Jump to content
Check out the Spin Axis Podcast! ×
Note: This thread is 5026 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

Recommended Posts

Posted

I guess I just wanted to thank those of you that take new players under their wings or even just spend 5 minutes to correct something they may see.

I've only started roughly a month ago and I went to the driving range today (I try to go twice a week), after picking up a used TaylorMade R5 3W, to replace the one I broke prior (to date I've broken 2 drivers and a 3W). As soon as I stepped up to the mat, it started to downpour, with the occasional thunderclap. I wasn't about to waste 12 bucks, so I stayed on and continued to practice despite being soaked and having the rain show no signs of letting up.

I decided to start working with irons for the first time, as I had only really been concentrating on my driver and woods. After missing the ball entirely the first 10 or so strokes, an older man who also stayed out must've heard the "swishes" of missed shots and looked up to see me performing terribly...to say the least. I didn't notice he had seen me until I heard a "do you need some help?"

Within 10 minutes he had me hitting the ball every single time, and even sending it out straight to the 75 mark (I'm not sure if it's marked in yards or meters) with a 9 iron. He single-handedly turned what could've been a mediocre and wet trip to the course into an enjoyable learning experience.

I guess I have no real reason to post this asides to thank those who help newer people they see struggling and share my pretty good day out.


Posted
Originally Posted by Biddy

As soon as I stepped up to the mat, it started to downpour, with the occasional thunderclap. I wasn't about to waste 12 bucks, so I stayed on and continued to practice despite being soaked and having the rain show no signs of letting up.

I have some advice; getting hit by lightning won't give you superpowers. Don't hesitate to play golf in the cold, wind, rain, and heat if you're properly dressed and drink fluids. But the second you hear thunder, get inside. Don't stand under a tree either. Your life is probably worth at least like 200 bucks.

Other than that, it's nice of the guy to point you in the right direction. If you're a beginner, even an athletic one, it can be really hard to learn the game's fundamentals and often times it goes against one's instincts.

That said, from the perspective of a young man who taught himself how to play, I still think it's poor etiquette to offer someone unsolicited advice at the range and practice green. If you're someone with professional credentials then it's a bit less presumptuous, but I don't like pros giving fly by lessons either (Hey, are you a college player? I noticed your chipping technique isn't right. Accelerate into impact. Here's my card). Personally I've come a long way and I'm more comfortable building my game on my own, even though I make mistakes on the way. This goes double for you old-timers, regardless of handicap . Don't assume that your age compared to mine gives you the license to spout swing thoughts at me. I'm all for holding a civil conversation and sometimes I hit the ball like crap at the range, but telling me to slow my swing down isn't helpful.

Be careful of stock advice and swing tips. There are some chestnuts out there that have lost their meaning or don't apply to everyone. Like "Turn your hands over at impact to hit a draw", or "Hold the club as loosely as you can", or the ever popular "swing slower". All of those tips could help someone if they have the proper faults, and interpret them correctly, but to others they could hurt more than help.

Some of the well regarded people on this site are a great resource, offering free critiques of video. Iacas is a pro and charges for lessons, but offers general analysis for free. That's brilliant. The majority aren't really qualified, but some are really good and most will keep their mouth shut unless they've suffered from the same faults. It's not the same mentorship, they won't know your game like a live person, and they can't always teach everything through writing, but it's still free and easy. And they don't mind letting you figure it all out for yourself, for which I'm thankful.

In My Bag:

Adams Super LS 9.5˚ driver, Aldila Phenom NL 65TX
Adams Super LS 15˚ fairway, Kusala black 72x
Adams Super LS 18˚ fairway, Aldila Rip'd NV 75TX
Adams Idea pro VST hybrid, 21˚, RIP Alpha 105x
Adams DHY 24˚, RIP Alpha 89x
5-PW Maltby TE irons, KBS C taper X, soft stepped once 130g
Mizuno T4, 54.9 KBS Wedge X
Mizuno R12 60.5, black nickel, KBS Wedge X
Odyssey Metal X #1 putter 
Bridgestone E5, Adidas samba bag, True Linkswear Stealth
Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

Posted
Originally Posted by LuciusWooding

I have some advice; getting hit by lightning won't give you superpowers. Don't hesitate to play golf in the cold, wind, rain, and heat if you're properly dressed and drink fluids. But the second you hear thunder, get inside. Don't stand under a tree either. Your life is probably worth at least like 200 bucks.

Oh believe me, I've been struck by lightning already...and they say it dosen't strike twice ;)

  • Upvote 1

Posted

So you missed the ball completely roughly 10 times in a row?

Watch some youtube videos maaaaaaaaan.

