Golf Strength Training Book Update & Expanded Ideas
- Beau Bradbury
- Jul 31
- 8 min read
Golf Strength Training Book Update
Back in 2018, I self-published a book called “Golf Strength Training.” I was excited that through Amazon this book could reach the world. It began to sell copies to people across the globe. It was a good feeling that by sharing my knowledge of strength & conditioning and the game of golf that I was helping add value to people’s lives.
In an effort to simplify my life, I un-published all of my books after roughly five years. For my other books, my ideas and concepts of the optimal training style had evolved with continuous study and application. The only book that has stood the test of time, in my mind, is Golf Strength Training.
Bradbury Muscle Course is a very good book for young people with a low stress lifestyle to grow muscle quickly if they eat abundantly. Think college kids. That style of training would be very difficult for a person 30+ years of age with a family, career, and normal lifestyle to sustain. The volume and frequency is too high and would certainly drive most people into overtraining. Through the years, I have learned to absolutely avoid overtraining at all costs! However, if you are 18-25 years old and can get A LOT of sleep to recover go for it! With that said, I unpublished Bradbury Muscle Course because I felt it was not optimal for the majority of people as my learning evolved.
With that said, my Golf Strength Training book is still extremely relevant today. The message is simple: brief, intense workouts performed safely flat out work. Give your system ample time to recover and you will improve like clockwork. Properly applied High Intensity Training (HIT) avoids overtraining and focuses solely on productive workouts. There is zero time wasted in the gym. You get in, spark an adaptation, and get out to allow the adaptation to take place during recovery.
This is exactly how I train my personal training clients today to the tee (golf pun intended). Efficient workouts pair perfectly with the game of golf. In Golf Strength Training, you will learn my “Build & Tune” philosophy and how to put it to work for you.
Since 2018, I have learned much more about productive strength training and also a lot more about the game of golf. In 2026, Nancy and I noticed that Golf Strength Training was selling as a used paperback for hundreds of dollars. Since un-publishing the book, we watched in amazement as the used book price just kept climbing and climbing. Used paperbacks were being sold at around $300. I felt bad that people were spending that kind of money for my book. It’s a good book and all but hundreds of dollars for a used paperback is excessive in my opinion. Therefore, I decided to take action and re-publish Golf Strength Training on Amazon (Kindle Version only) at a fair price. I want every golfer that is motivated to get stronger and enjoy better golf to be able to access the information without spending a bundle.
In this blog post, my aim is to give you an expanded version of Golf Strength Training that will build upon the book. Ideally, you will want to read Golf Strength Training closely so you will know how these updates apply. Let’s get started!
Don’t make Golf harder than it is
I love the saying “don’t make a mountain out of a molehill.” Golf is a simple game that you actually already know how to perform. The trouble is that people get tied up into knots by trying to make things complicated by thinking too much. They focus on forcing certain “positions” instead of just swinging the club naturally and in a relaxed manner.
Stop thinking and start swinging. Can you skip a flat stone across water? Most people can. Well that simple action is your golf swing. Without thinking you will naturally pivot with your legs and your arms will know exactly what to do with perfect timing. Aim to never think of any “positions.” Thinking about positions are poison in a natural, tension-free golf swing. Thinking causes tension.
In fact, you don’t have to think of anything other than your target to successfully skip a stone across water. If you have a background in baseball, like most Americans do, how would you swing to hit a very low pitch to center field? That answer is your golf swing. I emphasize “your” golf swing. Everybody is built differently and therefore you will have your own unique, natural swing. Whether you are swinging a baseball bat, ax, grass whip (more on that on tap), or a golf club a swing is a swing! Let it go and have fun!
In the book, I stress hiring a golf swing coach. I think this can be helpful if the coach understands your goal of a using a natural, relaxed swing. However, if the coach is hell bent on teaching positions and changing you away from your natural swing don’t walk away, run!
2. Discover your natural swing using a grass whip
“I used to tell my students, ‘get a grass whip and make your golf swing just like your grass whip swing.’ When my students used a grass whip they got where they didn’t need me anymore. That’s how good their timing got.”
- Wild Bill Mehlhorn
I 100% agree with Wild Bill! In my opinion, the humble grass whip is the very best tool on the planet to build your natural golf swing. Made famous by Wild Bill Mehlhorn who was a big proponent and known as one of the straightest hitters in the history of the game. His prime was the 1920’s way before fancy launch monitors and massive equipment advancements.
Famous Golf Coach Harvey Penick also wrote about the grass whip in his famous Little Red Book (page 85) except he called it the “Weed Cutter.”
By walking forward clipping grass you are programming your subconscious mind for your optimal swing. Without thinking, you are mastering the pivot and learning to trust that your arms and legs know how to work together to complete a task. You are simply clipping grass in a leisurely manner.
