Do you ever think "I'm always going to suck?"

[Yukari]

Originally Posted by redddog

Just venting I guess.

I've been hacking for 20 years. Every year, I make a new committment to getting better. I hit the range 2-3 times a week, scour the internet for tips, usually dump cash on videos/clubs/aids and it never changes anything.

I'll shoot a 92-98 no matter how hard I try to get better.

The problem with me is that there are so many guys out there, teaching so many different things to think about that I'm in my address and there are so many things running through my mind to remember, it becomes white noise and I have no idea what I'm doing.

I usually just leave the range saying, "Damn, I'm just always going to suck."

Like I said, just a rant I guess. I just play with my 10 year old boy whenever I need a pick-me-up. I'll shank it into the woods 250 yds and he'll say "Man, you crushed that!"

Self fulfilling prophecy?

[redddog]

Hey gang.

Update:

Just went into a round with my brothers on vaction in the Outer Banks with high hopes as I have been working diligently on my swing at the range for a couple of weeks.

I had, literally, the worst round that I have ever had since I started keeping score. 118.

I now have a hook. Used to be a slice but just as unpredictable.

I am now totally unable to hit an iron. It's either totally fat (with a good bit of earth right under the ball) or skulled. The nearly 2 months of work I've done on hitting down on the ball have been a total waste of time as I am seemingly completely unable to hit down on the ball no matter what I do.

Down days, fellas.

Playing tomorrow and not expecting much different.

Bummed.

[bplewis24]

You may want to consider getting lessons.  Do you have a golf galaxy in your area?

I used to feel the same way you did (see post #2 of this thread) but now I feel like I am actually improving.  I haven't played a round yet since the improvements started (Monday), but I'm confident I'm on the right track.

Question: have you been noticing the same things happening on the range that happened during your round of 118?

Brandon

[Teebox Jenkins]

Reddog - When I first read your post like a lot of people I could relate. I am no pro and have just recently started playing semi-decent golf after 3 years of wasted $ and time. My best round was a 91 up until about a few months ago. Last week I shot an easy 84 and I gave away at least 5 strokes with dumb mistakes. I imagine like you, I tried every swing training aid/device known to man. I single handedly have carried golfsmith through the downturn in the economy. What has helped turn the corner was a combination of 3 things:

1) Working on fundamentals  - (particularly in the short game, grip, stance, aim, posture)

2) Getting fitted clubs

3) Making a commitment to the mental side of the game

The first two are simple (equally as important) but the third is what gave me fits. I would highly recommend Dr. Joseph Parents book to the mental game. His teachings really helped clear my mind of useless swing thoughts and just allow me to step up make the swing I want. Chances are you are like me and have spent more hours than you would like on the range. You know what a good swing feels like and despite your scores have made plenty of them. Just relax and let the swing come via auto pilot. Your brain knows how to make a near perfect swing every time. You just have to get out it's way. The book can be applied to more than golf but it is written specifically for golfers. Just a good read. Also work on your pre shot routine. It is boring and tedious but it makes a world of difference.

Now when I want to hit a fade or a draw I mentally prepare myself to hit the shot and make the swing completely on feeling. No need to think about keeping or trying to get body parts into specific positions. Also practicing your swing in super slow motion (whole swing should hopefully take about a minute to complete) does wonders when you can't get out to the course or range. 10 minutes of slow swinging is close to about 2 hours on the range.

Best of luck to you and hope you break through soon!

[q7w]

Originally Posted by redddog

Just venting I guess.

I've been hacking for 20 years. Every year, I make a new committment to getting better. I hit the range 2-3 times a week, scour the internet for tips, usually dump cash on videos/clubs/aids and it never changes anything.

I'll shoot a 92-98 no matter how hard I try to get better.

The problem with me is that there are so many guys out there, teaching so many different things to think about that I'm in my address and there are so many things running through my mind to remember, it becomes white noise and I have no idea what I'm doing.

I usually just leave the range saying, "Damn, I'm just always going to suck."

Like I said, just a rant I guess. I just play with my 10 year old boy whenever I need a pick-me-up. I'll shank it into the woods 250 yds and he'll say "Man, you crushed that!"

I know what you mean

I have gotten to the point of not trusting any advice from so-called pros/teachers

Why should they teach you the proper way to play golf? They would be out of a job if everyone just followed their "tips"

I can't label them all as bad. But I would say at least 95% teach you the wrong way to play golf. In order to preserve their jobs.

I have no respect for that.

[bplewis24]

At least 95%???

[ND Fan]

I hate to sound cliche' but the power of positive thinking is so under appreciated.  If you really think you will always suck, you are destined to achieve just that.  Golf truly is 90% mental regardless of your skill level.  I proved this point with my wife over and over again.  She is a still a beginner and when she plays with her ladies  she shoots 10-15 shots higher than when she plays with me.  I constantly remind her what an easy shot she has and it's good lie, she can do it, she just needs a positive frame of mind in which to start.

