Golf vs Golfswing

[Obee]

I have never been more convinced that golfers trying to get better learn the game in a manner that does not facilitate rapid, lasting improvement.

 

Due to chronic lower-back muscle spasms, I was forced to "invent" a new move to take pressure off of my lower back about two months ago. I worked backwards. I knew the result I wanted (minimal back pain while swinging), so I experimented and tweaked until I found something I could repeat (with the secondary goal of only hitting the ball solidly and straight). This is what I came up with. I literally learned it in half an hour and probably 30 balls.

 

My scores have hardly changed and I broke par and almost WON my last (team) SCGA scratch event shooting 1-under 71 with every shot played this way:

 

 

 

More to come on this....

[MountainGoat]

Moe Norman would be proud...

 

 

[Yrrdead]

I would say that this type of instruction (task based, self organized) is on the increase. At least that is my perception based on some of the more popular stuff out there.

 

Shawn Clements and Adam Young being guys who jump to my mind.

[Kenny Lee Puckett]

man that driver swing would make Bubba Watson proud.

 

(more importantly hope the back gets better)

[sdandrea]

Looks like it produces! Same success with hitting irons and FWs off the turf?

[Obee]

Looks like it produces! Same success with hitting irons and FWs off the turf?

 

Yes, although if I have to elevate the ball, that's where I struggle. Hurts the back.

[ryan983]

Very unique finish you have there. You really own that. No wonder you are one of the best ams in California! Have you ever thought about trying to qualify for the champions tour?

[Obee]

Very unique finish you have there. You really own that. No wonder you are one of the best ams in California! Have you ever thought about trying to qualify for the champions tour?

 

Thank you very much. However:

 

A) I'm definitely NOT one of the "best ams in California." I am one of the better (top 100?) 50+ year-old amateurs in California, but that's about it. :-)

 

B) I have no chance on the Champions Tour. Nowhere near good enough. I would not embarrass myself, but I could absolutely not compete week in and week out.

 

But thank you again. :-)

[dave5405]

I agree, a lot of people spend too much time on golf swing and not enough time on golf. But let’s not forget, you already knew how to hit the ball solid, and just had to figure out how to continue without putting strain on your back. It’s very difficult to golf if you don’t have a swing to start with.

[DavePelz4]

Kind of the Gary Player walk through move.

 

[Ghostwedge]

Go get some PT for your back Obee or you will end up walking and dancing all over your follow thru like that Korean guy on the Asian Tour.

 

[Lamb]

I'd rather focus more on the root of your back problems than the swing. Bad news is things get worse as we age, the good news is you can do something about it before it gets worse.

[MtlJeff]

I always tell people that as long as you can make a comfortable swing and have the clubface come through square, you can play pretty darn good golf. It doesn't really matter what it looks like

 

I think pros, who play at like a +7, +8 etc type level, the margin for error is so small that their swings must be closer to technically perfect, as it gives them the ability to hit multiple shots, which are needed to play at that level.

 

At a scratch, 1,2 level, you don't truly need every shot. I hit probably less than 5 fades all of last season. My swing has a Paul Goydos like slo-mo follow through. Most real ams (meaning not college kids) i have seen don't have perfect swings, they've just figured out how to score

[finleysg]

I think there's a talent factor involved, and probably, as someone has already mentioned, having a solid foundation already. I've been grinding each winter on my golf swing for the past 5 years, and while I'm measurably better than 5 years ago, progress has always been slower than slow. My goal hasn't changed - hit the center of the club face more often - but the wear pattern on my irons reveals how elusive that is for me.

[Forged4ever]

BEAUTIFUL??!!!

 

Great stuff David, and as I’m about to hit the next IV room, I’ve gotta run but you know my stand on this without me even posting, lolol, though I will say the Elite Ams & Pros, one, do not need to be any more “technically perfect” than you, I(in the past, lol?) or anyone who can consistently and repeatedly strike a ball center club face and put the ball where we want it. The key is consistency. If you or anyone else can consistently repeat that swing and strike that ball center club face, I don’t care if you’re 2~, scratch, +3 or +8, You’re good to go.

 

Form don’t mean shat as long as it’s repeatedly and consistently FUNCTIONAL!!

 

Also, today’s Player don’t come close, with the exception of Tiger, Bubba and a few others of having the shot armamentarium of Jack and the boys, lol.

 

One, they don’t need to with the ball and club designs of today and secondly, the courses, from a design and also an upkeep/maintenance standpoint, don’t demand it.

 

I don’t count being able to fade or draw drivers or the long end of the bag as hell, I could do that consistently and I know damn well that you can in your sleep.

 

Plus, flawless is good enough except in a very very few situations that we will in all likelihood never experience, where perfection is demanded, lol

 

As always, just my .03 worth?

 

I’ll catch ya in a bit Bro

 

All the Best?

RP

[MtlJeff]

Inspired by you in posting your swing Obee, i give you mine in all it's glory LOL

 

Notice the Goydos follow through, i have no idea when i developed that!

 

[Obee]

Inspired by you in posting your swing Obee, i give you mine in all it's glory LOL

 

Notice the Goydos follow through, i have no idea when i developed that!

