Some honest opinions if its possible...........Pleeeease...

[kid2]

Ok today i drew the line its time to get with the programme...

I need a little insight and guidance as to what road to take...

My game has got so inconsistent that i make Mr. P.Harrington look good
As you can see the humour is still on the happy side with me but if it were not for my grittyness and my scrambling ability and my shear stubborness to throw in the towel i think that i would have walked away from this game 2 months ago...

Here is my story.I hit my woods and my hybrids with a fairly straight flight and maybe a touch of fade and very consistently off the tee.Driver is too erratic at the best of times.

My irons from my 6,7,8,9 irons when I set up square to my target i can hit only straight or with a fade off the turf...But when I set up square with these off a tee I hit them with a slight draw

4 and 5 irons off a tee are straightish or slightly left to right also.

Woods off the turf are usually the same as they are off a tee.Straightish or with a slight fade.

I'm not even going to go into this mornings round as I was all over the course.

Lessons are a big no,no as the funds just are not there now with so much renovating to do around the house.

Bad shot with the longer clubs is a bad slice if I'm too fast and I hook them when I feel like I slow down.

Where do I begin?
I would give anything to be able to stand over a shot and pick my target and be at least some bit confident that I'm heading towards it..When I'm over the ball I'm always positive.

 

[timgolfy]

The most important thing I've learned:
Connect your arms to your body.

At any point of the swing, if my hands are directly in front of my chest then I'll have much greater consistency. When the arms separate from the body the swing becomes uncoordinated and weak. Look on the range and see how many people swing with their arms and not their chest. It's what makes the pros look so smooth and effortless.

 

[bobmac]

What's your grip like?

 

[kid2]

Just looking at it there on a 7 iron Bob its probably bordering a little on the strong side id say..I can see 2 1/2 to 3 knuckles on the left hand and the V's between the thumb and index finger are pointing at my right shoulder..

The thumb on my left hand is also short and left of centre and I grip in the fingers rather than my palm......

Its the best description I can give you without a picture. Sorry

 

[bobmac]

Thought so
Out to in swing, strong grip, always gives hooks and slices.
Weaken your grip and you'll stop the hooks and try and improve the swing path to reduce the slice.
At least by weakening the grip, you wont have to worry about the OOB left

 

[kid2]

Cheers Bob....
Im playing again on Thursday and ill give that a whack.
Would the grip i have at the moment be contributing to the slight draw flight with the mid and short irons then?

Iv been fiddling a bit at set up lately with my weight at address getting it more centered...It feels like im attacking the inside of the ball rather than cutting across it. I just hope that im not getting a false sense of security because of the grip.

 

[G1BB0]

you sound like me kid2, I have a fade/slice (especially with longer irons and hybrids and even worse with driver) and checking the bottom of my club its a definite out to in swing path. ALso coming in to steep can make it worse. Trying to correct it tho is a bloody nightmare!!!

Any tips for correcting the swing path Bob (for kid2 and then myself )

 

[Karl102]

How's your alignment? When I have to aim left, my swing path used to change! Your not alone! Keep at it!!!

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Why not try a few range sessions with Bob M's patented head cover drill to try and improve the swing path and work on tempo. I find if I get tense or quick I get quick. If I can slow my swing to a blur I get much more control rather than quick duck hooks. It's about giving yourself time to make a good turn and then come back properly. When I get to quick and my swing is breaking sound barriers there is no time to change from the back to the down swing and it goes to pot. One thing I'm learnign from wathcing the pros and some of the better players on here at forum days is how much time they seem to have in their swing

 

[bobmac]

Why not try a few range sessions with Bob M's patented head cover drill

You mean this one?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KsrovFJ3o9I

 

[chris661]

I find if I get tense or quick I get quick.

Is that not normal when you get quick?

 

[Alex1975]

Hey buddy,

The OP smacks of you being upset with your ball flight rather than your score, an easy trap for addicts like you and I to fall into. I am playing the rest of this year without and practice or lessons and going with what I have on the day. I want to focus my mind on the day and not leak it out over the week.

I have only taken this mind set on in the last week to ten days and the very short turm report is alot more birdies and a few more doubles. I want to have fun, I know more about the golf swing, equipment and anything elce than most single handicappers, I have all the information I need. I need to stop talking on information and enjoy my game, focus at the right time over the right thing and not get worked up about my flight.

on 15 yesterday I hit my driver so hard and started it so left that most people would have thought it dead, it flew out way over the out of bounds markers and then back in to the center of the fairway, even with all that fade it was long enough to play a 50* wedge to the pin... I made birdie.

Just get the little white ball to the hole for a while and work on the shape in the winter if it still bothers you.


I am sure we have had this conversation in reverse!??

 

[kid2]

Thanks for all the replies Gents.

Al,
Cheers for the reply im gonna give Bob's analyses a go first and see what transpires...
Im ok playing with a fade flight when i can control it but recently as Bob has suggested i seem to be creeping towards the strong side on the grip....

If i can get it back slightly towards neutral and get my soft fade back ill be happy then....

As you've said i think we have had that conversation in reverse at some stage.


Also the scores are very erratic as you can guess when im not entirely sure where the ball wants to start

 

[bobmac]

If you groove the fade, you'll at least know where to aim the dam thing.

 

[Region3]

checking the bottom of my club its a definite out to in swing path

How can you tell from looking at the bottom of the club?

 

[kid2]

If you groove the fade, you'll at least know where to aim the dam thing.

Thats the plan anyway Bob.....Hopefully
Ill keep you updated.

 

[G1BB0]

there's sometimes a strike mark, like a skid mark of mud or grass on the sole of the club

 

[kid2]

there's sometimes a strike mark, like a skid mark of mud or grass on the sole of the club

I think what Region is trying to get at is that its pretty hard to tell where your swing path is coming from just by what you see on the sole of the club mate...

Divots that point left of your target and the ball flight left to right are definate tell tales....

Also with this type of path its a very steep attack into the ball which produces deep divots that for the most part are toe deep....

Marks on the sole alone wont tell you the above.

 

[G1BB0]

oh I know that but I dont always take a divot (too much hitting off mats!!!!)) so that is the other pointer I use (or my mate points out as I dont even think to check)

I know theres a whole host of pointers/reasons was just stating a few I already knew from observations by others more knowledgeable

 

[Region3]

As Kid2 said, my point is that a white mark (from a tee) angling across the bottom of the club could equally be made by an out-to-in path, or a perfect swing path with an open face.