Falling into bad old habits

[John_Findlay]

We all do it. I did it yesterday and so did my pal.....forgetting how to play a shot properly.

I was flubbing every 2nd chip yesterday and it was doing my head in.

Only realised this morning (after looking at my lessons records on Scoresaver) that I had probably been leaning down into the ball too much. A lesson from months ago had sorted it simply by raising my left shoulder higher at address. Why did I forget that yesterday?

My friend was missing the fairway right all day. HUGE slices. Eventually I told him he was picking the club up like an axe on the backswing. Sweep it, low and slow back! He proceeded to outdrive me for the rest of the round. He had forgotten he had been driving well by doing this for the last 3 rounds.

Does anyone else "forget" how to swing sometimes and revert to those bad old habits automatically?

 

[RGuk]

I don't often go back to old habits, but I have this random thing that happens to me towards the end of rounds...I have a tendency to over-do moving my weight onto my back foot, then being unable to get back and hitting a tasty fat one. I know I'm going to do it as I'm tiring (getting lazy) but knowing it's going to come and stopping it seems unconnected.

 

[HTL]

All the time mate, I often go down the range after work to de-stress pull out the driver and tonk some balls before I work on technique, before I know it im coming over the top and not rotating my wrists. AAAHHH!!!!

 

[theeaglehunter]

Yep, when out on the course I quite often just stop doing something I have been taught, and it usually takes a substantial range session to work out the problem. It is all to do with mental concentration for me, I just forget about a particular thought and it all goes wrong.

 

[AliB]

Yeh, all the time.
My main faults are dropping my left shoulder or bringing my arms through before my body. I work on them both, but then move on to some other swing thought or lesson, and forget the basics. Always worse when tired or under pressure.
Have also worked out why I couldn't chip on Friday - pity I couldn't see it at the time!

AliB

 

[The23rdman]

I don't often go back to old habits, but I have this random thing that happens to me towards the end of rounds...I have a tendency to over-do moving my weight onto my back foot, then being unable to get back and hitting a tasty fat one. I know I'm going to do it as I'm tiring (getting lazy) but knowing it's going to come and stopping it seems unconnected.

It may be a bit of a quick fix, but if this happens regularly you could try playing some shots with a little more weight on your left side at set-up and shift it less. Obviously depending on the type of swing you have and how many planes you swing on.

 

[TonyN]

Very guilty of this at times.

When i start to play a few bad shots, get tired i feel like i dont know how to set up or swing the club. My arms feel like Mr Tickle from Mr Men.

 

[RGuk]

It may be a bit of a quick fix, but if this happens regularly you could try playing some shots with a little more weight on your left side at set-up and shift it less.

I've been trying to "remember" to beware of the problem.....but it never works......it's been so bad on a few occasions (not these days, thankfully) that I would appear to have completely forgotten to how to play. Maybe you reminding me not to shift will "pop" into my brain coming down the 14th next week!

 

[RGuk]

When i start to play a few bad shots, get tired i feel like i dont know how to set up or swing the club. My arms feel like Mr Tickle from Mr Men.

That's it! Isn't it odd?

 

[HomerJSimpson]

I have has a tendency to swing my arms inside really quickly which means the only way back to the ball is to come over the the top. My pro had got me sorted keeping my lower half quiet (my knees were also really active) and swing as though I was taking it away outside (in fact all I was doing was taking back wide).

It was working well until a few weeks. I was focussing so much on swinging wide that I was taking it too far back and effectively sliding my weight across. The result was poor weight shift and loss of distance and high cut shots.

Only found out yesterday after a measly 26 points that I had gone too far in focussing on going back wide after chatting with my pro. Have got a lesson booked for Wednesday afternoon (thank you NHS flexi time!) and so we can go back over thr process again.

 

[Deleted member 1147]

I often find that I can't get comfy at address. I seem to forget where I should be standing and have trouble getting square to target.

I'm lost with my 3 wood at present, keep putting the ball to far back in my stance and trying to hit down on the ball, like with an iron, rather than sweeping it off the turf.

 

[TonyN]

I think one of the worst things is a bumpy tee.

Ever have one of those tees were no matter where ya tee it up, one foot is higher than the other or its bumpy, slippy, ball below feet, ball above feet etc.

You know your not settled but yet you play anyway, duff ya shot then curse ya self for not setting up again.