How do you reset your swing when it gets broken

[DallasDan]

I'm in the middle of a terrible slump. I usually shoot in the 80's with a couple of sub 80 rounds year for the past 5 years or so. Over the last couple of months I've had about 10 rounds of 95 or worse with an 81 and an 84 sprinkled in there on easy courses. I just can't seem to find any consistency with my swing. What do you all do to wipe the slate clean and get back to basics? I shot 95-98 this weekend and it's dropped my handicap to an 8.5...but I look like a 20 capper out there right now. 

[b.helts]

This is a great question! I will start by hedging: everyone is different and no approach will work for everyone.

That being said, I'll tell you how I do it.

 

I start with an honest assessment of why I'm not playing well.

For me, it's usually posture and rhythm, but that doesn't really matter for our discussion.

 

I go to the range and put down a couple of guides for where I'm aiming and ball position. Think a + sign on the ground with alignment sticks or wedges.

I take an 8 or 9 iron and I start with very slow, shoulder to shoulder shots. Here I am focused exclusively on face:path relationship.

I want the ball either starting right of target and drawing or starting left of target and cutting. I DO NOT want right to right or left to left.

 

That will typically take me 20-30 balls to get sorted. 

 

Still shoulder to shoulder, I speed it up a bit and, assuming I don't revert, continue until I'm hitting full-speed shoulder to shoulder shots (NOT punch shots, full height)

 

This might take me another 20-30 balls and it might take me 3 or 4 range sessions but I do not give up on the process.

 

Once I can pretty reliably hit the shot(s) I'm trying to hit, I go to a full swing at slow speeds and see where I sit. If I revert, I have to look at what's wrong at the top of the backswing or the full swing transition. I tend to have my hips outrace my arms so that is an example of a transition problem.

 

From here, I should be sorted out pretty quickly and should be able to start my shots where I want them to start. I may over-draw or under-cut my shots but if I'm starting them on the line I want I am getting close.

 

Good luck Dan! Start at the beginning: posture, aim, grip pressure, rhythm. If those are no good, it's tough to get the rest right.

[Londoner]

The Orange Whip always puts me back in sync. 

[shaneyank]

For me, it was to take time off. 14 days to be exact.

 

I play once/twice per week and hit the range at least twice per week. I found that I ended up trying too many things and broke what was working. I got very frustrated and began trying too hard. More thing went awry. I went from mid-70s to mid-80s and dreaded the game.

 

A couple weeks off helped flush all the excess thoughts. The first day back at the range I had low expectations and that made for a much better season.

[Hawkeye77]

Make sure my alignment is correct, check setup.

 

Hit 100 yard 7 or 8 irons - if things aren't synced up this confirms/reveals that for me.  If I can get them working, I feel like I'm in good shape.

 

If I've got a drill or something that's key to a fault or something I'm trying to work on, that's a good time to mix in a few of those from time to time - I've got a little drill with wedge related to Monte's NTC I do for wrists.

 

If I'm all in a state before playing, some 100 yard shots as described above and some 20-40 yard pitches seem to get things settled in.  

[TwistedSister]

Two suggestions:

 

1)  Go fishing!

2)  take two weeks away from golf.  then try again.  If it still doesn't work ....QUIT!  😉

In seriousness.  that is what my plan is...

 

[scooterhd2]

i work on parallel to parallel swings on the range and only try to hit punch shots. bring that swing to the course the next round and try not to deviate much. just 75% swing punches. Keep the solid contact, keep the ball straight and in play, and really just retrain that connected feeling. 

Edited March 8, 2021 by scooterhd2

[SNIPERBBB]

Usually end up doing torture sessions at the range. I'll dig that thing out of the dirt.

[Krt22]

Work with an instructor and learn how to identify/spot your core flaw. If things go sideways, take video. More likely than not that flaw is showing up and you are not compensating as well as normal

[nitram]

Just get back to basics, grip, stance, ball position, etc., and as mentioned, start with hitting half or 9 to 3 swings with a sand or gap wedge and have the patience to continue until you get the impact right. Each session you devote all of your energy to getting everything right (grip, stance, ball position) and every ball has your full attention. Hit 60 balls like this and evaluate ball flight only. Again, you're only trying to hit the ball 40-50 yards with this swing.

