Joe, could u explain how to let go of the built up feeling in the muscles in left side in back swing in forward swing for u can feel the twisting feeling in back swing but forward swing u feel nothing.
(no name)
Hi (no name)
If I understand you correctly, the backswing is stretching the muscles in your left side like a rubber band. This is not a bad thing. When you let go of the rubber band (begin the forward swing with a lower body weight shift), power and speed are released. If you feel nothing in the forward swing, it is because the rubber band has been released and there is no more stretching going on. However, I would like to see you extend your follow thru more, or else you might quit on the shot too early. Try to make your right side feel a stretch when you are posing at the end of your follow thru.
Joe
Wednesday, March 10, 2004
(from a personal friend in the land of the rising sun…)
Joe,
Sometimes, my biggest frustration is when I go through periods of good ball striking and then into a time when I do not think that any part of my swing feels right. When you take the club back and it doesn't feel right, how do you get that back???
Maybe it is just me, but I found that playing with the right feel adds confidence and I know when I am not doing something correctly. Usually, 95% of the time when I hit a bad shot, I know exactly what I did wrong, because I could feel it. I think it is fair to say that when you are playing well, it just feels right. It can be the short or long game only or the whole thing. I know that I have played many a round where I putt great and it all felt like instinct, but my other swings just did not feel right all day or just the opposite.
Maybe I am bringing this up now because for the last month, nothing feels right outside of my short game. There isn't an iron or wood that feels comfortable when I swing and it shows in my ball flight. I still make solid contact with the ball, but I cannot count on where it will tend to go. Normally, when the feel is there, I know exactly where the ball is going to go.
I am sitting around 83 and cannot move lower. I cannot escape this out of body experience.
David from Japan
Hello David,
Feel is an elusive concept. It seems to come naturally to those who are the most gifted with athletic ability and who play several times per week, but many golfers are not so physically gifted and they cannot play as frequently, and therefore they cannot always count on feel, so instead they must concentrate on mechanics. After reading your symptoms, here is something to try on the range:
(Right handers) Use the left arm to start the backswing, take it straight back (and wide) along the target line. While you are taking it back, your hips are turning naturally and comfortably (unforced). Here is where the "single plane" concept kicks in - before you get to the top of your backswing, use your wrist cock to get the shaft on the same swing plane as your left arm. This should help to arrive at a strong hitting position at the top of the backswing. You can experiment with how high your hands are to optimize your ball striking. For me, higher is better, but may not be the same for you, but it is worth a try. Also, if your target line is 12 o’clock, extend your follow-thru toward 1 o’clock.
Joe
Follow-up from David:
Joe,
I have been meaning to write you back and tell you that I worked mostly on only one thing and that was the 1 o'clock image. I have to tell you that it works like magic. I am able to get much more length without losing accuracy. The confidence it has put into my driver swing as well as my other woods is amazing. While I should not get too carried away, I played around with how comfortable this feels and I am able to swing much harder at the ball than I ever have before. Usually, when over swinging, all kinds of bad things happen, but in my experimentation, focusing on keeping my head behind the ball at impact has allowed to keep everything together when I swing max at the ball.
My wife also tried this advice since I had to share this revelation with her. She also thanks you so much.
Your single plane image fits well as I have tried to eliminate my outside takeaway. I finally shot a 79, first time out with this method. Thank you so much for being the swing doctor.
Talk to you later. Best regards,
David from Tokyo, Japan
Joe,
Sometimes, my biggest frustration is when I go through periods of good ball striking and then into a time when I do not think that any part of my swing feels right. When you take the club back and it doesn't feel right, how do you get that back???
Maybe it is just me, but I found that playing with the right feel adds confidence and I know when I am not doing something correctly. Usually, 95% of the time when I hit a bad shot, I know exactly what I did wrong, because I could feel it. I think it is fair to say that when you are playing well, it just feels right. It can be the short or long game only or the whole thing. I know that I have played many a round where I putt great and it all felt like instinct, but my other swings just did not feel right all day or just the opposite.
