Looking for help with a plan to improve (long)

I played occasionally until about 4-5 years ago and have only played twice since then. Once in a scramble a few years ago and a casual round last Friday. I'd really like to start playing regularly and try and improve. I'll try and hit on a few things that I think might be relevant;

-I work for myself and my schedule is flexible enough that I can get away almost any weekday for a bucket of balls or a lesson.

-I'm a big guy and my swing speed is fairly high. I'm not consistent by any means, but my good shots are almost always longer than the good shots of my playing partners. At the scramble I won the long drive prize.

-I think my clubs fit me ok, but I'd like to upgrade most of them and get something that I *know* fits and might be more forgiving. There's a PGA Superstore relatively nearby that has some kind of launch monitor set-up and they do fitting.

-I'm just *really* inconsistent. With my irons, if I fit it well, it's a nice, long draw. I also top the ball and hit it thin A LOT. If I hit my 4 iron, I'm as likely to top it 20 yards as I am to hit a 210 yard draw. I also sometimes hit my shorter irons with what feel like good shots but are pulled to the left. I never slice my irons. My 3 wood is also spotty. If I hit it good it's fairly straight, but I also top it too. My driver is almost always a slice.

-The only specific swing mistake I *know* I make is a "chicken wing" finish. I've had that since I first picked up a club and don't know how to get rid of it.

And here are a few options I have available;

-There's a course nearby that offers a "player improvement program" where you can hit unlimited range balls and participate in a couple of weekly clinics for ~$40/Mo. I like the idea of this, especially the clinics.

-Obviously I could take private lessons. I'm sure someone at the local course offers lessons. And the PGA store offers video lessons (and apparently you get to take home a video CD) and the prices are fairly reasonable.

-I could get fit for clubs that are more forgiving than what I have. This sounds like fun, but would there be any point before I work on some of my swing flaws?


So...where would you start?

I think you are on the right track. Go with the group lessons to begin with (so long as the group isn't more than say half a dozen people for an hour) and once you can get your hands on the club correctly every time and set up to the ball in a good position and understand a few of the basic fundamentals move on to private lessons. I'm sure that if you like whoever is handling the group lessons that they would be able to take you on as a pupil when you are ready for private lessons, otherwise I am positive they could hand you off in the right direction.

And here is the thing to keep in mind and DO NOT forget it, you will get worse before you get better. Learning to play is a two steps forward one step back kind of process!

Equipment first: See the pro, ask what club(s) he suggests changing. Tell him your goals and how much time you can realistically commit. If you're going to be practicing regularly, you don't need the super game improvement set aimed at people who play once every few months. But if your swing is bad at the git-go, you probably don't want to go right to blades, either. And take a lesson, either with your current set or with the new ones -- his choice. Work on what he gives you.

Alternately, he might say your clubs are good at the moment, and will fit your needs. Commit yourself to spending some time putting. I know you're going to hear this over and over again, but it isn't even for your overall score at the moment that I'm going to say it. With your length, once you get decent shots going, you're very likely going to set up a few birdie chances per round. Spending at least some time practicing your putting means you'll be able to take advantage and nab an occasional birdie -- and this will go a long way towards making you want to practice everything else more. Don't work yourself into a frenzy: that is, practice consistently, but not so much in a given day that you practice while fatigued. Hitting 600 range balls once is not as good as hitting 60 balls a day for ten days. And hitting too many at one time without a break is a good way for a bad habit to creep in.

I think I will sign up for the player improvement program this month and see how much I use it. Hitting range balls and doing the weekly clinics should be helpful. One assistant pro does the Friday clinic and another does the Saturday. I think I'll try going to both this week and see if I click with either to do some private lessons.

One thing I did this year, and has paid off very well IMHO, is join a local Par-3 course, where I could get semi-real experience playing an actual round ("semi" because it's mostly 9 iron - Putter).

The instruction call is a good choice, but I for one can only get limited value pounding a bucket of balls at a range. I need the instant feedback of playing to understand what is working, and what's not.

The Par-3 gets me focused on the "short strokes" where most of my mistakes take place.

Good luck.

I would suggest buying a camcorder. You will need it if you want to get lessons and you don't have to be a golf swing expert for it to be an invaluable tool for you to improve.

Generally I suggest that if you want to take a serious step to improving, work on no more than 2 things at once...or you'll just get confused and get worse and I suggest trying to fix the biggest problems with your game first.

Other than that, I suggest doing things to help improve your flexibility. If you can increase your flexibility, you're likely to improve just from that.





3JACK