Fundamentals

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By Johan Hall

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  • 13 Replies
  1. Johan Hall

    Johan Hall
    Sölvesborg, Sweden

    I´ve played a year now, and i have come to a point where i feel that im stuck in my development.

    This thread is not just for me. I was hoping we could discuss fundmentals/tips/drills to develop a better swing for everyone and myself!

    Best Regards!

  2. Dale V

    Dale V
    Surprise AZ

    I might suggest you take a look at the Instruction category on this Titleist website. There are great instructors giving helpful tips and drills that might be exactly what you are looking for. Best wishes in your progress.
  3. Chuck Z

    Chuck Z
    Mt Pleasant, SC

    Military

    Dale V said:

    I might suggest you take a look at the Instruction category on this Titleist website. There are great instructors giving helpful tips and drills that might be exactly what you are looking for. Best wishes in your progress.

    Great suggestion, Dale. Always on top of things. Thought I might make it even easier for him with the link. Want him to know that we are really helpful on this site. That is what we are here for, right. Hope he finds the some of his answers in the helpful videos. .

    www.titleist.com/instruction-center
  4. Chuck Z

    Chuck Z
    Mt Pleasant, SC

    Military
    If you are a beginner, I would recommend that you see a PGA instructor at a local course. You can watch all the videos and discuss all your issues on here, but to have a qualified professional look at your swing and technique. Well that is the key to improvement. At the rip young age of 78 , when I develop issues with my swing I go see my pros at the course where I play. Quickest way to recovery. We on here are not instructors and teachers, but Titleist loyals who have a love of the game like yourself. It is very hard to help someone with their swing without seeing it, believe me I would not want to make any recommendations. I do not do that for a living and am sure not qualified. If you read into the Golf Tips you might find some instructional videos that might help, but again, I would go see pro. The Titleist staff members do provide some for our members.
  5. Eric H

    Eric H
    Ridgway, PA

    Just keep pounding jonah! If you feel stuck, or maybe not seeing improvement, you should look into seeing a pga professional and taking a lesson. They will help you progress
  6. DK

    DK
    Northeastern, PA

    We've all been there. For a while, I was consistently stuck at one score. You could bet the house on what I would shoot. With a few tweaks here and a few re-tweaks there, I was able to knock off those 2 or 3 strokes that kept me stagnant Keep swinging.
  7. Lou G

    Lou G
    San Diego, CA

    I paid Fiamma Felitch (2nd runner up in Big Break Florida) $5 for a video analysis and she pointed out some flaws even in a reasonably sound golf swing.

    There are some teaching pros that used to offer free tips on the allexperts.com
  8. Don O

    Don O
    Madison, WI

    I was self-taught for my first 7-8 years.

    Amazingly, I could not get under 100 without a few mulligans. What I learned….

    YouTube can help, but working with a coach examining your swing will get you the best results. In almost all cases, what you think you are doing wrong is the not the actual problem. The value of a set of trained eyes on your swing.
  9. Palmer

    Palmer
    Massachusetts

    Definitely see an instructor, and when you practice pay attention to the fundamentals like grip, alignment and posture. It's easy to forget the basics, but they make a huge difference. Also, use alignment rods whenever possible,
  10. Mark F

    Mark F
    Prescott Valley, AZ

    Free tip, Fix the face first...
  11. JoeyD

    JoeyD
    Texas

    I'll play along here. I'm a big fan of trying to help others with their golf game. Unfortunately, most people cannot verbalize how the golf swing works. I've spent the better part of the last two years working on how to put the golf swing into words so that ordinary people can understand it regardless of their age, sports background or handicap. I like to start with the upper body and arms because the upper body is 90% of the swing. You can say all you want abound using the ground forces and mobility etc. but Tiger Woods post car wreck is all the proof you need to see that using your upper body and upper body strength can create a lot of power if you know how to use it correctly.

