Whee
Challenge Tour Pro
Turned up at the club last night for my first lesson, just hoping to get some confidence back with my irons. I knew my swing was, errm, tonk... but would be easy enough for the pro to improve, as i've not been playing long.
The pro put my lob wedge in my hand and said "show me your swing, float one into that green" pointing to the flag about 50 yards away.
No bother, I think to myself, as I address the ball normally, begin my back swing, and get the club through the ball. I know the minute I make contact it's going to be embarrassing. I thin the ball shockingly and the ball flies at a height of about 10 foot - right over the green and comes to a stop about 20 yards further on.
The pro doesn't look impressed, he can tell this is going to be a long hour.
"Relax, just take your time, feel the rhythm!" he encourages. My swing rhythm is comparible to a Girls Aloud single at the best of times. God awful.
I thin another over the green, I top one 10 yards, i'm having a mare!
He stops me at the top of my backswing, stands infront of me and gently pushes me in the chest. I topple backwards.
He puts me out of my misery and gives me a training club with a fixed grip handle, while explaining to me that's how he wants to see my hands on my club. He shows me the correct bend in the knees. The weight of this club is about 5 kilo's and he gets me to half swing back and forth. It's brilliant, i'm feeling the rhythm!
He puts my lob wedge back in my hand, getting me to grip correctly, ensuring I can see my left index finger knuckle. It was particularly uncomfortable at first, but I know i've got to stick with it.
His method was top quality. He showed how much sronger my forearms were with the proper grip, and how much less work I actually had to do with my arms to make clean contact with the ball.
There was also a club with a hinged shaft, which folded if the back swing wasn't smooth enough. That was a frustrating 5 minutes getting my head around that.
Another little drill he gave me was to show how much the club can do - addressing the ball with an 8 iron, feet together, swinging knee height on the back swing and knee height on the way through - I was hitting it little over 100 yards with just that swing. It was a brilliant drill to help me understand how much work the club actually does.
A top quality, fair-priced hour, which has increased my understanding of the swing and wrist action - also the importance of the grip. I am looking forward to my golf improving. I imagine i'll get worse (a lot worse) before I get better, but having the confidence and getting some enjoyment back are the most important things.
I'm banging out of work at lunch today, heading down to the course, and thrashing out a quick 18 - at least the sun's shining nicely!
The pro put my lob wedge in my hand and said "show me your swing, float one into that green" pointing to the flag about 50 yards away.
No bother, I think to myself, as I address the ball normally, begin my back swing, and get the club through the ball. I know the minute I make contact it's going to be embarrassing. I thin the ball shockingly and the ball flies at a height of about 10 foot - right over the green and comes to a stop about 20 yards further on.
The pro doesn't look impressed, he can tell this is going to be a long hour.
"Relax, just take your time, feel the rhythm!" he encourages. My swing rhythm is comparible to a Girls Aloud single at the best of times. God awful.
I thin another over the green, I top one 10 yards, i'm having a mare!
He stops me at the top of my backswing, stands infront of me and gently pushes me in the chest. I topple backwards.
He puts me out of my misery and gives me a training club with a fixed grip handle, while explaining to me that's how he wants to see my hands on my club. He shows me the correct bend in the knees. The weight of this club is about 5 kilo's and he gets me to half swing back and forth. It's brilliant, i'm feeling the rhythm!
He puts my lob wedge back in my hand, getting me to grip correctly, ensuring I can see my left index finger knuckle. It was particularly uncomfortable at first, but I know i've got to stick with it.
His method was top quality. He showed how much sronger my forearms were with the proper grip, and how much less work I actually had to do with my arms to make clean contact with the ball.
There was also a club with a hinged shaft, which folded if the back swing wasn't smooth enough. That was a frustrating 5 minutes getting my head around that.
Another little drill he gave me was to show how much the club can do - addressing the ball with an 8 iron, feet together, swinging knee height on the back swing and knee height on the way through - I was hitting it little over 100 yards with just that swing. It was a brilliant drill to help me understand how much work the club actually does.
A top quality, fair-priced hour, which has increased my understanding of the swing and wrist action - also the importance of the grip. I am looking forward to my golf improving. I imagine i'll get worse (a lot worse) before I get better, but having the confidence and getting some enjoyment back are the most important things.
I'm banging out of work at lunch today, heading down to the course, and thrashing out a quick 18 - at least the sun's shining nicely!
