Hitting the toe....

[shank]

Ok, enough is enough. I am hitting the toe of my driver almost every shot. Both the Hibore and the R7 have the entire toe area covered with hits. Not but one or two in the center of the club. Strange thing, most shots are going mostly straight or slight drop to the right at the end of the flight.
My drives are going just under 200 when I hit them "good". I am fairly big, 220 6'0. Never had a lesson and none are even available close to me. I am sure thinking I should hit them farther and better.

Any ideas?...other than give up golf and start drinking again:laugh:

 

[mddubya]

Well, without seeing you swing the club. I'd say step a little closer to the ball if your hitting everything off the toe. Sounds over simplified, but it's worth a shot?

 

[shank]

Tried that...then they go right real bad. Today I felt like I was chicken winging it. Going to watch the elbows tomorrow and see if that helps. I may be swinging too steep?

 

[mddubya]

Possibly, or to hard, try swinging 3/4 speed. You'd be suprised how much that help sometimes.

 

[Bignose]

Well, without seeing you swing the club. I'd say step a little closer to the ball if your hitting everything off the toe. Sounds over simplified, but it's worth a shot?

There should be an extra step here, though. Not only do you have to set up a little closer, but, then you have to try to hit a ball that is set up outside of where the actual ball is. The key is to repeat the exact same swing, just moved forward and inch or so. If you moved up but still tried to hit the same ball, your motion that used to result in toe-hits won't be repeated.

So, use the exact same swing, just swing at an imaginary ball that is one ball's width outside where the actual ball is teed up.

Ultimately, you should probably figure out the real problem, but these kind of fixes can really keep a round from going to hell.

I also use them in softball. Whenever I find I am popping the ball up too much, because I am hitting the bottom of the ball, I practice swinging at the top of the ball and that usually gets me back to hitting line drives. Same thing if I am hitting too many topped grounders, I swing at the bottom of the ball. This works in softball at least to some degree because I don't think that perfect mechanics are nearly as important in slow-pitch softball as they are in golf.

I've found the same idea really does work in golf, too. But the key is to make the same (i.e. wrong) swing just at an imaginary ball that moves the impact back to the center of the club.

p.s. I've always found these fixes to be temporary, so a full-scale investigation as to the root cause is in order. Like I said, though, these kind of fixes can sometimes turn a rotten day into a decent one.

 

[shank]

Thanks guys...will give the ideas a try.

 

[twofast2s]

i'll at least try to find a low cap golf buddy to help you w/ your swing. what i do between lesson and practice is looking at pro's swing and try to imitate it going slow in front of a mirror.

oh and relax and have fun.

 

[bwgolfer]

It's called the "crocidille syndrome". It's a very difficult thing to detect on your own but it's happening to you. I know your being very carefull to set up to the ball just right, but still busting the toe. This can be caused buy an ever so subtile cast at the top then in an effort to keep your right elbow in close to your body as you've been told, you bring your arms in toward your body as well(crocidille arm). Fix it by setting with your left foot(if your right handed) a little in front of your right(or closed) and an inch futher away from the ball. Now swing out towards right field, this will hopefully start to give you the feel of keeping your right elbow in close to your body but at the same time extending your arms through the impact area. Give a shot it's always helped me....bwgolfer:idhitit:

 

[Rockford35]

It's called the "crocidille syndrome". It's a very difficult thing to detect on your own but it's happening to you. I know your being very carefull to set up to the ball just right, but still busting the toe. This can be caused buy an ever so subtile cast at the top then in an effort to keep your right elbow in close to your body as you've been told, you bring your arms in toward your body as well(crocidille arm). Fix it by setting with your left foot(if your right handed) a little in front of your right(or closed) and an inch futher away from the ball. Now swing out towards right field, this will hopefully start to give you the feel of keeping your right elbow in close to your body but at the same time extending your arms through the impact area. Give a shot it's always helped me....bwgolfer:idhitit:

Great post.

