How much of a swing makeover did lessons give you ?

Either Online/in person/a clinic or seminar. Describe how your swing changed look wise from all your hard work. Did you get more on plane/more lag or better impact look..etc. And how long did it take to start noticing some changes? Feel free to post before and after video or pictures if you want. Or just describe by typed words is fine as well

Always like to hear stories of big swing change looks

My swing changes have been more tweaks to some parts of my swing than a makeover. Changes were made to weight shift and not swaying and then a change in position at the top. The recent changes have me making better contact. Swing plane according to me current instructor was already good but ball contact was inconsistent.

1) Last year, I took my first ever lesson in May @ 56. Lesson showed me I had evolved towards a more "armsy" swing and had lost power as a result. Showed me I needed to better connect my core to my swing.

I spent the summer changing my swing to be more powerful from the core. Got me striking the ball more solidly and more squarely.

1a) I did a fitting for a new set from a top 100 fitter for new clubs. When I was picking them up, we got into a grip discussion and he focused me on getting my grip better - handle along the base of the fingers.

Spent the fall on my grip and getting it correct so I could better release the club head. I had a lot of lag in my swing naturally but this helped me better use that lag by releasing the clubhead fully.

2) Did a lesson with another instructor on my driver late december. I was hitting it long but keeping it straight was a problem. He saw the problem and got my hands into better alignment with each other. Been working on that.

So, two lessons and one discussion with a fitter plus a lot of hitting balls (1-2k per week) added 50+ yards to my driver and 3W along with much straighter (particularly with the 3W).

My conclusion:

1) Lessons are real important to identify how to fix things
2) Having an awareness of your swing and the attributes of a good swing are key to self coaching and management
3) For me, work between lessons that burn it into your game/swing is important. And that work is as good or bad as #2.
4) For me, lesson frequency is less important than developing an insight into what I need to work on and then having the time to take that insight, put it into practice and play with different dimensions of it to learn how it impacts my swing & results and ultimately connect those insight into my game.

JMN57 said:

My conclusion:

1) Lessons are real important to identify how to fix things
2) Having an awareness of your swing and the attributes of a good swing are key to self coaching and management
3) For me, work between lessons that burn it into your game/swing is important. And that work is as good or bad as #2.
4) For me, lesson frequency is less important than developing an insight into what I need to work on and then having the time to take that insight, put it into practice and play with different dimensions of it to learn how it impacts my swing & results and ultimately connect those insight into my game.

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Couldn't have said it better myself. Good post.


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I learned that swing changes take time. I'm still working on one. It isn't easy either. I'm still having trouble getting my hips moving forward to start transition.

1. I learned competent professional instruction is very difficult to find.
2. I learned that if an instructor in this day and age will not use video it is time to move on.
3. I learned that if an instructor puts down the use of a mirror for practice that they don't know what they're talking about.
4. I learned that some instructors are just *******.
5. I learned that competent professional instruction is very difficult to find, and that if you find someone who uses video, modern equipment, and knows biomechanics in addition to knowing how to play the game you are very lucky.

I'm still being very picky about my swing plane, and I have a lot of things that i need to reinforce through repetition.

InTheRough said:

I learned that swing changes take time. I'm still working on one. It isn't easy either. I'm still having trouble getting my hips moving forward to start transition.

1. I learned competent professional instruction is very difficult to find.
2. I learned that if an instructor in this day and age will not use video it is time to move on.
3. I learned that if an instructor puts down the use of a mirror for practice that they don't know what they're talking about.
4. I learned that some instructors are just *******.
5. I learned that competent professional instruction is very difficult to find, and that if you find someone who uses video, modern equipment, and knows biomechanics in addition to knowing how to play the game you are very lucky.

I'm still being very picky about my swing plane, and I have a lot of things that i need to reinforce through repetition.

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I agree so whole heartedly on this. I would add that if an instructor wants to band aide a swing issue instead of correcting it - move on immediately and forget the lesson ever existed.

