Help me break 100! (Swing video inside)

[Bergy37]

Well, I actually have broke 100 but I usually score in the 97-105 range. I feel like as soon as one aspect of my game starts coming together, the rest goes to crap. One time when everything came together I actually shot an 89, but those days are extremely rare.

 

Thanks in advance for any critiques!

 

 

Down the line:

Head-On:

[jslane57]

OMG, it is hard to golf well with those big orange tennis ball things! JK. This swing for this situation looks good...no shoes and goofing in the back yard with a SW. If you're keeping the same set up, rhythm, and balance in real life, you're certainly got a base good enough to break 100. If in real life you grip tighter, swing harder, loose balance, don't get to your follow through, and hit short slices, then more work needs to be done. Otherwise, maybe a video of your chipping and putting is more in order here.

[kowalgolf]

Don't play the tips. Play from no more than 6000 yds that will zero in where your problems are.

[Bergy37]

OMG, it is hard to golf well with those big orange tennis ball things! JK. This swing for this situation looks good...no shoes and goofing in the back yard with a SW. If you're keeping the same set up, rhythm, and balance in real life, you're certainly got a base good enough to break 100. If in real life you grip tighter, swing harder, loose balance, don't get to your follow through, and hit short slices, then more work needs to be done. Otherwise, maybe a video of your chipping and putting is more in order here.

 

 

Haha I definitely could have made it a little more official. I'm always chipping in the back while the kid swims so just replaced the ball and took a full swing. I like to think this is exactly how I approach the shots on the course. I'm hitting the range tomorrow I will set up the camera and get some better shots.

[Bergy37]

Don't play the tips. Play from no more than 6000 yds that will zero in where your problems are.

 

I most definitely do not play from the tips. I go to the whites at all my home courses.

[Lostballs96]

I'm with js. I'm actually a little surprised you don't break 90 more often because that does not look like a bad enough swing to be struggling to break 100. Like he said, putting and chipping.

[mikpga]

Do you think it's possible to consistently score in the low 90's WITHOUT changing/tweaking/improving your swing motion?

[Bergy37]

Here's a couple updated swings from the range last night, any input is appreciated. Things I've noticed is:

 

- it seems my hips stop in the backswing before my arms do. Is that a problem?

-I am still hitting well behind the ball even though I am making good contact and hitting straighter and longer than I ever have.

 

Down the line:

Head-on:

[Lostballs96]

Here's a couple updated swings from the range last night, any input is appreciated. Things I've noticed is:

 

- it seems my hips stop in the backswing before my arms do. Is that a problem?

-I am still hitting well behind the ball even though I am making good contact and hitting straighter and longer than I ever have.

 

Down the line:

Head-on:

 

Looks like you're figuring it out for yourself! Your hips definitely pause as you start your downswing as you can see from the face-on view. From DTL, you can see that this causes you to get steep on the downswing, which can lead to any number of problems including hitting behind the ball. I would say focus on clearing your hips earlier than your shoulders. It looks like your hips and shoulders become square to the target in the downswing at the same time, whereas in a better impact position the hips are already cleared and open to the target line as the shoulders reach impact. Other than that you have a really nice swing and solid fundamentals. I have a feeling your days of not breaking 100 will soon be a distant memory (as long as you continue to work on your short game!!!)

[Bergy37]

Here's a couple updated swings from the range last night, any input is appreciated. Things I've noticed is:

 

- it seems my hips stop in the backswing before my arms do. Is that a problem?

-I am still hitting well behind the ball even though I am making good contact and hitting straighter and longer than I ever have.

 

Down the line:

Head-on:

 

Looks like you're figuring it out for yourself! Your hips definitely pause as you start your downswing as you can see from the face-on view. From DTL, you can see that this causes you to get steep on the downswing, which can lead to any number of problems including hitting behind the ball. I would say focus on clearing your hips earlier than your shoulders. It looks like your hips and shoulders become square to the target in the downswing at the same time, whereas in a better impact position the hips are already cleared and open to the target line as the shoulders reach impact. Other than that you have a really nice swing and solid fundamentals. I have a feeling your days of not breaking 100 will soon be a distant memory (as long as you continue to work on your short game!!!)

 

Right, it looks like the hips stop moving at 50% of my backswing. So would you say I need a) more hip turn b) shorter back swing c) the hip turn and swing are fine but need to be sync'd better?

