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Lessons vs No Lessons


BDubya23

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While browsing the thread about people not getting custom fitted, it got me thinking about how many people have had lessons. For those of you who have never had lessons, how long have you been playing and what is your typical score? Are you satisfied with it? Do you plan on getting lessons in the future?

 

I had lessons when I first took up golfing, I feel like it's a great place to start before too many bad habits get ingrained within your swing. 

 

So, what's your story?

Driver: Ping G 9.5*

Fairway: TaylorMade AeroBurner

Hybrid: Adams Blue

Irons: TaylorMade Burner 2.0

Wedges: TaylorMade Tour Preferred EF

Putter: Odyssey O-Works #1

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Like a lot of golfers, I started as a kid and have the swing I have. This year I took a series lessons for the first time from a GD Best in your State teacher and it was very expensive and very bad for my game. I've been a 0-2 hdcp for 25 years and after 3 or 4 sessions I couldn't hit the ball at all. I'm just now getting back to normal. This kid was very theoretical and very fixed on teaching his moves and positions rather than working with my game. It was bad. And I think that's the problem with lessons- as bad as we are, none of us can stomach the idea of getting worse unless we really believe there is a big payoff right around the corner. This kid was a real "swing expert" but so technical and adherent to a philosophy as to be useless. It's nice that he's worked with Tour pros but they were all Tour pro level before they met him. I'll keep working with my V1 app on the back of the range by myself from now on

 

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I am in the middle of a series of 5 lessons.  I have been playing golf for 20 years and am a low single digit handicap.

 

I noticed some bad habits sneaking into my game and my swings were becoming too inconsistent, so I signed up for the lesson package.  I am working on everything from weight shift to something as simple as posture and hand position at address. Nobody is too good to get lessons.

 

I think the two things people have to understand with lessons is:

 

1) You are going to get worse before you get better

 

2) Getting a lesson and then just going to the course is not going to help you fix anything.  You need to practice and ingrain your learnings from your lessons before throwing yourself onto the course.

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I'm trying to improve and take lessons constantly.Never realized my path to improvement would be down an endless rabbit hole.What I thought as maybe some simple drills turned into a complete overhaul per the top teaching pros in country requests to . Am I getting better? No way.My last two instructors were one in person one currently online(2 1/2 years as of now)They appear to both be very similar and are EXTREMELY technically oriented.Both care more about a look and trackman numbers vs what the ball is actually doing and score.I started out golf 30 years ago self taught . I was extreme over the top and played a controlled pull and played respectable.Both of these current teachers are relaying to me that over the top pull golf is the wrong way to do it.Infact I got the impression from them that an over the top pull golfer should never be allowed on a golf course.They are both about shallow transition - pivot - lag- and perfect hands forward impact.Their swing models are the sergio-hogan style of golf.A very frustrating time for me going thru this

 

I can see me many giving up the game following their strict guidelines.Would love to go back to just hitting the ball with my hackeresque over the top swing.

 

I'm by no way saying lessons are bad or sounding like a Debbie Downer.Imho what is more important!=a swing look the teacher likes or a swing that shoots a good score?Just seems like the new en vogue teaching is all about a look.And this required look will make more worse in long run than better.Im almost seeing teachers now being more close minded on the golf swing.I often wonder when these pros will see that maybe some students just can't do what their model swings require?

 

I'm always level headed,but I'm ready to call bullcrap on these current invogue teachings.After 2 1/2 years of many a dollar spent and many a blister popped on hands from practice.Im thinking I have that right as a consumer and stead fast student.Im sure fan boys would come out for a public hanging if I did

Keep it in the short stuff

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I have taken lessons once in the 10 years that I have been serious about golf. He didn't try to change my swing, just tweak it a little. Most of the things we worked on were stance, how the weight was distributed on me feet (trying to keep it on the balls), balance, and the timing of my hands.

 

I found them helpful and was able to get better and more consistent contact with the ball.

 

Next steps are improving my putting and getting fitted when I decide to upgrade my irons.

 

Irons: way too old Cleveland Launchers, standard length & lie

Driver: Taylormade RBZ, 10.5°

Putter: 2 Ball Odyssey White Hot

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I believe money better spent on lessons than on fitting, Especially for those just getting started. Lot easier to start right than fight ingrained bad swing

Agree. Wish I had lessons as a kid. Instead I got "unsolicited" lessons from my dads 20+ cap league partner. Been trying to un-(Sgt. Hartman explicit word here) myself since.

