Non Forumers opinion of us

[bladeplayer]

A mate called around last night as i was browsing the forum, was telling him about the goings on & how good it is for advice & bit of craic & the forum meets & get together etc , he was browsing through it then and he liked it but asked me an interesting question , he said with all the advice on here is there anyone actualy qualified , i mentioned how good & how helpful Bob is to us all , he said some people giving advice dont mention their handicaps so how do you know if it a 1 handicapper or a 28 handicapper, so how do you know if it good advice or not .
I said its only peoples opinions on what they think , its not gospel .

Just curious tho , on the advice part do any of ye look for the handicap of the person giving advice & would the handicap have a bearing on how serious you take the advice , i supose he meant if you are a 1-5 handicap how do you view advice given by a higher handicapper ..

I never thought bout it til then , i would be intrested in other peoples views please .

 

[brendy]

Do you have to be a great golfer to be able to coach the theory? A fat guy can still be a personal trainer, he just might not have the same amount of clients.

 

[Monty_Brown]

I do look at handicap etc, but more than that, I judge people on the quality of their other posts and build up a general picture of who I trust and whose opinion I'd discount.

I know a certain amount about the game having played to a decent standard for 20 years, so think I can spot a bluffer...

 

[Monty_Brown]

Do you have to be a great golfer to be able to coach the theory? A fat guy can still be a personal trainer, he just might not have the same amount of clients.

I agree. Other sports as well.. Mourinho was never a player but a good coach, through study and hard work.

Similarly, a lot of the Tour golfers appear in magazines giving their hints and tips, and often the advice they give is wrong... eg ball flight laws. Feel isn't real... they think they know how they hit certain shots, but they are actually doing it another way in reality.

 

[smange]

I think there are 2 or 3 who are probably qualified to give advice, Bob obviously and Jason Dransfield are two that spring to mind initially but i dont think most people are really giving advice as such.

Most of the handicap golfers who comment on someone asking for advice are usually talking from their own experiences with a swing fault or what their pro told them and hoping to help out, i think most people do add "im no pro" or "but what would i know" therefore they not trying to teach or preach, just friendly encouragement.

 

[bladeplayer]

Do you have to be a great golfer to be able to coach the theory? A fat guy can still be a personal trainer, he just might not have the same amount of clients.

I do agree with ya there Brendy & some of the best soccer managers were moderate players .. as i say i personaly take it as people trying to help & giving an honest attempt to help , if you went to get a personal trainer & there was a choice between the fat guy & an athletic guy , which would you likely pick on first impression tho ?? i was kinda wondering you see advice off a person handicap 15 say , a person off 6 gives opposite advice ? which would you be incline to lean twords,

im not trying for a second to say lower handicap = better knowledge , just wondering how others view advice giving the handicap of person giving it ..

 

[One Planer]

I do look at handicap etc, but more than that, I judge people on the quality of their other posts and build up a general picture of who I trust and whose opinion I'd discount.

I know a certain amount about the game having played to a decent standard for 20 years, so think I can spot a bluffer...

Probably true of me as well.




Except the playing to a good standard bit

 

[bobmac]

Obviously I have an interest in this subject and follow the "ask the experts" section closely.

Now from what I see, there are lots of well meaning people all trying to help each other which is great as there are lots of people with a wealth of knowledge on the swing theories.
Sometimes I see some advice being given which I may not agree with.
Is it my place to correct the person giving the advice? Its a tough call sometimes.

To help someone properly you need to know alot of background stuff on the person.
Any health problems
Flexibility
How often do they play/practice?
Short and long term goals
handicap
strengths and weaknesses
ball flight shape
distances
etc etc etc


The only thing I have a problem with is when someone posts a swing and asks for help.
I then see a few well intentioned people just giving a list of faults in the swing.
ie
"I'm no expert but

Your backswing is too flat and too quick
Its accross the line at the top
You then throw it on the outside.
This makes you steep
your shoulders are tilted and not flat
and your footwork is lousy.

Poor Aztec doesn't know what's hit him.

I think there's a big difference between knowing the theory of the swing and being able to list the faults, and actually knowing how to teach it.....Knowing what to fix, what to leave alone, in what order do you change things, how to fix 3 faults with one swing thought etc etc

I also understand when people say you dont have to be good at something to teach it but by gum it helps, especially if your standing on a range and someone asks you to demonstrate a type of shot.

I do love it though when someone off 28 gives advice to someone off 26 because most of the time it's right.

 

[Aztecs27]

ie
"I'm no expert but

Your backswing is too flat and too quick
Its accross the line at the top
You then throw it on the outside.
This makes you steep
your shoulders are tilted and not flat
and your footwork is lousy.

Poor Aztec doesn't know what's hit him.

