My Swing Videos (Travtex)

[Travtex]

Ball flight's iffy at best. I was using little plastic wiffle balls in the wind (And they're pretty much beat to crap with topping dents in them. *heh*), but I couldn't get my videographer to the range.

#1: Seven iron down the line.



#2: Seven iron face-on.



#3: Driver face-on.



#4: Driver down the line.



#5: Driver down the line, with bonus footage of my 'Bug Flew Up Nose' technique.

[senorchipotle]

ball striking with your irons is actually really good. you're making your divot after the ball, which is great. however, your grip is a bit strange. basically, you want your palms to be facing each other, your grip should be like you're holding a ruler. in your backswing you're straightening your back leg, this should not happen. you should keep at least minimal bend in your back leg at all times. you're also pushing the ball quite a bit. you want the back of your right hand to be square with the ball at impact. yours is pointing left. fix those, and you'll have a good swing.

[uttexas]

I really like your leg and hip action through the ball. Your lower body dominates the swing and the arms sort of follow along--I like this.
Your swing is really good. Is your HI accurate? If so, you should be working on your short game.

[Travtex]

I haven't kept a HI, yet. Figured I'd wait 'til breaking 100 regularly, and haven't gotten to play enough over the winter. Last couple of 9's I've played seem to indicate that bogey's in reach, minus any meltdown holes. Actually, I'd say working on the short game built the full swing. (My Utley-inspired chips are pretty much nothing but hip movement.)

Blow-up holes and inconsistency (AKA inexperience).

[uttexas]

I'm half way through Utley's short game book--it's great--learning to hit short game shots with my torso turning instead of arms--more solid contact, learning distance control.

I think you are building a solid full swing by founding it on Utley's legs/torso philisophy.

[Travtex]

With all the suggestions, encouragements, (occasional refusal to even discuss things with me without), and requests for a swing video, I -really- overestimated the turnout. *laugh*

I think you are building a solid full swing by founding it on Utley's legs/torso philisophy.

Thanks. I'm starting to wonder about some swing analyses. Half the people say solid lower body movement, good key to additional power, etc... The other school of thought say the exact opposite. Quiet lower body, restrict the hip turn, maintain bend of back knee, etc.

It makes things pretty confusing for newbs.

[uttexas]

Thanks. I'm starting to wonder about some swing analyses. Half the people say solid lower body movement, good key to additional power, etc... The other school of thought say the exact opposite. Quiet lower body, restrict the hip turn, maintain bend of back knee, etc.

You are right--the different swing philosophies can be contradictory causing big time confusion. The golf swing is just that---a swing, not a hit. In a swinging motion (baseball/golf/tennis) the lower body dominates and initiates the proper movements. Quiet lower body, restrict hip turn may be good advise for a very few golfers, but for the vast majority of golfers, this is bad advise.

[jamo]

One thing I noticed is that your left (back) leg locks. Straightening is fine, locking, not so much, plus it can cause knee problems.

[Travtex]

One thing I noticed is that your left (back) leg locks. Straightening is fine, locking, not so much, plus it can cause knee problems.

You're right... it does kind of look that way, but that's my jacked up knee and I -can't- lock it without a whole lot of pain and a probable buckle. I think much more about my hips than my knees, but I slowed things down to see what was going on there. When I lock the knee, it comes pretty close to looking like it's hyperextended. I maintain a slight flex and tense up my quads to support it on the backswing. (Crap knee had quite a bit to do with some of my initial address problems with my weight. I'll probably have to completely rebuild my swing when I finally get it fixed.)

[Travtex]

Had about a week of tinkering around with range, video, and launch monitor work. At this point, I'm having a bit of trouble working out a push fade problem. Looking at my swing path and contact, I keep thinking it'd be easier to say, "Okay, the face is too far open. Stop doing that." But it seems to be pretty strongly ingrained. *heh*

Tried working with it a bit and I started to err on the side of getting even more inside-to-out in my path.. it'd bring it back a bit, but it does me no good to block the ball way off to the left and have it draw back twenty yards. It's still way off to the left.