Nice posts , so thank you love reading them. I usually stick to a method for a few seasons; most of the time it is ball flight and consistency that gets fixed. This last one I did completely altered my swing 360'degrees including ball flight. Worked my tail off with him since September of last year.

Fixed 1) overswing
2) over rotating
3) ott on way down ( doesn't even look like the old me) not even close here
4) less flip after impact ( this is my nemesis) still work in progress

Work on it daily with drills developed just for my needs at home with no ball. Good stuff really

My advice is to give the teacher at least a good couple of months. If no progress than go to another one, don't waste time or money.

I learned to improve my posture and to use my lower body more. It made a huge difference.

i'll try to get a before-and-after pic posted up. it's still a major work in progress and i think it's getting better, i just don't have any video or pics as recent as 14 months ago!

1) adjust setup position to "center" weight slightly toward the target
2) get shoulders rotating on an inclined plane, instead of standing up and really flattening out the plane
3) lengthen backswing
4) work on the "throw from the top" (still there, that bugger)
5) compress the ball instead of flipping

it's been about a 2-year process, although i've only seen my instructor a total of maybe 5 times in that 2 years. he gives me something to work on, then wants me to practice and play as long as i can stand it before i come back. i try to stay away from you tube and the drive-by golf instruction on golf channel, and just focus on what he's telling me. he and i have a playing lesson scheduled next week to try to diagnose why i can't seem to get over the hump and play as well as i think i should be.

those two were taken about 10 months apart, left is before right is after and was taken back in March 2014. getting my shoulder plane steeper had the adverse effect of shortening my backswing, but I am working on that. I'll try to get some video when I meet with my instructor next week.


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Nice man , well played

Not much. Either I'm really stubborn or I need to find someone better to give me lessons. I was a little disappointed both times and it's not like I'm not willing to do the work. Golf is hard.

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I've gone through 4 coaches.

The first one was a friend who was a former pga pro/instructor that just gave me some pointers over two sessions right when I started golf to get me to loosen up and not swing like Charles Barkley.

The second one was a 5 session package that was a complete waste of time. He used no technology or video and basically watched me swing the club the whole time while providing very little feedback.

The third was a good coach that used high speed video and trackman in every session, and we hit off mats and grass. I learned a lot about feel versus real, but was disappointed that he never tried to correct my steep plane and over the top move. At one point he commented something along the lines of "lots of people play fine fading the ball". I don't disagree with that, but there is a difference between playing a fade and hitting fades because I don't have control of my body/swing. I had to travel a long way to meet the guy already, so that combined with his comment made me feel like I needed a change of pace.

The fourth has been my favorite and completely changed my swing. The first session I looked like a new golfer. This coach uses radar sparingly (flightscope), but uses video every session and does it outdoors off the grass. He also puts me and/or my club into positions to allow me to get the feel of where I should be at different points in the swing. I went from a steep plane with fades/pulls to almost too flat with draws/pushes in one session. He also likes to make changes to extreme opposites to try and teach limits. He feels like it's easier to teach someone the extreme and then have them dial back the change to find the desired point (for whatever aspect of the swing he is working on). He also uses mirrors and constantly tells me to use mirrors or my reflection in a window at home to work on my swing (which I don't do often and/or enough of). My only complaint with him so far (after 6+ months of working together) was that he has been so focused on getting my weight transferred and keeping the shaft handle in front of the ball at impact that I neglected the follow through of my swing. This resulted in a lot of pushed shots and frustration.

I had a friend, and good golfer (member Diablo here on THP), tell me one time that I wasn't turning. I was really confused at that point because my coach really makes sure I make a full turn on the back swing. The friend said the same thing a few more times before I asked what the heck he was talking about. He clarified that he was talking about the follow through turn which was something new to me. A week or so later I was trying out some new clubs with the stores owners/teaching pro watching and he (politely) said the same thing and told me to take a brake from thinking about all the other aspects of the swing and instead to just swing and only concentrate on following through with the belt buckle to the target. Doing that was like turning a light switch on and so far I've had the best ball striking I've ever had. There is still a lot of improvement, but I'm keeping the driver in play near 100% of the time now, versus 50% of the time before.