It's a bit better now I think! I might email you an up to date vid for proof! It's not perfect but a hell of a lot better than it was. And I'm even getting the ball to start right and draw back!

 

[SyR]

I think it depends on the problem you are asking advice for?
The only bit of advice I asked for on the "ask the experts" forum was when I spent the front nine of Meon Valley sh*nking every shot right.
I asked if anyone knew of a quick-fix coping drill that could be used in future rounds if the same thing happened. My feeling at the time was that any handicapper would be able to give some advice and higher handicappers may actually be more experienced of the sh*nks and how to quick-fix them on the course.
For long-term swing adjustments I would only trust a teaching pro.

 

[johnboywalton]

I think we all realise that it is people`s opinion, so apart from Bob and maybe one or two others (which I class as proper advice) I take it for what it is, I have picked up some really good tips on here, and they have not all been from low-handicapers.

 

[Mattyboy]

For me, pros teach a rather stereotypical way of playing golf. I have had lessons and my HCP came down (although I am not convined it came down because I had lessons!).
What works for one might not work for another. Therefore the suggestions should be considered by the recipient and not necessarily implemented.
A 28 HCP might make a suggestion that can help a low HCP player IMO.

 

[DaveM]

If there is one thing I hate is commenting on someones swing. As often you can see something wrong. But can never be sure on the why is it wrong bit. I must admit I tend to tell people to check their grip, stance, posture, setup. As I feel most faults are caused by something wrong in one or the other of them. Plus you are not saying anything that might make it worse I hope. But if Bob has already had his say, I would not disagree with him. As he has most likely forgotten more than I will ever known(creep,creep)

 

[Robobum]

H'cap is pretty irrelevant to me in this section. If the post is good and relevant then it has my attention. I'm very un technical about the swing anyway - mine is shonky enough but I trust enough to get back to the ball to set it off where i intend (mostly).

What I do find interesting is the way people view the game, regardless of h'cap. The objective for all of us is the same ( ball/ hole - asap!!) but the varied opinions of how best to go about that are really interesting for me.

 

[Phil2511]

I gave advice to a guy off 2.9hcap on Saturday. It went something like its hard for me to believe but your chipping is actually worse than your putting. Get yourself a Veasy and showed him a video and he asked for the link. He said he was gonna buy it. Dunno if he has yet will find out this weekend lol

 

[Piece]

I think there's a big difference between knowing the theory of the swing and being able to list the faults, and actually knowing how to teach it.....Knowing what to fix, what to leave alone, in what order do you change things, how to fix 3 faults with one swing thought etc etc

100% agree. Everyone has an opinion on what is wrong with a swing. Very few can offer a solution or fix, and even fewer can offer the right solution.

 

[daymond]

Generally there is very little genuine advice given. The replies are usually of the "you may be doing x or y but go and see a pro to try and sort it out".

 

[Captainron]

I coach two young players and am seeing improvement in them all the time. My sons might actually take up the game properly when they turn 6 but I will have to wait....Does that count?

 

[JustOne]

Interesting question, one thing that I cannot abide is the new forum ranking names... eg: the 3 posts above this one; Piece is a challenge tour pro, Daymond is a head pro & Captainron is an assistant pro... it worries me to think outsiders read stuff and instantly believe it.

I'm not entirely sure of a politically correct answer but for as long as the game has been played everyone of all levels think they know best.

With regards to my own posts you know I've learned not to really care if anyone believes what I say or not, you can all carry on loading into the right side and rolling those wrists if you want, it's your game not mine. Hopefully my posts will make people QUESTION what they've been told, misconception and myth are rife within golf instruction and interpretation thereof. Professional teaching has been misled/misguided and INCORRECT for 50 years or more (even the Titleist TPI video posted earlier in another thread shows that)... so where does that leave you?

There is a new breed of golf instruction and it's based on technology, not myth.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Interesting thread. I trust Bob and Jason implicity. Others like James, Brendy etc I read and respect because of their level of ability (and having met James and seen S&T explained in simple terms) and there are a few other single figure guys as well that I wouldn't dismiis advice from out of hand.

I know (from experience) what Bob is saying about comments on videos. I put one up not long ago after my first lesson with my new teaching pro. I took the time to explain what I was trying to do and why and that there were plenty of inherent faults in there (head moving and loss of spine angle etc) and yet they were the areas they focussed on and not the better turn and much better strike position at impact.

It does make me reluctant to bother posting my swing anymore and I'm sure others feel the same and I guess thats a pity, not so much for myself (I'm use to having it ripped apart on here - sometime rightly, other times.....) but for newbies who really just want a few drills or pointers and suddenly have it dissected frame by frame, usually by people no better themselves.

I do agree with Bob (no really) that the new user names really could give visitors the wrong impressions especially if they came on looking for swing advice