Does your instructor give homework?

[gregsandiego]

Does your instructor give you homework, and then check your progress against that homework?

Mine doe not. So every lesson seems to be almost the same now. I know what I do wrong and I hear the same corrections each time. Not that I know how to fix things between lessons. 

I can actually hit better during the lesson with this real time fixes, but it doesn't carry over. It seems to be at a plateau.

 

 

[billchao]

How is he making those corrections during the lesson? Those corrections should be your homework. If you make changes during the lesson that lead to imorovement, you keep doing those changes on your own.

At this point if you're getting the same lesson over and over again, you should have the tools necessary to correct that part of your swing.

[iacas]

24 minutes ago, billchao said:

At this point if you're getting the same lesson over and over again, you should have the tools necessary to correct that part of your swing.

While I agree with that, there's still "homework" you can give to students.

Drills. Things they can do in a mirror at home while brushing their teeth. Etc.

@gregsandiego, I may be confusing you with someone else whose instructor I've previously talked to/with/about, but if not, I still don't like your instructor very much.

If you're getting the same lesson every time, there's a double-ended failure. On your part and his. You're the student - he's more responsible.

[billchao]

3 minutes ago, iacas said:

While I agree with that, there's still "homework" you can give to students.

Drills. Things they can do in a mirror at home while brushing their teeth. Etc.

Yea that's why I asked "how" @gregsandiego was making those corrections during the lessons. I assumed, perhaps incorrectly, that he was already being given drills and stuff to do during them and has things that he could work on at home.

[gregsandiego]

3 hours ago, billchao said:

How is he making those corrections during the lesson? Those corrections should be your homework. If you make changes during the lesson that lead to imorovement, you keep doing those changes on your own.

At this point if you're getting the same lesson over and over again, you should have the tools necessary to correct that part of your swing.

During the lesson having someone provide real time feedback is almost like watching myself swing in a mirror. The fundament issue is insufficient backswing.  The instructor gives me verbal queues on when to start the downstroke.

So maybe I should just quit lessons and come back once I solve that on my own. I appreciate your feedback here. Just answering your questions is helpful,

 

3 hours ago, iacas said:

While I agree with that, there's still "homework" you can give to students.

Drills. Things they can do in a mirror at home while brushing their teeth. Etc.

@gregsandiego, I may be confusing you with someone else whose instructor I've previously talked to/with/about, but if not, I still don't like your instructor very much.

If you're getting the same lesson every time, there's a double-ended failure. On your part and his. You're the student - he's more responsible.

That's maybe the disappointment. I feel like I'm inventing my own homework. These are all things I've posted on.

1.Orange whip

2. Using videos

3.Pause drill

 

[Jack Watson]

4 hours ago, iacas said:

While I agree with that, there's still "homework" you can give to students.

Drills. Things they can do in a mirror at home while brushing their teeth. Etc.

@gregsandiego, I may be confusing you with someone else whose instructor I've previously talked to/with/about, but if not, I still don't like your instructor very much.

If you're getting the same lesson every time, there's a double-ended failure. On your part and his. You're the student - he's more responsible.

I agree with this.  If you are not progressing and it's just a repeat no learning is taking place.  The best thing I ever did was take instruction and it was focused on one aspect at a time and I worked on that one aspect.

I used to reinforce it through the day in elevators,  bathrooms,  lunchtimes,  waiting for the gas pump to fill up the tank etc. 

I might take instruction again but I want to just swing my swing for a year or two and see what happens.  IMO you can't go too long with constant change.  It's good to know your swing and accept it and try to score with it best you can as well as changing...

There are many instructors out there and here on this site.  At some point if it's not a fit you may want to make a change only you know that.

[mvmac]

On 5/20/2017 at 3:49 PM, gregsandiego said:

Does your instructor give you homework, and then check your progress against that homework?

Yes and part of the "homework" I come up with myself. It's the instructors job to identify the problem and lay out some game plan but it's the student's job to take ownership of implementing the changes. This would include an understanding of how to work the pieces (drills, slow swings, exercises, filming swings, exaggerated rehearsals) and how the pieces are connected (the "why"). 

On 5/20/2017 at 3:49 PM, gregsandiego said:

So every lesson seems to be almost the same now. I know what I do wrong and I hear the same corrections each time. Not that I know how to fix things between lessons. 

