I need to completely start over.

[Lucas]

Sometimes when my game is going downhill I'll start trying dozens of things to try to fix my problems. All they seem to is confuse me even more and rarely help at all. The best solution I've found is just taking a short break from golf and coming back in a while fresh and not frustrated.

[Aflighter]

im going to give you a little bit of advice as just like you I have had shank fever.ive played 20 years and never shanked until about 3 years ago and they have seemed to pop up mainly early in year then go away with me doing nothing different.this year however I had them so bad for month I was scared to hit ball so I decided to get help.took a lesson that instantly helped for few weeks but they came back just a little bit so a guy on practice range gave me tip.told me to play ball farther up in stance so now I play ball off left heel or so instead of middle of  my stance and seems my clubface at impact is square more instead of leading with hosel.try it and slow swing down lil bit and it should work.i do pull some to the left few yards but that's better than the alternative plus you can always aim lil right and play it.hope this helps.

[isukgolf]

im going to give you a little bit of advice as just like you I have had shank fever.ive played 20 years and never shanked until about 3 years ago and they have seemed to pop up mainly early in year then go away with me doing nothing different.this year however I had them so bad for month I was scared to hit ball so I decided to get help.took a lesson that instantly helped for few weeks but they came back just a little bit so a guy on practice range gave me tip.told me to play ball farther up in stance so now I play ball off left heel or so instead of middle of  my stance and seems my clubface at impact is square more instead of leading with hosel.try it and slow swing down lil bit and it should work.i do pull some to the left few yards but that's better than the alternative plus you can always aim lil right and play it.hope this helps.

Honestly today I got the same tip ... The guy asked if I minded some advice ... Of course not! Had me put the ball up in my stance ... It worked! Now I will see if it holds for the next round on Tuesday ...

[b_lcky]

I had the same despair at the beginning of this season, where I simply could not hit a good iron shot. Sometimes we get all wrapped up in the mechanics of the golf swing and psychoanalyzing our swing thoughts that we forget the simple things. For me it was a matter of ball position. I'm not going to tell you to move the ball forward or backwards like some others but rather to find the true bottom of your swing arc. You can do this drill whenever you practice or even when you play, just make sure you are in an area where you aren't afraid to take a divot (if I'm on the course, I'll usually pick a spot of dirt). First, get into your setup position behind an imaginary ball. Second...Just start swinging. Make sure you are hitting the ground. Don't concentrate on hitting any particular piece of grass or dirt, just concentrate on making your normal swing. After about 5 swings, you should notice that you are hitting the same spot every time. Now, without moving your feet, address that spot and you'll likely find a better ball position for your swing. The best thing is that you can audit your ball position as your swing improves. For me, the result of this drill was to stand 2 inches closer to the ball and move the ball forward in my stance an inch. Still feels awkward, but "feel isn't ..." well... you know the rest. ;-) Hope this helps someone.

[vangator]

ot sure moving the ball forward is the best answer. I was playing in a golf tournament last year. Match play. I was beating the guy and ready to win another hole when I shanked the ball. I had a little cold going on , so I attributed it to my equilibrium. I moved the ball toward the toe and made sure I kept my left arm straight at address. Fixed the shank but it was in my head and I lost the match 1-up when he curled in a 40 foot putt for birdie. I missed my 15 footer to tie.

[Crim]

I really appreciate all the answers guys. I've been lurking and steadily working on my game. It's gotten a lot better over the last few days. Cut down the slices to about 5-10%, which is a huge decrease for me. I've been working on exaggerating on getting more on plane because I was coming up over the top too much (i swear I'm going to get another video of my swing up, soon).

Apparently though I just found out that my swing changes when someone is watching. I start to come over the top again. Is there anything you guys do to slow your mind down when someone is watching? I just end up going back to bad habits. I assume more practice will correct that. Or maybe in my mind I should always imagine I'm playing in front of a crowd...

[DoubleTee]

I'm new to the sport as well (played for about 3 months, couple times a week). Maybe what I'm about to say is completely wrong, but it seems to be working for me.

Back story:

I just started taking lessons (have taken 4 now)....

The first time my instructor watched me hit my irons he literally told me to knock that sh*t off...no joke. I was hitting a pitching wedge about 140, but towards the end it would sort of tail off to the right (i'm right handed). I was thinking he would be impressed, but found out very quickly he was not.

Anyways, my next two iron lessons were brutal!!! I was shanking the ball to the right every single time....

Would go out to the range and come close to snapping my clubs every time. I was trying to think through my swing like it was a sequence....very robotic.

The instructor wanted me to start hitting a draw instead of the fade/slice I was accustomed to hitting.....it's taking me about 3 weeks, but it's finally starting to click. And I'm very glad I went through the process.

One of my biggest problems was that I had a tendency to not "turn the club" over as I came through the ball....I basically tried to keep the club face square through the back swing and then through the follow through....the first thing my instructor had me do was TRY and hook the ball, by having the clubface closed as I came through and made contact.....

Next big thing was rhythm, not taking full swings, and trying to keep my right arm close to my body during the back swing....I had/have a tendency to chicken wing it. Also, not speeding up during my downswing....I have a tendency to try and kill the ball which usually leads to bad results.

