My Swing (Ty_Webb)

[Ty_Webb]

I've been Playing Golf for: 27 years
My current handicap index or average score is: +0.4
My typical ball flight is: straight to a fade
The shot I hate or the "miss" I'm trying to reduce/eliminate is: block

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Hi all,

Going to start this with my putting. First is a SAM puttlab report from about a year ago that I posted in one of the Swing Thoughts topics:

I was inspired by that thread to work on not accelerating into impact. It's a work in progress, but here is an updated SAM puttlab full report from yesterday:

As you can probably tell, my path is quite a bit left to right. When I'm playing a fair bit, I'm pretty good at getting the face about a degree open, which with the 4 degree left path results in a pretty consistent straight starting point (at least in practice). That said I would quite like to figure out how to straighten up my path a little bit. 

On my long game, my issue right now is trying to get my arms to move faster. They get stuck behind my pivot and I can get stuck and it causes a big block. I have had some pretty bad chipping woes at times, although right now I have a thought which is really helping. That thought is to get my left arm to move off my chest in the downswing and through impact. So basically the same thing as I want to do in my full swing. I suspect that there may be something similar going on in my putting as well, where my left arm gets a little bit across my chest and then doesn't come back off it, so as my body turns, it pulls the club to the left. 

I will post some videos when I have the chance to film them.

[iacas]

5 hours ago, Ty_Webb said:

As you can probably tell, my path is quite a bit left to right. When I'm playing a fair bit, I'm pretty good at getting the face about a degree open, which with the 4 degree left path results in a pretty consistent straight starting point (at least in practice). That said I would quite like to figure out how to straighten up my path a little bit. 

Could be as simple as a setup issue - where are your shoulders aligned, what are your forearms like (from DTL), etc.

Or it could be a realization that you can't really putt straight back, straight through and to allow a little bit of an arc on the way back.

I thought you had said you were having trouble hitting putts far enough with what felt like a big enough stroke? Got a video? Same angles as the other filming: FO is perpendicular, DL on the toe line, both hands height.

[Ty_Webb]

Just now, iacas said:

Could be as simple as a setup issue - where are your shoulders aligned, what are your forearms like (from DTL), etc.

Or it could be a realization that you can't really putt straight back, straight through and to allow a little bit of an arc on the way back.

I use a claw grip because I bought Dave Pelz's book and tried to putt straight back straight through and messed up my stroked completely. So much arm manipulation to make that happen, so I let my arms rotate now (Stan Utley's book gave me the blueprint for that a while ago - I need to reread it). I'm certainly trying to arc on the way back, though I see that isn't quite how it's working out.

I wonder what the claw grip is going to do to my apparent alignments across the forearms. I'll try to get the video this evening (have to talk my wife into filming it for me - may be easier said than done). 

Thank you for the reply!

[iacas]

If your right elbow is out away from you, that could be a big part of the problem.

[Ty_Webb]

Okay here we go with video. the slow motion ones are pretty dark. I made them as bright as I could, but not a lot more I can do.

10 foot putt at normal speed: 

10 foot putt slow motion:

25 foot putt normal speed:

25 foot putt slow motion:

Down the line shot - I could only do this from 3 feet in the space, but I hit it like a 10 foot putt

 

[iacas]

Your head moves around a bit, and I don't love the front wrist extension.

Otherwise, I'd keep working with the instructor and the SAM. Fixing the path is important, too.

[Ty_Webb]

9 minutes ago, iacas said:

Your head moves around a bit, and I don't love the front wrist extension.

Otherwise, I'd keep working with the instructor and the SAM. Fixing the path is important, too.

No instructor. I’m on my own with the putting. What do you mean by front wrist extension?

[billchao]

17 minutes ago, Ty_Webb said:

No instructor. I’m on my own with the putting. What do you mean by front wrist extension?

I'm not going to comment on your technique, but these are the wrist motions:

Front wrist extension would be the way you have your left wrist cupped through the entire stroke.

[iacas]

3 minutes ago, billchao said:

Front wrist extension would be the way you have your left wrist cupped through the entire stroke.

More about how it extends more through the hit and follow through.

[billchao]

3 minutes ago, iacas said:

More about how it extends more through the hit and follow through.

Didn't spot that. Just another of the many reasons I'm not an instructor.

[Ty_Webb]

12 hours ago, iacas said:

More about how it extends more through the hit and follow through.

Do you think that fixing that would also help with the path? I imagine that increasing the bend in my left wrist would narrow the radius, which would bring the club up and in faster, pulling the path to the left. If I work on keeping my left wrist stable, it feels like (from my 30 seconds of practice strokes without a club) that would move my path out to the right a little bit. Does that sound right?

Thank you!

12 hours ago, billchao said:

I'm not going to comment on your technique, but these are the wrist motions:

Front wrist extension would be the way you have your left wrist cupped through the entire stroke.

Awesome thank you!

[iacas]

4 hours ago, Ty_Webb said:

Do you think that fixing that would also help with the path?

No. The backswing path isn't good, either. It may help but there are other things for the path.

[Ty_Webb]

1 hour ago, iacas said:

No. The backswing path isn't good, either. It may help but there are other things for the path.

Could you expand on that? Anything that would be good for the path? I have a Mi putting template, which when I use that with the SAM, my scores go up. I know that I go out on the way back and then cut across it. Even if I feel like I'm bringing it back to my right toe and then pushing way out, I can't get the numbers to be in to out. There must be something that makes it happen, but I have no idea what that is.

[iacas]

6 hours ago, Ty_Webb said:

Could you expand on that? Anything that would be good for the path? I have a Mi putting template, which when I use that with the SAM, my scores go up. I know that I go out on the way back and then cut across it. Even if I feel like I'm bringing it back to my right toe and then pushing way out, I can't get the numbers to be in to out. There must be something that makes it happen, but I have no idea what that is.

There's not much to expand upon.

The path has to be better. The wrist extension mostly happens at or after impact. The path is set into motion well before then.

[Ty_Webb]

19 minutes ago, iacas said:

There's not much to expand upon.

The path has to be better. The wrist extension mostly happens at or after impact. The path is set into motion well before then.

Okay - do you have any thoughts on how best to fix the path? Is it just a matter of practicing with something that will force my path to be correct or is it likely a setup issue or something else?