Sean_D

I broke 100 earlier this year, and yesterday I broke 90 for the first time. I shot an 88 at Bartley Cavanaugh in Sacramento. 6 pars, 10 bogeys, and only 2 blowup 8s. My lessons (and practice routine) have been working wonders. In my least lesson, my coach got me to change from a strong grip to a neutral grip, and I have been hitting the ball straighter and further than I ever dreamed was possible.

The way I judge speed and/or distance is I look at the hole and take my practice swing. I memorize the feeling of the practice swing and try to duplicate it. When I am practicing lag putting, I putt while looking at the hole. This has greatly improved my lag putting and speed in general.

In my opinion... If you want to be the best, you must beat the best. Never pass up an opportunity to play "up". I have learned more, and made the greatest improvements in all my athletic and coaching endeavors by competing against people/teams I had no business competing against. You may not win, but competing against superior competition will force you to get better. And if you win.... Then you have truly won something, and not just beat up on a bunch of scrubs.

I had the exact swing flaw. To correct it, my coach gave me a "swim noodle drill". Have a partner hold a swim noodle behind you parallel to the ground about waist high. The end of the noodle should be right about where your hands are at address. The idea is to make contact with the noodle on the back swing and avoid the noodle on the down swing. This will cause a "loop" at the top of your swing and get your club on the proper swing path. The noodle should be placed far enough behind you that your club makes contact with the noodle about 6-8" above the club-head. In the event you don't have a partner to hold a noodle while you swing (I know I don't), Get an inexpensive microphone boom stand (about $15 at your local music store) and insert the boom into the center of the noodle. This drill helped me significantly with my swing path and all but eliminated my slice.

I have been using the D2 Feel, I had a $10 off coupon and got 30 balls for $8. The Feel is a good 2-piece ball which feels good off the putter and has good distance. The spin is not great, but it works for my game and I don't mind if I lose 6 a round.

I have been playing the D2 Feels this year. I chose them because they're cheap and I lose a lot of golf balls. I really like the way they feel off the putter. I have not really noticed any determent on the greens, but then again, I don't have experience with any other balls. When I exhaust the remaining 3 boxes (I get $10 off coupons from Dick's all the time and generally spend >$10 for 30 golf balls), I am planning on trying the Srixon Z Stars, as I feel I am getting good enough (and I am losing starting to not lose golf balls) to experience the benefits of a more expensive 3-piece ball. All-in-all, I have been very happy with the D2 Feel ball and would recommend it.

I am a high handi-capper (26.2 and dropping) who was asking the same types of questions you are. I just started golf seriously in February this year. I bought a six-pack of lessons from a highly regarded instructor in my area, and do not regret the decision one bit. I was shooting between 125 and 140 in February and I shot a 95 last week. I typically shoot between 47-50 in my 9-hole league now and I have been getting better each week. I am hoping to break 90 by the end of the season. I still lust after the launch monitor and Game Golf, but I am 100% positive I would still be shooting in the 120s if I had purchased either of those things instead of the lessons. Each will provide data on your game, but a good instructor will help you understand why a shot ended as it did, and how to correct it.

Thank You.

I shot 95 for the first time last week at Bartley Cavanaugh in Sacramento.

My lessons have focused on getting rid of my slice. I had an outside in swing path and an open club face. My instructor gave me drills to correct my swing path, rotating my hands, tempo, and weight transfer. My new shot shape is a draw. My new problem is a straight pull with my driver. I’ll have my coach address that in the next lesson.

Guess who has two thumbs and shot 95 today... This guy!!! I shot 95 at Bartley Cavanaugh in Sacramento, and it was the first time I had played the course. I had 4 GIR, hit 4 fairways, and had 33 putts. Really stoked at how I’ve been playing lately. Also very happy with my lessons.

I shot 108 yesterday, 54 on each nine holes. On the back nine, I shot 28 on the first six holes and 26 on the last three. I wasn't keeping track as I played, so I had no idea what my score was as I started the last three holes. I hit a couple OB and had a difficult time getting out of a greenside bunker on the last three. A couple of different decisions and I could have broken 100... Maybe I'll learn, probably not.

Two weeks ago I reported shooting 64 for 9-holes. Yesterday, we played a stroke format in league and I shot a 48 on the same nine holes. I hit 2 fairways, and had 14 putts. I was hitting my 60* extremely well and left my five of my pitches and chips within 1' of the hole. I managed to play the entire 9-holes with the same ball (also a fist for this course). My lessons have been showing great results and I am very excited to continue learning and getting better.

Last week I shot 64 on 9-holes in a warm-up round for a league in which I am filling in for a fried who recently had surgery and can't play. I was in trouble from each tee shot and hit only two fairways. My approach shot from each of those two fairways ended up in the trees to the right and I blew up each hole. Today I return for the start of the league. I have been taking lessons and have started making more consistent contact with a more predictable ball flight (which is finally not to the right!!!!). I am determined to swing easy and focus more on keeping the ball in front of me instead of in trouble. My coach has given me a good tactic to accomplish this: pick the shot (i.e. swing easy), get my swing thought (for me that means swing my driver toward right-center or 2 O'clock and hand rotation for irons). Once I have my mind made up and I know what I want to do, clear my mind, step up to the ball and hit it. I am to not ruin my shots by fixating on what I am trying to do. Hopefully it works better that my previous approach. I'll let you know tomorrow.

