"I was a single golfer in my own way... Only after being caught in power lines did I realize the truth of the 'body swing'"

Former Samsung C&T Vice President Jang Ilhwan Pro
Publishes Golf Instruction Book 'Body Swing is Golf Swing'

Pro Jang Ilhwan. Having served as Vice President of Samsung C&T Corporation, he went to the United States to study golf at the age of 60 by Korean age. He obtained his teaching professional qualification and is active as a member of the PGA of America and a golf instructor.

Jang Ilhwan, former Vice President of Samsung C&T who used to play golf in hiding during his managerial days to avoid being noticed by others, scored 3 under par 69 just 10 years after starting golf. He became one of the best office worker golfers who frequently records singles. In 2018, he ended his 35-year career and went to study at a golf school in the United States.

He can never forget his first private lesson after studying abroad. His mentor, Lee Deitrick, ran to a storage room as soon as he saw Jang’s swing. He brought a rough electric wire. Professor Lee tied Jang’s waist with the electric wire. He told him to try a takeaway while holding the short wire sticking out in front of his belly. The wire was too short for his arms to go up, so there was no way to swing. To swing, he had to move his body, not his hands. The backswing was not about raising the club high but about creating a twist in the upper body?in other words, the body is the center of the golf swing. It was the moment he realized the truth that "the body swing is the golf swing."

After two years of studying in the U.S. and obtaining a teaching pro qualification, Jang recently published a book titled "Body Swing is Golf Swing," which contains his experiences and insights from 35 years of golfing life. To mark the publication, we met him on the 11th at a cafe in Wirye-dong, Seongnam City, and had a conversation.

Cover of the golf lesson book "Body Swing is Golf Swing." The book organizes the author's firsthand experiences on topics ranging from how to hit long drives, swing techniques, grip, short game, to pre-routine shots. It is designed to resonate with all generations, from young beginners to seasoned silver generation golfers, emphasizing the importance of torso movement in the golf swing.

-- How did you feel being tied with the electric wire?

▶ I was confident in my golf skills, so I expected praise like "good swing." I felt quite humiliated inside. I also felt skeptical about golf. It was dark in front of me because it meant that the golf I knew so far was nonsense and I had to learn again.

-- Was it easy to fix the 'wrong swing' of the past 30 years?

▶ Golf is like riding a bicycle. Once you learn it, it gets ingrained in your body and cannot be erased. You just need to install a new program. The body swing is that new program, and you have to change it through intense practice.

-- Why do you emphasize the body swing so much?

▶ The arms and hands have an enormous number of muscles. It is difficult for the brain to control so many muscles instantly. That’s why mistakes happen often. You have to let the small muscles follow the movement of large, simple muscles like the latissimus dorsi. If you move only the body and a few large muscles while relaxing your arms, your arms will naturally follow the body’s movement. Then golf will automatically go well. Golf is never complicated. Body swing means setting the grip and setup posture correctly and following the continuous sequence of the swing well.

-- Many people learn golf through YouTube. It seems body swing is not well introduced there.

▶ YouTube can be a good teaching tool, but it also has problems. YouTube lessons tend to explain arm movements, pumping actions, and so on excessively. It’s a very fragmentary approach. Especially, I try not to do one-point lessons. That’s like anesthesia.

-- Then how should one learn? I guess I should buy the book "Body Swing is Golf Swing" first.

▶ You don’t have to buy the book. If you are a beginner or an office worker golfer, take lessons. Of course, you need to meet a good teacher. There will be instructors who don’t talk about the body and only focus on equipment and hand movements. Just avoid those instructors and learn from others.

Pro Jang Ilhwan

-- The golf population has reached 6 million. Has golf become a popular culture?

▶ Not yet. First, the cost of playing a round must go down significantly. It should be cheaper and accessible to everyone. Right now, one round on the field costs 300,000 won. It’s not easy to spend 300,000 won for five hours a day when you earn 3 million won a month.

-- How can the price barrier of golf be lowered?

▶ One thing I felt in the U.S. is that Korean clubhouses are too fancy. All facilities like bathhouses are good, and there seem to be too many staff members. We need to remove such bubbles to lower the price barrier of golf. Because playing golf is too expensive, the golf culture is actually deteriorating. When you finally make a reservation and go out for a round, you can’t help but take selfies. You spent 300,000 won, so naturally, you want to keep a record. But you don’t take selfies at a sundae gukbap (Korean sausage soup) restaurant. Anyone can eat it anytime, anywhere.

-- As an office worker golfer, you have an impressive career. What advice would you give to junior office worker golfers?

▶ When you go out for a round, you see many people wearing expensive clothes and using expensive clubs. That’s foolish. I have never bought a club over 1 million won, and I have never told anyone to buy good clubs during lessons. Clothes just need to have adequate functionality. Meet a good instructor and learn the basic swing and body swing. Golf is about the body, not the club.

If you shoot in the low 80s, fitting might be okay. For those above that, spending time and money on fitting is a foolish act. Completing your own swing is the priority. If you score over 100, never be greedy about equipment or fitting. Golf balls costing 1,000 won each at a supermarket also fly very well.

To prevent injuries, do reverse swings at the end of practice. Since golf is a one-directional rotational movement, doing reverse swings helps relax the muscles.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.