Based on Teach Yourself VISUALLY Golf, this drill is built around one idea: if you can see the correct positions, your body learns them faster. Instead of chasing swing thoughts, you’ll train three visual checkpoints that clean up setup, contact, and scoring shots.

Purpose:
Build a repeatable swing and short game by locking in correct visuals at setup, impact, and finish.

Before every shot, freeze for three seconds at address.

If it doesn’t look athletic, reset.

Make half swings and pause just after impact.

You’re training your eyes to recognize solid contact before worrying about speed.

Alternate five chips and five pitches.

If trajectory doesn’t match intent, exaggerate the finish until it does.

Place a range bucket just outside your lead foot. Miss the bucket on the downswing to eliminate an outside-in slice path.

This drill removes guesswork. By training your eyes to recognize correct positions, your body organizes itself naturally. Less thinking, better contact, lower scores.

One of the most persistent myths in amateur golf is the idea that bad shots happen because you “lifted your head.” According to You’re NOT Lifting Your Head by Charlie King, that belief does more harm than good.

King’s central argument is simple but powerful: golfers don’t struggle because their eyes leave the ball, they struggle because they misunderstand cause and effect. When contact is poor, the head often moves as a reaction to a flawed swing, not the other way around. Treating the head as the problem leads golfers to freeze up, restrict rotation, and pile tension onto an already inefficient motion.

What makes King’s approach different is how he teaches this idea. Instead of technical jargon, the book unfolds as a story. Two frustrated golfers represent common misconceptions, while a seasoned instructor character models what good teaching actually looks like. Through their interactions, King shows how real improvement starts with correct concepts, not swing clichés shouted from the cart path.

The philosophy behind the book grew out of King’s own frustrations as a young player who struggled to find quality instruction. After training and teaching at elite academies, he concluded that most golfers fail not because their swings are broken, but because their learning process is. His solution emphasizes structured improvement: evaluation, long-term planning, concept-based learning, and consistent habit formation.

The key takeaway is liberating. Slices, tops, and thin shots aren’t mysteries, and they aren’t cured by “keeping your head down.” They’re patterns that can be fixed when golfers stop self-diagnosing and start understanding how the swing actually works.

Alignment sticks are the simplest way to turn visual checkpoints into physical ones.

How to use them with this issue

Why it works:
They don’t fix your swing—they expose it. That’s exactly the theme of this issue.

A compact mirror (or your phone camera) placed at hand height gives instant visual confirmation.

Best uses

Key benefit:
It reinforces Charlie King’s core idea—head movement is an effect, not the cause. You’ll see that clearly on video.

If the goal is fewer swing thoughts and better awareness, skip gadgets that promise fixes.
Alignment sticks + a mirror turn The Drill into reality and support The Tip’s biggest message:

If you want, next issue’s Gear can step up to impact feedback tools or launch-monitor-lite options that still respect this low-noise, high-signal approach.

Check price on Amazon (affiliate link).