 

 

- Alan

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I can only speak from my experience but I benefitted significantly from lessons with a certified instructor. He took what I had and through video (no trackman mumbo jumbo) and got me to see what was incorrect. I mean incorrect by how I perceived what my motion was, and what would be most efficient and powerful for me. It took about a year and I'm much happier now five years later.

 

My takeaway from it was:

1. Having a certified, experienced instructor.

2. No trackman is needed, who care what a machine thinks the ball is doing.

3. It takes some time to fix something long term.

4. Video of your swing is so important to be able to see what's incorrect and be able to see and feel what is correct t and most efficient.

 

 

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There is so much emphasis now on making your swing look like a "pro's" swing. Look at the PGA tour...there are very few Trevino or Arnie or Jack for that matter type natural swings.

 

I have a taken a few variety of lessons. First was by GolfTec which is the quintessential "let's try to get your swing to look like a pro's". Granted it did helped me understand good positions.

 

The best lessons I had were from a local teacher in CO, nothing fancy, but came recommended from a Bridgestone Rep. He was much more a "natural swing" teacher. Talked more on grip, set up, grip pressure, alignment...as well as course management. Also he helped with knowing how to understand what I was doing when I hit a not so perfect shot, (laterally sliding hips, not enough clearing, etc).

 

Helped me to understand a miss and how to correct in mid-round if needed.

 

 

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Okay, I have never taken lessons. I have been playing for 7 years, and my handicap is 7.3. I am not satisfied with that, because I think if I could afford to take lessons long-term, I could become a much better player. I don't think I will ever take lessons, just because they are really expensive! But I definitely think lessons are the way to go...

 

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There is so much emphasis now on making your swing look like a "pro's" swing. Look at the PGA tour...there are very few Trevino or Arnie or Jack for that matter type natural swings.

 

I have a taken a few variety of lessons. First was by GolfTec which is the quintessential "let's try to get your swing to look like a pro's". Granted it did helped me understand good positions.

 

The best lessons I had were from a local teacher in CO, nothing fancy, but came recommended from a Bridgestone Rep. He was much more a "natural swing" teacher. Talked more on grip, set up, grip pressure, alignment...as well as course management. Also he helped with knowing how to understand what I was doing when I hit a not so perfect shot, (laterally sliding hips, not enough clearing, etc).

 

Helped me to understand a miss and how to correct in mid-round if needed.

 

 

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Yes! The reason Trevino or Palmer were able to play for so long was because their swings were more natural. The guys today have so many back problems...

 

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:mizuno-small: JPX EZ 3 wood
:cobra-small: Fly-Z 4H
:mizuno-small: MP-60, 3i-PW, True Temper Dynamic Gold
:mizuno-small: S5 54° & 58°, True Temper Dynamic Gold
:cameron-small: California Monterey
:titelist-small: Pro V1x

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While browsing the thread about people not getting custom fitted, it got me thinking about how many people have had lessons. For those of you who have never had lessons, how long have you been playing and what is your typical score? Are you satisfied with it? Do you plan on getting lessons in the future?

 

I had lessons when I first took up golfing, I feel like it's a great place to start before too many bad habits get ingrained within your swing. 

 

So, what's your story?

I would agree that lessons early on can be a very good thing. Beating balls for any length of time with the wrong ideas and concepts can and does reinforce bad habits or wrong moves that are twice as hard to overcome than if they had been avioded all together.

Its quite easy groove a 'good swing' with bad moves, until it all comes apart or has to be redone when that handicap gets stuck way above what is possible. And truthfully this is what we see on tour from even the best as one day its sugar, the next day s--t.

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Like a lot of golfers, I started as a kid and have the swing I have. This year I took a series lessons for the first time from a GD Best in your State teacher and it was very expensive and very bad for my game. I've been a 0-2 hdcp for 25 years and after 3 or 4 sessions I couldn't hit the ball at all. I'm just now getting back to normal. This kid was very theoretical and very fixed on teaching his moves and positions rather than working with my game. It was bad. And I think that's the problem with lessons- as bad as we are, none of us can stomach the idea of getting worse unless we really believe there is a big payoff right around the corner. This kid was a real "swing expert" but so technical and adherent to a philosophy as to be useless. It's nice that he's worked with Tour pros but they were all Tour pro level before they met him. I'll keep working with my V1 app on the back of the range by myself from now on

 

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This is more common than not. Big lessons zero results, accept maybe more lessons for more problems.

