So you want to be an instructor

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JRJ

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I'm a huge golf fan and absolutely love this forum. I've purchased NSA and Flipper and am looking forward to the "friends" video once Brian finishes rebuilding. In addition to Brian, I know this site is visited by many great instructors (Roger G. and Brady R. come to mind) If Brian, his staff or anybody at all would like to critique my swing, please have at it. I welcome any and all constructive criticism. Thanks. JRJ

p.s. I'm 5'8" 170 lbs. 7.X index and have always struggled with an OTT move and would like to think NSA and this site has helped me a lot with clubface control. I usually play a pull fade.

Here are the links:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=TNqPzIfSNIA

http://youtube.com/watch?v=SLSA4PGd8kc

http://youtube.com/watch?v=x1Fm0DXJzc8
 
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Kevin Shields

Super Moderator
Congrats on the low handicap. IMO, although i cant slow your video down, you HAVE TO employ some sort of twistaway and "hold the twist" into your downswing. Also,a NSA backswing pivot would help as well. Your clubface is way too open at the top and thru the transition and your upper body lacks away from the target tilt in the backswing. Think "left shoulder over right knee and right palm facing away from you."
 
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thefuture37

Banned
Looks like you cup your left wrist to get the club to parallel at the top. OTT and flippy through the ball. My advice would be forget about trying to get to parallel on the backswing(keep your left wrist flat) and forget about trying to make the ernie els club resting on shoulders followthrough. Trying to get in those positions are probably hurting more than helping.
 
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Ryan Smither

Super Moderator
Watch "Never Slice Again" again and employ the twistaway.

Your setup could use some tweaking. Close your hips a little at address. Get your right forearm more on plane with the shaft at address (right forearm lower than the left). Try to stay more bent over the ball throughout the backswing.

But more than anything, twist that club away until your wrist hurts. You'll be happy you did.

Post another one when you think you've got the twistaway down.
 
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JRJ

New
Thanks

Thank you everyone for the feedback. Good news; bad news to report. First the bad news - I gotta be honest, "twistaway" isn't helping. It definitely makes the clubface "less open," but it causes me to hit dead straight pulls left. This tells me that I'm still fighting the OTT swing path and I've tried everything to shallow out my move (skipping rocks, underhand javelin, plane landing, swing under stick, karate chop down at shoes, etc. etc.) and I still just want to hit from the top....oh well I'll keep trying for that flat left wrist at the top but I might have to settle for something a little closer to orthodox. OK the good news (and special thanks to Ryan S) - I made some changes to my setup and takeaway that helped a lot today. I strenghted my RIGHT hand grip which brought my right elbow down at address and thought about a shoulder takeaway with the hands just holding. This seemed to quiet my ridiculously overactive hands, arms, and wrists and I was getting some great results on the range. I will definitely post some pics of my new setup and takeaway and keep experimenting with "twistaway." JRJ
 
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Brian Manzella

Administrator
The "twistaway" and the alternative.

The alternative to the "twistaway" is a slightly across the line top of the backswing, with a free right elbow.
 
Amen Corner

Amen Corner

New
It is hard to say with only dtl views. Is it possible to shoot face on?

As Ryan has already mentioned, start with setup. Better posture.

Without faceon, I´ll say its pivotproblems.
It also seems that you only rotate from top, which raise the question, Do you have enough axistilt?

So for the moment, while waiting for faceon, I would say work on your plane.

Work with towelplaneboard.

Info is found here

http://www.brianmanzella.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7799&highlight=Towel+Plane+board
 
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JeffM

New member
I think that you come OTT for two reasons.

First of all, your takeaway is too flat and too inside. Then you have no hip rotation movement in your downswing, and your downswing is the typical "upper body dive" described in the 'Swing Like a Pro" book.

JRLdriverOTT.jpg



Image 1 - You take the club back along a too-inside and too-shallow track and your clubshaft is below the plane at the end-takeaway.