[iacas]

Originally Posted by q7w

I have gotten to the point of not trusting any advice from so-called pros/teachers

Why should they teach you the proper way to play golf? They would be out of a job if everyone just followed their "tips"

I can't label them all as bad. But I would say at least 95% teach you the wrong way to play golf. In order to preserve their jobs.

I've found that golfers getting better is the best way to get repeat business. They get addicted to shooting lower and lower scores.

I think that your number is (a bit) high, and the reason has nothing to do with "they'd be out of a job" and everything to do with "they simply don't know any better."

That's (slowly) changing, but I don't think any golf instructor purposefully withholds information or gives bad information like a car repair shop (nor do I think car repair shops do that... they're just the classic example).

[Harmonious]

Originally Posted by q7w

I know what you mean

I have gotten to the point of not trusting any advice from so-called pros/teachers

Why should they teach you the proper way to play golf? They would be out of a job if everyone just followed their "tips"

I can't label them all as bad. But I would say at least 95% teach you the wrong way to play golf. In order to preserve their jobs.

I have no respect for that.

Sounds like you have had some bad experiences to be so negative about golf instructors.  While it's true that some folks can get very good with absolutely no instruction, I think the vast majority of players could improve their games if they did have a knowledgeable person (not necessarily a teacher or pro) check out their swing. Everyone has quirks in their swing that may or may not actually be helping them.  Another pair of eyes can sometimes do wonders. Heck, I bet you, as a 5 handicap, could go down the line at your local driving range and point out one or two things to almost every golfer there which would help them. Very few golfers actually have decent fundamentals before they even take the club back.

As to your claim of 95% of teachers do it wrong - that is just hyperbole.

[JesseV]

Oh, the Golf Tec days. By the time it was all over the only way I was getting 32 degrees rotation is if my instructor's head was on the tee.

Been there - What a waste of time and money. I had been to at least 7 instructors in 5 years time, including 3 different ones at the afore mentioned Golf-T place. I was so angry at my lack of improvement that I actually quit the game in 2003 because I was not improving like I wanted. Thrown and broken clubs were not unusual for me. I'm not saying walk away from the game for eight years, for me there was financial issues, health issues and other life challenges that had to be overcome. However, that time away has helped me and I appreciate life and the game so much more these days then I did in the past. Now in 2011 I'm trying again with a new attitude and new direction. Instead of mindlessly hitting balls and thinking I will improve I'm focusing on the areas I need to improve with specific drills to improve the areas that need improving. I know the things in my swing that are actually good and I feel I can trust those parts of my swing. I know what is bad in my swing, and there is alot, and if I hit a bad shot I can better identify the cause and I know what to work on to correct that flaw. I like posts 36 and 39 in this thread. I was the bonehead spoke of in post 36 who had no plan when I missed a shot, even with instruction I couldn't tell you what I had done wrong. Today my attitude is better, my plan is better, my outlook on life is better and very important to note I have found an instructor that I can trust. So for now let me say life is good and I will break 80 someday. Until then its time for practice and more practice- footwork, takeaway, flat left wrist at impact, stay on plane, aim point. Not all at the same time of course! ;-)

[JesseV]

Hey gang.

Update:

Just went into a round with my brothers on vaction in the Outer Banks with high hopes as I have been working diligently on my swing at the range for a couple of weeks.

I had, literally, the worst round that I have ever had since I started keeping score. 118.

I now have a hook. Used to be a slice but just as unpredictable.

I am now totally unable to hit an iron. It's either totally fat (with a good bit of earth right under the ball) or skulled. The nearly 2 months of work I've done on hitting down on the ball have been a total waste of time as I am seemingly completely unable to hit down on the ball no matter what I do.

Down days, fellas.

Playing tomorrow and not expecting much different.

Bummed.

I have experienced the same thing. Man so frustrating, I feel your pain! What you must, must, must do is find something that you did good or at least semi-ok in the round and focus on that. Take time to think about what you did well - putting, chipping, something. Remember Hogan said he only hit maybe 3 great shots a round. Slow your swing down, don't worry about positions or this or that, just find a rhythm or tempo, go back to something you know worked at least reasonably well and just go out to have fun. Then work on what you need to work on after you play. Its gonna be about your misses and how you handle that. And hooking ain't such a bad thing, its better then slicing and hooking comes before drawing. I don't know, at least I went from slicer, to hooker to now a better drawer of the ball, still hook though. Not many go from slicing to great shots. You need to find an instructor you can trust. See if there are any GSED's or GSEM's in your area, go see one of them that is what I did and I am improving. :-D

[JesseV]

What the heck, I'm just gonna say it - Check out Lynn Blake and TGM. Lynn is a master and knows his stuff and is such a great communicator. TGM is a lot to comprehend, but if you start with basic motion, and study what Lynn teaches or any other TGM AI in your area you will improve and the light will go on! Check out Richie3Jack's blog, read his blogs explaining TGM, so much great info there, watch 3Jack's videos as well as Lynn's. You will begin to truly understand what a golf swing is. You don't have to be a master in the details of TGM, you just need to understand how the swing works and why, then you can apply what you need to make your swing better. There is also so much great advice that has been provided here in this thread, if you follow some of the advice on attitude, practice, short game - you will get better. No where else but in the game of golf do so many want the best for everyone who plays this great game! Good luck!

