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possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

post #1 of 38
8/21/09 at 2:22pm
Thread Starter 
is it possible? i recently made my swing more in to out on the downswing, which pretty much erased my divot. How bad is it that I don't take a divot? and what would be some pros if I started making divots? Thanks
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post #2 of 38
8/21/09 at 3:20pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

A kitten dies every time you hit a golf ball and don't take a divot.
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post #3 of 38
8/21/09 at 4:00pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

I have always been more of a sweeper and not taken a big divot. I am working on some swing changes that are causing me to make a bigger divot.
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post #4 of 38
8/21/09 at 4:12pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

Originally Posted by maraca2020 View Post
is it possible? i recently made my swing more in to out on the downswing, which pretty much erased my divot. How bad is it that I don't take a divot? and what would be some pros if I started making divots? Thanks
I'm not a digger - never have been. Learning the game as a kid by playing in the yard and the pasture is a factor. One too many divots in the yard and - let's just say hitting irons well does not require taking a divot.


I like the ball to stop, not back it up. When I play really soft wet fairways I hit more club and back off because beaver pelt sized divots are not my thing.
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post #5 of 38
8/21/09 at 4:45pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

When improving on a 10-15 handicap I think a divot is important and I'd be surprised if good players say otherwise.
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post #6 of 38
8/21/09 at 4:53pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

I read something a few years ago about Tom Watson and he says he is a 'sweeper' more than a 'digger', taking small, shallow divots and then only with his wedges and irons. I have not watched closely enough to notice how big his divots are, so I'm not sure.

I used to be a 'sweeper', but about a year ago I changed my swing and started taking divots. My ball striking has improved so much it's scary since I began doing this. I very seldom catch a ball truly 'fat' now, although my misses are now thin ("Thin to win" as I heard Jack say one time). I also get much better control, more consistent ball flight and much more spin. Taking a divot itself doesn't mean much other than it's indicative that you have hit down and through the ball.
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post #7 of 38
8/21/09 at 4:54pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

Originally Posted by brgolf View Post
When improving on a 10-15 handicap I think a divot is important and I'd be surprised if good players say otherwise.
Good call. I'm not that good, but I think that the depth/direction of your divot can go a long way in communicating swing info to you, particularly when you're trying to move the ball. Its a good diagnostic for swing path correction when you get out of sync.
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post #8 of 38
8/21/09 at 4:58pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

Originally Posted by WheresthCartGirl?? View Post
Good call. I'm not that good, but I think that the depth/direction of your divot can go a long way in communicating swing info to you, particularly when you're trying to move the ball. Its a good diagnostic for swing path correction when you get out of sync.
You put more stock in your divot than ball flight and how the club feels during contact? Different strokes for different folks I suppose.
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post #9 of 38
8/21/09 at 5:03pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

Originally Posted by brgolf View Post
When improving on a 10-15 handicap I think a divot is important and I'd be surprised if good players say otherwise.
While I think that taking a good divot shows that you have really hit down and through on the ball, I don't think it is a must to be a good player. I have seen too many good players that sweep more than take divots. Just because you don't take up a chunk of grass doesn't necessasily mean that you haven't hit down on the ball.
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post #10 of 38
8/21/09 at 5:11pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

How does the ball fly?
Originally Posted by maraca2020 View Post
is it possible? i recently made my swing more in to out on the downswing, which pretty much erased my divot. How bad is it that I don't take a divot? and what would be some pros if I started making divots? Thanks
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post #11 of 38
8/21/09 at 5:31pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

I go by the theory that iron shots require a descending blow, with the bottom of the swing arc being just beyond the ball. It is hard to imagine achieving this without at least a shallow divot. In my experience not taking a divot kills my distance.

I've still played rounds 5-8 over without taking divots but in retrospect it is more a case of what could have been.
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post #12 of 38
8/21/09 at 5:39pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

Originally Posted by sean_miller View Post
You put more stock in your divot than ball flight and how the club feels during contact?
I wouldn't say that, but the swing path has a direct impact on both the things you mention, and the characteristics of the divot have direct correlation to swing path.
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post #13 of 38
8/21/09 at 5:47pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

Originally Posted by WheresthCartGirl?? View Post
I wouldn't say that, but the swing path has a direct impact on both the things you mention, and the characteristics of the divot have direct correlation to swing path.
I do take a shallow divot with anthing shorter than a 6 iron so maybe I should look closer at my divots. Is it easy to detect a slightly open or closed clubface from a divot? Is there a distinct difference as the leading edge begins to cut through the turf?
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post #14 of 38
8/21/09 at 5:49pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

I have never hit a really good iron shot w/o taking a divot. I don't see how you can get a proper trajectory w/o one.
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post #15 of 38
8/21/09 at 6:01pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

Originally Posted by sean_miller View Post
I do take a shallow divot with anthing shorter than a 6 iron so maybe I should look closer at my divots. Is it easy to detect a slightly open or closed clubface from a divot? Is there a distinct difference as the leading edge begins to cut through the turf?
I think it can help with this based on the divot relative to what the ball did. look at the divot direction and consider that as "what the swing wanted the ball to do" and then figure that where the ball finished was "what the clubface wanted it to do" e.g. divot points right, you went left, then you were probably closed through the zone.

But beware.. these things are acting in tandem, so a crooked divot with an equally opposite crooked face can still produce a pure shot. the divot is just a clue in my opinion.
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post #16 of 38
8/21/09 at 7:18pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

Like I said, I have never taken a big divot. You can tell where the club hit the grass but never a chunk out. And I got all the way down to a 2.5 and hit my 9i around 135 just as a comparison. I hit my iron shots high and they stop on the greens because of this. So to say that you can't get a good trajectory or distance or play well because you aren't taking a big divot is false information.

With that being said, my swing changes that I am currently going through usually have me taking a "bigger" divot than I used to with my short irons. It is still not a huge chunk, but it is more than I used to. You might be a more consistent and even a better ball striker if you are taking a divot (just because like the above poster said the bottom of the arc occurs just in front of the ball), but you can still be good and have good distance and still be fairly consistent without it.
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post #17 of 38
8/21/09 at 8:11pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

There doesn't have to be a big divot but there is a small one. I don't take a very big divot but there is a small one. I have argued with TN before about this very subject. You don't have to take a Tiger divot but a downward strike is a MUST to be a really good iron player.
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post #18 of 38
8/21/09 at 8:15pm

Re: possible to have good swing but not make a divot?

Originally Posted by Leftygolfer View Post
There doesn't have to be a big divot but there is a small one. I don't take a very big divot but there is a small one. I have argued with TN before about this very subject. You don't have to take a Tiger divot but a downward strike is a MUST to be a really good iron player.
Oh yeah....I forgot about that I agree with the downward strike.
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