The KyleAnthony Golf Opera Thread

[Jakester23]

A good drill I like using for putting is to hit one handed putts from 3 feet then move to 5 then maybe 10 or so. Another one I really like before a round is go to the putting green and drop a quarter and putt at the quarter instead of the holes on the putting green. After doing that for a while the hole looks massive.

[iacas]

I'm going to practice lag putting so that I don't leave myself more than 3 feet away to eliminate 3 putts The feeling I get from trying to keep my head still has helped me make better contact and I have been hitting it better so I think it's helping I'm trying deeper hands on my driver because it helps my ball flight with the driver and it's easier to learn when teed up so I wanna get the feeling down then transfer the movement over to my iron game

You missed the point. Those aren't good answers. I'm on my phone, so the answer is short. No intent to be rude. Just getting tired.

[KyleAnthony]

A good drill I like using for putting is to hit one handed putts from 3 feet then move to 5 then maybe 10 or so. Another one I really like before a round is go to the putting green and drop a quarter and putt at the quarter instead of the holes on the putting green. After doing that for a while the hole looks massive.

Is it with trailing arm or lead arm [quote name="iacas" url="/t/71817/operation-scratch-2014/270#post_944671"] You missed the point. Those aren't good answers. I'm on my phone, so the answer is short. No intent to be rude. Just getting tired.[/quote] I don't know what to say. It seems when I try it's wrong.

[Abu3baid]

I'm going to practice lag putting so that I don't leave myself more than 3 feet away to eliminate 3 putts

The feeling I get from trying to keep my head still has helped me make better contact and I have been hitting it better so I think it's helping

I'm trying deeper hands on my driver because it helps my ball flight with the driver and it's easier to learn when teed up so I wanna get the feeling down then transfer the movement over to my iron game

I can't comment on the putting part as I don't really work on that, I just do putt :)

However, when it comes to Steady Head like @iacas said there aren't many instructors or anyone that would say.. "Yea, keep a steady head".. His question to you was how are you planning on achieving this #1 Key in the golf swing?  Your answer is I'm trying to keep my head still.. But how are you planning on doing that?

For example, this is also a priority of mine and I am trying to achieve it by getting my shoulders to turn steep enough so that my head doesn't move with it nor do I have to lift my chin up to let my shoulder through, and I can tell ya it is not easy..

So, what are you doing to keep a steady head.. if it is not more than a thought of keeping the head steady then you aren't doing much!

Same goes with the deeper hands..

[Jakester23]

With both arms.

[David in FL]

I don't know what to say. It seems when I try it's wrong.

.....and will likely continue to be.  Because you, like me and most of us, don't know much about the golf swing and are unable to effectively diagnose your own problems.  Nor are you (we) able to develop the correct solutions to those problems.

If you want to get better, especially in a relatively short timeframe, you need to engage someone who does know how to identify and fix your problems.  In short, find a good instructor.  Heck, @mvmac 's only a couple of hours away isn't he?  That seems to me like it'd be a helluva good, short day-trip once a month.

[MPtheKid]

I understand the feeling of wanting to do it on your own. I've been there but golf is hard and it's really difficult to diagnose what is wrong with your own swing. It really does help to work with a pro and the improvement will be greatly accelerated than if you were to continue to work on your own.

I thought that I could figure everything out by myself but honestly the best decision I ever made was to start working with a PGA professional. I can't recommend it enough.

Good Luck!

[billchao]

I don't know what to say. It seems when I try it's wrong.

I have to agree with what other people have mentioned, here. You just can't "feel" something and boom you're doing it. You have to actively make changes to the picture. For example: I'm going to work on a steady head. To do this I'm going to work on making a centered pivot, left shoulder going down instead of around, right knee straightens to allow my hips to turn and get more extension. Then you practice. Do it in front of a mirror, while you're brushing your teeth, while you're watching your favorite sports team, whatever. You don't even need a club in your hands. It's not as simple as trying it for a bucket or two and it works, or it doesn't work, I'm going to try something else. I literally have to do hundreds, if not thousands of repetitions to get something to change in my swing, and even then sometimes I'll regress. There's no quick fix, no tip, no "secret" that's going to turn you into a scratch golfer overnight. The sooner you accept this, the soner you'll stop getting in the way of your own improvement.

