I've been playing and practicing a bit more regularly, and hitting the ball a lot better (hit 17 greens once last week). My pattern is fairly orthodox - focusing on an NSA type pivot and perhaps a bit of wedding ring swivel, but with no twistaway. I'm hitting the ball fairly straight, playing a small draw most of the time but sometimes playing a fade with the driver. My misses are the occasional pull and the occasional thin shot, and in both cases I feel like I'm not getting enough down plane force in my swing. I'm not taking much of a divot even on short irons, and I don't think this is because of a path issue - that is, I don't think I'm swinging right.
The correction, I think, is to stay behind the ball, maintain my axis tilt, and to make sure I get to that position in NSA where Brian is mashing Adam's face (extension). Instead, I sometimes allow myself to get in front of the ball a bit and lose axis tilt. In looking at my swing (a somewhat older one, unfortunately) on video it looks like my hips get to a point where they can't turn anymore in the downswing and this is when I straighten a bit/move in front of the ball a bit.
I'm pretty flexible for someone my age and make a fairly fluid swing. I've never had a problem making a big hip and shoulder turn. When I first started learning from Brian's videos, I took his advice in NSA to set the left foot perfectly square (i.e. perpendicular to the tareget) at address. But I assume Brian recommends this because he wants to encourage a good, free hip turn, which a flared left foot would restrict. But I can still make a very full turn with a flared left foot.
So, in thinking through this and taking practice swings, I feel like I need to open up my left foot by 15 degrees or so. This will let my hips keep turning left so that I can keep my weight on my left heel (without hanging back), maintain my axis tilt, stay behind the ball, and apply the down and out force necessary to hit down and through it.
In an old thread, Brian said this:
So it seems to me that this might be easier to do in my case with a left foot slightly flared out.
Does that thinking seem correct, or am I missing something?
The correction, I think, is to stay behind the ball, maintain my axis tilt, and to make sure I get to that position in NSA where Brian is mashing Adam's face (extension). Instead, I sometimes allow myself to get in front of the ball a bit and lose axis tilt. In looking at my swing (a somewhat older one, unfortunately) on video it looks like my hips get to a point where they can't turn anymore in the downswing and this is when I straighten a bit/move in front of the ball a bit.
I'm pretty flexible for someone my age and make a fairly fluid swing. I've never had a problem making a big hip and shoulder turn. When I first started learning from Brian's videos, I took his advice in NSA to set the left foot perfectly square (i.e. perpendicular to the tareget) at address. But I assume Brian recommends this because he wants to encourage a good, free hip turn, which a flared left foot would restrict. But I can still make a very full turn with a flared left foot.
So, in thinking through this and taking practice swings, I feel like I need to open up my left foot by 15 degrees or so. This will let my hips keep turning left so that I can keep my weight on my left heel (without hanging back), maintain my axis tilt, stay behind the ball, and apply the down and out force necessary to hit down and through it.
In an old thread, Brian said this:
So it seems to me that this might be easier to do in my case with a left foot slightly flared out.
Does that thinking seem correct, or am I missing something?
