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Ryan555

Ryan555

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Joined
Sep 8, 2010
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Location
Gladstone, MO
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23.1
My frustration has hit a point that I just can't handle anymore. I have been working on using my body to help square the clubface and striking down on the ball. I seem to be taking to it pretty well, at least, for my irons. My driver is what bothers me the most.

Let me see if I can explain. I am a short guy who, about 7 years ago, realized that my swing was way too up and down, I guess you could say. I fought a horrible slice with everything. So, I set out, on my own, to flatten my swing out. Then, for a while, I fought a HUGE push hook. I would literally, aim down the middle of the fairway, the ball would start out, to the right, over the next fairway, and hook back across the fairway I was on. Then, for some reason, I decided I didn't like that, so i set out to straighten everything out. Well, my irons took, but I had a problem with hitting them fat. So, this summer I have decided to work on getting my hands in front of the ball, without actually changing the entire swing, just making some tweaks here and there. That seems to be taking for my irons, but, no matter what I do, I have never been able to get my driver straightened out. Now, I am fighting the biggest push I ever have. For example, today, I hit a tee shot on one hole, aiming down the right side of the fairway, I think, and it started 40 yards right of where I was aiming, then fell even more to the right. When I do catch a good one, It starts off straight and will fall to the right about 15 yards, which is perfect for me. But when I'm off, I'm way off. 4 balls on that hole today before I had one that was actually in play and not in someone's backyard, or the in creek in front of me because I tend to get a little anxious and pull up out of the shot, topping it BAD. 5 years ago I shot the best round of my life, a 95, and didn't take a full, or even 3/4 driver swing all day. It was basically a punch/1/2 swing driver all day, and it stayed in play, but was horribly short.

So, onto my question: Are there any drills out there that I can work on at the range, or, even at home without a ball if needed, to help me stop a block? I don't have a video of my swing right now, probably not for a few weeks, due my schedule, but will get one up as soon as I can. Any help would be appreciated. Like I said, I am ready to give up the entire game if I can't get this figured out somehow. And, I'm not one to ask for help, so I have had to suck it up and admit that I need some help and can't figure it out on my own.

Sorry if this is long-winded.
 
If it was me , I would find a good local Pro and have him take a look at your swing . I think its money well spent , instead of trying to figure it out on your own , as every one gets frustrated .
I quit for 6 years , and just picked it up and for the first 3 outings I was pounding the ball , then I started thinking , and it went to heck- in - a -handbasket , so I spent $40 bucks and seen a Pro and he fixed just one thing and was back to hitting it well .
 
Seeking out a pro is the best answer. For the time being getting you more comfortable is going to be key. I like the idea of making some swings with your feet together. Try this the next time you go out. This will slow things down and allow your body and arms to get in sync. Sounds to me like you have made some great improvments in your game and I want to grow off of that.

Get to the range and get loose. When you get to the driver place the ball on the tee and set up with the ball in the middle of your feet with your feet together. From here make nice easy swings getting a feel for what your body is doing. This will help get things working together. As you get comfortable start to work back into your normal stance. Try this out and let me know how things go for you.
 
I echo spray tech. The best thing to do when things are going bad with your swing is to spend the money and get professional help. I did it and it helped immensely. Another set of eyes is invaluable. A good pro will video you, analyze your swing with you, and make corrections. Sometimes, is a very simple fix. Remember, even the pros get help. Some on a weekly basis. Hope this helps.
 
Thanks for the input eveyreone. I will head to the range on friday and try out that drill. Unfortunately, a pro at this time of the year isn't really in the books for me. I may just have to find one at the beginning of the season next year. Just don't really know how to go about finding one, since most of them aren't near my home, and I know nobody who's ever taken a lesson. Thanks again! I should be able to post up a vid too to maybe give an idea of what I'm talking about.
 
