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Golf Rant


Dave H
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This is my third year playing golf regularly. Year 1, I got hooked. I didn't know anything about how to play the game, but it got me and I kept playing. Year 2, I got some decent clubs, got some lessons and improved dramatically but I still didn't know much about how to play the game. Year 3 - this year - I've learned a lot about how to play the game. I've made big strides in terms of learning etiquette, course management, better shot selection, and scoring. I also learned I wasn't as good as I thought as I stopped taking mulligans and counting my real score.

So, what am I ranting about?

Using my driver flat out makes me mad. Last season, my driver was basically my best club. No, I didn't hit three hundred yard bombs (and still don't), but I consistently stayed out of trouble with it and felt confident with it. It was the rest of my game (irons, short game) that kept me from scoring better. This year, I feel like it's my driver that's keeping me from scoring well! I'm striking my irons well, and with consistency, my short game is decent and getting better, but I feel like I never know what's going to happen with my driver now. What power I had seems to be gone, and I rarely hit one straight anymore. And yet, my swing overall seems much better than last season. I don't even feel like I'm hitting the sweet spot 9 times out of 10. I've tried lots of adjustments based on videos and tips, but nothing I do with this clubs seems to help much.

So, in a season in which I would consider great overall improvement, in this area I feel like I've taken a huge step back. The club that was once my favorite is now feared. I'll probably have to take some lessons - not a bad thing, but it means I won't be playing since I can't afford both lessons and greens fees.

Anybody else go through this???
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Head to a range and keep working at it. One thing that I have always done is to keep on trying to hit the club even though you 'mentally' think that you can't hit it.

I have been fortunate that my driver is one of my most consistent clubs. When I start hitting it funny, I will never put it in my bag and pull out a 3 wood off the tee. I know that I can hit it properly so I just make a few adjustments both mentally and physically and will eventually return to hitting it with out too much trouble.

I was having a ton of trouble hitting my new 16 deg. hybrid earlier this year. I was topping most shots and I was really getting frustrated with it. Finally, I figured out what I was doing wrong and I enjoy pulling it out of the bag.

What's the point of lugging an expensive driver around if you think you just can't hit it.

Keep swinging...

Here's what's in my ogio.gif Grom...

wishon.gifDriver: 919 THI 460cc 9°
wishon.gifWoods: 915 F/H 16° and 21°
wishon.gifIrons: 752 TC 5-9, PW, AW, SWtaylormade.gifPutter: Rossa - Suzukatitleist.gifNXT Tour

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I have the same problem of all my clubs my driver gives me the most trouble. I would say just keep working at it and it will come around. Remember though rarely does everything come together during a round but when it does there's no better feeling
Driver: i15, 3 wood: G10, Hybrid: Nickent 4dx, Irons: Ping s57, Wedges: Mizuno MPT 52, 56, 60, Putter: XG #9 
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Plateaus can be very difficult to get over. I have found that my major improvements show up after doing my own homework on the swing. Study the movements of great players and ball strikers.

There arent any secrets, all the information that Butch Harmon, Hank Haney, and David Ledbetter use is available at the book store. Get a video camera, what you think you are doing and what you are doing can be totally different.

Good Luck,

-Beane
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I don't care how good you are, everyone goes through periods like this. Golf goes in cycles. Sometimes you can't hit a driver, but the irons are great. Some days you can't hit a green but you get up and down every time. Other days you hit every green, but can't make a three footer to save your life.

You have to learn to go with the flow and not worry about it too much. (this does not mean you don't have to work some issues out on the range) If the driver sux, but the irons are good, rely on them and lay farther back in the fairway and trust you can still hit the green with good iron play. Play away from weakness and toward your strengths. Scoring good is about using what abilities you have to make the best with what you have...... and have fun doing it. Relax and enjoy the challenge of scraping together a good round when things aren't going well.

My swing thoughts:

- Negative thinking hurts more than negative swinging.
- I let my swing balance me.
- Full extension back and through to the target. - I swing under not around my body. - My club must not twist in my swing. - Keep a soft left knee

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I hate to suggest it, but maybe your swing has changed a bit and might call for a different driver? Mess around with some drivers at your golf shop on the simulator when they are not busy, bring your driver, and see what happens. Maybe your new swing calls for a different shaft, head, etc.

Or maybe you need lessons...
I don't care how good you are, everyone goes through periods like this. Golf goes in cycles. Sometimes you can't hit a driver, but the irons are great. Some days you can't hit a green but you get up and down every time. Other days you hit every green, but can't make a three footer to save your life.

