Golf Lessons for the Year
Learned a lot about the golf swing, especially mine, this year. Some of these
- I need to make a wide, full backswing, ie, I have to feel my back is facing the target at the top. My right elbow has to separate from my body.
- Early wrist cock works for me, ie, it helps avoid a slice.
- I am still prone to an outside-in downswing. Keeping the lag (wrist cock) on the downswing and aiming from the inside is a key swing thought to avoid this.
- I already have a good pivot on the forward swing, my problem is that it goes ahead of my arm swing. This tendency to square the clubface with my body shifts my plane to the left of target leading to pulls, loss of spine angle and thin shots. I need to wait until after impact before I make the full turn to face the target.
- Making a proper release at impact is key to clean contact but very hard to accomplish: it begins with a "short thumb" grip, holding the club diagonally across the fingers and the palm, then the release has to be timed perfectly at the moment of impact, not before (fat shots), not after (slice).
- It is critical to keep my spine angle until impact. On shorter clubs specially, I lift my head too early; these clubs are heavier so choking adds control.
- Overdoing all the above could lead to a dipping of the right shoulder instead of a rotation, which means fat shots.
- One simple key thought to summarize everything is to swing through, never decelerate at impact, whether on full swings or controlled pitches.
Those are just for the swing. There are other lessons, including the one about the short game being more important for lower scores. And putting of course, can save the day.
And no matter what, it is stll just a game to be enjoyed. The fun could be more memorable than the score or that miracle shot.
- I need to make a wide, full backswing, ie, I have to feel my back is facing the target at the top. My right elbow has to separate from my body.
- Early wrist cock works for me, ie, it helps avoid a slice.
- I am still prone to an outside-in downswing. Keeping the lag (wrist cock) on the downswing and aiming from the inside is a key swing thought to avoid this.
- I already have a good pivot on the forward swing, my problem is that it goes ahead of my arm swing. This tendency to square the clubface with my body shifts my plane to the left of target leading to pulls, loss of spine angle and thin shots. I need to wait until after impact before I make the full turn to face the target.
- Making a proper release at impact is key to clean contact but very hard to accomplish: it begins with a "short thumb" grip, holding the club diagonally across the fingers and the palm, then the release has to be timed perfectly at the moment of impact, not before (fat shots), not after (slice).
- It is critical to keep my spine angle until impact. On shorter clubs specially, I lift my head too early; these clubs are heavier so choking adds control.
- Overdoing all the above could lead to a dipping of the right shoulder instead of a rotation, which means fat shots.
- One simple key thought to summarize everything is to swing through, never decelerate at impact, whether on full swings or controlled pitches.
Those are just for the swing. There are other lessons, including the one about the short game being more important for lower scores. And putting of course, can save the day.
And no matter what, it is stll just a game to be enjoyed. The fun could be more memorable than the score or that miracle shot.
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