ITgolfHack

I think I may have identified my biggest swing flaw, now how do I fix it? I was looking at some video from the end of last year and noticed that I was pulling the club (vertically) up towards my chest just before impact. It didn't look like it was coming from my shoulders, but was more like my elbows were pushing out away from my body at the last instant before hitting the ball. I have no doubt this has developed because I tend to hit the ball fat. Suggestions, tips?

Cool man, glad to hear it turned out well, it seems tough to find good customer service anywhere anymore, but it does still exist in some places. I haven't read through this entire thing yet, so if someone else mentioned this I apologize. I play with a mixed group all the time and it simply takes longer when you have to walk/drive up to another set of tee's, it's easily 7 to 15 minutes per round. The fact that you guys still finished one hole behind the group in front of you shows that you were making up time the entire way, assuming they were all hitting from the same tee of course. I really don't understand what the rush is all the time. Short of going through the group ahead, you are going to finish your round x number of minutes after the group ahead walks off the 18th green. So if they finish right at 1:00, you are going to finish at 1:00+x. Nothing that you do between the time you tee off to the moment you reach that final green is going to change that. Hitting into them is not going to make them play faster, if anything it's going to piss them off and wreck their concentration and they might start playing worse and take even longer.

I agree that hitting it back at them is the absolute worst idea and might even be considered assault, but even hitting that second shot while people are on the green on a par 4 or short par 5 just seems like bad form to me, no matter how far short it should have fallen.

Well, my drives total distance are about 214 with a good swing, lucky for me I have a 12"..........

That's pretty cool.

My buddy is like that, it drives me nuts when we play. He always over-swings, loses 2 to 3 balls per 9, and is obsessed with hitting the long ball off the tee. I asked him once, what good is a birdie or eagle if it's smashed between 2 snowmen, I don't think he got the point.

After doing a bunch of checking and thinking and taking the advice offered here into consideration, I believe a decent upgrade is probably worth the $200 to $300 that I'm likely to spend. I just don't think my current game is worth a $700+ investment. I'll play with the new used clubs for the next few years and dial in my swing and when I get to around a 15 handicap, then I'll consider a serious investment.

Hmmm, I didn't really think about used. I was considering new because there is a club maker in town that will do the clubs and the fitting for $750+ depending on what options I choose. I don't know how in depth the fitting is, but he said it generally takes about 3 to 4 hours. I'll have to find out what he would charge to fit a used set.

I've managed to break 90 once on a fairly easy course. I can say with almost absolute certainty that the fact that my buddy was keeping score and wouldn't tell me what I shot on the front is the reason I didn't blow it. All he said was "I don't want to ruin it, keep it up". If he had told me I had shot a 42 on the front, there is no way in hell I could have kept my concentration on those final holes. Hang in there man, if you are that close, you WILL get it. Just ignore the score card next time .

Ok, I keep going back and forth on this, and I just can't decide. Money isn't really the issue, I can afford new clubs and a fitting, I just don't want to make that kind of investment now and then a year or two later feel like I should have bought something else or need to get them refitted. I’m definitely not the kind of person that goes out every other week and thinks that a new club is going to magically turn me into a world beater, I know that practice and good instruction are the primary ways to improve. I just took up the game again 2 years ago after a 15 year layoff and I’ve had a couple sets of lessons from different instructors. I play on one league a week and play with friends and outings 2 to 3 more times per week. I practice 3 to 6 hours per weekend. I'm about a 29 handicap right now, but I expect that to drop quite a bit this year as I've finally got a solid mental image of what I'm trying to do in a proper golf swing. For some reason over the winter a lot of what those pros were trying to teach me just clicked and I'm starting to be able to execute a much better swing. My second shot, which used to the bane of my game, is becoming a lot more consistent and I haven’t shot a single 8 in my first 5 rounds this year. I don't hit the ball very far, 214 total distance with a good swing of my driver, so my swing speed is probably below average. I'm currently using my dad’s old set of Wilson GE 4000's that he bought new in 1984 with steel shafts, I don't know what their stiffness is. My dad and I are nearly identical in height and his 1984 weight, 5' 9" 155 pounds. He doesn’t think he had them fitted when he bought them. I did buy a new TM driver, 3 wood, 3 and 4 hybrid since that seems to have been the area of greatest technical advancement over what came with the 1984 set, but I didn't know anything about shaft flex, lie, etc.... at the time so I probably didn't get what I should have. The way I've been hitting them so far this year, assuming my putting stays the same and my chipping improves a little, I don't see any reason I couldn't start consistently getting to the mid 80’s with the set I currently have over the next couple years, but if I can expect a decent amount of improvement in consistency and a little distance right away with new irons and a fitting, I might as well pull the trigger this year. I just don’t know, it’s a lot of money to spend with no guarantee of the results. I’m so short off the tee that it needs to be a very short par 4 before I even find myself reaching for my 5 to 7 iron, I mostly use my 3 wood and hybrids and only use the longer and mid irons if that second shot is badly struck. So far this year, I’ve been able to reach most par 5’s in 3 shots with driver > 3 wood > 6 or higher iron and most par 4’s with driver > 3 wood or hybrid > and usually a chip or short pitch. Maybe I should just get the TM stuff fitted this year. I appreciate any advice.

