Losing everything right!

[One Planer]

Makes a change from dragging it left

Over the last month or so I've been working on starting my downswing from the ground up as opposed to starting from the top down. Since then, everything from a driver down to a wedge I'm hitting, what appears, to be a block to the right.

There's no shape to the shot, just straight right.

I've also noticed that my divots have gone from pointing fractionally left of target to now pointing significantly right of target. My divots are also much, much shallower than they used to be.

My ball positions haven't changed. I still play a wedge to short iron fraction forward of centre, mid irons a ball forward etc.

If it were just with wedges, or just with a driver, I could understand it being something basic like ball position for example, but the fact it runs right through the bag suggests an underlying issue.

Can anybody suggest what I may be doing to cause this?

 

[brendy]

Eek, suffered this for a couple of years. During my lessons I was told that my plane was well off and needed to feel that the butt of the club was pointing at the ball at some point on my downswing. I dont miss any right now (fixed the shanks too) but do have the odd hook now. I think for me it just needs to bed in and get the timing better and itll be grand. Have you been to a pro recently about it?

 

[bobmac]

Stiff or regular shafts ?

 

[the_coach]

likely getting a little ways stuck arms/club too far behind you.

perhaps sliding a little ways too much laterally left at transition start. arms club get stuck behind right elbow behind the right hip some. makes you come in from the inside a little ways too much swinging out to the right, which is also very shallow, makes you chase the right arm a ways out through to impact, the clubface angle square to path so straight block/push right.

still need to start from the lower side but feel the weight more downwards into the left foot triggers the downswing (so the hips don't go too far laterally left first off) left hip needs to turn left & clear the arms/club stay more in front of the body coming down, right elbow can get more in front of the right hip (not behind it) feel the upper left arm stays more connected to the chest coming down into & through impact.

 

[One Planer]

Stiff or regular shafts ?

Regular in the irons and fairway. Stiff in the driver Bob.

 

[Foxholer]

I'd pick that your hips are ending up ahead of where they should be, either by too much movement at the start of the downswing or by your brain continuing to think/insist that you move them forward during the late downswing - 'cause that's what you used to need to do! You also may simply be moving them rather than move-and-cleat them too.

Re-sequencing is quite a long process and easy to slip back into old habits.

 

[bobmac]

Regular in the irons and fairway. Stiff in the driver Bob.

Not the shafts then.

Place a tee in the ground a foot in front of the ball in line with your target and try and hit it after the ball

 

[garyinderry]

Sounds lole you are dropping it way inside and swinging out to the right. Change that swing path. What bob is saying s to concentrate on your exit point. Swing towards that tee in front of the ball. Mark crossfield talks about exit point quite a bit. It gives you a single thing to focus on and lets your body make the changes itself to get the desired swing path change.

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

Any chance you can post a video?

 

[Maninblack4612]

I love the way people ask for advice without posting a video of their swing. It could be one of 100 things. Easy to explain that the club is coming into the ball from the inside with face square to swingpath, but why is another matter.

I'm going to go one better and say that I have a regular miss which is bothering me but I'm not going to say what it is but I'd like some advice on how to put it right. Any offers?

Seriously Gareth, please excuse the lighthearted comment, if you could get someone to take a video and post it you'd be inundated with advice. People on here are very helpful.

I have this fault and, without seeing your swing, it's possible that the downswing is shallower than the backswing, causing the club to slip onto the inside. I use Jim Hardy's book "Solid Contact" which has a novel approach to correcting faults. What he says is that, for example, if you're too shallow coming down you need to incorporate a steepening move into the backswing or, preferably, the downswing. Sounds a bit like correcting a fault with another fault but what it does is keep you as near to your natural swing as possible which I think, personally, is a good thing. Worth a read, as is his other book " The Plane Truth"

 

[Maninblack4612]

Not the shafts then.

Place a tee in the ground a foot in front of the ball in line with your target and try and hit it after the ball

Depending on the kind of swing he's got this could be the last thing he should do & could result in a vicious hook.

 

[bobmac]

Depending on the kind of swing he's got this could be the last thing he should do & could result in a vicious hook.

From the info provided, I assume the swing path is in to out with the face square to the path.
To check if thats the case I suggested the above drill with the tee.
If he misses the tee on the outside, that would confirm the swing path is indeed in to out and face square to that path. (divots pointing right)
If Gareth makes some swings in such a way that he does hit the tee and his clubface is still square to the path, i would bet the ball will fly straighter.
But as you say, without a video, it's till just an educated guess.
I am however confused how a neutral swing path with a face square to the path can cause a 'vicious hook' or have I missed something?

 

[Maninblack4612]

I am however confused how a neutral swing path with a face square to the path can cause a 'vicious hook' or have I missed something?

It's just my personal experience. I swing with shoulders and arms on the same plane ("One Plane" swing). In this swing the club goes back well behind the body and comes back onto the inside immediately after impact. My One Plane instructor was always saying "swing left, swing left" Any attempt to swing down the line for me just flipped the clubface closed and resulted in a snap hook. Not the same result with an upright "handsy" "Two Plane" swing, where the club is swung much more out in front of the body. That's why it's positively dangerous to give advice when you haven't seen the swing. Much more important to understand what the clubface & swingpath are doing in the impact zone.

 

[bobmac]

Whatever.
Cant be bothered argueing.

 

[the_coach]

although it's true that it's always better to first be with a PGA Pro having your swing fixed for the better.

if not possible, then as a fall back, sending a vid a dtl swing from directly behind the handpath at hip height, plus a similar height view point from face on at center, both preferable on a tripod so rock still, both views also showing the clubhead atop of swing. plus a good description of the ball flight of said strikes plus a good description of the issues giving the golfer problems, to a PGA pro, or someone who understands through study the golf motion, the physics of the swing/club/face angle/ball, bio mechanics, kinetic chain, sequence of the motion etc.

but if none of the above possible, if the ball flight faults are described reliably & these are occurring a high percentage of the time, through a sound knowledge of both the physics of the ball flight & the physics of the golf swing sequence, the physics of how the club can move, plus physics of impact, club face on ball.
it's eminently possible to give some good guidance as to the sort of things a golfer having issues with any of the above should be looking into & in what order to get their game, swing, shot outcomes in a deal better shape than the problems they are currently experiencing issues with that have led them to seek help through a question.
there are not 100's of ways this particular or indeed other issues occur, they will form definite pattern, they have to, through the laws that govern movement, impact & ball flight.

advice to get the swing on a better neutral plane with a squarer face through impact, through introducing a physical object/s to either try to hit, or avoid, especially if offered by someone who knows a 'thing, & more' about the game should definitely warrant some healthy consideration to my way of thinking anyways.

 

[Maninblack4612]

Whatever.
Cant be bothered argueing.

"Argue"? Discuss I would have said.

 

[JustOne]

IMO your shoulders are aiming to the right and/or you are allowing the club to go behind you too quick in the backswing.

 

[One Planer]

IMO your shoulders are aiming to the right and/or you are allowing the club to go behind you too quick in the backswing.

You are correct.

Bobs drill helped massively to identify what the club was doing through the ball.

I've my winter changes starting in 2 weeks under the eye of my pro. Hopefully a thing of the last now.

Thanks all for your input :thup: