Stopping Left arm breakdown at impact

Ronald, You mentioned that your a flipper. IMO, flippers usually means that your hitting with too much weight on your right side. The suggested 90% weight on left foot drill would eliminate this. One thing that you have to realize is, golf is a full contact sport , meaning, you are hitting down into the ball and into the ground. You dont want to sweep the ball off the turf. In order to get those sweet divots like the pro's get, you have to have no tension in your arms. This will help you release into the ball.

You are concerned with too many swing thoughts. Heres my advice :

-keep 70% weight on left foot in the backswing and 95% on downswing into contact.

-Turn your left shoulder down at the ball.

-keep left arm locked until you make crispy contact.

- lastly, very little tension in arms.

these are IMO are the most important things to get you going.

Tom has a drill ( I dont know what its called) but, its put your head on the wall and turn your shoulders down at the ball. Keep 70% weight on left foot in this drill. you will feel those two moves work together. turn your shoulders through the swing putting 95% weight on left foot. Ingrain this feeling.

Then its just a matter of low tension , straight left arm past impact. Good Luck.

This is where the bridge from Functional Flipper to Crispy Ball Striker is crossed. There really is a method to all the madness here. You can't properly execute the 90% Weight Forward/Arms Straight, Flying Wedge, 2.8, or the Best Contact drills if that lead arm breaks down. Nice work and good post, @desmondmoss!!

Well, it's easy to keep the left arm straight in the backswing, it's most important at impact. Most people think they are doing it but most bend it. Try 1/2 shots with that left arm locked. Be careful hitting on mats. I got golfer elbow from the hard impact with a straight arm.

I think learning what it feels like to hit balls with a straight left arm is the one thing that most all golfer miss on. We all practice keeping a straight left arm in the backswing but on the downswing, most everyone breaks down with the straight left arm at impact. It is a completely different feeling to hit balls. I recommend doing left arm only swing drills actually hitting a ball. 1 thing you will notice is, you will hit fat shots if you only rotate the shoulders back and through. This is were you will need to straighten the left leg while turning your hips towards the target. Your left hip will rise upward. Do half swings at first. I bought a training aide that keeps my left arm locked straight. I didnt realize until using it that, I would always bend my elbow. I is a completely different feeling. IMO, it is the most over-looked thing that 99% of us fail at and we dont even know it. Make keeping your left arm straight at impact your most important swing thought and build everything else from that.

Hi Ronald. I started Tom’s courses last June – almost 1 year ago. Some people move through this faster than others. For me it’s taking longer and last August I was in your shoes. In starting this system I got worse and worse and couldn’t even play on a course anymore. It was disgusting. I was ready to throw in the towel. I could not even hit the ball. It was so bad I can’t even tell you. Fast forward to now and I’ve been improving. I feel one of the last things that I have needed to address are my arms. Watching videos my left arm chicken wings out when I strike the ball. I knew this would be one of the hardest obstacles for me to overcome so I guess I saved it for last. A month ago I put a bungee cord around my forearms and started to practice my swings. In short my trail arm was messed up which caused the lead arm to bend. I did the bungee cord for one day and then went over these videos in this section – over and over. https://saguto.golf/courses/865895/lectures/15769565 (started with 6.1 but the whole section is excellent. Tom, please don’t ever remove this from the site. Love these.) This is helping immensely. I’m still working on it but the left arm is a lot straighter now. Contact is improving. A couple of weeks ago I shot a 47 on the front 9. Don’t ask about the back 9 – it fell apart and I lost the feeling and proper swing and I wanted to throw every club into Lake Michigan– one by one. But it takes time. I get frustrated easily but I’m now usually able to fix what breaks down and that and of itself is an amazing thing. A year ago I couldn't even tell you what my left arm, right arm, shoulders, legs or what anything was doing during the golf swing. But hopefully I'll get to where I want to be soon. I really want to post on here that I shot in the 80s but not there, yet. Next month is my 1 year anniversary here taking these lesons so Tom has agreed to fly me out for 18 holes of golf. What a nice gesture!! Ha, just kidding. Wouldn’t that be something, though. lol Anyway, hope you figure it out. I was there. It took time and is still taking time. But I have learned so much it’s been all worth it.

@Ronald Kinder - My apologies if I have repeated myself to you and if you find it to be insulting. Please know that given the number of students in the school and the limited amount of available time I am able to dedicate to the Forum, I can only respond based on the information provided in the comment thread.

You have received some excellent, sincere, and very helpful replies from others here, and I hope you are able to capture that "AHA" moment as a result. I remain available if you wish to arrange for the V1 Analysis or an online lesson. Both have been very effective in yielding great results. If you wish to try the lower cost (V1) option first, I will do my best to be as specific as possible in identifying the issues and pinpointing the solutions.

Tom

Hey Tom, everyone here has felt like Ronald. It would be great if we could start a conversation with people who broke through the “I’m quitting stage“and have had that “AHA” moment. Tom is the best instructor and has the easiest system for those of us who have always Sucked.

i have NEVER been able to downswing on plane. Thanks to Tom I have been able to.

I set up weight forward, hands forward and feel a gentle wedge in right wrist.

Heres my AHA moment

left arm pit stays connected past impact or longer.

I start the backswing feeling the left armpit and right hip turn DEEP Down (left arm (and DEEP back (right hip)to 45 Degrees

now my club is parallel. I did this a 1000 times. Second move. I feel my hands go DEEP BACK (not up) Which turns my shoulders. stop and feel the left armpit connection And your wedge in your right wrist has gotten a little more of an angle to it. this is the top of the backswing. From here You can try a couple of things.