[GolfHippy]

Re: Do you ever think "I'm always going to suck?"

Yes, but who cares if I am having fun. I enjoy keeping my stats. Practicing the areas where things are going wrong. If I became a great golfer overnight I probably would not enjoy it as much.

[JesseV]

Played Saturday - Shot 103. Disappointed yes. What can I take from it? After not being able to hit the driver, changed to 4 iron off the tee. Except for two holes, found the fairway on 8 others using the four iron. Iron shots on par 3's, flew the green with my 7 iron on a 171 yard downhill par 3. Excellent. Approach shots from fairway, excellent. Chipping okay, putting. aughhhhhhhhhh :censored: If I had not three putted 12 holes and missed two sure birdie attempts, I may have at least shot in the 90's. And thats still after taking 8's on four holes I hit O.B. with the driver. LOL Again what do I take away from all this. That I suck? Not hardly. I hit some great shots that I'm happy with. Work with scoring clubs and long irons are producing results. Need to work more on my short game, especially putting. Driver, might as well throw it in the garbage. just kidding. I did choke up with it on the final two holes and striped two long beautiful drives that split the fairway. Told myself to choke up before I left to go play, just forgot about that until the final stretch of holes. So yes I need more work with the driver and woods. After all that, I'm happy that I played, it was a great day, the glass of beer is still half full and I am improving even though my score in no way reflects that.

[Tomboys]

Actually, I used to think, "I'm always going to suck." until recently (as in the past few months).  I've been playing golf on and off for @ 16 years. When I first started golfing, I could hit the ball pretty far and straight (relative to my friends) and my raw swing was "prettier" than their's.  My friends said that I would (soon) be the best golfer out of all of them based on what I could do initially.  When I took lessons, my first few instructors all saw how well I could hit a ball and said that I should have no problem becoming a low single-digit handicap player--albeit with a some serious work.  Well, little did I know, the opinions of my friends and of those instructors would ultimately set me up to fail (no fault of their's, of course--they were just trying to be supportive and encouraging).  The reason why it set me up to fail was because it led me to over-estimate my ablity which led me to place unrealistic expectations on my performance.

The reason why it was unrealistic was because I didn't have the technical understanding of my swing (cause and effect).  As such, I couldn't feel the difference between a good swing and a bad swing.  Bottom line; if you don't know what you're doing, you'll fail more than you'll succeed.  Luck only lasts so long.  So, in my quest to live up to the "hype" I took lessons, I practiced and I played.  Nothing.  Wildly inconsistent with pars on the #1 handicap holes and 8s on the #18 handicap holes one day and visa versa on the next day.  I was all over the place.  I decided to take matters into my own hands and read golf mags and watch golf on TV (the internet was in its infancy then, so there wasn't a lot of help there) hoping to learn as much as I could about the golf swing desperately trying to improve.  All it did was cause me to literally freeze over every shot (over) thinking.  At one point, one of my friends commented that he could see smoke coming out of my ears from trying to process all the thoughts that I had.  To compound matters, my friends all started to get better, but I languished behind them.  As time went on, the gap grew wider.  Sure, I showed flashes of brilliance here and there, but when the scorecard was tallied up, the truth was obvious; I sucked.

During my best, I held a 13-handicap (several years ago), but around May of 2010, I was probably a legit 28.  I couldn't break 100.  So, in June(?) of last year, I decided to find a (good) instructor and I delved into this site more (those swing video analysis threads were of tremendous benefit).  Once I found the "right" instructor for me, I was happy to learn that all those prior lessons from a hodge podge of instructors was actually helpful.  He stated that my overall swing was technically correct and it was obvious that I had professional training.  However, I had a flip, a sequence and a tempo problem.  So, we worked on those areas.

Fast forward to today, I plugged the scores from my last 10 rounds (played on a few different par-72 championship courses w/o any ESC adjustments) into one of those free handicap calculators.  It spat out 8.3.  Now, is 8.3 any good?  I guess it depends on your perspective.  IMO, all that (index) tells me is that I'm moving in the right direction.  But, there's a lot of work that  needs to be done.  Honestly, I think going from where I was to where I'm at now was the easier part.  Now, the hard part begins.  However, I'm encouraged because my last lesson was over a year ago, yet I'm still improving to this day.  Of course it's not a linear progression, rather an overall trend.  But, improving nonetheless.  For the first time in my (golfing) life, I finally feel as though a have a solid foundation built on success as opposed to potential.

With that, no, I no longer feel that I'm always going to suck.  However, I've seen what unrealistic expectations can do (to me at least) and the path of destruction it can lead you down.  So, I will merely say that I think I'm a decent golfer now because I'm better educated and better trained.  As long as I filter out the noise in my head (the unrealistic expectation of shooting a low round everytime I tee it up), focus on allowing my body to make a good swing (doesn't have to be perfect), and, most importantly, allowing myself to have fun on the course (bad shots and all), then I should be able to continue this improvement trend.