Hitting across the face - how hard can it be??

[pendodave]

Had a lesson with the big dog today and had some face tape on to monitor strike.

Got some in the middle, bad ones were heel and low. However hard I tried, I couldn't get it off the toe. How hard can it be??. My subconscious just wouldn't let me do it - just ended up pushing my hands out if I had it further away.

Have seen a few vids advocating strike management as a good skill to practice. Anyone had any success with it?

 

[TreeSeeker]

I had such a similar lesson today. I hit only the heel and high, with barely any dispersion in my strike pattern. moved further away and exactly the same time and time again. Its part of working on getting my takeaway in a better position, so that I can come at the ball from a better path, pro seemed pretty confident that improving my path was the first target before worrying about the strike location too much.

 

[the_coach]

Had a lesson with the big dog today and had some face tape on to monitor strike.

Got some in the middle, bad ones were heel and low. However hard I tried, I couldn't get it off the toe. How hard can it be??. My subconscious just wouldn't let me do it - just ended up pushing my hands out if I had it further away.

Have seen a few vids advocating strike management as a good skill to practice. Anyone had any success with it?

get that many folks have trouble controlling strike location

most often anyone that has real bad issues with heel strikes will have a swing path that's out to in & an AOA that's down - again usually that's down to issues with swing sequence & often times also weight pressure transfer issues - meaning the hands arms shoulders are moving first in transition - & again that's a whole bunch to do with the 'hit' instinct

you don't really want to be trying to 'hit heel side center or toe side' by changing the distance you are aways from the ball at set-up (that appears to be what you might have been doing to try to hit toe side from the highlighted phrase above)
training hand eye co-ordination by taking multiples of 3 balls & deliberately trying to hit heel side center toe side is a great drill but one that needs to be done from a good consistent set-up position - not by varying the distance you stand from the ball

if you think about it assuming a good set-up & ball position the hands will be a certain distance aways from the body & the body posture will have a certain amount of forwards bend from the hips - so in order to have more centered strikes looking at it i a simplified manner - the hands at strike better not be in a too dissimilar distance aways from the body nor a good ways to higher up nor the body having straightened up a ways too much before strike

neat trick to help sequence meaning stopping hitting with the upper body arms starting transition - is to just imagine - that wherever the hands & handle are at the top of your swing - picture them on a shelf
then at transition you have to leave the hands & handle up on that shelf while you transfer weight pressure to the lead leg -

guy you will see do this most clearly on tour is hideki matsuyama sure he's not trying to do that but you'll see his hands stay up on that 'shelf' while his lower body transfers weight pressure first off at transition - so the appearance of that 'pause'

generally have found it hard for folks to build a 'pause' at the top & have had more success in getting better swing motion sequences by the thought of leaving 'the hands up on the shelf'

better the sequence better the management of the distance & height between the hands from the body at strike the easier it is to have more centered strike location - if you can manage those things the better you can change path & AOA & change strike