Swinging the grass whip with your grip, muscles, and bones at ease unlocks easy speed and accurate clips. This is exactly how you should swing a golf club. A golf club will swing pure if you don’t interfere with it by creating tension. Imagine that.
Here is a video of me using my grass whip at my favorite state-of-the-art practice facility: my backyard.
You can get a regular grass whip at a hardware store or order a golf specific one. I highly recommend the KC Grass Whip from KC Golf. I use the KC grass whip frequently and it is a wonderful way to groove a natural, relaxed, yet powerful swing. Mr. Miyagi would be proud. It has a very nice balanced weight to it and helps to condition your golf muscles. I also have a regular one from the hardware store and it is wonderful for whacking saplings, vines, and other thick weeds.
3. Caffeine
If you want to play your best golf, I’d advise considering quitting caffeine for good. In the past,I had a famous putting instructor that told me to quit it and I didn’t listen then. He was 100% right. You will have much steadier emotions, nerves, and better touch on and around the green. When I finally quit caffeine I quickly noticed how my palms looked more red colored. My putting touch and feedback improved immensely. Stimulants can cause your fine motor skills to suffer at some level in most people. Caffeine, through stimulative effects causes muscular tension which can actually slow down your swing speed.
“The key to hitting it hard is to be as tension-free as you can.”
- Sean “The Beast” Fister from The Long Drive Bible
Think of a bull whip versus broomstick. The bullwhip can break the sound barrier creating a sonic boom because it is loose and supple with no tension. The broomstick sweeps the floor or can provide transportation for witches. You want to swing with as little tension as possible for easy power. The looser you can stay the faster you will swing. Caffeine and stimulants create tension thus slowing you down. Do slower swing speeds and shaky putts sound good to you? Nah. I don’t blame you for skipping the java too.
4. Master the AK-47 of Fitness: The Kettlebell
In the book, kettlebell swings and snatches are included in the Power Up Training phase. Aim to make these movements second nature through practice. They are complex movements so hiring a competent trainer to teach you correctly is a good idea. Make sure the trainer really knows his/her stuff.
These movements are pure dynamite for golfers to help keep your hip flexors unlocked and your posterior chain strong. There is a coordination and proprioception enhancement as well. Kettlebell work is phenomenal for all golfers. Kettlebells travel well and can be used anywhere. Swings and snatches boost full body power like no other.
Lastly, there is a hidden bonus if you are interested in hitting long drives with massive clubhead speed. The secret to distance is to relax your muscles and keeping your joints supple creating a whip effect. Slammin' Sam Snead said to keep your wrists "oily" to help boost power.
However, when swinging extremely fast you still have to hang on to the club that is swinging at a high speed. If you don't your club will fly away. The best way is have your finger tips hang on to the grip while maintaining very loose and fluid wrists and forearm muscles. This dual action is very hard to train. It's like patting your head while rubbing your belly. Thankfully the kettlebell saves the day!
The kettlebell snatch is a fantastic way to keep a grip in your finger tips while maintaining suppleness in your wrists and elbows. To clarify, in regular golf you can keep a loose, relaxed grip and play very fine golf. The only time the finger strength while maintaining loose wrists/forearms helps is if you are looking to hit a very long drive or compete in the sport of Long Drive where distance is all that matters.
All these factors combined made me realize that golf and kettlebells really do go together like peanut butter and jelly. Master them and your golf game will thank you!
5. Rise of the machines
When I wrote Golf Strength Training, I was picturing people using it in very crudely equipped gyms with minimal equipment. If you are lucky enough to have access, don’t be afraid to substitute a high quality Leg Press for the squat variations. At our gym, we have a wonderful Standing Hip Thrust Machine that can substitute the Deadlift if needed. The point is, it is okay to see the written program as a guideline and fit the program to your needs. Especially, if you have lots of equipment availability.
As my personal training clients know well, I am a HUGE fan of Hammer Strength machines, especially the Iso-lateral Line that balances both sides of the body evenly. Honestly, today I find myself using the Hammer Strength Incline Press sometimes instead of Dips and really pushing myself with zero fear of getting crushed by a barbell.
My point is make use of the equipment you have and enjoy your training. With that said, the old school basics: Deadlift, Dips, Squats, Chins, and the like are really hard to beat! A logical combo of free weight, bodyweight, and machine training is ideal.
At this point in time, these are the updated ideas that I wish I knew when I wrote Golf Strength Training. The book has tons of wonderful information and combined with these 5 updates will undoubtedly help make you a stronger and better golfer. If you are interested in reading Golf Strength Training click here. If I come across something else golf-related in the future I’d like to share I will post it here on the blog. Please stay tuned!
Thank you for reading! Until next time!
Beau Bradbury, CSCS, CPT
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