Customer Reviews

Swing Like a Pro

5 star:		(53)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Swing Like a Pro does an excellent job of explaining the teaching system Dr. Mann created and that has been used for many years at the golf school where co-author Fred Griffin teaches. As a former student at that school (whose handicap has dropped from 11 to 5 since attending)I read the book as someone who already believed in the value of their research. After some interesting and easy to read background information from the two authors the serious work begins. Readers have to be prepared to focus on a detailed examination of the mechanics of every aspect of the golf swing. As a result, this book is not a simple or relaxing read. It also needs to be read when you can get up periodically and take a few swings with a real club (don't buy this to read on an airplane!).

For the serious golfer (and probably for golf teachers as well) the information provided here is great. So many things that I have been told by various teachers over the years became understandable as I made my way through the book. I needed every evening for a week to get through it all along with a few trips to my local driving range. There has not been time to apply all that I have learned on the course yet but so far it has brought me to a new level of understanding of what a good golf swing is all about.

After playing a few rounds I will send in an update to indicate how much this book actually helped. In the meantime, it is an excellent but very detailed explaination of a teaching system that has worked for me and a number of others that have gone to one of the CompuSport schools on my recomendation.

i have been a serious student of the game for 26 years. i have read most every classic golf instruction book and taken many lessons over the years. this is the most helpful golf book i have ever read. it has put all the pieces together in a way that finally makes perfect sense. it is a pleasure to feel such confidence and conviction as i practice what i have learned. i have asked difficult questions of top players and teachers over the years and until now could not get satifactory answers. the value of this book lies in the author's ability to help a reader understand why some swing mechanics are truly important, and (just as important) why many other classic instruction points are unimportant or dead wrong. the book is based on measurable scientific fact and conclusion, not opinion. i think this book will become the classic golf instruction book of our time. enjoy!

If I had to recommend one book on the golf swing, this would be it hands down. I've read most of what's out there, and this is the first one that explains the mechanics of the transition and downswing in a manner that is both detailed and understandable (I can't agree with Amazon's reviewer who calls this "technically complex" and "dry"--and I'm a high handicapper who has only been playing for a few years). In fact, the crowning achievement of the book is that it takes somewhat technical material on the golf swing, from start to finish, and makes it easy to understand. The illustrations and drills are excellent, also. I have also purchased the CD-Rom, which can be found on Compusport's website, and it is an excellent product as well, featuring many informative animations. I could have saved a lot of money on golf books if this one had come out earlier. If you are seriously interested in understanding and improving your swing, you won't find a better place to start than here! By the way, the first couple of reviews posted at this site give excellent descriptions of the book--I won't attempt to improve on them (be sure and read them at the bottom of the list of reviews).

My wife recently asked "how many golf books do you own, can there be that many ways to swing a golf club?" My answer after reading this book is this is the last golf book I'll ever buy, at least on the full swing. The information in this book has helped me to improve my game dramatically. I am hitting all my clubs twenty to thirty yards longer and straighter. I used to hit my 7 iron 135 yards and I'm now hitting it 155 to 160 yards. Since taking up the game four years ago, I have taken lessons and read as many books as possible on the full swing. The information presented by this book has demistified the grip, setup and most importantly the transition into the downswing. I've reduced my score at least 10 shots per round in the last three months. The information is presented in a crisp manner with lots of diagrams. Follow the drills and you will see a huge difference in the quality of your shots. Combine this with Dave Pelz's book on the short game and you should see a dramatic overall improvement in your game.

This Book beats anything I have ever read on the "secrets" of the golf swing. I found that the book, while a bit technical, explained the golf swing in plain jargonless language. It demistified the swing immensely. The paragraph on the transition from backswing to downswing was, for me, the highlight of the book. Sometimes so much mystery is connected with transition by golf instructors that the average golf has trouble comprehending it. Yet this book clarifies the concept, and gives excellent exercises to ingrain the mechanics of transition. Using its methods increased my accuracy and distance. Whereas I used to hit my pitching wedge 100 yards, I can now coax 120 yards out of it. My distance with other clubs increased as well. I am a high handicapper, 60 years old, and 5'6" tall. If this book can help me it can help anyone. Although I found the exercises to be generally helpful, I thought some of the explanatory text to be lacking in detail. Larry Yuzda Calgary Canada

