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That's the way there. You can't have a swing that relies on conscious hand action, that is impossible. On the downswing I think of two things: starting my hips then hitting the ball with my arms and shoulders. I don't worry about how the club face hits the ball because that was all decided at address and with the waggle. You need to be sure of your grip, stance and posture, and waggle. Have these three and you can forget about the rest of your swing. The reason for this is: -The waggle will determine your back swing and downswing. It will also determine how the club face meets the ball. -A correct grip activates the correct muscles in your arms. -A correct stance and posture activates the correct muscles that run along the inside of the legs, core, and chest.

Strength training is with high weight and low repetitions, 5 or less. Bodybuilders use higher reps, like 8-12 as it adds mass more than it builds strength. Low weight and high rep is what people who don't get any results do. You "cut up" your muscles by having low body fat + strong muscles, which you train with high weight. 99.9% of people training in any gym (including the ones with personal trainers) are doing everything wrong.

Weight lifting and bulking up doesn't hinder your flexibility, it helps it.

A teacher is only as good as the students ability to learn. A good teacher not only tells you what you need to do, but also what you are doing wrong. Also, he tells you why you should do it. The "why" is very important. A good instructor teaches you by feeling, not memorizing positions and movements... feelings that create results. As Sam Snead would always say: "Good positions don't make good movements; good movements make good positions." A good instructor thinks and teaches you to think in terms of the cause, not the result. If you pulled your head up, he doesn't tell you to "keep your head down." Something else in the swing is causing your head to move. If you swing correctly, you can't help but look at anything but the ball. During the US Open I heard the commentator say that "to create a draw you want to push your right shoulder under your chin on the follow through." This is another bad example of thinking of the results, not the cause. A good instructor teaches you the fundamentals of the swing so that you can create a correct, simple, repeating, and powerful swing. Fundamentals work for everyone.

I don't think you'll need a doctor mate. You need dynamic stretches for the hips and hamstrings for mobility. More than likely the excessive force in golf combined with lack of mobility has caused the pain. Also for reasons Avid Golfer mentioned. Just to check your posture... keep your chest up when you sit, sleep on your back not your stomach and not on your side. Search "dynamic stretches improve hip mobility" on google and check out all the links.

It's the swing. Someone who gives up on the driver has a faulty swing and is too lazy to do anything about it. Swinging with the driver is no different than swinging with the 9 iron, if you can hit one you can hit the other, or something is wrong. I never believed the confidence thing in golf... a good swing will preform better the more pressure you put on it. If you give up on the driver, you should just forget about working on your swing and learn to play good golf with your current one.

during 18 holes/on the driving range when a playing partner just chunked 2-3 shots in a row I always say: "Shoulda brought a shovel!" On a par 3 when someone tops the ball and we all see it rolling down into the lake in front of us: "You should consider bowling... you don't have to get the ball in the air and you probably wouldn't lose it!!" When someone smacks a put like 10 feet past the whole or especially if they knock it off the green: "Why don't you hit your driver that hard?" When someone leaves a put half way short: "so does your husband golf?" (you want to say this to a man not a woman ) When I'm on the range and I smack the 50 yard marker and it makes a loud *BANG!* as the ball comes flying back to me, since everyone ALWAYS looks to see who did it I turn around and say: "Only way to get em back!!" usually gets a few laughs after I hit my tee shot into the woods, we heard a big bang and a tree branches were falling down... my playing parter said: "Let's just hope you didn't kill anything on the endangered species list" these just make golf so fun :P