Man, this hit home with me big time. I was actually thinking of starting a thread regarding this frustration. One day I am chipping and putting like a champ but I just cannot get off the tee. Other days I can hit a fairway 250 yards away and also a green from 200 yards with my woods but I can't hit a 3' putt or my 7 iron to save my life. You're right though, I did find myself playing towards my strengths during these particular rounds and it made it more enjoyable and I got to walk off the course knowing that I can do those things. Putting it all together, I know I can do all of it if I just try harder. Thank you for posting these words, I will remember them for quite some time.

Grom stand bag
SQ 5900 - 9.5*
Burner 15* and 18*
MT 20* Hybrid
CG Gold 4-PW CG14 52.10 SM 56.14 IC 20-10a 34" Putter SDF balls (was on sale)

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You can find your driver swing again with a little work. What helped me when I lose my swing is to go back to basics, grip, posture, ball position, distance from my body, arms positions, rear shoulder position, the direction of take away, etc.

Another thing that helped me was to work on my wedge shots within 100 yards, yes wedge shots, what I was focusing on was making solid contact, distance control and direction. All these things are important with the driver swing, since you are practicing in the hitting zone, my focus was on my backswing, how I took the club back in distance away from my body and also the direction of my take away.

It also helps to have someone you trust watch your swing that is an accomplish player.

Finally, two more points that might be of help to you, first do not be afraid to choke up on your driver to control the direction and sacrifice some distance for control and hitting fairways and lastly, hit your 3 hybrid off the tee as another option for your tee shot.

Keep in mind that scoring starts from the hole backwards, so practice putting and chipping around the green and keep records of these stats during your round. Try to keep the putts under 30 per round and up and down percentage for one putts to over 60%

Not able to hit your driver will help improve the rest of your game, so look at it as an opportunity.

Titleist 910 D2 9.5 Driver
Titleist 910 F15 & 21 degree fairway wood
Titleist 910 hybrid 24 degree
Mizuno Mp33 5 - PW
52/1056/1160/5

"Yonex ADX Blade putter, odyssey two ball blade putter, both  33"

ProV-1

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yes that happened to me this year


i hit he ball long and far, nice and straight..but then mid way through this summer i started wondering if i was too far from the ball...too close to the ball....then i started pulling it left all the time

it was really frustrating, i went back to the driving range and worked it out a bit. however, i think it is something that will improve with time, after 10 years of golfing we will have different concerns
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You can find your driver swing again with a little work. What helped me when I lose my swing is to go back to basics, grip, posture, ball position, distance from my body, arms positions, rear shoulder position, the direction of take away, etc.

This is good and has helped with my irons over the season. For the driver, it hasn't I think part of my problem is that I don't even feel like I know what the basics for swinging my driver are. Not sure how or when that happened, but it seems to have...
Another thing that helped me was to work on my wedge shots within 100 yards, yes wedge shots, what I was focusing on was making solid contact, distance control and direction. All these things are important with the driver swing, since you are practicing in the hitting zone, my focus was on my backswing, how I took the club back in distance away from my body and also the direction of my take away.

This is probably where a lesson or two will have to come in. Unfortunately no one I golf with really fits the bill.

Finally, two more points that might be of help to you, first do not be afraid to choke up on your driver to control the direction and sacrifice some distance for control and hitting fairways and lastly, hit your 3 hybrid off the tee as another option for your tee shot.

This I have definitely seen an improvement in. In fact, I often hit one of my hybrids off tees I always thought I needed to use my driver on before. As a result, I've seen my fairways hit stat steadily rising.

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This is my third year playing golf regularly. Year 1, I got hooked. I didn't know anything about how to play the game, but it got me and I kept playing. Year 2, I got some decent clubs, got some lessons and improved dramatically but I still didn't know much about how to play the game. Year 3 - this year - I've learned a lot about how to play the game. I've made big strides in terms of learning etiquette, course management, better shot selection, and scoring. I also learned I wasn't as good as I thought as I stopped taking mulligans and counting my real score.

Yes sir. I feel your pain. The problem is confidence, over swinging and fear. How to fix it? Go to the range and tee up 10 balls in a row. Now put 10 on the ground in between creating twenty in a row 10 teed up 10 on the ground. Hit one with your 7-iron using that smooth butter swing, then immediately grab your driver. using the SAME swing hit a drive out there a little way and grab the 7-iron.

Focus on keeping the swing smooth and efficient, using your body, not your hands to create speed. Keep doing this until you would trust that driver with your daughters honor on a friday night. haha

theincrediblegolfbum.blogspot.com Aol messenger: "Drifterland88"

Driver Tour Burner 9.5 s (Best Driver Ever!)
3-Wood Burner 07 14.5 s
3-Hybrid Halo 22degree Irons X-Forged Project 6.o Rifle s-flexGW SV 52.08 SW Tour Action 900 56.12 LW Oil Can 60.06

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Note: This thread is 5264 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

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