Ryan555 said:
Thanks for the input eveyreone. I will head to the range on friday and try out that drill. Unfortunately, a pro at this time of the year isn't really in the books for me. I may just have to find one at the beginning of the season next year. Just don't really know how to go about finding one, since most of them aren't near my home, and I know nobody who's ever taken a lesson. Thanks again! I should be able to post up a vid too to maybe give an idea of what I'm talking about.
Click to expand...

Andy is a Pro and if you listen to his advice and practice this drill you will be surprised of the outcome. Don't overload yourself with too many thoughts and do what Andy suggests. Baby steps first as golf can cause paralysis by analysis :eek:)........
 
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Andy always has a good drill to help and he really gets you thinking about a process to cure the problem as opposed to throwing everything at it at once. He is terrific that way.

I am also a short golfer and I thought I would offer a response because I think those of us that are on the short side are somewhat challenged by the trend to longer and longer stock shafts on new drivers. My R9 SuperTri came with a stock shaft length of just at 46", maybe just a hair over. I am 5'6"!!

While I am sure that whatever drills Andy works up for you will be sensible and very much worth your effort, if you have not had your driver fitted to you as yet I would strongly recommend that you consider doing so. I struggled a great deal with my driver until I had it fitted to my swing and had the length chopped to 44", fully 2" shorter than the stock shaft length. Until I had the club fitted to me I constantly felt like I was fighting the club or the club was fighting me. I might also point out that it is my understanding that most of the touring pros, many of them taller than you or I, have their driver shafts shortened from these now standard, stock 45.5 to 46.5" lengths to something more reasonable.

A club fitter could help you get to the right shaft specification and then also determine what the best length would be. In my case while I have no doubt that improvements that I made in my driver swing during the course of the summer have helped me a good deal, I had to make perfect swings each and every time to get anything out of the driver with its stock shaft and even then, my result would not be as good as it is now. Now the club is both more forgiving to a less than perfect swing and more rewarding when I do make a good swing.

However I would not want any suggestion that I would make delay your start relative to any drills Andy would like you to try. Anything he recommends will help you.
 
I have actually thought of this as well. Many years ago, I had an old Taylormade 320 that I made contact on the hosel one too many times and snapped the shaft. Instead of sending it back, since I like heavier clubs, I had a DGS300 put in it at 43.5 inches. Now, i'm no Tiger, but I was able to control it much better. I eventually changed for more distance, but many times wish I still had it. Still have the 3 wood at 42.5 inches, and usually, it's a go to for me on the fairway, but have never been able to make decent contact off of the tee with a 3 wood. That is why I carry a 4 iron, my go to club when I'm not concerned with distance off the tee, but at least being in the fairway. I play an iMix driver right now, and am not sure if those shafts can be adjusted or not, but I was thinking about going through a fitting, which I have never done for anything, and seeing what the fitter does suggest. Probably, again, next spring as I will be lucky if I get to the course even 2 more times before the season is over due to my schedule.
 
So, here it is. Feel free to have at it. This is the first time I have ever taped my swing, so I never realized how bad it truly is. Sorry about the head on with the driver, my wife was taping it and watching my daughter at the same time, so we didn't get a chance to move the divider out of the way. And, the first part is of me and a 7 iron, and, yes, it is at an angle. They are growing new grass at the range, so they moved us down and it was on a down slope.

[YOUTUBE]n_FGFGrAmGs[/YOUTUBE]
 
There are a couple of things that really jump out to me in the videos. 1 you swing the club very flat, and 2 you really role the hands open in the takeaway. To fix these thing would go a long way to helping direction. To take care of the hands...I want you to take the club back and feel like you keep the face of the club pointing to the ball in the takeaway. We will get back to this with the plane work.

FOr the takeaway. Place a broken shaft or stick in the ground at your waist height. Now setup so the shaft is on your toe line. I want you just far enough from the shaft where you feel like a slight reach to get to it with your club head. Now when you take the club back you should just clip the top of the shaft. I also want you to check the club face at this spot. The toe of the club should be straight up to the sky at this stage. Working on these couple of things will help a ton. Give this a try and let me know how things go.
 
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