Trying Too Hard at Golf

[iacas]

6 hours ago, mcanadiens said:

I don't know you, but for me every response to adversity is to try harder. It works in a lot of the things I do, but golf isn't one of them.

No, the answer is to re-assess and then work smarter, not harder.

The best work both smart and hard. The next level work smart. The idiots are the "hard workers" alone.

6 hours ago, ncates00 said:

Also, it sounds like you might be hopping around to lots of different things in an attempt to get better. Commit to a great teacher and don’t deviate. Quit watching instructional videos on TV or YouTube. Don’t read magazines. Truly commit to the lessons you’re paying for.

And make sure your instructor is actually good.

What is the summary of your last lesson? It should be basically only one "dynamic" thing that you're trying to do.

6 hours ago, mcanadiens said:

Well. Isn't that quite a thing then.

I spent a lot of money on "good instructors" and went from near bogey golf to f--k all.

Not that easy.

Bluntly, either:

• They're not good.
• You didn't listen.

Or both, of course.

I had a guy come to me with one of the most laid off, dumpy looking swings ever. Bought a four-pack because he heard from a friend that I was good, and the friend had gone from the 90s to the 70s over about a year.

I didn't see the guy for eight months after the first lesson, and he came back playing just as poorly. I showed him that his swing was the same as before.

So we exaggerated THE HELL out of it. And I stressed to him that he was near his ceiling with his current swing, and if he wanted to get better, it had to change.

A month later and he's down five shots on his index, because he's worked both smart and pretty hard at it.

21 minutes ago, StuM said:

$100 for 30 minutes sounds high. I can get a package of 4 lessons for $230 which is @ $58 per lesson.  And he is good. Occasionally they run a special buy 4 get 1 free so that was @ $46 each when I did them earlier this year.

Guys, let's not do this here. I can charge $80 in Erie for 45 minutes (that lasts over an hour, generally), but if I moved and didn't change what I did or who I was or anything, really, I could charge $300/session and be MORE busy.

Same guy. Same lessons. Same tools. Etc.

[boogielicious]

@Andy Capped, practicing smart takes discipline. Just hitting balls isn’t a smart practice, but it can be fun if you just want to hit. But you won’t change for the better. Practicing smart means you focus on one thing at a time and work on improving that piece of your swing. Here’s a thread about how to focus in practice.

Second, there are a lot of inadequate instructors out there, and I mean A LOT. And it’s really hard for we students to know the difference. But we also have to be good students. So for starters, post a video of your swing in the Member Swing Section and tell us what your last instructor has you working on. We are glad to help.

[GolfLug]

A solid 22 is not bad at all. 

Some good advice on this thread. Understand that golf is physically paradoxical in nature compared to most other sports, recalibrate your approach, narrow down, slow down, find a bit of humility, a dash of sense of humor and keep at it.  

[iacas]

8 minutes ago, boogielicious said:

So for starters, post a video of your swing in the Member Swing Section and tell us what your last instructor has you working on. We are glad to help.

This.

[onthehunt526]

14 hours ago, mcanadiens said:

I really have no idea how to interpret that.

Suffice to say that I'm done paying $100 plus for 30 frigging minutes for a guy to tell me how to do stuff that doesn't work.

I'll either dig it out of the dirt myself or I won't.

 

Stay out of the shit…. Simply put hit the ball as far as you can away from the shit. Meaning read that $30 book again that you have.

Call the zoo… put on your favorite music, and swing your swing, I like Classic Rock. The Zoo is a song by Scorpions. Clear your head and call the zoo. Have fun with it.  Maybe you like Cream’s version of Crossroads so in your case it would be call the Crossroads.

 

That’s my “happy” place. And the main riff is actually a good tempo for me…

[Greg 504]

I concur that a great instructor/swing coach is invaluable. I would recommend asking on the forum if anyone is in your area and if they could recommend a coach and what they specifically like about them. See if what they like matches your criteria. After using 2 "mediocre" coaches, @klineka recommended a coach locally that I am very happy with.

That said, you have to be committed to the priority piece the coach gives you from lessons. This and incorporate the 5 S's during practice and you will likely be amazed with your progress. I started practicing this way mid-season last year and have made considerable progress. 

It still baffles me when someone in the practice stall beside me shows up after me with a jumbo bucket, 175ish balls, and finishes well before me hitting a bucket of 75 balls. As stated in a previous post, raking and hitting balls for the sake of just hitting them will not help much, if at all, other than to further ingrain bad habits. 

Good luck in your search and progress. 

[DuckhookDenny]

I DID try too hard at golf, absolutely. You can definitely try too hard I think.

I cant really be bothered taking more lessons because I cant be bothered to work on the things they tell you. And truthfully i cant be bothered paying more money to improve slightly at a game i dont enjoy that much anyway.

My issue is losing interest during rounds because of bad shots. When a few bad shots show up, id rather just walk off and play computer games.

[Billy Z]

16 hours ago, DuckhookDenny said:

I DID try too hard at golf, absolutely. You can definitely try too hard I think.

I cant really be bothered taking more lessons because I cant be bothered to work on the things they tell you. And truthfully i cant be bothered paying more money to improve slightly at a game i dont enjoy that much anyway.

My issue is losing interest during rounds because of bad shots. When a few bad shots show up, id rather just walk off and play computer games.

This seems like an attitude of today, the unwillingness to work to get ahead. Anything that has value is not easy to attain.

[jmanbooyaa]