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Hello,

Got back from a terrible tournament round.

I've golfed on and off for a good part of my life and am generally considered to have a nice looking swing.

I've messed with my stroke, now I'm lost.

Off the tee, I went from a BIG, high push slice on one hole, to a BIG low-ish pull hook on the next.

Any advice on causes and/or drills to fix?

Thanks in advance for any advice,

Steve

Be sure you're not taking the club back too far to the inside and "getting trapped". Check your weight shift making sure that you are transferring most of your weight to the inside back and front foot while swinging the club.
Cheers, Bob

1. Put a target club down for alignment on the range and work on swinging down the target line.

2. Work with an impact bag to (re)ingrain proper impact position.

Going from push slice to pull hook means that you were inconsistent with swing path, and you were also probably getting a little flippy with the hands. Don't force the release, let it happen naturally. If you ever feel like you are consciously turning your hands over to square it up, you need the impact bag. It helps tremendously.

Hope that helps at least somewhat.

Thanks for your thoughts.

I'll have to video-tape myself and get a better idea.

I've read that both the slice and the pull hook are caused (typically) by an outside-to-inside path swing. Do you think that's the case?

Bob38: Can you elaborate on what you mean by: "weight to the inside back and front foot while swinging the club"?

Thanks again!

Steve

I definitely think that could be the case. I have been going through the same thing and discovered on the range I was coming over the top (outside in) with my swing. I thought that was the last thing I was doing but was proved wrong. Put an object like a head cover on the ground, something you can hit with the club and not hurt yourself or the club, and about an inch or a little less outside where the far side of the club may pass. Make sure that cover lies on the ground beginning at the back side of the ball an parallel to the target line. If you hit the cover with the club you are coming from outside to in.

Thanks. I'm trying to envision what you're describing, but I'm not exactly sure.

What do you mean by "an inch or a little less outside where the far side of the club may pass"? Do you mean up by the ball, or somewhere behind the ball along the swing path?

From your last sentences, it sounds like you mean to put it right outside the ball, but not sure.

Steve

Hi Steveb and hbendillo

What I was saying is, simply, one of the basic fundamentals of the golf swing is to take the club back and have pressure on the inside of your trailing foot rather than flat footed, or worse, rolling over it. This is true whether you are 1 plane, 2 plane, stack and tilt or anything else I can think of except reverse pivot. The process of transferring weight from address to the rear foot and through the downswing and impact to the front foot assists the engine of the golf swing with width and leverage; in addition, the process of transferring weight keeps the club online for a bit longer, in my opinion.

If, on your back swing, you take the club too far to the inside, "trapped", you have to make some sort of compensatory move to get back to impact. If you can't, the ball is blocked right for a righty and if you over do it, the hands will whip around your body and create a hook or even a "Quacker". This double miss was described by steveb

For a golfer that has played his entire life and is playing tournament golf, I am led to believe your problem is path rather than grip,alignment, or posture.

I agree with you hbendillo, placing something on the ground like a head cover ( I use a 2x4 or a box 24 to 30 inches ) is the easiest way to correct path. You may not be sure why, but the balls start flying on line. I have suggested that in previous posts and highly recommend it.
Hope this helps clarify,
Bob

.

Great post Bob, definitely some good stuff there.

I have been using a tip from an awesome Canadian dude lately, which is to have a very slight clockwise-twisting feeling in the right foot at address. Almost like you are screwing your foot down into the ground without actually moving the foot. It's still planted and doesn't turn toe-out at all, and it is not enough of a twist to feel all the way up to the knee, but doing that move has helped my ballstriking more than any other single tip I have ever received. The weight shift happens more automatically, and I don't have to give it any real conscious thought to time it properly.

Couple that with pre-supination of the left elbow, and you get a thought-free golf swing.



Oh, but keep the knees bent, and maintain the triangle. Don't forget to lead with your hips.

Of course, you also want to take it back low and slow, and get your shoulder tucked up under the chin.

Also, hold the club gently, like a wounded bird, and make sure you rotate through the hitting area. Finish with the belt buckle facing the target.


lol sorry, I love that old commercial.

YouTube - Tiger Woods Golf's Not Hard / How Do You Mark Your Titleist?

Nothin to it!

If you want a little something else to think about, consider feeling a clockwise motion of your LEFT foot as well at COD (inside your shoe). This gets the knees, provided they stay flexed, moving toward the target in a way I find superior to just "pushing" off of the trailing inside foot, and causes the hips to rotate properly.

Did Bob straighten that out for you? Think of yourself at address looking down at the ball. Put the head cover on the opposite side of the ball from where you are standing. A shoebox would work too with the long side facing you and just on the other side of the ball from you. Remember to leave enough room for the club to pass if it were come into the ball square like we want it. If your clubhead comes into the ball from the inside and squares up and hits the ball that is what you want. If the club hits the box the clubhead had to go outside the line and come back in to the ball.

You might try to practice with a slightly looser grip and a less forceful swing. I believe most of us (me definitely included) tend to grip it and rip it a bit too much. Hitting on the range while easing up a bit can sometimes get things back in order.