Your experiences - learning to play golf

[Marshy77]

No.1 - Learn to love the game more than your handicap.

Your having too many lessons, too soon, IMHO.

I played for 10 years before having a handicap and loved the game. Hardly watched it on the telly, never had lessons or went to a driving range, had sets of irons for 6-7 years, never fitted for them. I didnt even know that you could get different flexes of shafts, never had them re-gripped either. I'd been playing for 13 years before getting my fist club handicap (13).

BUT I would play before work at 4.45 tee off, on a muni, with mates. Play 36 in one day at two courses. Ingrained a massive slice, by whacking it even harder.

I loved the game though, more than my ability. Breaking 100, 90,80 for the first time even though I had no handicap still made me burn with pride.

Dont get me wrong, you are going about improving as a golfer 10 times better than me. I did everything wrong to try to improve, but no matter, I loved the game.

You are doing lots of things right - joining a club,lessons, custom fittings, playing with better players, going on a golf forum, practising and probably much more.

However, you havent been playing long and it's a bl44dy hard game. You also play with lots of lads in the NW who are mid and single figure handicappers, and maybe you feel you should be better. You will be, given time, and learn to give yourself a break.

I could go on (I normally do).

Overall? Just have a lesson every 2-3 months. Maybe consider joining an easier course as Manchester is a tough track. Stop buying, swapping,trialling, messing about with new/used clubs.

Mainly - learn to love the game, as improvement is not a straight line, so there will be too much disappointment if you dont love being out there playing. Enjoy your time on the course and learn to banter. Having a laugh on the course is just as important as a swing change, new club, new thought process.:thup:

I'm welling up here

 

[louise_a]

I have regular lessons but mostly in the winter when any changes can be bedded in without having to worry about the affect on my handicap. I still have them in the summer but its only if a fault develops and he will usually spot start away what as crept in and shoe me how to put it right.

I would also say that the lessons I have are very simple, compared to things I hear other members talking about what they have been told. I am confident he has given me a good grip, stance and swing so all I ever think about is keeping my head down and swinging through the ball. Whereas I often hear these others talking about flying elbows and other such nonsense. I honestly think that some pros try to teach complicated stuff instead of just keeping to the basics.

I don't always hit it correctly and I throw in nightmare rounds now and then but I am still improving so the lessons must be working.

 

[NWJocko]

Huds, IMO learning to "play golf" and learning to swing are 2 very different things.

Learn to separate the 2, play golf have a laugh and you'll learn how to get the ball round. You're short game has already improved massively this year.

Then, if you want, have lessons on how to swing but leave it to the range, don't think about anything on the course, I've tried it with the driver this year and screwed me right up!!

You're improving whenever we play, you're too hard on yourself.

Not everyone makes golf look as easy as Qwerty does!!!

 

[Snelly]

My experience - I have never had a lesson from a pro really apart from the odd bit of advice when in junior county development squads or a 2 minute chat on the practice ground about minor issues in my swing so it is fair to say I am not a big fan of lots of lessons as a rule.

Having read your experiences, I think you are wasting your money and time. There is a significant amount of hot air talked on this forum about lessons with many massively overstating their value and importance. Ask yourself a simple question - if everyone on the forum advocating lessons is absolutely right, then how come they aren't brilliant or continually improving players?? Why don't their handicaps keep dropping as a result of their pro's pearls of wisdom? Because lessons don't really work is why. It is an uncomfortable truth.

I have three friends that I regularly play with and they are off +1, 0 and 2. Not a single lesson between them in their golfing history. They just refined their games over a few years. Nothing more than that.

I would say a couple of lessons to start with are useful though as you need to understand grip, alignment and tempo as the basics of a swing. Then find a pro swing you like and try and copy it. Louis O is a great one to study. Try and mimic his movements. Watch yourself swing in a mirror or a reflection in a window. Don't ever stop referring to this. Build a good looking swing.

Concurrently, play a lot golf, learn how to score and practice your short game. Putting on the carpet and chipping in the garden. Persevere. Graft. Improve. Keep doing the things that work and stop doing what doesn't. And make sure you see the club hit the ball. There are no short cuts. A pro can't give you what you need in order to be a good player in a lesson.

 

[Spear-Chucker]

My experience - I have never had a lesson from a pro really apart from the odd bit of advice when in junior county development squads or a 2 minute chat on the practice ground about minor issues in my swing so it is fair to say I am not a big fan of lots of lessons as a rule.

Having read your experiences, I think you are wasting your money and time. There is a significant amount of hot air talked on this forum about lessons with many massively overstating their value and importance. Ask yourself a simple question - if everyone on the forum advocating lessons is absolutely right, then how come they aren't brilliant or continually improving players?? Why don't their handicaps keep dropping as a result of their pro's pearls of wisdom? Because lessons don't really work is why. It is an uncomfortable truth.

I have three friends that I regularly play with and they are off +1, 0 and 2. Not a single lesson between them in their golfing history. They just refined their games over a few years. Nothing more than that.

I would say a couple of lessons to start with are useful though as you need to understand grip, alignment and tempo as the basics of a swing. Then find a pro swing you like and try and copy it. Louis O is a great one to study. Try and mimic his movements. Watch yourself swing in a mirror or a reflection in a window. Don't ever stop referring to this. Build a good looking swing.

Concurrently, play a lot golf, learn how to score and practice your short game. Putting on the carpet and chipping in the garden. Persevere. Graft. Improve. Keep doing the things that work and stop doing what doesn't. And make sure you see the club hit the ball. There are no short cuts. A pro can't give you what you need in order to be a good player in a lesson.