As a 2 this makes no sense to me. It should be a simple thing for a 'best pro' to set you on the right track, especailly with all the vid at their disposal.

I cant tell you how many times Ive jumped on the rant thread to give my 2 cents on this, but dont.

But i will say this here; Golf instruction today is a canned set of ideas that for the most part dont work across the board. IF they did people of our type who dedicate themselves to it would be better now, not later and the proof would be in our scores and on the course much sooner than later. You at a 2 loosing your swing is not all that uncommon either, and again the ideas and concepts passed along and used fail eventually. Ive seen it too many times to think otherwise.The golf public at large is stuck in years of golf lesson ideas that just dont work as scores and games clearly point out. Monkey see monkey do is what we have and is what we are sold on the range.

How many pros have you seen hit a ball or balls? A pro who is going to give you lessons needs to show you his swing and its results first. Because if he doesnt do what he tells you to do your buying the can he is selling. And you and your V1 at the back of the range is the future of how learn and play better golf imo. It is not that hard to "fix" with the right fix and we are not that incapable of figuring it out and helping ourselves.

The best pros I knew had a club in their hands since their youth and could do what they were teaching and cared little about how so and so said it should be done. The rest bought the books and passed the tests and were very little help to others unless they were able do it as the pro did to begin with.

Lessons early and some engrained proven concepts to start with. The rest out there today is mine field. And working with tour pros is great, but how many tour pros go thru the same sugar one day, s--t the next no different than we do. Mine field.

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I would agree that lessons early on can be a very good thing. Beating balls for any length of time with the wrong ideas and concepts can and does reinforce bad habits or wrong moves that are twice as hard to overcome than if they had been avioded all together.

Its quite easy groove a 'good swing' with bad moves, until it all comes apart or has to be redone when that handicap gets stuck way above what is possible. And truthfully this is what we see on tour from even the best as one day its sugar, the next day s--t.

Amen.

 

I have more video footage of my swing than the length of a Hollywood movie. I always thought I came over the top before I was videoing. I don't, but it is a very steep very close to one plane swing, arms anyways, they aren't on the same plane as my shoulders. It's up and down on the same line though. I have very little room for error, when I screw up it suxks.

 

I've been trying to shallow out my swing for a while, it just don't work. That's why playing the fade is easier for me to have a good round. I know exactly what it is going to do when I play my swing. Try and mess around with it and it all goes to sh!t.

 

 

- Alan

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I'm currently on the Bubba plan... no lessons. I am also not a Masters Champ.

 

 

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Bubba never had lessons? Never knew that.

Driver: Ping G 9.5*

Fairway: TaylorMade AeroBurner

Hybrid: Adams Blue

Irons: TaylorMade Burner 2.0

Wedges: TaylorMade Tour Preferred EF

Putter: Odyssey O-Works #1

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Bubba never had lessons? Never knew that.

That's why his swing is so "unique." :)

 

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:mizuno-small: JPX EZ 3 wood
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:mizuno-small: MP-60, 3i-PW, True Temper Dynamic Gold
:mizuno-small: S5 54° & 58°, True Temper Dynamic Gold
:cameron-small: California Monterey
:titelist-small: Pro V1x

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I believe money better spent on lessons than on fitting, Especially for those just getting started. Lot easier to start right than fight ingrained bad swing

Agreed. I always see questions arise that sounds like catch 22. If I get lessons without getting fitted, then I'm learning with clubs that aren't fit for me and it may mess it up when I get the right clubs.

 

Then on the other hand people say getting fitted is more important because then you have the clubs that are exactly for you, but it's not worth it without lessons. So if I had to pick one or the other, lessons would definitely be first.

Driver: Ping G 9.5*

Fairway: TaylorMade AeroBurner

Hybrid: Adams Blue

Irons: TaylorMade Burner 2.0

Wedges: TaylorMade Tour Preferred EF

Putter: Odyssey O-Works #1

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To me, it's no different than getting fit for your clubs. If you have the extra income that allows you to take lessons/get fit.... go for it! I would!

