Newby - first post: help requested

[macduffer]

Hi all -

this is my first post here, so be gentle. This might be a bit long, so sorry in advance.

I'm based in the UK, and by submitting cards based purely on medal play, have got down to an 11 handicap. I played well earlier this year (a few rounds in the mid 70's, probably averaging 80) but have 'lost it' recently.

I've been working with an instructor recently who teaches the very rotary swing popular on another well-known forum, but the results are very inconsistent (especially struggling with fat iron shots), and I feel I get better distance, height and accuracy with a swing with more lateral motion.

I've come here because I'm interested in TGM, and how it could help me - especially if it doesn't insist on a very rotational motion.

If anyone has any pointers on where to start, and any information about teachers who would be able to help in the north of England (especially the far north), I'd be very grateful.

Thanks

 

[rbaumgolf]

Go to you tube to watch Brian's "free" videos and then buy all of his other stuff - the best money you'll ever spend.

 

[niblick1]

Go to you tube to watch Brian's "free" videos and then buy all of his other stuff - the best money you'll ever spend.

Exactly right. And for what it's worth, I migrated here from the same background having first found hardy 1ps and then the rotary stuff on the internet.

The videos provide, in addition to great information that probably will really help you, a baseline of vocabulary for discussion here that in many ways simplifies discussion and means you don't have to learn chapter and verse of TGM. In addition, the Soft Draw and Never Hook Again patterns, for instance, provide a set of matching components to try as you isolate your issues or experiment with alternative approaches.

Soft Draw may or may not be the best place to start , but it is in part designed to address swing issues that can arise from application (or misapplication?) of some the current popular swing fads or patterns.

 

[Jim Kobylinski]

LOL...thanks for the free advertising guys i'm sure Brian appreciates it.

Macduffer

Go to youtube and watch Brian's free webshows; see what he has to say and find out if it resonates with you (it probably will). Then you may be able to figure out what your issue is. Without some background and a better description of your problem it would be hard for me or any of the other instructors to diagnose.

Depending on your skill level, fat shots are often a result of the following:

1) flipping
2) too inside/out path
3) too much lean to the right on the backswing
4) not a foward enough hand location
5) incorrect ball position based on the path you swing on

So you can see it can vary. If you could post some video it would be helpful

 

[macduffer]

Many thanks guys.

I went and checked out a few vids last night. I can't recall which one it was in, but the 'hips, hands, clubhead' sequence really made a lightbulb go off. It was something that I did already know, but somehow hadn't quite 'got'. I went to the range and used it, and immediately a lot of good things started to happen; I was feeling some real lag and some genuine compression for the first time in a while. Fats were vastly reduced; perhaps only half a dozen in 100 balls, and my impact was bottoming out 2-3 inches in front of the ball. It was my best range session since I don't know when.

A little bit of history, if it will help anyone. I've been playing 5/6 years. My problem has always been an over-inside takeaway, which then leads to a slight OTT move, which I try to offset with a big leg/hip drive. having said that, ballstriking has been a strength and I'm a fairly long hitter; there's probably only a dozen or so guys at my club who are consistently longer off the tee. I'm fairly athletic (ranked in the top 10 nationally for track cycling from the ages of 14-21) but I broke 2 vertebrae when I was 18 and spinal rotational flexibility hasn't been a strongpoint, though it's getting there. I know not enough shaft lean at address has been an issue. My bad shot with irons varies, but a push is more common than a pull when I'm swinging remotely well.

I'll keep doing the 'research', and will try to post a vid in the next few days, to see if people can point me to a suitable pattern.

Thanks very much for your help.