Here is my recommendation....it worked for me. Grab a 7 iron and just start swaying back and forth.....hitting the same spot on the grass every time. Practice opening the club head as you sway back and turning it over as you come through......it's very easy to develop a rhythm while doing this. Just keep going back and forth, nice and easy.

Then start hitting easy shots.....focusing more on shot shape than distance. This was one of my recent groundbreakers and brought back a lot of the fun and enjoyment.....

Good luck

[Crim]

Somewhere along the last 5 days, I found out how to get on plane. Irons for the first time feel almost dare I say....easy. I played a round on Sunday and one on Monday and they were the two best rounds I've ever shot. Hitting half my GIR's in each round. I also do not have a problem hitting in front of an audience as of right now.

I finally realized how important being on plane and not getting over the top is. It's very hard to slice a ball when you're on plane. The only reason I didn't hit more GIR's is because I occasionally pull the ball now, but the pull is rarely anything worse than 15 yards. I'll take that over a 50 yard slice any day.

I went from having absolutely no confidence standing over the ball, to now feeling like I can't miss the green. I still don't understand the release all that much, and I still don't think I'm hitting down and driving through the ball as much as I should be, but I'll start working on that eventually. Right now I'm just going to enjoy knowing I can get my ball generally where I want it.

i didn't exactly "completely start over", however I slowed my practice waaaaaay down. I try to remind myself that you only have one chance when you tee up to hit a good shot. So now every time I stand over the ball at the range, I make sure I'm completely ready to hit the shot I want to whereas before I would just mindlessly hack at golf balls hoping to get that "feeling" of a good hit.

One last thing I do now that is probably a bit silly but seems to help, after I hit a really good shot in practice, I flip the club into my left hand like the pros do. Like sliding a sword into it's sheath. Just trying to add routine and muscle memory into the shot I desire, I obviously don't do it if I hit a crappy pull.

Once again, thanks everyone for all the tips!

[Hammer 4]

Good deal Crim. glad you got it sorted out..

[Crim]

After playing 2 weeks of the best golf ever....

I lost the feeling the last 2 days and started playing terribly again.

What a silly game.

[MacDutch]

What a silly game.

You will find it again, loose it, find it, loose it again, and again and again and again. Like most of us do.

[Patch]

I went through a really bad time with my swing about 30 years ago. After a few weeks of pure frustration, I just parked my golf bag in the corner of my garage for about a month. After a month, or so, I got the itch, and decided I would just take a putter, and an AW and just mess around on the practice greens. Long story short I just worked my way backwards from the green to the 150 marker. After a month of practice, I went out a played a real round of golf, and shot a very respectable 80. I think I was a 10 hdcpr at the time.

I knew when I first put my clubs away, that I still knew how to play well, but mentally, for some unknown reason, I just let the game get away from me. I just gave that part of my golf game a rest, and just eased back into into it when I did come back. I had learned that continuing with the frustration was nothing more than compounding the problem(s).

After that, I never really had any bad, long term issues return with my game. However, one thing I did do was at the slightest hint that it felt like I was losing my game, I took a short vacation from it. Sometimes it was only couple of days, sometimes maybe a week at the most. Every time, after a self imposed hiatus, I always seem to play better when I got back on the course.

[divot dave]

I went through a really bad time with my swing about 30 years ago....

boy, how many golfers would like to be able to say that....

I can't even vouch for my last 30 days! lol

[pecos24]

Over the last month I've continually gotten worse and worse. It's gotten so bad that last night I could barely hit the ball at all. I know what a good swing and a good shot feels like, I know what it looks like, I can not find it again. Nothing feels comfortable anymore, I even got a couple lessons recently and it seemed like I and the instructor just kept getting more and more frustrated. Me of course moreso than him (he was a pretty good sport).

It's baffling, so I'm going to completely go back to the beginning. If anybody here has a tip for starting over, please post here. I'm looking for mainly cost-effective learning/training. I don't have a ton of income I can spend on lessons...however I can golf every single day at an academy...and I do. I'm going to start with stance and grip and get a pre-shot routine this time.

I will also once again start posting my swing in the "My Swing." thread...but I feel like it needs to be completely revamped. Starting with grip/stance/etc.

I have only been on here a few days and I am a terrible golfer so I am probably not qualified to give you any advice other than I have been there(and if you look at my index you can see I am still there).  That is an empty feeling to stand over your ball and have no clue how you are going to make good contact.

But the one thing that stuck out to me was your comment that you and your instructor were getting frustrated.  About three years ago I went through one of these phases and I booked a lesson with the pro at my home course, someone that had helped me out before. Anyhow we get out on the range and after about 5 minutes he tells me he doesn't know what I am doing  wrong, refunds my money and sends me on my way.  Well that was the lowest point in my golfing career.  I played about 4 rounds over a two year period; if a pro can't help me who is going to help me?

The only thing that got me back on track was a friend of mine invited me to play on his league team last year and that forced me to go find help.  I went to another pro in town and he helped me almost immediately.  I guess the point I am trying to make is not all pros are created equal; there is someone out there that can help you...unless you are Charles Barkley. :)

And sounds like there are great resources here as well.  I wish I would have found this site a long time ago, maybe I wouldn't have lost two seasons of golf.  :)