Edited March 8, 2021 by nitram

[swagee]

2 hours ago, DallasDan said:

I'm in the middle of a terrible slump. I usually shoot in the 80's with a couple of sub 80 rounds year for the past 5 years or so. Over the last couple of months I've had about 10 rounds of 95 or worse with an 81 and an 84 sprinkled in there on easy courses. I just can't seem to find any consistency with my swing. What do you all do to wipe the slate clean and get back to basics? I shot 95-98 this weekend and it's dropped my handicap to an 8.5...but I look like a 20 capper out there right now. 

I think everyone goes thru the same phase every now and again. 
I have a habit of filming myself on the range. During a slump, i’d go back to the vids from a better time then compare the swings. I often find the culprits rather quickly, but changing back to the way they were might take some time.

Good luck, mate. 

[hoselpalooza]

how is your body? e.g. any injuries or stiffness or tightness?

[DaveMc82]

It all depends on how it’s manifesting itself.
 

If it’s directional issues but strike has remained good I know 99% it’s rhythm. In this case I get my dog’s  rope toy and use it like ‘the pro’ training aid. 

 

If strike has deserted me I know it’s inside takeaway, or wrist angles or both. For this I grip lead hand only and then do super slow practice swings holding the trail hand loosely around the lead hand. You’ve got to be very strong to be able to get takeaway and wrist angles wrong. 
 

Both the above come from solid conversations with an instructor who taught me to self diagnose ME. He made it clear to me that I was responsible for maintaining the basics and that I paid him to work on the hard stuff.
 

[jomatty]

Personally I stop thinking at all technical, aside from making sure I’m set up properly.  Then I focus on rhythm and tempo, which is generally enough for me to start getting around the course in a manner that is not soul destroying.  Once I feel like I’m swinging smooth I can start looking at doing more than “getting around the course” and start actually working on my swing.

[shoot4par]

2 hours ago, SNIPERBBB said:

Usually end up doing torture sessions at the range. I'll dig that thing out of the dirt.

 

Also make sure you stop at your local pharmacy for some new skin and ibuprofen.... Seriously, I just ground it out for three days to get myself back from full on moron mode. Set up, aim, alignment, ball position, grip equate to constants, then check the swing. 

Edited March 9, 2021 by shoot4par

[phizzy30]

It's different for everyone.  For me, I need to take at least 2 weeks off.  I'm a big believer in muscle memory.  If bad habits and movement creep into your golf swing, you're muscle memory ingrains itself into the new motion and it sets itself up for failure.  A good 2-4 weeks is what it takes to reset IMO. 

Edited March 9, 2021 by phizzy30

[averysdad]

Some great advice above but for me and my game, I’ve found some decent success with taking a week off and then going back and not keeping score for a round or two and just enjoying being outside and laughing with my playing partners. And then if neither of those work...I usually will go and blister my hands at the range for 2 straight days 😜😉 

[rondo01]

1. Don’t force anything

2. Dr scholls the face to see what’s going on strike related

3. Dr scholls the ground to see what’s going on with ground contact 

4. figure out what’s going on at last parallel in terms of path and face

5.  check weight shift/tempo

 

 

[DShepley]

When it goes off the rails for me, it's usually because I have become too mechanical and have too many swing thoughts that make it difficult to swing smoothly.  Since our season in Canada is short enough anyway, I don't like to take time off.  Usually I reset myself by returning to the most basic of instruction and for me that is George Knudson's book, "The Natural Golf Swing" (please don't confuse this with anything related to Moe Norman), and a review of this video which is pure 80s gold! (The message is great and the production value is pure 80s cheese).  I read the book every spring, (currently half way through), and it is beautiful in it's simplicity.

 

[naval2006]

Most long slumps one cannot slow down.  Taking time off is fine.  But it all boils down to rhythm.  When you get to that conclusion you've already messed up all the mechanics of your swing.  I believe in basics and a search for rhythm to get out of the hole.  Anyway it's hard because you need the attitude to go through it.  

[getitdaily]

16 hours ago, Krt22 said:

Work with an instructor and learn how to identify/spot your core flaw. If things go sideways, take video. More likely than not that flaw is showing up and you are not compensating as well as normal

This is the answer. If you are not working with an instructor then self diagnosis of flaws will be incorrect and will just lead to more flaws. 

 

You need to be at a fairly good level of golf (probably sub 3 handicap) to self diagnose with any real benefit. The better you get, the more you understand the swing and your swing. 

 

Only through consistent instruction can you gain an understanding of what your flaws are and the subtle checks in what to do when things go awry. 

