Picking a method

[Ogriv83]

This is just a curiosity of mine but with all the different methods out there (S&T;, Hoganesqu, Slicefixer, Leadbetter, Hardy, Haney, Ballard, ETC) how do you guys decided what method you are going to prescribe to.

I used to try and take a bit from everything but found in the end this was difficult to modulate and was like fitting a jigsaw where you had to cut your own pieces as you went.

My swing at the moment is much more along the line of the Hoganesque crowd but this is more due to being unused after a 18month lay off (Trying to regain amateur status and a new family arrival)

[david_wedzik]

  Ogriv83 said:

This is just a curiosity of mine but with all the different methods out there (S&T;, Hoganesqu, Slicefixer, Leadbetter, Hardy, Haney, Ballard, ETC) how do you guys decided what method you are going to prescribe to.

First...if possible...research the methods you like or would consider and decide which are based in FACT and the principles of geometry, physics, etc. Just an example here...though Haney and Ballard have taught many great players and are high on top teach "lists" it seems that their principles are based only on what they believe to be true. Outside of their opinions I would like to hear some reasoning given for why they believe certain things and how those things make it easier to strike a golf ball better. This part should help you narrow things down. BTW...you shouldn't have to search too hard within each teacher's work to find the basis for their information. They will usually provide it pretty quickly if they have it documented.

From there it is more research on your part I guess followed by trial and error. There is no set way to do this that I know of but hopefully this gives you a good place to start. Dave

[jamo]

  david_wedzik said:

First...

Researching Haney and Harmon and Leadbetter et. al. might be a little more difficult than just an internet search, they contradict themselves so much.

I think the best swing is a mix of everything. I like most S&T; points, but not all, and i like some pieces of Hogan's swing, but I am taller than him and don't fight a nasty duck hook. Nor do I really fight a slice, so I assume I don't use all of SliceFixer's pieces of the swing (though I've never really heard of them).

[Leftygolfer]

I have never really "prescibed" to one method. I learned to play on the course and wasn't much of a range rat. Based on advise I heard, I bought the S&T; book, it made sense, I instantly improved just by reading a book. That improvement has really convinced me that I can play better using the s&t; model than the traditional wieght shift. But you are much much better than me. You have already found a way to play well. I think results should dominate your direction and changes you want to make.

[shortstop20]

Hogan's book and a camcorder, that's all I use pretty much, as well as some Pro swing videos, mostly Hogan and Tiger.

I have a few parts of my swing that's slightly different, but for the most part, I try to follow Hogan's fundamentals.

[allin]

I believe the first thing I tried to do is honestly asses my physical strengths and weaknesses, and how much time commitment I was willing to make. Different swing ideas match up with certain physical traits quite often. It seems like one of the books discussed on the forum tries to identify swings this way. I tried to Identify a pro to watch me and give me some feed back on my strengths and limitations. At your handicap level you probably already have a good grasp of what your abilities are. Look at what pros or others with similar games chose to change to improve, see what ideas they embrace.