nick4501

Thanks again BP. After doing what you suggested, I immediately knew that my spine angle was wrong. Anyway, I've now had 3 lessons and I feel that things are improving. My stance now looks much better (feet closer together, back straighter, etc), and I've been concentrating on "opening up my arc" and trying to stay on plane by having a steeper shoulder turn. FRONT : DOWN THE LINE : I'm still feeling a bit of pain next to my left shoulder blade, but my pro says that it's because I'm still doing the "reverse C" thing - instead of getting my weight forward on impact, I apparently look like I'm trying to lean back to get under the ball. He then asked me to try to deliberately aim left and I felt that I was hitting much more consistently (and started to feel the whole body rotation thing). He said that this should start to get me out of the reverse C problem. One thing that still worries me after seeing these videos is how much my head moves - but only at the very top of the backswing! What is causing me to do this?! It looks ridiculous! Any thoughts? Thanks, Nick

RIGHT! Finally got two more videos of my swing with the first lesson's instructions in it (pretty much just changes to posture). Apologies for the front on video - I know it's not ideal, but this is the best viewing angle my friend could get. Either way, it should still show up all my problems! FRONT: DOWN THE LINE: As always - any advice will be massively appreciated.

Went to the driving range again tonight and decided that it's official - my swing is now causing me major pain behind my left shoulder blade. I could feel it after hitting just 5 balls and it just got worse and worse. I did, however, get my friend to take two more videos of my swing (in front and down the line), which I will post on Monday. Thanks again for the great post bunkerputt. I now know what is meant by the "reverse C", but agree with you - I don't really feel like this is a problem that I have...at least on my follow-through, so I don't know why the pro talked about it. However, looking at the right picture of Charlie, it made me realise that I could actually be doing the whole reverse C thing on the BACKSWING (and therefore stretching my shoulder muscle). The right side of Charlie's back looks pretty much straight...pretty sure that's not what mine looks like! When you say that my shoulder turn is too flat, do you mean that my whole swing plane is too flat? How can I correct this?

Ernest Jones - Thanks for the reply. I have read through those posts in the past, but will do so again and see if I can pin-point what I'm missing. bunkerputt - Again, thanks for the advice. The pain I get isn't like a sharp stabbing pain, but rather a dull ache which I only seem to get after the follow through. It really does feel like I'm arching my back and my left shoulder blade is digging in. The snap shot that you have taken above worries me. My weight looks like it's pretty much static, and if anything, I'm leaning onto my front foot before I even start the down swing! If this is the case, would it not result in the "reverse C" shape by forcing a follow through after my weight and hips are already as far forward as they can go (hope that made sense!)? I'll be having another lesson next week, so I'll further enquire as to his thoughts on the body rotation. In the mean time, I'll try to get a video of my swing after the pro's instructions...

bunkerputt - those are EXACTLY the problems I'm having...every one of them! I'm very impressed that you can see this in my swing. I had the lesson last night. He started by changing my posture - I apparently had too much weight in my heels, with my knees bent too much and stood too far away from the ball, resulting in the arms locked together at the elbows that many of you have commented on. He then said that I'm generating very little power because my body is not rotating at all, and that all of the club speed is being generated solely by my arms. Finally, he said that the pain I've been getting (particularly just below my left shoulder blade) is because I'm ending my swing with a "reverse C shape". He said that this is a consequence of not transferring my weight correctly. I asked about my head movement (that is clearly apparent - especially in the latest "My Swing" video), but he didn't see that as a problem (or maybe I wasn't doing it as much last night!). All in all, this doesn't sound very good! After the lesson I was really trying to work on both the body twist and not ending my swing with the "reverse C", but couldn't quite see what I was doing wrong, and the pain in my back and left shoulder continued. Any thoughts on any of this, guys?

Thanks for tidying it all up iacas. Sorry for the confusion! I will post the thoughts of the pro after today's lesson.

I guess that's a fair point, but to be fair, my first "My Swing" thread was posted almost 2 years ago, so it's not like I'm spamming the forum... and since you can't see the ball flight in any of my previous threads, I don't see how not actually hitting a ball in this one is a problem. That said, I have just read the "my swing" foums rules and realised that posting practice swings is a no-no - Sorry! I have taken on board the tips from the previous posts (much appreciated, guys!), and hoped that some of them are apparent in this video - maybe not though?! Either way, I had hoped to spark more ideas as to the cause of my problems...