[spoonek9]

Putting is the easiest way to lower your scores. It's a must if you want to play good golf. The short game around the green is also key to playing good golf as well. Good luck!!

[jslane57]

Here's a couple updated swings from the range last night, any input is appreciated. Things I've noticed is:

 

- it seems my hips stop in the backswing before my arms do. Is that a problem?

-I am still hitting well behind the ball even though I am making good contact and hitting straighter and longer than I ever have.

 

Down the line:

Head-on:

 

Looks like you're figuring it out for yourself! Your hips definitely pause as you start your downswing as you can see from the face-on view. From DTL, you can see that this causes you to get steep on the downswing, which can lead to any number of problems including hitting behind the ball. I would say focus on clearing your hips earlier than your shoulders. It looks like your hips and shoulders become square to the target in the downswing at the same time, whereas in a better impact position the hips are already cleared and open to the target line as the shoulders reach impact. Other than that you have a really nice swing and solid fundamentals. I have a feeling your days of not breaking 100 will soon be a distant memory (as long as you continue to work on your short game!!!)

 

Right, it looks like the hips stop moving at 50% of my backswing. So would you say I need a) more hip turn b) shorter back swing c) the hip turn and swing are fine but need to be sync'd better?

When looking from behind, look how much your right knee straightens out and moves back. While this works for some, it doesn't work for most. Keep that knee steady and flexed. Think of that your right leg like it is on a pitcher's mound, you wouldn't move it all over to throw a baseball (or hitting that slap shot in hockey:) This will give you a solid base to push off and turn toward the finish with. Trying to fix the hips when your legs are all over is quite hard.Your swing has lots of potential, keep it up. One more thing, and a lesson would help the most here...it could be beneficial to grip the club much more in the fingers rather than the palms. This would allow for a later release and more power.

[Bergy37]

Here's a couple updated swings from the range last night, any input is appreciated. Things I've noticed is:

 

- it seems my hips stop in the backswing before my arms do. Is that a problem?

-I am still hitting well behind the ball even though I am making good contact and hitting straighter and longer than I ever have.

 

Down the line:

Head-on:

 

Looks like you're figuring it out for yourself! Your hips definitely pause as you start your downswing as you can see from the face-on view. From DTL, you can see that this causes you to get steep on the downswing, which can lead to any number of problems including hitting behind the ball. I would say focus on clearing your hips earlier than your shoulders. It looks like your hips and shoulders become square to the target in the downswing at the same time, whereas in a better impact position the hips are already cleared and open to the target line as the shoulders reach impact. Other than that you have a really nice swing and solid fundamentals. I have a feeling your days of not breaking 100 will soon be a distant memory (as long as you continue to work on your short game!!!)

 

Right, it looks like the hips stop moving at 50% of my backswing. So would you say I need a) more hip turn b) shorter back swing c) the hip turn and swing are fine but need to be sync'd better?

When looking from behind, look how much your right knee straightens out and moves back. While this works for some, it doesn't work for most. Keep that knee steady and flexed. Think of that your right leg like it is on a pitcher's mound, you wouldn't move it all over to throw a baseball (or hitting that slap shot in hockey:) This will give you a solid base to push off and turn toward the finish with. Trying to fix the hips when your legs are all over is quite hard.Your swing has lots of potential, keep it up. One more thing, and a lesson would help the most here...it could be beneficial to grip the club much more in the fingers rather than the palms. This would allow for a later release and more power.

 

Great thanks. Originally I had no flex whatsoever and Monte pointed it out to me during one of my first online lessons with him right away. I must not understand the difference between flexing and straightening out properly. I know it has been explained in a few videos I've seen but I just don't grasp the concept. Like, you want it to straighten out a bit just not all the way?

[jslane57]

Here's a couple updated swings from the range last night, any input is appreciated. Things I've noticed is:

 

- it seems my hips stop in the backswing before my arms do. Is that a problem?

-I am still hitting well behind the ball even though I am making good contact and hitting straighter and longer than I ever have.

 

Down the line:

Head-on:

 

Looks like you're figuring it out for yourself! Your hips definitely pause as you start your downswing as you can see from the face-on view. From DTL, you can see that this causes you to get steep on the downswing, which can lead to any number of problems including hitting behind the ball. I would say focus on clearing your hips earlier than your shoulders. It looks like your hips and shoulders become square to the target in the downswing at the same time, whereas in a better impact position the hips are already cleared and open to the target line as the shoulders reach impact. Other than that you have a really nice swing and solid fundamentals. I have a feeling your days of not breaking 100 will soon be a distant memory (as long as you continue to work on your short game!!!)