Ok, a lot of points to point out: Technique first, then flexibility, then strength/power is the best way to go about it I think. Work on your swing. A correct swing will create a lot of tension in your body, which is multiplied hundreds of times over into the golf ball. Ben Hogan was only 135 lbs and could drive the ball 300+ yards when he wanted because he had an amazing swing. I practice at a golf academy where I see hundreds of kids every day get coached. The first thing I see them do is grab the club behind their neck and start turning side to side. UGH! I have to turn away, I can't watch them for long. I can almost hear their bones crunching and a slipped disk or hernia waiting to happen... Do yourself a favor and keep your back straight when you stretch. Stretch your hips, shoulders, and hamstrings dynamically . Search google for how to do this. Don't do stretches where you just hold the stretch for 30 seconds (these are called static stretches). These don't help your golf game because they don't teach your muscles to be mobile in these positions, only still. Now, strength: this is where everybody goes wrong. First off, forget about bulking up with bodybuilding routines. Bodybuilders are slow and not as strong as they should be. They use higher repetitions (8+) which promote muscle size more than muscle strength. Size without strength will slow you down. At the same time, you don't want to use very light weight. You need to stress the muscle so it will get stronger. Do 5 repetitions with heavy weight. For help search google for " strength training routines ." Avoid bodybuilding routines. That's not all though. Brute strength doesn't necessarily transfer to club head speed. You need to train speed strength and power as well. You do this by performing specific power exercises, use lighter weight, and be very fast and explosive. Again, search google for " powerlifting routines ." Even with this knowledge, many people make the mistake of only training one kind of strength, not both. They train only strength, which doesn't completely transfer to club head speed, or they train only power/speed strength, and never reach their club head speed potential. You need to balance. If you're serious about it, just do one training session per week. Say on Wednesday you do a full body strength training routine, then next Wednesday you do a full body power routine. Vary your workouts so they don't get boring and your body doesn't adapt and stop getting stronger. Throughout the week you should stretch (just 5 minutes of dynamic stretching does wonders for your body), work on your swing, and watch your drives fly farther Edit: The golf ball doesn't know how big you are, only how fast the club is going through the ball. However, people who are bigger can generally drive it farther than smaller people because they have more leverage.

Thank goodness for Avid Golfer. He is very right. I never understood the forward press thing. The way I see it... considering the back swing plane and downswing plane are completely different (and should be), starting at a good impact position isn't going to guarantee a good impact position! However, a good waggle will help you with a good "wrist in front of the club" impact position. Check Hogan's 5 Lessons for more info on that. You should be delofting the club at impact. A pro takes his 5 iron and turns it into a 4 iron. An amateur takes his 5 iron and turns it into an 8 iron... You shouldn't, however, use the hands to force an impact position. There shouldn't be any conscious hand movement in the golf swing.

It's normal. When I started using the Vardon grip my pinky was hurting. When I stopped using a left hand glove my left hand hurt a lot too. (btw, consider Vardon grip + no glove for the ultimate grip )

Yes this is true. Your swing plane changes without you noticing it when you think about the glass. iacas, I wasn't so clear there. For a standard straight shot, I play the ball half an inch to an inch to the right of my left heel. I can do half swings, full swings, drivers, irons, bunkers from this position. When I want to shape the ball, I change the ball position and/or the way the grip is turned in my hands (the same way Ben Hogan does it). Other than that, I do the same swing. I mentioned "same ball position" because most people feel they need to move their ball next to their toe on the driver, and next to their right foot on the wedges, when in the end this just makes things more complicated than they need to be. It's a good point that Tiger seems to have mastered different swings for different shots, but I highly doubt the average Joe can do it.

Listen to your body. If it hurts too much don't play. Your doctors advice is ridiculous. He is telling you to treat the pain, instead of treating the cause of the pain. That's as stupid as telling someone to take AcneFree as the cure for acne. The pain may lessen, but it will return unless you fix the cause. You need to stretch. Your elbow is made for stability, not mobility, so you can't stretch that. The general rule for stretching these body parts (like the elbow, knees, and lower back) is to stretch the muscles and joints above and below them. Stretch your wrists and forearms. Stretch your triceps. Stretch your shoulders. Use foam rollers where you can. I've known people who have gone as far as switching to graphite shafts to help their tennis elbow. This is stupid. I had tennis elbow for a year until I learned how to take care of my body. I got rid of it in a week by stretching my wrists and triceps. I can show you some nice stretches, but unless someone can confirm that it's alright to link to other sites, I can't provide any links.