Hi guys. Apologies for creating ANOTHER "My Swing" post, but I feel that my swing has changed enough since my last post to justify another. I'm still suffering from a huge lack of distance (I used to be able to hit a 5 iron ~180 yards and now struggle to get 130 yards!) and I'm really struggling to find any sort of consistency. I have a lesson booked for tomorrow (my first for about 10 years!), so I'm interested to see if you guys suggest the same as the pro tomorrow... Thanks in advance!

Thanks for the advice playbridgestone, but I'm not sure if that is the cause of my lack of distance. It's a serious problem now. I played yesterday and lost a shot on EVERY hole simply because it took me 2 shots to catch up to everyone else's first! I know I've got a very flat swing plane and I do intend to address this issue as soon as I've corrected the distance, but I'm not convinced that they are related because I have ALWAYS had a flat swing plane and never had the distance problem. I agree that I seem to have a very crunched up arc, but do you think this could be the reason I'm casting the club and therefore releasing all club head speed before I hit the ball?

Hi guys. Thanks again for all the advice, but I'm now getting confused by conflicting opinions. I've tried concentrating on keeping my head more stable, but the distance problem remains. I understand what everyone is saying about the rotation of the body being out of time with my downswing, resulting in me casting the club, but having watched my videos in slow motion, I do think that my hips are rotating. Here is a down the line video - hopefully it'll shed more light on the problem!

Hi guys. I've been working on the above advice, but still can't beat the lack of distance problem. I've uploaded an updated version of my swing: Any improvement? I'm obviously still not generating enough club head speed, but can't pin-point the cause...

Excellent advice guys! I will be trying to: Keep my weight on the inside of my back foot; Not lock my arms together at the elbows at tightly as it looks in that video, and take the punkerputt and rustyredcab's posture advice; Try to keep my head steady; Keeping my tempo the same; and work on some anti-casting drills. Thanks again guys. I will post another video if/when I have cracked this and I'm back to my usual distances. Nick

Hi guys. I've been playing a lot of golf this year, in an attempt to get my handicap stable. I generally shoot around 100, but recently went through a spell where everything just seemed to click. I was regularly shooting under 90 and only losing shots because of my putting. I THOUGHT that this increase in performance was because I'd slowed my swing down and therefore gained more consistency, so I actively concentrated on keeping my swing speed slower...and this is where my trouble started. I started to notice that I was spinning the ball a LOT (leaving a large white ball scuff down the middle of my club). Great, I thought, until I noticed that this was resulting in a loss of distance - a BIG loss. I was previously hitting a 7 iron about 140-150 yards on a clean hit, but it's fallen and fallen (and fallen!), and I'm now struggling to reach 100 yards! I'm certain that this must be due to a timing issue (more than likely caused by me consciously slowing my swing down), but I can't work out how to resolve it! I've now had this problem for about a month, and it isn't getting any better... Please can you check out my swing and point out any obvious flaws? Just for reference, this video is with a pitching wedge (that I used to hit about 110 yards), and the clean hit that you see in the video only went about 70 yards... Thanks in advance! Nick

Great advice! Thanks mate. I will give it a try and get back to you if it's still a problem.

I think this was me bending subconciously, in a desperate attempt to alter the direction of the ball! Any other thoughts? Still no-one questioning that right elbow position...!

Well the depressing thing is that I'm not really a beginner...I've been playing on and off since I was about 12, but the slice has only crept into my game since I started heavily playing on my local pitch and putt course (ie, constant use of short irons). Here is a link to another video that a friend took about a year ago (sorry about the noise - it was extremely windy. I suggest just muting the video before watching!). Sadly, it's not a side angle, but I think you'll be able to see why I'm concerned about my right elbow position during the backswing. Am I the only one that think I look awkwardly cramped?! Note that my swing may have changed since this video was taken (as I had a couple of lessons about 6 months ago to straighten my back a bit) and I wasn't actually slicing the ball at this point, but I still think that I have a terrible swing path...

Thanks for all your replies guys. It's nice to know that my swing is not a complete disaster! What exactly is "shorting the club"? One other pretty important fact is that about 80% of the time that I slice, I can see from the ball imprint on my club head that I have skimmed the shaft. Annoyingly, this isn't always the reason for the slice, but they do seem to go hand-in-hand! How can I stop doing this? What is causing it?! Doing a half swing almost guarentees a slice. What are your thoughts on my right elbow position? It's not easy to see in this video (I'll try to get another one soon), but it looks to me like it's far too close to my right hip, and restricting the arc of a natural (normal!) swing...