Best golf book on the market. I not only bought the book but also the screen saver and the complete program. Not a quick fix. Do the drills and you will improve. Use the teaching shaft. They have also set up a new web site at modelgolf.com. A complete program is now available. Most of what we read about golf is what the instructer feels is happening, not what is actually happen. Last summer stayed in the mid to low 70"s. If you are willing to work to improve you swing this will help you. Most important part of the swing is the set up and movememt to the top. Would not have believed how important this is.

The swing presented in this book is based on an in-depth, scientific analysis of the swings of over 100 PGA, Senior PGA and LPGA tour players. Of course, no two swings were exactly alike. However, this book stresses the common traits present in the majority of the swings and combines them into the "ideal" swing of the Pro.

I noticed right off the bat that Tiger Woods was not on the list. However, the authors of the book have gone back since the writing of this book and compared Tiger's swing to that of the Pro. As it turns out, his swing is closer to that of the Pro than any other swing they have analyzed. Maybe that explains why he is the #1 golfer in the world.

I've read many books on the full swing written by people like Jack Nicklaus, David Leadbetter, Jim McLean, Ben Hogan, Curtis Strange and Greg Norman. This book breaks the swing down into its basic elements with easy to understand text and detailed pictures better than any other book I've read. It also identifies common faults that can occur during each stage of the swing and provides drills to eliminate these faults.

To supplement the information in the book, I highly recommend purchasing the Screen Saver at the ModelGolf web site. It shows the swing of the Pro in motion from several angles with the driver, 2 iron, 5 iron and 9 iron. It's one thing to read about the swing and look at pictures but if you really want to take it to the next level, there's nothing like watching the Pro's perfect swing over and over at full speed, in slow motion or frame-by-frame. If you want to see the Pro swing before you purchase either the book or the Screen Saver, you can download a free version of the Screen Saver from the web site that contains two sample swings.

Don't expect to read this book to find the magic cure to fix your swing. Rather than providing quick tips to fix the "symptoms" of a poor swing, this book provides a framework to rebuild your swing from the ground up based on proper mechanics. To really benefit from this book, expect to expend a lot of time and energy.

Swing like a Pro is an excellent read and a technical swing reference! I'm glad someone used biomechnics to finally unlock the perfect swing. Unfortunately, to swing like a pro, I agree with the authors that you may have to spend six or more hours a week working on the chapter's drills with your clubs, a practice golf shaft and metronome. For professionals like myself, I don't have that kind of time to build a game. In addition to the practice shaft and metronome, I recommend a net and practice mat to work on the drills. You'll go broke if you try the drills at a golf range.

I am a golf teaching professional specializing in golf swing mechanics. I hane done more than ten thousand lessons and can honestly say that I have never before read such a magnificent manual about the golf swing. If I could have my way, every golfer, new or experienced, young and not so young would be required to have this masterpiece.

I have to admit, I'm a golf instructional junkie. I used to read real books and for the last couple years every book I've read has the words "golf" or "swing" in the title.
There are weaknesses with this book. It doesn't cover the short game, or even really address full wedge shots. It's main concern is full swings from the driver to short irons and it does so unapologetically. Most of the ideas are not revolutionary. The primary one that is revolutionary is ball position. The only other book I've ever read that endorses the ball forward position this one does is Nick Price's from a few years back. I never tried Price's advice but this time around I listened and now I wouldn't have it any other way.
I'm not going to say something ridiculous like I read this and my handicap dropped 10 strokes and I'm regularly hitting the ball 300yds. I also don't believe that this book is for everyone. For me, this stuff meant something and it has made a difference. I am hitting the ball straighter, farther, with more consistency than I ever have after internalizing the ideas here. I also never did one of the drills, although I practice full swings in front of a mirror.
My last outing was with a friend who I hadn't been golfing with in a year. He was blown away at my improvement and most of that has been within the last two months since I read this. I think anyone of some ability whose been at it awhile and stagnated owes this book a read.