I need help, I have tired for 6+ years and its still the same......insert Einstein quote.

[Nels55]

28 minutes ago, Nard_S said:

More torso & shoulders, less arms. More arm lift, less arm "depth". Angles more crunched & less standing up. Shoulders are awol and off plane. I know all this all too well. Basic body angles and their optimization simplifies many intents. Awaking true upper body participation, holding angles takes time & reps but doable. Have gone down lots of rabbit holes, this one theme has worked because when you watch elite, that's how they swing. Yeah, get a Pro but get a clear simple idea why things can derail so easily. I lost many decent rounds because I go awol on this basic concept. Good luck. I'm hitting the links and putting my mouth to the dirt on this, lol.

The things that you say sound familiar to me.  It sounds like you have been fairly successful making the swing changes that you describe?  I am curious what your index was before you started the changes and what it is now?  Also what sort of changes in your ball striking have you noticed?  Thanks!

[Valtiel]

On 10/22/2021 at 8:35 PM, Exactice808 said:

@wagolfer7 @Valtiel

OK So, we can agree and I have known this, issue.   I understand it, BUT here is the thing, To fix it, I seem to get too darn mechanical.  trying to get into X position trying to force things.

 

So today I did 3 specific items.

 

First and foremost, I intentionally with ALL shots,  kept the club head well outside of my hands, making a much more "vertical" take away.  

 

Secondly,  I DID NOT do Anything else for the downswing at all,  NO manipulation nothing, Just "rotated" from the top to the ball and let the club release at the ball naturally.

This was the weirdest part, I was holding my breath, I had no idea where the ball would go. ZERO thought.  Oddly the ball went straight. Mind you again, I did NOTHING to manipulate the face, no intentional bowing, no lag, no forward shaft lean, motorcycle move, nothing.  I just had my take away vertical, with the club head well outside It fell like I was almost going to hit a massive cut/slice, then just rotated to the ball and let the club head do the work. it was liberating. FREAKING LIBERATING.

 

Last but not least, Today I let everything go mentally, I had ZERO expectations.  I tried my best to stay as relaxed as possible, I did not harp on a bad shot I just played for fun.

This was the result, I still had 1 blow up 8 and 2 doubles, one which I hit an errant OB drive.  Bunch of pars.  I missed a 2ft birdie on 4, I choked, but again I did NOT beat myself up for it. I just let it go.

. 

 

It was a relatively easy 83, With that, I had a massive clutch up on 18 with the birdie.  That was a huge confidence booster. And big on the bets today LOL!

 

OK now some additional items.

 

1) I would NOT call this a honeymoon stage or an ahha moment, because I knew and have known about this swing flaw for a while.  BUT I could never "trust" the fix or understand why I was doing it.  I would do it with the intention to manipulate the rest of the downswing as well. (Tuck the elbow, create lag, motorcycle move, etc)

 

2) I think I was fighting my body by trying to control the whole swing from the get go, from take away to impact.  Not allowing the body to do what its supposed to do.  If I initiated "Setting the table" The body knows how to do the rest right? Or so it seems.

 

3) Here is a weird one, I Swear I was swinging, 40-50% today, Like I said I was not trying to "hit" the ball just rotate at it and let the club do the work.  I had these blast... mind you I only swing 100mph driver speeds (Mevo+ verified LOL)  

  

The contact though was damn near the center,  but honestly it felt effort less in contact and in swing. The damn thing went straight.  I will say most of the shots went straight today except 3 holes and these 3 holes are the same holes that I basically choke on. (Like I mentioned in the above post about "Full swing yips" its like my body wants to mess it up....ugghh). Here is the thing, I feel like I am swinging 40-50% I feel like there is MORE gas in the tank, But I know that its dangerous. But just saying it out loud.


Anyways..... I will get some videos to "see" if I was really "taking it away vertically" If I was really getting the club head outside of the hands, But I thought I was, I felt I was.

 

I hope this builds some confidence that was lacking for a while. 