I still plan to continue to see my current/fourth coach. Hopefully with the new understanding of my swing we will be able to get me to continue to improve. I feel like I hit a plateau there for a while and the "follow through" thought pushed me over the edge. I'm ready to get back on track with small changes toward better golf.

Mine changed in steps, a little at a time. Mark, my instructor, only gave me at most 2 things to work on between lessons.

1. Grip change. Right hand was good, but left hand was weak. Rotated left hand to get club out of palm and into fingers and a tad strong.
2. Was a sweeper. Changed to hitting down on ball.
3. Get my rotation centered. I was rotating but getting too much weight behind my right foot and leaving it there through impact, causing a week fade.
4. Get right hand rotating during swing. I was holding off during the swing.
5. More upright swing plane on take away.
6. Ball position. Moved up in my stance.

I can't really see my swing. But I can feel that I am more connected. It has resulted in a flatter swing plane, but not crazy flat.

-CRW- said:

He also uses mirrors and constantly tells me to use mirrors or my reflection in a window at home to work on my swing (which I don't do often and/or enough of).

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perfect solution: bathroom breaks. every time i go to the bathroom, i make at least one face-on swing and one dtl swing. perfect built-in bodily function break to also work on your golf game

I got everything changed and I am happy I did. Started from the ball back and fixed everything all the way back and through. Really honestly it was the bes thing I ever did for my game. It was not easy and it took time and I am still working on a few things but it is all headed in the right direction. My latest work is getting the club back further behind me at the top and working on grip. Both have added to my distance which has the short term effect of messing up my distances for clubs.
That will all come together though in a month or two and I will be better yet.

caeleric said:

perfect solution: bathroom breaks. every time i go to the bathroom, i make at least one face-on swing and one dtl swing. perfect built-in bodily function break to also work on your golf game

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Yeah, but people might look at me funny at work when they catch me working on my swing in the company bathroom.

-CRW- said:

Yeah, but people might look at me funny at work when they catch me working on my swing in the company bathroom.

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Try it at a steel mill with the toughest men on the planet. Or do it in the shower

mine wasn't much of a makeover, more of just getting some tweaks in.

So for me it's been a very long road.

I have several "old swings". And I have been thru several "professional lessons".

The short is my biggest issue was improper shoulder rotation, my hands coming out and over the plane, a double strong grip, face open at address and hooded at contact, and a bad downswing sequence.

Finally found a great teacher who played on tour for 5 years and is focused on fixing things.

I started lessons about 60 days ago with him.

Items corrected:

Grip - pressure, how to grip, and hand alignment are all natural now with a minor reminder every now and then.

Shoulder rotation - 90% improvement where my right shoulder stays under my chin instead of coming over and flat.

Hand position/plane - about 50% and this will be the hardest one for me to really get ingrained.

Sequence - got the hips starting left and keeping them in front of my shoulders in sequence.

Results - I have a proper high ball flight. A minor loss of distance that will return with me getting my hands to release. I will look for a video.

Lessons didn't change my swing hardly at all. But they did change my grip from interlock to overlap and changed how I setup to the ball to help me better align my torso and shoulders.

when I got fitted for irons he mentioned I had an outside in swing and explained why. I went out, did some reading and studying, went to the range and developed an inside out swing based off his initial comment. Then I started taking lessons and he likes my inside out for the long clubs but wants me using a very slight outside in for short irons/wedges. He also slowed my swing way down. My pitching wedge went from between 135 and 150 yards to 100...and I have hit 6 of 7 greens from that range since then.

Long story short; changed my swing completely. Well worth it.

I recently got a 3 lesson pkg. 1st lesson was more changing set-up than swing. Moved ball forward, moved me closer (and thusly taller stance), and narrower stance. All of that resulted in a change of plane without thinking too much about it. I know there is a lot more to get to...but that was just the first lesson.