Never Underestimate the value of.....

[Doctorfro]

Instruction. Had a lesson today with an excellent teacher. He basically interviewed me, got an idea of my game, had me hit a few balls, then we went and videoed ONE swing, he pointed out four things that needed correction, we then proceeded back to the tee where he showed me ways of making correction. On the first ball struck I hit the most beautiful, powerful shot with a touch of draw. He looked at me and said, "well, that was easy!". I had fallen into a couple of bad habits and to have someone correct them easily was a blessing. I hit more balls there to try and ingrain the changes and then I went to the home range and hit a few more. I'm not instantly cured or ready to go scratch but I now have the tools to strike the ball better and play the game with confidence and have fun. I can't wait to hit the course. I know it won't be perfect but I'm certain I have a better chance of hitting more greens and fairways than I had been. I'm excited.

[golf_junkie27]

Instruction. Had a lesson today with an excellent teacher. He basically interviewed me, got an idea of my game, had me hit a few balls, then we went and videoed ONE swing, he pointed out four things that needed correction, we then proceeded back to the tee where he showed me ways of making correction. On the first ball struck I hit the most beautiful, powerful shot with a touch of draw. He looked at me and said, "well, that was easy!". I had fallen into a couple of bad habits and to have someone correct them easily was a blessing. I hit more balls there to try and ingrain the changes and then I went to the home range and hit a few more. I'm not instantly cured or ready to go scratch but I now have the tools to strike the ball better and play the game with confidence and have fun. I can't wait to hit the course. I know it won't be perfect but I'm certain I have a better chance of hitting more greens and fairways than I had been. I'm excited.

Doc

That's great news. It sounds as if your lesson was right to the point as opposed to him explaining all the intricacies of a golf swing. Was this lesson "one time only" or are you going to keep using him?

[Left Is Right]

Lessons are totally boss they are the cheese to my macaroni,(Juno) and they helped me shoot an 82 yesterday(damn 3 putt) after less than a year of them

[ripsid]

Bump for Cheese to my macaroni reference! Although I think the "Next time I see Bleeker I'm going to punch him in the weiner" and "I didnt' know he had it in him" were 2 of my fav's! LOL

Anyways back on topic... That's awesome! I haven't had a lesson since I was like 9 and I'm 38 now! LOL I've been following the teachings of Slicefixer from another board, and I've noticed a great improvement! Although, I'd rather work with someone person to person, but I don't have the $$'s :(

Pete

[Doctorfro]

Doc

Definitely going back. Probably three weeks to a month. Hopefully get back on the video and see the progress. Whatever he wants to do, I'm game though. I may have made more progress in this lesson than any other.

Anyways back on topic... That's awesome! I haven't had a lesson since I was like 9 and I'm 38 now! LOL I've been following the teachings of Slicefixer from another board, and I've noticed a great improvement! Although, I'd rather work with someone person to person, but I don't have the $$'s :(

I'm sorry to hear that. Maybe instead of playing one or two rounds you could put that money toward a good instructor. You could rationalize it this way: If you hit it better, you lose less balls, win more tournaments and fleece your friends. That would make up for the money!!

[mellojoe]

I'm a beginning golfer. I was guessing to begin with.

I was at the driving range one day, hacking away at a bucket of balls. I asked the owner (didn't know he was the owner at the time), "Hey, do you all have someone that can give lessons?" He said, "Yeah, but they're expensive. Hang on a sec."

He proceeded to get another bucket of balls, walked over and gave me a free lesson.

It was awesome. I now know how to properly grip and stand. I know how to properly address the ball and swing. No, I'm not perfect, obviously, but I can actually connect and drive the ball fairly consistantly. One lesson. made the game horrible, to enjoyable.'

Yours is a great story, and it was stories like that that convinced me to seek out lessons. Boy am I glad I did.

Thank you. And to everyone else... GO GET LESSONS! They truly help.

[The Gill]

Wow. I'm shocked we haven't seen the "I'm self taught" patting on the back yet.

[iacas]

Wow. I'm shocked we haven't seen the "I'm self taught" patting on the back yet.

I'm self-taught, and will probably stay that way for a long, long time.

But I don't recommend it to anyone else. And really, I'm not "self-taught" entirely. I've read. I've observed. I've learned from a great many people. I've just never had a "watch my swing and give me some drills" type of lesson. So I'm more "absorbent" than I am "self taught" I guess. So, for the few other "absorbent" people out there (again, I don't recommend this approach to anyone else), never underestimate the value of a good FILTER. Most of the instruction you might read or see will be bad for your game.

[tm22721]

Anybody know of any excellent instructors in the central VA area ?

[wachesawgolfer]

So many people play poorly after a lesson, which is why working with someone over time usually works far better than a one time lesson. Rarely, do swing changes sink in and become permanent with one session. But it can happen, I guess, with a better player such as yourself.

[Doctorfro]

Played nine today, walked with my wife. I didn't score great but I hit some really great, crisp shots. Hadn't hit them like that in a while. I had a couple get away from me but I didn't expect perfection first time out. One particular par three, 160 uphill, I usually hit it to the front or come up short. Today I flushed it over the green to a bad spot. Made double. My instructor warned me that I might have to get used to some new yardages. True. It's ok. I'm encouraged by what I saw from my swing today. Recently my inconsistency had made me apprehensive about playing. Just not sure what to expect. Right now I'm stoked to get back on the course and see what I can do. And I plan on getting back to my new coach in a couple of weeks or so. Gotta keep this thing moving forward!

[Dub]

Instruction. Had a lesson today with an excellent teacher. He basically interviewed me, got an idea of my game, had me hit a few balls, then we went and videoed ONE swing, he pointed out four things that needed correction, we then proceeded back to the tee where he showed me ways of making correction. On the first ball struck I hit the most beautiful, powerful shot with a touch of draw. He looked at me and said, "well, that was easy!". I had fallen into a couple of bad habits and to have someone correct them easily was a blessing. I hit more balls there to try and ingrain the changes and then I went to the home range and hit a few more. I'm not instantly cured or ready to go scratch but I now have the tools to strike the ball better and play the game with confidence and have fun. I can't wait to hit the course. I know it won't be perfect but I'm certain I have a better chance of hitting more greens and fairways than I had been. I'm excited.

Good deal!!!!

Nice to hear that the pro worked on your swing....not a cookie cutter generic, "this is the only way" swing. Best wishes....tear 'em up on the course!!!!

[Doctorfro]

Had to share: went to the range today to work on my new changes. Grabbed two small buckets and struck a few. After one bucket I was done. Had never hit that many good balls right off the bat. Decided to quit while I was ahead and went to the putting green.