I started this program last June 2020, I am a 12handicap left handed golfer. I have watched so many of Tom's videos and worked to improve my swing. I think I understand the concepts and have seen some positive changes, but overall my iron swing is not getting more consistent. I hit more fat iron shots and have lost 20-25% of the distance I previously had before starting the program. On top of that, I hit more S&*nks than I have ever hit in my life. I am embarrassed to go play a round of golf, because I have no confidence. I have videoed my swing and used Tom's comparison swings to try to pinpoint the issues. I identified that I roll my hands on the takeaway. I have tried to fix this issue with some of the drills, but I cannot seem to eliminate the roll. When I practice short shots in the yard I seem not to roll as much, but as soon as I take a 3/4 swing, still rolling (club is behind my body). Then I have a severe layed-off position at the top of backswing. This is probably a result of some take away issues. Then I notice that I have this very bad head dip and back arch in the downswing (not good on my back), which is probably leading to the fat shots and loss of power. I feel that I cannot turn my shoulders together around my spine. It seems that the my trail shoulder lags and I go around my body alot and loose my relationship with the ball. I am not one to quit, but I have become so belittled trying to improve that I have wondered if I should just quit. However, I do believe that these issues are fixable because I did play two times where I actually hit more crisp iron shots than normal (shot an 83 one of those days). I think need to figure out how to get the take away and backswing correct first. Any suggestions on how to accomplish this would be appreciated. I need to get back to having fun.
In my experience, fat shots are caused by a weight drift to the trail foot. I posted elsewhere here (and I don't know if Tom would agree) that I have to be very aware of two things on the backswing.
1) Rotation to the top with the lead shoulder pointing down at the ball...and I mean DOWN. It "feels like" down, but it's actually correct because I'm used to a flatter and steeper backswing with my old swing. In your photo, the line on your shoulder angle at the top is not positioned correctly. The line should be more towards flat, or more parallel to the ground.
2) I have to be VERY aware that upon my takeaway, the weight of my arms and the club can cause a weight drift to my trail foot. My fix is to pre-tilt to the left at address. I "feel" pre-tilted but in a mirror I'm perfect. Again, this is a remnant of setting up with a shoulder tilt at address in my old swing. Tom covers this in his PGA Player taking a Lesson video.
It's VERY easy to fall into the traps, habits, of the old swing....and the feels in the new swing need to be very exaggerated to counter-balance the old feels because we're used to the old feels.
As for shanks, I've done them too...but in my case, it's because I didn't rotate back and also my weight drifted to my trail foot, so I did what I call a "windmill" half-backswing, meaning the swing was more in front of me vs. rotational. At that position, my right hip and right shoulder want to rotate out towards the ball....shank.
Tom,
I want to thank you for the video lesson two weeks ago. Your analysis was very through and easy to follow. The items you pointed out would have been difficult for me to pick up by myself, especially since I thought I was doing the drills correctly. I have incorporate the setup adjustments you recommended and have been practicing the drills with some success. The straight arms drill really helps. I noticed that I have difficultly turning my trial should around my spine which leads me to flattening by lead shoulder. I have been practicing everyday on my back yard net. While this is helpful, I cannot always tell how good the shot really is. I went and played 9 holes yesterday and I have some exciting news. I hit 9 really crisp irons. I was on green or right next to it on 5 holes and I had 6 good drives. I played the first 5 holes at +2 with 1 birdie. The next four holes were another story. I had 3 severe slice / hozzle shots which unfortunately found the water. The ball striking minus a few shots was the best I have hit the ball in a while. It has been really difficult to stop my hand rotation on the takeaway and flatting my lead shoulder, but I am encourage that I am making progress with the lesson you provided. I reference it all the time. I will keep updated.
Your are a very good coach. I can see myself getting back to fun golf soon.
G,
I know its a down the line view but, your lead knee might be be breaking down, away from the target and your shoulders are leveling off. This happens to me when I try to get more backswing. Try the 2.8 drill as well. See if that gets you some consistency.
