Lesson with George Gankas's staff member- Mark Odenthal

[Hawkeye77]

> @wmblake2000 said:

> > @Hawkeye77 said:

> > > @wmblake2000 said:

> > > It seems to me that there are pockets of instructional excellence these days. Young guys < 50 who are smart, passionate, who have used tech to deepen their grasp of the game and who communicate with multiple channels. The other thing I see is they all tend to collaborate - I see ig accounts being followed by each other, where info and insight is shared. It’s like a golden age of instruction but you have to know how to see it...

> >

> > Also a guy we know a little over 50 who has amazing instructional gems all the time on his Instagram page. ;-)

>

> Haha. It dawned on me a little later that this guy is above the 50 line. I think it's the young at heart about him that gets him into my 'young guys' category.

 

Yep - somehow "mature" doesn't fit, lol (although some folks might be surprised, and shouldn't be, at the amount of heart and real caring there).

 

Anyway, sorry TIM929, I wasn't trying to sidetrack your thread and back to Gankas . . . . . !

 

Love reading about stuff that gets people better and excited about the game!

[TIM929]

> @Hawkeye77 said:

> > @wmblake2000 said:

> > > @Hawkeye77 said:

> > > > @wmblake2000 said:

> > > > It seems to me that there are pockets of instructional excellence these days. Young guys < 50 who are smart, passionate, who have used tech to deepen their grasp of the game and who communicate with multiple channels. The other thing I see is they all tend to collaborate - I see ig accounts being followed by each other, where info and insight is shared. It’s like a golden age of instruction but you have to know how to see it...

> > >

> > > Also a guy we know a little over 50 who has amazing instructional gems all the time on his Instagram page. ;-)

> >

> > Haha. It dawned on me a little later that this guy is above the 50 line. I think it's the young at heart about him that gets him into my 'young guys' category.

>

> Yep - somehow "mature" doesn't fit, lol (although some folks might be surprised, and shouldn't be, at the amount of heart and real caring there).

>

> Anyway, sorry TIM929, I wasn't trying to sidetrack your thread and back to Gankas . . . . . !

>

> Love reading about stuff that gets people better and excited about the game!

 

oh no worries at all- Monte is without a doubt instructional excellence and is the reason I understand how important taking lessons from a great instructor that fit's.

 

I was blessed enough to have him be the instructor for the first few lessons of my life and has set the bar high for me when I research on an instructor I consider taking a lesson from.

 

I think @wmblake2000 made a really good point for the consumers need to understand how to use social media when choosing an instructor. It will help you weed out /narrowing down your options before your final decision.

 

that would be a great thread topic "how to choose an instructor that fits".. I enjoy receiving insight from others on this as well.

[TIM929]

previously mentioned I took a lesson with George Gankas’s assistant Mark Odenthal, I did some online lessons with him after the first lesson(really helped) and finally reached out for my 2nd in-person lesson and had an awesome time.

 

The dude is just extremely smart and is loaded with information. Just the understanding of the swing/communication/ style of teaching is different.

 

I previously met him out at a driving range, but he now teaches out of Neuroforce golf in Culver City(10 mins from Santa Monica) which is way closer to me vs the valley. Place is packed with fun stuff like track man, swing catalyst, fitting station, etc. having access to all those toys only enhanced my learning. A position might feel and even look correct(on camera) to you, but once you see data proving your feel is incorrect, you start correcting your self instantly and know what’s a correct “feel”.. this is huge in learning as a student.

 

previously, I got rid of my early extension, but found out my sequencing in the backswing was off which was causing a over hinge(over swing) which cause a cupped wrist/ across the line shaft at the top/ steep shaft coming down/ flip through impact. I had to do a lot of extra compensation from the top to deliver the club correctly to the ball which was costing speed.

 

The fix is in the backswing/ transition/ impact lol. I know it sounds crazy, but the golf swing is a chain reaction. After a few tweaks with my position to and at the top, the structure change allowed me to rotate hard through impact. That GG rotation you see on IG are done by golfers who have a proper backswing and P4, this allows them to rotate.

So once my structure at the top was good, we worked on rotation and a proper impact position... This is when it gets freaken fun. we worked on my transition to increase torque(how much your body rips into the ground as you change direction in the swing), rotation, and impact.. transition and rotation was fun, it’s all in the feet/legs/hips/ butt. But impact, WOWers!! I’ve done impact drills before but theirs is different, it was uncomfortable at first but felt correct, after a while the “uncomfortable” faded away and I was just smashing the ball with a balanced body. It stop feeling uncomfortable once you smash, it’s a sensation you chase naturally.

 

All separate things I worked on, but mesh together to create the ball flight I wanted.

 

I came in with a closed face at impact and my flight started left with a over draw. My path was really consistent but my face control “squared or closed” was all over the place. All the swing changes lead to a open chest at impact which gave me a controlled face for my desired ball flight. This all stems from the set up/ back swing, chain reactions which allows face control. It’s just wild!!

