GEOFFREY FINK GOLF INSTRUCTION

Fundamental golf instruction since 1983

There is the truth in life, and there is the lie.
The truth in life is man’s soul and the Spirit (the Spirit of GOD) that dwells within it.
The lie in life is the feelings and comfort of man’s physical body,

There is also a truth and a lie in golf.
The truth in golf is the fundamentals, for it is through the application and development of the fundamentals that a golfer aligns their golf game with their soul (and the Spirit that dwells within it), the benefit of which is the continual development of their golf game in the passage of time, which is a natural consequence of the eternal quality that their soul (and the Spirit) is endowed with.

The lie in golf, as with the lie in life, is the feelings and comfort of man’s physical body.
The golfer who aligns their golf game with the feelings and comfort of their physical body aligns their golf game with the limitations of their physical body, which includes its natural decline (which begins at thirty-five years of age), the result of which is the deterioration of their golf game (and injuries) in the passage of time.

Geoff is an independent golf instructor; that is, he does not follow trends (trends come and go, as do those who follow them) or the doctrine of golf’s governing bodies. 

All of Geoff’s golf instruction is built on the fundamentals that have served golfers well (including golf’s best players) for over four hundred years – the fundamentals never change; that’s what makes them fundamentals. The fundamentals are like well-driven nails that provide a golfer with a solid foundation upon which to continually develop their golf game. The fundamentals are the rock upon which a golfer’s golf game will stand – “and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.” Mathew 7:25

There are three unique aspects of Geoff’s golf instruction, the first of which is that it can be taught indoors without the golfer hitting a single golf ball. This, in fact, is the best way to learn, for it aligns the fundamentals with the golfer’s thinking (a thought can be maintained throughout an entire lifetime), which is the key to creating consistency, which is the first step in becoming the best golfer one can be – the striking and flight of a golf ball during a session of golf instruction tends to distract the golfer from the fundamentals they’ve been taught; that is, a poor golf shot creates doubts, while a good golf shot creates a sense of euphoria within the golfer that might cause them to think that they’ve mastered golf, or are on the verge of doing so. 

The second unique aspect of Geoff’s golf instruction is that it has a beginning and an end. This is a natural consequence of teaching only the five fundamentals that apply to all golf shots. The golfer who is prepared to build their golf game on their thinking (and has a good memory) needs only five one hour sessions to learn the fundamentals of all golf shots.

The third unique aspect of Geoff’s golf instruction is that he sees golf as an entity in its own right (a kind of ‘god’ to all golfers) that a golfer can, through the application and development of the fundamentals, make use of. The golfer who makes use of the entity takes their golf game beyond the limitations of their physical body and into the soul level of their being, within which there are no, or at least far fewer, limitations.  

THE LEARNING FUNDAMENTAL

An essential part in a golfer’s endeavour to become the best golfer they can be is the learning fundamental. The learning fundamental, which has been in existence for centuries and is still relevant today, consists of knowledge, practise, and perseverance.

A golfer’s first step in becoming the best golfer they can be is to obtain a knowledge of the fundamentals, and the best and fastest way to obtain that knowledge is to be taught.

The practise element of the learning fundamental develops the fundamentals and conditions the golfer’s physical body. 

The perseverance element of the learning fundamental is important. It is particularly important for those golfers who have played golf for many years without the fundamentals. It is these golfers who tend to encounter challenges and difficulties when they begin to apply the fundamentals, and it is their perseverance that sees them through those challenges and difficulties. 

THE GOLF INSTRUCTION

Geoff, who is based in Melbourne, Australia, conducts individual golf instruction and beginner clinics throughout Australia and abroad (conditions apply to golf instruction conducted outside the Melbourne Metropolitan area). 

The individual golf instruction, which is available in one or two hour sessions, is conducted at the driving range, in one’s office, or at a park.*

1 hour: $70.00, plus expenses (green fees, range balls, etc).

2 hours: $120.00 plus expenses (green fees, range balls, etc).

*The golf instruction conducted in one’s office or at a park does not involve hitting golf balls. 

Those who have a golf net in their office can hit golf balls during their session.

The beginner clinic, which is a two hour session conducted indoors, is for golfers who are new to golf. The beginner clinic covers the five fundamentals of all full golf shots. 

$35.00 per student, per clinic, based on a minimum of ten golfers per clinic.

A second beginner clinic, which is also a two hour session conducted indoors, is available for those golfers who have completed the first beginner clinic. 