 

 

 

Thanks for the follow up, didn't expect you to take that into a round so quickly, hah!

I specifically wanted to call out "I had no idea where the ball would go. ZERO thought". That is absolutely the expected feeling when you simplify things and remove the need to compensate. We often get so used to having to compensate for SOMETHING in the swing that we forget that it's "wrong", it just becomes part of what we think a golf swing is. Remove the need to do that and you're left looking for something to "control" since that is basically what a swing compensation ends up feeling like, exerting control over something to get to the ball. 

Keep practicing that feeling of simplifying and letting go of that control with the more vertical and higher handed swing, and please take videos of you practicing this at home to keep tabs on progress! Once that feeling gets more ingrained (which will take time) then you can keep building on that. 

[Nard_S]

10 hours ago, Nels55 said:

The things that you say sound familiar to me.  It sounds like you have been fairly successful making the swing changes that you describe?  I am curious what your index was before you started the changes and what it is now?  Also what sort of changes in your ball striking have you noticed?  Thanks!

Ha, I started answering and it turned into a book. So let me keep it simple.Never held a GIHN but when I plug numbers into them over the last 6 years i trend from 6 to 12 to 4 to 10. In 2019, played best ever with solid rounds in 70's. 2020 did zilch for my golf even if we all had more time. This year was bad. Average gross is above 85, I'm like OP. 40/47 or 47/40.

 

The  geometry thing that I've circled back to has invigorated my swing. Cannot over state how hard it is to fully re-vamp swing and there's a real need to hold a dual expectation on swing progress and index progress. 

 

In general though I'm a full club longer, raised the floor on suckage and raised the window of goodness. Easy to implement this stuff on shorter clubs, very hard on metals and long irons. Grooving the big muscles to (finally) do the right thing intuitively is as herculean as mastering a flying Hoo kick and smashing a 2" board barefoot. So plan accordingly.

 

 

Edited October 25, 2021 by Nard_S

[LeftDaddy]

To the OP, I’ve dealt with a lot of similar issues as you. Got to an 8 handicap at one time but it was all smoke and mirrors. My swing was terrible but I had grooved a “fix” for a few months and my index dropped quickly. After a surgery and some other stuff, it crept back up to where it should have been (14 at the time). Now I’m a 10 and improving, and this one doesn’t feel like smoke and mirrors…I feel I have more improvement on the horizon. Finally, I suffered (and probably still do somewhat) from that excessive forearm rotation like you that causes you to roll the club inside. 
 

Anyway, a few thoughts for you. First, this isn’t a “mental block” or “swing yips”. No amount of “mental game” is going to fix your swing. The only mental block here is that, on the one hand you seem to want to improve, but on the other hand you are failing to acknowledge that some swing flaws are keeping you from improving and that it will just take some hard work to fix it. This hard work means identifying the flaws, practicing the moves correctly in the camera, grooving the changes by hitting balls, building a pre-shot routine that helps to remind you of whatever feel it is you are trying to groove, etc. I know all of this because this was me before…” I should be way better than I am, my swing is fine, it must be my mental game, why do I hit it so well on the range and not on the course?”  Sound familiar?

 

Second, on one hand, golf is infinitely complex (and you probably feel this way right now). On the other hand, golf is really pretty simple. At the end of the day, all it really takes is a stable face angle, and delivering the club on the proper plane (and the right combo of face angle and path for your pattern). That’s it. For example, it seems like you miss too many 2 foot putts. I’d be willing to bet that your putter face angle changes too much during the swing. Otherwise there’s almost no way to miss 2 footers unless you aimed way off. Whenever I start spraying the ball everywhere, after some frustration trying to find the right swing thought, I usually take a step back and remember that my face is likely too open which causes a lot of compensations. Plane is harder to fix but I generally know why I get dumped under and can create some feels to fix that. Point being, getting better doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to go away from “your swing” but it does mean that you have to make fixes stick that get you on plane with a stable face. 
 

Good luck!