 

When I left I was striping it with my desire flight/ feel/ impact.

 

my TMB 8 Iron:

trying to raise my club head speed by 10 mph with controlled flight this year via swing change only this year. I was going to work out, but forget it. I will do swing change only lol.

I’m freakin pumped!

i highly recommend Mark to anyone trying to improve Via in person or online lesson(More like via text message video lessons, way better for tracking and access on the range). I set up a hour lesson but he was there with me for 2 1/2 hours grinding. Didn’t wanna leave by my phone was exploding with threats from my wife lol.

If your swing is off- your compensations are costing you a lot of yards and you can get seriously injured too. I had lower back problems when I EE, now it’s gone.. as my swing got better I’m pain free.

 

just really excited y’all and wanted to share will post updates.

[Hawkeye77]

Awesome!

[TIM929]

Thank you so much sir!! I’m really enjoying golf!!

[DLiver]

I took an online lesson from GG for $200, and it was outstanding. This is an option, IMO, for those who can't do a FTF with GG or any of his assistants.

[TIM929]

Yes! Their teaching methods and explanation are outstanding! Wow, online lesson was $200? I paid around that amount for a face to face with Mark.. but of course, it's not with the George himself, but next level instruction for sure!

[DaRiz]

@TIM929 - I actually went and saw Mark for a lesson after you posted this thread initially, so thanks for the recommendation! I can second that Mark was very generous with his time and information. I paid for an hour and we worked on things for about 2. Once he found out that I had been following GG for awhile and knew all the terminology he began to absolutely load me up with information and drills for me to take home. This was about a month and a half ago, and after the lesson because I was so interested in the technical stuff, he suggested I buy the GG online program, which I did, and have been improving at light speed. Wayyy worth the investment vs regular online lessons. Glad you followed up and saw him at Neuroforce, I had already planned to do the exact same thing! Can’t wait to get in the force plate and the track man. Oh, and in the past month I have gained over a club length in my irons with no change in speed, just compressing it with lower dynamic loft (less EE). Was hitting 8 iron 150, now I can hit an easy 9 iron 150. Will need a few rounds to see what my new driver distance is, but driver dispersion and compression is better than I have ever seen before. I was a 6, and have the goal to get to scratch, which seems extremely achievable now. I really feel like this is a new age of golf instruction. There are no simple tips anymore. If you want to improve you have to expand your knowledge of the swing and really assess yourself and make the incremental fixes necessary. GG and his boys are doing just that, expanding everyone’s knowledge of the golf swing. It’s amazing.

[TIM929]

@DaRiz WOW! That’s so awesome and am I so glad to hear that!!

really well written and I completely 100% agree with this:

” I really feel like this is a new age of golf instruction. There are no simple tips anymore. If you want to improve you have to expand your knowledge of the swing and really assess yourself and make the incremental fixes necessary. GG and his boys are doing just that, expanding everyone’s knowledge of the golf swing. It’s amazing.”

Yes, Mark loads you up with knowledge, no hidden secrets but just explains the science of the body working the club through movement. It’s makes it a lot easier to fix it when you clearly understand it. The 2nd time I went was even more jammed pack with knowledge. Imagine his level of teaching/communication/ explanation with the technology to measure the live results. It’s just a lot easier to learn. Hope to hear how your lesson goes, I’m interested in what a you will learn and be working on and your experience in general at your level of golf. He could check your putting as well, neuroforce has a putting area he can work with you at.

the dudes a real humble guy so he probably won’t mention it, but he’s played jr, college, and some professional Golf as well. I think he has some advice he could offer for your journey to get to scratch. I was mentioning I had tension issues during my address and how I’m weaken my strength to almost limp with my hands and shoulders for my pre shot. He showed my his method of talking down tension during his pre shot (which I never heard of in my life ) which was really practical and sounds easy to do.

[leroy]

Thanks for the review. I'm very interested in getting some lessons. Mark sound like the right fit for me. Might give him a call.

[chizzler89]

How much was Mark for an online lesson?
@kobe123 Did you peruse the online lesson with Jake? Very interested to hear more.

[TIM929]

Mark is $60

[Nels55]

@TIM929, it looks like you started lessons late last year and I am curious what kind of changes you have noticed in your game since that time? For instance index, ball striking, pure enjoyment and whatever else? Thanks!

[indianagolf2]

Im glad you had a great experience. 200 hr plus is alot. But if you took away alot of info thats awesome.

[ofortuna]

I've been following the Gankas youtube channel a lot lately and it's helped me from getting way under plane with my right knee going internal early. I just booked a lesson with Jake Gilmer in Vegas. He charges $300/hr. Perhaps after that I will look into online lessons with Mark.

