2 October 2026 · 9 min read
Learning golf from YouTube or from a pro? What video does and what it does not
After two weeks, the group with a teacher and video did best in a study of 30 golfers. What that means for YouTube, for the pro and for the simulator.
A video helps when you learn golf, but the research backs it mostly together with a teacher. In a study of 30 golfers, the group that had practised with a teacher and video did best after two weeks (Guadagnoli et al., 2002). Video without a teacher was not tested there. This post shows what a video does, where it ends and how to use it so that you actually learn something.
What does the research say about learning with video?
The study is small, but it is a randomised experiment. I read the abstract on Europe PMC. 30 golfers were split into three groups: practice with a teacher and video, practice with a teacher who used words only, and practice without a teacher. Everyone did a test before, four practice sessions of 90 minutes each, a test straight after and a second test two weeks later. The test was 15 shots with a 7-iron from an artificial turf mat, scored on distance and accuracy:
| Group | Straight after training | Two weeks later |
|---|---|---|
| Practice without a teacher | better than both groups with a teacher | worse than both groups with a teacher |
| Teacher, words only | worse than without a teacher | better than without a teacher |
| Teacher with video | worse than without a teacher | better than without a teacher, best of the three |
The authors read this to mean that video analysis is an effective way to practise, but that the positive effect may take time. For you that means: a worse shot straight after a change does not prove the change was wrong. Keep the limits in mind: a small study, one club, one mat, and the teacher was present in both teacher groups.
What does a review of 52 golf studies say?
In 2024 Barzyk and Gruber evaluated 52 randomised trials on learning golf-specific movements (Frontiers in Sports and Active Living). Extra feedback from outside, which includes video (Moinuddin et al., 2021), has no clear winner there: no single method can be called the most favourable. Then come the limits of the studies. For more than half, the statistical power was missing, and most examined simple putting in beginners.
So the review does not say that video is not worth it. It says that the studies single out no kind of feedback as the best. That is a reason to treat video as one tool among several and not as the solution.
What a video shows well
In its learning material on golf technique, PGA Deutschland describes how a teacher first looks at a movement: only the outwardly visible part is considered. Forces and inner control processes stay outside. According to the material, this view is often the only analysis in the daily work of a teacher or coach. The material names video and pictures as a way to partly make such observations more objective.
That is exactly what a phone video delivers: posture, grip, ball position, swing length, weight shift. How to record it is in Filming your own swing. What to look for in a beginner's swing is in Golf swing for beginners.
The material also notes that laypeople can usually describe movement features usefully, but that the description partly depends on one's own ideal picture. In your own video you therefore see not only what is there but also what you expect. A second look helps: a teacher's, or a recording from last month.
What a video does not show
A video shows body and club. How many degrees the clubface points open or closed to the club path at impact is a measurement that a launch monitor outputs. TrackMan calls it face to path and describes (TrackMan): with a centred strike, the ball curves towards the face angle and away from the path.
A tour value shows how much that matters. For a drive with a 275-yard carry, about 251 metres, 5 degrees of face to path are about 44 yards of curve to the right, about 40 metres. These are PGA Tour values. Yours will differ, the direction of the rule stays. What the numbers mean is in Launch monitor numbers explained, and how to read them for a slice is in Fixing a slice with numbers.
And a video does not answer which of the visible deviations causes the miss. That is the question you put to a teacher.
What a pro adds, and what it costs
According to PGA Deutschland, a teacher's look too is often aimed only at what is outwardly visible. What he adds is the selection and the feedback in words: which deviation counts and what you practise next. In the study above, even the group with a teacher who used words only had better scores after two weeks than the group without a teacher.
In the directory, 81 of the 110 indoor venues offer coaching, and in seven entries the word video appears (as of 2 October 2026). The number seven says how often an entry names the word, not how many venues can film. Four examples with what the entry says:
| Venue | What the entry says | Price per entry |
|---|---|---|
| Golf Club Thunersee, Thun BE | in winter indoor training with video and TrackMan analysis, private or group lessons, no free simulator time | private lesson from CHF 110 / 50 min |
| La Grange Indoor, Bulle FR | Flightscope radar, video analysis and motion sensors, private lessons, no free play without a pro | from CHF 120 / hour (private lesson) |
| Golf Pro Müller, Alvaneu Bad GR | TrackMan 4 with video analysis, hall bookable without a golf teacher, lessons with TrackMan on top | hall without a pro: CHF 50 / hour |
| Golf Medical Clinic, Rheinfelden AG | TrackMan 4, video analysis with comparison options, swing analyses with video | 10-session pass CHF 350 (CHF 200 with MTT membership) |
What a lesson costs across providers is in What does a golf lesson cost in Switzerland?. If you first want to see whether golf suits you, start with a taster course.