Good read man, and congrats. It gives those of us struggling to get under 100/90/80 a good look at what it takes.

I'm afraid that what you ask for may not exist in sufficient quantities in our universe .

Congrats man, I've only got one sub 90 round myself and it was on a very easy course, but it still felt great. Sounds like you noticed the same thing I did after that round, you really didn't have to play a LOT better than your regular game, you just had to be more consistent at what you can already do. What I'm probably not saying very well is that I didn't suddenly add 10 to 20 yards to each of my clubs, or suddenly start dropping 20' putts, I just kept my ball in play and kept the 3 putts to a minimum. Good luck, here's to a great start to what will hopefully be a great season!

Man, I've been there. I shot a 43 on league one night last year, my best 9 hole round ever and followed it up with a 56 and a 58 which cost me first in my division. Then I played like ass in the league tournament and the outing. I'm telling you, I was actually relieved when it was time to put the clubs away for the winter. Slumps happen in all sports to all athletes of all skill levels. What I've found personally is that most of the time slumps are the result of your mind figuring something out that it's trying to teach your body how to do; your ingrained muscle memory is fighting it through, hence the slump. Almost without exception in tennis, martial arts, pool, and golf every time I've come out of a slump I've been able to play and compete at a higher level. Sometimes it’s just been a very small improvement, but sometimes it's like night and day and I take a big leap over what I was able to do before. People say you have to play through a slump, I'd disagree, you have to practice your way out of a slump. As others have suggested, try to get in some quality practice time, even if it means skipping a few tee times. If you do go out and play, don't keep score and just let yourself enjoy the sport you obviously love. Good luck.

You say you have been playing consitantly, but how much do you practice? I've found that in every sport I've ever seriously paticipated in; everyone has a certain level of natural or learned ability that can get them to a certain point, but to advance much past that point you have to incorporate dedicated practice and effort to improve. 2 years ago I picked the game back up after about 15 years off, so I basically started over completely. I played a lot and practiced and I managed to break 100 that first year a couple of times on the easier courses, but never got near 99 on some of the longer and harder courses. Last year I was consistently breaking 100 on the easy courses and even shot an 88, but never managed to get near that glorious mark again. I also managed to break 100 a few times on some of the tougher courses, but my chipping and putting had to be really on those days since most of the holes were taking 3 to 4 shots just to reach the dance floor. I tried to dedicate at least 3 to 6 hours every weekend to ball striking, chipping and putting. This year I've only played the tougher courses so far and only managed to get in a couple practice sessions due to the weather, but I'm optimistic by what I've been able to do. I shot a 104 at the toughest course I regularly play (a personal best at that course) and I've played a couple 9 hole rounds where I've shot in the mid 40's. My goals by the end of this season are to be regularly breaking 100 and even getting into the mid to low 90's occasionally on the tougher courses and breaking 90 a few times on the easier courses. I'm single and willing to practice like a fiend, so I think I can make this happen.

You and your friends are also class acts for accepting his apology and not making a big thing about it. Sadly, I've seen it go the other way a couple of times.

