Swing Videos - Thoughts please

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I can see that I am not keeping the lag in the downswing so that is something I am working on and is getting better all the time. Any drills to sort it out would be appreciated along with any other thoughts.

I only watched it at normal speed but it seems to me that at the second that you hit the ball, your head moves abruptly backwards, ie. away from the target.

Jamo, di you say Cyprian keys?

I live in Boylston and have been a member for a couple years. Hope you like target golf.

you have a good initial setup. What is shot pattern like?

You bring the club inside very quickly from looking at the top video which leads to the club being swung around your body - something I'm working to stop right now. Check out the two pics I took of my swing - top one I feel is similar to yours on the video

http://www.golftribe.com/archive/201...enge-2010.aspx

Nick

Let me ask a better question, what causes your handicap to be 20? Where do you lose those 20 shots? For instance, if I were to tell you where I lose 6-8 shots in a round, it would be fairway wood mishits, 20-60 yard pitches, and one or two boneheaded mistakes (I.E., I'm pretty sure I can drive it over those trees...) If we know where you're losing shots, we might be able to give better advice.

Yeah, I played in a tournament there over the summer and absolutely loved it. I like how it can be a really long or a really short course depending on what tees you play and it has some tough holes and some that are easier. I'm only 17 so I can use the junior rate which is only $545, and I hoping my parents will help me out a little money-wise. I live in Hopkinton, so its like 25 minutes away, but i'm hoping i can get a job in Westborough or at the Solomon Pond Mall, so i would already be a little closer.

My main shot pattern right now when it's going well is a push-draw. However it goes wrong when I go outside and either pull-hook it or slice it because I try to correct the outside to in swing. I did used to suffer a really bad pull hook but I am able to contain it a bit more now.

Consistency is probably the main thing. I have lost count of the rounds I have had this season where I have been told that my handicap should soon tumble or that they wouldn't want to play me in matchplay off my mark. The season just gone I have did go down from a high of 25.6 to my current mark of 20.5.

To say where I lose the 20 shots is pretty tough. I played a couple of weeks ago and didn't hit once decent tee shot. The next time I go out it could easily be approach shots, short game or putting. I have also been working on my decision making as well which has helped me save a few shots. However it still lets me down when I let my head wander.

Ok, I think I see

exactly what your problem is, and I have the (well, an ) answer for you. Your problem is anxiousness. You seem to have a little tic that indicates you're in a hurry to see where the ball is going. This happens to me often, in fact. I was going through a rough patch of being hyper inconsistent, and was so down in the dumps, I thought I'd never hit one pure again. I was really pissed, to put it another way. Then, the most unlikely of people fixed it. My father, a hacker if ever there was one, but the man who taught me the game, came with me to the range. One look and he instantly solved the problem. He says, "You moron, keep your head down!" ??? Seriously? I thought about it. Ok, I grabbed his old 4 iron with a worn out grip and a tiny head. "Ok dad, if you're right, then I'll pure this ball 200 yards..." I meant it as a joke... But I did. And then hit another, same result. Oh! I looked back over the videos from the last month (I take video of my swing daily), and he was right... It had happened so slowly, that I never noticed it. My head was up right as the club was leaving the divot. Now, my videos show my head being down to the point when the club is parallel to the ground coming through. In this game, being calm and confident means a lot more than most swing fundamentals. If you begin to worry about inconsistency (as I certainly did for those few weeks!) then you will be inconsistent. Just remember to stay down and expect the best from each shot.

You put a pretty good move on the ball. I would say work on your short game, physical conditioning, and the mental side of the game (pace of play, rhythem, course management, etc...). That swing is much better than a 20 handicap.

-Beane

The bits you mention regarding the mental game make a lot of sense. I find my best golf comes when I am relaxed on the course and I have a nice smooth tempo to my swing. When I get tense is when the tempo goes off and the problems creep in.

I am also going to try and hook up with a guy at the club who is a physio. He is now dealing with golf specific workouts so would be good to get a routine. Many thanks for your reponse on this. Will take it all on board and see how it goes.

if you insist that one thing to be picked at to be more ideal :), i would suggest that your lower body can lead the upper body even more. play around with the target view video and try to pause it somewhere on the downswing segment prior to impact--i paused at the frame where the shaft was parallel to the ground. i think you can appreciate the fact that as you enter into the impact zone with your arms (good lag and position), your lower body has not initiated much turn yet.

you said that you can maintain better lag, but i think it is not an arm/wrist issue. the mechanics/leverage of a more optimal hip clearing naturally sets and maintain the wrist hinge.

The main thing i notice is you take the club way inside on the backswing, then on the down swing you go over the top to get it back on the proper plane on the downswing. You lose alot of power and shot accuracy with the move at the top to get your club back on path. Theres to much going on. The main thing i can tell you is that if your holding a 20 pound ball and your going to throw it forward are you going to swing it inside around your body then up and straight forward? Or are you going to take it more up and keep it in the area when you throw it forward? Theres alot of drills you can do to take the proper backswing and stop yourself from going inside. One of the easiest is to set something behind you like a chair to where if you take the club inside you will hit it. It will force you to take the club straight back and not from the inside.

Picked up the Zx-1 recently and got to try it out yesterday evening while I grabbed a quick 9. Can still see that I am not leading with the lower body which causes the pulls that you can see in this video. Something to work on up the range tomorrow night.

I'm no pro or anything, and dont take my word. I think you might be losing some power and accuracy via a cast? Check out the image. The red is your arm / club. The green is where I picture the club should be at that point of the downswing. Do others agree with this?

agreed to a point. Could be because he isn't bringing his right arm into his side enough, if he did that he could level the plane a bit and would help cure some of the casting. suggestion to andrew...work on tempo. Seems like you're a bit rushed on your swing, could lead to your inconsistent ball striking or inconsistency hitting similar shots after another. just my 2 cents

senorchipotle shared this video on another tread that might help with your lag by Ernie Els.

Tempo is something that comes up a lot and I work on it a lot when practising. It is getting a bit smoother but I run the risk of going to far and almost quitting on the shot.

Also, cheers for the notes about the right arm. That is also something I work on in practice and I know when I am hitting it well the right arm is in a better place. Just seems to be something I can't do consistently.

Thinking now I wonder if the quick tempo doesn't help with the right arm position.

I find if my tempo speeds up i don't allow my right arm to get in the correct slot on the downswing which leads to varying degrees of frustration due to awful shots, thin, fat, whatever else. If I don't take my time and i rush it, things go haywire. i'd suggest going to the range and hit 9 balls...first, as fast as you'd go now...second, a shade slower, third, shade slower, fourth even slower and one at the slowest you feel comfortable with. Then, work back up. decide for yourself based on feel...which feels the most comfortable for you, regardless of the distance you see. I can promise you if you find that right tempo, distance/consistency/accuracy will be easier to control.