I found something

After a long period of stagnation, I have finally found "something" that has improved my results immensely. I have not hit so many fairways and greens, or stuck so many balls inside ten feet as in the past three weeks. I have been stuck at a 7.5-8.0 index for a few years, but now it is showing a trend toward 6.5.

As always, it is not any one thing but a few key aspects of the swing which coalesced into a single swing unit a couple of weeks ago. If there is one thing to highlight, that made such a huge difference, it is the idea of practicing "smart". Break down the parts of the swing you want to improve and focus on them individually. As each aspect improves and becomes natural, you then build onto that foundation with other improvements until it all becomes one "thing" that happens without thinking about it. It takes time and you may have to be willing to see your shots get worse before they get better.

If you try to work on too many things at the same time you get little in the way of results. Probably the most important thing I did a while back was to change the way I practiced. I started to take a good deal more time between shots and focused on very specific things I wanted to work on each day. Part of this idea came from something Hale Irwin said on Golf Channel once and also from watching better golfers practice. I noticed most people just hit balls one after the other hoping that they will learn something from simply whacking away. But I saw the high quality players, examining their swing, looking at the club face, rehearsing the shot in segments, mostly hitting 7-8-9 irons, obviously spending a lot of time thinking through what they were doing and observing the results.

80% of my practice with wedges: I seldom work on my swing mechanics with anything longer than an 8 iron, mostly PW and SW. These clubs are easier to hit well with less frustration and the swing results easily migrate to the longer clubs. And guess what... my short game got a lot better real fast.

Hands: grip pressure light and constant. Right wrist not released until after impact. It took a long time to get past the urge to release the wrists at impact. I finally achieved enlightenment when Ron del Barrio strapped my right forearm to a club shaft so I could not unload my right hand, EVER. When I then hit dead straight shots much farther than with my "normal" release, the light came on.

Swing plane: taking the club head back slightly outside my hands and dropping it inside on the downswing. Right elbow tucked in till impact, then released down the line.

Release and follow through: head turning through impact (not lifting) separating the left arm from the body.

Ball striking: I started examining the club face and found most hits to be off center, so I check it after every swing and adjust my set-up/swing until I get it in the sweet spot.

Tempo: Smooth, "slow" and even. It is much easier to make solid contact and accelerate through the ball with what appears to be a smooth even tempo.

Routine: Employing a pre-shot routine at the driving range so it becomes natural to use it on the course

I hope someone finds this information helpful.

SubPar

Sound advice

This is some good advice. I'm prone to try an work on too many things at once and move on to new things before I've really made sufficient progress on the old ones. I shall be thinking a lot more about my practice routine next time I hit the range.

The most balls I have hit in a day was around 500 in two separate sessions. It is hard to do, but I try my best to go through a large bucket (120 balls) in no less than 1.5 to 2 hours. It is so easy to just drag balls and it them too fast. It is not very good practice to simply hit balls one after the other hoping you hit a few right.

Yesterday I was really on my swing so I worked on fades and draws and various specialty shots. But today I hit a few good shots and then started pulling the ball. That dictated that I spend some time with mid-irons trying to identify what was happening. My lower back was a little wonky and I was not turning through the shot with the same good timing. At least I was able leave the range knowing what was wrong and hitting a few good ones toward the end.

SubPar

It's always good to know what your doing wrong and how to correct it. Im not entirely at that stage yet, as you can tell from the handi.
For example, sometimes, while using my driver I have huge slices. I go through the same pre-shot routine yet it still occurs, and Im not completely sure what is causing it.

Well keep up the good work, and hopefully you can see your handicap drop another couple.

When I am pulling the ball, the first thing I check is my set-up. Sometimes I am simply setting up left to begin with. I also know from experience that when my body does not clear early enough, my hands will go across my body and result in a pull. One can't swing down from the inside and release down the line if the hips are not cleared or clearing.

The causes of a true slice are pretty easy to nail down. If you are starting the ball straight and it fades away, you probably have a decent swing plane but the clubface is open at impact. If your ball starts left and goes left your swing is inside out with an open face. If it starts right and fades left you are swinging outside in with an open face (this is the most common). Davis Loves' dad used to make him hit his driver only 150 yards. He said, correctly, if you can't hit a driver straight 150 yards then you can't hit it straight 300. Look at some videos of a propper swing and try to execute the moves without worrying about distance. You may find the right combination on your own. One thing you can do is work with an instructor for one session to try to correct the slice, then when it comes around again you can recall the cause and the fixes. An instructor will see things in your swing you may not. Is the take away too inside? Full shoulder turn? Left eldow ( in your case) "floating"? Hands release too early? Right arm stuck to your body? etc. SubPar

Less is more for me.* I like to get a small bucket 30-40 balls and take my time with those.* It seems like mentally if I started with a small bucket I am naturally taking my time.* If I get a large etc I then feel the need to crank through them.* So I just keep it cheap and to the point.* I hit every clubs maybe 2-3 balls sometimes skipping a club and hitting additional on another club.* I do like what Sub said about checking the face of the woods and irons.* To see where you are hitting them.

Ball striking: I started examining the club face and found most hits to be off center, so I check it after every swing and adjust my set-up/swing until I get it in the sweet spot.

What is the best home remedy for being able to tell where you are striking the ball on the clubface? Do you use tape and if so what kind?

Wipe the clubface clean after every hit. there will usually be a mark you can see after you hit a ball.

Most older range balls leave a chalky mark on my clubface. If they have a painted stripe, that will also leave a mark. Sometimes I will put a dot on the back of the ball with a sharpie. That always leaves a dot on my clubface. Impact tape is okay, but kind of a pain. Sometimes it does not stick too well. I have thought of dusting my clubface with baby powder, but have not tried that yet. SubPar

Golf Digest suggested a couple of months back to use sunscreen, I have found that a cheap and chalky deoderant works best - it is easy to apply and to whipe off, and your clubs will smell fantastic.