You're just looking to get in an argument with this post, aren't you? I mean... come on...

You only need one swing ! Don't listen to anyone who says otherwise! Ben Hogan himself says it. Same ball position, same swing for all standard shots. In 5 Lessons, Hogan says a long swing is simply an extension of a short swing, and it's true. You can hit everything: bunkers, short shots, driver, and medium clubs with the same ball position and swing. My "arsenal" of shots: -straight shot -draw -fade -low shots -high shots -low fade -high fade -low draw -high draw -sand shots And I do all of these with the same swing. When I practice, I do a fade, then a straight shot, then a draw. To change the shape of the shot, I alter the ball position and the orientation of the club in my hand. Also, I alter my waggle . Most people think the waggle is nothing but to "get loose," but you can use it to shape shots! Other than that, I swing the same as I do when I'm "lined up" to the shot normally. Life is too short to master one swing, let alone two or more! Hogan said this himself, and was known to practice up to 8 hours a day . So why does everyone else think they can play good golf swinging the club two different ways?

I voted 8 because I think Leadbetter is a bad teacher. I've played for about a year, never had a lesson and don't ever plan to (no one knows how to teach golf properly these days). The golf swing is very simple... anyone can learn a correct swing in not even years, but months.

It's kinda hard to see in the video so forgive me if I'm wrong. I notice: Wide stance is good. Most people take too narrow of a stance. Right knee sags to the right, keep it in the same position it is in at address. Weight stays on the heel of the left foot on the back swing. It should roll to the inside ball of the foot - it's okay to let your heel rise an inch or two. Right elbow raises. Keep it pointed to the ground. You are sacrificing power because of this. Left foot is squared. Should be turned a quarter of a turn (22 degrees) to the left. Otherwise, you sacrifice power and balance.

Imagine a line that goes from the ball and extends through your neck (so it's sitting on your shoulders). Let your shoulders rotate on this line throughout the back swing. How are you're irons going, and are you using the same swing (or at least, attempting to) for them?

I don't blame you for thinking you need a different swing for different clubs. But... why?

Vardon is the best grip, because you have more fingers on the club than in the interlocking grip. 10 finger grip is just terrible because there is no unity in the hands. But don't take my word for it... listen to Ben Hogan.

Let's keep it simple. Your first problem is that you are using two different swings. Swing the club the same way for all your shots... draws, fade, high shots, low shots, driver, sand shots, long irons, short irons, half swings, etc. As Ben Hogan said, a long swing is nothing more than an extension of a short swing. Hogan once told one of his students that "Life is too short to master one swing, let alone multiple swings for different shots." (not the exact quote) So start practicing this: put the ball in the same position in your stance (Hogan says put it one or two inches to the left of the left heel). The stances get wider and shorter yes... but the swing should stay the same. Now, swing the club the same way for each shot.

There are eight key fundamentals in the golf swing: 1) grip 2) stance and posture 3) the waggle 4) starting the back swing with the hands, arms, and shoulders, then letting the shoulders turn the hips 5) the plane 6) Initiating the downswing with the turning of the hips to the left 7) hitting through the swing in one cohesive movement: essentially the opposite of the back swing--hips, shoulders, arms, then hands in that order 8) supination of the left wrist just before impact You can get Ben Hogan's 5 Lessons at any bookstore. I went to Boarders book store the other day and found many copies of his book, including some nice hard backs. As a side note... something inspiring to get you to buy the book: Hogan promises that if you intelligently apply the fundamentals in the book, practicing 30 minutes every day, you will be able to break 80 in 6 months.

