Golf Swing Made Simple?

[eagles88]

I have been playing about four years. On my third instructor. Probably got about 20 lessons between the three. I still don't know what Im supposed to be doing during my swing. They just tell me these little things like keep your arm straight. Keep your right elbow in and facing the ground. Plus about ten other things. Im so in my head and I can't remember anything. I don't know maybe it's me. I just want to hit it further I hit it pretty straight but not far. Especially my driver they are going about 180 and I'm a fairly in shape 30 year old guy. Anybody got any tips?

[N0rs3man]

its pretty easy.. go to some water, skip some stones. Grab a club and transfer the exact same feeling but with your club. Or, you can spend 10 years on a quest to manufacture a "perfect swing" that will never quite feel right. If you take the stone approach you will have to learn a setup that works for you, but you can be sure that you will have just a much if not more power and control than any other swing

[tm3]

Check out the two active threads here discussing the Manuel de la Torre method.

[Fuscinator]

Look at the ball, pretend it's my first mother-in-law's head...smash.

[alfriday]

This is excellent advice. For a bit more in-depth way to go about finding your natural swing, read Fred Shoemakers "Extraordinary Golf." It has several discovery drills to help you find what works best for you. The drills focus on awareness, so you can feel what works. One great drill is to throw clubs. Fred goes through the process in the book. It is a great drill to discover and feel a swing that fits your body.

 

Fred also spends some time writing about the two paradigms of golf instruction. The first is the one that has not worked for you. The teacher has knowledge that you seek that is doled out one tidbit at a time, trying to manufacture a swing. The second, Fred's approach, is to use the knowledge you already possess, finding what you already know from experience in other activities. It is an all at once approach that does work. You feel what works by throwing clubs--or skipping stones--and transfer that to hitting golf shots.

 

Buy the book. Read it. Try it. Then read again. It may change your entire approach to golf.

[wagolfer7]

The golf swing is not simple. Or else everyone would master it eventually.

Instructors get a bad rap around here. A lot of times though the player should take some responsibility. If you don't understand what your doing, ask the instructor, so they can explain it to you.

The swing is a bunch of little details. Elbow down is important. The flying trail elbow is a death move. So is bending the the lead elbow. Yes, the lead arm can have a little bend in it, the die hards have seen the videos.

Honestly just the two things you've mentioned are distance killers. I'd go back for another lesson and start asking more questions so you can understand and improve. Or try one of the online proven instructors here like Monte or Iteach.

But your not going to get any better by saying it's too many thoughts and giving up on the instructions.

 

[BigEx44]

I second this. Sounds like you need a swing philosophy that's more holistic in its approach. Less thinking, more swinging freely. That's Manual De Le Torre. Another would be Brian Sparks and his "Easiest Swing in Golf".

Good Luck!

[xkilgorextroutx]

Monte's "The Efficient Swing". Hands down one of the best instructional videos I've seen when it comes to showing how to make an easy, repeatable swing.

[juststeve]

Swing it back with your hands and forward with your arms allowing your body to respond. Not only is it simple, it works if you just do it.

Steve

[chipa]

You are not alone. I got a lesson when I first started out and it ruined a pretty good natural swing that I had. My brother has paid hundreds if not a thousand + dollars on lessons from a PGA pro and mostly the guy told him to "shallow the club". There must be dozens of guys on this forum that either say they know the swing secret or they say it is very simple, however, that should be taken with a grain of salt as the reality is there are literally millions of golfers that have tried everything less Sunday to have a repeating swing to no avail.

My advice is to look at various good teachers, like Manuel De La Torre and Jimmy Ballard. Both are more natural type of swing theorists which is good because tension in the wrong places can kill a potential good swing and keep you from progressing. MLDT wasn't one for technical details regarding the backswing, his approach was to actually put his hands on his students club to show them the takeaway sequence with the hands and arms, although he hasn't detailed this anywhere I've seen. If you can find a MLDT coach who will physically show you the takeaway sequence I would recommend it. Regarding Jimmy Ballard his approach is more of a pronounced weightshift at the beginning of the swing, something that can be a powerful move if one gets the timing right. In fact I found this out on my own and played to a 8 hc with only that swing thought. I hit the ball pretty far for a small guy with back problems, 300+ yards was common, but did not understand the takeaway sequence and never could chip, pitch or hit any short irons well.

I am currently working on a combination of MLDT's concepts of staying relaxed with a pronounced weightshift like Ballard recommended(it requires very little things to remember) plus the takeaway sequence that Hogan recommended(turning the left hand forearm over to start the swing) in order to have a good short swing while still being able to hit it far relatively with my driver. Good luck.

[HackerD]

People may scoff but I found this book very helpful, JF Tamayo’s “Finally the Golf Swing’s Simple Secret”. Tamayo is/was a decent recreational player, low single digit, but figured out some things that help everyday players who don’t have much time for practice. Shoulder turn on the backswing is his big thing. His other idea is the right elbow returning to the body at the start of the downswing (the stone-skipping move mentioned previously in this thread). (I also read in Golf Digest the folks who do research videotaping pro vs recreational swings, early shoulder turn is a big differentiator of pro swings.) Been focusing on shoulder turn for the past year as my swing thought, really hitting the ball solid. https://books.google.com/books/about/Finally_the_Golf_Swing_s_Simple_Secret.html?id=h3eUSQAACAAJ

[jc4birdie]

Really love Jimmy Ballard's stuff;it's simple and repeatable. What I would caution you re: Ballard is to make SURE you understand his concepts AS he intends them. He can be so intense that he can overstate a move, unintentionally, in an attempt to get his point across.

[scooterhd2]

Some of Shawn Clements stuff could be good for you to. He makes alot of correlations to other sports and activities. Something might stick with you if you ever skipped rocks, cast a fishing pole, played hockey, etc. You dont think so much doing those activities. You just perform the motion that you know. Once you have a decent motion, than yes of course there are more efficiencies to be sought after. I would think that within a matter of minutes you could be hitting the ball 200+.

[Sean2]

The words "golf" and "simple" do not go well together.

[TIM929]

Yes OP, I feel your pain and It’s not just you. the golf swing is freakin hard and instruction just makes it harder before getting easier, but it gets easier.

 

it’s important to find an instructor who can communicate the whole swing in a way you can understand it. There should be a swing philosophy you agree with and trust so you can commit 100% to it. It’s a slow build and you have to build the whole swing to understand it.

 

these- set up changes, keep your arm straight, elbows in, turn your hips in the back swing, etc.. should change the ball flight a certain way. Every physical change should do something different to the ball and if you understand what it’s doing, you can use that feel anytime to make the ball do what you want.

 

Everything is super important, but once you know the why, it gets easier to use.

 

good luck OP!

[tm3]

Looks like we made it too complicated for the OP!

[Jobu]

It's not really simplifying the swing if it takes 4 minutes to say "turn your body."

[adl300]

there is a lot of input here. but i can't stress this enough. learn how to grip properly and set up properly. then hit it as hard as you can. there is nothing more to it then good fundaments & good, hand-eye coordination.

[Tax77]

Strong grip, strong enough you see all knuckles on your left hand and swing as hard as you can. No thoughts, grip it and rip it dude.

[Seidinho]

I would advise buying the orange whip and giving it a try (if you don't like it, return it - nothing wrong with it). I can honestly say that it's helped me more with rhythm, arms, angles, wrists, than any lesson I've ever taken.