Getting back to basics is something every golfer needs, whether you’re a season player or beginner. In Big Book of Basics (Time Home Entertainment Inc., 2012; $32.95 hardcover), Golf Magazine’s Top 100 Teachers, the nation’s most elite group of golf instructors, provide expert guidance on raising your skill level—and lowering your scores.
The book follows in the accomplished footsteps of Golf Magazine’s acclaimed series of lesson manuals that introduced specialized instruction of every facet of the game—from driving to putting—and presents a fundamental approach to the game.
Lou Guzzi of Talamore Country Club in Ambler, Pa., a two-time PGA Teacher of the Year in the Philadelphia Section, begins by discussing the pre-swing basics of grip, address, and aim.
Mike Perpich of RiverPines GC in Johns Creek, Ga. brings his more than 30 years of teaching experience to explaining the step-by-step guide to a repeatable swing by blending the correct body and arm movements.
Brian Manzella of English Turn Golf & Country Club in New Orleans instructs golfers on how to squeeze those extra yards out of their games with drivers, fairway metals and hybrids.
Baltusrol Golf Course’s Jason Carbone, one of the best young teachers in the game, takes you from the tee to the green with a short-game clinic that shows you how to master the three basic shots from inside 50 yards: the chip, pitch, and lob.
Dom DiJulia puts on a putting clinic. DiJulia, a PGA Master Professional from Jericho National Golf Course in New Hope, Pa. and two-time Philadelphia Section Teacher of the Year, stresses taking a big-picture approach: Focusing on the process of planning your putt and making your stroke in six steps rather than obsessing on all the technical details.
With the big picture of basics in your arsenal, Kellie Stenzel of Palm Beach Country Club, Fla., one of the top 50 women teachers in the country, takes you to the next step: How to shape shots by making simple adjustments and fix the 10 most common swing faults that crop up in every player’s game.
Mike Davis of the Walters Golf Academy in Las Vegas, a 16-time PGA Teacher of the Year in the Pacific Northwest and Southwest Sections, plays the ultimate bunker buster: Wrapping things up with a primer on escaping the sand as easily as possible.
The Big Book of Basics includes hundreds of color photos and easy-to-follow lessons and drills that explain and illustrate each concept. Each concept is broken down into lessons, checkpoints, and drills that provide golfers with the basics they need to improve. Fundamentals never go out of style and the level and quality of instruction in this book make them easy to master.
Rick Stedman is an avid golfer, RVer, and writer who lives in Olympia, Washington. Rick writes a golf column, “The RV Golfer,” which is published every month in rvlife.com. He can be reached at rstedman@gmail.com.
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