I've come to understand that, it is more important to master the 2.8 drill, even while playing, before adding more power. I've also come to realize, that, the 2.8 drill is giving me really good distance. In fact, I'm taking 2 less clubs than my regular golfing partner. We were neck and neck in the fairway, he grabbed a 5 iron and couldn't reach and I grabbed a 7 iron and over shot the green!
I'm beginning to think, it's worth the wait to add the power moves later if I can play the abbreviated swing with this kind of distance. I'm staying right here in the 2.8 swing for the foreseeable future. It's actually making me more relaxed and the cleaner contact is rendering far better results than swinging like a maniac at the ball.
Danny
Tom,
Thank you for the quick response. I have walked through the complete course multiple times. And I have went back to review individual lessons based on how I was hitting it on the driving range. I can say that over the course of working on your method, I have seen a difference in how the ball reacts off the club when I hit it right. Especially with my wedges. I also improved my fairway woods and driver swing from a severe snap hook. The irons swing is my biggest issue. I will go back and review/practice the 90% drill. I initially had some success with the 90% drill, that was why I moved on to other lessons in the program, however the push draw has eluded me. When I tried this drill in the past I would either hit it straight with a little draw but more common was a slight pull draw. Maybe I need to work on this drill and only this drill for a while. I think when I go to the range to practice, I try some drills and then practice a full swing, I keep falling back into the same bad habits. I reviewed some of the videos I have taken over time and a common theme exists with the takeaway and the club getting behind me which in turn leads to that layed off position and then the downswing is compounding the problem. I will work on getting a video lesson set up. I think you have given me some tools to learn to analyze the swing but a second look would be well worth it. I have learned a whole lot about the golf swing with your program. Previously I had no idea what change day to day, but I have learned quite a bit through your program.
@G Shultz - I'm sorry for your frustration. We need to get you through this so you can start having fun, because ultimately that's what this is all about.
For starters, I just want to confirm that you have progressed through the course as I have designed it. The chapters, lessons, and drills that comprise the Golf Swing Simplified course curriculum are not randomly ordered; they are meant to be taken sequentially from the beginning. Regardless of a member's skill level, this swing necessitates a complete reboot for someone transitioning from a shift & lift swing (which is typically the case), and therefore it is imperative that one take sufficient time to ensure that the fundamental components of the first couple of chapters are mastered. From the ground up there is nothing superfluous in the Stack & Tilt swing - in other words, everything with a purpose, and a purpose for everything. I cannot overemphasize this enough, as frustrations predominantly occur when members 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.
Beyond that, there are a couple of ways we can go about this:
1) Given the amount of time you've been in the school, my preferred plan of attack would be to start with a a V1 Swing Video Analysis. This is 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 identifying and resolving any problems 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. This will allow me to put my eyes on your swing, pinpoint the issues, and give you a very specific prescription for addressing them. You can learn more about this by scrolling halfway down this page.
2) Alternatively, if you'd like to try to tackle this on your own, here are my best recommendations:
a) Based on what you are saying about fat shots, rolling, shanks, and power loss, the 90% Weight Forward/Arms Straight Drill will go far towards helping you to ingrain the proper feels to overcome these. It's not an easy drill, but it is very effective, so be sure to spend sufficient time to properly learn, execute, and master it. You'll know you're doing it properly when impact is consistently crispy, divots are occurring past the ball, and ball flight is a repeatable little push-draw.
b) After mastering the 90% Drill, I'd like to refer you back to Chapter 2 of the Golf Swing Simplified course. This chapter 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 park yourself on that drill in Lesson 2.8. Learn it. Practice it. Master it. You can even use the somewhat abbreviated swing it provides on the course and play quite well with it! 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!
Whichever way you decide, let's get you on the proper path to ballstriking bliss and your true enjoyment of this great game!
Tom