 

Right, it looks like the hips stop moving at 50% of my backswing. So would you say I need a) more hip turn b) shorter back swing c) the hip turn and swing are fine but need to be sync'd better?

When looking from behind, look how much your right knee straightens out and moves back. While this works for some, it doesn't work for most. Keep that knee steady and flexed. Think of that your right leg like it is on a pitcher's mound, you wouldn't move it all over to throw a baseball (or hitting that slap shot in hockey:) This will give you a solid base to push off and turn toward the finish with. Trying to fix the hips when your legs are all over is quite hard.Your swing has lots of potential, keep it up. One more thing, and a lesson would help the most here...it could be beneficial to grip the club much more in the fingers rather than the palms. This would allow for a later release and more power.

 

Great thanks. Originally I had no flex whatsoever and Monte pointed it out to me during one of my first online lessons with him right away. I must not understand the difference between flexing and straightening out properly. I know it has been explained in a few videos I've seen but I just don't grasp the concept. Like, you want it to straighten out a bit just not all the way?

As much as you are straightening it out, I'd think of not at all. It will probably straighten out just a little anyhow for better or worse. If you played baseball, pretend to throw a pitch, how much do you straighten out your knee when winding up? None. Same feel with golf.

[snapier]

OP - You need to get more "hit" on the ball. Your action through the ball is more of swipe rather than a hit.

 

Get rid of that twist to your left hand as you start your backswing. This starts the club too far inside and hinders your wrist c0ck. The wrists need to c0ck in an upward direction (toward your body).

 

Start your forward swing with the butt end of the club moving down, at the ball, maybe even outside the ball. You will need to release the club to hit the ball. If you don't release, you'll either fall forward or whiff. As things are now, the butt end points well left of target. You need to hold your wrist c0ck to have any chance of hitting the ball somewhat straight. Work on developing a hit, the 9 to 3 drill will help.

 

Watch how naturally the arms, wrists and hands work in

.

 

shows how it is done.

[mikpga]

Do you think it's possible to consistently score in the low 90's WITHOUT changing/tweaking/improving your swing motion?

 

Unfortunately this post will be disregarded...

[snapier]

Do you think it's possible to consistently score in the low 90's WITHOUT changing/tweaking/improving your swing motion?

 

Unfortunately this post will be disregarded...

 

If your 1st post was in direct response to the OP, the answer should be absolutely no and your post should not be disregarded. Your recommendation to change the swinging motion is spot on. Right knee positions, hip turns and body movements should be ignored until the swinging motion is fixed. A good swinging motion will actually self correct some poor body motions.

[Bergy37]

Do you think it's possible to consistently score in the low 90's WITHOUT changing/tweaking/improving your swing motion?

 

Unfortunately this post will be disregarded...

 

If your 1st post was in direct response to the OP, the answer should be absolutely no and your post should not be disregarded. Your recommendation to change the swinging motion is spot on. Right knee positions, hip turns and body movements should be ignored until the swinging motion is fixed. A good swinging motion will actually self correct some poor body motions.

 

Mike: Honestly,I only disregarded responding because I didn't understand. It read to me like you were making an insult or joke or something. If you would care to elaborate on what you meant, it really would mean a lot. I definitely appreciate your input as I read a lot of your posts and you always seem to provide such helpful insight

[mikpga]

No insult or joke...

 

Just a simple question...

 

Is it possible to consistently score in the low 90's WITHOUT changing/tweaking/improving swing motion?

[Bergy37]

No insult or joke...

 

Just a simple question...

 

Is it possible to consistently score in the low 90's WITHOUT changing/tweaking/improving swing motion?

 

I honestly don't know the answer to that. If my main problem is my swing motion then I would assume the answer is no. But I am not a professional so I don't know what my problem is, hence why I am here asking for help lol.

[mikpga]

With your current swing...

 

Can you get your ball on the green..,

 

In two shots on Par 3's?

 

In three shots on Par 4's?

 

In four shots on Par 5's?

 

And, if so, can you then average two putts per green?

 

 

[Bergy37]

With your current swing...

 

Can you get your ball on the green..,

 

In two shots on Par 3's?

 

In three shots on Par 4's?

 

In four shots on Par 5's?

 

And, if so, can you then average two putts per green?

