Want to Be Good, But How?

[JeffB]

So, im new to the game, maybe about 7 mos. Of experience. I've bought swing trainers, grip trainers, flatballs, plastic balls, been to the range 100+ times and the course near me over 100+ times, watched more videos then i can count, took a lesson, got tips from ppl at the rabge and have tried everything but for some reason I CANNOT figure out how to swing the driver [or any club for that matter] straight and how to get it over 50 yds. It seems like if i get it over 50 yds its only 150 and its always all over the green, never just a smooth straight shot. How do i fix this? I want to be good at this game so bad but just cant get the hang of it. Thanks in advance!

[Double Mocha Man]

I'll follow up in a bit.  But let me start by asking you if you played (and enjoyed) any sports in your youth.  Oooh, you might still be in your youth.

[Darkfrog]

Good is relative, what is your definition of good? For me, good is scoring in the mid-high 80s, for more skilled players, good might be going under par, and for some, the goal is to break 100.

IMO, lessons are the best way to improve. I went through a lot of youtube content, training aids, and mindless driving range sessions and never made any real gains. A good instructor can observe your swing, diagnose what is going wrong, and teach you how to correct it.

It me about a year of lessons (1-2 per month), plus learning how to practice effectively to start to see some real improvement in my game. One of the things my instructor emphasized was that learning how to practice was just as important as what she taught me in each lesson. I still don't have the practice thing quite mastered, but I'm getting better.

[JeffB]

  On 12/31/2019 at 10:23 PM, Double Mocha Man said:

I'll follow up in a bit.  But let me start by asking you if you played (and enjoyed) any sports in your youth.  Oooh, you might still be in your youth.

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I played football for a little while and i wrestled, wasnt really a sports person, i enjoy watching over playing. Golf just seems like my kinda game, its maddening but something about it makes it all the more worth it.  I'm 29, so i guess still in my youth. 

[Double Mocha Man]

  On 12/31/2019 at 10:28 PM, JeffB said:

I played football for a little while and i wrestled, wasnt really a sports person, i enjoy watching over playing. Golf just seems like my kinda game, its maddening but something about it makes it all the more worth it.  I'm 29, so i guess still in my youth. 

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Yep, you and I are still in our youth.  I've discovered that playing various sports when young is a predictor, to a degree, of the prowess you'll have as a golfer.  You learn tempo, hand-eye coordination, competitiveness, timing and the ability to persevere.  All is not lost but, in all seriousness, I'd suggest taking up other sports as well... city league softball, soccer, flag football, pool, tennis.  Those will help prime you for a better golf swing.  I can see that you certainly have the desire to become a golfer.  That, right there, will serve you well.  You might want to post a swing on this website... Erik and others can help you by observing your motions.  

[Patch]

"Good" to me is keeping one's poor shots to a minimum. Playing to one's ability in a consistent manner can be considered good. Good golfers should also have the ability, and desire to get better. That, and not lose their tempers, or get frustrated. They have patience. 

A good golfer can be a 100s, 90s, 80s, 70, 60s golfer with in those groups.

Golf scores are just numbers relative to the individual and their handicap. Example would be a good 90s player scoring lower than a good 80s player after their hanicaps have been applied. 

I think good golfers tend to also  have more fun than a not so good golfer. 

[JeffB]

Lets put it this way, on a par 31 im shooting around a 70.  

Where would i post a pic of my swing? I did take a lesson from golf galaxy but it did absolutely nothing for me. I just have the video from it

[Double Mocha Man]

  On 12/31/2019 at 10:47 PM, JeffB said:

Lets put it this way, on a par 31 im shooting around a 70.  

Where would i post a pic of my swing? I did take a lesson from golf galaxy but it did absolutely nothing for me. I just have the video from it

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A good starting point would be to watch the pro swings, starting with the tournament that begins on Thursday.  Try to emulate their swings.  But not Jim Furyck's... but he's not in the tournament.

[dennyjones]

  On 12/31/2019 at 10:47 PM, JeffB said:

Lets put it this way, on a par 31 im shooting around a 70.  

Where would i post a pic of my swing? I did take a lesson from golf galaxy but it did absolutely nothing for me. I just have the video from it

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Member swings

[SemperFi]

There are a lot of pieces to a Golf swing that an instructor would find it difficult to teach in one lesson.  IMHO.  I took a year of lessons at Golf Tec and feel I'm just finally hitting the ball consistently.  Now if it would just go where I aim!  But I played for 30 years and had a lot of bad habits ingrained in me.  I'll bet you just need to find the right instructor.

