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My Swing (billchao)


billchao

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On 9/9/2018 at 8:11 PM, billchao said:

I think it's a face issue and not a path one like it used to be when I used to miss left with big curves.

Was thinking about this and I think the issue might be that I set up at address with the clubface square to my target line and I come into impact with the face delofted and slightly closed from where it was at address. Probably wouldn't hurt anything to set up with the face a little more open.

I also remembered my 2h can be adjusted 1° flat and immediately liked how it sets up like that. Used to play it like that and now I can't remember why I had it set to neutral.

Bill

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” - Confucius

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  • 2 weeks later...
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So I played with @nevets88 on an rainy Friday morning and now he's witnessed both my best driving round of the year and one of my worst. I don't know if it was the weather or just how poorly I've been hitting the woods lately, but I kind of just gave up in the middle of the round. I wasn't frustrated, I just stopped caring. Stopped doing the little details to make sure I scored well. I guess it's a form of frustration.

Anyway, that lasted all of an hour. After lunch we decided to hit the range and see what was going on.

So here's my 7i swing from that day:

I was hitting the irons pretty solidly on the course, too. Too much curve, swinging a bit too far right, but no big deal, it's a good playable swing.

Here's the driver (WARNING: not for the faint of heart):

Ugh. Look how far off the toe I hit it. That's become the new normal. When I hit it off the center, it does not get airborne. I've actually been playing better teeing off with 4i than I have with the driver. Sad.

At the time, on the range and looking at the video on the phone while fighting the glare, I thought the issue was primarily path-related, so I worked on that. Spent a lot of time hitting 100 yard 7i shots with a little fade which turned the full swing shot much straighter, but I still couldn't hit the driver solidly without just hitting a punchy knock-down shot.

With some more time to look at it at home, I realized the issue was how the sweetspot was loading in the backswing and how that affected transition. Been working on a different backswing feel and finally had some time hit some balls with it today.

I hit my 2w instead of my driver because it's hard for me to tee up a ball at home (plus one time I popped one up and put a hole in my siding). Here's the raw swing, very similar look to the driver above:

Yea it's skipping frames because of the lighting.

Here's the 2w with the new backswing feel:

 

Still a little under to over in transition but much better than it was. Baby steps. Used the feel with the 8i and hit the ball really well. Don't recall hitting any toe shots which is my usual miss.

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Bill

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” - Confucius

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Have you ever, instead of searching for backswing minutia and the like, just tried, you know, hitting it more off the heel?  You swing looks fairly on plane and fast.  Maybe just hone in on your natural athleticism, stretch your arms out more through impact, and trust it?

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13 minutes ago, allenc said:

Have you ever, instead of searching for backswing minutia and the like, just tried, you know, hitting it more off the heel?  You swing looks fairly on plane and fast.  Maybe just hone in on your natural athleticism, stretch your arms out more through impact, and trust it?

I don't work that way. I swing pretty fast but I have no other natural talent for hitting a golf ball. Any progress I have made in my ballstriking has been because of the work I've put into my swing.

If I stretch out my arms more through impact, I drive the clubhead into the ground behind the ball. Wouldn't that just end up making me swing more right, anyway?

Bill

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” - Confucius

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@billchao,

You seem to have a longer backswing with the driver than I remember when we played. I recall you were working on shortening it, or at least working with that feel. Is that what you were doing in the revised backswing feel?

Scott

Titleist, Edel, Scotty Cameron Putter, Snell - AimPoint - Evolvr - MirrorVision

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5 minutes ago, boogielicious said:

You seem to have a longer backswing with the driver than I remember when we played. I recall you were working on shortening it, or at least working with that feel.

It seemed like so long ago, I honestly don't remember (though I can look and I will). The injury to my hand in the middle of summer kind of set me back. It almost feels like my golf season just started last month.

What's weird too is you can see by the 7i swing on the range that I'm not getting across the line, and I have a 2h swing on video that's only slightly longer than that. I just assumed that it would be fine with the driver and it's clearly not. I know better than to simply look at a snapshot of a position without considering the motion that got me there and that's my mistake.