I love it when someone ask about the basic fundamentals instead of quick fixes that break down in the long run What I'll give you are not opinions but true fundamentals of the golf swing. I'll use Ben Hogan as an example, because who has a more fundamentally correct swing than him? Hogan started his back swing by moving the shoulders, arms, and hands back together, while delaying the hips. As his hands moved, right from the start, he would coil and cock them. So, using this information, we can assume that the correct way to take back the back swing is to cock them from the very start. I say cock and not coil, because the only reason Hogan coiled them was so his wrist was in a fully cupped position at the top of the back swing, which caused his natural fade ball flight. To check if you're cocking correctly, when your arm is parallel with the ground, your wrist should be fully cocked. The wrist cock is a smooth transition from the start to the finish, no last minute jerking action. The hips initiate the down swing in either way you mentioned. Hogan said in his book that some pros would start the hips back a fraction of a second before the hands reached the top of the back swing, and it's perfectly fine. Personally I wait till the top but may try to train this new movement. The wrist cock thing may seem complicated, so I'll use Hogan's idea of the swing plane to make it simple (if you don't have Hogan's 5 Lessons, get it because he explains it a lot better): Imagine, at address, that a plane of glass sticks out from the ball and lies over your shoulders (there is a hole for your head to stick out of). The glass extends infinitely in all directions. Now, simply use that glass to guide your back swing. Make sure of these three things: -You start your back swing by moving the hands, arms, and shoulders together at the same time, while delaying the hips. -Your shoulders rotate at the same inclination to the ball throughout the back swing (they are constantly rubbing against the glass). -Once your arms approach hip level, they should be moving parallel with the glass all the way to the top. Use your left arm as your guide, and think of the club as an extension of the left arm. -At the top of the back swing, your left arm and club should be rubbing against the glass. When you think about the glass, the wrist cock happens naturally, you take a full swing naturally, and you stay on plane naturally, time after time.

If you have a weak grip (thumb directly down the shaft), I suggest one of Hogan's secrets. Just before impact, make a conscious effort to turn your left elbow directly at your left hip. This will square the club head, each and every time, with no conscious hand action. I can almost guarantee you will notice an improvement if you do this trick.

New post for this if anyone's interested in Hogan's ball shaping abilities... In The Secret of Hogan's Swing, when Hogan is training John, John asks Hogan about working the ball. Hogan said: "Life is too short to perfect one swing, let alone different swings to draw or fade the ball. We are creating a machine, your machine, where your hands are the chuck and the club is the tool. If you want to work the ball, turn the tool in the chuck. Never alter the mechanics of your machine to alter the direction of the shot." So this is how Hogan shapes his shots: Fade: turn stance slightly to the left, turn the club in the hands so it is facing the target draw: opposite of fade, close stance slightly and close the club so it's facing the target. low shot: put the ball in the back of the stance High shot: put the ball up in the stance For all these he used the same swing. Combining them, he was able to do whatever he wanted to the ball... low fade, high draw... etc. I highly recommend this book as the story tells a lot about Ben Hogan and his golf swing. After reading it, it completely changed my understanding of 5 Lessons.

Hogan's setup was the same as it says in the book in that diagram. I say this because he says it specifically that "That is why I make --and suggest you make-- a mild modification when you are playing the clubs from the six-iron down to the wedge." His hips were always slightly turned to the left, because he pushed his right knee in (remember when he said the right knee is pointed in more than the left knee? This is why the hips turn to the left.) As for his fade... my best guess is that he faded it because one of his "secrets" to good ball striking and fixing his hook was that he coiled and cocked his wrists from the start of the back swing, which caused his wrist to be fully cupped at the top of his back swing. I'm pretty confident on this guess, as I've tried it and it works. Edit: Forgot to mention. A cupped wrist promotes a fade... the opposite of a cupped wrist (forgot the name) promotes a draw/hook. A little off topic I guess... hogans other "secrets" were: -left elbow pointed at the left hip just before contact... this squares the clubface. -right knee pointed in throughout the back swing. -his weakened Vardon grip (the elbow trick doesn't work unless you use Hogan's grip; all your shots will fly to the left if you use a "strong" grip) Anyway sorry for slightly going off topic, but we are talking about Hogan anyways. Interesting stuff to me at least...