Which to fix 1st & what causes what?

In regards to my Driver....

The issues... with driver.
1. I swing over top and my shaft comes in on a STEEP plane.
2. I have a reverse pivot
3. I hit the ground after impact.
4. The obvious....this produce that BIG SLICE.
5. I can't hook the ball if you paid me a million dollars!

I started playing golf full time August of 2007. I could drive the ball 280 down the fairway, but didn't play well with my irons. I started practicing everyday with my SW, 9, 8, Iron EVERYDAY or at least 5 days a week since May of 2008. Today I can't miss a green with 8 thru SW. My chipping and pitching save me (ALL the time) giving me "chip in's" & "tap in putts" which allow me to break 90.

In all, I think I damaged my long game with all the practice I've done with my short irons. When I say practice everyday I mean 45 minutes before work, 45 minutes during lunch, 1 hour after work & 3 hours on Saturdays. Do to low funds I've only practiced in short fields of 170 yards. I am prepaired to start hitting the range 3 days a week to practice with Driver & Long Irons.

I was at the range last night hitting balls from my knees.....

Any words of wisdom would be great!

Wow, sounds like to me that you're definitely on the right track, so I would trust what you're doing, honestly. The only thing I could recommend is re-reading some of your favorite golf books and getting back to fundamentals with whatever you're struggling with.

Sounds good though! The grass practice ranges in Florida are pretty amazing.

Get a camera and film your swing. That will tell you a whole lot.

Also, you definitely need to work on your flexibility so you can make that full turn without changing your spine angle. This will keep you behind the ball so you have plenty of room to square the club face up. It sounds boring, but it might just be a flexibility issue. I'm just guessing though.

http://www.golflink.com/tipsvideos/video.aspx?v=23234

That's a link to Hank Haney helping fix a reverse pivot. May or may not help u.

There are two "truisms" in learning golf: (1) what you feel is often a long way off from being what is really happening; and (2) practice makes permanent, not perfect.

It's great that you're so dedicated and able to practice so much - you should be able to really improve! But as you already know, you have some significant flaws in your driver, and it is quite probably that you have some of the same flaws in your iron swing but have learned to compensate for them. You mention that funds are low, but I'd strongly urge you to take a few lessons to really understand the problems in your swing and then focus your practice on those issues. Otherwise, you'll just keeping making those habits so deeply ingrained you'll have a very very tough time breaking them. I've spent a lot of time (and money) over the last year trying to break 20+ years of bad habits, and wish I'd had someone push me into lessons two decades ago - I'd sure be a lot better today!

First thing I could recommend trying is focus on swinging more around your body. Take the club on the backswing around your hips, not your shoulders. This will help with the steep angle and the out-to-in swing path that slices the ball.

As for the reverse pivot. I might try continueing to turn through the follow through almost to the point that your right foot comes off the ground and you will stand square to the target. This will make you put all your weight on your front foot, which makes a reverse pivot difficult, and may help with the open clubface that the reverse pivot creates.

So. Swing the club around your hips, and swing your body to the target.
A good drill to make your body do this to practice hitting off your knees. I bet the first time you try this drill you will hit the ground well BEFORE the ball.

For most people this would cause a severe hook. If you start to draw or hook, find the happy medium.

Let me know if this helps.

I really appreciate you taking the time to reply to my post.

1Greatgolfguy - I never hit the ground once "behind the ball" while hitting from my knees. Although, there were a FEW divots in front of the ball .....now that was a sight to see! (this was with Driver).

Clambake - those truisms could never be more true!! (1) supports why you need someone to watch you practice and swing. (2) that is exactly what I did....and again this supports why lessons would be good. I will take your advice for some serious consideration and talks with the VP (wife).

JetFan1983 - Well GEORGE i think you've hit on the spot. Not so much about the flexibility, but as for the Hank lessons......RIGHT ON. My friend just came back from the "teach the teacher" lessons with Hank in Texas about a month ago. He kept on telling me to keep my chin & head up so that my eyes would stay level with the horizon. You can't swing on an inside out path with your head down and chin in your chest....just not going to happen. You are so right about going back to the fundamentals and keeping things simple. i.e. Stance, Posture, Grip, etc

Thank you all again.....I will post my results in 3 to 6 weeks

If your that good with your eight iron, just hit the longer clubs with the same swing speed and tempo as your eight iron. In other words when using driver or any longer club just imagine its your eight iron and swing like just like its the eight iron. If you can do that I think you will be supprized at the results...........when golfers get longer clubs in their hands most of the time they think they have muscle up and swing harder......WRONG, the clubs are already made to hit them farther due to club length and loft. Who care's if someone is out driving you or a friend hits a 9 iron form 150 yards and you hit a 7 iron, don't try to fall into the ( they hit the ball farther than i do game) play within yourself, always remember that. The game is not how far but how many.

Recently, I have become a Hank guy Haney, and I have similar methods that he does. The key to the golf swing is SWING PLANE. Right now you are slicing, which comes from your swing plane. I recommend seeing a pro about swing plane, or watching many, many golf videos on the swing plane. Watch golf if you can. If anything, get your swing inside and flat, then work on getting it back on perfect plane. Work on the other little things throughout, but focus on your swing plane. I guarantee it will help you enormously.

Those are exaggerated examples of the trouble I've had with the driver for 20 years, particularly after a long layoff. I normally play very little during football season and when I return in January my early driver swings inevitably will scrape the ground on an outside in path. Sometimes I'll belt the ball smack into the tee ground and it will skid like a skipped rock, a rising line drive with a little slice that still manages 200 to 220.

I can't get mad because I know it's coming. My natural swing is descending with big divots so I've always preferred irons to woods and had a heck of a time swinging up on a driver. After a layoff I have to remember to position the ball further forward on a driver swing, relax the hands and shoulders, slow down on my backswing while bringing the clubhead back slightly outside (or what feels like outside), and keep my right elbow tucked on the downswing. Eventually I get the hang of it. Rounded baseball-type practice swings also help. In my case the only way I can swing through the ball and hit aggressive hooks off the tee is to retreat to sub-300cc drivers that I can get underneath. I realize that's not the solution anyone wants to hear but the bigger the driver the more I come from the outside.