17 minutes ago, boogielicious said:

Is that what you were doing in the revised backswing feel?

Not specifically shorter, but trying to change the path the clubhead takes so that it ends up in a different position when I'm "loaded" at the top.

I'm basically just feeling like the club is laid off at A4.

Bill

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” - Confucius

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On 9/19/2018 at 7:19 PM, billchao said:

So I played with @nevets88 on an rainy Friday morning and now he's witnessed both my best driving round of the year and one of my worst.

Yeah, I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

I think I see what you did. Shaft is pointing inside ball at 5 at Neshanic. Applying your fix, shaft is pointing outside ball at 5, don't have to shallow last minute.

Yeah, @boogielicious is right I think. I recall that lesson with Erik/Preston way way back at "The Conk" 😛, I think I remember you guys working on your A4, it was less hinge at the top. Memory could be wrong though. I actually have the videos somewhere, you might be in the background of my swings.

Steve

Kill slow play. Allow walking. Reduce ineffective golf instruction. Use environmentally friendly course maintenance.

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1 hour ago, nevets88 said:

I recall that lesson with Erik/Preston way way back at "The Conk" 😛, I think I remember you guys working on your A4, it was less hinge at the top. Memory could be wrong though. I actually have the videos somewhere, you might be in the background of my swings.

It's been a while, but IIRC the lesson with Erik and Preston had to do with overtaking rates.

There was another lesson with just Preston and I picked you up at the train station, that's the one you're thinking of I think.

Yea that lesson had to do with my wrists breaking down at the top, too much hinge coming down and not having enough time to dump the angles. Was the reason I struggled with partial wedges back then, too. That was 2016. Man, time flies.

We didn't specifically address backswing length or getting across the line in that lesson because he didn't want to pile on too much at once, though I did bring it up in conversation shortly afterwards.

What we discussed BTW is what I incorporated into the swing now: slightly more right forearm supination. Puts the club in a better position at A4 even though my backswing is the same length. You should see me practicing this move, it's kind of ridiculous looking. I lift my left arm and supinate my right arm as two separate simultaneous motions, like I'm trying to pat my head and rub my belly at the same time.

Actually you know what? Here it is:

 

Bill

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” - Confucius

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On 9/20/2018 at 9:29 PM, billchao said:

It's been a while, but IIRC the lesson with Erik and Preston had to do with overtaking rates.

There was another lesson with just Preston and I picked you up at the train station, that's the one you're thinking of I think.

Yea that lesson had to do with my wrists breaking down at the top, too much hinge coming down and not having enough time to dump the angles. Was the reason I struggled with partial wedges back then, too. That was 2016. Man, time flies.

We didn't specifically address backswing length or getting across the line in that lesson because he didn't want to pile on too much at once, though I did bring it up in conversation shortly afterwards.

What we discussed BTW is what I incorporated into the swing now: slightly more right forearm supination. Puts the club in a better position at A4 even though my backswing is the same length. You should see me practicing this move, it's kind of ridiculous looking. I lift my left arm and supinate my right arm as two separate simultaneous motions, like I'm trying to pat my head and rub my belly at the same time.

Actually you know what? Here it is:

 

In your practice here, you are bringing the club back very fast. Faster than your normal swing. Simple, Slow, Specific.

Scott

Titleist, Edel, Scotty Cameron Putter, Snell - AimPoint - Evolvr - MirrorVision

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1 hour ago, boogielicious said:

In your practice here, you are bringing the club back very fast. Faster than your normal swing. Simple, Slow, Specific.

Yea my backswing tends to get a little too fast. I've always been on the quick side with tempo. Too quick, actually. I'm like 2.2:1 or 2.5:1 or something.

The practice is ok I think. It's something I'm able to do at 100% speed as I've demonstrated. I just need to remember to do it more than anything else.

Bill

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” - Confucius

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3 hours ago, billchao said:

Yea my backswing tends to get a little too fast. I've always been on the quick side with tempo. Too quick, actually. I'm like 2.2:1 or 2.5:1 or something.

