Hitting the ball easy but hard!

[rembrandt]

It's amazing how far you can hit the ball by swinging within yourself. Seems like I can control the clubface better wien I swing with an easy tempo. I hit several shots yesterday futher than usual and I swung real easy like! Have you ever hit a bad shot, say a pop up with a fairway wood that went 50 yds and you could have taken a 7 iron and hit it 150? I think we often try too hard to hit it as far as we can and we should let the club head do the work!

[niblick]

I hit an 8 iron about 172 the other day by doing exactly that. Stayed balanced, kept my tempo, flushed it and almost hit the damn thing into a hazard because it went a dozen yards further than I expected! lol...

[rembrandt]

I hit an 8 iron about 172 the other day by doing exactly that. Stayed balanced, kept my tempo, flushed it and almost hit the damn thing into a hazard because it went a dozen yards further than I expected! lol...

What you just felt and related is what the pros do consistantly. They look like they are swinging real easy and the ball goes 20 to 50 yds farther than when we hit the same club. They have the timing down and the breaking wrist thing with the delayed hit, all part of their repartoir!

[muskegman]

If there is one thing that would produce better overall play in amateurs this is it. Slow down. I have to constantly tell myself to swing within myself. It is probably one of the best habits to develop.

[rembrandt]

If there is one thing that would produce better overall play in amateurs this is it. Slow down. I have to constantly tell myself to swing within myself. It is probably one of the best habits to develop.

So true and I wish I had learned it many years ago. Well, I did know it back in my 20s and I played scratch golf back then but somehow it eluded me over the years. I think the slower tempo thing will help me physically also. Easier on my back and hip. It amazes me how far I hit my irons also. I think it is the one thing that results in accuracy and clubhead control!

[LarryK]

What you just felt and related is what the pros do consistantly. They look like they are swinging real easy and the ball goes 20 to 50 yds farther than when we hit the same club. They have the timing down and the breaking wrist thing with the delayed hit, all part of their repartoir!

And there is no better place to sit and observe this than on the practice range at a PGA tour event. When the guys were here in Denver for the International I sat there for over an hour just in awe. Not even Bubba Watson swings hard. Everybody was silky smooth. And they just nail it. Flush.

[CusePhil]

I've noticed this as well. Is it just an illusion, or do they have slow swing speeds? I can't get over how smooth their swing look.

[rembrandt]

Watch closely....Ernie Els and Ian Woosnan. They look like they aren't even trying! So easy and the ball just explodes off the club face. Tiger looks like he is killing it with his swing and in reality he is killing it.

[TurtleWoods]

My boss has one of those smooth, slow swings that looks like it takes 10 seconds from the wind-up to follow through! And he'll bomb the ball down the fairway like it's nobody's business.

He's always telling me, it's all about timing, getting everything to work in synch and hitting the sweet spot.

Sounds easy, doesn't it... grrr..

[cantputt]

golf is crazy like that... only if i can get myself to do it haha.. i know the results it prodecues are good, i can do it with irons...but just when the big driver comes out SHABLAM!!!! i swing harder than anything... im mental

[LarryK]

I've noticed this as well. Is it just an illusion, or do they have slow swing speeds? I can't get over how smooth their swing look.

The tour pros absolutely do NOT have slow swing speeds! But because they have such WIDE arcs and full shoulder turns, smoother can sometimes look slower than those of us who jerk the club back away from the ball, and then jerk it back down from the top trying to generate all of our "speed" with our hands.

[rembrandt]

golf is crazy like that... only if i can get myself to do it haha.. i know the results it prodecues are good, i can do it with irons...but just when the big driver comes out SHABLAM!!!! i swing harder than anything... im mental

To swing hard you have to tighten the grip and tighten up the muscles in your arms and back. When you do that you cannot react thru the ball with power. The tightened muscles rob you of clubhead speed. Slow down and feel the big muscles drive thru the ball with power. It works!

[cantputt]

you dont have to grip hard and tense up your muscles.. when i swing hard i instead of accelerating thru the ball i like use 2 much energy on th beggning of my downswing.

[Chas]

When I watch the pros up close, what always impresses me is how really torquey their position is at the top. Look closely at how wrinkled their shirts get around the torso. Incredible potential energy there, that gets released on the downswing in an explosive body turn. Tiger's is just phenomenal. Also the late retained angle between arm and shaft, hard to see at full speed but obvious in slow mo on the box. The combination produces awesome clubhead speed at the right instant, that I haven't quite managed to reproduce just yet .

[cdriver]

My handicap has dropped from 10.2 to 7.4 over the past year because of one thing..... I slowed down. It dawned on me one day that with a half swing, I was hitting a choked down sandwedge about 80 yards and controlling the flight and distance to hit close to the hole. It dawned on me that if I could do that with a sandwedge, why couldn't I do it with all my irons???

I started working on a slower tempo, particularly slowing down my backswing and making sure I got the club set at the top. Once there, I created a pause and then got my whole body moving easily to impact and through to a solid finish. When I am on with that swing tempo, I have gained about 20 yards with all my clubs and my mishits almost disappear. That is really important since I play blades and off-center hits really cost distance and accuracy.

I recommend slowing way down to anyone. You will be surprised with the results.

[iacas]

To swing hard you have to tighten the grip and tighten up the muscles in your arms and back. When you do that you cannot react thru the ball with power. The tightened muscles rob you of clubhead speed. Slow down and feel the big muscles drive thru the ball with power. It works!

Did you make a typo? Because first you say "tighten the grip and muscles" then you say "tightened muscles rob you of speed." Clearly it's the latter... but why did you type the first sentence?

[ragontona]

Did you make a typo? Because first you say "tighten the grip and muscles" then you say "tightened muscles rob you of speed." Clearly it's the latter... but why did you type the first sentence?

Doesn't look like a typo... just wasn't very concise. I think he meant, "Here's what you do when you swing too hard -- you tighten everything up and rob yourself of speed." He then says, "Slow it down, ease up on the tension, and it's all good."

In a nutshell.

[rembrandt]

Did you make a typo? Because first you say "tighten the grip and muscles" then you say "tightened muscles rob you of speed." Clearly it's the latter... but why did you type the first sentence?

Yes, I should have said.......when you think you have to swing hard and fast and tighten your grip and muscles( which is a direct result of that ideology) clubhead speed is reduced, not increased. Holding the club like your holding a dove in your hands and swinging slower is the key to power at the bottom. Is that better?