The search for my perfect swing and the mass confusion in golf

How many countless aspiring golfers have been through it? You know what I mean! The body types, the lateral hip bumps, natural swing, wrist cock, endless litany about different ball positions, strong-weak or neutral grip, different golf Pro’s who’s advice more often then not contradict one another, etc. etc. What is truly pathetic is that a whole multi million dollar a year industry has taken shape because of all of this nonsense.

Now I’M no golf pro but it does not surprise me when I bump into many people who hate the sport of golf. Their reasons are all the same “It is to hard” “I don’t have the time nor the money to invest to become proficient at golf.” What makes the majority of the golfing public, who by the vast majority are all high handicappers, that much different from those who have quit the game of golf? Is it because we are stupid? Or maybe because we are actually enjoying hacking around the course (I don’t see too many happy people on the links at any given moment judged by the endless litany of profanity, thrown clubs, and the deathly silence of a golfer who is in anguish). I believe the difference lies in the fact that we persevere. Judged by the USGA stats the handicap of the average golfer has not improved in the last 30 years! With all the technology and the media of the present day and age you would think that the knowledge of the swing and game would be more easily available and digested by players. Not the case! Confusion reigns in the golf world.

I have taken the lessons and practiced hard at the range and done my time on the links! My game has improved slightly but my swing is still unsettled. Currently I’M on the LAWS of golf kick. I’M an ARC type trying to learn the ARC swing. It is interesting and it has my attention for right now. Anyone of you people have any success with the LAWS?

Now there have been times when I have felt my perfect swing. I mean when this swing magically appears the ball takes off razor straight with some really good distance. The problem is I can not seem to repeat it consistently enough. I mean when I feel the perfect swing that’s just it I DON’T FEEL IT. It is so natural it is effortless! I practice and practice trying to get this perfect swing to repeat. It shows itself about 3 or 4 times during a range session. So I know I’M close to achieving it! I have siphoned through mountains of swing advice but I persevere and maybe someday I will have my perfect swing down to a tee!

The point of this thread is the journey I have made up to this point has been a frustrating one! While I love the game it seems to me the journey to good golf is littered with too many pitfalls and mass confusion. In this day and age where spare time is limited it would seem that a real streamlined approach to learning the game of golf would be the way to go but alas it is not to be! All in all I enjoy my struggle and someday maybe someday I will break 90 then maybe 80! But at the pace I'M going it will take me 10 years to break 80 with at least 4 2-hour practice sessions a week. Talk about burning a bankroll. I guess IM just stupid!

Take heart, I've had the same sentiments about my game. Don't get discouraged though, I think the key is to keep your practice sessions focused. I think too many people mistake quantity for quality when it comes to practice. It's pointless to beat balls for 2 hours at a time. Focus your efforts on mastering the fundementals: stance, posture, grip, ball position and routine. Everyone has swing inconsistencies, but mastering these fundementals will tend to keep them in check more often than not. I find it best to hit a few balls with only a wedge, 8 iron, 6 iron, 4 iron and driver, concentrating entirely on the fundamentals and maybe keeping one to two swing thoughts in mind, with no regards to ball flight. Then hitting the remaining balls I have left concentrating entirely on hitting targets on the range, while going through my entire preshot routine. I think routine is so important, get your mind off of the "perfect swing" and on simply executing your routine and the swing will start to come around. Routine is a tension killer and we all know tension will destroy a good swing. Watch the pro's, they are so routined, they are like robots.

Last but not least, work on your short game just as much if not more than grooving your swing. Again, every golfer has bad days with a subpar swing, but above average players still churn out respectable scores with a razor sharp short game. Putting and chipping are just micro-versions of the full golf swing. Practice faithfully and you will see results.

In summary, keep practicing hard, remember quality not quantity. You sound like a dedicated guy, who really cares about your game, take heart there is light at the end of the tunnel........

Short game......short game.....short game.......

