Five Fundamentals: Steve Elkington Reveals the Secrets of the Best Swing in Golf [Hardcover]

Steve Elkington (Author), Curt Sampson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 20, 1998

If you've watched PGA champion Steve Elkington play golf, you know what the perfect swing looks like in action: an elegant, apparently effortless stroke with stunningly accurate force. Now in this instructive book, Elkington shares the techniques and strategies behind that trademark swing, which his colleagues have named Best on Tour five years running. The secret is mastering the Five Fundamentals--the grip, the setup, the backswing, the downswing, and tempo.

"My aim is to provide a benchmark, a basis on which any player can build his own, authentic swing," Elkington writes. "I won't discuss faults or fixes. Golf is a series of linked fundamentals; let's eliminate your faults from the moment you pick up the club."

Applying the "flicker" or "flip book" technique in swing sequences with the driver, six-iron, and sand wedge, Five Fundamentals shows the rhythm and balance of Elkington's motion better than any still photograph could convey. Combining these swing sequences with lively text, breezy personal anecdotes, and special sections addressed to the advanced player, Elkington takes you step-by-step through the five fundamentals, providing a program to improve your game notably.

Practical, straightforward, and specific, Five Fundamentals uncovers profound and often unexpected insights from the owner of the best swing in golf. It's destined to become a fundamental part of every golfer's library.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Ask any foursome of professional golfers who possesses the most sound swing on tour, and the response will be a gimme: Australian Steve Elkington. In Fundamentals, the PGA champ tees up his secrets, breaking down the essentials into pretty much the same pentathlon--grip, set-up, backswing, downswing, and tempo--as the great Ben Hogan did in his '50s classic, Five Lessons.

Elkington's style is anecdotal, personal, conversational, and friendly; he talks you through his methods and thinking, with an emphasis on getting things right from the start rather than fixing faults acquired along the way. Throughout, he offers particular tips for advanced players, and he ends with useful advice on equipment, a section geared specifically to shoring up the short game, and an excellent series of exercises geared to keep golfing muscles loose and limber. Where Five Fundamentals really scores is in its ability to show as well as tell. It is peppered with helpful still photographs. Better yet, the top and bottom corners of the pages use the old flicker technique; flip them quickly and you'll be able to see Elk's sweet swing in action whacking a driver, a six-iron, and a wedge from the sand. In his hands, it looks so easy; the challenge is making yours look the same. --Jeff Silverman

About the Author

Steve Elkington has won the best and biggest tournaments in golf: the NCAA (twice, with the University of Houston); the Tournament of Champions (twice); the Players Championship (again, twice); and the PGA Championship. In 1995 he won the Vardon Trophy for lowest stroke average on the Tour, averaging 69.62 for the entire year.

Coauthor Curt Sampson, himself a former club and touring professional, has written five other books, including Hogan and The Masters.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 174 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; 1st edition (October 20, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345421523
• ISBN-13: 978-0345421524
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #925,262 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clear and concise golf instruction in its simplest form, May 19, 1999

By 

David Garland ([e-mail]) (Scarborough, Maine) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Five Fundamentals: Steve Elkington Reveals the Secrets of the Best Swing in Golf (Hardcover)

Steve Elkington provides all that is needed as a foundation for an effective and efficient golf swing. I have read many instuctional books which(unfortunately) present an overabundance of techniques or concepts ... so much that they lose their focus on what is being presented as the key concepts or fundamentals for an effective swing. Elkington has narrowed these key points to 5. And, from early personal experience, these 5 keys or fundamentals are "right on". Of course, they can't be learned or ingrained overnight. Patience will be required, but Steve Elkington is "proof-positive" that they are effective.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars intelligent golf, October 24, 2000

By 

"ckill2015" (galvesston, tx United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Five Fundamentals: Steve Elkington Reveals the Secrets of the Best Swing in Golf (Hardcover)

Steve Elkington is not only a marvelous golfer but he is an accomplished horticulturist and a great family man. His approach to the golf game is one of extreme intelligence. He can improve a golfer's game tremendously if they follow his advice on the fundamentals outlined in this book. I only wish I had read this book 40 years ago! Now he needs to write a book on "course management".

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great golf instruction book., February 2, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Five Fundamentals: Steve Elkington Reveals the Secrets of the Best Swing in Golf (Hardcover)

Elkington's casual, down-to-earth style and simple way of explaining his technically perfect swing, make this the best instruction book I have read. Nick Faldo's "A Swing For Life" and David Leadbetter's "The Golf Swing" both describe slightly different variations of the modern swing. However, their overly complex explantions (especially Leadbetter) left me overloaded with swing thoughts. Elkington is a likeable guy and I enjoyed reading the sections about his rise to the top of golf, even though I bought the book for instruction. Avid students of the game, will probably not find any new, earth-shattering advice or theories. But for those of us who would like to pare down our sources of golf instruction (i.e., Golf Magazine, 20 other books, advice from anybody who has ever picked up a club,etc.) this book offers a solution. I think you will become a fan or a bigger fan of Elkington as well.