have been condi-

tioned for the last 40 years to work with his swing; are

your golf muscles going to learn to work like Tom’s by

watching a video of his swing.

Tom has hit millions of good shots that has given him




true confidence that he can hit the golf ball well on a

consistent basis – you’ve hit thousands of bad shots

that has had the opposite effect.

WHY AREN’T YOU HEARING THE WHOLE STORY?

You’re not hearing the whole story because video is

supposed to be the greatest thing since off-set Driv-

ers - the Golfer doesn’t want to tell anyone they got

worse out of fear of being scrutinized by other Golf-

ers - because everybody gets better after video, don’t

they? The Golfer is almost ashamed to tell anybody

they got worse, so they make up excuses such as - “It

was really good. I learned a lot. I’m not hitting the

ball better, but it’s probably me – it’s not the Instruc-

tors fault – I just need to practice.”

And guess what happens when you see this same

Golfer 3 months later - what do you think this Golfer is

still saying? Probably the same thing. Or – “Ahh, well

… I’m still working on it. I’m still not there. I feel I’m

getting closer, but I still don’t have it yet. It’s going to

take time.”

Now, what do you think this Golfer is saying 6 moths

later, 12 months later, 4 years later, etc., etc., etc?

VIDEO ANALYSIS IS REALLY A SILLY CONCEpT WHEN IT COMES TO GOLF IMpROVEMENT

Does seeing everything you’re doing wrong in your

golf swing help you to hit the golf ball better? No, it

actually helps you to hit the golf ball worse because

now you’re thinking of everything you’re doing wrong

in your swing, during your swing, on every swing! And

on top of thinking about what you’re doing wrong

– you’re thinking about everything new you need to

do to make a good golf swing.

So now, opposed to thinking less over the golf ball

– you’re thinking of twice as much than you did before

the video. And you know what Thinkers are? “Think-

ers are Stinkers. If you Think – you Stink!”

Video Analysis is the negative approach to improve-

ment. Video Analysis is the ‘I have to get worse before

I get better approach’ – which in reality is: ‘I got worse

and as of yet, have not gotten any better!’

So how is video analysis negative if so many Golf-

ers are trying it? Well, I’m still waiting to hear from a

Golfer that has gotten their swing analyzed and then

improved 6 to 11 strokes. Yet, on the other hand, I’ve

heard from more Golfers than I can remember that

HOW MUCH VIDEO ANALYSIS DO YOU THINK THIS YOUNGSTER NEEDED TO

LEARN HOW TO SWING LIKE THIS?




have had their swing analyzed and have promptly had

their scores get 6 to 11 strokes worse.

Theories and Assumptions (which is the marketing

mumbo jumbo that is used to lure desperate Golfers

to buy golf magazines, watch infomercials and pur-

chase video lessons) say’s that if you get video analysis

– you’ll improve. Though, Results (which is reality)

show that Golfers are getting worse after video analy-

sis. Would you rather depend on ‘Proven Results’ or

‘Theories and Assumptions’ to help you to finally have

a consistent golf swing that will have you feeling more

confident on the golf course?

Now, on the other hand, tell me how Barry B. from

Lexington, Kentucky went from a well above 95 Golfer

(and that included mulligans and gimmes) just three

years ago to a mid 70’s Golfer that just broke par for

the first time by shooting a 71 without the aid of video

analysis.

And the Monkey is now saying – “Well if Barry had had

video analysis, he might’ve improved faster.”

ISN’T 30 OVER pAR TO 1 UNDER pAR IN 3 YEARS FAST ENOUGH?

I believe that you can’t show me proof that video

analysis helps Golfers improve their scores! Yet, I can

show you proof that 1,000’s of Golfers have improved

without video using the GMS Results Based Approach

to learn to ‘Feel’ an improved golf swing.

Show me your handicap card or lead me to your hand-

icap index on the Internet where you can say – “Marc,

as you can see on April 17th I was a 24 handicap when

I got my swing analyzed. Now on September 19th I’m

a 17 handicap.”

On the other hand, I bet there are more than a few

Golfers reading this that can relate to - “Marc, I went

to get my swing analyzed by this Pro and after watch-

ing my swing video and working with my Pro on the

things we saw I was doing wrong, my scores actually

got worse. Much worse. I was a 17 and now I’m a 24.”

We get phone calls like this all the time, in fact one

gentleman went from a 11 handicap to a 27 handi-

cap in 5 months after a series of video lessons, and

when he complained about his results to the pro - he

was told that he shouldn’t yet be playing golf on the

course. In fact he was told that he shouldn’t play for at

least another 2 months and that he should just prac-

tice on the driving range! 7 months practicing on the

range and no time on the golf course? Isn’t that

ridiculous? Ridiculous – but this situation happens

frequently!

DO YOU WANT TO TAKE THE SAME RISK AS THE GOLFER bELOW?




I have a large sum of cash sitting on my desk for some-

one who can show me more Golfers that have gone

from a 24 to 17 using video versus the number of Golf-

ers I can show you that have gotten worse and have

gone from a 17 to a 24 because of video analysis.

ON THE OTHER HAND, THIS IS IMpROVEMENT:

GMS:

Thanks for the fantastic instruction. I am using all the drills and today played with a bunch of golf buddies at Kapolei GC (former site of the LPGA Ladies Hawaiian Open) and shot the round of my life. I was only 1 over par after nine holes. Then continued on to finish at 83. My total was 7 pars and 2 birdies, all legit. I have witnesses! I have already recommended you to about a dozen people; you may be getting busy.

Alan N – Hawaii

See, that’s results. On the other hand – The Monkey

using video as a crutch is hiding behind the excuses

– “It might take some time to see results” – “You need

to get worse before you get better”– “Although my

scores are worse, my swing should be getting better

soon” or the neo-classic – “My scores are worse now,

but I don’t care about better scores, I’m still working

on my golf swing.” Well what’s the point of a better

golf swing other than that it could lead you to better

scores?

Using a Results Based Approach - if your scores haven’t

improved, then you’re not hitting the golf ball any bet-

ter. And if your scores have gotten worse, then your

swing must’ve gotten worse!

The Monkey may say that they felt better about

knowing what they’re doing wrong, but that doesn’t

mean you’ve corrected it. And besides – that’s the

reason that the scorecard only has small boxes on it - it

doesn’t allow you to write in that little box how you

feel about your swing. There’s not enough room in

each box to write - “although my score was a 7, I just

had my swing video analyzed and I’m not quite there

yet, and although I hit some bad shots on this hole, I

did hit some good ones on the driving range before

playing.”

The scorecard and your playing partners don’t care!

All the scorecard wants to know is the number of

strokes you took to get the golf ball into the hole!

And I have thousands of testimonials from Golfers

that have figured this out and are now writing bet-

ter scores on their scorecards, all without using video!

So why have I written this article? Is it because I hate

video analysis? No, I love video analysis and all the

corrections they give you because it just means there

will be more frustrated, confused Golfers seeking help

from GMS.

M o n k e y s a r e v i d e o a d d i c t s

P l a y e r s a r e R e s u l t B a s e d a d d i c t s

Go ahead, be a player!

Marc Solomon – Your Instructor For LifeFounder & president - Golf Made Simple, Inc.


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