Share Your Golfing Revelations

[possumkiwi]

Slow your swing down!  Couple of guys have mentioned it already, but one of the three times I've broken 80 was when I concentrated on swinging slow.  I can't usually work the ball on purpose but I could hit a nice high draw when I swung at 70%, and if I'm honest, distance didn't suffer much at all, since I was generally making better contact.

However it's intimidating facing a long carry over wasteland or water, or with a strong wind in your face, and not trying to hit the cover off it!

Watching Lydia Ko is a good example.

[Golfingdad]

For me it's been the revelation that longer shaft length is over-rated (cue Michael Scott ;)).

I cut down a driver from 45.75 to about 44.5 and saw a large increase in center face contact along with a negligible decrease in distance.  I've taken it a step further this week and choked down about an inch or so with similar results - even more solid contact, still no noticeable decrease in distance.

Going to start doing the same with my 3 wood and hybrid as well.

[saevel25]

1 hour ago, imsys0042 said:

Where you are doesn't matter.   A good shot from 250 out is better than a lousy one from 60 yards.

Statistics say otherwise. 

[ygmondoux]

See the shot you want to hit, from start to finish. When I exactly see the shot I want to hit, it sometimes feel like 80% of the job is done. I feel tension free and way more confident over the ball.

 

 

[DrvFrShow]

Sometimes we might not be doing anything mechanically wrong, but we might be setting up a little off which throws our timing off, or causes us to try and compensate for something. Things like playing the ball a little bit too far forward or back for a given shot, or a little bit too close or too far away. It's important to have a consistent set up to the ball as well as consistent swing mechanics, especially when you're learning.

I watched a composite video of all of Lydia Ko's shots at the Canadian Pacific LPGA in 2015 and she was like a machine.

[Gator Hazard]

4 hours ago, DrvFrShow said:

Sometimes we might not be doing anything mechanically wrong, but we might be setting up a little off which throws our timing off, or causes us to try and compensate for something. Things like playing the ball a little bit too far forward or back for a given shot, or a little bit too close or too far away. It's important to have a consistent set up to the ball as well as consistent swing mechanics, especially when you're learning.

I watched a composite video of all of Lydia Ko's shots at the Canadian Pacific LPGA in 2015 and she was like a machine.

I like watching the LPGA to see how they strike the ball.  The only other thing that stuck out from the video was that at follow through I slightly chicken winged my left arm and you could see my glove.  I don't know if I got those two pieces figured out when I was at the driving range but they were definitely on my mind and did try to remember to keep my left arm straight.  

[Bill926]

I played a few rounds in a row where I was hitting fat, thin, pushes, hooks etc., felt like i was forcing every shot, and afterwards my neck, back and arms were very sore. Went out the next time where my only thought was very lite grip pressure, where I was barely holding the club.  What a huge difference in ball striking it made.  I went from clubbing up on my irons and still coming up short on the previous rounds, to where I was actually hitting the regular club a bit longer than expected.  Same course, 5 days apart went from shooting 93 to 80 (with 2 3-putts), and no soreness!

[chspeed]

For me, it was the realization that what I thought was a short backswing was SUPER-long once I saw it on video. Right now, when I feel like I take the club to A2, I'm actually taking a nice full, but controlled backswing!

[imsys0042]

On November 10, 2015 at 3:02:47 PM, SavvySwede said:

No way. From 60 yards a lousy shot would still be closer to the hole. Secondly, of course "where you are matters" because statistically you are much less likely to hit a lousy shot from 60 yards.

 

On November 10, 2015 at 3:22:22 PM, saevel25 said:

Statistics say otherwise. 

You guys are wet blankets.  :)    My point is that just because you think you are SOL, doesn't mean that you have to be.   One good shots saves your par instead of not having a positive frame of mind.

[phan52]

. . . slow . . . down . . .

[inthehole]

The one epiphany above all others in my golf game development if this:

---- you have to look at the ball ---

simple, right.   Obviously I would always look in the direction of the ball ... But not until I forced myself to really REALLY focus intently on the ball without distraction, that my contact really improved.   Especially true with putting - I would always lose focus on the ball and subconsciously follow the putter on the backstroke to some degree.   Once I started to focus 100% on the ball, my putting improved measurably.  

Many advise - check & see if your really looking at the ball - I bet a lot of higher hcps like me are not

[Rip62]

To restrict my hips on the backswing. Improved my accuracy and my distance stayed about the same.

[jamo]

I think my biggest epiphany was that epiphanies are generally short-lived. (Including that one.)

[mchepp]

1 minute ago, jamo said:

I think my biggest epiphany was that epiphanies are generally short-lived. (Including that one.)

Reminds me of my old golf coach. He had a saying for tip or feel that you would find that helped you out. He called them woodies. Works only one day. Meaning finding something that one day that helped you shoot 75 never worked the next day when you shot 82.

[Rainmaker]

I've had several of those "ah-ha" moments but none of them turned out to really be a revelation . .just a step along a long path.  

I've had the revelation of "Don't sway off the ball in the backswing" several times.  Each time I've had it . .I thought "Man, I'm hitting it better because I'm no longer swaying in my back-swing".  In actuality, I was swaying *less* in my back swing.  And that reduced sway allowed me to improve something else, which allowed me to improve something else, which eventually brought me back to the revelation "Don't sway off the ball in your backswing", lol.  

Now I got it, though.  I'm hitting it better now because I'm no longer swaying off the ball in my back swing.