What/How Did You Practice Today?

[chisag]

57 minutes ago, Haro said:

I am rehabbing a left knee sprain and man , didn’t realize how important it was to have a strength in the lower body for swinging 

My last time out I was babying my knee and was all arm swing and did not use any “ ground force pressures” causing loss of distance 

One thing I remember doing was flaring out my feet and that really felt less pressure on my knees when I turned    For some reason stopped doing that Maybe that’s why I put pressure on my knees ? will do that again as much as I can once I’m back full strength 

 

... Injuries can be a blessing or a curse for your golf swing. As you found, it can be very instructive of something you are not doing correctly and gives you something to work on when you recover. OTOH it can lead to bad habits that you don't even realize you have picked up and can cause havoc with your swing once you are healthy. Or for us old timers as healthy as we are gonna get. 

... After 2 back surgeries and a constantly tight back, I can fall into allowing my body to initiate my backswing instead of the club/hands/arms initiating and my body following. The difference for me is my body (subconsciously) does not want to have any difference between my hips and shoulders turning, which is great for my spine health but terrible for my golf swing. Somedays I can stop it and other days I just try and make it through the round with what I have. Hopefully your body has the memory of a Goldfish after it heals! 

[Haro]

2 hours ago, chisag said:

 

... Injuries can be a blessing or a curse for your golf swing. As you found, it can be very instructive of something you are not doing correctly and gives you something to work on when you recover. OTOH it can lead to bad habits that you don't even realize you have picked up and can cause havoc with your swing once you are healthy. Or for us old timers as healthy as we are gonna get. 

... After 2 back surgeries and a constantly tight back, I can fall into allowing my body to initiate my backswing instead of the club/hands/arms initiating and my body following. The difference for me is my body (subconsciously) does not want to have any difference between my hips and shoulders turning, which is great for my spine health but terrible for my golf swing. Somedays I can stop it and other days I just try and make it through the round with what I have. Hopefully your body has the memory of a Goldfish after it heals! 

Yes you are right

  I usually set up open or square.  
For whatever reason I was trying new clubs in the stimulator and hitting fades like I normally do 

Then trying to draw the ball and setup with my feet closed caused it worked the last time I was at the course and  hit a bunch of closed loopy body hooks that seem to work but I think I put too torque on my front knee.  I been trying to draw the ball where I don’t turn my hands at all and just try to do it with my body turn. And it does work  but at the expense on my knee   I think I may have to go back to more handsy way of drawing the ball.  

[chisag]

1 minute ago, Haro said:

but I think I put too torque on my front knee.  I been trying to draw the ball where I don’t turn my hands at all and just try to do it with my body turn. And it does work  but at the expense on my knee   I think I may have to go back to more handsy way of drawing the ball.  

 

... I have learned the hard way that my health trumps my golf swing. I walk and want to walk until I can't anymore so sacrificing some power or technique so I can continue to play 5 times a week should be a no brainer. My biggest lesson is after 40 and certainly after 50, you can't "play through pain" like in our youth. As my orthopedic surgeon said and with a straight face too "If it hurts, stop doing it and don't start again til it doesn't hurt". 

[RollingGreens]

Went to the golf dome to hit the range, 70 yards of flight so it’s a bit better than always being in the simulator. Really hit well, flushed my irons and my driver is coming along nicely. Making solid face contact with a wider stance, trying to get a little more swing speed the east way, I typically play a very narrow stance with my driver which likely makes me utilize a lot of arms. I was really impressed after not playing for a few weeks. Even got to try out a demo mizuno stz 220 that the guy in the bay next to me had. Really impressed with how it felt and the contact I was making. No solid statistics but it was enough for me to look at the upcoming spring demo day for mizuno in my area. My ping g425 lst is great, but it’s definitely heavy, more mass for more force, or the lighter head swinging faster. Can’t wait to see what the results will show, let the distance dilemma begin. It’s like having a boat, always wanting another few feet!

[mikeanthony]

23 hours ago, Lacassem said:

Day 3 of the SuperSpeed training in the 1st protocol. Feels good so far and is amazing how quickly the non dominant swing catches up quickly once you get used to swinging opposite side.

It’s crazy right?! Haven’t yet been in a situation to turn the club inside out and hit left handed while out on the course … but when it comes, you’re damn straight I’ll be ready for it.  

[cnosil]

28 minutes ago, mikeanthony said:

It’s crazy right?! Haven’t yet been in a situation to turn the club inside out and hit left handed while out on the course … but when it comes, you’re damn straight I’ll be ready for it.  

I hit that shot today.  