 

Im So confused with your responses. Yes, sometimes I can achieve those goals, but more than 50% of the time I can't and it's usually a result of hitting it fat, thin, shank, slice, hook or anything else besides a nice straight shot. I am looking for assistance from the golfwrx community in hopefully identifying some of my main miscues so i can work on them. If I am doing something wrong by posting in here asking for help please let me know.

[Stuart_G]

As I read it, it's in no way a criticism of your request for help. Basically, he's asking questions to try and help identify what part of your game is playing the biggest part in your inability to break 100. It might very well be that spending some time and effort on some other aspect of the game might be more productive than working on the full swing such as putting, chipping, or even just course management. Even if it is a full swing issue, it may not even be strictly mechanics but rather something like inconsistencies in the set-up, ball position, alignment, or rhythm/tempo. Just looking at one swing certainly is not the best indicator, but as others have mentioned, while there is certainly room for improvement, it doesn't look like the swing of someone having problems breaking 100 (at least to my untrained eye).

[mikpga]

The intent of my question was to stimulate thought about what it actually takes to help someone "break 100"...

 

Most get very wrapped up with "improving their swing" to help lower their score...

 

There's more to lowering one's score than just improving one's swing...

 

Learn how to advance the ball forward and in play, learn how to get the ball on the green consistently from 50 yards and in, learn how to two putt each green...

 

We can always work on improving our swing motion, believe me I know, but also work on scoring!

 

Next time you play, just bring a 6/7 iron, 9/PW, and a putter...

[Jimmie48]

Couple things to work on for you as I see it.

 

Gotta get your weight over to the left more at impact. Try pushing and rolling off the inside of your right foot on the way down. You are kind of pivoting on the right ball of your foot, I would like to see you push and roll from the right foot to get your weight over more to the left. Whats odd is that when you do this you will notice your swing shallow out a bit without even trying.

 

As others have noticed you cast a bit with your hands. Losing power and consistent angle at the bottom of the swing. Try putting a tee in your grip end and see if you can point the end of that tee at the ball as long as possible on your downswing. This will help you get your hands more on plane and create some more lag.

 

Two swing thoughts for you:

 

So push and roll with your inside right foot.

 

Point the butt end of the grip at the ball coming down.

 

Good luck!

[shortstop20]

With your current swing...

 

Can you get your ball on the green..,

 

In two shots on Par 3's?

 

In three shots on Par 4's?

 

In four shots on Par 5's?

 

And, if so, can you then average two putts per green?

 

Im So confused with your responses. Yes, sometimes I can achieve those goals, but more than 50% of the time I can't and it's usually a result of hitting it fat, thin, shank, slice, hook or anything else besides a nice straight shot. I am looking for assistance from the golfwrx community in hopefully identifying some of my main miscues so i can work on them. If I am doing something wrong by posting in here asking for help please let me know.

 

You're on the right track. Unless you're an absolutely horrid putter, learning how to strike the ball more consistently will lower your scores faster than anything.

 

The fact is that 100 shooters are much closer(yet still far away) to putting like a scratch player than they are to hitting the ball like a scratch player.

[Kenny Lee Puckett]

With your current swing...

 

Can you get your ball on the green..,

 

In two shots on Par 3's?

 

In three shots on Par 4's?

 

In four shots on Par 5's?

 

And, if so, can you then average two putts per green?

 

Im So confused with your responses. Yes, sometimes I can achieve those goals, but more than 50% of the time I can't and it's usually a result of hitting it fat, thin, shank, slice, hook or anything else besides a nice straight shot. I am looking for assistance from the golfwrx community in hopefully identifying some of my main miscues so i can work on them. If I am doing something wrong by posting in here asking for help please let me know.

Bergy, with his proposed scenario he's got you playing bogey golf (and you wouldn't have hit a single green in regulation)... breaking 100 (scoring) and doing it CONSISTENTLY has got to be a more holistic approach than just monitoring your swing.

[green5]

OMG, you have my swing from ages ago. I can share my experience and how it felt to me during my swing. You should certainly improve your short game and putting but this is a comment only on your swing based on my experience. Your experience may differ but I see so much similarity that it's uncanny:

 

- On my backswing, I let my right knee to straighten so that I could have a nice "full" turn even with irons, also had the flat low backswing start without too much wrist c0ck.

- I felt like I was transitioning and sitting down from my backswing to impact but I didn't want to flatten the shaft too much since I just couldn't hit the ball when I tried to.