    So let's start with the right arm because that's where I see 95% of recreational golfers struggle the most. Actually, let's clear up a few definitions and terms that are mis-used first. Like for instance...the shoulder. People say the shoulder does this, the shoulder does that and it is really used incorrectly. For instance, you hear a lot of instructors talk about how the shoulder externally rotates. Well...no...it doesn't. The shoulder is a connecting point for 3 skeletal bones: the clavicle (collar bone), the scapula (the shoulder blade) and the ball joint of the humerus (upper arm). What they should be saying is that the humerus externally rotates. The clavicle and scapula have an entirely different job.

    So how and why does the humerus rotate externally and why is it important? The how: so sit down at the table and put your elbow on it like you are about to arm wrestle someone. Now imagine your imaginary opponent is winning. While your elbow stays in a fixed spot, your hand and forearm push back behind your elbow. If you do this freely on your own and don't fight it trying to win the arm wrestling match...that is external rotation of the humerus. You should be able to this motion with both arms for proper mobility in the golf swing. If you stay there sitting at the table go ahead and notice that you can straighten your arm by dropping your hand closer to the table top and still externally rotate the humerus. The angle between your upper arm and forearm do not need to be 90 degrees or less to do this, nor should you want them to be during the backswing. I'll use a right handed golfer for all this instruction.

    At setup, both hands hold the grip near the center of your body. This means that the right hand is on the target side of the right elbow. During the takeaway we want to externally rotate the humerus to get the hands behind (on the trail side) the elbow. You want to keep externally rotating the right humerus all the way to the top of the backswing as your right arm bends close to but not all the way to 90 degrees. I'm going to skip the hands and forearms for now as we go into the downswing.

    Now at the top of the swing it is CRUCIAL that you DO NOT TRY TO WIN THE ARM WRESTLING MATCH as you start and complete the downswing!!! The right humerus stays in this externally rotated position as you bring your arms down into impact. All you do is straighten your right arm and if anything you try to increase the external rotation by forcing the right elbow more towards the center and in front of your body. You will notice how this keeps both hands on the trail side of your body...that's where they need to be. Your rotation will bring your hands and the club back to the ball.

    If you can get this movement correct with your arms you won't "cast" or come "over the top" or have a "chicken wing" going back. You will be able to have a flat lead wrist into impact wile your trail wrist stays cupped as it should and you will be able to release the club properly into the back of the ball from the inside. But there's a lot more instruction that goes into all of that.

    And again, that is why so many people correctly say to "go see an instructor and get lessons". Because if you are not interested in knowing every little facet of the swing in precise detail, or if you are not prepared to explain the swing in precise detail you probably shouldn't be asking or giving tips on a discussion board, honestly.

    But here we are! So if you understood that and can correctly implement it into your swing on your own then awesome! I'll be happy to explain more to anyone that wants to ask.
  12. Chuck Z

    Chuck Z
    Mt Pleasant, SC

    Military

    JoeyD said:

    I'll play along here. I'm a big fan of trying to help others with their golf game. Unfortunately, most people cannot verbalize how the golf swing works. I've spent the better part of the last two years working on how to put the golf swing into words so that ordinary people can understand it regardless of their age, sports background or handicap. I like to start with the upper body and arms because the upper body is 90% of the swing. You can say all you want abound using the ground forces and mobility etc. but Tiger Woods post car wreck is all the proof you need to see that using your upper body and upper body strength can create a lot of power if you know how to use it correctly.

    So let's start with the right arm because that's where I see 95% of recreational golfers struggle the most. Actually, let's clear up a few definitions and terms that are mis-used first. Like for instance...the shoulder. People say the shoulder does this, the shoulder does that and it is really used incorrectly. For instance, you hear a lot of instructors talk about how the shoulder externally rotates. Well...no...it doesn't. The shoulder is a connecting point for 3 skeletal bones: the clavicle (collar bone), the scapula (the shoulder blade) and the ball joint of the humerus (upper arm). What they should be saying is that the humerus externally rotates. The clavicle and scapula have an entirely different job.

