JThompson
New
Hello All.
Let me start by introducing myself. I am a Assistant Pro with a country club in southeastern USA. I am also a flipper. I passed the PAT, enrolled in the PGA PGM program, played high school golf rather competitively and maintained around a 3.1 hdcp all while flipping.
I have always been a terrible (by PGA club pro standards) ball striker. My short game and putting are the only reason I remain competitive. I started playing golf when I was 15 years old (kinda late). With my only swing experience before that being baseball I naturally thought I could take the same approach with golf. I was hooked. My parents found an instructor to teach me the basic concept of my first golf swing. To this day, 13 years later, my swing is still haunted by what he told me. "Don't move anything other then your arms and your hands when you swing the club. Lock your knees and bend at the waist." Needless to say, his teaching got rid of my baseball slice and taught me to FLIP. Obviously, that is not the way I still swing. I have learned to be very adapt at faking a good golf swing. I am a good athlete, well balanced, my take away has incredible extension, and my finish looks like the shadow of Ben Hogan himself. BUT IT'S ALL FAKE. In slow motion one can easily see that my hands are golf stupid. I think some times I even unhinge my wrist before my arms reach parallel to the ground. IT IS BAD.
Yesterday I played with our club champion who immediately noticed my flaw. He told me I needed to "twist back", "put the club on the movie screen", "hit from wall to wall". All these things I had never heard of. He told me, "Go to www.brianmanzella.com. Watch his vids on youtube. It might help you." So I am here.
So last night when I got home I watched all 6 episodes. OMG! I soaked this stuff in like a cactus in December. Especially for me episode 5 hit the spot. I loved the idea of the "hands first/club head follows" take away. The whip action like a fisherman casting. And the twist away. At impact, if I got the angles correct, I knew that I was going to slice it if I didn't have a flat left wrist. After reading as much as I could on the forums in one night. I couldn't wait to get out on the range the next day. This morning I started short. Like Brian says, teach yourself the correct impact feel. I started with some chips (maybe 200 balls) rehearsing my backswing after each one. Just trying to get the twist away and whip action down. After that I moved to a full swing. I COULD NOT BELIEVE WHAT I WAS DOING! I felt I was compressing the ball into the ground my 7 iron was flying 170s. My backswing got shorter, my swing became much easier to control and I felt much better tempo. I only had 3 swing thoughts in my mind.
1. Twist away and maintain a flat left wrist (I had heard of this but it was never possible for me to successfully hit a ball like this because my impact angles were so poor)
2. Lag the club head on take away. Continue to lap it all the way until I start my down swing. Just like the 2x4 idea that Mr. Manzella gave in his episode. Click Click Click all the way up. I might have even added some sound effects.
3. Drive the ball into the ground. Or bottom out my swing several inches after the ball.
Those 3 things completely changed my swing. I hit 15 seven irons in a row straight and 165-170. That never has never happened to me. Thank you Mr. Manzella!
Your comments/thoughts are welcome.
Let me start by introducing myself. I am a Assistant Pro with a country club in southeastern USA. I am also a flipper. I passed the PAT, enrolled in the PGA PGM program, played high school golf rather competitively and maintained around a 3.1 hdcp all while flipping.
I have always been a terrible (by PGA club pro standards) ball striker. My short game and putting are the only reason I remain competitive. I started playing golf when I was 15 years old (kinda late). With my only swing experience before that being baseball I naturally thought I could take the same approach with golf. I was hooked. My parents found an instructor to teach me the basic concept of my first golf swing. To this day, 13 years later, my swing is still haunted by what he told me. "Don't move anything other then your arms and your hands when you swing the club. Lock your knees and bend at the waist." Needless to say, his teaching got rid of my baseball slice and taught me to FLIP. Obviously, that is not the way I still swing. I have learned to be very adapt at faking a good golf swing. I am a good athlete, well balanced, my take away has incredible extension, and my finish looks like the shadow of Ben Hogan himself. BUT IT'S ALL FAKE. In slow motion one can easily see that my hands are golf stupid. I think some times I even unhinge my wrist before my arms reach parallel to the ground. IT IS BAD.
Yesterday I played with our club champion who immediately noticed my flaw. He told me I needed to "twist back", "put the club on the movie screen", "hit from wall to wall". All these things I had never heard of. He told me, "Go to www.brianmanzella.com. Watch his vids on youtube. It might help you." So I am here.
So last night when I got home I watched all 6 episodes. OMG! I soaked this stuff in like a cactus in December. Especially for me episode 5 hit the spot. I loved the idea of the "hands first/club head follows" take away. The whip action like a fisherman casting. And the twist away. At impact, if I got the angles correct, I knew that I was going to slice it if I didn't have a flat left wrist. After reading as much as I could on the forums in one night. I couldn't wait to get out on the range the next day. This morning I started short. Like Brian says, teach yourself the correct impact feel. I started with some chips (maybe 200 balls) rehearsing my backswing after each one. Just trying to get the twist away and whip action down. After that I moved to a full swing. I COULD NOT BELIEVE WHAT I WAS DOING! I felt I was compressing the ball into the ground my 7 iron was flying 170s. My backswing got shorter, my swing became much easier to control and I felt much better tempo. I only had 3 swing thoughts in my mind.
1. Twist away and maintain a flat left wrist (I had heard of this but it was never possible for me to successfully hit a ball like this because my impact angles were so poor)
2. Lag the club head on take away. Continue to lap it all the way until I start my down swing. Just like the 2x4 idea that Mr. Manzella gave in his episode. Click Click Click all the way up. I might have even added some sound effects.
3. Drive the ball into the ground. Or bottom out my swing several inches after the ball.
Those 3 things completely changed my swing. I hit 15 seven irons in a row straight and 165-170. That never has never happened to me. Thank you Mr. Manzella!
Your comments/thoughts are welcome.
