My Swing (Golfaway)

[Golfaway]

I am trying to stay slow on the back swing as much as I can, also trying to have an in-to-out swing plane opposed to my out-to-out that sometimes causes shanks and slices. Had a pretty good range session yesterday.

[martytilma]

Your DTL swing looked like a slice or cut shot. ?? Also the first thing that jumps out to me is that you are off balance, because you fall forward after your shot.

[Golfaway]

Nope, no slice. It was a good straight shot. I know it looks like I came over the top but it wasn't. I fall forward because of a previous left foot injury. I cannot get myself to remain stable on my left foot. Actually it was much worse but it's improving with time.

[westcyderydin]

in the DTL video you fell backwards in your follow thru, but you didnt in the face on one. dont fall backwards, not good. feel your weight go over your right foot in your backswing (dont sway but feel where your weight goes) and then when you swing your weight should transfer to your front foot and stay there.

you also went over the top. thats where the slices come. just correct that and you have a nice looking swing.

[Zeph]

By straight, do you mean straight left? I haven't looked at the swing frame by frame, but it looks awfully like the club comes from the outside.

How do you swing out-to-out btw? Or did you mean out-to-in?

[jamo]

By straight, do you mean straight left? I haven't looked at the swing frame by frame, but it looks awfully like the club comes from the outside.

I would hope so, otherwise it's straight into those trees.

[Golfaway]

It was a straight perfect shot right down the fairway. Not a trace of slice.

[saevel25]

Well if you look, you aim out to the right. Your mind things your aiming down the middle of the fairway, but your body is compensating for the pull. Its ok, if you can do it consistantly.

[iacas]

You swing dead over the top. Dead over it. You pull the ball like crazy.



That picture is the proof that you come over the top.

[Shanks A Million]

It was a straight perfect shot right down the fairway. Not a trace of slice.

Because your perception of "straight" is actually "left". You came well over the top, and pulled it. There's also a flip, the hands are nearly behind the ball at impact. Not many 26.8 handicaps

don't do these things, and trust us, we've seen a lot of swings, they're common faults. I often have flipping and over the top problems creep up, as we likely all do from time to time. Heck, even pros pull shots. To admit the error is the first part of fixing it, and thus, getting better. I learned that the hard way, and trust me, it's not a good way to learn. Here's a picture of me near the same point for comparison: (Note, I've had some trouble with flipping the club lately, and sorry about the hair)

[Golfaway]

So what exactly can I do to stop swinging over the top?
And what do you mean by "pull"? you mean going to the left?? I thought over the top resulted in a slice.

[Golfaway]

PS: Why was the thread's name changed??
God, can't the mods on this forum keep anything like it is without changing it? Why do they always have to make us feel like we can't do a thing and they have to do it for us, even the slightest and easiest of things. What difference does it make to have the thread title "My swing (Golfaway)" than my original "Latest Swing Videos".....

[Shanks A Million]

So what exactly can I do to stop swinging over the top?

Coming over the top is the most common problem in all of golf, and there are as many tips to stop as there are golfers who do it. Over the top is part of a slice, but it's not the same. An over the top swing can result in a slice or a pull. A slice starts straight or left, and curves right. A pull starts left, and continues. You've probably got the swing timed well enough to have the face shut at impact, so the ball pulls instead of slices.

You can choose what tip works best for you, but your problems right now are coming over the top, and a shut face at impact. You need your clubface more open, and your swing path to come more from the inside. To do that, you need to slide your hips forward, and let the club come down where your hips were at the top, and hit the ball from the inside. The cause of the slice slice, and indeed most of the common faults, is that it feels stronger. The golfer is trying to hit the ball a long distance, so they naturally want to apply power to it. The problem is, golf is not a natural sport, so this is counter productive. The proper golf swing feels weak to the animal in us. To throw a spear or hit a wild animal with a club, we employ certain techniques. We are naturally inborn with many of these. Even newborns have certain reflexes. The hard part is suppressing them. It was found that chickens could not play baseball because they didn't have the ability to overcome their instinctive drift. Scientists set up a little field, and taught the chicken to bat a ball with it's beak, but it's instinct to chase after the ball was too strong, and it could not be taught to run to first base instead. We're a little more advanced than chickens, but we have the same reflexes. You tell someone to hit a ball into the air, and they want to shift their weight from front to back, and try to lift the ball in the air. You are not on top of the ball, so you need to point your feet left of the target. But most people instinctively point their feet at the target, not to the left. They swing and the ball goes right, so to correct, they then try to swing toward the target, (to the left) and they hit the ball right. He sees the ball go right, and his brain tells him to swing more to the left. The slice perpetuates itself. All you need to do is learn that the proper swing will feel weak and unnatural, and that's a start. Once you get used to it, it will feel quite normal.