I had my first lesson today!

[MacFreak]

Hi!

On another thread , I expressed a desire to take up golf.

Well, I found a place close to home and I had an introductory lesson today. Mike McGee's the guy's name.

I must've hit sixty or so balls. 7-iron only. I hit about ten or fifteen in the 100-120-yard range. Is that any good for a 7-iron? I hit about the same number of atrocities and completely whiffed on several of them.

I had fun, though. Didn't swear once, either.

The next proper full lesson is tomorrow.

[Radford Wooly]

You have to learn somehow. With my 7-Iron, I hit about 160 if I get it clean. Everyone hits differently, so keep practicing! Watch the Golf Channel for tips and suggestions and I also suggest Youtube.com's GolfTV. And Lastly Practice, Practice, Practice!!!!! P.S. Don't Get Frustrated!

[MacFreak]

You have to learn somehow. With my 7-Iron, I hit about 160 if I get it clean. Everyone hits differently, so keep practicing! Watch the Golf Channel for tips and suggestions and I also suggest Youtube.com's GolfTV. And Lastly Practice, Practice, Practice!!!!! P.S. Don't Get Frustrated!

Thank you.

[shades9323]

You have to learn somehow. With my 7-Iron, I hit about 160 if I get it clean. Everyone hits differently, so keep practicing!

The bold part is terrible advice. He needs to follow the direction of his teaching pro. All those different tips and suggestions will get in his head and do more harm than good.

The other advice is excellent.

[newtogolf]

I have my 2nd lesson tomorrow. I spent the past week practicing in the yard and on the range. Only using the 7I as well. I hit a small bucket today and was pretty consistently hitting it straight and to or slightly past the 150yd flag. I have to constantly remind myself to not grip the club too tight, and to swing through the ball. When I do both, I get my straightest and longest hits.

Make sure you give yourself some time to practice in between lessons. I am finding the more time I spend at the range the more my muscle memory is coming into play and each practice session has been better than the previous.

[MacFreak]

The bold part is terrible advice. He needs to follow the direction of his teaching pro. All those different tips and suggestions will get in his head and do more harm than good.

Thanks for the reply.

He's no BS, no-nonsense, but lets you enjoy the experience.

I have my 2nd lesson tomorrow. I spent the past week practicing in the yard and on the range. Only using the 7I as well. I hit a small bucket today and was pretty consistently hitting it straight and to or slightly past the 150yd flag. I have to constantly remind myself to not grip the club too tight, and to swing through the ball. When I do both, I get my straightest and longest hits.

I'm going out tomorrow afternoon.

150 yards? I hope my distance improves a little.

[Kieran123]

I'm going out tomorrow afternoon.

It will, don't worry about that, as you get better, your tempo and rhythm get better meaning cleaner, further shots.

Welcome to golf! You'll be addicted in no time.

[he4dhuntr]

Definitely an addicting hobbie! I've taken it up this summer as well and have taken a few classes so far. I'm hitting my 7i around 135-150, but then again I don't actually own any clubs :P You also have to consider that the balls at the range (pretty used and banged up) don't fly exactly the same (or the same distance) as when you hit brand new balls. Also, it makes a difference if you're hitting off a tee, grass, or carpet.

Your distances will definitely improve the more you play and practice. Just wait until you get to the driver! I'm still sticking with my 3W and 5W for the time being :D

This game gets addicting (and expensive) really fast!!

Cheers,

[newtogolf]

I'm going out tomorrow afternoon.

It will, no worries. I wasn't hitting 150 consistently until Wednesday. More important to develop the muscle memory and hit them straight.

[MacFreak]

It will, don't worry about that, as you get better, your tempo and rhythm get better meaning cleaner, further shots.

Thank you.

I just need to practice.

It will, no worries. I wasn't hitting 150 consistently until Wednesday. More important to develop the muscle memory and hit them straight.

I hope so.

[Easy]

Cool, just have fun and get the fundamentals down. Once you get that down I suggest you video your swing and take a look, you'll probably be surprised like I was. Then try to get a nice tempo down, which is what I'm trying to do now. I think a nice consistent tempo will lead to a more consistent swing.

[Bullitt5339]

Yeah, I'm finding out more and more lately that smooth and solid flies a lot further than swinging hard. You'll see as you start to make better contact, the yardage will increase greatly. With a nice, smooth easy swing my 7 iron is 160 yards. If I push it a little, I can get 175 out of it, but it's a 50/50 chance that I will make good contact or hit a horrible shot, so I try to slow down and just hit the same yardage every time.

It's not about what club you hit what distance, it's more about hitting the same club the same distance every time, so I wouldn't worry about distances right now so much.

[MacFreak]

Yeah, I'm finding out more and more lately that smooth and solid flies a lot further than swinging hard. You'll see as you start to make better contact, the yardage will increase greatly. With a nice, smooth easy swing my 7 iron is 160 yards. If I push it a little, I can get 175 out of it, but it's a 50/50 chance that I will make good contact or hit a horrible shot, so I try to slow down and just hit the same yardage every time.

Yeah...

It's like baseball. The guys who muscle up to impress people with how far they can hit the ball are usually the same guys who hit .220-.230. Meanwhile, Albert Pujols hits .320-.330, 40-plus bombs, and gets 100 steaks with a smooth consistent swing.

[Forest]

Don't worry about your 100-120 7i. I'm a short knocker, and i hit my 7i about 135. I focus on tempo, not really nutting on the ball, as it will go only a few yards further for me.