[KyleAnthony]

I do practice in the mirror and such. When I think of keeping my head steady I don't sway which is why I think I'm making better contact. For me I understand things better by doing or trying something and getting a sensation from it. For me steady head I make a mental note to keep my head still and therefore my body doesn't away back and forth which has helped. It's just the way my brain works. I haven't mastered it or anything but it helps when I start to get off on a bad streak. I'm really not trying to sound ignorant or anything I'm just trying to explain my reason and feeling in trying to achieve key #1

[Golfingdad]

I do practice in the mirror and such. When I think of keeping my head steady I don't sway which is why I think I'm making better contact. For me I understand things better by doing or trying something and getting a sensation from it. For me steady head I make a mental note to keep my head still and therefore my body doesn't away back and forth which has helped. It's just the way my brain works. I haven't mastered it or anything but it helps when I start to get off on a bad streak. I'm really not trying to sound ignorant or anything I'm just trying to explain my reason and feeling in trying to achieve key #1

Genuine question:  In all of the bits and pieces of advice in your two threads, did Mike or Erik, or for that matter, anybody else, mention that your priority piece was a steady head?

[iacas]

I don't know what to say. It seems when I try it's wrong.

I asked you HOW. You either gave kinda-sorta-"why" answers or just vague things in general.

First of all, let's look at your putting. Is it your lag putting, or your ten-feet-and-in putting that stinks? I'm gonna guess both, but more so your lag putting.

Here's a good way to answer the "How?" question to the question of your putting.

"I will improve my long putting by working on my distance control. I will accomplish this by randomly choosing putts from 25 to 40 feet on the practice green, and I will lay a string down and putt to the string. My only goal will be to stop the ball on or as close to the string as possible, thus working solely on distance control from long range. If this drill demonstrates that I lack touch because of a putting flaw (for example, my backstroke is short and I accelerate through the hit), I will add tees on either side of my ball to make sure my putting stroke is relatively even on both sides. But otherwise, it's just about putting to string for the next few weeks when I practice my putting."

So when I asked you HOW you were going to work on keeping your head steady, that's the kind of answer I expected. "I will work on  a steady head by putting double-length shaft in the ground, while hitting shots at 50% speed or so at the most. Additionally, I'll work on this at home using my bathroom mirror for five to ten minutes per day." (I forget the specifics of what you need to do to keep your head more steady, but those details would make for a better "how" answer too so you're aware of what you're monitoring.

The same is true of "deep hands" (which, because it's a full swing thing just like Steady Head, I'd probably not do right now…).

Sorry to be blunt again, but that's how I roll: This "operation" is a farce if you're not actually going to plan anything. You can't just go around saying you're going to "try" things, even if they're the right things. You need a game plan. You need a course of action. And that course of action cannot and should not include full swings let alone full swings just "trying" to feel like you do something.

However, when it comes to Steady Head like @iacas said there aren't many instructors or anyone that would say.. "Yea, keep a steady head".. His question to you was how are you planning on achieving this #1 Key in the golf swing?  Your answer is I'm trying to keep my head still.. But how are you planning on doing that?

Precisely.

If you want to get better, especially in a relatively short timeframe, you need to engage someone who does know how to identify and fix your problems.  In short, find a good instructor.  Heck, @mvmac's only a couple of hours away isn't he?  That seems to me like it'd be a helluva good, short day-trip once a month.

Well worth a trip. And Mike and I may have a little time as well when I'm in California for the outing.

I have to agree with what other people have mentioned, here. You just can't "feel" something and boom you're doing it. You have to actively make changes to the picture.

Yep.

For example: I'm going to work on a steady head. To do this I'm going to work on making a centered pivot, left shoulder going down instead of around, right knee straightens to allow my hips to turn and get more extension.

Also a fairly decent description or answer to the "how?" question. I would add that this isn't done at full speed, but only at the speed at which you can do it successfully, even if that means hitting the ball 50 yards.

Then you practice. Do it in front of a mirror, while you're brushing your teeth, while you're watching your favorite sports team, whatever. You don't even need a club in your hands. It's not as simple as trying it for a bucket or two and it works, or it doesn't work, I'm going to try something else.

I literally have to do hundreds, if not thousands of repetitions to get something to change in my swing, and even then sometimes I'll regress.

There's no quick fix, no tip, no "secret" that's going to turn you into a scratch golfer overnight. The sooner you accept this, the soner you'll stop getting in the way of your own improvement.

Just quoting all of that because it's good.

