Another Rookie Swing Question..

[nuck81]

Wait.

The initial direction a ball starts at impact is caused by contact with the clubface, the direction it travels while in the air is caused by the balls spin which is a result of swing path.

Correct?

[Paradox]

A slice is a shot that starts right and keeps going right.

not entirely true. A slice is any ball that moves left to right uncontrollably(granted that it isn't just a 10-15 yard movement, especially if you intend for it to do that). A fade would be done with intention.

A slice can start out on any line, pull slice would start left and go right, a push slice would start right and go right, a normal slice can start on line and move right. None of it is caused by any one swing fault, either. Open clubface, steep swing, wrong path, body rotation, hand action, all kinds of things can be at fault.

[nuck81]

the guy is not far off on his swing plane from address to impact, if at all.

Sure he is, look at the line caused by the net in the video in the top left corner, on his back swing his club head is in line with rope, on the down swing he is well above it...

[Paradox]

Wait.

No, both things influence direction. Just a matter of which one is greater than the other on any particular swing

If I swing across the ball with a square clubface, it can start out left and go right. If I make the same swing with a severely open clubface it can start right and keep going.

[Rexx]

A slice is a shot that starts right and keeps going right.

IMO... the terms slice, fade, hook, and draw do not imply any initial direction or any intent. They are used to denote how much curve was applied to the ball. While no set formula, in my mind, fade and draw would be curving the ball ~0-10 yards, while slice and hook would be > 10 yards. Adding the terms pull, push, or straight (optional) implies the initial direction.

[Paradox]

Sure he is, look at the line caused by the net in the video in the top left corner, on his back swing his club head is in line with rope, on the down swing he is well above it...

was looking more at his club path and not the net. It wouldn't be something I would focus on at this time because I think a lot of his swing faults are caused by the simple lack of "finishing" his swing.

He's A LITTLE above plane on the downswing but if you watch the video and use lines you can see it isn't too far off. Looks like a product of "all arms" as far as I can tell.

[JML22]

you need a lesson
You gotta change a lot of things and it'll be easier to just get a good lesson

[sean_miller]

Thats great to know. Now here is another question... Is there anyway to fix that by myself or should I just get lessons?

Get a lesson, if for not other reason than this one: so you can avoid bad advice from hackers on the internet.

[B-Con]

I'm not an expert, but IMO:

* Your hands are too far away from your body on the take-away, they need to be deeper (if you struggle with a slice, this is probably part of it) * Your right wrist is hinging too much

Can I ask what is coming over the top?

"Over the top" just means an out-to-in swing path.

In to Out helps you hit behind the ball causing more forward spin or spin left to right if you want a draw. A slice would be spinning from right to left correct?

There is no forward/front spin, only backspin. If you somehow magically put forward spin on the ball, the ball will dive down rather than climbing gracefully. And yes, this is correct if you are viewing the ball from behind.

A slice is a shot that starts right and keeps going right.

According to iacas, the initial direction of the ball has nothing to do with whether it is a slice or fade:

( More info .)

The initial direction a ball starts at impact is caused by contact with the clubface, the direction it travels while in the air is caused by the balls spin which is a result of swing path.

Yeah. Swing path contributes some, but I think the experts here are going to tell you it's negligible. The way the face points is the way the ball will go. The swing path relative to that face will then dictate how the ball behaves in the air spin-wise. Clubface dictates direction, path (combined with the clubface relative to the sping path) dictates spin.

[Billiam7]

Well according to the picture for the ball path.. lol My flight is E... then in 50 yards it turns quick to a I

I'm checking out prices for lessons and one course here has 3, 1hr sessions for 75 bucks. I may have to jump on that.

[Billiam7]

Delete me please.

[B-Con]

Well according to the picture for the ball path.. lol My flight is E... then in 50 yards it turns quick to a I

So what you're saying is that it's a really bad F? I think that's a typical slice for a golfer with a couple seasons under his belt. You've figured out how to get the clubface straight, but the swing path isn't correct. Swing path is hard, IMO, because you don't see it when you swing and it probably takes a long time before anyone ever tells you that it's the source of your slice. I worked on curing my slice for a couple years by focusing on the clubface, which did my slice diddly squat good.

As I mentioned above, you want your hands to be deeper (see the previous link), ie farther left from the camera's viewpoint. On the downswing your tendency is to undo what you did on your backswing, so if your hands are that far out and they come back down in that same path, the clubhead will be pushed a lot farther forward (from your perspective) than you want it to be, and long before impact it will come out to it's farthest point away from you and then, as your move into impact position, it will come in close to your body, creating the "out to in" swing path. Also, watch the video here , notice how on the backswing his hands are never to the left (his left) of the center of his body. That's the direction your hands need to go. I did that (sometimes still do), and I still can't throw a boomarang as well as I could slice a golf ball. Keep my hands deep and not cocking my right wrist (along with a couple other things) really helped me hit straighter. $75 for 3 1hr lessons is a great rate. Best I can find around me is $40/hr.