PrayingForPar

I just want to add that by squatting, you're actually picking the toe of the club up, forcing the swing plane to be different

My random guess would be: Ground Reaction Forces

Little background.  I am 61 years old.  Played golf off and on since I was 12.  Never been great but at one time was a single digit handicap.  Started playing more recently and age is catching up with me.  I can still swing a driver around 105 mph and if my back is loose, I have seen 111mph on the simulator.  However, in the last few months the driver has been a mystery.  Hook left, slice right, topping the ball just over all miserable.  My irons look fine, 3 wood and 5 wood are great.... Some kind of mental block going on.  
Anyway, last night in the garage sim I was trying to work out the driver issues.  Tried several shafts but decided to go back to the original shaft that came with my Ping 410.  It sucked... looked exactly like it did when I pulled it out.  However, I decided to stick with it and work on tempo, grip position, trying to shallow the club on the down swing... all the stuff everyone says makes a good swing.  All sucked.
THEN... I decided to squat a little more in my setup.  Simply "sitting" a little lower.  Rotating my shoulders back smoothly and trying to swing a little inside out.  BINGO...  I hit 5 drives in a row over 270 and a couple over 280 right down the middle.  Spin dropped from over 4000 to just over 2000.  Swing speed was around 105ish and ball speed between 152 to 154.  Smash factor between 1.45 and 1.48.  At 61 years old I will take that all day.  Prior to the change IF I could keep it in the fairway, it was a 220 something carry and roll out to 240 if lucky.
Question is why?  How does just squatting a little make so much difference.  I tried to google it, search YouTube for the answer and I cannot find anywhere that squatting in the setup isa thing.  Sure, I saw squatting on the down swing which I tried but was terrible at.
Anyway, interested in people thoughts on this.
Greg

G'day, So quick intro I am a Physiotherapist and TPI certified medical professional. I am just throwing it out there as I have seen a few injury-related questions that I may be able to provide some guidance for (as best as I can without doing a proper assessment). 
Just want people playing golf for as long as the possibly can.
so either comment below or send me a message

Thanks for posting and for the offer of advice!
So myself, and a few others, not surprisingly have back issues - not necessarily all rooted in / initially caused by golf, but of course the golf swing doesn't make it better.
A few days ago somehow I gave myself a fairly severe muscle strain across the lower back... I also have limited mobility in the hips. 
Was wondering if you could suggest some exercises, or maybe TPI vids to follow, or other resource(s) that could help address and improve these issues??
 

Yeah I haven't either. Found your post because I was looking for a solution I guess I have to just keep multiplying it x 2.237...all to save $80but yeah, otherwise pretty useful

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The mats will give you a ton of forgiveness; you can fat every shot and it comes out okay off a mat but that's not so on grass. First course I learned on was a mat only range. They had an unlimited range pass so I would go hit 2 or 3 buckets a day and feel great; once on the course I was fatting every shot and felt horrible. Transitioning to a grass range will really tell you a lot about your ball striking with irons, hybrids not so much.
So to answer your question, I have had horrible experience going from a mat to a real range.

I still haven't found the solution. Still a useful tool but not nearly as useful as the black version would be. Sigh.

Painters tape on the range mat is a go to for me, or the good old standby towel

I have to agree with playing holes. I am trying to dial in my practice routine and was getting frustrated because I was hitting pure on the range but it would all fall apart while playing a range. And then I wondered if maybe part of my issue was that I could consistently hit a club well if I was hitting it a dozen times in a row but not when hitting it once and then moving to another club. So, I do the same thing. I start by hitting my driver or 3W, then move on to a fairway wood...down to a hybrid or long iron, then a wedge to improve in transitioning between clubs. 

Opening Prompt: I’m trying to creat a range session plan to get me from not having a handicap to being a mid handicapped. Let’s start with a high level skill plan and progression. 
 
Your golf improvement plan is structured around a comprehensive and progressive approach, incorporating elements from professional golfers' routines, swing coaches' tips, and your personal preferences. Here's a high-level overview:
### 1. **Range Sessions**
   - **Frequency**: Every Sunday night at Leonard's Golf Links.
   - **Session Structure**:
     - **Warm-Up**: Focus on short wedge shots (50-75 yards) to get loose.
     - **Precision Drills**: Pitch shots (30-50 yards), Tiger Woods-style iron drills (8, 6, 4 irons), and Bryson DeChambeau-style speed drills with a 7-iron.
     - **Hybrid/Fairway Wood Practice**: Target-focused shots with your 4-hybrid and 3-wood.
     - **Driver Work**: Bryson Power Drills for speed and control, plus John Daly-style creative drives for max distance.
     - **Short Game Practice**: Chipping and putting with specific goals. Short Shots Drill Structure adapts to the time available (short, medium, or long sessions).
     - **Cool Down**: Stretching.
   - **Ball Count**: A conservative number of balls is allocated per drill, and range baskets are ordered based on session goals.
   - **Focus**: You emphasize swing goals, shot shaping, and using all your clubs. Your drills adapt to the available range amenities.
### 2. **Swing Influences**
   - **Initial 18 Sessions**: Incorporate Rick Shiels' swing tips and coaching style.
   - **Next 18 Sessions**: Blend Rick Shiels' teachings with influences from Tiger Woods, Bryson DeChambeau, John Daly, and other pros.
### 3. **Progress Tracking**
   - **Yardage Tracking**: Record and track shot yardages for each club to develop a "pocket caddy" system over time.
   - **Session Recaps**: Review the number of balls per drill to stay on track and analyze progress.
### 4. **Equipment Focus**
   - **Club Setup**: Continue refining your bag setup with a mix of precision and versatility, aiming to improve performance from all lies and conditions.
   - **Wedge and Grip Maintenance**: Regularly check and replace grips, especially on wedges, to maintain consistency.
### 5. **Short and Long-Term Goals**
   - **Short-Term**: Improve accuracy, consistency, and control across all clubs, especially focusing on reducing slices and bettering driver performance.
   - **Long-Term**: Lower your handicap by building on the foundations established during the initial sessions, transitioning into more advanced shot shaping and creative play.
Your plan is dynamic and allows for adjustments based on progress, preferences, and specific goals as you continue to improve.
---
**Q1:** How should I adjust my range sessions if I find that I am struggling with a specific club?
**Q2:** What specific swing tips should I incorporate from Rick Shiels, Tiger Woods, and others during my practice?
**Q3:** How can I refine my short game practice to ensure consistent improvement over time?
 
