FAO Neil- golf swing advice please.

[theeaglehunter]

Hi Neil, if possible could you give me some useful advice / drills to improve my swing. My fundamental flaw (in my opinion, correct me if I'm wrong) at the moment (as you will no doubt see!) is straightening my right leg on the backswing which I believe to be causing an overswing, however I am trying to solve this using advice other forumers gave me on another thread (any advice / drills you may also have would be much appreciated). The shots I hit in the video were actually very good, a nice small draw (probably about 5 yards of draw thats all) a good high flight and nice soft landing about 155 yards away (with a 7 iron) however I am sure there is lots which can be improved to aid my consistency which is a bit of an issue.

In answer to questions I believe you posted:

Do you have regular coaching at the moment? No, I have had in the past though- I booked and used a series of 6 lessons about a year ago and have had an additional 4 lessons in the late summer / autumn last year as part of a second series, and I have two of these pre paid lessons to use...when I get time! So 10 lessons in total, but not regularly.
What do you consider to be the strengths of your game? My long game, most probably iron play as my woods are fairly inconsistent.
Weaknesses? Short game / putting- the only thing holding back my handicap / scores (well the fact I can't make any qualifying comps as well!)
How often do you play/practise? Once a week on average
What is your scoring average/handicap? Official handicap of 21 which was my first ever handicap achieved late last summer. I currently shoot around 13/14 over par though so this should be lower I just struggle to make qualifying competitions due to work.
Do you keep stats? No, I sometimes record them for a round but don't monitor them over time.
What is your strike/shot/shape pattern for the following clubs
Driver/Tee shots: If my timing is out I slice, if it's good (it's not usually too bad!) I hit a slight draw
Fairway woods: Straight- my 5 wood is probably the most consistent club in the bag! Good off the tee or the deck.
Rescue Clubs: straight / nice draw
Long/medium irons: Pretty straight in general although if I get my hips cleared well enough before the downswing a slight draw, and if I'm slightly delayed in this a slight fade. Never a hook / slice though...well very rarely anyway. There is usually little movement on good strikes so happy days.
Short irons generally: As above

And here is the video itself, there are two swings, two DTL and two face on. I know they are far from perfect so be kind but that is why I wish to improve.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0oB6D_JIpI0

Thanks very much in advance.

 

[NeilPlimmer25]

theeaglehunter

From the belt up, this is a good action
You are correct about your right leg/knee

I would also take a look at the way your hips work during the swing (I think you would find it really useful to video yourself from behind - watching how your hips/back move during the swing)

When you do this you will see that at the top of your swing your right hip is a lot higher than your left
This will cause the problems that you described

Try and feel at the top of your swing try and feel that your right hip remains lower than your left. This will certainly mean that you retain the flex in your right knee aswell.

If your right hip is slightly below your left at the top it will then rotate through in the downswing. Not get stuck in teh downswing as it is at the moment

If you can post that video from behind, just watch your belt line. It will tell you a lot about your lower half motion

Look forward to hearing how you get on

Neil Plimmer

 

[theeaglehunter]

theeaglehunter

From the belt up, this is a good action
You are correct about your right leg/knee

I would also take a look at the way your hips work during the swing (I think you would find it really useful to video yourself from behind - watching how your hips/back move during the swing)

When you do this you will see that at the top of your swing your right hip is a lot higher than your left
This will cause the problems that you described

Try and feel at the top of your swing try and feel that your right hip remains lower than your left. This will certainly mean that you retain the flex in your right knee aswell.

If your right hip is slightly below your left at the top it will then rotate through in the downswing. Not get stuck in teh downswing as it is at the moment

If you can post that video from behind, just watch your belt line. It will tell you a lot about your lower half motion

Look forward to hearing how you get on

Neil Plimmer

Thanks very much for the feedback Neil, the time you devote to the forum now is very much appreciated by myself and I'm sure the others.

I suppose it's a good thing that we are in agreement as to what my main problem is, and I'm glad there is something positive to come out of your analysis in that my upper body movement isn't too bad.

I do now intend to video myself from behind, it is something I have never thought of before but I will give it a go and post the video so you can have a look as well if you wish. I know you said to look out for my right hip being higher than my left, but in terms of "watching how your hips/back move during the swing" I presume it would be worth trying to find a video of a pro from behind as well as a point of comparison?

Anyway hopefully with conquering my right knee/ leg issue better golf will be not too far around the corner. I just had a few practice swings outside and the swing thought of keeping my right hip lower than my left seems like something that is going to be very effective, so hopefully it will work out nicely. I will just have to keep videoing myself as even when practicing today when I thought I had kept my knee flexed, video showed it had straightened a fair bit (not as much as I have been )so I will monitor it closely and report back with how it is all going.

One quick question if I may, is the knee supposed to stay flexed completely?- as in absolutely zero straightening movement if that makes sense. Just to try and get a gauge of the tolerances allowed. If it is perfection I am seeking in keeping it completely flexed then it gives me a really nice target to work towards, I just want to be clear in my mind.

Once again many thanks.