I do practice in the mirror and such. When I think of keeping my head steady I don't sway which is why I think I'm making better contact. For me I understand things better by doing or trying something and getting a sensation from it. For me steady head I make a mental note to keep my head still and therefore my body doesn't away back and forth which has helped. It's just the way my brain works. I haven't mastered it or anything but it helps when I start to get off on a bad streak. I'm really not trying to sound ignorant or anything I'm just trying to explain my reason and feeling in trying to achieve key #1

Kyle, we've had students that we had to tell them to feel like their heads went down and forward A FULL FOOT just to keep it steady. You've probably seen me say "feel ain't real" and I have my doubts that you're the one person in the world that can do exactly as he says he feels in the golf swing just by thinking about it. It's not a slam on you, not in the least - it's just now how people work.

How do you KNOW you don't sway? What part of your body doesn't sway? Do you understand that Steady Head (if it's even relevant given @Golfingdad 's point below) is not just about not moving your head much, but about a proper pivot, too?

How do you KNOW if you're doing something better? By making full-speed swings and judging the result? One of the best swings I've ever made resulted in a shank. I posted the video because the motion was better, and eventually I'll find the golf ball.

Part of my job as an instructor (emphasis on job, as you're getting all of this for free) is to educate people. You need an education on your limits as well as how to practice properly.

Genuine question:  In all of the bits and pieces of advice in your two threads, did Mike or Erik, or for that matter, anybody else, mention that your priority piece was a steady head?

Yeah, that's a good question. I've been mentioning it because Kyle keeps saying it. I think perhaps @mvmac said something about it, but maybe not. And if not, then identifying the true priority is important.

I looked at your "My Swing" thread. I told you early on to work on deeper hands. Your head and pivot are "okay." Not a priority piece.

[mvmac]

Yeah, that's a good question. I've been mentioning it because Kyle keeps saying it. I think perhaps @mvmac said something about it, but maybe not. And if not, then identifying the true priority is important.

The pivot piece (Key#1) I mentioned had to do with the hips sliding back from 1-4.  As we know, if he gets the hips to turn and stay centered/move slightly towards the target, that will help the deeper hands piece.

[Lihu]

The pivot piece (Key#1) I mentioned had to do with the hips sliding back from 1-4.  As we know, if he gets the hips to turn and stay centered/move slightly towards the target, that will help the deeper hands piece.

I was wondering about this.

Lately, I noticed that my hips turn back centered about the spine on the takeaway, but move forward a little with the start of the downswing.

Should I start the turn first before letting my hips move forward, or wait till A6 before letting them move forward, or should I continue with the way I am already doing it?

Key 1 is keeping me from hitting fat, so it works for me either way.

Is there an optimal way to do this?

[David in FL]

Kyle, we've had students that we had to tell them to feel like their heads went down and forward A FULL FOOT just to keep it steady.

Anyone we know? :8)

[Ernest Jones]

Anyone we know?

LOL.

[Abu3baid]

Anyone we know? :8)

Funny after I read that post from Erik I tried tht feeling out and video taped it.. Ya, my head didnt move a foot anywhere, I know I was telling my self to move my head and I could feel my head moving, ya... Nothing.. Actually my head didnt move like it normally would, I think this is a good feel for me :-P

[iacas]

Lately, I noticed that my hips turn back centered about the spine on the takeaway, but move forward a little with the start of the downswing.

Should I start the turn first before letting my hips move forward, or wait till A6 before letting them move forward, or should I continue with the way I am already doing it?

Key 1 is keeping me from hitting fat, so it works for me either way.

Is there an optimal way to do this?

Funny after I read that post from Erik I tried tht feeling out and video taped it.. Ya, my head didnt move a foot anywhere, I know I was telling my self to move my head and I could feel my head moving, ya... Nothing.. Actually my head didnt move like it normally would, I think this is a good feel for me

I'm going to assume that both of you are joking. Cuz if you're not, you're now both farther away from getting your Stupid Monkey badges (if we were still issuing them) than ever. Stop trying to do other people's drills! Just do what you're given please!

[Abu3baid]

I'm going to assume that both of you are joking. Cuz if you're not, you're now both farther away from getting your Stupid Monkey badges (if we were still issuing them) than ever. Stop trying to do other people's drills! Just do what you're given please!

Wait wait.. What do you mean they aren't being issued any more? I have been working on getting my shoulder under my chin and I don't even know why I was told to do that! I'm going to have to start asking questions now :-P