The second beginner clinic covers the fundamentals of the five essential short-game shots.

$35.00 per student, per clinic, based on a minimum of ten golfers per clinic.

The beginner clinic format can also be used by corporations and large businesses to develop camaraderie between their members of staff, and as a means of stimulating their thinking.

Geoff began teaching golf in 1983 and is still teaching today.

Geoff has taught golf at Elsternwick Park Golf Course, at Huntingdale Golf Club, and at several golf driving ranges around Melbourne. Geoff has also taught golf abroad, which includes one year in Sri Lanka as Head Professional of Royal Colombo Golf Club, and three years in Singapore as Head Teaching Professional of Fairway Country Club and Ryder Golf School. Geoff also spent six months on Queensland’s ‘Troppo Tour’ (1996), and the experience gained on that tour added a valuable dimension to his golf instruction. 

BOOKINGS

To make a booking, email: golf@geoffreyfink.com.au

The following article, aside from alerting golfers to the challenges they’re facing at this time, is an example of the thinking behind Geoff’s golf instruction.

GOLF TODAY
by
Geoffrey Fink

This article, which comes in two parts, looks at golf equipment (the driver in particular) and golf instruction today.

GOLF EQUIPMENT

The driver of today, as with all other golf clubs, consists of three main components, which are the head, the shaft, and the grip. There has been significant change in the design of these components over the last forty years, the head and shaft in particular. It is these changes that have created several problems for the golfer of today, and a look at the history and evolution of the components of the driver throughout the four hundred and fifty years that the game of golf (as it is now) has been played, reveals why those changes are a problem.

The driver head of the past was made of wood and came in two forms. There was a driver head made from persimmon wood and another made from laminated wood. These driver heads, when sat on the ground, naturally sat in an open position. This made it necessary for the golfer to turn the driver head on to its front edge to make the club face square. The golfers who did this were aware of the importance of correct alignment (the centrepiece of every good golf shot) when playing a golf shot. That, though, in the evolution of the driver head, has changed. The driver head of today is almost twice the size of the wooden-headed drivers of the past. This was made possible by using various metals that allowed the driver head to be manufactured hollow, thus reducing the weight of the driver head.

The first stainless steel driver heads to be manufactured were quite a success, and it was on account of that success that the manufacturer began to manufacture larger driver heads. It was found, however, that the face of the stainless steel driver head collapsed when the size of the head exceeded two hundred and sixty cubic centimetres (cc), and it was then that Titanium, which is a light and strong material, was introduced. 

The lightness and strength of Titanium has allowed the manufacturer to manufacture driver heads of four hundred cc and more. There was, however, a problem associated with the increase in the size of the Titanium driver head. This was revealed in the flight of the golf ball which flew off to the right of the target selected (right-hand golfer), and sometimes well off to the right. The reason for this was the club face opening during the downswing, which was a natural consequence of the extra resistance created by the larger driver head.

The manufacturer countered this by manufacturing the club face of the driver head one to two degrees closed. This solved the problem of the golf ball flying off to the right of target when tested on a machine – the closed club face squared up at the point of the strike, which resulted in accurate drives. The machine, however, does have within it the ‘self-correcting mechanism’ that’s within a golfer. The self-correcting mechanism, which operates on a subconscious level, is activated when a fault is detected (through the golfer’s eyes) within one or all three parts of the set-up. 

The closed club face of the driver head, which the golfer sees every time they use their driver (even though most are not conscious of it), activates the mechanism, which alerts the parts of the golfer’s body that are required to counter the closed club face during the golf swing. The countering of the closed club face, however, which usually occurs during the downswing part of the golf swing, defeats the purpose of the manufacturer manufacturing the club face closed and results in an open club face at the point of the strike, which results in the golf ball flying off to the right of the target (right-hand golfer). 

The closed club face of the driver head has, for many modern golfers, made driving the golf ball a lottery.

The length of the driver shaft is also a problem for the golfer of today.

The first golf shafts to be used were made of wood (hickory). These shafts had a considerable amount of torque, which caused the shaft to twist several degrees throughout the golf swing. It was the torque in the hickory shaft that brought into being the ‘keep the right elbow close to the right side of the torso (right-hand golfer) throughout the backswing and roll the hands as they approach and enter the striking area’ golf swing technique.

Then came the steel shaft, which is without doubt the greatest innovation in the history of golf equipment. 