[Exactice808]

18 hours ago, Valtiel said:

Thanks for the follow up, didn't expect you to take that into a round so quickly, hah!

I specifically wanted to call out "I had no idea where the ball would go. ZERO thought". That is absolutely the expected feeling when you simplify things and remove the need to compensate. We often get so used to having to compensate for SOMETHING in the swing that we forget that it's "wrong", it just becomes part of what we think a golf swing is. Remove the need to do that and you're left looking for something to "control" since that is basically what a swing compensation ends up feeling like, exerting control over something to get to the ball. 

Keep practicing that feeling of simplifying and letting go of that control with the more vertical and higher handed swing, and please take videos of you practicing this at home to keep tabs on progress! Once that feeling gets more ingrained (which will take time) then you can keep building on that. 

I  try to play weekly, So it was in the cards to play on Friday.  

 

Anyways there was nothing to lose so I said screw it, I dont think it was going to get any worse that what I was already dealing with anyways. 

I had a drive into work and was looking up some stuff and watched this video on they way in,
 

as I mentioned,  I know and have KNOWN of swing issues,  Its not that I deny it, its not that I dont think I exist,  but the implosions are frustrating, I will have bad shots everyone does, but a 2ft putt or a slice on the same hole every single time I play it. no matter how I setup, swing, aim whatever......

Anyways moving on, to the point 2:45 he talks about our body, 4million years of self preserving way, we have motor skills, we are terrible at puppet positions and fine motor skills.  That's what got me thinking about how I am TRYING to manipulate every single position through the swing. 

 

SO just let got,  Started the swing like you said and turned, WHO cares where the ball went afterward.  

I surely will keep practicing the initial move as I can tell and feel my hands wanting to "Set the wrist" that sucks the club head back and all hell breaks loose.    But if I keep the club head well out side, and then "rotate" nothing else. I can start to trust the resulting ball flight.  It will take time this is NOT again an Aha moment, but letting old thoughts go.

Sorry one more thing,  That was an actually "aha moment" but validates the PAST info and all the rest of the info out there in the ether.

 

 

OK trying to correct the miss (slice)  Get the path inside to out.  the more I took the club inside the more over run the arms blah blah....

When I was first told prior (again the info was not wrong I was NOT understanding it and trusting it)  Arms vertical rather then inside, arms disconnected, get the elbow tucked and shallow the swing. (manipulation)

 

Even now when you told me my club head has to stay outside of the hands, I thought oh boy this is straight blocks right, super slices and heel shots all day, because of the "path".

 

What I was not realizing, is what the body would do on its own.  FOR ME.......due to how I swing, with the club head back and the takeaway vertical, when the club reaches the top and I rotate the body, and not forcing the arms, elbows, hands etc to X position, the club drops down on its own and shallows on its own, I dont need to do it.  The shaft then "falls" on the swing arc, NOT over it. I thought it would come further over the top since the club was so far outside of the hands. 
 

I dont have to force speed either as the body will do what it takes for the club head to get to the ball. and likely square if I setup correctly.

Anyways going to try to get another video, but to be 100% I dont know how much change actually happened.  Assuming that there was a part of confidence that came back, but a drastic change in swing will take months.

 

Thanks again so much for your help! I will surely keep you posted!

 

[Exactice808]

3 hours ago, LeftDaddy said:

To the OP, I’ve dealt with a lot of similar issues as you. Got to an 8 handicap at one time but it was all smoke and mirrors. My swing was terrible but I had grooved a “fix” for a few months and my index dropped quickly. After a surgery and some other stuff, it crept back up to where it should have been (14 at the time). Now I’m a 10 and improving, and this one doesn’t feel like smoke and mirrors…I feel I have more improvement on the horizon. Finally, I suffered (and probably still do somewhat) from that excessive forearm rotation like you that causes you to roll the club inside. 
 

