Customer Reviews

The 7 Laws of the Golf Swing

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This is far and away the finest golf swing instructional that I have read in a very long time.

First and foremost, this book is very well written. Mr. Bradley covers every aspect of the modern golf swing in a clear, detailed, and very concise manner. He covers each and every facet by explaining what a golfer ought to do, why he ought to do it, and how he can develop the ability to do what he should.

The truly unique feature of this book is the art. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then this book has many, many more thousands of words in it than the number of pages would indicate. I would even dare to claim that many of his pictures are worth far more than a thousand words. Before I bought and read this book, I spent an hour previewing it in the bookstore. What really captured my attention while I was previewing it were the pictures. One in particular was of the author (or model used in this book - I'm not positive that the author is the person posing, though he does resemble the author's picture) in the midst of a backswing. In this particular picture, a laser beam is shooting out of the butt of the club, and the target line extending away from the target is being set aflame by the laser beam. I found the picture aesthetically pleasing, but I also found that the visual was burned into my brain. I used this picture to mentally replace Ben Hogan's "Five Lessons" book's famous visual of the "sheet of glass" resting on the shoulders with the head sticking out, with great success. I honestly like Nick's visual better for checking to ensure that I'm staying on plane during the backswing. It's easier and more reliable for me. After I went home and put to practice some of the visuals I found during my preview, I knew I had to own this book. What's written works. I'm very glad that I bought it.

There are a couple of details about which I do not agree completely with Mr. Bradley. For example, I like Mr. Hogan's right foot position (perpendicular to the target line) better than Mr. Bradley's (~30 degrees flared to the right), but these are details particular to me. I really very much like Mr. Bradley's description and detail of the release. It really allows me to pour on the power when I need to. Swinging the club in this traditional manner is a pure joy for me. I love being able to feel the power gather in the shaft through the downswing. I love the fact that when I stand over the ball and take the club back, I know that the shot won't be uncontrolled. My bad shots have gotten much less bad because of this book.

In the introduction, Mr. Bradley showed me he had my number. He said that he knows quite a few amateurs and professionals who are classic "tinkerers". For those of us who fall into this category, the search never ends for the perfect swing. I've been searching for years. One of the author's goals is to allow players to stop the tinkering and enjoy the game.

Thank you, Mr. Bradley. I don't need to tinker no more.

"It would be great if you could pinpoint the very essence of great timing in the golf swing. However, while improved coaching methods and technologies over the past decade or so have allowed us to achieve a better understanding of what constitutes good swing technique, one favor that remains elusive for many golfers is good timing."

If you have started to think of Golf as your favorite art form, then this book will impress you with its artistic layouts and very professional approach to the game. The entire design of the book is especially intriguing and the pictures literally dissect each motion so you can achieve a perfect swing.

Here are the laws as presented in this book:

The Grip
The Geometry of the Setup
Groundforce Dynamics
Synchronicity
Swing Plane
Firing Into the Ball
Dance with the Target

The author, leading tour coach Nick Bradley has coached winners on the European Tour and he also coaches corporate clients.

I was very intrigued by the artistic elements, like the hands almost melting into the club as if both were united in metal. The entire book is filled with practice pages where you can try to duplicate the swings. Many of the pictures look like X-rays so you can even see what your joints and bones are doing as you swing. It is not "medical" but more artistic.

There are also pictures of a man and the moon, where he is practicing the moon crescent drill so when you visualize a crescent moon it makes it easier to leave the book and go out and actually perform the exercise.

Of all the golf books I've read, this one is my favorite.

~The Rebecca Review

The book has some valuable information on golf swing. I especially like the idea picturing a certain part of the motion with a image. But somehow, there're too many of them, which miss the point a little. One picture is worth a thousand words, what about 200 pictures? This means an overflow of information. I still like this book, but I think novice golfer or people who want to learn from a book should also pick up Ben Hogan's 5 fundamentals first.

I bought 4 highly rated books on the swing from Amazon and after reading the first 3, I could not even hit the ball. I had so much crap running through my head; too many conflicting ideas and things to remember. Each book has validity, but nothing was connecting the whole thing for me. I just quit practicing that day and took a breather. I took out the 4th book that night and slowly started into it. I immediately connected with the material and incredible pictures in the book. I carefully worked on the grip, then my basic stance and posture over the ball. Next day, I hit most of my practice balls well and everything feels good. I am still working my way carefully through the other laws. I want to really get one down before working too much on the next, but I am confinced that this book is the only book anyone needs to improve at this game. Everthing this book teaches feels very natural. Practicing and really honing what I am learning in this book will take some time, but this will be the ONLY book I use from now on.

Superb art-to-photograhic portrayal style is a real eye-opener. Truly takes the words "visual technique" and give them meaning. In addition to almost literally placing your hands on the club, the author's accompanying narrative talks you (and your brain) through the "why's and what-fors" which are so important to installing a dependable, repeatable swing. I also liked the approach of crafting a grip that is right for the individual, as opposed to many "sermon on the mount" techniques you see so often on this subject. Even the non-golfers in the art department are impressed and they aren't impressed with anything! For the price it's an excellent read and permanent addition to the library.

I found the pictures in this book helpfull - they also look pretty cool. Some of the explanations of the optimal body postures are not straightforward and they require a second or a third reading - however this is a compliment since this book is not over-simplifying things - the author makes an effort explaining all the subtilities of golf.

The brilliance of this book is in the fact that it uses pictures to explain the golf swing. As humans we think in pictures anyway and is why words alone are often a waste of time. Bradely also uses words along with the pictures but this only adds to the power those pictures have to emblazen the proper feel into the golf swing. Telling someone to feel that they have a nail driven through both hands to create a great grip is not as lasting as seeing the actual picture.

A very informative book that belongs on the shelf of every golfer, novice or pro. It improved my game enormously!

This is a very well written book and should help anybody who wants to further their golfing skills. The problem is that it is dealing with a very complicated subject. There is only one good golf swing in the whole world and that is the one that works for you. If a golf instruction book happens to fit your profile then you are in luck. I personally have 967 different swings and I never know who's going to show up. I find many more benefits in playing golf than just the score. If one associates the quality of their life with their golf score then either they don't understand golf or don't understand life but one of them is amiss.

I am not one to write reviews; however, this book is the exception. Without a doubt it is the best and easiest book to understand all the aspects of the golf swing. The material was presented in a manner that I could actually "see" in my minds eye what I needed to do to correct my mistakes. My comfort level with the game, ability to correct mistakes as the creep back have all improved during the last month since reading this book. This one I will read the start of every season, and would highly recommend this anyone who would like to improve their golf swing from the ground up.