Recently I have been playing more golf. I played some high school Golf, but was not really good, I used to shoot 77-82 in High School but can't get near that now. On a good day I shoot in the mid 80s, and on a bad day mid 90s. So, just this last week, on the 18th hole of the Circle C golf course I tried something different. On the 18th tee I decided to keep the lower half of my body much more steady, whereas I used to rock back and then transfer a lot of motion forward. Lo and behold I hit the driver a ton and straight......so I thought, NAH, it can't be that simple, can it. So today, I go out to Bandera with some friends, and kept my lower half steady, and I was hitting the ball straight almost all day...usually I play Army Golf....left, right, left....right..... But not today, I was right down the middle all day, and shot 83......and lost only one ball (danged water gods)....so it could have easily been better. Anyone else a golfer, and know anything about the stance, and whether you should limit movement? And, I LOVE Golf......sometimes....well at least today....tomorrow.....maybe not. DD
Keep your feet planted during your backswing and swing almost completely with your shoulders. Think of a golf swing like a rubber band, if you lift a foot during your backswing you will lose most of the power that you will build in your core muscles. Golf is not a hard sport if you can create a simple swing that can be easily replicated throughout a round.
Feet planted, good, but what about hips? Should they be steady as well? I think I got into some bad habits, where I rocked too far back and then I was trying to catch up my body at the point of contact, when it worked, I hammered it straight, but usually I ended up with an outside in swing that produced a nice slice. Which I then corrected by closing the club face, which would work for 3 or 4 holes before the inevitable duck hook.... But with my lower half steady and a shortened backswing, I was really happy with the game today. I was hitting greens in regulation or was just off, even had 3 birdie puts........didn't make any...but still HAD em !! DD
enjoy it now, because next round it will be something else... If the short game is good the long game sucks, the long game is good the short game sucks. At least thats how it is for me ( and I assume every other golfer).
My short game has been pretty good, but it is my long game that I have issues with spraying the ball to both sides...... and with some of my short irons I was slicing or pushing too, but with steady hips and feet, I was true..... I hope I have discovered something....the game would be a lot less frustrating. DD
You should have some rotation in your hips otherwise you would just be swinging with your upper body, but you don't want to have so much motion that it becomes something that is hard to repeat. Remember, you want to have as simple of a swing as possible. It should be a natural feeling swing. Nothing too stiff, but nothing to crazy either. I would say that you should have a hip rotation of about 35-45 degrees.
Which is about where I was today, where before I was pulling way back and through....and strugglng. I love the game again, and look forward to getting my handicap down from the 13-15 range back to single digits. DD
Golf is great. It's the only sport that can go from the most relaxing to the most frustrating sport in a matter of minutes. You also can learn a lot about someone by the way they play the game. You will find out if they are calm, hot headed, get frustrated easily, honest, a cheater, a risk taker, or conservative. And it is the sport of kings and queens
I don't play much any more, but anytime my swing used to get out of whack, shortening the backswing and limiting hip movement was how I straightened things up. Doing this removes one thing that can go wrong. The ball may not go as far but it goes straight and distances for each club are more predictable. The other thing I mess up is the transition (from upswing to downswing). Sometimes if I just focus on smoothing that out, it guarantees a solid shot.
I play 2-3 times a year... find it hard to justify taking a good portion of the weekend off from the family when I work all week and sometimes disappear for weeks at a times during the summer. I like it, but I am definitely an incremental golfer... I maybe hit 3 or 4 good balls per outing.
I've started playing more over the last couple of years. Back in March, I was on the range getting warm for a St. Pat's day tournament. I have always had the world's worst slice...Caddyshack 2 bad. I'm still not sure why I did it, but I opened up my left foot. All of a sudden, I was hitting everything straight and further than I ever had. I think it just let me hit through the ball instead of pulling up. I jsut recent shot my best round ever...101 (still can't putt).
Hips: in your stance, your hips should be square with the ball. On backswing, rotate hips only 45 degrees to the right. On follow through, hips should end rotated 45 degrees to the left. Body: The power and stability in your swing comes from rotating your body around your spine - not by sliding your body forward in your stance. ... ...and if you are shooting in the 80's and 90's one of these is true: you are a score snob because most players (including me) don't break 100. you don't really shoot that score 'cause you take mulligans, shave strokes, or use the ol' foot-wedge. I friggin' love golf. The only problems I have are with my short game, my putting, my course management, my power, my recovery, and my long game. Everything else is just fine.
WS&C, I do take Mulligans some days, it depends on whom I play with....most days I don't, and I take penalty strokes too. I play with one guy who was a golf pro, and he shoots 70...or a little better.... It helps when you play with people better than you...a lot..... I like the competition, and even though I know I can't beat him.......I can at least tie him a few times. DD
I agree with that. When I am playing with someone who is a great golfer I step up my game and really focus. If I'm messing around and not keeping score I will take some mulligans, but if I am keeping score I won't. Part of golf is playing the ball as it lies, if you hit a bad drive you have to recover on your next shot.
I play well for a while... and then.. ...then I have a meltdown hole. A hole that, for some reason, I have to pick up my ball after 9 or 10 strokes and then turn around and just cry. After that, I'll play crappy for a while until I just give up trying. That's usually when my game picks back up again. Since I've given up hope I feel much better.
The golf swing has changed over the years and now the trend is to keep your legs still and achieve all your power from your body turn. I love golf but I suck because I don't play enough. Its the only sport I know of that you can't get good at by yourself. You have to take lessons.
Does golf really take a long time to get a hang of? I had my first five lessons last month and the results were not very great...
Is that right? Well, I guess I discovered it on my own....WOOHOO !!! Lessons screwed me up, I went from about a 9 handicap to a 13 because he changed my grip and stance..... Now, I am just back to being comfortable, which is really all that matters, I am not going for the senior tour or anything. Just want to improve. DD
