Joe,
I HAVE PLAYED GOLF FOR OVER FORTY YEARS AND STILL HAVE TO BATTLE A REVERSE WEIGHT SHIFT. IT CREEPS INTO MY SWING REGARDLESS OF HOW GOOD OR BAD I HAPPEN TO BE PLAYING ON ANY GIVEN DAY. HAVE ANY SURE FIRE CURES?
Regards,
Dick
Hello Dick,
Old habits are hard to break, you have to try to replace them with new habits. I would start with the double clubber drill as shown in the Body Golf videos because while you are doing this you can feel how your weight is shifting, which allows you to adjust until you shift your weight correctly. This also makes it easier to establish good tempo. Usually this tempo is lost when you overswing, and that can lead to improper weight shift. Here is another thing to try. As you address the ball, tilt your spine so that your head is even with the inside of your back knee. This makes you put your weight on your back foot, and keep it there during your backswing. Then to start your downswing, push off the inside of your back foot to get your lower body weight going forward. The Body Golf videos also have drills called the toe-drag and the step-thru to help you ingrain this move.
Joe
Wednesday, May 11, 2005
Purist Corner:
I hope I see this guy on the golf course some day, I am going to catch him with all kinds of rule violations. On second thought that might lead to never ending retaliations. It was a dark and lonely night. I was driving up to a stop sign, no other cars in sight. I thought I came to a complete stop before proceeding, but a purist police officer pulls out from behind a sign, pulls me over and says I rolled thru the stop sign. Rather than argue that point since it was his word against mine, I tried the “no danger” ploy since there were no other cars or pedestrians around, but no, a rule is a rule, so I got a ticket. When I went to traffic court, the officer did not show up, so since the rule said he had to be present, the case was dismissed. I guess sometimes the rules work in your favor, but I did lose a half day of work because of this nonsense. Although the purists are out to get me, I shall continue to resist the errors of their ways, and I shall prevail!
I hope I see this guy on the golf course some day, I am going to catch him with all kinds of rule violations. On second thought that might lead to never ending retaliations. It was a dark and lonely night. I was driving up to a stop sign, no other cars in sight. I thought I came to a complete stop before proceeding, but a purist police officer pulls out from behind a sign, pulls me over and says I rolled thru the stop sign. Rather than argue that point since it was his word against mine, I tried the “no danger” ploy since there were no other cars or pedestrians around, but no, a rule is a rule, so I got a ticket. When I went to traffic court, the officer did not show up, so since the rule said he had to be present, the case was dismissed. I guess sometimes the rules work in your favor, but I did lose a half day of work because of this nonsense. Although the purists are out to get me, I shall continue to resist the errors of their ways, and I shall prevail!
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
Monday, May 09, 2005
Joe,
have a constant problem of hitting behind the ball. Any suggestions??Jarry
Hello Jarry,
Typically there are two reasons for this. First is proper weight shift. Some people have trouble swaying to the back foot on the backswing or failing to move their weight to the front foot on the downswing. The simplest way to overcome this is to start by tilting your spine so that your head is almost even with your back knee. This helps you to get your weight on the back foot early without swaying. Then on the downswing, just push off the inside of your back foot to get your weight going forward. The other reason for fat shots is head movement. Keep your head as steady as possible during the swing. Jack Nicklaus’ instructor used to grab the back of his hair to make his head stay steady. It is OK for a little lateral movement, but never up and down. I hope this helps you.
Joe
have a constant problem of hitting behind the ball. Any suggestions??Jarry
Hello Jarry,
Typically there are two reasons for this. First is proper weight shift. Some people have trouble swaying to the back foot on the backswing or failing to move their weight to the front foot on the downswing. The simplest way to overcome this is to start by tilting your spine so that your head is almost even with your back knee. This helps you to get your weight on the back foot early without swaying. Then on the downswing, just push off the inside of your back foot to get your weight going forward. The other reason for fat shots is head movement. Keep your head as steady as possible during the swing. Jack Nicklaus’ instructor used to grab the back of his hair to make his head stay steady. It is OK for a little lateral movement, but never up and down. I hope this helps you.
Joe
Sunday, May 08, 2005
Joe,
What do you think of the baseball grip and how would you know if the shaft on your driver is too stiff or has too much flex?
Eugene
Hello Eugene,
Some folks think the baseball grip is the same as the ten finger grip, but I say they are different. When you grip a baseball bat you normally wrap your thumbs around the handle, but I would not recommend that for golf. However if you instead place your thumbs along the shaft it becomes the ten finger grip, no interlocking or overlapping of the fingers. After using the overlap grip for about 40 years, I switched to the ten finger a few years ago because I got better results with it. Sensei Mark also uses this grip. You have to experiment and find which grip works best for you. As far as the right shaft for you, if your swing speed is under 100 mph, use a regular shaft. A stiff shaft is for those who have higher swing speeds. This is not a hard rule because some people want the stiff shaft anyway if they are willing to give up some distance to get better accuracy, the theory being that a stiffer shaft reduces the variables called flex and twist. To complicate matters further, the amount of flex will vary from one manufacturer to another, for example medium from one brand might be the same as stiff from another brand. Graphite shafts also use terms like “firm” or “high modulus” just to add more uncertainty. How do you know which is best for you? If your shots are too high or too wild, try a stiffer shaft. If your shots are straight or too low, but you want more distance, try a regular shaft.
Joe
What do you think of the baseball grip and how would you know if the shaft on your driver is too stiff or has too much flex?
Eugene
Hello Eugene,
Some folks think the baseball grip is the same as the ten finger grip, but I say they are different. When you grip a baseball bat you normally wrap your thumbs around the handle, but I would not recommend that for golf. However if you instead place your thumbs along the shaft it becomes the ten finger grip, no interlocking or overlapping of the fingers. After using the overlap grip for about 40 years, I switched to the ten finger a few years ago because I got better results with it. Sensei Mark also uses this grip. You have to experiment and find which grip works best for you. As far as the right shaft for you, if your swing speed is under 100 mph, use a regular shaft. A stiff shaft is for those who have higher swing speeds. This is not a hard rule because some people want the stiff shaft anyway if they are willing to give up some distance to get better accuracy, the theory being that a stiffer shaft reduces the variables called flex and twist. To complicate matters further, the amount of flex will vary from one manufacturer to another, for example medium from one brand might be the same as stiff from another brand. Graphite shafts also use terms like “firm” or “high modulus” just to add more uncertainty. How do you know which is best for you? If your shots are too high or too wild, try a stiffer shaft. If your shots are straight or too low, but you want more distance, try a regular shaft.
Joe