Feel like your connected left arm pit is towing or dragging the right wrist wedge through. Like a boat towing a water skier. Another feeling is you are throwing an uppercut with the right wrist wedge. Thats the only way I could create the tilt down.

stay relaxed

I would love to hear how others found their AHA moment with Toms GREAT system

thanks

Hi Ron, Please ignore anything I write, if my comments are unwelcomed, and accept my apology for chiming in where I'm not welcome.

However, I feel your frustration and I think we share a concept that everything needs to be hard! (At least I do!) I'm always trying too hard and not just letting things happen. This is somethin I'm working on as a characterological disorder! LOL I carry it in everything I do just about.

Now, In learning to let things go and trust that they can be done with relative ease, if the fundamentals are solid, I'm finding things are becoming easier!

As for the wedge, punching with the right arm (I've come to realize I'm no where near skilled enough to work on this yet), keeping the hands in front of the ball at impact, they should all happen as a result of a strong setup, a good takeaway, good tilt and the proper transition to the downswing. All that being said, I think the thing we should focus on is 90% weight forward and straight arms for now.

I've been working this drill and it made a huge difference. Watching my videos I've learn about goat humping! (ugh...) I'm now trying to stay with weight forward (maybe not 90% anymore) straight arm and, (leave that freaking goat alone!) keeping my hips over my ankles. So three things, two of which are part of the setup, Weight forward, Hips over ankles. That leaves me 2 thoughts for the swing. Hands in, straight arms. The tilt gets worked on in practice so I don't usually have to think about that so much on the course. It's getting there and I'm seeing slow steady progress with ball flight. I don't care about scores currently. If I can hit a ball in the air a good distance, I feel my aim will come a bit later. If I hit a ball pin high but 20 yards right or left, I'm happy! I figure I have give myself a break and worry about ball flight first. Missing the green just gives me chipping practice!!

Anyway, I hope you get this figured out. I felt the very same way yo do not more than 6 weeks ago. Now I can get enough! I figure, when I get a good shot, it lets me know I have the ability to do it, Now I just have to get out and play to dial in the feeling that produces those shots more often! I actually got my first birdie of my life last week! It was magical, that little birdie!

Danny

First of all, I have gone through your step by step lesson over and over, so YES, I have done that! In fact, this is the second time you have asked that question and it is becoming insulting. Your lesson 2.7 is very emphatic and has resonated with me on many occasions, the one that focuses on making swing changes.

Now that I have that off my chest, I do have several questions about the left arm movement, specifically addressed in lesson 3.1 and 3.2. You say, "bring the left arm across the chest". My questions is, if you keep your arms attached to the chest when you address the ball and you make the proper tilt, turn and extend,(as addressed in lesson 2.6), doesn't your left arm automatically go across your chest? Do you purposely have to "bring the left arm across your chest" even though it is attached already to your chest? Is this an additional movement that is required? If I focus on keeping my left and right arms glued to my chest and I make the proper tilt, turn and extend, my hands end up in a very good position. But, if I get ready to turn and then lift my left arm up and across my chest, the hands end up being a bit higher. Which is it?!!!

The other drill that I have not mastered is the load and explode drill, especially the right arm only. I have not mastered the Extension of the right arm at the ball in order to feel what impact is so that I can repeat it. My flipping continues to plague me. Going over that drill again and again is something I know I must do. Any other way to get that feeling would be welcomed. The part of that series of videos that is a bit confusing, is how the turn causes the extension or the punching of the right arm. First the bump, then the turn which causes the extension of the right arm. I don't feel that, perhaps as I may have too much tension in my arms. I seem to never feel the weight of the club head. I noticed many of the swings I took yesterday at the range, I was not getting any divot as well, which indicates to me that I am not feeling proper impact. I must still be flipping at the bottom. I don't maintain that wedge.

As you know, I have been working hard on the bump and when I do that, I do feel better sequencing in the swing, however, I can't hold that wedge, which means I need to drill, drill, drill that load and explode drill. I thought that I had got that down and that was causing me to pull in my left arm at impact. I know that my left arm is coming backward at impact as I can see that on my videos of my swing, which causes me to not get good ball contact. I don't feel ball compression as a result and most all of my ball flights go to the left because that left arm is breaking down. I am sharing all of this with you because I am uncertain which thing I need to focus on; impact feel with right arm, maintaining the wedge, keeping hands in front of ball on contact, keeping arms straight through swing, etc, etc.

@Ronald Kinder - The drill recommended by @danny is exactly what I would suggest.

Per this and previous comments I know that to say you are very frustrated is an understatement. Have you:

1) Truly worked this course as designed - meaning first nailing down sll the foundational elements of Chapter 1 (which is a must regardless of how long someone has been playing this game, because there are differences from what you would have learned previously)?, and

2) Parked yourself in Chapter 2 until you have mastered each incremental component, culminating in Lesson 2.8 (the drill that puts it all together), using that as your swing until it is fully ingrained?

If you can honestly answer yes to these questions, then perhaps an online private lesson is your best option. The V1 Analysis may work for you if it is just one or two things that I can pinpoint and offer solutions for, however just know that this tool is more for that purpose and/or for ongoing swing maintenance, and not so much for a major overhaul.

Tom

Hi Ronald, Have you tried the 90% weight forward/arms straight drill. The best thing about it I found is that, you focus on the one task of getting all that weight on the lead leg and you block out all the other stuff during the swing. So, it's just setup and then weight forward and swing

Ronald, I too have struggled with your same problem. I was recommended that I try the Tac Tic Elbow Swing Trainer. $28.95 on Amazon. It works like a charm for me. You just attach it to your lead arm and swing normally. You’ll receive an audible click if your elbow breaks down. I’ll do 30 min with it on and 15 min with it off. It’s really helped me to get my arms straight. Hope this helps.