My First Lesson Yesterday.

[JOSEPHLB]

Wow. Why Did I Not Do It Sooner?

First things first; i'm 32. Haven't played golf in 12 years. I got the itch this year so I purchased some clubs last month. Best round I previously had shot was 79, while a majority of the time, I was in the low to mid 80's.

Fast forward to the present time. I've been taking it to the range a few times of week. Haven't had a chance to get out for a round as of yet, so I decided in the mean time, to arrange for an hour of instruction from a teaching pro in my area. So, up until the time of my lesson, I continued to keep it on the range. I thought every session, I was making progress. My biggest problem that I've found is I'm an OTT'er :cheesy:

Ok.. Yesterdays lesson:

The instructor had me warm up; hit a few shots as he sat back and observed. After about a dozen shots, we begin to get to work. This is what immediately impressed me after that point; with just an hour of instruction, he had my golf swing looking like a real, pro-like golf swing (when everything was right, of course). It felt effortless, when I did it right. It almost felt like the club did not exist in my hands. Here are the issues we covered in the hour:

1) My grip:
I thought I had a strong grip. Boy, was I wrong. Apparently, my grip is weak; very weak.
I had the butt of the grip in between the pads on the heel of my hand (the valley), instead of underneath the bottom pad. He explained to me about how to "wrap" the hand over and get the butt underneath that bottom pad. I had previously placed my thumb on top, of the shaft; instead of over to the right of the grip. So, essentially, my "V" was not pointing in the right direction. I could not see the top two knuckles with my "old" grip. So, wow.. once we get all that covered, I'm thinking "This feels very tight & strong, but unnatural." The instructor explained that, that is what is referred to as the natural grip. So, to summarize: what I thought I had was strong, was essentially very weak. The proper grip feels strong, but essentially its a only 4 to 5, on a "1 to 10 scale". Huge differences in how I should be gripping the club now.

I was also shown that when grippping the club, that the clubface should be about 2 degrees closed. That confused me at first, but I didn't fight it. Once I kept observation of the clubface when addressed to the ball, everything seemed to fall into an understanding. The clubface then looked like it was more square to the ball. Previously, with what I thought was square, was really an open club face. This totally explained why every shot I hit, had a fade to it. With the driver, it was always a pull slice. (we'll get to the rest of this in the next part :bb: ).

So now I have a proper grip, which in turn is promoting a more square clubface at address. Nice! :aggressive:

2) My takeaway and backswing:
My one piece takeaway is too long. He showed me that the takeaway should go back to the point to where the shaft is horizontal to the ground; clubface perpendicular to the ground. At that point, the wrist **** begins and then the shoulder turn.
With my old takeaway, I was wrist cocking late, and adding to that, very little shoulder turn. With what shoulder turn I had, it was more horizontal. I can't remember the username, but I know you're on this forum somewhere (Jeff), but I understand what you meant by my shoulder turn being very horizontal.
I also was very upright. The instructor showed me the correct shoulder turn. It felt like my body was coiled up. It wasn't unnatural though, just a little something that I am not used to. When he said I had it right, I kept in my mind the feeling. Its weird, but its just something that i'm not used to, since I've practiced with improper habits the previously years. It feels like my arm/bicep is pulled across my chest, with my left shoulder jammed up in my chin. With an upright swing, I do not feel this.

3) Apparently I'm a "hitter":
He explained and showed me that I need to be more relaxed and let the clubhead do the work instead of muscling it.

4) Over the Top:
I knew I had this problem and he spotted it as well. We worked on this during the latter part of the hour session. Once he had me more relaxed, he showed me how the hands should push down and drop in the slot. He placed his hands on mine and guided me down to where I should be. He explained this happens naturally when you are relaxed. In my case, since I'm a hitter; I fight this because I'm muscling the club instead of just letting it drop. When I did it right, I observed the following:
* my shoulder turn is more vertical, instead of horizontal
* almost feels like my right elbow and arm is attempting to drive into my right side
* i don't slice :D
* clubhead/swing path in the impact zone is straight down the target line; no OTT

He also had me using this device to assist me in developing this inside move. He calls it the "Plane Trainer" : http://www.golfaroundtheworld.com/products/planetrainer.htm

Its his device and apparently is nationally known. He did explain that I don't need some fancy contraption like that. Just a short shaft shoved into the ground aligned in the direction of my shoulder plane with a piece of "swimming pool noodle" placed on the shaft, will give me the tool I need to develop this inside move.

I was very comfortable. He didn't force any technical methods on me; everything was pure basic fundamentals. Even though what he showed me seemed simple, it was huge in the effects it has on my swing. After I made a good swing, he would pull me back and show me on video. He gave me instant positive feedback, which helps greatly in the confidence department. Another boost of confidence came when he told me I have talent. Not to boast, but that helped eased my nervousness alot. That eased my mind a little knowing that I'm not a monthly hack just trying to get a quick lesson in before a company golf outing. I had never took a lesson before, so of course I was a little worried going in.

* The instructor was very easy to understand.
* Doesn't force his methods on you since he doesn't have a particular method; just good fundamentals.
* Has great eyes for the golf swing.
* Didn't throw everything all at once; worked on one thing at a time and progressed once the previous concept was covered.
* Captured on video the entire lesson and burned it on dvd for me. Huge bonus. Since what we talked about was recorded through the camera's mic, I will have the entire session to look back on for review. Just as in studying for a test at school, this recorded session will pay huge dividends in case I should forget something that was covered.


Sorry for such a loooooooooong post, but I just had to throw out a report and somewhat of a review on my instructor. I definately will be arranging for future lessons this summer. I can't help to get that Christmas morning "giddy" feeling about how my swing has already changed after only an hour of instruction.

If I can figure out how to extract some of my swings from the video lesson, I'll post them online for all to see. Its in dvd format, with .VOB files, so I'm not sure how to do this without having to post the entire hour of video.

If anyone is in the southern PA area and is looking for an instructor; don't hesitate to check out Ted Sheftic. He teaches at The Bridges Golf Club -- Abbottstown/New Oxford, Pennsylvania, right off of Route 30. Its in between Gettysburg and York.

[ebelp]

Thanks for the informative post. Sounds like you got your money's worth. After reading this, I'm definitely more looking forward to my 1st lesson.

[EnglishBob]

Best thing I did was take lessons a few weeks after starting earlier this year.

[JOSEPHLB]

My hour lesson was well worth it.

 

Even though the wife didn't think so

[pmcg no.6]

Thanks for the post. Sounded like a real great experience. I've been thinking about taking a few lessons so I can get a better idea of what I need to improve on.