Golf Instructor advice

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llyons

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My son plays collegiate golf so he is a pretty good golfer. His short game and putting are phenomenal and I would say on the pga tour level. However for a long time, he has struggled to be a good ball striker generally hitting 6 to 11 fairways and 6-10 greens in regulation. This is the big reason his short game became good as he needed the short game.


It seems like nobody can figure out his ball striking issues and we have seen several golf professionals in the past. For the past 2.5 years he has relied on the advice of the collegiate coach who in the past was rated highly as an instructor himself. However after 2.5 years still no significant change although there is some but I attribute this mostly too playing more golf and practicing more in college. The collegiate coach is focused on the team and all the players as he should be but this means my son may not get the amount of attention he needs to fix his issues. Im just not sure. He works so hard (4-5 hours a day) on his game and gets discouraged that its not getting better. If he could ball strike like the other players, he would consistently be challenging for tournament titles, etc.



What should I (He) do?

Should he be seeing improvement by now after 2-3 years?

Do I need to get him a dedicated instructor? One that is focused solely on him?
 
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Jared Willerson

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Have you gotten him on a trackman? What are his misses? Are there club selection/course management issues? Good ballstriking is about a lot more than the swing. Knowing your miss, knowing where to miss and hitting appropriate shots also play a big role.

First things first, get him on a trackman and email the report to any of the Manzella instructors. They should be able to point you in the right direction.
 
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llyons

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Thanks Jared for the advice. He has been on the trackman but not frequently or recently. It seems like his misses are either pull hooks left or push/ push fades. It seems like a general inconsistent squaring of the club face at impact. He certainly knows his miss and plays accordingly but when it could be left or it could be right, it makes it difficult to favor one side or the other. My biggest question is should there be improvement after 2-3 years or do some things take longer to solve? Should I continue to let the same scenario of instruction play out or look at changing the scenario? Today his instructor is the golf team coach and he is a good instructor. However, the focus of the golf coach isnt just on my son but the team. I am just not certain if my son is getting the focused attention that he needs ( no fault of the team coach).

Jared Willerson said:
Have you gotten him on a trackman? What are his misses? Are there club selection/course management issues? Good ballstriking is about a lot more than the swing. Knowing your miss, knowing where to miss and hitting appropriate shots also play a big role.

First things first, get him on a trackman and email the report to any of the Manzella instructors. They should be able to point you in the right direction.
Click to expand...
 
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Kevin Shields

Super Moderator
Classic inside out/under plane college player issues. What kind of build does he have? Tall and thin? Is he on any kind of conditioning program?
 
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Lindsey Newman

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2 or 3 years and no improvement in his ball striking? That college coach has no idea what the hell he is doing. With a good assessment and game plan the improvement should be immediate. Get him in front of one of the Manzella instructors ASAP.
 
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llyons

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Thanks for the response. What do you mean classic inside/outside college player issue?

He is right around 5-11 6'. 170lbs. Former all state soccer player as well. Works with the college conditioning program and works with a local trainer certified in tpi.


Kevin Shields said:
Classic inside out/under plane college player issues. What kind of build does he have? Tall and thin? Is he on any kind of conditioning program?
Click to expand...
 
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llyons

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Hi Lindsey, Thanks for the response. The college coach is well respected in terms of teaching. Use to be a former teacher. Not sure if that is it or just not enough time. I am just not sure and that is why I am reaching out to golf teaching pros. in the past 6 years we have had 3 primary instructors including the college coach. We have went to a few other teachers but only 1 or 2 times, etc. Maybe 6 visits with other pros in the past 6 years so essentially we have been with the same instructor for a period of time.

Are you certain the ball striking should be improved so quickly? He works too hard to still be hitting 6-12 FIR / GIR.

Lindsey Newman said:
2 or 3 years and no improvement in his ball striking? That college coach has no idea what the hell he is doing. With a good assessment and game plan the improvement should be immediate. Get him in front of one of the Manzella instructors ASAP.
Click to expand...
 
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wulsy

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JMHO, but most coaches are useless. Most golf teachers have left a trail of destruction behind them and most have in fact ruined their own games if they ever had one.

Go to the Manzella. He'll give you an assessment you can trust.
 
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Kevin Shields

Super Moderator
llyons said:
Thanks for the response. What do you mean classic inside/outside college player issue?

He is right around 5-11 6'. 170lbs. Former all state soccer player as well. Works with the college conditioning program and works with a local trainer certified in tpi.
Click to expand...

Those symptoms you described are common in high speed, young college level players
 
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Kevin Shields

Super Moderator
llyons said:
Hi Lindsey, Thanks for the response. The college coach is well respected in terms of teaching. Use to be a former teacher. Not sure if that is it or just not enough time. I am just not sure and that is why I am reaching out to golf teaching pros. in the past 6 years we have had 3 primary instructors including the college coach. We have went to a few other teachers but only 1 or 2 times, etc. Maybe 6 visits with other pros in the past 6 years so essentially we have been with the same instructor for a period of time.

Are you certain the ball striking should be improved so quickly? He works too hard to still be hitting 6-12 FIR / GIR.
Click to expand...

He may be well respected but nobody bats 1.000. He could have gotten the diagnosis wrong or just getting stale eyes and not seeing the root problem. Maybe he is and your son isn't hearing him. Things should be better by now.
 
faux_maestro

faux_maestro

New
llyons said:
Thanks for the response. What do you mean classic inside/outside college player issue?

He is right around 5-11 6'. 170lbs. Former all state soccer player as well. Works with the college conditioning program and works with a local trainer certified in tpi.
Click to expand...

It means his club path is too much from the inside. If his path is too far to the right/inside then he will hit pull hooks when the club face is square and will hit pushes when the face is open. Those were the misses you described. Lindsey is right, get him to one of the Manzella Academy instructors ASAP.
 
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magicmarker

magicmarker

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It would be interesting to find out what your son's swing thoughts are/have been. What is he trying to do within his golf swing to improve his ball-striking? The answer could identify part of the problem.
 
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llyons

New
Thanks for the advice everybody. It sounds like he should be better off after 2-3 years and that causes me some concern.

I have some before college and recent video of him. I know this is not track man or conclusive but I would be interested in peoples thoughts on the before after.


before



recent


 
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Jim Kobylinski

Super Moderator
llyons said:
Not certain if I follow but the ball ended up right of the target about 10 feet off the green.
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Meaning from those recent swings where did the ball go, what was the flight path? You say it ended up right of target about 10 feet off green but did it start further right and draw to that spot, start left and end up there? Little more detail would be helpful.

Thanks
 
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