[Shankster]

A little practice yesterday, the range tee area is still dormant and crusty, not even worth trying to hit shots off the deck… hit 3/4 of a bucket with the Driver.  Only had a few really wild ones that got away from me.  Other than that, the fade will be the go to off the tee this year.  Aiming down the left hand side of the hole, and praying it fades will be the name of the game.  I was looking to work the draw again this year, but this feels so natural I don’t want to mess it up.  It varies some, 0-25ish yards.  Just have to remember to give myself enough room for it to work back on the narrower holes… and obviously try to reign that in a little bit.  Not sure what the irons are going to look like, 3 iron off the tee was falling off ever so slightly to the right… as long as I don’t mess with it I *should* be good to go. 

[RichL85]

Took some swings into the net this afternoon after running some errands. Struggled with consistency for a bit and then finally something clicked. My grip had moved to the weaker side and was causing all kinds of issues. Spent the rest of the time focusing on gripping the club in my left hand however my hand hangs naturally and not regripping 7 times from there slowly working weaker and weaker each time. Things improved quickly after that. Took a bit but the swing feels back to where it was a month ago. That's the good news.

Now I have to start making the effort to work on the next issue in my swing. In this case it's basically my right shoulder moving right at the start of the downswing instead of down. Hopefully it will help get me out of being quite so steep and getting a better impact position. At least today didn't feel like a complete waste of the effort. 

[mikeanthony]

3 hours ago, cnosil said:

I hit that shot today.  

How was the result? 

[cnosil]

9 hours ago, mikeanthony said:

How was the result? 

I actually hit that s*** a couple of times a year and it is very effective.  I had a lie with some bushes that wouldn’t let me swing right handed so I flipped a wedge over and punched back out to the fairway.  Results were exactly what I was hoping for.  

[cksurfdude]

On 12/28/2021 at 3:42 PM, chisag said:

Doing slow motion swings or swinging without hitting balls is always a good way to facilitate a change or make improvements.

I'm not a religious person but Amen! to that, Brother Chisag!!

For myself, and of course each person learns and retains things differently - but for me, I have made much more progress over the past several months by doing exactly this 

Some of the exercises I did include ... slow motion swings (and parts of swings) not even holding a club, slow motion holding just an old steel shaft (with a rubber tip taped on), slow motion with a weighted club, slow motion standing on an Airex balance pad, slow motion standing on an Airex balance pad holding a large exercise ball, slow motion pulling against resistance bands, etc.

I've also added to my collection of Orange Whips and really feel like the more I use them - the more I get out of them! I also have a "Swing Caddy" trainer that hasn't seem to caught on but imho it's a really valuable tool - as you swing an internal magnet releases and clicks! with the idea being you want that sound at juuuuust after (simulated) impact. I feel it's really helping me not only with timing and rhythm but with balance and posture and how to get myself into better positions to better enable that click! at the right time.  

[Syks7]

Stopped by the range a couple times this week to work on some stuff in advance of a lesson I have tomorrow.  I've been hitting the ball well and making good contact, but the feel of the swing has been off.  It felt a little disjointed, steep, and honestly weak.  Felt like I was struggling to generate clubhead speed.  Monday I set up the camera and went through a range session focusing on contact and paid no mind to the camera.  It was okay, but I think the more handsey version of my chipping swing polluted the full swing.  Pretty good backswing all the way to P4 but club position leaves a bit to be desired.  P5/P6 is where it was a little funky.   I'm not rotating through the ball.  So I went out today with a specific focus on really working on it.  It went pretty well.  I'm rotating through impact but I'm still stopping a bit.   It's pretty irritating to see my upper body and lower body start to initiate the turn to open my shoulders and hips at impact then only get partially there.

Side note:  My p4 is crazy consistent.  I took a couple screen caps from different shots and but for a minor variations in the club head it looks like I photoshopped myself into a slightly different spot on the mat.  Kinda funny.

Still though, good progress and it was kind of nice to be able to actually identify what I was doing wrong and work on it.  It's also encouraging to actually see the drills I was working on today have an effect so quickly.  

Monday P4

 

 

P4 Today

P5 Monday

 

P5 Today

 

Impact Monday

Impact Today.  Still leaves something to be desired but at least my hips are turned generally toward the target.  See if I can get my upper body to follow tomorrow.

Edited April 6, 2022 by Syks7

[cnosil]

Was hitting 5 irons as part of most wanted testing today and the results were pretty mediocre.   Spent some time after my session working on my swing.   Felt a little better after practicing pressure shifts and external rotation of the right arm to keep the elbow tucked.  Will have to see if it carries over to tomorrow.  

