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Stanters

Trinket King
Aug 13, 2006
1,096
1
It's been a terrible year on the golf course for me.

I started the year flitting between 11-12 on a tough course with poor greens so I can play a bit, not a world beater but a decent player who could shoot low 80s and occasionally find the 70s on less demanding tracks. I'm now on 15 and am only going higher.

In late May I shot an 83 one evening and my swing felt great, I felt I could hardly hit a poor shot. Then 2 days later at the weekend it all started.

Low, smothered hooks all day. I wrote it off as just one of those rounds but it kept happening. So I took a couple of lessons and whilst on the range things were a little better back on the course my misery just continued. I did notice my left hand grip had gone haywire a while back but even addressing that hasn't cured it.

I have finally decided to give up for a while. Battling this for 4 months has been hard and barring 2 rounds my game has been in the gutter. I have 0 confidence in my long game, my short game and putting is fine but anything from 100 yards out is just horrible.

I'm going to cancel my membership (I've never really liked the course anyway, it's poorly maintained, greens are bumpy and generally you can see that the owners are only interested in what's coming in rather than investing in the condition of the course. I can only presume the greenkeeper is the cheapest they could find in the Northern Hemisphere) and start over during the winter with an eye to coming back in the spring at a new course and hopefully be able to get back to enjoying the game again.

What I wonder is if it's better to try and totally strip my swing down and start from scratch, maybe use a similarly built pro as a guide or just go for a tweak? I'd like to really start over but I've been playing for a long time and I think it's going to be hard to eradicate everything. And if I decide on either, what approach would you use? Books, vids, lessons (obv I know lessons are a must and I will be taking some during the winter) are all options but which ones? Are there any out there that anyone has seen that have helped you and are clear? I have Hogan's Five Fundementals which is great but tbh I think I need a fresh look at things. Any recommendations would be welcomed.

if you got this far, thanks, I know it might look like a whining old bore is having a bad day but I have really have a year to forget generally which I doubt has helped and I could really use some help. I miss the enjoyment so much, scores don't bother me but not being able to take any pleasure from the game is hurting.
 

freakyswinger

Golf Ellusionist
Oct 23, 2009
19
0
you could shoot in the 70`s and now you need lessons? are you hurt? or on crack? I would be happy to shoot in the 90`s , your just back to avg, this happens to me, some yrs i play very good and some i get mad and don't play at all, but my score always stay the same. if you took a lesson it probably made it worse, its in your mind, put a tee behind your left ear
untie right shoe and stop ****ing around and hit the ball the hell up the fairway.
 

LeftyHoges

I've got the pants that'll make you dance!
Supporting Member
Jun 11, 2007
2,384
183
Portland, VIC, Australia
Country
Australia Australia
You've probably made the correct call to back away for a bit Stanters, I do it a lot when my swing goes off the rails (just starting my own break now) and for a feel player like myself I think its the only way. If you're not out practicing every other day then a break can only help.

As for stripping down the swing, I've always felt that it's a hard thing to do. Not impossible, but bloody hard. Because you've been playing for so long it's going to be very tough to build an entirely new wing without old habits creeping in, especially if you arent out on the range day after day.

My advice to you (take it or leave it, I dont mind either way) is to take a month or two or six if you feel that way, start fresh (not new) and just hit 7 irons upon your return. Once you get more confident you can then move into the longer irons and woods. If the problem persists, see a pro. But not just any pro, seek out the best guy from your area. Yes, its more coin but it should be worth it.

And one more thing: Good luck!
 

Augster

Rules Nerd
Supporting Member
Mar 9, 2005
1,473
23
If you are going to start from scratch, Hank Haney's "Essentials of the Swing" is a great book to start over with.

Hank starts with a revolutionary new grip, the one Tiger is using now, and builds from there. Everything is step by step and easy to follow. Just add range balls.
 

limpalong

Mental Ward Escapee
Supporting Member
Oct 18, 2006
13,821
13,653
I forgot!
Country
United States United States
There are a lot of different components to the swing and the game to completely start over. Have you broken down each round to see where you are losing the strokes? Is it off the tee? Is it fairway to green? Is it chipping... putting??? Where are you losing the most strokes and is that component of the game having an adverse effect on the rest??

Many folks begin having difficulty off the tee. If the driver tanks, we're trying to hit second and third shots from the gunch. That puts more pressure on the game. So, that pressure causes us to chili dip chips and blow putts past the hole. What part of the game is causing that undo pressure?

Once you have the game broken down into what is costing you the strokes, look at that specific club or clubs to see if you need to make a change. I had a driver, recently, that hit some drives longer than I had ever been before. When I made good contact, the driver was long and in the fairway. Problem was, that only happened about 30% of the time. The rest of the time I was scrambling and my game went south. I didn't want to give up the driver!!! It had hit too many good drives. But, I had to understand if I was ever going to get my game back, the driver had to go. Picked up the current FTi and haven't been happier!!! Hit every fairway on Sunday and only missed one today. Not as long as the other stick. But, I can score much better from the short grass than from the tall stuff!!

Betcha you will find that "bad guy" somewhere in your set up and be able to get your game back on track! Good luck!!!!!
 
OP
Stanters

Stanters

Trinket King
Aug 13, 2006
1,096
1
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #6
Thx guys - I will take some of the advice given and try that book. May even give the crack a go.

Limp - it's basically anything that requires a full swing, it just goes left and I've no idea where it came from.

Lesson, read, range and repeat I think. With a bit of patience thrown in.

Cheers again
 

Dannykos

Well-Known Member
Sep 20, 2006
563
0
I had a similar thing happen two years ago now - game just fell apart over the winter, and I was almost crying one range session, just trying to stop hitting wierd low hooky 'shots'. I did have a couple of lessons - and he pointed out a couple of obvious things I had let creep in, the main one was I was standing too close to the ball. Check out your setup - and just make sure the basics are all in place.
Good luck!
 

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