I started noticing this at the end of last year. My best drives were when I felt like I was pushing hard with my legs and swinging easy with my arms. Now when I go to the range I try and focus on achieving that feeling of disconnect between my upper and lower body. At best right now I can only get it right about 20% of the time, but that's why we practice, right?

When I'm playing league, I like to follow the rules and expect others to do so as well or at least as close as we can without impeding play. When I'm playing with friends that don't take it as seriously, yea, I'll hit a mulligan to see what I could have done with a second chance, but I'll usually play my first ball, assuming I can find it of course.

I think part of my problem is my size, I'm 5' 9" about 155 pounds, there's not a lot to throw behind the ball. I feel like I'm getting a good weight transfer, but what we feel isn't always what we do, maybe I'm shifting after I hit the ball or something. My iron distances probably aren't a good indicator, they are 1984 vintage Wilson GE's and they have taken a pounding over the years on driving mats, I plan to get them looked at this weekend. I might get them fitted or I might invest in a new set, but I'd like to give my swing time to stablize before taking the plunge on new clubs. I can hit my 4 TM hybrid about 150 to 160 and my 3 TM hybrid about 170. I'm not sure on my TM 3 wood, but it seems to be about the same as my driver with a bit less roll.

For the first time ever, after playing 2 days in a row, my forearms were actually aching. I think that was because I've finally figured out how to create lag in my swing. I noticed that I was finally taking divots that were well past where the ball was sitting, even when using a tee on par 3's. My ball flight was much better and more consistent. I might even be able to start trusting my 3 wood this year! Distance is still a problem though. My driver is topping out around 214 yards, but my second shots are a completely different story from last year. I probably hit more GIR in those first 2 rounds than I did my last 6 rounds combined at the end of last year. In case you havn't guessed, the end of last season was looking pretty grim, I was actually relieved when it was time to put the clubs away for the winter. Here's hoping for a great season!!! Now if I could just get that chipping thing figured out......

I am definitely a high handicapper because of my ball striking. My friends call me Mr. automatic when it comes to hitting the fairway with the driver, but I can only knock it about 215. About 50% of the time my second shot is a train wreck that requires another iron that isn't a wedge. The other 50% tend to land at least somewhere near the green and occasionally even on it. I do ok putting, rarely 3 putt, but just as rarely 1 putt. My chipping is not so good either. I do know a guy that is the perfect example of your exception case though. He bombs it off the tee, usually hits the green or damn near it with his second shot, pitches it close a lot of the time, and is thrilled when he only 2 putts. I agree though, he's the exception to the rule.

I think I just started hitting a few shots where I actually had great contact. To me it feels like a practice swing, no resistance at all, not from the ball or the divot afterwards. The club just comes down and through effortlessly.

Cool thread, a lot of good info here. I'm 5' 9" about 155 pounds, I'd be thrilled with 250 carry distance! As it is, even with roll I'm averaging about 215. I play with a friend who is obsessed with hitting the long ball, he's a tall lanky fellow. He swings 100% every time he swings a club as long as he's not pitching/chipping. When he gets ahold of it he can smack it well over 250, but he also loses balls on the course by the dozen. He putts and chips a lot better than I do, if he would just back off on his swing by 20%, he would probably be shooting in the mid to low 80's.

I just discovered this concept of trying to pinch the ball and it has helped my iron game tremendously, even though I know that pinching the ball is a physical impossibility. I enjoy arguing about this because it helps my reasoning skills. I can also see where they are making their mistaken assumption and if I can just get them to see it; they will likely become better golfers in the long run because they will understand what is really happening.

I'm a complete novice at this game myself, but what this article is talking about is that because the club face is at an angle, you can hit better and more consistent shots by delofting the club and allowing the club to strike the ground after impact or at impact, i.e. keeping the hands in front of the club head. In order to strike down on the ball, the club face MUST strike the ball above the equator of the ball, this is the ONLY way that a downward force can be imparted to the golf ball. 1.Draw a picture of a sideways view of a golf ball sitting on the ground. 2.Now draw the angled club face striking the ball above the equator 3.Now draw the shaft of the club and explain to me how you would ever get yourself in a position where the club shaft could obtain that angle to the ground.