Launch monitor says I'm getting it up a bit too quick as well, but I'm thinking that'd level out a bit if I manage to get the face closed down properly?

Some #'s:

10.5* driver, R-flex, mid-kick: 13.5* launch, 3300 rpm
8.5* driver, S-flex, mid-kick: 10.9* launch, 4500 rpm

(My own driver is 10.5, R-flex, low-kick so I'm probably launching that thing a bit higher.)

SS: 97-101mph
Carry: Average around 220. Had better luck catching it pure with the stiff shaft, carried a few of those 260 -- But I am in no way deluded to think I have any business toying around with an 8.5* driver. That spin would get away from me in a heartbeat and I'd probably be hitting U-turn slices. To me, it was just evidence of how much distance I'm losing off the tee.

So, I'm up against a frustrating wall of knowing exactly what I'm doing with the club... and not being able to stop doing it. Swing path is in-to-out, and I push the hell out of it. Sometimes it's a straight push, occasionally a push fade. Either way, it's in the woods. I've tried playing the push, but I get twitchy setting up that far right. I've tried really turning the club over to close down the face and while it goes straight, it only goes about 180 yards and completely defeats the purpose of pulling out the driver.

Any drills to work with chronic push faders?

[deronsizemore]

Could be a number of things. A push fade is the result of an open clubface relative to your swing path. So you're swinging in to out with an open club face relative to that path.

A couple things:

1. You could be aiming to the right and not realize it. This is very common. You may not feel like you are, but what you feel and what you're actually doing can be very different.
2. Could be your grip. If you have a weak grip it will be more difficult to square up the face thus the fade.

[Travtex]

Hard to tell from just the one setup shot, but I do look a bit closed if not aimed dead left.



I tend toward a bit of a pull with my irons, so that's something to think about -- Not-quite-consciously setting up aiming left to compensate for a pull that isn't there.

[deronsizemore]

Yeah, hard to tell from that angle. It does look like your feet are closed which would mean you're aimed left but can't really tell. If you can take a down the line shot (from behind your left shoulder) that would be a much better shot to tell where you're aimed. It does appear that your right hand grip is a little weak and your left hand grip is quite strong. Also, ball position is pretty far back for a driver; typically you want to play it more off of your right heel. Where it is now is where you'd play an iron.

[Travtex]

Yah, forgot to mention the ball position in that pic. I've moved it forward quite a bit since then (With no appreciable effect, yet. Haha). The weak right hand grip is probably another carry-over from my irons work (I started out a notorious pull-hooker).

Down the line (As I recall, I was aiming right over the gap between the windows):

[ks8829]

When ever I push the ball I am doing one of two things:

1) I might be taking the club too far back and not getting back square and end up pushing the ball. the cure is the make sure that I take the club back in a more compact backswing.
2) My hands are too far away from me and my timming is throw off and my hands don't get a chance to catch up with my body. position your hands about an open hand away from your body.

[iacas]

If even with 20 yards of draw you're well left of your target (as a lefty), the clubface is WAY too far open at impact.

We'd need to see video of your swing (the higher speed the better) to really say. Something is preventing you from getting the clubface square. Just don't "release the club" unless you want to trade pushes for pulls that have trouble getting airborne.

[Travtex]

Only one I have is the same one (Er, same -set-, anyway). Ball position was a factor, but it's still pretty easy to see the face waaaaay open on the downswing.



Now that I'm looking for it specifically, I can see where the face fans open. On the backswing, clubface angle looks fine when the club's parallel to the ground. By the time my arm's parallel it's fanned wide open and I never get it back. (Not sure why, though.)



Same way, same spot. Huh.

Edit to Add: Was just looking at the iron swings, and I'm doing the same thing there. Apparently, I'm just able to get the face back closed with 'em. Grip?

[Travtex]

Going from here:



To here:



Can't see the clubface at the top...

Drastically scary open on the downswing (I'm kind of surprised I hit the thing straight... EVER, now that I'm looking at it.):