I agree, short game, short game, short game. Try spending twice as much time on the short game as you do hitting your irons/driver. It has really lowered my scoring. Pick up a copy of Dave Pelz's short game bible. He starts out with statistics that prove how important the short game is to lower scores. And best of all, learning to pitch, chip, and putt are easier than grooving your full swing. Like the previous post said, these are all mini versions of the full swing.

Something else that may help with the full swing is using a mirror or video camera to check your swing. If you've never seen your swing on video, you don't know what you're missing. The first time I videotaped myself, I had no idea I was doing some of the things I was doing. You don't have to be a pro to pick out swing flaws. You've watched golf on TV, haven't you? Great golfers have a lot of things in common. Great balance, smooth tempo, swing on plane, etc. Recently I've been swinging in front of the mirror to check my swing plane going back (the wife really hates me swinging the club in the house, but oh well). It's helped me tremedously.

[QUOTE=Tee'd Off]How many countless aspiring golfers have been through it? You know what I mean! The body types, the lateral hip bumps, natural swing, wrist cock, endless litany about different ball positions, strong-weak or neutral grip, different golf Pro’s who’s advice more often then not contradict one another, etc. etc. What is truly pathetic is that a whole multi million dollar a year industry has taken shape because of all of this nonsense.

Now I’M no golf pro but it does not surprise me when I bump into many people who hate the sport of golf. Their reasons are all the same “It is to hard” “I don’t have the time nor the money to invest to become proficient at golf.” What makes the majority of the golfing public, who by the vast majority are all high handicappers, that much different from those who have quit the game of golf? Is it because we are stupid? Or maybe because we are actually enjoying hacking around the course (I don’t see too many happy people on the links at any given moment judged by the endless litany of profanity, thrown clubs, and the deathly silence of a golfer who is in anguish). I believe the difference lies in the fact that we persevere. Judged by the USGA stats the handicap of the average golfer has not improved in the last 30 years! With all the technology and the media of the present day and age you would think that the knowledge of the swing and game would be more easily available and digested by players. Not the case! Confusion reigns in the golf world.

I have taken the lessons and practiced hard at the range and done my time on the links! My game has improved slightly but my swing is still unsettled. Currently I’M on the LAWS of golf kick. I’M an ARC type trying to learn the ARC swing. It is interesting and it has my attention for right now. Anyone of you people have any success with the LAWS?

Now there have been times when I have felt my perfect swing. I mean when this swing magically appears the ball takes off razor straight with some really good distance. The problem is I can not seem to repeat it consistently enough. I mean when I feel the perfect swing that’s just it I DON’T FEEL IT. It is so natural it is effortless! I practice and practice trying to get this perfect swing to repeat. It shows itself about 3 or 4 times during a range session. So I know I’M close to achieving it! I have siphoned through mountains of swing advice but I persevere and maybe someday I will have my perfect swing down to a tee!

The point of this thread is the journey I have made up to this point has been a frustrating one! While I love the game it seems to me the journey to good golf is littered with too many pitfalls and mass confusion. In this day and age where spare time is limited it would seem that a real streamlined approach to learning the game of golf would be the way to go but alas it is not to be! All in all I enjoy my struggle and someday maybe someday I will break 90 then maybe 80! But at the pace I'M going it will take me 10 years to break 80 with at least 4 2-hour practice sessions a week. Talk about burning a bankroll. I guess IM just stupid![/QUOTE]

are destined to be mediocre golfers at best and the biggest thing to lowering scores it's acceptance of what is possible with your own swing. To get better using an instructor you need one who speaks and you visualize. It that doesn't happen then there isn't much you'll learn long term. If you hit a fade/slice then play it. If you hit a draw/hook then play that. What can be improved fairly easily is putting and chipping. If you can learn to play the course using what you have and keep it between the trees, chip and putt then you can improve. If you try to emulate any pro and just aren't physically able then it's frustration city. If you don't have the concentration for focusing in on just the swing at the exclusion of all else then that will be another limiting factor. It ain't rocket science, it's just treated like it is.

For real Yo! Makes my head explode.

Maybe they ought to just try to keep their nose behind the ball and hit it as hard as they can.
That's where the perfect swing lives.