Tryouts!!

Well, I'm pretty much a lock for the golf team at my school this year because there's only 11 kids trying out and only 6 of us can actually hit the ball (5 are beginners). However, I've encountered a few problems:

1. I'm fading everything. I think I'm coming through with an open face because I'm not releasing properly. Maybe I'm just nervous when we're at the range and the wind was going left to right, but I usually draw the ball about 5 yards. Any help (I don't want to just strengthen my grip...what's causing my not releasing)?

2. One of the coaches wanted me to steepen my swing. Apparantly, I have a flat swing for being so tall. It's not a bad thing though, right? There's no 1 swing for everyone, right? I just need a little feedback on this one.

3. I've also caught some shots fat, but not that many to be alarmed. Are there any drills to prevent dipping?

4. The coach wanted us to swing the SpeedStik. I maxed out at 110 mph and was usually around 95-100, sometimes 105. How accurate are these things? I've heard that they can both over and underestimate swing speeds. I know I've gotten longer over the offseason, but 110 mph? Seems a bit much.

The good news: the coach likes my swing and says I can "hit the sh!t out of the ball" which is pretty awesome. I just hope he doesn't see my putting! Thanks in advance guys.

Edit: I'll be starting lessons early next week, so I really just need some drills and/or advice. Thank you

nice, im playing on my golf team too :)

Im playing #1 on my team this year and i cant wait. School Golf season is my fav time of the whole year. And i wouldnt mess with your swing before tryouts. I would check your setup and alignment (i cant spell). And as for dipping swing around your spine to your finish.

Hope this helps, Chris

Dont change anything. If you are going to get lessons in a week, the last thing you want to do is start something new because you will be disguising your real problems when your golf pro tries to fix your swing. A fade is not difficult to fix, so deal with it for another week and look forward to fixing it the correct way.

I played on a few teams before and didn't have a real positive experience with coaches and drills. A lot of coaches are good though so I hope you continue to have good luck with that. Have fun with though. Once you start playing the big tournaments you really miss having teammates to lean on and laugh with.

To your questions:

1, 2, & 3: I would highly recommend that you take a video tape of your swing. Anytime someone says for me to make a major change - like swing plane or posture through the down swing - I would definitely check on video before hand.

Anyhow, best of luck with your season.

nuggs, and all of you who are about to start the season, here's wishing you fun and success! Keep us posted.

I second this comment. I am not sure that all high school coaches are good enough to start suggesting swing fixes, especially if you are taking lessons. Leave the swing changes to the Golf Pro. Your school coach should be there to make sure you are practicing (Especially your short game) and keeping you motivated.

IMO, thin/fat shots are usually just a balance issue. If you're hanging back a little, that could be causing both the fat shots and the fade/lack of release. Just get onto your left side a little more, get your hands ahead of the ball at impact and clear that left side to release. These are all things you likely used to do, just lost sight of them a little. As others have said, don't think of any big changes, you probably don't need them (at least not if you're just trying to get back to where you were).

Dude, your so luck your number 1 on the golf team with a 6.6 handicap. I wish my town was like that. A 6.6 on my team would be around number 10, out of 17 guys. Fyi, i live in wellesley.

I wish we had good weather too play now. Our coach is getting us passes for $110 for the whole season, which is almost half of what a basic membership is for the club. This year I hope to be #3 or at least #4 on the team of 10 or so. Need to start practising a lot more, which I plan on playing at least 5 times a week, plus at my house.