What I mean is that I actually played as opposed to going to the range. The day was a good one but golf was a work in progress. Here is some stats or observations.
The best part about the day was my drives. I bet I hit 15 out of 18 fairways and the majority of them ended up in the middle or at least where I wanted to go. I was happy about that and most of them were crispy. The longer clubs were hit and miss. I think my main issue was swinging for the fences. I will work on them. The shorter irons I hit well. On several occasions, I was right at the pin only to realize I had the wrong club and they flew over but the fact that the ball flight was right on top of the flag was encouraging to me. The shorter game around the green was great. I almost chipped on in but for the most part I was happy with the results.
My putting was also very good. Drained about a 15 footer and all the long ones (which were many) got very close and the speed was very accurate.
Unfortunately, I had about 4 holes where it fell apart in the middle to get to the green and added many many strokes to the game. But overall I was happy. I have a few questions and a simple observation of myself. Around and close to the green I seem to run part the hole even though I made good contact and aim was very good. I have a gap wedge(A) and a pitching wedge in my bag. I dont have a 56 wedge or anything like that. Do I need 1 or 2? I only have 10 clubs in my bag. Driver, 3 wood, PW, A, 9,8,7,6, 5 hybrid, 4 hybrid. What else should I toss in there?
As a personal observation, I know that my hands are still too high sometimes and I am bringing the club back too far. But not always. so I work on it. I try to kill the ball on the 2nd shot and I know that I am sometimes off balance falling back or in some cases too far forward.
I am watching the indoor drills and I have found something I don't think I have been doing. In setup #14 I do not think I am keeping that trail arm tucked under. This may be the key to more happiness.
All in all I had fun and I had many crispy moments. Back to the driving range to work on those long irons and tucking that trail arm in.
Welcome to the game, the online school, and this great members forum, @Mary Beggan!! I'm very glad that you've already posted your first comment here. This is a fun and very mutually helpful community as you might already be able to tell from @Alan Studnicky's reply, and we hope to see you participating here regularly.
Piggybacking on Alan's excellent response, I'd like to offer you some preliminary advice to help you get off to a good and proper start on your journey:
1) As a beginner you are very fortunate in that you don't have any real preconceived notions or deeply ingrained bad habits that need to be undone, so you can approach this with a relatively clean slate. From the ground up there is nothing superfluous in the swing system you will be learning here - in other words, everything with a purpose, and a purpose for everything. I cannot emphasize this enough, as frustrations predominantly occur when students jump ahead in the curriculum without properly dedicating themselves to the foundational base upon which our consistently repeatable, powerful, low maintenance swing must be built. Chapter 1 of the Golf Swing Simplified program (GSS) and Part I of Get Out & Go Play (GOGP) both address this.
2a) GSS: One of the many great things about this swing is that you can achieve solid ball striking even at the most basic levels. This is why I oftentimes will suggest that students park themselves on Chapter 2 of the GSS course for an extended period of time after locking down Chapter 1's foundational elements. Chapter 2 reinforces the body motions and the weight-forward component, and it culminates with what I call "The Best Golf Swing Practice Drill of All Time". Work yourself sequentially and gradually through the chapter, and then commit yourself to that drill in Lesson 2.8. Learn it. Practice it. Master it. You can even use this partially abbreviated swing on the course and play quite well with it as it will provide plenty of distance. (It actually is the full swing minus just a couple of power accumulators.) Once you've got that down, you will be well prepared to move forward in the curriculum and well on your way towards taking ownership of YOUR swing!
2b) GOGP: This quick-start program is exactly as it sounds - it is designed to fast-track you out onto the course so you can have fun - and success - playing as you learn! Should you choose this path, everything in #1 above still applies, and as implied above in 2a you will still want to work through it sequentially and gradually, mastering each lesson before moving ahead to the next one. In this program, Drill #5 - The Flying Wedge is the one you'll want to park yourself on and nail down.
3) Also, as you progress always keep in mind the V1 Swing Video Analysis service, an effective and inexpensive service that I highly recommend to everyone in the school. I liken it to bringing your swing into the shop for a tune-up or minor repair. Scheduling one on a quarterly basis for preventive maintenance will do wonders for keeping things humming along nicely, and it's also a great tool for pinpointing and resolving any issues that arise. The process involves downloading the free V1 app and then submitting two videos to me through the app - one down-the-line (captured from your stance line, not the target line) and the other face-on. You'll find more information about the V1 Analysis halfway down this page on the Saguto.Golf site.
We look forward to assisting you in building a consistent, low maintenance, powerful, body-friendly swing for a lifetime of true enjoyment of this great game!
Tom
Hi Mary. Your second shot sounds awesome. Whatever you did on that shot - do it again!! :) It's hard to say what the issue might be without a video. As you are a beginner all I can recommend is start Tom's class from the beginning, take it slow, and do not skip ahead. This will take time. Magic will not happen overnight. Or maybe it will - who knows. I've been Tom's student for over a year and a half and it's taking time to undo all the old, bad swing habits and ingrain the new. And I'm still learning things all the time. Take your time and have fun. It's a school, not a quick fix like other videos out there that really don't fix anything. And out of curiosity, did you tee the ball up for the 3 wood? If so, I would not recommend that. Maybe use a tee but keep the ball barely off the ground. Tee it too high and you'll go under it and shoot it up in the air.
Hi I'm a beginner and am finding your course useful. However, I seem to have developed a tee shot that goes up high in the air and lands just a few feet from the tee. I'm using a 3 wood - I don't have a driver. For example, my first tee shot went straight up into a pond and my second shot landed on the green near the hole! I don't know how to fix this!
@Tom Holt - Your on-course results sound very encouraging; seems like you're headed in a good direction!!
You definitely need to fully stock your tool box. Some good suggestions here already from @Alan Studnicky and @Julian . Also, check out the What's in Your Bag comment thread for some more ideas.
Finally, with regard to chipping...... practice, practice, practice. That's imperative for building in your feel and distance control. You can then also determine whether you are going to use one primary club for the majority of your chip shots, or if you are going to alter club selection based on the circumstances. There's no right answer in this regard. You'll find both methods deployed even among the best players in the world.
Well done. I'm glad you had an enjoyable round!!
Nice! Having fun is the number one priority! I have to remind myself this sometimes. I try to make it a point before each round to take a moment and give thanks to God that I'm happy, healthy and out on the golf course.
To piggy back on what @Alan Studnicky said, it really is about personal preference, but I tend to have less "distance gaps" up top where accuracy is less critical. For example, I go from Driver(9 degree), 3 wood(15 degree) to 3 Hybrid(18 degree), on down to 5 iron(21 degree).. more than enough coverage for me, but a more skilled player might want more between the 5 iron and 3H.. but in the high lofted clubs I have basically no gaps, and in some cases overlap. I go from P wedge(41) to A wedge(46), then have a gap wedge(52), sand wedge(56) and even a lob wedge(60). Probably over kill but I love hitting my wedges and it's really fun to stick one close when I get lucky once in a while..
I think club selection is a personal choice. I would add a Sand Wedge and Lob wedge for sure and maybe a 23 degree-ish hybrid to help fill the gap between your 4 hybrid and 3 wood. But that is just me. I'm sure opinions will vary. Glad you had fun out there and saw some success. And the indoor drills are pretty cool, eh? I learned a lot from those. Enjoy.