Can't Stop Trying To Murder The Ball!

[GlasgowsGreen]

One of my biggest consistency killers is the fact that I try to kill the ball!

When I'm at the range, even when I consciously try to tell myself to relax I'll I find myself smashing the ball at 100% power.

Does anyone have any advice/ drills on preventing this?

Thanks

[Mr3Wiggle]

I focus on shortening up my backswing.  For some reason when I keep my backswing shorter it keeps me from overswinging.  I keep it short and think start slow and accelerate through the motion.

[inthehole]

I'm a 85-90% power guy & try to focus all my energy on a smooth tempo to keep the ball in play.      Try these two things to back it down a notch:

1. SLOW backswing.   Not Ai Mayazato slow (google her), but along that line ... keeps everything in check & eliminates all the wonkie swing faults that inevitably result from a "too fast" back swing.

2. Don't try to extend the club head way back behing your ear like the pro's do on the backswing ... I limit my backswing so that my hands don't go above my shoulders.    I still hit it as far as anybody I play with with my "compact" swing & it is so much more controlled.    Once your swing is established, you can always go for more backswing, but so many high hcp'rs I see have way too big a back swing & it gets them in all kinds of trouble.

You can still swing hard, just slow down the tempo of the backswing & don't go as far back on the back swing.

[Limpinswinger]

Originally Posted by GlasgowsGreen

One of my biggest consistency killers is the fact that I try to kill the ball!

When I'm at the range, even when I consciously try to tell myself to relax I'll I find myself smashing the ball at 100% power.

Does anyone have any advice/ drills on preventing this?

Thanks

Try a bong hit before you go out.  Badaboom!

But seriously, try accelerating gradually over the course of your downswing rather than accelerating to quickly from the top of the swing.  That helps prevent overswinging, and it helps you to maintain your balance and timing at contact.  It also helps to think about swinging the club rather than hitting the ball.

[GlasgowsGreen]

Thanks for the comments.

I tried counting 1-2-3 last night

1 - start the backswing

2 - start the downswing

3 - accelerate through the ball

Well that was the theory anyway. Within a few minutes I'd just shout THREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and smash the ball as hard as I could. At one point I even ran after it and kicked it again. Need to calm down...

[BWChuck]

I frequently over swing as well.  I have really been focusing on 5SK #1 - Steady Head.  When I over swing, it is almost impossible for me to keep my head still throughout the swing (from what I can feel, and been told).  So I've just strictly focused on keeping the head as steady as possible, and make changes to accommodate a steady head.  I have noticed that by focusing on reducing the movement of my head, I don't feel as rushed or fast with my swing; without ever directly telling myself  "just swing slower."

[Bananarama]

I dial down my lengths, say a blasted 5 iron goes 215 yards at best, so try to hit it 195 yards and only 195 yards.  Or, if you have a 150 yard hole which you  normally blast a PW, hit it with a 9 iron instead

[joekelly]

I am real sympathetic towards your game, GG.  It's a huge hurdle to overcome for me too.  Golf is a highly technical and momentarily vigorous motor skill, quite unlike most other sports. I see that you are probably a beginner, H'cap 30, and maybe no longer a teenager. IMHO, many comments i read on this  thread are beyond your current skill level, thus can only be frustrating to you. I think the only way you can succeed  (h'cap 15) is to somehow disconnect the mental idea that the ball is there 'to hit'. The ball is not there to hit rather the club is there to swing and the ball merely a fly speck in the path. You must somehow return to the most elementary practice set and learn to swing the club by keeping the lower  body still, the head immobile, the wrists and forearms loose, never tight and eventually 'feel the clubhead' as it moves up, down, out and again up. Lots of practice without a ball in sight. Best wishes.

[awmgolfer]

I do a 3 count like you mentioned but a little different, one is starting the back swing and 3 is when I initiate the downswing. I usually end up having one shot a round where I rush my backswing and as soon as I do it I just do a practice swing or two with that cadence in my mind and it gets me back on track. The count speed is not fast but steady.

[GlasgowsGreen]

I'm genuinely not that bad for someone who has only been playing for 2 years!

The '30' handicap is just an estimate - I haven't made any attempts to get a handicap yet. Not sure what its like in the states but in Scotland you can play recreationally with no pressure to get an official handicap.

I've been taking lessons for 2 years now. It's so hard to play and get lessons at the same time as you can't get a consistent swing. It keeps changing, for better and for worse, after every lesson. You have to take 2 steps back to go 3 steps forward, and thats not conducive to solid play!

Fortunately the hard work is starting to pay off now and I actually have a technically good swing and the foundations to hopefully build a very good swing.

I'm turned my attention to tempo now and I think I'll see some big improvements once I start to incorporate it into my game.

Thanks for you advice,

[lostmyballs]

They always say "don't hit the ball, swing the club and let the ball get in the way". To me, wasn't so helpful at first. But It helped me to think of the club not like baseball bat (as I had at first, without knowing it), but like a rock at the end of a string. When you swing, really feel the weight of the clubhead, and try to maintain the sensation of centrifugal force working on it . Try swinging a few times in a row without stopping, to feel the flow of a smooth swing. If you can keep this centrifugal feeling in your real swing you will have largely tamed your "murder the ball" habit.

[bunkerputt]

Originally Posted by GlasgowsGreen

One of my biggest consistency killers is the fact that I try to kill the ball!

When I'm at the range, even when I consciously try to tell myself to relax I'll I find myself smashing the ball at 100% power.

Does anyone have any advice/ drills on preventing this?

Thanks

Stay very relaxed in the back and shoulders on the way back.  Tension shortens your backswing and makes you hit it shorter, not further.  Then give yourself a beat to get the lower body ready to hit.  Then smash the crap out of it.  You're still hitting it hard, just not hard from the top.  Drills are the only way to break yourself of the habit.  Hitting lots of balls just commits poor sequencing to muscle memory.

[darkstar76]

Originally Posted by bunkerputt

Stay very relaxed in the back and shoulders on the way back.  Tension shortens your backswing and makes you hit it shorter, not further.  Then give yourself a beat to get the lower body ready to hit.  Then smash the crap out of it.  You're still hitting it hard, just not hard from the top.  Drills are the only way to break yourself of the habit.  Hitting lots of balls just commits poor sequencing to muscle memory.

Speaking of tension I've really focused on softening the amount of pressure I use in my hands to hold the club. In the past I would squeeze the daylights out of the grip...so much that my forearms were sore after a range session!

The "YOU GO SMASH NOW!" swing leads to all arms & wild inconsistency