Learn golf as you would a martial art

As someone who has competed at a reasonably high level in golf and who once trained for a fairly long time in kung fu, I’ve always drawn similarities between the two activities.

To compete at the highest levels in both activities, you must develop advanced skills.

However, before you ever get there, you have to learn the basics and practice them relentlessly.

This is where most golfers fail and why they never become very good.

Consider these similarities…

In martial arts such as kung fu and karate, you first learn basic stances from which you train your basic skills.

The most basic stance is the horse stance. In beginner classes, you will practice all of your striking and blocking techniques from this basic stance.

Eventually, as you advance in your training, you learn a basic fighting stance from which you will learn to deliver all of your striking and kicking techniques, and sometimes with footwork involved.

As you advance in your training, you will eventually train with weapons, such as a sword or bo staff.

In golf, you learn basic set ups for putting, chipping and the full swing.

Putting involves the smallest, most basic movement, while hitting a driver involves a very complex movement pattern that requires timing and precision.

In between, you learn smaller movements involving chip shots and pitch shots.

These must be practiced religiously so that you learn to understand proper impact and how to control trajectory and distance with these shots.

If you do not develop those very basic skills, you will never find success on the golf course.

So what is my point?

Most golfers never take the time to develop or master any particular golf skill.

Instead, they are constantly in search of golf tips, new golf training aids, or they are constantly getting golf lessons.

I recently read a post on social media by one golfer who is a 3 handicap that stated he has received hundreds of golf lessons in his golf life.

I think that is crazy. That is a ton of money spent just to be a 3 handicap.

This is a golfer who is just searching for the latest quick fix and appears to be unwilling to put in the legitimate work necessary to make long term improvement.

Unfortunately, in my experience as an instructor, this is exactly what most golfers want out of a lesson… a quick fix or cue that helps them get out of a rut.

Eventually, that quick fix stops working because the golfer falls back to their old swing flaws.

And I see this all the time on social media.

A pro posts a video providing a tip during a lesson, and someone posts that they are going to try that tip with their own swing.

So here is my “tip” for 2026…

Over the next month or two, pick one golf skill to master.

If you are in the heart of winter, then perhaps work on mastering a repeatable, effective putting stroke that allows you to make all your putts inside of four feet.

When Spring rolls around, choose another skill to master.

If you are looking for a system for becoming a good golfer, check out my Golf Do Shugyo training program.

Now, get to work!