Hitting At or Swinging Through the ball

Over the years, I've learned to separate the concept of learning the golf swing from learning to strike the ball.  One of my favorite sayings comes from my friend, Mat Blair who teaches in LaPorte, IN.  He told me he never wants to see his students "hitting balls".  What he means by this is that the ball should get in the way of the swinging club-head.  So, it is important to swing "through" the ball all the way to a balanced finish over the left leg.
This is why I emphasize that a golfer works on the new motion without a ball.  Working without a golf ball accomplishes several goals. 

1. The golfer will be able to make the new motion a habit provided the action is repeated daily for three weeks (21 days in a row)
2. The golfer will be developing the muscles used in the new motion
3. When working on a new motion and hitting balls together, adjustments are made for ball flight that may not allow the new motion to develop properly.
4. The drills can be done at home, without having to go out to the practice range.

If they then move to the practice range, I would like to see them work on the motion for three to five times without a ball, and then do the same motion with a ball, always making sure they swing to a full finish.

Over the next coming blogs, I will continue to talk about golf philosophy and start talking about components of the golf swing.