Anyway, a few thoughts for you. First, this isn’t a “mental block” or “swing yips”. No amount of “mental game” is going to fix your swing. The only mental block here is that, on the one hand you seem to want to improve, but on the other hand you are failing to acknowledge that some swing flaws are keeping you from improving and that it will just take some hard work to fix it. This hard work means identifying the flaws, practicing the moves correctly in the camera, grooving the changes by hitting balls, building a pre-shot routine that helps to remind you of whatever feel it is you are trying to groove, etc. I know all of this because this was me before…” I should be way better than I am, my swing is fine, it must be my mental game, why do I hit it so well on the range and not on the course?”  Sound familiar?

 

Second, on one hand, golf is infinitely complex (and you probably feel this way right now). On the other hand, golf is really pretty simple. At the end of the day, all it really takes is a stable face angle, and delivering the club on the proper plane (and the right combo of face angle and path for your pattern). That’s it. For example, it seems like you miss too many 2 foot putts. I’d be willing to bet that your putter face angle changes too much during the swing. Otherwise there’s almost no way to miss 2 footers unless you aimed way off. Whenever I start spraying the ball everywhere, after some frustration trying to find the right swing thought, I usually take a step back and remember that my face is likely too open which causes a lot of compensations. Plane is harder to fix but I generally know why I get dumped under and can create some feels to fix that. Point being, getting better doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to go away from “your swing” but it does mean that you have to make fixes stick that get you on plane with a stable face. 
 

Good luck!

As I mentioned in the prior post, I was listening to a Shawn Clemente video about or natural wiring.

 

I can 100% agree that my face is all over the place, putts, chips, irons, drives due to me trying to manipulate it all the way.    I am trying to mentally break from that to just let it go and be natural.  It seemingly worked based on the "immediate" change in scoring and attitude this past round.  Is it a permanent fix, NO, not at all, its a validation but a work in process.

 

I will still have bad shots, I will likely still have a bad attitude. BUT If I approach it different, like you mentioned and others in this thread. I may move forward.

Thanks for your post as I am sure you understand feeling fully.  I appreciate your empathy and support!

[Nels55]

23 minutes ago, Exactice808 said:

I  try to play weekly, So it was in the cards to play on Friday.  

 

Anyways there was nothing to lose so I said screw it, I dont think it was going to get any worse that what I was already dealing with anyways. 

I had a drive into work and was looking up some stuff and watched this video on they way in,
 

as I mentioned,  I know and have KNOWN of swing issues,  Its not that I deny it, its not that I dont think I exist,  but the implosions are frustrating, I will have bad shots everyone does, but a 2ft putt or a slice on the same hole every single time I play it. no matter how I setup, swing, aim whatever......

Anyways moving on, to the point 2:45 he talks about our body, 4million years of self preserving way, we have motor skills, we are terrible at puppet positions and fine motor skills.  That's what got me thinking about how I am TRYING to manipulate every single position through the swing. 

 

SO just let got,  Started the swing like you said and turned, WHO cares where the ball went afterward.  

I surely will keep practicing the initial move as I can tell and feel my hands wanting to "Set the wrist" that sucks the club head back and all hell breaks loose.    But if I keep the club head well out side, and then "rotate" nothing else. I can start to trust the resulting ball flight.  It will take time this is NOT again an Aha moment, but letting old thoughts go.

Sorry one more thing,  That was an actually "aha moment" but validates the PAST info and all the rest of the info out there in the ether.

 

 

OK trying to correct the miss (slice)  Get the path inside to out.  the more I took the club inside the more over run the arms blah blah....

When I was first told prior (again the info was not wrong I was NOT understanding it and trusting it)  Arms vertical rather then inside, arms disconnected, get the elbow tucked and shallow the swing. (manipulation)

 

Even now when you told me my club head has to stay outside of the hands, I thought oh boy this is straight blocks right, super slices and heel shots all day, because of the "path".

 

What I was not realizing, is what the body would do on its own.  FOR ME.......due to how I swing, with the club head back and the takeaway vertical, when the club reaches the top and I rotate the body, and not forcing the arms, elbows, hands etc to X position, the club drops down on its own and shallows on its own, I dont need to do it.  The shaft then "falls" on the swing arc, NOT over it. I thought it would come further over the top since the club was so far outside of the hands. 
 