- At the impact I felt like my right hip was "pushing" the ball while my wrist was holding hard.

- I had trouble hitting it clean with downblow so I really tried to get under the ball, again using my right hip, which meant a sweeping motion.

 

Some playing characteristics:

 

- Very high ball flight, my clubs were sweeping the grass with a out-to-in path and my hand was barely ahead of the ball at the impact, if not slightly behind, all added to extremely high ball flights and short iron shots.

- Tendency to hit fat time and time again. Especially from fairways.

- Solid driver, good fairway woods. High drives that go straight and land softly even though not too long. From fairways, again, hitting behind the ball was my kryptonite. On the other hand from short roughs, I could hit some excellent shots with fairway woods and in fact preferred short rough over hard fairways.

 

Eventually I came up with a few shorterm "fixes" that helped me consistently break 100 without changing the swing or even much practice on short games:

 

- I really tried to resist the urge to hit hard with my right shoulder and arm, and concentrated on starting the downswing and swinging through it with the left side, which reduced fat shots and extreme over-the-top swings.

- More fairway woods. Fairway woods helped with fat shots and also was more forgiving than irons with even higher trajectory. I could really go for greens despite not being able to put back spin on the ball because I could hit my 7, 9, 11, and 13 woods extremely high and soft, over trees and hazards.

- Bigger driver with more forgiveness on mishit tee shots. This enabled me to aggressively go after teeshots and I was already a fairly accurate driver of the ball.

 

Of course those were just short cuts. But I was able to easily average around 90 with just those changes without much practice and could've gone lower if I worked on my shortgame and putting. However I had to be away from playing for a while and took that time to rebuilt my swing from ground up.

 

Based on what I went through, I suggest the followings but take all of this with a big massive humongous grain of salt. I hope other better more qualified posters could offer some comments on my suggestions here.

 

- First work on cutting down your backswing by holding your right knee flex. This will feel like you're taking almost half swing with irons and wedges but is necessary. Also you may want to consider making your initial move a bit more upright with some wrist cocking.

 

- Work on slotting your club on a flatter path while moving your weight more on down swing. Instead of your right hip bone hitting through the ball, feel as if your belly button and your hand working together to hit it. I found Monte's zipaway drill to be an excellent tutorial on the initial move:

 

- Once you have the flatter more in-to-out path to the ball, you'll have to work on your wrist action so that it's not sweeping the ball so much and the hand is ahead of the ball at the impact. Again calling Monte, his videos at Be Better Golf has been very helpful for me:

 

The first one particularly shows you almost exactly the hand position you have in your current swing and how to improve it.

 

Hope it helps and like I said other better qualified posters should help you out more here. But it's just amazing how similar your swing is to my old one!

[Bergy37]

The intent of my question was to stimulate thought about what it actually takes to help someone "break 100"...

 

Most get very wrapped up with "improving their swing" to help lower their score...

 

There's more to lowering one's score than just improving one's swing...

 

Learn how to advance the ball forward and in play, learn how to get the ball on the green consistently from 50 yards and in, learn how to two putt each green...

 

We can always work on improving our swing motion, believe me I know, but also work on scoring!

 

Next time you play, just bring a 6/7 iron, 9/PW, and a putter...

 

I apologize for my reaction earlier, sometimes it is tough to gauge a person's intent through forums. I definitely agree 100% with you, but when I am making mistakes like hitting the ball fat or shanking, there is more to it right? And if most of my problem is set-up, that would be awesome to know! Thanks for your input, I am headed out tomorrow and will try to play the round with my 6, pw, 52 and putter and see how it works!

[Bergy37]

Couple things to work on for you as I see it.

 

Gotta get your weight over to the left more at impact. Try pushing and rolling off the inside of your right foot on the way down. You are kind of pivoting on the right ball of your foot, I would like to see you push and roll from the right foot to get your weight over more to the left. Whats odd is that when you do this you will notice your swing shallow out a bit without even trying.

 

As others have noticed you cast a bit with your hands. Losing power and consistent angle at the bottom of the swing. Try putting a tee in your grip end and see if you can point the end of that tee at the ball as long as possible on your downswing. This will help you get your hands more on plane and create some more lag.

 

Two swing thoughts for you:

 

So push and roll with your inside right foot.

 

Point the butt end of the grip at the ball coming down.

 

Good luck!

 

That is great advice, thank you! Going to the range this afternoon and will take those swing thoughts with me.