My Swing (mcdonaldtj)

[mcdonaldtj]

I was playing pretty well shooting mid 80's and now it's like my swing has completely fallen apart so if anyone can give me any pointers at all it'd be greatly appreciated I've been Playing Golf for: >1 year My current handicap index or average score is: 85 My typical ball flight is: draw The shot I hate or the "miss" I'm trying to reduce/eliminate is: duck hooks [rule] Videos: [video]http://youtu.be/VAHpawyBNOg[/video]

[MEfree]

It would help to see a down the line shot also- a duck hook comes from a clubface that is very closed relative to your swing path (and likely closed relative to your target line) at impact.

You do something I have been trying to stop doing- moving your head towards your back foot on the backswing...think about making a more centered pivot with a steady head.  Guys here will also tell you to flare out your feet at set up, especially your front foot.

[mcdonaldtj]

I thought that the closed club face might be coming from my strong grip so I weakened my grip quite a bit from where it was and it didnt help at all. I'll try to get a down the line video up for you as soon as I can

[MEfree]

Originally Posted by mcdonaldtj

I thought that the closed club face might be coming from my strong grip so I weakened my grip quite a bit from where it was and it didnt help at all. I'll try to get a down the line video up for you as soon as I can

I think there are some different thoughts on grip- some would say to take a strong grip in your fingers so you don't feel as if you have to rotate the club to square it up as opposed to having a weak grip where you feel like you need flip the club to square up the face.

I am not sure which way I feel as sometimes I will start to over-hook the ball when I remember to have a strong grip and am often fine when I don't think about it and naturally revert to a weaker grip.  In any case, I can't really see your grip clearly enough that I would comment one way or another.  It might be interesting to see your trackman stats- my guess is that you have a big in to out path with a pretty open club face on your good shots (push/draws or push/hooks) with your bad shots coming when you close down the club face too much.

Are you able to hit a fade that starts left of your target line? If the answer is no, and assuming I am right about the other stuff, I would work on a more centered pivot/steady head and try to feel like you are swinging left to hit a fade- if this results in less of a draw, a straight shot or even a slight left to right shot, you are making progress.

You do quite a bit good in your swing and seem to have the potential to get down into the 70s, so some time with a good pro who might benefit you a lot.

[mcdonaldtj]

I would completely agree with everything you said. On my good shots I usually hit a push draw. I played on the golf team at highschool this year and could hit a fade when I needed too but my normal shot was a push draw. I had a lesson with my pro today and I hit the short irons decent but long irons are definitely a problem and driver is just awful.

[MEfree]

Originally Posted by mcdonaldtj

I would completely agree with everything you said. On my good shots I usually hit a push draw. I played on the golf team at highschool this year and could hit a fade when I needed too but my normal shot was a push draw. I had a lesson with my pro today and I hit the short irons decent but long irons are definitely a problem and driver is just awful.

What did your pro say?  What did he have you work on?  What do you do different when you try to hit a fade?

One thing to remember is that it is hard to hit a big hook with a short iron- if you are hitting a noticeable draw with the short irons, then this could translate into a big draw (aka hook) with the less lofted clubs.  See if keeping your head steady on the back swing makes any difference.

Remember that feel isn't real so you likely THINK your head is already steady, but it definitely moves back.  I have a cardboard box in my basement that I use to see if my head moves, but you could also trying looking at your shadow if the sun is at the right angle or have a friend hold a club shaft next to your head and make sure you don't touch it on your back swing.

What club were you hitting in the video- if it was a long iron, you might consider moving the ball more forward in your stance.

[mcdonaldtj]

He said that I was rotating my hands as soon as I started my downswing and also I was dipping my shoulders which is probably also my head doing some of that like you said. When I was able to hit a fade I would hold my release as long as possible but now I couldn't get the ball to fade to save my life. I believe it was a 5 or 6 iron in the video, I have a bad tendency to always play the ball in the middle of my already narrow stance.

[Wally]

He said that I was rotating my hands as soon as I started my downswing and also I was dipping my shoulders which is probably also my head doing some of that like you said. When I was able to hit a fade I would hold my release as long as possible but now I couldn't get the ball to fade to save my life. I believe it was a 5 or 6 iron in the video, I have a bad tendency to always play the ball in the middle of my already narrow stance.

It's kind of hard to tell since the video isn't in slow motion, but it looks to me like you don't have very much lag in your swing, let alone wrist cock. I paused the video at the top of your swing and saw the club is pretty vertical due to a lack of wrist cock. Just a thought, but maybe you are rotating your hands as soon as you start the downswing because of this and the weight of the club since it's so vertical. Also, is it possible you are kind of casting the club during your downswing? You said you don't hit long irons or your driver well, and casting will affect that if you're doing it. What is your impact like with long irons and your driver? Do you ever catch it thin, a bit fat, or chunky in the ground before the ball? Just some thoughts for you. Hope it helps! :)

[mcdonaldtj]

I went to the range today and worked on my wrist hinge l, it was unbelievable how much it helped! My ball has great loft and usually just a little baby draw on it but I occasionally pushed the ball way right. What would make me do that

[Mr. Desmond]

Open face at impact, lack of in to out path on downswing

[Linkman]

Mcdonaldtj, I play golf like you do, that is with a strong grip. There is nothing wrong with a strong grip, in many ways it is a good thing. Players with a more neutral/weak grip have to roll their wrists through impact to square the club face. This is difficult to time accurately and the cause of many wayward shots. With a strong grip the club face remains correctly aligned to the swing path throughout the swing and needs no manipulation at impact. Strong grippers also tend to hit the ball further.

As you say your poor shots are generally hooks and duck hooks. This is caused by "letting go" just before impact. The wrists relax as a subconscious reaction to permit the arms to swing around and behind the body on the follow through. The club face closes and a duck hook results.  This will also tend to happen if your arms and hands get ahead of your body in you downswing.

To play well with a strong grip you want to hit the ball as late as possible and to "hang on" through the impact area. To hit the ball late start your down swing with your shoulders and hips and consciously delay your arms for a brief moment. Drop your right elbow to your side immediately and sweep through the ball from the inside. Hang on through the contact area and don't allow your wrists to roll. Your follow through will be almost over your head rather than around your body and behind you.

As you noted above wrist hinge is very important. Try and develop a sensation of pulling the butt end of the club into the ball as you start your downswing. You won't be able to do this without wrist hinge.

I hope this works for you.

[stb5089]

The main problem i see is how much head movement backwards you have during the backswing. This plus your strong grip will promote a hook. When you are moving backwards unless you get back to that point your club will swing across your body to the left and not outwards.  I would not worry much about your grip. If you weaken it a lot you will most likely hit a lot of pushes and blocks because your club is off plane and cutting across your body.  Keep the head still on the backswing and through impact and that should def help.

[mcdonaldtj]

I had my swing analyzed on a track man launcher today and had an inside out swing of almost 14 degrees, does anyone have some drills to fix my swing plane

[Slice of Life]