Starting the downswing

[CrapHacker]

I'm having trouble with my transistion from the backswing to the downswing.

When you are practising, what's the thought you have about the transition ?

Is it planting the left foot ?

Or getting yout right hip through the ball ?

Or getting your chest past the target line ?

Or what ?

It's beginning to drive me mmad.

 

[Parmo]

usually "Please god let this go straight"

 

[Smiffy]

No conscious thoughts...it just happens.
Doesn't always work, but I just try to think positive thoughts about playing my next shot from the middle of the fairway....

 

[Doh]

I just have one thought now when i'm at the top of my back swing and that is TURN and to me that means i turn everything from my feet up through to a balanced finish.

It works for me most of the time.

The other thing that helped me was making sure i completed my backswing.

 

[ADB]

I just concentrate on not dipping my head at the start of the downswing as this movement tends to result in either a hook or push/slice.

 

[jammydodger]

I've never thought about it tbh , it just happens , the club goes back and then it goes forward. Most of the time it goes fine , occasionally it doesnt...shrugs

 

[Golfmmad]

I'm having trouble with my transistion from the backswing to the downswing.

When you are practising, what's the thought you have about the transition ?

Is it planting the left foot ?

Or getting yout right hip through the ball ?

Or getting your chest past the target line ?

Or what ?

It's beginning to drive me mmad.

Just think, pause, at top of backswing for a smoooooth transition! It works sometimes,when I remember

Golfmmad.

 

[birdieman]

Just think SLOW.

If you take the club back slowly you're transition will be fine.

 

[PeterPumpkinEater]

I'm having trouble with my transistion from the backswing to the downswing.

When you are practising, what's the thought you have about the transition ?

Is it planting the left foot ?

Or getting yout right hip through the ball ?

Or getting your chest past the target line ?

Or what ?

It's beginning to drive me mmad.

Interesting one this as I too have been having trouble with the transistion, in fact, I was pausing something rotten at the top of the swing.

His advice to me was this, when your left shoulder touches your chin, that should be your trigger to start back down which should first triggered with the hips. Easy.....nope!

 

[jammydodger]

Do the John Daly drill....when the clubhead touches the floor then start the downswing

 

[HomerJSimpson]

I swing very quickly (too quickly) and so I don't have a puase or even a transition to speak off. I focus on a specific point out int he distance I want to hit the ball to and take my address, look at my target and trust my swing.

I find if I start thinking about shortening my swing or slowing it down,I lose my natural timing and actually hit it worse. My tempo is the big Winter project and so I guess transitional work will feature at some point

 

[JustOne]

My current swing thought is "this is probably going left like a frikkin' banana" .. it works too!

 

[CrapHacker]

I've never thought about it tbh , it just happens , the club goes back and then it goes forward. Most of the time it goes fine , occasionally it doesnt...shrugs

I don't think about it with the irons, and they go straight enough ( just 2 clubs too short )

And if I don't think about it with the Big Dog I've managed to groove my over the top swing soooo much I'll get that feedback that I've hit a perfect shot, just to look up in time to watch it disappear into the trees.

I've got to retrain my muscle memory. the only two things stoping me are ;

a) I don't know how

b) I don't know what with.

Apart from that, no problemo

 

[CrapHacker]

His advice to me was this, when your left shoulder touches your chin, that should be your trigger to start back down which should first triggered with the hips. Easy.....nope!

Triggered with the hips doing ....... what ????

 

[CrapHacker]

My current swing thought is "this is probably going left like a frikkin' banana" .. it works too!

Yes, but at least yours is reachable when you're lucky enough to see it bounce off the huge oak 315 yds down the left rough.

When mine squibs against the silver birch 170 yds from the tee, I'll still have 230 yds to go, and with my eyes that means I can hardly see the green, let alone the pin from that distance.

 

[CrapHacker]

But there is hope for the old git, yet.

Skived for a few holes this afto. Didn't have time to arrange anything or go anywhere better, so I popped over to Wellshurst.

Now you won't remember, but this was the scene of my first full 18 for 15 years, all of about 3 months ago now. First game after just concentrating on the range for about 4-6 weeks. I managed an 83, and said at the time that I should quit whilst I was ahead.

Now I've played half a dozen rounds ( prolific by my standards ), had 3 lessons, and now I have the makings of a much better swing ( yeah, right )

Assuming I score that initial round off a h/c of 18, which is what I'm struggling to get anywhere near now. 1st round scores 40 points, with 1 blob, on the stroke index 18, 17th, caused by cockiness having just birdied the 16th.

Today I managed 33 points. With just the 5 blobs. 4 of those were directly caused by me losing a ball or going OOB off the tee.

So all that extra effort, and I'm genuinely 7 points ( and about 9 shots ) worse than when I started.

Makes you proud, don't it.

Still, back to the hope.

Went straight to the range and got 50 balls out. Then just using the driver, I managed to groove something that looked like a ball flight that would, at least, stay on the fairway 4 times out of 5. Only problem now is, it looks very much like my old shot shape from 15 years ago. That's the one I've been trying to get rid of all year. I wonder if it'll still be there next week.

Doh !!

 

[jammydodger]

I feel your frustration CH , all i can say is keep at it , it will come (hopefully) lol

 

[CrapHacker]

I feel your frustration CH , all i can say is keep at it , it will come (hopefully) lol

When I started back out a few months ago, I was grateful just to be able to hit any club at all. ( Me ? And a S300 shaft ? What must you think of me ? )

So I read up about reverse pivots and over the top swings, just to make sure I kept away from them, coz that was what I must have had back in the 90s to have such a consistant, short but straight, fade.

Confused myself so much that that is exactly what I have given myself, only this time in the EXTREME. Now I have to rebuild AGAIN, starting from scratch.

So I'd give loads just to have my original swing back, just so I can get the ball in play, and then work on improving the swing gradually at my own sweet pace.

I have a cunning plan

Right, I'm never going to be a pro, so does it really matter if I get my game to 18 h/c and then sloooowly bring it down ( hopefully to 12, or dare I ever think it, single figures ) over the next 5 years. Or do I get bonus points for being rubbish for the next 18 months, but then suddenly finding a 14 handicap 'overnight'.

So it's grab any kind of swing that will get the ball on the short stuff from the tee. ( Hopefully 220 - 230yds would be nice, tbh )

After that I can merrily work on the short game over winter and then come back next season capable of making strides, with or without a decent shaped shot.

 

[JustOne]

You're doing yourself an injustice mate. Your swing isn't bad at all, you embrace changes and have a very positive attitude to the game. Problem is that you simply don't play/practice enough. You can't groove a swing over 50 range balls or 9 holes.

If you're still working on that swing plane then that's going to take more than 36 holes to get right.

It's about £5 for 130 range balls (srixon) at Pease Pottage, anytime you want to meet me up there and thrash your way through a tenner let me know. You're looking at about 3 hours to hit 2 buckets worth... bring sandwiches

 

[CrapHacker]

Meat paste and cucumber on Best of Both, coming up.