wofat

Thanks VERY much for all the suggestions. I can't wait to get out to the range and start rebuilding my swing. I think I'll try the bit at a time approach for my grip. I started learning golf at 5 (nearly 30 years ago) and always have had that grip. It's going to be tough to learn a new way. I think my initial focus will be on keeping my legs quiet, properly shifting my weight, and a new, weaker grip.

Thats not at all what I'm saying. Obviously it isn't the first time I've heard it, and I'm serious that I'll try again. I'm just not big on starting from scratch (which it feels like when I change my grip). Playing once a week, it's tough to revamp your swing. I appreciate all the feedback and will give these suggestions a shot. Any hints on what I can focus on regarding the weight transition?

I've always had a very strong grip. Several attempts to fix this have all obviously failed... but I may try again. I saw this as well. Going to try keeping my lower body much quieter. Can you explain this a bit more? I'm not sure I understand. I always thought my weight should shift from my left to my right foot on the backswing, and then back to my left at impact. This is my lack of understanding of the proper mechanics as well. Can you give me some general guidelines as to where my clubface should be at different points in the swing? Do you think quieting the lower body will straightening this out? I've always had a pretty nice draw, but it's been a hook lately, and starts sooo far right that it creates problems for me driving out of chutes. Thanks! I'll work on all of these things. Can you elaborate on what you see in the swing path? Where is it going wrong? Oh, and I'll give swing-check a shot too.

I've finally gone to the range with a video camera (while my old man was in town for a visit) and was able to get some video of my swing. One major issue is readily apparent... just watch my left leg. I picture is worth a thousand words I suppose. However, I'd appreciate your additional thoughts. I've provided video of my Driver, 7-iron, and 4-iron. My typical problem is a huge hook or push fade. Back and fourth as I try to correct from my last swing. Sorry about the size, hopefully not too large! 7-Iron Swing 4-Iron Swing Driver Swing Thanks for your thoughts!

Well, I'm out of town but was able to give him a call today. He wasn't available but I was told that they're fitting a Fuji 370. I am assuming this to mean an E370, which after reading the specs sounds like a very good fit. HOwever, he's fitting it in a stiff rather than an X flex. Any thoughts? I'll be picking up tomorrow night when I get back in town.

Thanks for the ideas! I have the YS-7 in my 904 3 wood, but think its a little soft and may swap that one out as well. One thing I forgot to mention was that the fitter had me try out a R580 TP with a 90 gram Fuji X-stiff shaft. I hit that pretty well. Do you think that club is comparable to the R7?

Some background... I hit the driver quite long, but have been struggling greatly with inconsistency and a smother hook. I am playing with a Taylor R7 425 with the stock Fuji 65 Stiff. So, I went to my fitter last night and did a swing analysis. My avg clubhead speed was 117. He says that I'm way overpowering the stock TaylorMade "Fuji" shaft that came with my R7 . The swing monitor was showing the clubface being pretty well closed my first few swings. Obviously part of it is my swing, but what it also showed was a consistent adjustment that I was making. My "opened-closed" clubface made a sweet christmas tree pattern. I apparently keep overadjusting on every swing for what is going on, which make a HELL of a lot of sense given my recent "hook / slice / hook / slice" performances. He said he's going to research shafts and is looking for something between 70 - 80 grams, X-stiff, with a stiffer tip that fits my swing characteristics. My tempo came out at 1.10 on avg and he had me swing a club (looks like an oversized iron) with a plastic head and a weight that moves from heel to the toe based upon your swing (I have no idea what this tells you), but it consistently read 13, which he said was very smooth for that swingspeed. He's also suggesting cutting it down to 44" from the stock 45". We considered 43.5, but decided on 44. So, what shafts would you all recommend? Is this enough info?

