Keep your eye on the stupid ball!

[delc]

I had a really bad session on the range on Saturday, hitting shanks, fat shots, thin shots, snap hooks and wild slices, intersperced with the occasional good shot for no apparent good reason. It was only when I only when I was down to 3 balls left that I realised that I was taking my eye off the ball somewhere in the back swing. After playing golf for 54 years, I should know by now that if I take my eye off the ball for even a millisecond I will hit a bad shot. Made an effort to keep my eye on the ball and hit the last three balls pretty perfectly. Then went out on the course and played quite well.

 

[CMAC]

I had a really bad session on the range on Saturday, hitting shanks, fat shots, thin shots, snap hooks and wild slices, intersperced with the occasional good shot for no apparent good reason. It was only when I only when I was down to 3 balls left that I realised that I was taking my eye off the ball somewhere in the back swing. After playing golf for 54 years, I should know by now that if I take my eye off the ball for even a millisecond I will hit a bad shot. Made an effort to keep my eye on the ball and hit the last three balls pretty perfectly. Then went out on the course and played quite well.

as you 'mature' it's very easy to start a sway on the takeaway as the big turning muscles aint what they used to be- this leads to head moving, low point changing and all manner of bad shots...as you had. Staying as still as you can for the first few feet of takeaway works wonders especially for us silver golfers

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Thought this was going to be about watching where shots went.

A few weeks back I was out with a couple of ladies from our academy. They were full of awe at my ability to find their golf balls in the rough and - being newbies to the game - asked in wonder how I did it. I said I just watched where the ball went then walked to it (I had plenty of practice that day). They looked at me as if I had just imparted words of magnificent and mysterious wisdom that they could never have imagined themselves

 

[ScienceBoy]

Sounds like a classic sway.

Cure is to hit half 5 irons going from 3 to 9, focussing on just making a correct turn and return to the ball.

That tip pretty much fixes my sway whenever it creeps in.

 

[delc]

Thought this was going to be about watching where shots went.

A few weeks back I was out with a couple of ladies from our academy. They were full of awe at my ability to find their golf balls in the rough and - being newbies to the game - asked in wonder how I did it. I said I just watched where the ball went then walked to it (I had plenty of practice that day). They looked at me as if I had just imparted words of magnificent and mysterious wisdom that they could never have imagined themselves

Looking where the ball has gone before you actually make contact with it is a classic cause of bad shots. I try to follow the flight of my ball as I turn through the shot into my follow through and generally succeed, but I occasionally loose sight of it if I am looking into sun, or if the ball goes off in an unexpected direction or trajectory. It helps if your playing companions also watch the flight of your ball, and you watch theirs.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Big difference between keeping an eye on the ball and keeping your head down. The latter being poor advice as it stops the body working and rotating properly.

 

[Maninblack4612]

I think the effect you got was to keep the head steady. I have a permanently stiff neck and if I'm not careful my head waves about all over the place. If I concentrate, I can minimise the movement.

 

[SocketRocket]

In my case its about keeping my head behind the ball at impact. Once I start moving forward of the ball in the downswing I am toast.

 

[nta73]

my biggest fault this, the difference in the shot is chalk and cheese! eyes on the ball and i will make nice true contact and all is well but can i do that every time....not a chance! as already said my main problem at the mo! nothing rocket science but getting myself to do it, well.........:angry:

 

[delc]

I think the effect you got was to keep the head steady. I have a permanently stiff neck and if I'm not careful my head waves about all over the place. If I concentrate, I can minimise the movement.

At my former club we had a junior with some sort of a congenital condition that gave him a really stiff neck. In fact he couldn't turn his head independently of his shoulders. To make a golf swing he just turned his head and shoulders in one piece, so he appeared to be looking backwards down the line at the top of his backswing and couldn't possibly have kept his eyes on the ball. Despite this he was quite a good little golfer. I suppose that he somehow managed to keep his head relatively still despite all the rotation! :mmm: