I need help, close to quitting this game

[ll.umpire]

Hi,

I have always loved this game, and practiced more then anyone I know. I work on a golf course also. Golf is a very big part of my life, I am at the course at least 4 times a week, and also use golf to just escape. What I mean by that is whenever I feel stressed about school, am feeling down, or there is an issue at home I go to the golf course and it just allows me to escape for 2-4 hours. I am also on the school team.

 

I average a 43-46 on 9 holes, which is down from 55 around this time last year. Like I said above, I practice more then anyone I know.

 

For the past 2 weeks golf hasn't been fun at all. I am not hitting my driver well (usually best part of my game), cant hit my 3W, and cannot hit an iron shot to save my life. It just feels different. I am going to talk to my boss (and teacher) this week about the driver, but I know what I need to do with the irons and just cant seem to do it. I used to tilt forward and down during my shots, and last year my boss worked with me on that, and turning my body which worked. I have recently gone back to tilting forward and down and I am so frustrated that I am having such a hard time fixing it. I know I need to turn my body and swing "wider" instead of up and down, but I cant seem to do it on the course, no matter how hard I try.

 

It has gotten to the point where I am no longer enjoying golf due to my inability to hit the shots. I have seriously considered quitting, although have realized it is near impossible as I dont know what I would do without golf.

 

Anyone have any suggestions on what to do to get out of this funk? (should I talk to my teacher about the irons also?) I have never experienced something this hard.

[tpariff]

Take a week or two off and don't touch the clubs. You might have golf burnout. It sounds like you spend quite a bit of time at the course either working, practicing or playing. Maybe some time off from practicing and playing will get you refreshed and you'll have a renewed sense of how FUN the game is.

 

Good luck!

Kevin

[DavePelz4]

Ump...have you read any of Slicefixer's writings? If not, it's a great read and you can find it on the site. If you need, PM me and I'll send it to you. One of the best things you can do is go back to the fundamentals and then work on the 9-3 swing. It is applicable throughout the bag and will get you back into hitting the ball in the middle of the club face.

 

The other thing...have fun and enjoy the game. Don't take it too seriously. My strength for years has been the short game and putting, hence the DP4 moniker. Last year averaged just over 27 putts a round. Saturday I had my best ball striking round in a while...hit 14 greens, but did not have a single birdie and had 6-3 putts. In fact, I Mahan'd a par 3 from 8 feet for a solid 5...cost me 11 skins. My buds were just amazed at how horrifically I putted but thankful as they counted their winnings.

 

But you know what...I have tee times on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and can't wait to get back to it. Think I'll close the door and hit some putts in the office here!

 

Let me know how you're doing.

[eatthemoney]

get drunk

[Eazy-E]

Take a week or two off and don't touch the clubs. You might have golf burnout. It sounds like you spend quite a bit of time at the course either working, practicing or playing. Maybe some time off from practicing and playing will get you refreshed and you'll have a renewed sense of how FUN the game is.

 

Good luck!

Kevin

 

 

exactly the same thing i was thinking... it happens to us all

[ll.umpire]

Thanks for the suggestions, I am going to take a week off from golf.

 

Hopefully I will come back better, and if not I will get some help from my boss.

[ZGriswold83]

I seem to over think things sometimes.....there's a good swing in there, just don't think about it and let it go, you'll be two puttin for pars in no time...

[mikec222]

take a break, hit the beach, or the lake and chill with some friends. In my last summer of highschool I was so hungup on golf that I didn't even end up going to the beach or the lake with my friends once, who went almost everyday. Looking back It probably would have been better for my social life and my game had I maybe tagged along once or twice a week. This is especially important because you work there too. Make sure not to think about golf too.

[golfmikke]

Oyeah, you just need to take a break from all the training for some days(maybe a week), and I can allmost prommis you that you can't wait to get on the course again. I been there and you will love the game again when you finally start hitting the ball like you want and gettting the scores.

AND don't stress the swing.. I worked on my grip for 1hole year before I got comfortable with it, and when I did, I shot a 69 round.. That's golf and that's why we love the game.

[gators78]

Depending on how long you've been playing I would seriously consider lessons. I'm thinking that you might have plateau'ed in your search for the golf game and could greatly use the help of an instructor down the road to break the 40's barrier. It can be very hard to try this on your own and easy to get stuck in a rut.

 

Don't quit, some of the best times of my life were on my HS and College golf teams. Take the week and just work on short game stuff.

[ZealousGolfer]

A lot of people here are advising you to take a short break. I would certainly think about it. It's funny because you are very close to where I was about a year and a half ago.

 

When I was a junior in high school, I played about as much as you do. I was completely and totally dedicated to becoming a great golfer before our tryouts at the end of summer for the school team. I hit the range every single day, and I probably was playing three times per week. Ironically, I got a lot worse at golf. The problems started as a little loop to the inside as I transitioned from the backswing. By March (after hitting balls in the snow a lot), it was nasty. I had fully engrained a serious swing flaw.

 

Maybe I could have played with such a very complex swing if I hadn't been a head case. I really was though. I started to scrutinize and change everything - where I positioned the ball, how much weight I had on each foot, how tilted my shoulders were, etc. Being concerned about your swing is important, but my obsession only fed my inability to strike the ball well.

 

I took lessons over the summer, but I had hit so many balls that I never made enough progress to really get my game going. The final straw was at tryouts. Our school had a tryout consisting of five rounds. I had made the cut after three days, and I was in contention to make the team. On the final day, I was trailing the guy in 8th place (eight make the team) by four strokes. I was playing in his group and I knew how well he was doing throughout the day. I made up three of the strokes on the 7th, 8th, and 9th holes with a par, a birdie, and a par. I had the momentum, and I knew I was going to beat him. As I finished the 9th hole, the sirens went off and we were called to the clubhouse because of lightning. The coach decided to close the tryouts there, and I was cut from the team by one stroke.

 

If I had actually enjoyed the game, I probably would have continued to play. However, I absolutely hated golf. I resented the fact that I had been so close but still didn't meet my goal. Even worse was the fact that I never could step up the golf ball without feeling uncomfortable and unhappy, much like you describe your experience.

 

I convinced myself that I was done, and I didn't play a single round in the fall of 2007. I went to the driving range once with some friends in 2008.

 

This year, I had the bug again. I totally expected when I first went to the range in March that I would be hitting groundballs and shanks. Instead, I was hitting nice, high, straight shots without that deadly hook. When I went back to my old coach, he couldn't believe how much I improved from not playing as my swing is now on plane and I am striking the ball exponentially better than I did before.

 

This might be a little bit extreme, but a long break can be really good for a player physically and psychologically. I no longer am worried over every detail of my swing. I just hit the ball.

 

You don't need to take a year and a half off. If you have plans to play in college, you obviously couldn't do that anyway. A good month or two may really help you out if you are like me. The most important thing is loving golf, and you shouldn't let it become a major source of stress in your life. I did, and I almost lost the sport forever. Feel free to click the link in my signature. I have been tracking my progress in a feature called Hacker's Helper.

 

Best of luck!

[Bobbers]

"When you can snatch the stones out of my hand, Grasshopper, you will be ready to leave..."

 

One of the guys in my foursome gets like you, he simply overthinks things. Stop thinking and swing the club, let it flow...after you take a break that ends when you think not how bad you've been hitting it, but how much you miss it...

[A-Train]

if you are behind on sleep, that doesnt help. that has happened to me before.

[laxbc101]

get drunk

 

 

+1

[eddiea54]

I know where your at. It will just come back one day. Trust me. Sounds like your just trying to hard. Do like pretty much all have said. Take some time off, there is more to life than golf ya know.

[obsessedgolfer]

Take your favorite club and hit it like 200-300 times at the range it will be crazy how confident you feel. I was feeling really down on my game last year, I went to the range bought 3 large buckets and for 2 hours I was hitting my 52* wedge, good thing was that I got my confidence back, bad thing I need a new 52* wedge the groves are non existant.

[xtremeinaz]

I agree with the wedge theory. Stop playing rounds and hit the range. find a close pin and hit full wedge shots and some half iron shots. You need to work from the green back to the tee. Make some putting games at the practice green. Lay off the long stuff for a little but hit the short stuff.

[tgreen22]

i thought i was reading my biography for a bit there for a bit, but my issue would be over thinking my swing, and that screwed me up big time, i went from a 7 handicap to a 12 in a hurry that way. it could definately be all a mental thing, try gettin you swing stripped back down to fundamentals and just worry about hitting the ball cleanly without all the compensations, you'll get your scores back down soon enough, good luck bud

[cough93]

First of all, you said only 2 weeks... right? That is no reason to quit... thats says nothing about your good work ethic. I had this same problem last year. I took a break from golf, like a previous person said, and I read Your 15th Club by Dr. Bob Rotella. It's a great book. Try it. Right now, you are just really frustrated. You need to get your mental game back on track, and then work on your physical game.

A good drill to do to improve your confidence is just hit like 100 3 foot putts.

[tjewell1994]

don't take a break. get to the range, and practice hitting a bucket of so of 7 irons that go about 60% of your normal shot, but be making full swings while you do this. make sure everything is rotating at the same time and at the same speed. you will feel the rythm and feel what it is like to make a good swing. After a while of doing this, hit some that are 70%, then 80%, then 90%, and eventually, when you are hitting these shots good, take full swings and you will find that you hit the ball a lot of straighter and farther. Every time i get into a slump, i do this exact drill and it always works. if fact, i was in a 2-day tournament before, and had a horrible first round. an 85. when i got the range the next morning, i did this drill for an hour, and ended up shooting a 71.

[drsantos]

Hey buddy I know how you feel. I played blades initially when I started playing golf. Now I play Super Game improvement irons, Hibore hybrid irons. I have to tell you they have really helped me gain confidence and are very easy to hit. I'm only 31 and my friends bug me because I play these irons but I don't care, I hit pure shots with them.

 

So my suggestiong is to try the new tech out there. It can really make golf fun again. And take some lessons.

[gpo]

Just to echo some of what has been said. A short layoff is probably not a bad idea.

 

Overthinking in this game will kill you. Every so often I get going in a round where I take my driver out and basically feel like all I have to do is swing hard and it stripes the FW. I am believer that you can only really think about one or two things at most during the swing. Better is not to think at all. At your age you should be playing with other guys your age and spend the whole time talking about girls and where to purchase alcohol and trying to cut every dogleg and reach every par 5 in two.

 

One thing I do almost every range session is purposely hit draw/hooks and fades/slices with the driver. Then I know where/how not to swing and just try to get in the middle of those swings.

[jayhillgolf]

Advice!!! Getting better at golf can be a very frustrating and if you’re not working on the right areas, then it’s difficult to improve. Getting better takes time and an understanding of all areas of your game and knowing how you think. Not knowing your swing faults can be very frustrating. If you don’t have a plan then you need one! One that works just for you only! Something you can build-on and trust. You could always spend your money on lessons with video and build on a new motion that could help ball flight. But that takes time and trust. Practicing more than anyone you know doesn’t mean you’re working on what’s good for you. You could take time off and still come back doing the same old routing. You could try reading books or try to get swing tips from your friends/boss. But I hope you understand that’s not going to help. It sounds like you’re trying to get better at this game, so why else would you spend all that time hitting balls? If you’re just trying escape from outside problems while hitting balls on the range and didn’t have a plan. That could be your problem? If you had a lesson and it didn’t help, that means you’re not working in the right areas, communication was bad or you just didn’t trust it. If you are workig on the right areas then it should get better that day. Take a lesson with a Pro that can help you build a plan. After that… it’s all time management.

 

Good luck!

[robbsw]

try not to focus on so many aspects of your swing. by playing as much as you, a lot of your swing will come naturally. for instance, when youre playing, just focus on swinging wider. your body will turn with your swing because it is natural for different parts of the body to move together.

 

i agree with everyone saying take a break. you'd be surprised how cleared your head is and the impact it makes when you get back to the grind.

[ll.umpire]

I AM BACK!!!!!!!!

 

I took a 5 day break (it was 75 out today for the first time this year, I couldnt resist)

 

I had the BEST ball striking day I've ever had! Not one mis-hit iron, and I was destroying the D-stick! Even hit a 300 yrd drive (downhill). My alignment and short game wasn't good though, but that is to be expected after a break. I am going to work on my short game sunday. I feel like im learning golf all over again, I never had so much fun on a course, even while i shot a horrid 51 and 50 (chipping and putting was unbelievably bad, but I will work on it ASAP). Thank you everyone for your advice, I cant say how much this means.

 

I stopped thinking and just hit the ball, all I need to do but when I hit a bad one I think what i did wrong, and try to fix in next swing messing that one up then it just continues. I plan to stop this now though.

 

THANKS!!!!

[callawayfan]

I AM BACK!!!!!!!!

 

I took a 5 day break (it was 75 out today for the first time this year, I couldnt resist)

 

I had the BEST ball striking day I've ever had! Not one mis-hit iron, and I was destroying the D-stick! Even hit a 300 yrd drive (downhill). My alignment and short game wasn't good though, but that is to be expected after a break. I am going to work on my short game sunday. I feel like im learning golf all over again, I never had so much fun on a course, even while i shot a horrid 51 and 50 (chipping and putting was unbelievably bad, but I will work on it ASAP). Thank you everyone for your advice, I cant say how much this means.

 

I stopped thinking and just hit the ball, all I need to do but when I hit a bad one I think what i did wrong, and try to fix in next swing messing that one up then it just continues. I plan to stop this now though.

 

THANKS!!!!

 

nice work on getting your swing back

it goes to show that golf really is all in the head :)