I had never played golf in my life. My husband, an avid golfer, decided this week it was time to teach me. To my surprise, I found it to be like ... singing! I truly didn't know one end of the putter from the other, but with his patience and skill I learned a great deal (at least in my head!) of what I must master to be allowed on a real golf course (shaking his head, he says maybe sometime next year!) Here's what I learned:

• Golf... It's an athletic discipline, requiring strength, control and balance.

Singing... Ditto!

• Golf...For the best swing, you absolutely have to relax your grip on the club and loosen tension in your body.

Singing... For a the best sound, you absolutely have to relax the grip in your throat and loosen tension in your body.

• Golf... You must never confuse power with brute force... swing with no more than 80% of your strength and you'll be able to control the swing.

Singing... You must never confuse power with brute force... sing with no more than 85% of your air pressure and you'll be able to control your voice

• Golf... For best results, aim at the target before you swing!

Singing... For best results, aim at the pitch before you sing!

• Golf... Practice, practice, practice with correct techniqe so that your swing becomes natural without having to over-think (and right now it's about as un-natural a feeling as when I learned my first Shaolin block in Kung Fu years ago >:)

Singing... Practice, practice, practice with correct technique so that correct singing becomes natural without having to over think.

• Golf... It's not good to try to whack the ball. For best results, the ball gets hit just by getting in the way of the (correct) swing.

Singing... For maximum performance impact, the audience gets moved just by being in the presence of the meaning of the song being authentically delivered by the singer. You don't get best effect by your goal being to "win the contest".

• Golf... A positive attitude is essential. If you think you can hit the ball in that little hole, you'll be a lot more likely to do so.

Singing... A positive attitude is essential. If you think you can hit that note on pitch without straining, you'll be a lot more likely to do so.

• Golf... Anyone serious about golf... including and especially professional players... has a coach watching over them.

Singing... well, I think you get the idea!

OK... How bout it, fellow golfers? Any more parallels you notice?? Any suggestions for my golf game??? (My husband will thank you!)

Labels: Vocal_Techniques