How long does a swing change take???

[i-Guy]

Here is my situation:
I got back into golf about two years ago after a five year hideous (due to work and back problems)…anyway after about a year of getting my handicap back to where it was before I left (12) I decided I had the talent to take my game to another level but there was some things I just was not doing right and I did not want to take the next 5 years trying to figure it out. I also decided I wanted to compete at the FSGA (Florida State Golf Association) and possibly USGA level. I read Bob Rotella’s book “Golf of your Dreams” and then went on a search to find a Pro that I felt like could take me to the next level…my coach Megan (LPGA Pro) really figured me out early. After video taping my current swing and getting my clubs adjusted a little (3 degrees upright…I am 6’4) we began from the bottom up and started working to ingrain her 4 step process into my swing. I am at step 2 since last November but I had a few breaks in my training but as of March I am committed again to the process. This past Tuesday she video taped my swing again and it appears that I have regressed…she was not happy and neither was I. She said I had not been practicing correctly and I agreed to some extent as I had made such improvement just through step one alone that I got ahead of myself and started playing more and trying to force this new move on the golf course…obviously I was not ready yet. I did hit some golf shots over the past couple of months that reminded me of those Ping commercials where I thought about quitting work and chasing the Tour but then the very next swing would allow reality to settle me down and go back to work… Anyway I am sure many people on this website have gone through the trials and tribulations of making an entire swing change. Can anyone give me an estimated time frame of how long they think this will take…my coach says it just depends on when these moves we are working on become habit and she says that is up to me based on how hard and smart I practice…she keeps telling me that she does not think I can be a good player but an elite player as she keeps telling me that I have attributes that you cannot teach (athleticism, power, hand/eye, etc..). My situation is that I am accountant and work in management…I work about 45-50 hours a week on the average...I am 49 years old but in good shape (6'4 and 205lbs) and I can get to the golf course to practice probably at least 5 days a week (no less then 4). ANYONE GOT ANY IDEA HOW LONG THIS WILL TAKE!!!

[Garthmo]

WOW, i don't have a crystal ball but i dont think it is possible to predict that. I have rounds of greatness, one round where i cant miss a fairway, then the next round cant hit it at all. Sure it will come back to you fast. Wish i had the cash to have a coach...

[mikelz]

Take you accountant hat off for a while.
You are learning the art part - there's no balance sheet for that.

Ease up and keep working with your coach.
Yes, you'll have some setbacks but it will click a lot too.

She couldn't be doing any more to bolster your confidence - always a great trait in a coach.

[lolzzlolzz]

She tells you you can't be a good player? lol... at least she's being honest eh

As always, I recommend Ben Hogan's book, 5 lessons...

Many people miss the big text that Hogan repeats throughout the book: "THE AVERAGE GOLFER IS ENTIRELY CAPABLE OF BUILDING A REPEATING SWING AND BREAKING 80." Not only does he promise that, but he says if you apply yourself intelligently you will be able to break 80 in 6 months... A complete beginner who has never touched a golf club can break 80 in 6 months of practice.

As Hogan says it's not that the average golfer doesn't have the physically abilities to break 80, is that he just doesn't know what to do...

So I recommend you get the book and read nothing but the book until you get it right. If you so happen do get it, read the grip, and don't progress until you have mastered the grip. The read the stance, and don't progress until you master it. Then the same for the back swing, and the same for the downswing. The perfect downswing is useless without a proper back swing, which is useless without a proper stance and posture, which is useless without a proper grip, because everything is combined into a chain action. As Hogan says the golfer doesn't have to time anything in the swing, as the swing itself is a chain action of events. This swing times itself.

[JackieTreehorn]

I think it will depend on how drastic your change is...at 5 times a week I bet you can ingrain it in under a year maybe.

[lolzzlolzz]

At 5 times a week, 60 balls at the driving range, if you take every shot seriously and apply yourself correctly and intelligently, I'd say you can break 80 in 3 months.