The camera on your phone can be a great tool to improve your movement, but you need to film from the right angles.
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Welcome to Play Smarta regular GOLF.com game improvement column that will help you play smarter and better golf.
When I recently went to visit with GOLF Top 100 Teachers Jonathan Yarwood, we got into the subject of training aids. There are products that claim to fix almost every ailment in your movement, but with so many options it can be hard to know what works best.
Like any teacher, JY has a few products that she likes and uses when she teaches. But the best game-improvement tool, he says, is in your pocket.
“Your phone is the best training aid you have,” he tells me.
With the camera on your phone, you can learn a lot about your swing – and find ways to improve it. But if you want to get the most out of your motion capture, you need to know how to do it correctly.
How to film your swing
Filming your swing is a great way to diagnose faults, but if you do it wrong, it can do more harm than good. How is this case? It all comes down to the angle you shoot from.
“Make sure you frame it properly,” says Yarwood.
When filming from below the line, you must hold the camera in line with your hands. Some people will also film with the line of the ball (or your butt line), but when you do that, it makes it difficult to see the club in certain positions during the swing.
Jonathan Yarwood
The same general rule applies when filming from the angle of the face. Once again you want to hold the camera at the height of your hands at address and you want to be directly in front of your subject at a 90 degree angle.
In terms of framing, make sure you can see your feet and the ball at the bottom of the frame. You also want to leave enough space at the top of the frame so you can see the entirety of the club and arms once you reach the top of the swing.
“Film it at full speed, but only edit it on the fly,” says Yarwood. “Frame it well and then you can study what’s wrong with your swing.”
