- Sep 1, 2004
- 6,542
- 4,976
I went for a lesson last week. I'd been hitting a lot of drives out of the heal and getting a weak flight, lots of blocks, swing speed was down as well. The pro got me to hit six x7 irons and 10x drivers on a shot scope. I was overwhelmed by the amount of data he was able to collect.
Most of it was beyond me, but sure thing, I was hitting towards the heel with a slightly open face and my driver SS was down by about 3-4 mph. He said he knew what it was but wanted the number to confirm it. The revelation?
My left thumb / left hand was weak on my grip. I had it very neutral down the middle of the shaft. He wanted me to shorten it and place it down the right side of the shaft. He also shifted the ball position slightly back and to stand slightly further away from the ball at address. It took a few swings but man, by the end of the session I was hammering it! I could feel the release at impact much stronger and the SS back instantly. I couldn't wait for the weekend.
Come Saturday and for some reason, it felt all awkward. I got all over analytical, my grip felt alien. I slumped to an 81. The positive was that the good shots came out great, really great. But I hit a few fats, thins etc. Obviously, it's my body deciding that I won't get away with this easy, even a minute change will take weeks to bed in.
I played a few holes on Sunday evening and by the end I think I had it figured out. Boy, golf never stops putting up the challenges!!
Most of it was beyond me, but sure thing, I was hitting towards the heel with a slightly open face and my driver SS was down by about 3-4 mph. He said he knew what it was but wanted the number to confirm it. The revelation?
My left thumb / left hand was weak on my grip. I had it very neutral down the middle of the shaft. He wanted me to shorten it and place it down the right side of the shaft. He also shifted the ball position slightly back and to stand slightly further away from the ball at address. It took a few swings but man, by the end of the session I was hammering it! I could feel the release at impact much stronger and the SS back instantly. I couldn't wait for the weekend.
Come Saturday and for some reason, it felt all awkward. I got all over analytical, my grip felt alien. I slumped to an 81. The positive was that the good shots came out great, really great. But I hit a few fats, thins etc. Obviously, it's my body deciding that I won't get away with this easy, even a minute change will take weeks to bed in.
I played a few holes on Sunday evening and by the end I think I had it figured out. Boy, golf never stops putting up the challenges!!