 

I've taken a couple of lessons from the part time pro at my home course. He is PGA certified, but he's a full time school teacher. He took me out on the course and worked with me on the things I wanted to improve... ball striking and putting. He helped me a lot. I'm still not very good at putting, and only a "decent" ball striker, but it was worth it. I wish I could afford to take more lessons, but it just isn't in the cards for me at this time.

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I would agree that lessons early on can be a very good thing. Beating balls for any length of time with the wrong ideas and concepts can and does reinforce bad habits or wrong moves that are twice as hard to overcome than if they had been avioded all together.

Its quite easy groove a 'good swing' with bad moves, until it all comes apart or has to be redone when that handicap gets stuck way above what is possible. And truthfully this is what we see on tour from even the best as one day its sugar, the next day s--t.

Agreed.

Practice does not make perfect it makes permanent.

 

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If we all followed Arnie's rule. "Swing YOUR swing" and work on that. As long as there's no big issues. As long as your having fun. As soon as I started trying to "improve" my swing it became more like a job than something fun. But I still try to improve. It's human nature to want to be good at things.

 

As. As. As... geesh...

 

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First lesson from my dad at age 8. (61 now)

 

Assume athletic position, like a shortstop

Address ball with a slight forward press

Low and slow backswing

 

MAIN SWING POINT NEXT...!

 

Keep weight on right instep and load up on backswing

Hit the back of the ball with the front of the club

 

So many years later I've taken a few lessons here and there with very limited results.

The only "new" thing to stick that has really helped to keep the face closed on the backswing.

That is probably the only thing that's actually helped.

 

:titleist-small: TSr2 on tensi blue stiff

:cobra-small: Speedzone 3-wood on Tensi blue S

:callaway-logo-1: Epic Max 5 and 7 woods on HZRDUS  Reg flex

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:mizuno-small:  T22 Denim Copper 54°, 58° on Kinetic X Trajectory 

:EVNROLL: ER3 or,

:edel-golf-1: E.A.S. #4   (“Fang” or “Adele”)
 

:titelist-small: ProV1x, or, Maxfli Tour X

:callaway-small: .Org 14 cart bag

Adidas Tour 360 , or Sketcher shoes

 

 

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Disclaimer: This post may qualify as a bunch of ramblings  ;)

 

Lessons have helped me immensely and I'm hitting the ball better than I ever have before. It has been fairly costly, but my swing was so fundamentally flawed and my knowledge and understanding of it so limited, that I was never going to get any better - and I had tried! For someone like myself or a beginner, I think lessons are a no-brainer and almost a must. In such cases the overhaul or a specific swing philosophy is probably needed. but for others (like some of the commenters here) who are low handicaps, what is needed can be drastically different. The last thing i would want now, is to start over with a completely new theory/philosophy and I'm not a low handicapper yet. It just takes a ton of work! Whatever my ceiling is with the track I'm on now, is going to be my ceiling. 

 

When an instructor wants to make every golfer adhere to his swing philosophy, I think he/she may be missing the mark in not knowing/caring what the golfer actually wants out of his game. Certainly any scratch player is going to need a very compelling reason to make drastic changes and any good instructor should carefully weigh what instruction is given to someone at that skill level. On the flip-side, if the golfer (like me) says the goal is to get to scratch, but my fundamentally flawed hack attack (I wouldn't call it a swing :P ) was never going to have a high-enough ceiling to allow me to get there, so I had to be willing to make drastic changes and to put in the work - lots of it! Probably more work than most beginners, because I had to undo the years of bad habits. I think lessons for someone who has the swing they want/need, then any instructing should be about tweaking and understanding nuances, not a major philosophy shift and overhaul.

 

One more thing, in my work (financial advisor) I've had to realize and accept/embrace that I may not be a good fit for every potential client. Things like communication style, personality, and experience (among other things) can all make us better suited two work with certain types of people and/or companies. I think golf instruction is no different. We may have a hard time "hearing" what one instructor is saying (or him understanding what I want) while we almost immediately "get" what another instructor might say, even if they're trying to convey the exact same concept. All these things can factor in, and like so many other things in life, it comes back to relationships, comfort level and trust. If those aren't present, I'm not going to be willing to commit to a whole pile of work for something that I'm not sold on.

WITB:
Driver: Cobra King LTD
Fairway: Ping G25 (3)
Hybrid: Ping i25 (22 degree)
Crossover: Ping G 5
Irons: Ping i25 (5 -PW)
Wedges: Bridgestone J15 forged 50 and 55 degree
Putter: Cleveland TFi Elevado w/ Winn Pro grip.