 

 

LOL at "The Goydos"

 

Now get us a couple better camera angles! :-)

[MtlJeff]

I'm usually at the range alone at like 8am haha

[nikegal]

Happy New Year David? I currently have 13 golfers who use the “step through” swing, 10 by choice to assist them in getting to their left side at and through impact and 3 due to lower back conditions. Of the 10 individuals who made the change for swing purposes, versus health reasons, 7 are single digit handicaps, from 3~ to 9~, one is scratch and one is a +1.6. The lone golfer who is not single digit has dropped from 19~ to a solid 12~(over two seasons) and every single one has dropped their handicap since going to the “step through.” Two of the three golfers who made the switch for health reasons are also single digit, with one dropping from a 8~ to a 5~, while the other has gone from a 3~ to a 6~, though his back really bothered him late in the season and he is due for surgery next week. You have the mind set of a Player, in that you were looking for a functional swing that could allow you to Play the game as pain free as possible and put the ball on target, versus looking for a “text book” swing. There is no such thing as a “perfect” swing so I don’t even use the word, hahaha. I’ll bite on “text book,” haha. I have taken Richard on as a student as he is not the same person that he was in 2012-2013 and he is much easier to work with and we are working on the step through for him as his stroke has left him with partial feeling and motor control on his left side and he was falling to his left on the follow through off balance, so when he was able to, I had him working on slo mo and mirror drills completing his swing in balance and walking through the finish. He looks much better posting over his left leg and walking through in balance and I’m anxious for him to hit some balls when he’s well enough. He may be my best “project” yet, hahaha. We wish you continued success and the best of health in 2019!! fondly, Madison

[Obee]

Happy New Year David I currently have 13 golfers who use the step through swing, 10 by choice to assist them in getting to their left side at and through impact and 3 due to lower back conditions. Of the 10 individuals who made the change for swing purposes, versus health reasons, 7 are single digit handicaps, from 3~ to 9~, one is scratch and one is a +1.6. The lone golfer who is not single digit has dropped from 19~ to a solid 12~(over two seasons) and every single one has dropped their handicap since going to the step through. Two of the three golfers who made the switch for health reasons are also single digit, with one dropping from a 8~ to a 5~, while the other has gone from a 3~ to a 6~, though his back really bothered him late in the season and he is due for surgery next week. You have the mind set of a Player, in that you were looking for a functional swing that could allow you to Play the game as pain free as possible and put the ball on target, versus looking for a text book swing. There is no such thing as a perfect swing so I dont even use the word, hahaha. Ill bite on text book, haha. I have taken Richard as a student as he is not the same person that he was in 2012-2013 and he is much easier to work with and we are working on the step through for him as his stroke has left him with partial feeling and motor control on his left side and he was falling to his left on the fallow through off balance, so when he was able to, I had him working on slo mo and mirror drills completing his swing in balance and walking through the finish. He looks much better posting over his left leg and walking through in balance and Im anxious for him to hit some balls when hes well enough. He may be my best project yet, hahaha. We wish you continued success and the best of health in 2019!! fondly, Madison

 

Madison,

 

Thank you so much for the wonderful post. I adore you both and wish you the very best this year and in the future.

 

The step-through is amazing, And I am not surprised that you are seeing your students succeed with it. So many mid and higher handicappers hang back on the right side and try to lift the ball up.

 

The step-through really helps with that. :-)

 

David

[DavePelz4]

Inspired by you in posting your swing Obee, i give you mine in all it's glory LOL

 

Notice the Goydos follow through, i have no idea when i developed that!

 

 

Well, now that you are a Dad, those things just start to happen. Pretty soon you'll see things that you abhorred in your Dad that you do without even thinking. And then it'll all make sense.

[Hawkeye77]

Inspired by you in posting your swing Obee, i give you mine in all it's glory LOL

 

 

Goydos only dreams he can swing like that! He needs to unbutton a couple buttons and let it go, lol.

 

Nice!

[Hawkeye77]

Happy New Year David I currently have 13 golfers who use the "step through" swing, 10 by choice to assist them in getting to their left side at and through impact and 3 due to lower back conditions. Of the 10 individuals who made the change for swing purposes, versus health reasons, 7 are single digit handicaps, from 3~ to 9~, one is scratch and one is a +1.6. The lone golfer who is not single digit has dropped from 19~ to a solid 12~(over two seasons) and every single one has dropped their handicap since going to the "step through." Two of the three golfers who made the switch for health reasons are also single digit, with one dropping from a 8~ to a 5~, while the other has gone from a 3~ to a 6~, though his back really bothered him late in the season and he is due for surgery next week. You have the mind set of a Player, in that you were looking for a functional swing that could allow you to Play the game as pain free as possible and put the ball on target, versus looking for a "text book" swing. There is no such thing as a "perfect" swing so I don't even use the word, hahaha. I'll bite on "text book," haha. I have taken Richard on as a student as he is not the same person that he was in 2012-2013 and he is much easier to work with and we are working on the step through for him as his stroke has left him with partial feeling and motor control on his left side and he was falling to his left on the follow through off balance, so when he was able to, I had him working on slo mo and mirror drills completing his swing in balance and walking through the finish. He looks much better posting over his left leg and walking through in balance and I'm anxious for him to hit some balls when he's well enough. He may be my best "project" yet, hahaha. We wish you continued success and the best of health in 2019!! fondly, Madison

 

This makes my New Year 2019! Richard hitting balls - you two go!

[Hawkeye77]

"You know what I did there? I didn't worry about my swing or anything, I just accelerated through the ball." Arnold Palmer's comment in Shell match against Nicklaus I was just rewatching after he finally hit a great iron shot after a tough day to the 18th green. At 64, and one of the best ever, the way he said it and looked suggested he'd played a lot of "golf swing" that day - and there was talk during the match about how hard Arnold had been working on his game. Just seemed interesting.

[ThinkingPlus]

I sometimes walk through on tight, hard pan lies where I really want alot of forward shaft lean. Works well for punches or glighted wedges from that kind of lie. Probably looks funny, but I gave up on a good looking swing a long time ago. UBE is OK for me.