I was wondering when you were going to chime in. Any advice from a 1.5 index is fine by me!

Welcome aboard, BTW.

R35

 

[shank]

It's called the "crocidille syndrome". It's a very difficult thing to detect on your own but it's happening to you. I know your being very carefull to set up to the ball just right, but still busting the toe. This can be caused buy an ever so subtile cast at the top then in an effort to keep your right elbow in close to your body as you've been told, you bring your arms in toward your body as well(crocidille arm). Fix it by setting with your left foot(if your right handed) a little in front of your right(or closed) and an inch futher away from the ball. Now swing out towards right field, this will hopefully start to give you the feel of keeping your right elbow in close to your body but at the same time extending your arms through the impact area. Give a shot it's always helped me....bwgolfer:idhitit:

I sure think you hit it. I "feel" like I am trying too much to keep the arms close. Going to give it a go next day or so. I'll report back with my progress.

Many thanks to all!

 

[DaGris]

maybe you're cutting across the ball and not fallowing through...that will give you a slight slice and take away distance on you drives.......and even make you hit it off the toe..I should know....I have to battle that every time I play. If I fallow through and "throw" the club, I hit it far and straight..If I dont,..it goes short with a slice.

 

[LyleG]

Try adding weight to the head (lead tape) in 2g amounts. I would guess about 4-6g will help.

 

[cwo2lt]

maybe you're cutting across the ball and not fallowing through...that will give you a slight slice and take away distance on you drives.......and even make you hit it off the toe..I should know....I have to battle that every time I play. If I fallow through and "throw" the club, I hit it far and straight..If I dont,..it goes short with a slice.

This sounds eerily familiar.:shocked:

 

[shank]

Sorry for the late follow up post.

I tried several things at the range and it seemed to help.
1. I did choke down on the club and it helped..some.
2. I stood a little taller and a little closer to the ball...much improved.
3. A tip from the internet; play like you have a glove under your left arm and try not to let it drop out. GREAT RESULTS.

Most hits are now "near" the center of the club and most go 200+ instead of -200.

Thanks for the many replies :thumbs up:

 

[phoward78]

just thought i'd share what worked for me

I usually have an extreme fade or slice when I try to drive the ball hard. The other day, I was showing someone new to the game how to hit balls with a 7 iron and told him to focus on hitting the center of the club face to the center of the back of the ball.

When I said it, a light came on and I turned to my own tee at the range and set up. I set my focus on a spot on the back of the ball and thought, I want the center of the club face right there. After looking out to my target, which was the 250 post, I returned my focus to the spot on the back of the ball.

Right before taking the club away I thought, "reach out to the target". I took my swing and extended my arms through impact and out toward the target which brought my weight forward to a balanced finish. The ball went about 250 and straight to my target.

My slicing problem used to be swinging faster than I could rotate, pushing the club face open when I tried to kill the ball. Now that my swing thought is, "reach out to the target" it keeps everything in balance bringing the club face square to the ball at impact with more clubhead speed.

Focusing on a small spot at the back of the ball before hitting it allows my mind to really focus on how I want to hit the ball. Then I just let go and let my mind tell my body how to do it.

You simply can't consciously think through a swing that happens in a fraction of a second. You just have to focus on your target and on how you want to hit the ball and let your mind take care of the rest. Remember to always take a practice swing or two to get a feel for the distance to your target.

Extending your arms through impact and out toward the target like you're shaking hands with it will allow you to stay in control and keep you from bringing your arms up to fast, which would throw your plane off and most likely open the club face at impact.

I thank God for the things I've learned throughout my journey as a golfer so far and for what I'll continue to learn about the mental game and how to be more patient.

I also recommend "Golf is Not a Game of Perfect" and "Golf is a Game of Confidence" both written by Dr. Bob Rotella. You will learn so much from them about the mental side of the game which is about 90% of it.

I simply wanted to share what I had found in my own swing and I hope it can help someone else.

In any case, make sure to have fun. That's what it's all about.