In my experience, putting is TOTALLY a feel thing. If you like the way it feels, you'll putt well. I won a putter several years ago (a taylor Rossa or something) and since I was then poor and didn't have money to spend on clubs, I kept putting with it. It was a heavy beast of a putter that I didn't like the feel of. Since then (after bending the shaft in a number of places after losing bets on puts) I finally broke down a got my Scotty Newport 2 and have been putting lights-out for the last year I've had it. It's got nothing to do with the SC being a fantastic putter, but everything to do with my mental game and how happy and confident you are with it. I wish the rest of my game was as solid as my putting. :(

So, I went to my fitter tonight and did a swing analysis. I took one swing and he said he already knew what the issue was, but to keep swinging... so I did. So, my avg clubhead speed was 117. He says that the standard TaylorMade Fuji shaft that came with my R7 is a LOT of the problem. I kept smotherhooking the ball and the swing monitor sort of showed the same thing. Obviously part of it is my swing, but what it also showed was a consistent adjustment that I was making. My "opened-closed" clubface made a sweet christmas tree pattern. I apparently keep overadjusting on every swing for what is going on, which make a HELL of a lot of sense given my recent "huge hook / big slice / hook / slice" performances. So, my question to you all.... He's going to research shafts and is looking for something between 70 - 80 grams, X-stiff, with a stiffer tip that fits my swing characteristics. My tempo came out at 1.10 on avg and his fancy club to monitor torque or something read 13, which he said was very smooth for that swingspeed, but to be honest I didn't really follow what that was about. Does any of this mean anything to any of you? Is there anything I should be concerned about? He had me hit a R580 8.5deg with a Fuji 90 gram Xstiff and I was hitting the hell out of it, but I'm not going to buy a new driver. Your thoughts are greatly appreciated! Oh, and almost forgot, he's cutting it down to 44" from 45". We considered 43.5, but decided on 44.

Thank you all for the great input. I have lots of stuff to try out! I'm trying to get in to my clubfitter tomorrow to see about the driver trimming, and maybe then go off to the range for a bit. :) I do tend to feel like I'm very inconsistent with my swing plane with the driver, as I constantly search for the right one. Hopefully I'll get to post a swing video at some point.

I don't actually feel what's going on with my hands. I'm just *told* that I have a very aggressive wrist action through impact. This is EXACTLY what I try to explain to other people. When I try to go slow and smooth, everything seems to get disjointed and my timing gets all out of whack. Everyone, however, seems to think that I am swinging too hard and that slowing down will allow me to be more accurate. Unfortunately, I haven't found that to be the case due to the above. One thing I thought of today is that my driver ALWAYS seems like it's too long to me. I'm only 5'10" and I use the stock R7 425 which I believe is 45". I wonder if shortening it 1" to 1.5" would help some as well? Unfortunately, the 3 wood isn't much (if any) more consistent. :(

Typical misses are smother hook (mostly) and huge high fade or slice (every once in a while, though more lately). Yes, I would say I've got a lot of moving body parts. I suppose you'd need some video to make this easier. I'll see what I can do about that. I use a Taylor Made R7 425 with a stiff shaft (stock) off the tee. I have stiff steel on all of my irons. Clubhead speed (as of last year when I last had it measured) was 116.

My SC Newport 2 is my favorite club in my bag. The feel is unreal, and for me... feel is EVERYTHING in putting.

I guess I'm looking for a happy medium. :)

YAY. Finally can create a post, which is the whole reason I've sought out a knowledgable community... but I digress. I've been playing golf since I was 5. I have a very natural swing with an extremely aggressive turn and wrist move at the bottom of my swing that generates a lot of power... or so I am told. I hit a very long ball, but very often to my detriment. Much of my time is spend hunting for wayward drives. My scoring definately suffers due to my distance. In any given round I can easily lose 4 - 6 balls due to errant drives or long iron shots that get away from me. I've tried slowing my swing down which is very helpful and, when I can maintain it, keeps me more in control. However, I'm looking for key's on tempo and ways to back off on my swing without my timing getting totally screwy. Everytime I try to slow way down and give an 80% swing, either my wrists are rushing ahead or falling way behind and I spray even worst than at full power. This issue has been driving me nuts. People who play with me and see me hit the ball well can't understand why I'm a 12. But around the corner at the next hole is a disaster in waiting. I just want some control. If i get the chance, I'll take some video and post it. It seems that you folks understand a heck of a lot more about the golf swing than I do.