What's In My  Stand Bag

 

Driver:  FT-iZ 9*

Hybrids: C3 3,4,5

Irons: C3 6-GW

Wedges: C3 58*/8 and 54*/12

Putter:  blade

Ball: Gamer V2

 

http://cdn.thesandtrap.com/0/0d/150x50px-LL-0d81d772_tst_award_kickstarter_otm.png


Posted

I've only played with 1 person who was receptive of my tutelage. He was lifting his back heel on his back swing and it instantly fixed his slice

2013 Goal:

 

Single digit handicap


Note: This thread is 5026 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now


  • Want to join this community?

    We'd love to have you!

    Sign Up
  • TST Partners

    Carl's Place
    PlayBetter
    Golfer's Journal
    ShotScope
    The Stack System
    FitForGolf
    FlightScope Mevo

    Coupon Codes (save 10-20%): "IACAS" for Mevo/Stack/FitForGolf, "IACASPLUS" for Mevo+/Pro Package, and "THESANDTRAP" for ShotScope. 15% off TourStriker (no code).
  • Posts

    • I would think of it in terms of time. The time it takes to get the arm angle into a good position to deliver the club with proper shaft lean. Another component is rotation, but that is also a matter of timing. It relates to how the body stalls to give the golfer time to hit the ball. If you have to get 80+ degrees out of that right elbow in one third of a second versus 50 degrees in the same time then you have to steal time from somewhere. It is usually body rotation. That does not help with shaft lean.  I agree in that amateurs tend to make the swing more complicated than pro golfers. 
    • I haven't been able to practice like I wanted and won't for the next week.  1. The weather sucks in Ohio this year. I have been mostly inside hitting foam balls. Just kind of my basic stuff.  2. I woke up last Saturday with a left side rib muscle on fire. If I turned or leaned a certain way it would spasm that almost buckled my knees. I have been taking a break to let that settle. I don't want to get a long term injury. I think I pinched a nerve or just aggravated a muscles.   3. I am going on a mini-vacation to Florida (screw you Ohio weather) with a friend, and rolling that into a work conference I have next week. I will be with out my clubs for a week.  I will be back next in two Fridays to hit the ground running with some warmer temps and better weather in Ohio, hopefully. I would really like to get more out on the course and the range.     
    • Day 580 - 2026-05-04 Played eight holes. Sometimes golf kicks you in the nuts. 😉 
    • I work with a lot of golfers who want more shaft lean at impact, who currently have AoAs that range from +2° to -2°, and who love to see the handle lower and more "in front of their trail thigh" from face-on at P6. And a lot of these golfers try to solve the issue by working on the downswing. They do something to drag the handle forward. Or they just leave their right thigh farther back so the same handle location "looks" farther forward. Or they move the ball back in their stance. Or they push themselves down into the ground to get the handle lower and increase (decrease?) their AoA (to be more negative). The real fix is often to get wider in the backswing. To do LESS in the backswing. To hinge less, fold the trail arm less, abduct the trail arm less. I had a case of this over the weekend. Before, the player had 110° of trail elbow bend, "lifted" his trail humerus only a few degrees, etc. The club traveled quite a bit around him, and he tended to "pick" the ball from the fairways. In the "after" swings below (which are mild exaggerations — this golfer does not need to end up at < 70° of elbow bend. These were slower backswings with "hit it as hard as you normally would" intent downswings), you can see that he bent his elbow about 70° instead of 110° and lifted his right arm an extra ~15° or more. You can't see how much less this moved his hands across his chest (right arm abduction), but it was also decreased. His hands stayed more "in front of" his right shoulder rather than traveling "beside" them so much. The two swings look like this: The change at P6, without talking about the downswing one little bit (outside of him telling me that he tends to pick the ball), is remarkable: Without 110° of elbow bend to get out (which he gets to 80°, a loss of 30°), the golfer actually loses slightly less elbow bend (70 - 50 = 20), but delivers 30° less elbow bend, lowering the handle and letting the elbow get "in front of" the rib cage… because it never got "behind" or "beside" the rib cage. If you look at this video showing the before/afters of P6, you'll note the handle location (both vertically and horizontally) and the shoulders (the ball is in the same place in these frames). This golfer's path was largely unaffected (still pretty straight into the ball, < 3° path and often < 1.5°), but his AoA jumped to -5° ± 2°. I've always said, and in talking with other instructors they agree and feel similarly, that we spend a lot of time working on the backswing. This is another example of why.
    • We had a member of our senior club who developed a mental block on pulling the trigger. I played with him to see what the membership was talking about. I timed him a few times when he would get over the ball. 45 seconds. He knew he had a mental block and would chide himself, “Just hit it!” Once on the green he was okay and chipping was a bit better. It was painful to watch him struggle. Our “bandaid” was to put him in the last tournament  tee time with two understanding players. We should have suggested to him to take a break from our tournaments. I agree with the idea that when a player realizes they have a problem, the answer is to go fix it and not return until they are able to play at an acceptable pace.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Welcome to TST! Signing up is free, and you'll see fewer ads and can talk with fellow golf enthusiasts! By using TST, you agree to our Terms of Use, our Privacy Policy, and our Guidelines.