 

[TIM929]

 

sorry for the late reply and thank you very much for asking, it has been an incredible journey and I have noticed a lot has changed.

 

I was in physical pain before my lessons. I remember my lower back, the fingers on my right hand, and left elbow would hurt a lot. Since then, the pain has gone away completely (which I’m very thankful for). I feel like I can practice and play till I get old pain free, which is a real blessing. After a lesson, I would grind 100 balls a day trying to ingrain a movement, I loved the training. Just doing something I had faith in and I knew was correct. I was striking the ball better than ever and I really liked how my swing looked/ felt. Being able to control my movements and get the desire look I wanted on video was such a relief. The swing alone dropped my handicap to a 12 last year. It was such a great investment.

 

but- during the COVID lockdown, I had a face time lesson with James Oh ( who teaches players on the PGA / LPGA) who’s was giving free lessons during the lock down via IG just to help golfers of all hcp. I sent a swing and face timed for about 30 mins. It was the most eye opening golf discussion ever. He said my swing looks great and could see my work ethic through the swing, but asked if I could hit my 7i 100, 110, 120 all the way to 190? Can I hit a high fade, low fade, high draw, and low draw?

no..

He dove into how good shots make the swing look good and a good looking swing doesn't always make good shots. He explained, if we were making a turn with a race car, would we think power 20% of the left hand and 80% right at 90*. If we did this we would lose all sense. To free myself and use my body, hands, and the release. who cares if I cast the club for a desired shot shape, would it really be that bad? I was limiting myself by forcing my body and the club to move a certain way. He reassured me my swing and mechanics were good so learn every shot I can moving forward.

 

I understood.. I needed to learn to control the ball now and not my body, but how?

 

At that time Obee put out his 95 yard challenge which I sucked at first, good place to start. I've been out grinding 9 doing this challenge 4 times a week and ditched the full swing for a controlled half(feel). Add more or less power if needed and really focus on alignment and ball position. I value the set up and face control at impact. I look at the target and let my body move naturally. I don't swing violently anymore and rather take more club with a smoother swing. I’ve had the best drives with good distance since, but Im only trying to get it in the middle fairway smoothly. I walk now 100% now. bounce back right after a blow up hole, getting better and bouncing back after a blow up shot. I get a lot more pars and my bogeys are becoming tap in's more often than before.

 

I love the swing grind and a good looking swing, but I feel its just the beginning of golf.

[chizzler89]

What did GG send you? Video or text? How long a response?

Interested to hear more as is on my radar.

Cheers

[wrongfairwayagain]

Great review! I signed up for the GG online program, and I would like to speed it up by taking a lesson from Mark. How are you hitting the ball these days? Still coming along nicely?

[TIM929]

Thank you for asking??

 

Getting really busy with work lately so I could only play once a week with no range time(I use to go to the range every day).

 

after years of ingraining the swing its definitely like riding bike. I’m driving it better than ever and when I feel somethings off or my ball flights weird- I know how to quickly adjust. I’m really glad and appreciate learning the swing early in my golf life(started golf about 2015 ish).

 

Lately I can feel a lot is in the set up- ball position, the lie, grip, posture, and especially alignment. Like my body reacts to it. I definitely transferred from technical to feel with my movements. When I was only focused on mechanics(daily range grind) it actually restricted my athleticism, but I needed to in order to change and ingrain my mechanics for a better swing. Once I had a better swing, focusing too much on mechanics limited me to one ball flight. A tour instructor named James Oh told me whatever “good/better swing” I was grinding/working so hard for- I had it, and the search will never end. It was time to free myself and become a better player. If I needed to, would feeling like I’m releasing the club hard and casting really be that bad if I got the ball on the green with a that move? Am I able to perform a high, low- fade or draw? He was drilling in me that good results made the swing look good and a good swing doesn’t always make good results.

 

That conversation opened my eyes and really helped free my swing. As I was transitioning from mechanics to feel, I can feel I had the tools of movements to perform whatever I needed it do. I don’t (in any way) hit it perfect every swing, but my misses are not in the parking lot or another fairway(or freeway) as it was before my lessons with Mark. Golf is just getting more fun and exciting(not frustrating at all) even when I’m only able to play one sat with no warm up.

 

The main benefits are I feel no injuries from the swing at all and the confidence I now have as I play(even after a bad shot). Mark really pays attention to limitations for potential injuries. After a bad shot, I can quickly shake off the disappointment and focus on the next shot(I think this comes from confidence).

 

i know I def lowered my hcp with swing lessons alone and lowering it even more will take a lot of course time/ experience/grind on the field which I don’t have right now. but I’m only 38 and currently swinging it better than ever so I’m enjoying it. I’ll just have a blast on the weekend for now and once the business is set and kids are older(3 and 5 now and all the schools are closed too), I’ll Be ready to get back out there to grind down my score.

 

sorry about the long reply, just enjoying the ride I guess.