[PMookie]

Took the new Srixon ZX5/ZX7 to the range Monday right after I picked them up. The intent on getting these was to have something lighter: CHECK! I also wanted to minimize the vibration in my wrists and elbows by going with graphite: CHECK! I wanted something that would be forgiving: CHECK! All-in-all they seem to be what I was looking for. The long irons are easier to hit than my Honma Tour P, and the Srixons definitely feel better! A good first range session! Gonna take awhile to adjust to any possible distance differences for sure.

[Kenny B]

Range and putting green were full, so spent  my practice time today hitting 15-20 yard pitch shots to the pitching green off tight lies... using the bounce!

[DStar]

Now that spring is here in the UK I've been getting my lawn sorted and that means chipping practice in the garden in the evening. It was one of my strong points last year and definitely noticed a drop in control due to lack of practice.

Have 2 new SM8 wedges so trying to get to grips with the different flight. Going OK so far..

[russtopherb]

I've spent a lot of time with the Orange Whip the past week or so, seems like whenever I have some free time it's either pouring or 40 degrees so the range hasn't been an option. Been working on tempo but also on allowing my left heel to lift in the backswing to get more hip turn and reduce pressure on my lower back. I did that naturally when I started golfing but worked on a more stable base to prevent a slide and part of that was keeping the lead heel down in lessons. But I've noticed back discomfort when I've been to the range recently so I'm just trying to allow the heel to lift at times without forcing it to happen to see how things feel.

[bens197]

Got home from work, made a pot of coffee, sitting on the couch with my dog and a PW in my left hand watching the opening round of the Masters.

What did I practice?

Grip.  Working on my grip today. 

[GolfSpy_SHARK]

3 minutes ago, bens197 said:

Got home from work, made a pot of coffee, sitting on the couch with my dog and a PW in my left hand watching the opening round of the Masters.

What did I practice?

Grip.  Working on my grip today. 

Was all that talk about Couples grip on the range wasnt it?

[bens197]

5 minutes ago, Lacassem said:

Was all that talk about Couples grip on the range wasnt it?

As a guy who doesn't like to wear a glove, it was very relatable.  Also, when my wife gets home from work I don't think she'll want to see me taking full practice swings in the family room

 

[cksurfdude]

On 1/29/2022 at 4:06 PM, edingc said:

Struggled a bit with contact until I realized I had started to crowd the ball too much again.

..just catching up on older posts, and maybe a moot point now that it's Spring, but .. suggestion: maybe try turning your hitting mat 90 degrees so you have a little more room on it to stand back from the ball..?

[Haro]

20-40 yard lob shots to the green. more comfortable slice/cut lob and ball will roll sideways after it lands   Taking the club outside the line. Trying different postures where to locate my sternum/spine.  To reduce the slice as approach closer to the green I Prefer to setup with my sternum/spine more in front of the ball and tilted.  Especially inside 20 yards 

[GolfSpy_SHARK]

Quickrange sesssion with the kids. We got there and the sky’s opened up (weather was whack today. Was supposed to be sun at 1 but ended up hailing). We hit a few stores and my son really wanted to go back after we dropped groceries off so I doubled back.

case of the hooks with the driver for me but the irons and wedges I brought were buttery smooth.

kids had fun and my son got to use his clubs from Christmas for the first time. Little long but he was stroking.

 

 

 

[RichL85]

Went to the range to work on a few things this morning. Mostly just thoughts and feels to correct some things. Realized after thinking about my last range session where things were getting out of sync so I spent the majority of the time swinging at what felt like 50% speed focusing on that one specific area. I have notoriously poor posture in everyday life and I've noticed that my right shoulder will internally rotate, eventually that leads to a steep swing and causing me issues. Even though it felt like I was swinging with almost no effort, I was getting more distance than I have recently. Just focused on feeling like I was keeping the right shoulder back and using it to open up my chest. Still have plenty of work to do on the transition to shallow out the club more, but progress is progress.

[JerryB]

I'd gotten better with my long clubs lately but it's coming at the expense of my iron game.  I'm over-rotating and pulling everything to the left.  I'd also picked up a couple new-to-me clubs and I wanted to see how they might fit in my bag.  Off to the range.

First quarter of the bucket was spent on the new clubs; a 4 iron and 7 wood.  Couldn't hit the 4 very well but the one I did get...wow.  Maybe in the future but not yet.  The 7 goes UP and is pretty consistent; definitely useable.

The rest of the bucket was used on trying to get my irons back on track.  Not much change, unfortunately.  I know what I need to do but for some reason I can't put it together yet.

[chisag]

3 minutes ago, JerryB said:

I'd gotten better with my long clubs lately but it's coming at the expense of my iron game.  I'm over-rotating and pulling everything to the left. 