I dont have to force speed either as the body will do what it takes for the club head to get to the ball. and likely square if I setup correctly.

Anyways going to try to get another video, but to be 100% I dont know how much change actually happened.  Assuming that there was a part of confidence that came back, but a drastic change in swing will take months.

 

Thanks again so much for your help! I will surely keep you posted!

 

 

Check out Ron Sisson's videos, he has quite a few of them:

 

 

[Exactice808]

Just now, Nels55 said:

 

Check out Ron Sisson's videos, he has quite a few of them:

 

 

EFFING LOVE IT!... 100% me..... without a doubt...... cue "The Last Samurai",   "to many mind"......

[Precis1on]

On 10/22/2021 at 10:35 PM, Exactice808 said:

This was the weirdest part, I was holding my breath, I had no idea where the ball would go. ZERO thought.  Oddly the ball went straight. Mind you again, I did NOTHING to manipulate the face, no intentional bowing, no lag, no forward shaft lean, motorcycle move, nothing.  I just had my take away vertical, with the club head well outside It fell like I was almost going to hit a massive cut/slice, then just rotated to the ball and let the club head do the work. it was liberating. FREAKING LIBERATING.

 

What's helped me here is making sure that my alignment is solid during my pre-shot routine. Even if you don't know what your swing is doing, at least you know you're aligned where you want to hit the ball. Then you get to see whether or not your swing gets you there. 

[MikeG]

On 10/22/2021 at 4:33 PM, milesgiles said:

from what ive seen of your swing, you shouldnt be struggling as much as you are. Seen far worse swings with far lower handicaps 

I remember the OP posting his swings several years ago and thought the same. I get 6 handicap results from a 20 handicap swing, and there are many like me. 

[Nels55]

23 minutes ago, MikeG said:

I remember the OP posting his swings several years ago and thought the same. I get 6 handicap results from a 20 handicap swing, and there are many like me. 

There is no substitute for talent.  If you can get the center of the club face on the ball with a consistent motion it makes no difference if you early extend or reverse pivot or sway or whatever...  It might not be optimum but it is probably better then constantly trying to 'fix' your swing mechanics.  Real swing change is really hard and may or may not be worth the effort.  LOL I mean 'you' in general and not MikeG specifically!

[baudi]

What are you looking for? Score or swing? Score is like a pay check: do not confuse its size with the size of your talent.

Any good Swing has the grace of art. Real art never makes a dime. So enjoy the suffering while you can.
Where to start? Foot and legwork.

 

 

[Nard_S]

15 hours ago, MikeG said:

I get 6 handicap results from a 20 handicap swing, and there are many like me. 

Yeah that was me. You hit a berm with it. Issue is to get over, you have to back up. Then it gets messy. This where a solid Pro is worth the money. But this multi-year. I'm somewhat in the desert index wise, hit an oasis, then go wandering. So a sense of enjoying the journey is a must. With all that, I enjoy the game a lot more than I did when I was clawing on that berm.

[Krt22]

16 hours ago, MikeG said:

I remember the OP posting his swings several years ago and thought the same. I get 6 handicap results from a 20 handicap swing, and there are many like me. 

Some flaws are more subtle to average am on video, but can be just as detrimental as more visually obvious ones. Ands what Nels55 said, some simply compensate better 

[Exactice808]

19 hours ago, MikeG said:

I remember the OP posting his swings several years ago and thought the same. I get 6 handicap results from a 20 handicap swing, and there are many like me. 

 

If I may take this on a separate tangent.   You have seen it too then right,  The crappy swing that was good enough for decent lower scores?  For fun, this is a great IMHO display of blades and a confident swing.  Which I do not seem to have right now.  The swing has the same exact issues as current and past, yet, there is way more confidence in the swing? 