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First lesson from my dad at age 8. (61 now)

 

Assume athletic position, like a shortstop

Address ball with a slight forward press

Low and slow backswing

 

MAIN SWING POINT NEXT...!

 

Keep weight on right instep and load up on backswing

Hit the back of the ball with the front of the club

 

So many years later I've taken a few lessons here and there with very limited results.

The only "new" thing to stick that has really helped to keep the face closed on the backswing.

That is probably the only thing that's actually helped.

what does keep face closed on backswing help with? And yes I'm picking straws here for any free tips I can get.Instead of Girls Gone Wild,I'm in theGolfer Guys Confused and Lost crowd

Keep it in the short stuff

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I took lessons throughout high school and found lessons were generally helpful but had some very negative experiences on occasions. My senior year I was golfing poorly (I mean shooting 90+ when I had been a single digit handicap the previous year). So I went back to my pro and became concerned because he changed his whole method of teaching and was talking like a philosopher. Turns out he had gone to Milwaukee and taken 10+ hours of teaching from top 100 pro Manuel De La Torre.

 

On a Sunday, I went to take a lesson because things were seeming particularly grim concerning my golf game. One of the reasons my golf game was in trouble was due to this same professional from a lesson earlier in the season. I thought if he can cause the problem, he can fix it. The hour and fifteen minutes of that lesson was mind bending to say the least. He tought me the method of swinging the entire club back with the hands and through with the arms. Never once was weight transfer, rotation, or hips ever mentioned.

 

The next day I had a tournament and went from a 94 at my last tournament to shooting a 74 and winning. It's been seven years since that lesson and have never gone back to the "body based" or "technical" swing thought.

 

Manuel De La Torre teaches the "club based" swing. If you feel like your in a constant "rut" or "cycle" of fixing swing issues, I encourage you to seek out a pro that teaches the "club based" swing. The technical approach works for some people and that is fine, but if you're not getting good results, it won't hurt looking at a different method. There are some wonderful videos of Manuel de la Torre on YouTube giving a clinic if you want to learn about his method.

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what does keep face closed on backswing help with? And yes I'm picking straws here for any free tips I can get.Instead of Girls Gone Wild,I'm in theGolfer Guys Confused and Lost crowd

I'm not sure technically what it does, I just hit the ball more crisply.

I would just say try it. If it helps you, then that's good.

 

:titleist-small: TSr2 on tensi blue stiff

:cobra-small: Speedzone 3-wood on Tensi blue S

:callaway-logo-1: Epic Max 5 and 7 woods on HZRDUS  Reg flex

:callaway-logo-1: Paradym 9 wood on HZRDUS reg flex

:taylormade-small: P770 / P790 combo set on Ventus R-6 shafts 6-AW

:mizuno-small:  T22 Denim Copper 54°, 58° on Kinetic X Trajectory 

:EVNROLL: ER3 or,

:edel-golf-1: E.A.S. #4   (“Fang” or “Adele”)
 

:titelist-small: ProV1x, or, Maxfli Tour X

:callaway-small: .Org 14 cart bag

Adidas Tour 360 , or Sketcher shoes

 

 

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To me, it's no different than getting fit for your clubs. If you have the extra income that allows you to take lessons/get fit.... go for it! I would!

 

I've taken a couple of lessons from the part time pro at my home course. He is PGA certified, but he's a full time school teacher. He took me out on the course and worked with me on the things I wanted to improve... ball striking and putting. He helped me a lot. I'm still not very good at putting, and only a "decent" ball striker, but it was worth it. I wish I could afford to take more lessons, but it just isn't in the cards for me at this time.

Agreed. Circumstances are different and if you have the means, fitting and lessons will help. Even if lessons consist of 1-4x a year for a check up.

 

Do your research and get feedback on instructors. Good ones can be a huge impact on your game and well worth the money.

:callaway-small:  Epic Flash SZ 9o w/ Ventus 6X

:callaway-small:  Rogue 4wd w/ ATMOS Red 7X

:755178188_TourEdge: CBX 20o w/ ATMOS Blue 7S tipped 1"

:mizuno-small:  JPX 900 Tour 4i - PW (standard lofts) Rifle

:titelist-small:  SM6 51o, 59o, SM7 55o   

:titelist-small:  2019 ProV1x

:tp-mills-1: Custom Ming

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