Hi guys. I'm absolutely desperate for some advice. After frequent playing on a pitch and putt course, I've picked up a truely horrible slice. It's uncontrolable. I had a friend record one of my swings, in the hope that someone could explain where I'm going wrong. To me, it looks like I'm crushing my right elbom into my body during the back swing, but I'd appreciate any advice! Please note - I don't actually slice the ball in this video, but I think you can see that I'm close to doing so...! Thanks in advance. Nick

Hi DFB. Thanks for your opinion. I really didn't expect to hear about balance concerns, but obviously it's a problem! Could you explain what you mean by "hanging on the backside"? Any suggestions about either arm positions?...The more I watch the video, the more I'm noticing problems...it looks like my left arm is almost wraping around my head on my follow through! Thanks!

Thanks for the pointer. I don't normally immediately drop out of holding my finish...not quite sure what I was doing here. I've also noticed that my back seems to bend a lot at the end of my swing. This would probably explain why I have been getting back pain. Do you agree? I had my first lesson last week and I told him that all I wanted to do was concentrate on getting my back a bit straighter, to try to cure the nagging back pain that I've been getting just below my left shoulder. I'm trying to implement what he taught me in the swing that you see in that video (yes - before then my back was even more curved!). I can't help but think that my backswiong looks...tight(?!) and a bit awkward. What am I doing wrong?

Hi guys. I recently started playing again, after about 10 years absence. I traded in my Dad's old hand-me-down Ping Zings for a set of Mizuno MX100 2 weeks ago. I did a lot of research before buying them, and I'm really pleased about how forgiving they are, but I'm still struggling. I went out today and shot 98. Whilst doing so, I got a friend to film me taking a swing. I was shocked about how far around my back my backswing seems to go...surely it should be much higher?! Anyway, I'd appreciate any comments or pointers! I will apologise in advance for the noise of the wind...it wasn't a very nice day (hence the hood!). Thanks. ↵ Use original player VIDEO0004.3gp By nick4501 YouTube 360p 240p FLV ← Replay X i

Hi guys. After even more debating, I'm still unsure as to what irons I should buy. I'm just starting to get back into golf again and I'm currently playing off about 26. I'm wanting to spend around £200-300 and have starting to narrow my choice down to : TaylorMade r7 Nike Slingshot series (unsure which would be best...HL, 4D...?!) Nike Sumo Cobra SZ Wilson Di7 Cleveland CG Gold (although this is purely based on price - I know nothing about them!) I know, I know...I need to get down to a shop that is willing to put up with me taking the time to try them all out, but I was just wondering about peoples' opinions on the above (and if possible, suggestions for any sets that I have over looked...). Thanks!

Distance isn't really what I'm looking for. I'm happy cracking a 7 iron 160 yards...I just need consistency! The reason I am drawn to the Sumo's is because they're marketted as a pure game improvement iron, with a massive back, to improve consistency... I'm just struggling to figure out where they sit in the rest of the Nike range - are they considered better than the Slingshot series?

Thanks for the advice. No offence taken!...I know I have a lot to do! Does anyone know how the Nike Sumo irons compare to my old Ping Zings? I don't doubt that my Pings were considered a better club than the Sumo's when they were first released, but the Zing's are now 15 years old...! Also, how closely related are the Sumo's to the Nike Machspeed clubs?

Hi guys. I've been pondering a new set of irons to replace my Dad's hand-me-down Ping Zing clubs. I had lessons for about 6 months about 10 years ago (!), so I feel that I know the basics, but since I've only just started to get back into golf, I seem to be averaging about 28 over :( I've recently come across the Nike Sumo set, and they seem perfect for what I need - very forgiving, with a huge, wide head to give me the same confidence that my Ping's do. My question is (assuming that most people agree that this is a good choice of club!) : Should I get the Sumo's in steel or graphite shaft? Apparently, they come in the Nike iDiamana graphite shafts or steel - both regular flex. I hit a few of my friend's graphite shafted clubs and found them much smoother and easier than steel, but when I went to my local golf shop and swung a few clubs in front of the salesman (who was apparently a 5 handicap), he suggested steel over graphite, as I have a slightly above average swing speed. I'm not quite sure how he could say that though, as I wasn't actually measured by a machine! I'm also thinking that it may be a good thing for me to slow down my swing, since I'm not the most consistent hitter! Thoughts?