 

This was during my "Blade" days.... you know, when everyone thinks they are way better than they actually actually are?  But Will say,  about 2016 a year into the blade phase was when I was shooting low double digits and high singles digits pretty consistently.   My chipping and putting were no where NEAR as solid as it is now,  but the iron game was solid.


Some how I could string the 9's,  my concern is that I dont have it, its that it blows up?    Thoughts on the blow ups?

 

Edited October 26, 2021 by Exactice808

[Exactice808]

18 hours ago, Nels55 said:

There is no substitute for talent.  If you can get the center of the club face on the ball with a consistent motion it makes no difference if you early extend or reverse pivot or sway or whatever...  It might not be optimum but it is probably better then constantly trying to 'fix' your swing mechanics.  Real swing change is really hard and may or may not be worth the effort.  LOL I mean 'you' in general and not MikeG specifically!

I think I have accepted this sentiment,  I know I would never see the "Inside of the ropes"  But I feel I can play better than what I am producing now.

 

to be fair I cant even "Miss consistently" There is no "one side" Its a mess. 

100% real swing changes are hard,  I been on the forums for years to truly accept this, And I am the perfect product of this.  I guess I am trying to figure out consistency rather than a perfect swing?  It seems some members here are helping me to get to a better swing, to be more consistent and I appreciate it, but I fear, that I will go back to crap or something worse.

Edited October 26, 2021 by Exactice808

[Long_Left]

On 10/22/2021 at 9:35 PM, Exactice808 said:

@wagolfer7 @Valtiel

 

 

1) "Last but not least, Today I let everything go mentally, I had ZERO expectations.  I tried my best to stay as relaxed as possible, I did not harp on a bad shot I just played for fun."

 

2) "3) Here is a weird one, I Swear I was swinging, 40-50% today, Like I said I was not trying to "hit" the ball just rotate at it and let the club do the work.  I had these blast... mind you I only swing 100mph driver speeds (Mevo+ verified LOL)  

 The contact though was damn near the center,  but honestly it felt effort less in contact and in swing. The damn thing went straight.  I will say most of the shots went straight today except 3 holes and these 3 holes are the same holes that I basically choke on. (Like I mentioned in the above post about "Full swing yips" its like my body wants to mess it up....ugghh). Here is the thing, I feel like I am swinging 40-50% I feel like there is MORE gas in the tank, But I know that its dangerous. But just saying it out loud."

 

 

 

 

Caveat, I'm no instructor, not by a long shot. I'm a golfer who loves the mechanics of the swing and has been on a similar journey the last few years...

 

The two things I quoted above have been hugely instrumental in my progress from a 10ish index making 3 birdies and 6 or so doubles+ every round in early 2020 to a 4 currently averaging under 1 double per round, mostly because my short game is still very mental for me.

 

1) Expectations are a killer, it unrealistic to have zero expectations all of the time, but you have to manage those expectations under pressure. Still a work in progress on my end, it's easy in casual golf, tougher when you have a PW in your hands in a tournament. I have had successes with expectations after really focusing on "knowing" my game, I know that I can carry a 9i 151 yards in the summertime, I also know that I cannot consistently carry it 160 and that has eliminated a couple strokes a round for me. This gets back to your "extra" moves at the top of your backswing, it happens when we "go after it" and leads to full on chaos when you're using your hands to generate that additional power. Frustration leads to intensity leads to bad contact and more frustration...

 

2) I fight this ALL THE TIME... Example from last weekend: I'm a lefty in a smaller city with no significant golf retail so I don't get many chances to demo equipment. I currently play a 44 inch driver and wanted to see what a 46 would do to my speed and contact/dispersion. Went to Phoenix for a concert and a buddy and I head over to the "superstore" so I can whack a couple drivers on the LM. I was spraying it left for the first 20 swings and annoyed that I couldn't square it up and kept swinging with more expectation and effort to worsening results. I finally turned to my friend and said "Forget this, I guess I'm just not built for a 46" driver." And he says "Quit trying to smash it and just hit the ball..." Next 3 were roughly 10% longer than my current average with my normal 10-15 yard cut and my club speed jumped 4mph over my "smash it" swing. Conscious effort, in my case, significantly reduces performance. It's a bear to overcome for someone as bullheaded as myself but you have to trust that no one cares what you hit from 162 and pick the club and shot that requires the least effort to hit that "comfy" one.

