Somax Golf School
Improve your game
Be your own best teacher
Our five-day golf school is designed for 6-10 golfers.
The school will be held in Marin County, just north of San Francisco, from July 4th to July 8th.
Our school is perfect for adults who want to teach themselves or their children how to play better golf using a camcorder and the Somax system of analysis. Golfers under the age of 21 must attend with a parent.
Our school is unique in that we teach you how to teach yourself.
By learning how to video, analyze and measure your swing and putting mechanics, you will learn a life-long method of swing and putting improvement. You will uncover and correct many hidden errors in your swing and putting stroke.
The basis for any progress in golf is an accurate measurement of your swing mechanics. Many teachers analyze the golf swing. At our school, you will learn how to measure it.
Many teachers will teach you new swing patterns. At our school, you will learn how to teach yourself.
Our schools are based on The Somax Golf Swing DVD, the first golf DVD to show you how to videotape, analyze and measure your swing and putting mechanics. We recommend you purchase and view our DVD prior to your school.
School Structure
Each day is four hours in the morning for a group session and then individual sessions of Microfiber Reduction in the afternoon. This allows you time in the afternoon to practice your new skills at a local range or course, or observe Microfiber Reduction.
Here is a detailed list of all school instruction and activities
Day One--Videotaping and Measuring Swing Mechanics--9 am to 1 pm
On the first day of school, you will learn how to video your swing from the front and down the line, and then measure your RSSSA (Range, Sequence, Separation, Speed and Alignment).
1. Range is the range of motion your joints go through while swinging your club.
2. Sequence is the order in which you move your body segments (legs, hips, shoulders, arms and hands) during your downswing.
3. Separation is the amount of time between the movement of each body segment.
4. Speed is the speed at which you move your hips.
5. Alignment is the alignment of your spine and club during your swing.
You will also learn how to tape and analyze your putting motion, both from the front (to measure the motion of your putter) and from the back (to analyze the motion of your spine).
Before you analyze and measure your swing, we analyze and measure some efficient golfers so that you can see what an efficient swing looks like. Then, as you measure your swing characteristics, you will come to a better, clearer understanding of your swing. You will discover many problems that are keeping your from an enjoyable and successful round of golf.
Day Two--Range and Flexibility--9 am to 1 pm
There are two physical characteristics that will determine how well you hit the golf ball: your flexibility and the strength of your hips. Your flexibility will determine your
1. Range
2. Sequence
3. Separation
4. Speed
5. Alignment
In this morning session, you will learn how to measure your flexibility by using your camcorder and a protractor. You will also learn how to measure each other’s breathing flexibility with a tape measure. Golfers with restricted breathing ranges often hold their breath during their swing.You will learn our special stretches for golf, concentrating on the seven core ranges of
1. Arm flexion
2. Neck rotation,
3. Trunk rotation
4. Internal hip rotation
5. Breathing—Abdomen, Diaphragm and Chest
You will then learn our special Tension Reduction exercises. These three-minute exercises are perfect for warming up prior to playing a round of golf, as they reduce tension and increase blood flow in specific muscle groups.
As you improve your Range, you will improve your distance.
Day Three--Sequence, Separation and Speed--9 am to 1 pm
In the morning session, you will learn how to use our Power Hip Trainer (PHT), the first aerobic exercise machine to increase the strength and speed of hip rotation for golf. The PHT will improve your Sequence, Separation and Speed.
Before we start with the PHT, you will learn how to test your hip and trunk rotation strength. During the time you spend on your individual PHT, you will learn to use your legs and hips more effectively in your swing. You will also feel the aerobic effect as you exercise your heart as well as your hips. Golfers who have trained with our hip trainer have lost as much as 4" off their waist and have added as much as 60 yards to their drive.
As a large part of the golf swing is habit, you will also learn some of our Habit Reduction exercises. These exercises will help you with Sequence, Separation and Speed during your swing.
After you have improved the use of your legs and hips, you will video your swing again so that you can see the improvement. You will also see an increase in distance and consistency.
Day Four--Alignment--9 am to 1 pm
The next step is to help you improve your Alignment. While improving your Range and Speed will help with distance, and improving Sequence and Separation will help improve your consistency, improving Alignment will improve your accuracy.