The steel shaft has minimal torque. This provides a golfer with the opportunity to create greater extension in the backswing, which increases the golf swing circumference, which creates longer golf shots without sacrificing direction. The minimal torque in the steel shaft also made the golf swing technique associated with the hickory shaft redundant. It is interesting to note that the steel shaft is still used today in many iron sets, which supports the claim that the steel shaft is the greatest innovation in the history of golf clubs.

 

Following the steel shaft was the graphite shaft, which is considerably lighter than the steel shaft. The first graphite driver shafts to be manufactured had a considerable amount of torque, which resulted in many wayward drives for the golfers who used them. That torque has been reduced to the point that it’s minimal in the better quality graphite shafts of today. 

The lightness of the graphite shaft (and the reduced torque) made it possible to increase the length of the driver out to forty-six inches and more – the standard length of the steel shaft driver was forty-three inches, which is important in regard to what follows. 

The extra length of a shaft, as mentioned above, increases the golf swing circumference, which generates greater distance. There is, however, a problem associated with using a shaft in excess of forty-three inches in length. This is revealed in the ‘flattening’ of the golf swing plane as it approaches the top of the backswing, the result of which is a golf swing plane that’s not uniform with the golf swing planes of the shorter golf clubs in the set. The flattening of the golf swing plane as it approaches the top of the backswing creates the need for a correction to take place during the golf swing. That correction, however, creates an inconsistent golf swing, which creates an inconsistent golf game.

The flattening of the golf swing plane as it approaches the top of the backswing is a problem that few golfers will overcome, the proof of which is revealed in the many wayward drives that even the finest tournament golfers hit.

The forty-three inch shaft length is a threshold, for it is up to that point that the golf swing plane is uniform with the golf swing planes of the shorter shafted golf clubs in the set, and the three metal wood of today supports this. The standard length of the three metal wood shaft is forty-three inches, and the size of the club head is similar to the wooden-headed drivers of the past (and can therefore be manufactured square), and it is on account of these two things that a golfer has no trouble hitting the fairway with their three metal wood.

The forty-three inch shaft threshold was established by the golfers of the distant past through trial and error and remained a standard for several hundred years. It was these golfers of the past who had no trouble hitting the fairway with their driver. It is only in the last forty years, since the length of the driver shaft has been extended beyond forty-three inches (and the club face of the driver head closed), that golfers have had difficulty hitting the fairway with their driver.

The increase in the size of the driver head and the length of the shaft is a result of the basic and natural desire of man to have ‘more’, which, in the case of the driver, is more distance. There is, however, more to the game of golf than distance. The game of golf consists of driving the golf ball from the teeing ground on to the fairway, then hitting it on to the putting green, and then putting it into the hole. The best golfer on the day is the one who does this in the fewest shots. It’s not the golfer who hits their golf ball further than the other golfers. 

The use of Midsize and Jumbo grips on the driver (and the other golf clubs in the set) creates another problem for the golfer of today. The Midsize and Jumbo grips create a ‘palm grip’, which creates a shoulder rotation during the downswing. This results in swinging the golf club across the target line as it comes into and through the striking area, which makes consistent good golf impossible.

The standard size grip creates a ‘finger grip’, which activates the lower parts of a golfer’s body (predominantly the legs), through which distance is generated without a loss of direction. Gripping in the fingers also creates the ‘flailing effect’ that works in conjunction with the legs.

The golfers who use Midsize and Jumbo grips will fail to activate their legs and the flailing effect, and it’s these golfers who will be frustrated (and tired) at the end of their round of golf, which, in reality, they’ve carried around on their shoulders.

GOLF INSTRUCTION

The golfer of today, in their desire to subject their golf game and golf technique to the feelings and comfort of their physical body, have brought golf instruction and their golf game to ruin. It is on account of their desire to subject their golf game and golf technique to the feelings and comfort of their physical body that golf’s governing bodies and the golf instructor of today have responded with techniques that cater for the golfer’s feelings and comfort (the trend is your friend as is said in option trading). That, however, has resulted in sacrificing the fundamentals that lead to excellence. The use of technology has also played a significant part in satisfying the golfer’s feelings and comfort, which relates to the same vanity as that associated with looking at one’s self in a mirror.

The golfers who subject their golf game and golf technique to the feelings and comfort of their physical body (and technology) create ‘strings’ that attach them to the many outside influences that exist, both those that are visible and those that are not, and it is these golfers who will always be frustrated and dissatisfied with their golf game.

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Scripture taken from the New King James Version. 
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