The practice is ok I think. It's something I'm able to do at 100% speed as I've demonstrated. I just need to remember to do it more than anything else.

I have a similar issue, but when I get fast, my sequence suffers.

Scott

Titleist, Edel, Scotty Cameron Putter, Snell - AimPoint - Evolvr - MirrorVision

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3 minutes ago, boogielicious said:

I have a similar issue, but when I get fast, my sequence suffers.

Same here. Then on the flip side, I can get a little lackadaisical when I deliberately slow things down and hit bad shots, too.

The speed of my backswing is an issue. It was something I looked into briefly but decided my mechanical errors were more important than working on my tempo. I'll get back around to it one day.

Bill

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” - Confucius

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Went to a Callaway demo day today. Warmed up with 7i, then the fitter asked what I was interested in hitting. I told him I have been struggling with my woods, especially my 3w.

I tried the Rogue 3w in a few different shafts, and then the fitting turned into a pseudo-lesson. I swing too far right (+8°) with the face too closed to the path (-6°), which I kind of already knew, but it was good to see the numbers.

Fix was something I have done in the past with Preston at The Conk, feeling almost OTT with the shoulders to allow them to rotate more while holding the face open. Got the path closer to +4°. Really tried to slice it off the face of the planet and couldn't without hitting a big open-faced block. Surprised I could feel like I was swinging that far left without cutting the ball.

Best fit was the Rogue 3w with Hzrdus Yellow 75g shaft. Nice boring flight with a flat trajectory. Would have no issues hitting the club into the wind. Need to work on the swing, though. That's more important than the club.

Bill

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” - Confucius

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5 hours ago, billchao said:

Went to a Callaway demo day today. Warmed up with 7i, then the fitter asked what I was interested in hitting. I told him I have been struggling with my woods, especially my 3w.

I tried the Rogue 3w in a few different shafts, and then the fitting turned into a pseudo-lesson. I swing too far right (+8°) with the face too closed to the path (-6°), which I kind of already knew, but it was good to see the numbers.

Fix was something I have done in the past with Preston at The Conk, feeling almost OTT with the shoulders to allow them to rotate more while holding the face open. Got the path closer to +4°. Really tried to slice it off the face of the planet and couldn't without hitting a big open-faced block. Surprised I could feel like I was swinging that far left without cutting the ball.

Best fit was the Rogue 3w with Hzrdus Yellow 75g shaft. Nice boring flight with a flat trajectory. Would have no issues hitting the club into the wind. Need to work on the swing, though. That's more important than the club.

Curious Bill, what kind of launch monitor did they have there? 

Steve

Kill slow play. Allow walking. Reduce ineffective golf instruction. Use environmentally friendly course maintenance.

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1 minute ago, nevets88 said:

Curious Bill, what kind of launch monitor did they have there? 

Trackman.

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Bill

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” - Confucius

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  • 1 month later...
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Played a round of golf yesterday with some guys from work. Had a good time but definitely played as poorly as I expected to. My game completely falls apart without constant maintenance.

On the plus side I did hit a couple of really good drives which I haven't done in forever. I'm probably about ready to get back into working on stuff.

Bill

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” - Confucius

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1 hour ago, billchao said:

Played a round of golf yesterday with some guys from work. Had a good time but definitely played as poorly as I expected to. My game completely falls apart without constant maintenance.

Why do you think that is?

Erik J. Barzeski —  I knock a ball. It goes in a gopher hole. 🏌🏼‍♂️
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33 minutes ago, iacas said:

Why do you think that is?

Innate athleticism? I've always been decent at sports, though not necessarily good at them. I get rusty pretty quickly. Either that or my swing mechanics require a lot more timing than I think they do to do well, but that doesn't quite explain flubbed pitches or partial wedge shots. Oddly enough I hit flop shots better than I hit regular pitch shots.

I guess I never really put any thought into it. I have always just accepted it as normal. Did you have a theory or were you just curious what I thought?

Bill

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” - Confucius

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