How to use a video so that you learn
Post and colleagues had learners practise a chip (Post et al., 2016). Those who could decide for themselves when to watch their repetition in a split screen beside an expert model reached higher form and accuracy scores in the transfer test on the second day than the comparison group. The group called up the video mostly after shots it judged poor. Practice was 60 attempts.
A meta-analysis on self-modelling, where learners observe themselves as the model, found moderate to large positive effects on performance (Wang et al., 2026). One week after the intervention ended, the improvement did not last, and the effect grew with the dose. The meta-analysis looks at physical education and sport in general, not golf alone. As rules for you:
- You decide when to look, for example after a shot you found poor.
- One question per recording, as the post on filming describes.
- Film regularly rather than once. A single recording is not a dose.
- With a teacher or at the simulator, add the number that the video does not show.
What this means for you
An order that fits the numbers: first you film yourself and ask one question. Then you take the recording to a lesson. After that you measure at the simulator what the video does not show, and film again.
A worked example with two entries from the directory: a private lesson from CHF 110 (Golf Club Thunersee) and one hour in the hall without a pro for CHF 50 (Golf Pro Müller) add up to CHF 160 and more. The phone video comes at no extra cost. The two venues are in different cantons, so this is an example of the order of magnitude and not a package.
Where in Switzerland you can practise with video and a pro
You find venues with coaching on the page Indoor golf training. If you are just starting, Golf simulator for beginners helps with the choice. On the map you see which venue is near you.
Frequently asked questions
Can you learn golf from YouTube videos?
The study did not test that question. In a study of 30 golfers, the group that practised with a teacher and video did best after two weeks. Video without a teacher was not tested. A tutorial video shows you what you can practise, but it gives no feedback on your own swing.
What does video analysis do for your golf?
It makes the visible part of the swing checkable: posture, ball position, movement. PGA Deutschland names video as a way to make such observations more objective. Forces stay invisible, and values like face to path come from a launch monitor. Together they give the fuller picture.
What does golf instruction with video analysis cost in Switzerland?
Two entries in the directory name video analysis and a price: a private lesson from CHF 110 for 50 minutes (Golf Club Thunersee) and from CHF 120 per hour (La Grange Indoor, Bulle). As of 2 October 2026, prices per the entries. A comparison of providers is in the post on lesson prices.
Why do I hit worse straight after a golf lesson?
There is no general rule. In a study of 30 golfers, the groups with a teacher were behind the group without a teacher straight after training and ahead of it two weeks later. The authors write that the positive effect may take time. The finding comes from a small study with a 7-iron.
How often should I film my golf swing?
The studies cited here name no fixed number. A 2026 meta-analysis on self-modelling found that the effect grew with the dose and did not last one week after the end. That speaks more for a steady rhythm rather than a single recording.
Sources
- Guadagnoli, Holcomb, Davis: The efficacy of video feedback for learning the golf swing (J Sports Sci 2002) (30 Golfer, drei Gruppen, Test direkt nach dem Training und nach zwei Wochen (Abstract über Europe PMC))
- Barzyk, Gruber: Motor learning in golf, a systematic review (Front Sports Act Living 2024) (52 randomisierte Studien, keine günstigste Form der zusätzlichen Rückmeldung, Grenzen der Studien)
- Moinuddin, Goel, Sethi: The Role of Augmented Feedback on Motor Learning (Cureus 2021) (Definition der zusätzlichen Rückmeldung von aussen, einschliesslich visueller Rückmeldung)
- Post et al.: Self-control over combined video feedback and modeling facilitates motor learning (Hum Mov Sci 2016) (Golf-Chip, selbstgesteuerte Videowiedergabe im geteilten Bild)
- Wang et al.: The impact of self-modeling on athletic performance and self-efficacy (Front Sports Act Living 2026) (Meta-Analyse: Effekt dosisabhängig, eine Woche später nicht mehr da)
- PGA Deutschland: Lernunterlage Golftechnik (März 2019) (Bewegungsanalyse des äusserlich Sichtbaren, Video und Bild als Hilfsmittel)
- TrackMan: What is Face to Path? (Definition, Krümmung zur Schlagfläche hin, Beispielwerte der PGA Tour)
- Swiss Golf Simulators: eigene Einträge (Coaching und Video in den Einträgen, Stand 2. Oktober 2026)