Adam Scott has spent his life in the game of golf. He fell in love with the game as a child, turned professional at the tender age of 20, and at 42 years-old, is still a mainstay in the game.
Except now, he’s venturing into a new arena, too: Co-founding the Fairgame app. Alongside his cofounders Ben Clymer and Eric Mayville, Scott wanted to create a “digital clubhouse” experience for golfers. It’s a golf-specific social media platform of sorts, with exclusive content, stats-tracking features, and gamekeeping capabilities.
“It’s a real passion project for me,” he says. “We wanted to create something innovative and interesting platform that can live on our devices.”
Part of the app involved launching a series called “swing thoughts,” an interview-style series where Adam helps avid and pro golfers with their swings.
Which brings us to our recent chat with the 2013 Masters champ. Ask any golfer whose swing they would most like to have, and there’s probably one name that jumps to mind before all others: Adam Scott.
How can we swing all swing a little more like Adam Scott? That’s what I asked him, and rather interestingly, his advice had nothing to do with anything technical.
Scott says: Find your own best swing rhythm
“Getting into the technique of the golf swing is incredibly difficult and time-consuming, and most people don’t get the time to practice at all, so thinking about opening or closing the clubface is a big process,” he says. “It’s why I’ve always encouraged good rhythm.”
It’s having good rhythm, Scott says, that will improve the timing, technique, and overall aesthetic of your golf swing.
“I think one of the things that can fool everyone into thinking that I’ve got one of the best swings is that it’s fluid, and that fluidity is based on a rhythm,” he says. “I’ve always thought my rhythm covers up the potential for more technical flaws.”
The key, he says, is for each golfer to develop “their own rhythm,” something that should feel natural and “easy” to repeat. You swing might not be technically perfect, but Scott says having good rhythm will give you a will give you a better sense of timing in your swing.
As for how you can do it? Scott offers a few suggestions.
“It could be a could be a count, like a metronome in your head. It could be the feeling of shifting right and left,” he says. “It could be a like dance steps 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4.”
Scott has experimented with all of those, but for him, he needs a more visual cue. To keep his swing in rhythm, the player with one of the most aesthetically pleasing swings in golf actually visualizes copying other golfers’ swings.
“At different points in my career I’ve had different swings in my head. I’ve had specific images of Ernie’s rhythm that I’ve copied. Tiger Woods, of course, and Inbee Park is my go-to rhythm,” he explains. “Hers is so extremely slow in the backswing, and I have a tendency to get too fast. When it feels like that, I just go on YouTube and watch Inbee hit a couple of shots, then try to recreate that.”
Whatever method works for you, it’s good rhythm that’s the hallmark of a good swing. Find yours, and you’ll enjoy better shots, too.