Less effort, maximum gain

[dazzio78]

After a few weeks of really struggling with my swing, to the extent where I was really struggling to get the ball airborne, I had a lesson with my pro on Saturday.

First thing we did was go on the range and hit a few balls off the grass whilst he filmed me in action....hit four balls and every single one of them stayed extremely low and went sharp right We went back inside and loaded the footage on to his laptop and reviewed my swing. The results were shocking....weight transfer issues, club going off plane, club head in front of hands, hips sliding...you name it, it was in there.

We went back to basics i.e grip, stance, posture....all things I'm well aware of, and the results improved. Then focused on weight transfer and again the results got better. However, the biggest improvement came when he told me to completely relax as there was so much tension in my arms and hands. He told me to let the club rest in my hands and let my arms almost feel limp, but with just enough pressure to hold on to the club. The results were mind blowing...ball flight, direction, distance...everything was just so much better. I turned to the pro and told him I couldn't believe the difference, and his reply was "less effort, maximum gain"...and he was spot on!

I went down the range on Monday to put all of this into practice and left there feeling really happy and confident. Went to the group lesson yesterday and he made a slight adjustment to my swing, and yet again the results have already improved.

I know there is still a lot more work to be done, but at the moment I am just happy to be able to swing the club with a lot more confidence that I'll strike the ball cleanly and get it to travel a reasonable distance and go roughly where I want it to.

Got a playing lesson on Friday so hoping to see some more improvement

 

[Alex1975]

Great stuff, I have been thought this, not as extreme but I know how you felt.

For sure the harder I go at it the more tense I get and the more likely I will commit a sin of some kind.

 

[Rooter]

Its awesome when things start to click! keep it up!

 

[andrew_mac]

I have similar issues and often tense up before a lesson or on the first few holes of a round. Last week I din't seem to relax until after the 7th which is way too long and this is something I need to work on.

 

[big_eck]

i was watching videos on youtube and one i found told me to hum while playing a tee shot, tried it and hit the best drives yet, it keeps me relaxed and less tense and instead of hitting the ball im now playing through it and letting the club do the work

 

[spawn_ukuk]

Theres many videos that say if you tense up your arms they wont straighten enough causing none center strikes,
Take full swings and try to make the club feel heavy will help you relax and keep those arms straight at impact, it makes all the difference

 

[StrangelyBrown]

I was struggling for a bit too. The pro I'm taking lessons from currently could see that I was OTT, but my fundamentals (grip/stance/posture) were good.

All he did was to put a tee down just inside the target line and said to me "on the downswing, try to bring the club in over that line".

I did. I'm crushing them... I've been searching for a way to bring the club back to the ball from the inside for many years, he sorted it in about 20 minutes.

Good luck with your playing lesson OP

 

[DaveyG]

This is a really interesting thread and something I am struggling with at the moment...

It is so hard to slow yourself down I find, just reading these posts though makes me want to hit myself because everything I told myself to always remember when I was playing well last time I have clearly forgot!

I think the better you are playing the quicker you get and more powerful so when you are sliding back down a peak it is hard to think you are doing anything different...

Lesson tonight and I am going to ask the pro about all of this...

I am also going to try warming up with a swing as soft and with as much tension as my Nan would probably swing the club...

 

[dazzio78]

Had a quick round on the Par 3 course and actually walked off it without feeling down about how I played. First tee, all relaxed and boom, right on the green about 6ft from the pin....sadly only managed a par! Anyway, all tee shots got airbourne and went in the direction I wanted them to go (alignment and pre-shot routine is something I've been working on as well).

At the moment I'm in a happy golfing place, unlike Homer