What is tempo

["Richard"]

I've been trying to figure it out for myself but google is not my friend. Searched the site as well and can't find anything. I'm hearing that tempo is so important in a golf swing but can't figure out why. What is it? why is it important and what can do you to get it, fix it, improve it....

Thanks

http://www.golftalk.com/index.php?op...d=45&Itemid=56

[fundonny]

I think Payne Stewart was thee perfect example of tempo, if I understand what tempo is.

[East Coast Golf]

Tempo is the pace of your golf swing. A good tempo swing look at Ernie Else or Fred Couples for the nice slow effortless examples.

Good tempo swing will have a good relationship speed between your backswing and downswing. If your swing feels like one smooth motion and not two seperate functions then you are on your way to having good tempo.

Think of a metronome clicking and you want to the click to happen at takeaway and impact.

It is hard to explain though. Good tempo usually results in good balance as well.

[GrassRootsTour]

For me, tempo is getting the timing of your body in time with the club. If my body is quick I hit weak shots out to the right. If my body is slow (boy is THAT rare) I hit sweeping hooks that wont stop rolling till it hits a tree, water, bunker ... you get the idea.

When all is sound and I don't think ...... wheeeeeeeee, boy thats fun.

[KaBoom]

Pick up the book Tour Tempo and you will get one point of view. One of the key things that many people do not realize is that tempo is *not* slow, methodical pace through the ball. This book scientifcally proves it not to be the case. Simple question who has a faster tempo, Ernie Els or Greg Norman. To the eyes everyone likely would conclude Norman, but in fact, Els is faster. It is the way his tempo looks to the eye that makes it slow. Most people are actually swinging too slow. I do not know how many times I have been told too slow my swing down, but this is actually opposite of what I should be doing. All great ball strikers utilize a 3:1 tempo. That is it takes 3 times longer to go from the start of the backswing to top of the backswing as it does to go from the top back to impact. That really is tempo! The goal is to get that ratio ingrained and consistent and when a swing takes about 1 second from start to impact getting a 3:1 ratio is not easily achieved. The book has a CD with engineered beeps that teaches you what 3:1 tempo sounds like. Anyone who listens to those beeps say there is no way I can swing that fast, but that is what the best ball strikers did. In fact, Hogan probably had one of the fastest tempo swings which remained very consistent (0.8 s) and most see him as the best ball striker of all time.

Tempo is the "glue" of the golf swing and I too believe it actually to be the most important element of a consistent, repeatable ball striking swing. You will see me with my IPod all summer on the range teaching my subconscious the pace I want to swing with and hopefully it will get ingrained.

[mberube]

Tempo is the pace of your golf swing. A good tempo swing look at Ernie Else or Fred Couples for the nice slow effortless examples.

Good tempo swing will have a good relationship speed between your backswing and downswing. If your swing feels like one smooth motion and not two seperate functions then you are on your way to having good tempo.

Think of a metronome clicking and you want to the click to happen at takeaway and impact.

It is hard to explain though. Good tempo usually results in good balance as well.

You’re mixing tempo and rhythm.

Tempo is the time it takes from the start of your backswing and stops when your club reaches the impact position. My tempo is 1.3 seconds. Now what you want is to repeat that 1.3 seconds with all your clubs and all your full, ¾, ½, ¼ swings. If you can match them all, you’re on the right path.

Know the visible difference and smoothness of Els swing and Couples swing is rhythm. That’s more like dancing.

Mike

[golfgearguy]

I look at is as tempo, timing and rhythm are all directly related to balance and your swing sequence. If you're sequence is good (aka.. things happening in the right order) and you can swing the club without the club swinging you, you won't have to worry about timing and tempo. It will just be there.