This is a big problem IMO. What are you doing when you practice by yourself?

You should be able to fix or at least manage what you're doing wrong in between lessons. 

[saevel25]

Golf improvement is constantly doing golf homework (drills, camera work, ect...) 

 

[Patch]

The short time that I consistently took lessons, my instructor gave me "on the course" work.  That being the stuff we worked on together, I would some what work on while playing. . I did do alot of work on my putting at home

[MRR]

How can one possibly improve without homework?

My instructor last year gave me plenty of homework.  Sadly, my schedule caused me to need to have my few lessons over too short a period and to not do all the homework.  It was a great disservice to both my attempts to improve and my instructor's time.

In all honesty, the actual instructions did not give me a whole lot of information that I didn't already know from all my reading and online research.  He merely said things in different ways and applied it differently.  This very vital assistance did very little for me at the time of the lesson, but the after-lesson drills and spending the next days/weeks/months considering new ways to look at the information I've had for years was a great help.

An instructor who does not give the student homework (specifically tailored to that student's issues) is nothing more than a 20 page audiobook.  And I don't think anyone here is going to suggest that one can become a great golfer by just reading the same 20 pages over and over.

[alleztom]

The lessons I've had generally follow the same pattern:

1) Diagnosis (could be set up, or swing) first 5-10 mins. 2) Experiment to see if I can feel the error (5 mins). 3) Experiment to feel the correction (often with exaggeration, drills etc). 4) Skills test to see if I can implement the changes (can I do it with a 4 iron, can I massively exaggerate the desired effect)

The homework is basically these 4 things. When I feel I've fixed it, or feel like something else is wrong, or I can't fix it, then I'll go back for another lesson. Has helped me go from a 27 to sub-14.

[Elmer]

he tells me to swing smooth & easy. Takes my money and leaves me with 1/2 a bucket to work on my swing.

 

[MRR]

11 minutes ago, Elmer said:

he tells me to swing smooth & easy. Takes my money and leaves me with 1/2 a bucket to work on my swing.

 

You're lucky.  Most would take the money first.

[gregsandiego]

22 hours ago, mvmac said:

This is a big problem IMO. What are you doing when you practice by yourself?

You should be able to fix or at least manage what you're doing wrong in between lessons. 

My technique is to do a full practice swing which for some odd reason I can do pretty well, then try and duplicate it with a ball. I use video (courtesy of the PGA store) to see  how I did.

[mvmac]

2 minutes ago, gregsandiego said:

My technique is to do a full practice swing which for some odd reason I can do pretty well, then try and duplicate it with a ball. I use video (courtesy of the PGA store) to see  how I did.

But when you're practicing are you consciously trying to do the same things you work on in your lessons?

Doing full swings isn't going to to help you change the picture.

 

[gregsandiego]

24 minutes ago, mvmac said:

But when you're practicing are you consciously trying to do the same things you work on in your lessons?

Doing full swings isn't going to to help you change the picture.

 

Yep. I have several issues but the biggest one is that damn backswing.

[byrne092]

My instructor always makes a note list on what we worked on, why it is important and how i am going to practice it. The lesson is also recorded so i can refer back to it. Also a set of drill videos are provided that associate with what we worked on. So overall, i really don't get "homework", Its funny that i came across this topic, because at my last lesson he actually thanked me for practicing what we have been working on during the lessons (5th lesson). He said he can tell if someone is actually working hard on incorporating the lessons into their game, compared to others don't put in the time and simply blow it off. I know I would be upset if i was putting in the effort to help someones game and they were not.

I would say there has been a good amount of repeat advice, but most of it is him analyzing my swing, and making suggestions, with a few new tips/suggestions/drills added in. I think its also important not to overload a person with too many new things to work on. When i start thinking too much, i typically play worse.

[gregsandiego]

7 hours ago, byrne092 said:

My instructor always makes a note list on what we worked on, why it is important and how i am going to practice it. The lesson is also recorded so i can refer back to it. Also a set of drill videos are provided that associate with what we worked on. So overall, i really don't get "homework", Its funny that i came across this topic,

I'd definitely say the note list and how to practice it qualifies as "homework".