You will learn how to keep your spine angles constant, and keep your club on plane.
Day Five--Putting--9am to 1 pm
You will learn improve your putting motion. We have found that the best putters use their stomach muscles to putt. We will show you how to do this and how to develop a truly pendulum putt. The result will be fewer putts per round.
It is said that golf is a mental game. Well, now you can do something about it. We will teach all participants our Stress Reduction system. You can overcome bad habits, speed up learning new habits, reduce first tee jitters, recover faster from poor shots, practice better course management and increase your enjoyment of golf by reducing stress. Golfers who have used our Stress Reduction system report that they are much more relaxed playing a round, whether for pleasure or in competition.
Microfiber Reduction
Each school participant will receive one 45-minute session of Microfiber Reduction, our special form of connective tissue massage that increases flexibility far beyond what stretching alone can do. These sessions will be scheduled 3-5 pm each day. Examples of the improvement in flexibility with Microfiber Reduction can be found by clicking on Clients and Testimonials.
At the end of the school, you will tape your swing again so that you can measure the improvements you have been able to accomplish in just five days. We will also present some of the latest information on lower back pain in golfers, and how to overcome it.
Practice
There are nearby golf courses and ranges where you can practice your new swing mechanics.
Accommodations
All participants will stay at the hotel where the school will be held. We have arranged for reduced rates for school participants. There are many fine restaurants within walking distance of the hotel. Breakfast is served in your room in the mornings. The hotel has an Olympic size pool, exercise room and hot tub.
Equipment
You will need to purchase the following equipment to bring with you to your school.
High Speed Camcorder
We recommend you purchase the small, compact Casio ZR 100 camera, which can shoot video at 240 frames per second at 1/1000th shutter speed to get you the exact pictures you need to analyze and measure your swing mechanics. Ordinary camcorders can only shoot at 30 frames per second, which is too slow for the golf swing. The Casio records to a small SD card which you can slip into a card reader attached to your computer or laptop so that you can analyze your swing in full screen mode. It's always a good idea to order an extra battery and SD card. You can purchase the camera on line.
You will also want to purchase a tripod so that you can videotape your own swing. We recommend the Dolica B100. You can order it on line.
Somax Power Hip Trainer
You will need to also purchase our Power Hip Trainer and have it at school so that we can teach you how to get the most out of it to improve your hip speed. We will give you instructions as to when to place your order so that it can be delivered to you at the school, or you may order ahead of time, have it delivered to your home, practice before the school, and then bring it with you. The hip trainer ships knocked down in a 38" x 26" x 4" box and weighs 49 lbs. You can purchase it here.
Somax DVD's
Please purchase these as soon as you register so that you can review them well before your school. The more you understand the Somax approach to the golf swing, the more you will get out of your school.
You can purchase The Somax Golf Swing here and our golf stretch DVD here.
Laptop with card reader
Bring a laptop computer with Quicktime software (it's a free download) installed so that you can review your videos frame by frame on the full screen. You will also need an SD card reader, or be able to directly connect your camera to your computer.
Golf Equipment
You will also want to bring your driver, five-iron and putter, as well as a sleeve of new golf balls to practice your putting. A pen, golf glove, golf shoes, your golf clothes, some shorts and tee-shirt and tennis shoes will complete your list of equipment. We will provide a notebook for notes and a special, transparent protractor for you to measure your swing.
Fees
The fee for the entire school is $4,500, which is non-refundable. School fee includes all school instruction and analysis, stretches and strength training exercises and two 45-minute sessions of Microfiber Reduction. Your food, travel and lodging are extra.
Requirements
Since there is only one session of Microfiber Reduction, you will need a minimum of 50% of the flexibility you require for golf in order to attend our schools. Prior to registering for the school, please order our Registration package, which contains a demo DVD on Microfiber Reduction and directions for measuring some of your golf ranges. You will need to send us those measurements before you can register for a school. The cost of the Registration Package is $40 ($64 international), which is refundable with any school.
Registration
To register for our golf school, please call us at 1-800-227-6629 or contact us by email. Once you have been accepted into a school and we have received your school fee, we will mail you forms to fill out and return before the school. School fee is due at the time of registration and is non-refundable.