Are you planning to buy golf training aides? But do these aides really work?

People need to recognize that things are not one size fits all. With motor skill acquisition, different people learn differently. Some learn by feeling and others by verbal instruction. And some verbal learns prefer mechanical language: "wrist hinge angle should be 90 degrees at the top". And others learn better through metaphorical instruction: "think tempo, like a rocking chair".

To play golf, you need to learn what kind of learner you are than trying to master swinging with golf training aides. But this is not easy since swinging is an ever developing puzzle, made up of many hinges and moving parts. And it is also based on fickle geometry and prone to domino effect: a few degrees of difference in posture can lead to a chain of unanticipated problems. So it is better if you understand the swing motion comprehensively to have more options in your problem solving arsenal when things go wrong.

Golf training aides can be a fantastic tool for establishing and checking the foundational elements of the swing like grip, stance, posture and ball position. But people have to recognize that there is a difference between an aide and a crutch. To become a better player, you need to be able to sense the position of your limbs yourself; feel where your weight is shifting and judge the sound at impact to help you determine when you did something wrong and find ways to correct it unlike if you get used to aides to think for you.

When the mind plays an active role in figuring out how to perform, this can lead to acquiring and retaining skills better. You should be cautious of aides that promises muscle memory because muscles can’t be trained through repetitive motion. It is a fact that the neurons in the brain tell the muscles what to do. And when people practice, certain neurons will get used to working together and unless the golfer is cognitively engaged, he or she can not learn. Using a training aid and plow through a bucket of balls is similar to you saying a phone number repeatedly then dial it and forget the digits immediately. A training aide cannot do the learning for you, you have to do the learning yourself.

A training aide’s purpose is to let a golfer capture a certain feel. However, too often people buy aides before they even figure out which one is applicable to their flaw. The result and the problem aren’t always clearly linked. People have to bear in mind that aides are great as supplements but should not replaced actual instructions. Remember that no matter what you’re trying to learn, the more ways the information can be presented to you, the greater the possibility for your long term memory to store it. Physical teaching tools have merit but they can be harmful as well. Thus, you should use aides for a short time, then practice without them.