 

 

 

[MikeG]

57 minutes ago, Exactice808 said:

 

If I may take this on a separate tangent.   You have seen it too then right,  The crappy swing that was good enough for decent lower scores?  For fun, this is a great IMHO display of blades and a confident swing.  Which I do not seem to have right now.  The swing has the same exact issues as current and past, yet, there is way more confidence in the swing? 

 

This was during my "Blade" days.... you know, when everyone thinks they are way better than they actually actually are?  But Will say,  about 2016 a year into the blade phase was when I was shooting low double digits and high singles digits pretty consistently.   My chipping and putting were no where NEAR as solid as it is now,  but the iron game was solid.


Some how I could string the 9's,  my concern is that I dont have it, its that it blows up?    Thoughts on the blow ups?

 

You've gotten some outstanding advice in this thread. I'm not going to comment on specific swing stuff because I'm clueless when it comes to swing mechanics. From an aesthetics standpoint, you make a nice and balanced athletic move. Nothing tense, herky-jerky, or tentative, nor does it seem like you're swinging out of your shoes.  Valtiel did a nice breakdown of your 2015 driver swing. That's a better looking looking swing than any driver swing I've ever made.

 

Your blow ups are simply brutal, and that's coming from someone who can shoot a 45/36 just as easily as a 39/40. Your # of putts isn't bad, so what's causing the big numbers? Are you losing focus after a couple of hours, or are you panicking and resorting to playing "golf swing" after a couple of bad shots? Those numbers can't be matter of simply spraying the driver or chunking irons.  

 

FWIW I can commiserate with you. I've gotten a lot more than I should have out of my crappy swing, but I'm very aware of its limitations, and I've been working on improving my swing since I started playing again. My first two rounds were utter trainwrecks of 87 and 89 while focusing on my hand position at the top of the backswing and/or transition on the downswing. I decided to leave those swing thoughts back on the range and will continue to work on them there and not on the course. With my normal "house of cards" swing (albeit with a more controlled feeling on my backswing except for the driver) I managed to get around in 81 and 79, both with a couple of ugly stretches.  

 

Good luck and know you're not alone in your struggles. Your thread brought to mind a quote I recently read: "Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb." -- President Calvin Coolidge. Then again PJ O'Rourke once wrote "Earnestness is stupidity sent to college." Depends on the day. 

 

 

 

 

[Precis1on]

2 hours ago, Exactice808 said:

 

If I may take this on a separate tangent.   You have seen it too then right,  The crappy swing that was good enough for decent lower scores?  For fun, this is a great IMHO display of blades and a confident swing.  Which I do not seem to have right now.  The swing has the same exact issues as current and past, yet, there is way more confidence in the swing? 

 

This was during my "Blade" days.... you know, when everyone thinks they are way better than they actually actually are?  But Will say,  about 2016 a year into the blade phase was when I was shooting low double digits and high singles digits pretty consistently.   My chipping and putting were no where NEAR as solid as it is now,  but the iron game was solid.

Some how I could string the 9's,  my concern is that I dont have it, its that it blows up?    Thoughts on the blow ups?

 

 

Golf is honestly a game that abides by the law of averages. People are always like "if I didn't blow up here, I would have shot X" or "I shot a career front nine and blew up the back" because rather than think about the next shot, they got hung up on their potential score and it all came off the rails. 

 

End of day it's about being consistent with yourself. Pre-shot routines, course condition checkpoints, etc on every shot. Don't worry about the score don't worry about the rest. Just get the ball where you need it to go. 

 

Even for me, trying to battle back to scratch was told "Your swing looks like a -5,  your chipping is about a scratch, and your putting stroke looks like a +4". I have to get around with what I have and understand my limitations, and do my best to stay consistent on every shot.