This week, I took my first lesson. It was a phenomenal experience. I chose this specific instructor because he is one of the top 100 club fitters in the country. He identified my largest flaw immediately (outside-in swing path) and my lack of a proper follow through and had me performing a drill to rectify those flaws. The drill: He held a swimming noodle behind me while I swung and asked me to hit the noodle in my back-swing and miss it on my down-swing and wanted me to focus on my body position on my finish. He actually got me hitting a few draws instead of my signature slice. During my session, I was hitting my 8-iron and pelting the 150-yard marker. That was a 5-iron shot for me before the lesson. I have recreated the drill in my garage and practice it daily... Can't wait for my next round on Friday! I had a fear that getting fitted and having my irons bent could have been a mistake, and it would have as the results were a 4* lie adjustment. I even asked my instructor about getting fitted and he told me to learn how to hit first.

Recently I started a 6-day a week workout program. Days 1&4 are cardio, days 2&5 are resistance training, and days 3&6 are yoga. My cardio workout is on an elliptical machine in the garage. The resistance training is done to YouTube workouts using resistance tubes with resistances of 20 lbs. - 150 lbs., and yoga is also YouTube videos tailored specifically for golf. Today my workout is 30 minutes of cardio in the morning and putting training after work. For putting, I create a 3-foot circle around a hole with 8 tees. I putt until I make 16 consecutive putts. I then move the tees back a foot and putt until I make 8 consecutive. I then lag putt into the 4-foot circle from 30, 40, and 50 feet. After that I putt around the practice green twice, Par 2 and pull back each putt 3 feet.

I was hitting of the trailing edge of the club head a lot, and some marks on the heel and some on the toe. He recognized me as a former baseball player with a baseball swing. I would also bottom the club out early and strike the board a few inches before the ball. I basically left there knowing I would need to change my swing before I could get any kind of decent data on the clubs. I have made great strides on my swing, and have gotten rid of the baseball tendencies.

I will get both, but as a matter of prioritizing, I don’t necessarily want to get fit if my swing will change dramatically, and then need to be refit. Likewise, I don’t want to start lessons if my clubs are going to make learning a proper swing and getting results problematic. It looks like the consensus is to take the lesson, and that was the direction I was leaning... but I have had this nagging in the back of head about not having clubs fitted. So much to do...

The one lesson is mostly research. I intend to take a series of lessons, but I will “audition” several instructors by taking individual lessons initially. As an individual who is a highly trained coach (soccer not golf) I have very specific ideas about sports training and how to teach technique and tactic. I need to find an instructor who implements a methodology in line with my learning style and methodology. I am not limited to $50, though I understand I gave that impression. I recently bought irons and will have them modified to match my specs. I am really stumped on which should come first. When I bought the irons, I hit some balls off a lie board, and the marks were very inconsistent and difficult to interpret. My swing has changed dramatically since then, and I can see the results on the range and the course. But that experience has me wondering.

Hi All, I am a 20+ handicap golfer who just (early February) started enjoying golf again. I purchased a new set of Cobra Baffler Irons, a Callaway XR16 driver and FW, and a set of Callaway X-hot Hybrids. I'm going to have a little extra cash coming up and I want to know what the collective feels is the best way to advance my game. I can get a 1-hour lesson for $50 or an Iron fitting for $50. My research has led me to believe lessons/fitting are kind of a chicken and egg scenario. My swing characteristics will influence the optimal club parameters, yet having ill fitting clubs will affect my swing. So which would you do first? Take the lesson or get the fitting?

This is really the most honest and truest answer. When I play with my buddy today, I am taking all 16 clubs. Today will be the first time I have the opportunity to hit the hybrids on the course in genuine situations. When I went to the range last week, I was carrying the 5i and 5H similar distance. I have since made another stride in my swing, and I think I’ll be hitting the ball further with all my clubs. I feel much more powerful, faster, and in control with my latest swing adjustment. So I certainly want the full aresenal at my disposal as I continue to figure things out.

I've been looking at portable launch monitors. It is certainly on the list of things I want to buy. Unfortunately my list currently exceeds my wallet. I am playing 18 holes tomorrow so hopefully I figure something out.

Thanks for the wedge matrix idea. I am learning I need to figure out my distances for each club. Something which will take some time. My swing is evolving almost daily as I learn to apply different techniques and see the results. I am anxiously awaiting daylight savings so I will have more time to hit live balls on a course as opposed to hitting foam analogues into a shipping blanket. Also, warmer weather will be nice so I don't have to wear sweatshirts all the time. I guess figuring out what works, is more than half the battle. No substitute for experience, and practice.

My hybrids are the Callaway X hots from 2013 I believe. I am still figuring out the different lofts of wedges. It get confusing really quickly as my experience with clubs was 9i, PW, SW and that's it. Seeing wedges identified by their loft and "bounce" I believe is study I have yet to do. My initial thought was to just drop the 60*, as I rarely use it. However, I am intent on learning to play "correctly" and to use the correct tools for the correct shots. So I want to learn what to expect from a high loft wedge, and how to hit one.

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll have to figure out how to video myself taking a swing.