Maybe I am bringing this up now because for the last month, nothing feels right outside of my short game. There isn't an iron or wood that feels comfortable when I swing and it shows in my ball flight. I still make solid contact with the ball, but I cannot count on where it will tend to go. Normally, when the feel is there, I know exactly where the ball is going to go.
I am sitting around 83 and cannot move lower. I cannot escape this out of body experience.
David from Japan
Hello David,
Feel is an elusive concept. It seems to come naturally to those who are the most gifted with athletic ability and who play several times per week, but many golfers are not so physically gifted and they cannot play as frequently, and therefore they cannot always count on feel, so instead they must concentrate on mechanics. After reading your symptoms, here is something to try on the range:
(Right handers) Use the left arm to start the backswing, take it straight back (and wide) along the target line. While you are taking it back, your hips are turning naturally and comfortably (unforced). Here is where the "single plane" concept kicks in - before you get to the top of your backswing, use your wrist cock to get the shaft on the same swing plane as your left arm. This should help to arrive at a strong hitting position at the top of the backswing. You can experiment with how high your hands are to optimize your ball striking. For me, higher is better, but may not be the same for you, but it is worth a try. Also, if your target line is 12 o’clock, extend your follow-thru toward 1 o’clock.
Joe
Follow-up from David:
Joe,
I have been meaning to write you back and tell you that I worked mostly on only one thing and that was the 1 o'clock image. I have to tell you that it works like magic. I am able to get much more length without losing accuracy. The confidence it has put into my driver swing as well as my other woods is amazing. While I should not get too carried away, I played around with how comfortable this feels and I am able to swing much harder at the ball than I ever have before. Usually, when over swinging, all kinds of bad things happen, but in my experimentation, focusing on keeping my head behind the ball at impact has allowed to keep everything together when I swing max at the ball.
My wife also tried this advice since I had to share this revelation with her. She also thanks you so much.
Your single plane image fits well as I have tried to eliminate my outside takeaway. I finally shot a 79, first time out with this method. Thank you so much for being the swing doctor.
Talk to you later. Best regards,
David from Tokyo, Japan
Monday, March 08, 2004
Joe,
Please explain the reason(s) why men can hit the ball farther than most women. My husband and I went to a local golf shop and were measured for head speed and were found to be exactly the same, however I cannot hit the ball as far as he can.
Thanks,
Sherry Sanders
Birmingham, AL
Hello Sherry,
Uh oh, my evil twin Jody saw this one, and Jody is one of those male chauvinists with a superiority complex. Since he is really loud, I will put his comments in all capital letters, while my comments are in lower case. HEY JOE, THIS IS A TRAP, DON’T GO THERE. Wait a minute, Jody, there may be some other factors at play here, like is the man outdriving the woman by only a few yards or 20-30 yards? OH COME ON, IF THE SWING SPEED IS THE SAME, THE RESULTS SHOULD BE THE SAME. THE READERS ARE JUST TRYING TO STUMP YOU. Maybe not, is the launch angle the same? We don’t know. WHAT IF IT IS THE SAME, THEN WHAT? Then maybe the man is using a club with more C.O.R. effect, like a trampoline. WHAT IF THEY ARE USING THE SAME CLUB? Then the only other factor I can think of is the rate of acceleration at the point of contact. Measuring swing speed is a snapshot which cannot measure acceleration. Whichever club is accelerating more at the point of contact should propel the ball further. WHAT IF THE WOMAN’S CLUB IS ACCELERATING MORE? Jody, what if the woman is using a very light club while the man is using a heavier club, don’t you think the heavier mass would compress the ball more? BALONEY, ADMIT IT JOE, MEN ARE JUST SUPERIOR. Jody, I bet you don’t get a lot of second dates, do you? Ladies, take heart, you are the only ones who can give life, and then you make life worth living. God bless all of you.
Joe
Please explain the reason(s) why men can hit the ball farther than most women. My husband and I went to a local golf shop and were measured for head speed and were found to be exactly the same, however I cannot hit the ball as far as he can.