And that’s my range session plan  
HOPE THIS HELPS!

Opening Prompt: I’m trying to creat a range session plan to get me from not having a handicap to being a mid handicapped. Let’s start with a high level skill plan and progression. 

William, I did a little “pre-work” before starting the Game Improvement Prompt. First I’m a paid user so the memory is a big help here (GPT4.o) Discussed my golf goals (going from no handicap to a mid handicap), what kind of swing I’ve been told I have and a little about me physically, then I told it what clubs I have. Asked it to do a full history and description for each of my clubs. Once I built my bag and had “CaddyGPT” learn all about my clubs and my swing type and goals, I started to give it swing influences like Tiger ball striking, Bryson DeChambeau power swings, John Daily’s creativity and grip it and rip style, and then did a Rick Shils coaching style. 
next I mentioned the range I go to and how much each size the range buckets are. My home range has a putting & chipping area included so that took a little work it break that out into long shots and short shot drills. Then through a few iterations of asking it to create a range drill for me and my clubs that sets me up to meet my goals. 

I wish I would've found this before I ordered mine. Like you, I figured I was smart and found a decent deal....just received it to struggled to change the m/s I guess I'll have to live with converting it to mph

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I was just interested in the prompts you used, very cool. If you are into ai make sure to give perplexity a try....

To answer your actual question.....What helped me get lower in my handicap is "playing holes" on the range. Hit Driver-Iron-Wedge, or Driver-Wood-Wedge. Going back and forth with just a single shot of each club keeps you from just hitting another shot after a bad one and adds value to each shot just like on the course. 

https://mygolfspy.com/news-opinion/behind-the-curtain-just-who-is-designing-your-golf-clubs/
 

Another vote for Sub70!
There are some pretty convincing theories that multiple brands you listed use the same manufacturer just throw a different name on them....That would be a great MGS article...

Crazy wildfires and thunderstorms here in SoCal so was forced to practice putting indoors.
Spent about 30 minutes with a putting mirror working on start line and tempo with a metronome.

Somewhere somehow my swing adopted a mind boggling over the top move. Dead pull.  Take away, I am on plane. Draw a line from ball up shaft and continue well behind head, top of backswing hands are on and under that line.
And then forward swing......my hands drift above the swing plane, never to return....once in a while they make it back on plane about thigh knee level but maybe 1 of 5 swings.
Mental efforts to drop aarms below plane instead of rotate shoulders is a train wreck during contact.
I am ready to embrace the pull. Just aim about 10% right...aim 20 yards right on 180 yard shot....10 yards on 100 yard pitch.
 
Anyone else just aiming right and taking the pull as livable ?
Otherwise, Maybe PGA pro can help me.

Those are some of the most expensive balls you can get and at a 10 handi I still loose balls. I didn't start keeping a ball for an entire 18 till I was down to the 11/12 range. 
Have you tried a supersoft or a true feel?  
 

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and writing thus up!  I have not played this years CS balls. Last year's CS TT was my preferred ball. This year is a crapshoot for me though.  I've tried 8 different brands of balls and have it narrowed down to 3.
 

I was just interested in the prompts you used, very cool. If you are into ai make sure to give perplexity a try....

To answer your actual question.....What helped me get lower in my handicap is "playing holes" on the range. Hit Driver-Iron-Wedge, or Driver-Wood-Wedge. Going back and forth with just a single shot of each club keeps you from just hitting another shot after a bad one and adds value to each shot just like on the course. 

I was just interested in the prompts you used, very cool. If you are into ai make sure to give perplexity a try....

To answer your actual question.....What helped me get lower in my handicap is "playing holes" on the range. Hit Driver-Iron-Wedge, or Driver-Wood-Wedge. Going back and forth with just a single shot of each club keeps you from just hitting another shot after a bad one and adds value to each shot just like on the course. 

I am more interested in how you used ChatGPT LOL

I agree with @cnosil , it does seem like you are going through a lot of balls in an hour. Often, hitting a small bucket in an hour seem to be more productive than just swinging away at a full bucket in 45 minutes.
Your routine seems like a full bag practice, might be beneficial heading to the practice facility with a more specific aspect you are focusing on like Shots within 150, long irons and driver, short game, putting, ect. after your warm up.
Not sure how often you are playing actual rounds, but I'd also encourage you to find a cheap 9 hole near you. the range is great but what brought my handicap down was playing more and identifying issues I needed to solve. We have some cheap 9 hole courses that I went to with the sole purpose of practice not a scorecard; playing on the course puts you in real life situations that will then give you areas to focus on during your range time.