OP, print this off and stick it on your fridge to read every day. Enjoy the challenge of putting it into practice and reaping the rewards of learning this way.

 

[woody69]

I've gone to a pro recently as I wanted to change my swing and ball flight. He has done that and now trying to bed in the changes is hard. I'm getting there slowly, but I definitely don't want to change anything else now... I've changed my posture, the take away, the top of the backswing and the start of the downswing. The only thing I've not changed is my grip! When I hit the ball right, which is happening more and more often, it looks and feels lovely. Problem is I am still making the silly duffs and now have added in a few new faults from all the changes.

A lesson on course management to play within your ability will probably help more than additional swing/fault fixes. If you can hit it well during the lesson, you know you have it in you so you're probably trying to hit shots you shouldn't be. You also have to remember the difference between 18 and 21 is only 3 shots. 1 OOB off the tee and a 2ft putt miss can be the difference between a cut or not.

 

[FairwayDodger]

I had a set of lessons over the winter making fairly big changes to grip and swing plane. Initially, it clearly made me worse overall but showed enough potential to be worth persevering with. (Basically my accuracy got worse but ball striking improved).

One great thing the pro said, after about three sessions, was that I should not have any more lessons for a while but just go out and learn how to play with the changes. Sure enough, I managed to get it together, kept the ball striking and evolved it so that I started hitting it in the right direction again.

I'd say do the same, quit the lessons for a while and just play. Pretty much as others have suggested.

 

[User 105]

Been exactly where you are. Too many lessons, too little time in between for anything to bed in. So end up going back and forth and making no real progress. Just trying to improve too quickly.

By all means have lessons, probably every few months i'd suggest unless you are really struggling.

But, you need to find "your" swing. A swing you feel comfortable with and can repeat. Not necessarily the textbook swing.

Most of us don't have the time to ingrain a perfect swing. The constant search for perfect will drive you mental.

Once you have that just stick with it and stop making changes and go enjoy playing and let yourself improve naturally.

 

[garyinderry]

Most people worry too much about posture, perfect grip, lovely back swing, position at the top, coming down perfectly on plane.

The truth of the matter is you can stand to the ball and hold the club as you like.

The two things you need to control is path and the face at impact. It may not look as pretty as you want it to be but anyone in control of these two things can make the ball go in the right direction more times than not.

Don't be afraid to play afraid to play a certain shape. Be that a fair sized fade or hook. The only thing that matters is that it is repeatable. Trying to swing like a pro and hit perfect straight shots every time is rather difficult. Especially if you don't know what way you are going to miss.

Find a repeatable swing. Hammer the short game and your scores will drop.

Perfect swings don't always score better than ugly ones.

 

[garyinderry]

Me and westy on pretty much the same wavelength

 

[Crawfy]

Play less comps in between lessons, and have your lessons further apart.

Have a lesson, over the next week look to groove the new learning on the range. Then spend a week on the course ( without a scorecard!) to see if you can transfer into a round.

(For me at least) Work on only one thing at a time.

Good luck and keep at it !

 

[Astraeus]

I have come to this late in the day but I am really only pushing my golf this year. I changed pro at the end of last year from one who was too technical for me and sapped the enjoyment out of constructing a swing and natural game. The new pro told me to have a lesson only every three to four weeks, later dropping that down even further, because otherwise I will overthink my game. That advice, and his more approachable way of coaching has helped my game no end and taken, on average (and combined with more dedicated practice), about 8-10 shots from my game.

I would say get out there, 'feel' how you play your golf and return to your pro with problem shots. I went back last week having issues with my lob wedge and went out and played a blinder with it at the weekend. This week it is a lofted shot on downhill lie lesson. No repitition and it gives the coach a discrete problem to solve. Working well so far.

 

[huds1475]

Thanks for all the input from everybody, some really interesting stuff in there and also a few consistent themes.

Also apologies if this appeared a "woe is me" thread, that wasn't the intention. Only that I am beginning to think current cycle isn't working and I'm looking for a more effective learning method.

Isn't the definition of madness doing the same thing over and over but expecting different results (probably not the medical definition to be honest!)?

A couple of points I missed out that may have led to some false assumptions;

I enjoy playing golf, otherwise I would have packed in long ago.
I am grafting on my short game, when I can, and starting to show real signs of improvement - even in putting Scott!
I don't believe new gear makes you better, have just invested following a cash windfall and am unlikely to change for a long time. You can pay whatever you want on new gear but the soggy lump on the end remans the constant.

And finally, learning anything new is always going to be hard, I accept that and am not looking for shortcuts, merely effective ways to 'learn a golf swing' from the experiences of others - call it market research

Thanks for taking the time to read and reply!

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Thanks for all the input from everybody, some really interesting stuff in there and also a few consistent themes.

Also apologies if this appeared a "woe is me" thread, that wasn't the intention. Only that I am beginning to think current cycle isn't working and I'm looking for a more effective learning method.

Isn't the definition of madness doing the same thing over and over but expecting different results (probably not the medical definition to be honest!)?

A couple of points I missed out that may have led to some false assumptions;

I enjoy playing golf, otherwise I would have packed in long ago.
I am grafting on my short game, when I can, and starting to show real signs of improvement - even in putting Scott!
I don't believe new gear makes you better, have just invested following a cash windfall and am unlikely to change for a long time. You can pay whatever you want on new gear but the soggy lump on the end remans the constant.

And finally, learning anything new is always going to be hard, I accept that and am not looking for shortcuts, merely effective ways to 'learn a golf swing' from the experiences of others - call it market research

Thanks for taking the time to read and reply!

BiB - this is true and I am with you , but lots of manufacturers out there trying to tell you otherwise - don't listen to them.