Just want to hit it straight

[Tcuthbert]

I have been working on a lot of things, but always fall into weak straight cuts with all my clubs. I don't want to have a left miss (lefty), I would rather a draw if anything. I have had days where I had it, but in the end, 9/10 it fades. I'm just interested to see what jumps out at people. There are some obvious flaws to this swing, but have at 'er.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wS2Kj_JhG7M

 

Edit: I'll upload a face on shot today or tomorrow.

[straightshot7]

It won't let me see the video because it says it is private

[Tcuthbert]

My bad, it is now a public video.

[Reasonability]

TC -

I look forward to seeing the FO video since ball flights to the left or right very often have issues a little better seen face on - or at least seen from both angles to sort of validate things.

As to this down-the-line view... the camera angle is a bit low... not complaining but normally about belt-line high is better when you seek opinions from those who look at a lot of swings. Just FYI for the future if nothing else.

To my eye - here is what I see:

A) Lots of acceleration - well done
B) If I held a pointer at your left ear at address - there would be a fairly significant lifting to the top of the backswing followed by a more than offsetting dip well down below the address position through impact.

That seems like a lot of vertical motion. Personally, I don't focus too much on a perfectly "still head" Mine moves a bit, too. What I will do is try and not address with the knees TOO bent, and I let the trail side hip turn deep enough under the shoulders to drift back behind the heel under it. This keeps me a little more in the address posture all the way to the top. So that much is half of the battle. I also let the trail side hip drift a fraction back behind the heel underneath it without swaying. That further helps me stay in-posture and allows plenty of room down in front the belly for the arm flow and turn back through the shot.

In a DTL mirror I can see it if I'm doing this and notice when I do the above - my posture remains a lot more stable.... the chest/sternum doesn't move anywhere but right around the spine and the distance from it (the sternum) to the ball is about the same through impact as it was at address. As said, my head is not stock-still but it tends to move around less meaning the space between me and the ball remains more constant.

Hope something inside of the kinds of things that have helped me work for you as well. Best to you!

[Tcuthbert]

Face on [URL]https://youtu.be/SEIHFBLBP4k[/URL]

DTL [URL]https://youtu.be/W8ddH4fB-dQ[/URL]

There is quite a bit of head movement away and towards target but I am working on shallowing the swing and when I don't feel the large weight shift I tend to not shift back onto my front leg well, and I end up hitting it fat and become steep, staying on my back leg. I hit ten shots in a row like this with decent consistency compared to staying as still as possible. My thoughts during the swing are: arms stop when shoulders stop, weight onto back foot, forget the hands, turn the body and keep head back. This results in very small divot and great contact and compression. 9 iron goes around 150-160. Today was much better then the last video for results at the range.

The head movement up is less then the last, definitely was a good thought. Thanks!

[Reasonability]

The things you describe and are working on are (IMO) very healthy for your swing, Your awareness of what is stable and what is wandering a bit is clearly starting to be managed and worked through in a very healthy way.

Face on - to my eye the grip is a bit on the strong side. Its my belief that stronger grips - especially when the hand is a little too deep in the lead palm tends to need to be coupled with a little more lateral sway. It always seems that when the handle sits a touch deeper in the fingers of the lead hand (butt end of the grip a little more under the heel pad and first knuckle up from the hand of the pointer more under the handle) - those swings tend to rely more on a natural unhinging of the wrists and less sway --- typically.

The grip (as is) also promotes a fairly pronounced forward press which gives the visual appearance of too much secondary spine tilt away from the ball. Visually the softened amount of forward press would give that same setup a little more of a "standard" amount of upper body setup "look" once the amount of forward press was softened a bit.

Once the FO swing goes in motion - Lots of good width to the backswing for sure. The trial side knee is getting a little over the trail foot. That knee would remain more over the INSTEP of that foot if/when the trail hip were allowed to drift just a bit back behind the trail heel as the shoulders turn to the top.

When we flip back to the DTL view there is a little cupping of the lead wrist at the top of the bs. This again is likely born in the initial grip. Here is where you can see that the trail hip actually wants to move more toward the ball/target line as you finish the bs due to the limited depth of trail side hip turn. So what all that says is that the cupping of the lead wrist and slight amount of lateral motion of the trail knee - plus lack of hip turn depth are working together in your case for a nice shallow divot and a playable way to swing. So as is - the parts all match up and work for you. You don't HAVE to change it - but if that's the way you want to swing, these parts will need to be consistent and ALL remain the way they are. If you like your current ball flights and are comfortable with it - these are the parts of your swing that currently sort of rely on each other to work.

On the other hand if you are less happy with your ball flights / consistency / etc.... then the way I personally would go about changing things would start with the grip - then using a little cheap closet mirror or video - see if I could get to the top with a little more hip depth turn, a trail knee that doesn't move past the instep of the trail foot, and a flattened lead wrist at the top. The feeling of an unhinging of the wrists due to the gathering speed through the bottom of the swing would come from that centrifugal force - just letting the wrists unhinge in other words - as the handle gets to (or barely ahead of the ball and the lead thigh). Such thoughts and feels come from rotation whereas other feels come from sway. So its all a matter of what feels comfortable and consistent for you personally.

One way or the other you clearly have the work ethic, and attention to the details that will get you and your game tuned up well. I like these forums and opportunities to share what we individually think/feel/see.... but hopefully there is or will be a great instructor in your future. What I personally experience and see is all well and good but I've never improved more and in less time than when having the benefit of a good teaching pro standing right in front of me. I'm no teaching pro - just a golfer who has made about every mistake imaginable and shares your spirit for working through the issues.

Best to you and I trust all this is taken in the spirit its given..