[JeffB]

  On 12/31/2019 at 11:46 PM, SemperFi said:

There are a lot of pieces to a Golf swing that an instructor would find it difficult to teach in one lesson.  IMHO.  I took a year of lessons at Golf Tec and feel I'm just finally hitting the ball consistently.  Now if it would just go where I aim!  But I played for 30 years and had a lot of bad habits ingrained in me.  I'll bet you just need to find the right instructor.

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First of all, thank you for your service. 2nd, I appreciate the help from everyone, I've just been told so many things that its hard to know which way to turn. Some have told me don't waste time w lessons, everyone in here seems to say that lessons are the way to go, I'm now leaning more in that direction especially because i find it increasingly difficult to figure out this goddamn driver swing lol. The irons im getting better with, just need to learn how to hit them off a tee properly and how to get my max distance from them. Btw, idk if this helps, but i currently am using top flite men's clubs. Im switching between a 10.5° driver with a flex shaft and a 11° driver with a 65g stiff flex shaft. 

[Bonvivant]

  On 1/1/2020 at 12:11 AM, JeffB said:

First of all, thank you for your service. 2nd, I appreciate the help from everyone, I've just been told so many things that its hard to know which way to turn. Some have told me don't waste time w lessons, everyone in here seems to say that lessons are the way to go, I'm now leaning more in that direction especially because i find it increasingly difficult to figure out this goddamn driver swing lol. The irons im getting better with, just need to learn how to hit them off a tee properly and how to get my max distance from them. Btw, idk if this helps, but i currently am using top flite men's clubs. Im switching between a 10.5° driver with a flex shaft and a 11° driver with a 65g stiff flex shaft. 

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Having never had a lesson, I can't immediately recommend them, but they probably are the way to go. Just don't let them convince you that you need new clubs would be my only advice. Use those for a year or two, take lessons, then get fitted when your swing has solidified from lessons 

[Piz]

Try figuring out one club...whatever your favorite is at the moment.  You don't know what you are doing and you have to sort that out.  Learning this game takes as much patience as it does practice.

[Vinsk]

  On 1/1/2020 at 12:11 AM, JeffB said:

First of all, thank you for your service. 2nd, I appreciate the help from everyone, I've just been told so many things that its hard to know which way to turn. Some have told me don't waste time w lessons, everyone in here seems to say that lessons are the way to go, I'm now leaning more in that direction especially because i find it increasingly difficult to figure out this goddamn driver swing lol. The irons im getting better with, just need to learn how to hit them off a tee properly and how to get my max distance from them. Btw, idk if this helps, but i currently am using top flite men's clubs. Im switching between a 10.5° driver with a flex shaft and a 11° driver with a 65g stiff flex shaft. 

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Welcome to golf my friend. You’ve joined the best site for anything golf. Forget what you’ve heard and follow the advice here. The owner, @iacas and all the mods/forum leaders here will keep the advice clear from bs. It’s one of the best reasons this place is the best. A lot of dedicated golfers/golf pros who don’t let bs advice run amok. Post your swing in the members swings thread and you’ll be on your way. Welcome to TST. Cheers.

[shanksalot]

It sounds like you have far too much info in your head. I would suggest you don't listen to what people tell you on the driving range unless that person is a teaching pro. Since you are new to golf you have not formed a lot of bad habits as of yet. I would suggest you find a good professional teacher and take a series of lessons from that pro. Then continue to practice those lessons until they are locked in to your swing. 

[Greg 504]