Image 2 - your clubshaft is too flat during your mid-backswing. It should be roughly along the red line. The back of your left hand is facing skywards when it should be facing about 45-60 degrees to the ground. Your hands are also too deep and you eventually get stuck which forces you to lift your hands in the late backswing.

Image 3 - You lift your arms in the late backswing and your clubshaft crosses the line to a marked degree.

Image 4 - you start the downswing with a upper body movement that pulls the clubshaft too steeply over the right shoulder. You also have ZERO clubshaft shallowing action because you do not start the downswing with a hip shift-rotation move. Your hips are static-passive.

Image 5 - at impact. Your hips are square at impact because you do not have a left hip clearing action - the pelvis should be open by 30-50 degrees at impact.

This image from the SLAP book shows how your clubhead path is too inside and too-shallow in the backswing (blue color) and subsequently too steep in the downswing (black color).

SLAP-SwingpathHigh.jpg


Jeff.
 
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holeout

New
Jeff,

Are you advocating that he work on getting his hips MORE open at impact?

I'm no expert, but it seems to me like he'd throw it away and swing even farther left if he did that.
 
tourdeep

tourdeep

New
Hi JRJ,

Too many kinks in my armor to even think about teaching anyone else.

If you go twistaway, I don't think anyone is surprised about the pull lefts without addressing other issues. IMO, going this route will require major reconstructive swing surgery. If you are up for it, have the patience, you will go low again, and probably lower, cuz you already know how to.

So here's another possible option...

When I saw your swing, I thought of Bobby Jones! The equipment has changed, but he may have a couple of pointers that may help to patch a few things.

His deeper cupped position, very loose hand on the grip, cross line, left heel lift, very active hips, are just a few things that may not be the norm for today, but exremley effective and really a thing of beauty to watch. He's able to square the club, get the flat left at impact, tho very brief, and prduced amazing shots.

Although this clip does not talk about the right hand in depth, somewhere in another vid, he talks about this culprit trying to take over from the top. He is a left sided player, but is not a pure swinger. He does add a little "hit" with the right hand. On another note, he does mention "it is ahead of the stroke", referring to the left hip. This might be a very helpful suggestion.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMDPIqRf0zs&feature=related

Maybe the fashion and equipment has changed a little, but when I watch those old series of his, what seems to remain are the slice, the hook, the scoop, players cheating, throwing of clubs...!
 
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JRJ

New
Big boat with a lot of people in it

Thanks Brian and thanks everyone. I realize my action is typical hit from the top, OTT, but I did shoot 80 this morning with two doubles so I was hitting it pretty well overall with just a set up change. I also realize I have a long way to go.

I am glad to hear that the alternative to twistaway is slightly across the line at the top with a free right elbow. That just sounds more my style :). That being said, I am going to work on:

1. Setup - close hips, right forearm on plane with shaft
2. Takeaway - holds just holding, trying to keep the clubhead out in front of me more, more vertical (up) with my arms instead of roll it back flat and too inside
3. Swing Plane - I want to buy those lasers that help you trace the straight plane line so I can visualize what it's like to take it back on plane and then shallow it out coming down.

I will definitely take some face on video this week as well as new DTL to try and see if I make any progress. Thanks again for being willing to help a guy who's determined to break 80 on a regular basis. JRJ
 
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Ryan Smither

Super Moderator
JRJ,

In response to your #2: The club should actually come more in and then up. Bring the club to the inside and, as Brian says -- feel like you're keeping your right elbow above your left elbow during the "up" portion of the backswing. You will be slightly across the line at the top...

and with a "less open clubface" (than before), you will be ready to swing more from the inside and begin to move more toward the middle of the Matrix.
 
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Ryan Smither

Super Moderator
basically, if you want to be a hair across the line at the top, than you're creating a plane that points a little right of the target...

so on plane in this regard would be a hair inside on the backswing...
 
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