The proper golf stance consists of a universal "ready" posture. You know, as
if you were waiting for a serve in tennis. Knees flexed and springy, back straight and
head up, totally in balance. Ready to move in any direction. Sounds like a golf stance to
me.
Try it. Stand up and make believe a hot grounder is being hit at you. See what you did?
You flexed your knees and balanced yourself and had your hands ready in front of you.
Put a golf club in your grip and get ready to receive a serve from Pete Sampras. Get the
idea? Just don't get too bent over.
The key element here is balance. Your body must provide a stable platform for the
movements of the swing. Consider the sternum your focal point. This will be your axis of
rotation. Find a way to learn how to rotate on that axis. Notice any side to side swaying
or front to back leaning and try to avoid it. You seek rotation. Your hips, legs, arms and
club will all react to the rotation generated by the chest, back and spine. Keeping your
spine straight is essential to being able to rotate around it. Stand as erect as possible
with what ever club you have to play. A longer club will allow you to place the ball
further away from you and still stand fairly upright. When playing a shorter club remember
to stand incrementally closer to the ball as to remain somewhat erect.
Golf is a game of managing the variables. You will need a minimum of 15 different stances
and ball positions to play the 14 clubs you are allowed to use. Then comes the variables
of the terrain the ball lands on. It will rarely be flat and you will never be
perpendicular to it.
So get a grip on your stance and posture now. It is very difficult to change a habit once
you have formed it.