This is the first installment of the Student's Guide on How to Translate Information into Progress.
We're going to start by examining the differences between learning golf online and in-person — and, more importantly, the significant similarities.
Looking at the two pictures above, the one on the right should feel familiar to anyone who has been using the website for a while.
The in-person lesson is also recognizable; most of us have been through in-person golf lessons at some point, whether with Chuck or another instructor.
When we start to break down the similarities and differences, we find that in the end it's all about learning and how it takes place.
A student coming into a lesson in either setting is there to achieve learning and improvement.
We've all seen the diagram about the hierarchy of learning and how the brain absorbs new movement patterns.
We've talked about "The Karate Kid" and the 3,000–5,000 repetitions. All this information comes out of The Talent Code.
When it comes to those 3,000–5,000 reps, for many students — whether they're learning golf for the first time or making a swing change — the biggest pitfall comes from repeating movements incorrectly.
That's exactly what we're going to address today.
Knowledge ≠Skill
First of all, don't confuse knowledge with skill. This distinction is critically important.
In an article for the RotarySwing.com community, Chuck once said that the average member of this website knows more about the golf swing than most people swinging a golf club for a living.
We get confirmation of that in a radio interview with Tom Watson, where he said he played his best golf from 1994 onward.
Now, Tom's days of winning majors were behind him by 1994, but he said until that time he never actually understood anything about the mechanics of swinging the golf club.
He just threw Band-Aids at problem areas in his golf swing.
In 1994, Watson finally learned the fundamentals of the swing and says it's been much easier ever since.
That's a remarkable confession from one of the greatest players in the sport — and it's certainly illustrative.
Many players currently at the top — Bubba Watson being the most dramatic example — don't have deep technical knowledge about the golf swing, while many of us with 8–9 handicaps here on RotarySwing.com actually know far more about swing mechanics.
Ultimately, learning golf or making changes to your golf swing comes down to translating that knowledge into performance. For a data-driven look at where your current swing mechanics stand, try a free AI swing analysis that scores your movement patterns objectively.
What Happens During An In Person Golf Lesson?
What is the sequence of events in an in-person golf lesson, and what role does the instructor play? Let's examine the process.
- The student performs a swing (or a swing component) that the instructor has assigned.
- The instructor performs diagnostics.
- The instructor prescribes corrective measures.
- The student follows the instructor's directions.
- The instructor provides adjustments immediately with visual, verbal, and tactile feedback.
This is a key difference between in-person and online golf lessons; the feedback comes immediately.
- The instructor validates that the student is executing correctly.
- The student works on the move individually after the lesson.
- Feedback doesn't come until the next lesson.
That's the paradigm for in-person instruction.
Is it superior to online golf instruction? No — it's simply different. Let's look at the sequence for online learning.
What Happens In Online Golf Lessons?
- The student submits a video of the golf swing or swing component.
- The instructor performs the same diagnostics — it's still a golf swing.
- The instructor prescribes corrective measures.
- The student follows the instructor's directions.
- Here's where the differences emerge: Instead of getting immediate feedback, the student submits a video and the instructor provides adjustments with visual feedback and reference to relevant videos.
In a group environment, feedback arrives within a day, or at most, two. It's not immediate and there's no tactile element, but the student still receives quality feedback.
- At this point, there's an additional loop in online golf instruction. The student needs to submit a video of the adjusted corrective measure.
If an instructor tells you, "Do X or Y" and you go out in your yard and work on X or Y, then the next day or two days later you need to submit a video of that and verify that you're performing it correctly before you go off and groove that new move with thousands of repetitions.
- The instructor validates that the student is doing it correctly.
This may take a couple of iterations over a couple of days, but before you go burn this into your brain with 5,000 repetitions, make sure you're doing it correctly. This is the number one error trap in online learning.
- The student works on the move individually after the lesson.
- Finally, here's a clear advantage of online golf instruction: for what you lose in immediacy, you make up for with feedback on a weekly basis or better. This is not the case with in-person golf lessons unless you're willing to invest significant money.
The differences, then, are that with in-person golf lessons the teacher provides immediate feedback, while in online learning the student is responsible for gathering and soliciting feedback.
Once feedback is in hand, however — once you've been told, "Yes, you're executing this correctly" — the process of learning golf is identical.
You go out and lay that myelin down over your neural connections and progress on your way. To accelerate the feedback loop with real-time AI coaching, check out a free AI golf lesson that evaluates your movement patterns on every single rep.
Prerequisites
There are some important prerequisites for online golf learning.
- First, you absolutely need a decent digital camera. There's no way around it. A tape camera will work, but today's digital cameras are quick and affordable, providing instant feedback that is crucial to the process.
- Swing analysis software is extremely helpful.
- You need to be able to look at yourself on film and be self-critical without being self-destructive. This is essential for productive learning.
- You also need to be able to manage change. We'll be discussing "Real Change" in a future installment of the Student's Guide. For now, just be aware that managing change is an important element of the journey.
Feedback
Chuck has said that he never hits balls without a camera, and that's an excellent rule of thumb.
Even if you weren't learning online, in today's world you really shouldn't enter true practice mode and start working on your golf swing without a camera.
There's an entire section of the website that explains how to set up and use your camera, and a community where you can join a group and get feedback from other members.
Finally, just because you're learning online doesn't mean you should overlook the importance of tactile feedback.
It's an integral part of an in-person golf lesson. Since your online instructor can't provide tactile feedback directly, you have to find alternative ways to get it.
In the photo above, you see Chuck pulling a student's club out to ensure he doesn't drag it inside.
If you're learning golf online, rather than having Chuck stand there you could use a tour stick, put a piece of PVC in the ground to practice your takeaways, or enlist a friend or partner to help out.
It doesn't matter how you do it, but you need to get that tactile feedback, one way or another.
Those are the key differences between online and in-person golf instruction.
Again, the biggest pitfall to avoid is beginning your repetitions to groove a new motion without being absolutely certain you're performing it correctly.
Watch part 2 now to see how you're moving your body in the opposite direction of the pros!
Typical views of students learning golf through in-person (left) and online golf lessons (right)
The Talent Code
Knowledge vs. skill
A digital camera is an essential tool for learning golf online.
You will get online feedback, of course. Be sure to seek out tactile feedback as well.