    So how and why does the humerus rotate externally and why is it important? The how: so sit down at the table and put your elbow on it like you are about to arm wrestle someone. Now imagine your imaginary opponent is winning. While your elbow stays in a fixed spot, your hand and forearm push back behind your elbow. If you do this freely on your own and don't fight it trying to win the arm wrestling match...that is external rotation of the humerus. You should be able to this motion with both arms for proper mobility in the golf swing. If you stay there sitting at the table go ahead and notice that you can straighten your arm by dropping your hand closer to the table top and still externally rotate the humerus. The angle between your upper arm and forearm do not need to be 90 degrees or less to do this, nor should you want them to be during the backswing. I'll use a right handed golfer for all this instruction.

    At setup, both hands hold the grip near the center of your body. This means that the right hand is on the target side of the right elbow. During the takeaway we want to externally rotate the humerus to get the hands behind (on the trail side) the elbow. You want to keep externally rotating the right humerus all the way to the top of the backswing as your right arm bends close to but not all the way to 90 degrees. I'm going to skip the hands and forearms for now as we go into the downswing.

    Now at the top of the swing it is CRUCIAL that you DO NOT TRY TO WIN THE ARM WRESTLING MATCH as you start and complete the downswing!!! The right humerus stays in this externally rotated position as you bring your arms down into impact. All you do is straighten your right arm and if anything you try to increase the external rotation by forcing the right elbow more towards the center and in front of your body. You will notice how this keeps both hands on the trail side of your body...that's where they need to be. Your rotation will bring your hands and the club back to the ball.

    If you can get this movement correct with your arms you won't "cast" or come "over the top" or have a "chicken wing" going back. You will be able to have a flat lead wrist into impact wile your trail wrist stays cupped as it should and you will be able to release the club properly into the back of the ball from the inside. But there's a lot more instruction that goes into all of that.

    And again, that is why so many people correctly say to "go see an instructor and get lessons". Because if you are not interested in knowing every little facet of the swing in precise detail, or if you are not prepared to explain the swing in precise detail you probably shouldn't be asking or giving tips on a discussion board, honestly.

    But here we are! So if you understood that and can correctly implement it into your swing on your own then awesome! I'll be happy to explain more to anyone that wants to ask.

    With respect. Point counter point. From the words of one of the greatest ball strickers of all time. Again, why I recommend going to see a teaching pro. I am 78, been around a few years, played in a lot of amateur tournaments, still play three days a week, make it a point not to give advice on this site regarding correcting someone's swing, because I am not qualifed to do so. I leave it to the professionals, because they can observe and correct on the spot.

    "Ben Hogan" breaks down the swing

    The golf swing is made up of several key components that must work in harmony if you want to hit the ball solidly and efficiently. But, according to Hogan, there is one part that is more important than all the others.

    “The most important thing in the golf swing, to me, is the movement of the lower body from the top of the swing,” Hogan says.

    The movement of your lower body starts with getting a proper setup with your knees and your hips. You want to have your feet shoulder-width apart while keeping your knees bent to get yourself into an athletic posture.

    Once you get to the top of the swing, you want to start the downswing with your lower body — not your torso. If you start with the torso, it’ll throw the clubhead to the outside and cause you to swing outside-in.

    “Most people do it entirely opposite,” Hogan says. “They rotate their shoulders first instead of their lower body. As a result, they come across and hit the outside of the ball instead of the back of it.”

    The key to fighting this — and making a proper swing — is to let the lower body begin the downswing. Once you get to the top, bump your hips forward and then start your turn, allowing your torso to follow. This will properly sequence your swing, helping you make a powerful, repeatable move through the ball.

  13. JoeyD

    JoeyD
    Texas

    I am a frequent quoter of Mr Hogan myself. Have given away at least 10 copies of five lessons to friends and students. The only part of the swing I was concerning myself with in my post was the right arm. Yes, sequencing is important which is what Mr Hogan was talking about in that quote.

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