Thanks,
Sherry Sanders
Birmingham, AL
Hello Sherry,
Uh oh, my evil twin Jody saw this one, and Jody is one of those male chauvinists with a superiority complex. Since he is really loud, I will put his comments in all capital letters, while my comments are in lower case. HEY JOE, THIS IS A TRAP, DON’T GO THERE. Wait a minute, Jody, there may be some other factors at play here, like is the man outdriving the woman by only a few yards or 20-30 yards? OH COME ON, IF THE SWING SPEED IS THE SAME, THE RESULTS SHOULD BE THE SAME. THE READERS ARE JUST TRYING TO STUMP YOU. Maybe not, is the launch angle the same? We don’t know. WHAT IF IT IS THE SAME, THEN WHAT? Then maybe the man is using a club with more C.O.R. effect, like a trampoline. WHAT IF THEY ARE USING THE SAME CLUB? Then the only other factor I can think of is the rate of acceleration at the point of contact. Measuring swing speed is a snapshot which cannot measure acceleration. Whichever club is accelerating more at the point of contact should propel the ball further. WHAT IF THE WOMAN’S CLUB IS ACCELERATING MORE? Jody, what if the woman is using a very light club while the man is using a heavier club, don’t you think the heavier mass would compress the ball more? BALONEY, ADMIT IT JOE, MEN ARE JUST SUPERIOR. Jody, I bet you don’t get a lot of second dates, do you? Ladies, take heart, you are the only ones who can give life, and then you make life worth living. God bless all of you.
Joe
Sunday, March 07, 2004
Joe,
Thanks for the all of the tips and the speed in which I received my videos.
As I have begun working on my goal of at least 20 strokes this season, I
wonder if you have any advice about the golf ball itself.
I like many others (I guess) are using balls based on marketing and golf
buddies. Is there a better way to select golf balls? I begun using Strata
"Straight" as a way to avoid my slice. It seemed to work well but I noticed
that the hold on the greens was not there. This is more likely than not due
to my bad short game.
But what are the concerns we should have when selecting ball purchase??
Hi there, all of you who wonder about the types of balls, unless you are a single digit handicap, most any ball brand or type will do. If you really want to get technical about the types of balls, check out the March issue of Golf Digest. I don't get any commission for saying that, I just think there is far too much marketing hype about what a ball can do for you. Consider this - How did the old timers ever shoot under par using balls that were far inferior to today's balls? To answer your questions more specifically, if your goal is to improve by 20 strokes, you probably are only going to accomplish that with improved ball striking and improved short game. Until you do that, your ball selection will not make that much difference. Spin is unlikely to help holding a green unless your course conditions are very good, and most of us play in conditions that are “firm” (like a parking lot), so the effect of spin is reduced. Every now and then I am asked to divulge my tongue-in-cheek “meticulous scientific method” of selecting a ball, but you would not like it, so never mind.
Joe
Thanks for the all of the tips and the speed in which I received my videos.
As I have begun working on my goal of at least 20 strokes this season, I
wonder if you have any advice about the golf ball itself.
I like many others (I guess) are using balls based on marketing and golf
buddies. Is there a better way to select golf balls? I begun using Strata
"Straight" as a way to avoid my slice. It seemed to work well but I noticed
that the hold on the greens was not there. This is more likely than not due
to my bad short game.
But what are the concerns we should have when selecting ball purchase??
Hi there, all of you who wonder about the types of balls, unless you are a single digit handicap, most any ball brand or type will do. If you really want to get technical about the types of balls, check out the March issue of Golf Digest. I don't get any commission for saying that, I just think there is far too much marketing hype about what a ball can do for you. Consider this - How did the old timers ever shoot under par using balls that were far inferior to today's balls? To answer your questions more specifically, if your goal is to improve by 20 strokes, you probably are only going to accomplish that with improved ball striking and improved short game. Until you do that, your ball selection will not make that much difference. Spin is unlikely to help holding a green unless your course conditions are very good, and most of us play in conditions that are “firm” (like a parking lot), so the effect of spin is reduced. Every now and then I am asked to divulge my tongue-in-cheek “meticulous scientific method” of selecting a ball, but you would not like it, so never mind.
Joe
