If you’re just needing a little stress relief, go for it! If you want to play a good game of golf, however, you’re going to have to erase the “homerun” mentality.

See, one of the roots of golfing mistakes is that tendency to swing hard. A violent swing shows power, but power isn’t what wins the game. It’s accuracy and control.

You want to swing easily and freely at the ball. If you bring your feet together you will reduce your ability to swing hard. If you brace yourself, you’re probably going to use too much effort. Just relax and swing easily.

You also want to keep your center of gravity the same. Do this by keeping both of your feet on the ground in approximately the same position as when you start. Keep your head still and your center of gravity won’t change.

A sudden effort made with one of your legs or both will cause your head to move. Then you can’t see the ball clearly and you change the position of the pivotal center with relation to the ball. Keep both feet planted on the ground so your weight is supported on the flat of your feet when you connect with ball.

When you hit the ball properly everything is so smooth. You’re conscious of very little effort.

Now, don’t brace yourself for the effort of hitting the ball. Don’t be stiff. The slightest tendency to stiffen your muscles will destroy your balance. You want to make your club head go along a straight line while in contact with the ball.

Try to see how low you can send the ball and how clear on the center of the club you can connect with it. This will help to correct slicing. A ball that goes too high is at the mercy of the wind and can kick off to the right or left on rough ground.

When you hit the ball, remember - you only want to use the power you’re able to control. You’re not going to be bothered by a lack of power but by a lack of accuracy. You want perfect control at every instant during your swing. So there shouldn’t be a violent effort keep your head still and make sure your club head is going straight when you meet the ball.

Your longest drives aren’t usually going to come when you’re trying for distance but if you’re just trying to put the ball down the line you’re aiming at, the distance will come naturally.

What you want to try to do is get a gradually increasing speed until you connect with the ball and then press steadily. If you’re jerky anywhere in the swing it’s because you’re pulling in your hands somewhere. In regard to keeping your head still, imagine that you have a glass of water balanced on your head and when you swing you don’t want to spill one drop of water out of the glass.

You want to swing at a fairly decent speed throughout so you don’t stiffen up. Don’t swing back too slowly then. Basically don’t swing so hard that you’re conscious of the effort.

How much energy can you apply to a ball? It doesn’t matter. It’s the power you can control that counts.