You need four skills to have a working golf swing:

1. A swing that keeps the clubface square up to the top of the backswing.
2. A swing that starts forward without over-accelerating the club.
3. A pivot that coordinates the turning of the body with the swinging of the arms.
4. A swing swings the club through the ball with a ball-first-ground second impact.

1. The right grip is vital for this, and it must be personalized. See A Basic Golf Swing (video) to learn how to get yours. After you have that, learn what it feels like to swing back with the clubface staying square to the swing path all the way back.

2. Pause at the top for the barest moment. Start down as slowly as you swung up. Think you are going to swing through the ball in slow motion. This thought will not slow you down. It prevents you from speeding up.

3. In the forward swing, everything is turning and flowing through the ball toward the target, from the very start in coordinated way. The forward swing must feel like it is one movement, not a collection of separate movements working together. And the club, especially the club, is included in this unified feeling.

4. Do not think of hitting at the ball, but swinging through it. Your forward swing up to this point has been a flow. Continue that feeling through the ball to the finish.