Body. Swing. Clubs. The Modern Tour Perspective
- Matt Campbell
- 20 hours ago
- 3 min read
One of the biggest lessons I’ve taken from working across the PGA Tour and DP World Tour is this:
The body is no longer an afterthought in golf — it’s a performance priority.
The modern professional understands that sustainable performance is built off the course as much as it is on it.
There was a time when golf preparation centred almost entirely around technique and equipment. Strength training was limited. Recovery was inconsistent. Nutrition was secondary.
That model has shifted dramatically.
Today, the body sits at the centre of performance.
And what I’m seeing at tour level is directly relevant to the everyday social golfer.
All of us have been trapped with the idea that the perfect swing can be found in my next range session- It can be much more productive using our valuable time building a body that is capable of a more repeatable swing.
The Game Is Built on Three Things
Your swing
Your clubs
Your body
Most golfers invest heavily in the first two.
The best players in the world invest daily in the third.
Because your body is the engine behind the swing.
If it can’t rotate efficiently, control load, or produce force consistently, the swing will adapt. And while adaptations can work in the short term, they often reduce efficiency and increase stress through certain areas over time. This can cause pain, swing issues and major innefficincies in the golf swing.
What Tour Players Do Differently
They Treat Their Body Like Equipment
Elite players wouldn’t ignore damaged clubs.They don’t ignore physical limitations either.
They prioritise:
Structured strength training
Targeted mobility work
Warm-ups before every round
Recovery after heavy loads
Not occasionally. Consistently.
They Focus on the 1%ers
At the highest level, margins are small.
Sleep quality.
Hydration habits.
Nutritional structure.
Travel recovery strategies.
Load management during tournament weeks.
Individually these look minor.
Collectively, they influence consistency across long seasons and high-pressure environments.
Any one of these us social level golfers can focus on for a week or two and find significant changes in how we feel and swing a club. Building these habits into life one of the best things we can do for our golf. Rather than one more range session.
They Train Movement, Not Just Muscles
Tour players don’t just “go to the gym.”
They build:
Hip rotation capacity
Thoracic mobility
Pelvic control
Ground force production
Rotational strength and stability
The goal isn’t aesthetics.
It’s movement efficiency.
Efficient movement supports repeatable mechanics, sustainable speed, and resilience over time.
Why This Matters for the Social Golfer
You might not compete professionally.
But you still:
Walk significant distances during a round
Rotate your hips and spine repeatedly
Load one side of your body more than the other
You may Spend much of your week sitting
If your body doesn’t have adequate mobility, strength, or control for those demands, the swing compensates.
Over time, that can present as:
Reduced distance
Inconsistent contact
Increased stiffness or fatigue during rounds
Often, it’s not purely a swing issue.
It’s a physical capacity issue.
The Shift in Modern Golf
The old model was:“Fix the swing.”
The modern model is:“Build the body that supports the swing.”
Move better. Recover better. Train with purpose.
You don’t need a tour-level schedule.
But you do need structure.
A baseline movement assessment. A clear strength plan. Mobility work that matches your swing demands. Consistency over intensity.
Ideally you find your local TPI trained practitioner to help you with identifying your movement patterns and finding the low hanging fruit that will make significant contributions as fast as possible.
However, even spending 10 minutes a day following a youtube video- pilates, yoga etc. will make significant changes.
Final Thought
Your swing matters.Your clubs matter.
But your body is the only piece of equipment you can’t replace.
The best players in the world understand that.
And increasingly, so should the rest of us.
Just to clarify- I encourage going to the range as often as you can, practice is a huge part of improvement. However- we only have a certain amount of time to practice. Prioritising your bodies wellness as part of 'practice' is where the real magic happens.
Matt Campbell
Vitality Golf Performance
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