JeffB, welcome to the game of golf! I've been playing now about the same amount of time as you have. I'm fortunate to have retired in March and get to practice a great amount, nearly every day. You have received great advice already and I implemented much of what I researched here on the site. Trust the members here, they have your interest in mind and are here because they love the sport. A few things I found that have really helped me in practice and continue to get better. TEMPO! I cannot stress this enough. As a new golfer and a former competitive softball player, I thought I had to kill and try to hit the ball "out of the yard" every swing. Once my stubborn brain understood you do not have to swing out of your shoes and simply maintain good tempo, the club will do what it is designed to do! Slowing down my swing tempo considerably has helped my control and ball striking immensely. Approach each practice session with specific goals in mind. Don't just go to the range and whack a bucket of balls. I have recently changed from hitting a large bucket 75-80 balls to a small bucket 36-40 balls. I take MORE practice swings than I hit balls now. Deliberate, visualized, game play practice swings beside a ball. This way I can see if my iron is barely ticking the grass just beyond the ball and adjust my stance accordingly. Then address the ball and make that exact same swing with an end target in play. NOT just whacking it any place on the range. Visualize as if you are on the course. Set boundaries where the fairway would be by using the existing items on the range and pick a specific target to hit to. I'll echo others and suggest professional lessons. I have purchased a 10 pack of lessons. I was trying to go it alone for a bit and was fighting a hook/snap hook. The pro was able to fix my swing flaw quickly and get me on track and much to my delight, continue on the path I want my game to go. I think one of the hardest things to keep in mind is stay patient. Learning this game will be a lifelong journey, a marathon if you will, not a sprint. Trust me, I want immediate results and like all of us starting out want to let the Big Dog eat. I suck at hitting driver and I know that. So I have minimized hitting it for now until I get better with my mid to long irons. Someone suggested continue to hit whatever club/clubs you like until you get better. I have put a lot of time into short irons and within the past 2-3 weeks started hitting them much better. I hit a 3 hybrid yesterday and actually got some air and distance out of it! I attribute this to many swings with the other clubs I like and simply working on my tempo, getting the club into the "slot" and overall comfortability of swinging. Stick with it man and be patient, it will come with focused practice!

[Vinsk]

  On 1/1/2020 at 1:03 PM, Greg 504 said:

JeffB, welcome to the game of golf! I've been playing now about the same amount of time as you have. I'm fortunate to have retired in March and get to practice a great amount, nearly every day. You have received great advice already and I implemented much of what I researched here on the site. Trust the members here, they have your interest in mind and are here because they love the sport. A few things I found that have really helped me in practice and continue to get better. TEMPO! I cannot stress this enough. As a new golfer and a former competitive softball player, I thought I had to kill and try to hit the ball "out of the yard" every swing. Once my stubborn brain understood you do not have to swing out of your shoes and simply maintain good tempo, the club will do what it is designed to do! Slowing down my swing tempo considerably has helped my control and ball striking immensely. Approach each practice session with specific goals in mind. Don't just go to the range and whack a bucket of balls. I have recently changed from hitting a large bucket 75-80 balls to a small bucket 36-40 balls. I take MORE practice swings than I hit balls now. Deliberate, visualized, game play practice swings beside a ball. This way I can see if my iron is barely ticking the grass just beyond the ball and adjust my stance accordingly. Then address the ball and make that exact same swing with an end target in play. NOT just whacking it any place on the range. Visualize as if you are on the course. Set boundaries where the fairway would be by using the existing items on the range and pick a specific target to hit to. I'll echo others and suggest professional lessons. I have purchased a 10 pack of lessons. I was trying to go it alone for a bit and was fighting a hook/snap hook. The pro was able to fix my swing flaw quickly and get me on track and much to my delight, continue on the path I want my game to go. I think one of the hardest things to keep in mind is stay patient. Learning this game will be a lifelong journey, a marathon if you will, not a sprint. Trust me, I want immediate results and like all of us starting out want to let the Big Dog eat. I suck at hitting driver and I know that. So I have minimized hitting it for now until I get better with my mid to long irons. Someone suggested continue to hit whatever club/clubs you like until you get better. I have put a lot of time into short irons and within the past 2-3 weeks started hitting them much better. I hit a 3 hybrid yesterday and actually got some air and distance out of it! I attribute this to many swings with the other clubs I like and simply working on my tempo, getting the club into the "slot" and overall comfortability of swinging. Stick with it man and be patient, it will come with focused practice!

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Thanks for your response and taking the time to do so. May I please suggest you use paragraph breaks. That’s quite straining on the eyes.😖🙂

[The Recreational Golfer]

This might be a good starting point for you.

"The best way to learn golf is to choose one department of the game get good at it before branching out. It can be any part—I suggest pitching with a sand wedge— but don’t try to swallow the whole game once. If you try to learn driving, sand play, fairway woods, and putting at the same time, the game will eat you up. You’ll get frustrated and might quit. Build up confidence in that one area and let it spread out to the other parts."

https://www.golfdigest.com/story/my-shot-lee-elder
August 2019