The rest of the bucket was used on trying to get my irons back on track.  Not much change, unfortunately.  I know what I need to do but for some reason I can't put it together yet.

 

 

... Pretty normal Jerry and I have been going through the same thing but the opposite of you. I have been killing my irons with 9 birdies and an eagle in my last 2 rounds and lipped out a couple putts so I could have added a few more that had good speed and should have dropped. But I added 10 bogies because my driver is dysfunctional as my back has been stiff/sore and I am having a difficult time releasing the club because my body subconsciously does not want any torque between my hips and shoulders. Just like you, I know what I need to do but can't seem to get my body to relax with my driver. No problem at all with my irons so clearly mental. 

... With this crazy game, it's always something. 

[edingc]

On 4/9/2022 at 1:47 PM, cksurfdude said:

..just catching up on older posts, and maybe a moot point now that it's Spring, but .. suggestion: maybe try turning your hitting mat 90 degrees so you have a little more room on it to stand back from the ball..?

The camera is creating a bit of an optical illusion because the mat is 4'x'4 square. I normally have a Fiberbuilt Flightdeck hitting area for full shots. Sometimes I hit wedges off the square mat since it's less forgiving.

Probably really stems back to just getting too much in my heels and being in close. Focus lately has been to get more athletic in my posture with space.

[sirchunksalot]

I went to the range today since the weather started out below freezing and warmed up to 67 degrees after going to pick up groceries. It was a beautiful day to be out enjoying the sunshine and warmth.

I'm going to describe my session how I did to my wife after getting home. Imagine sitting down at a table with a coloring book of sugar skulls. Something like this:

Now you've been blindfolded, given a pack of unsharpened crayons with 128 colors to choose from, and you have to use your non dominant hand. That's what my swing felt like today.

It was better than my last session, I did have about 7-10 good shots with my irons and my driver was good on all but two shots. It was a clinic on how to hit shanks, fats, and thins. I hit one so bad it marked the back side of the hosel. 

I've honestly lost the ability to hit a golf ball and today was the first time I've been embarrassed to have people around me on the range. 

It's not all negative, my mental game didn't abandon me and I'm extremely proud of that. It's going to be a challenge getting back to a serviceable game, but the fun of golf is the challenge. We're starting to save for a set of lessons because my wife and I agree that I need professional help. It'll get better, it's just going to take time and a lot of effort on my part. 

 

[GolfSpy_SHARK]

2 minutes ago, sirchunksalot said:

I went to the range today since the weather started out below freezing and warmed up to 67 degrees after going to pick up groceries. It was a beautiful day to be out enjoying the sunshine and warmth.

I'm going to describe my session how I did to my wife after getting home. Imagine sitting down at a table with a coloring book of sugar skulls. Something like this:

Now you've been blindfolded, given a pack of unsharpened crayons with 128 colors to choose from, and you have to use your non dominant hand. That's what my swing felt like today.

It was better than my last session, I did have about 7-10 good shots with my irons and my driver was good on all but two shots. It was a clinic on how to hit shanks, fats, and thins. I hit one so bad it marked the back side of the hosel. 

I've honestly lost the ability to hit a golf ball and today was the first time I've been embarrassed to have people around me on the range. 

It's not all negative, my mental game didn't abandon me and I'm extremely proud of that. It's going to be a challenge getting back to a serviceable game, but the fun of golf is the challenge. We're starting to save for a set of lessons because my wife and I agree that I need professional help. It'll get better, it's just going to take time and a lot of effort on my part. 

 

Keep it up man glad ya have not given up. Lessons will be good man!

[Rickp]

27 minutes ago, sirchunksalot said:

I went to the range today since the weather started out below freezing and warmed up to 67 degrees after going to pick up groceries. It was a beautiful day to be out enjoying the sunshine and warmth.

I'm going to describe my session how I did to my wife after getting home. Imagine sitting down at a table with a coloring book of sugar skulls. Something like this:

Now you've been blindfolded, given a pack of unsharpened crayons with 128 colors to choose from, and you have to use your non dominant hand. That's what my swing felt like today.

It was better than my last session, I did have about 7-10 good shots with my irons and my driver was good on all but two shots. It was a clinic on how to hit shanks, fats, and thins. I hit one so bad it marked the back side of the hosel. 

I've honestly lost the ability to hit a golf ball and today was the first time I've been embarrassed to have people around me on the range. 

It's not all negative, my mental game didn't abandon me and I'm extremely proud of that. It's going to be a challenge getting back to a serviceable game, but the fun of golf is the challenge. We're starting to save for a set of lessons because my wife and I agree that I need professional help. It'll get better, it's just going to take time and a lot of effort on my part. 

 

It’s cool, we all go thru those stages.  I sure have