 

For me, I know of a few things I do that lead to bad swings and bad results. As I warm up, if things aren't solid and a few keys don't help resolve the wonky ball flight then I'll capture video to get a look. 

 

- setup

- backswing handpath

- backswing tempo/rhythm 

- swing length and transition tempo/rhythm 

- lateral turn vs centered turn

- hands high through impact rather than low and left 

[Krt22]

6 minutes ago, getitdaily said:

This is the answer. If you are not working with an instructor then self diagnosis of flaws will be incorrect and will just lead to more flaws. 

 

You need to be at a fairly good level of golf (probably sub 3 handicap) to self diagnose with any real benefit. The better you get, the more you understand the swing and your swing. 

 

Only through consistent instruction can you gain an understanding of what your flaws are and the subtle checks in what to do when things go awry. 

 

For me, I know of a few things I do that lead to bad swings and bad results. As I warm up, if things aren't solid and a few keys don't help resolve the wonky ball flight then I'll capture video to get a look. 

 

- setup

- backswing handpath

- backswing tempo/rhythm 

- swing length and transition tempo/rhythm 

- lateral turn vs centered turn

- hands high through impact rather than low and left 

One other benefit of taking video on some sort of semi-regular basis (even when you are playing well), you will realize

 

1)  Your swing really doesn't change that much over time

3) Two swings that looks nearly identical on video can produce two very different outcomes

2) Making measurable change is really really hard

 

It really eliminates a lot of the questions like, what is going on with my swing, what am I doing wrong, how it did change, why am I not improving, etc etc etc.

[getitdaily]

2 minutes ago, Krt22 said:

One other benefit of taking video on some sort of semi-regular basis (even when you are playing well), you will realize

 

1)  Your swing really doesn't change that much over time

3) Two swings that looks nearly identical on video can produce two very different outcomes

2) Making measurable change is really really hard

 

It really eliminates a lot of the questions like, what is going on with my swing, what am I doing wrong, how it did change, why am I not improving, etc etc etc.

Yep. Recent lesson with the guy I work with...2 swings. I said swing 1 will be late set. Swing 2 will be early set. He recorded both swings and put them side by side on the monitor. He stepped through them side by side. There was zero difference in the down the line videos...zero. the feel was completely different though. The ballflight was better with the early set. 

 

We didn't do the same comparison face on. Would like to do that eventually. I am almost positive that the early set swing made my turn more centered.

[b.mattay]

I personally like slow motion swings at the range. Lots of times I will start a session with Driver and try to take a full length swing hitting 2-3 shots the following carry distances: 

50 yards, 75 yards, 100 yards...up to full speed

 

This often illuminates that I am not gripping the club firm enough and not shallowing properly. 

[wrm2120]

I go back to the Harvey Penick "Magic Move." 

[hoselpalooza]

write down what's working when you're swinging well. refer back to it when you're not.

[Barfolomew]

I'll start with chipping... its easy and gets my feel back.  I'll hit an array of different types to develop touch and get my brain in the right place... then go range and hit different lob wedge shots to see what I got and move into longer clubs. 

 

But I built my own swing and so I think you built it in the first place you can rebuild it if you have to... which I've had to a lot over the last 5 years being injured all the time.  Im currently on DL for a popped achilles so I will be rebuilding again lol

[CP_Circa62]

Has no one mentioned balance?

 

A lot of things fall into place by getting balance right.

 

 

[Lincoln_Arcadia]

On 3/8/2021 at 12:44 PM, DallasDan said:

I'm in the middle of a terrible slump. I usually shoot in the 80's with a couple of sub 80 rounds year for the past 5 years or so. Over the last couple of months I've had about 10 rounds of 95 or worse with an 81 and an 84 sprinkled in there on easy courses. I just can't seem to find any consistency with my swing. What do you all do to wipe the slate clean and get back to basics? I shot 95-98 this weekend and it's dropped my handicap to an 8.5...but I look like a 20 capper out there right now. 

I can appreciate your predicament, and pretty much adjust my swing every time. Minor adjustments, of course, but they are based upon the previous time I hit with the club I am bout to use. Flight too low, too much “draw”, etc.

 

Just curious how a 95-98 can drop your handicap to 8.5?

[Phireside]

I need to take some of this. I'm completely broken. I'm convinced it is mental. I have not forgotten how to swing a club, but you wouldn't know that from watching my current game.