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does anyone else have this same problem? one day the swing is just fine with good rythum, and the next day you feel as though it's just the same but the results are like 180degrees from the good day. why does this feeling vary so much? if a person sets up the same day after day, results should be about the same. who can define the "groove" and why doesn't it last ?

stagday-perplexed

ALL THE ****ING TIME, MAN!

it annoys the **** out of me too.

i'm tall and lanky and i wonder if it has anything to do with it.

For most of us the swing mechanics stay somewhat consistent but it is the tempo that changes and causes our problems. If I play with a couple of my co-workers here, I end up swinging much faster (although I try not to watch them) than I would like and therefore my game suffers somewhat unless I am CONCENTRATING fully. So for most of us, the ups and downs come from maybe doing something different in our setup routine, gripping tighter or swinging too hard/too easy. Usually the swing stays ok. Swinging harder tends to force us "over-the-top", swinging too fast results in not finishing the backswing to a full coil and therefore we are playing catch-up all the way, swinging too easy or trying to steer it tends to result in weak-fades that go nowhere and the list goes on...mainly it is TEMPO and TIMING that change, not mechanics.

it's the million dollar question tho, why tempo and rhythum should change that much when one plays regularly. it should become just like clockwork, maybe that's one of the big differences between pro's and non-pro's, they can just keep the same tempo a majority of the time.

does anyone think it's hand-eye cooridination more than anything?

stag

i think the pro's beat balls all day and have coaches to remind them of these things. we dont have such things and we don't always get to swing 500 times a day.

The balls hit grooving a tempo is a big difference between the Tour Professionals and the rest of us Professional and Amateur alike. However, there are certain other things that affect your tempo. Have you ever noticed how a professional (Phil 2003) with something difficult going on in his personal life doesn't play as well (lack of concentration). Think about what you have going on when you aren't relaxed and playing well...maybe a problem at work or you got a late start and rushed to the golf course and to the first tee without doing any of your normal routine prior to play. Even what you have eaten/had to drink can affect your game...too much caffeine and you are wired for sound. Funny story about that...I used to play with the members at my first Head Professional job every Sunday at 8:00am standing tee time. One Sunday I got there really early and was at my desk doing some work and eating brownies and washing them down with Pepsi. I was so wired at the first tee that I didn't even get the club much past parallel to the ground, much less all the way to the top. I think it took 4 holes before I slowed down to a good tempo but it illustrated the diet point quite well to me.

The elusive quest for consistency The major difference is in the degree of relaxation we bring to the course I think. Any tension transmits itself to the swing. I believe that balance is an essential ingredient and a routine to induce relaxation and tempo. Many times we tend to launch into the swing before we have the key elements of balance, relaxation and rhythm firmly in our set-up.
I find martial art meditation and body preparation is useful in this regard.

I find that finding my centre/balance in relation to the target and a relaxed focus on the blade of the club until the centre is ready to move with the hands and rotate around the fixed location is a useful key. Also a sense of the practice swing in which the ball is only a position on a line and not a 'solid object' is very helpful. Any comments on what you do to ensure you are set?

self doubt , fear and trying too hard
all killers ...ive recently discovered when im trying too hard or thinking too much i tend to lose wrist action resulting in all sorts of hmmm yeah
Caffiene...a killer for some ...believe it or not people with ADHD actually are calmer with caffiene ...it sure helps me

I heard a useful saying once: "Trying fails". Actually the things you mentioned were what prompted me to start zen golf which means really the art of alert relaxation and being in the present moment. Not sure if caffeine would help me though

Routine is every thing (Both body and mind will need routines to combat changes in feel and mood):

1. Preshot routine:

a) Knowledge of course management (for example: uneven lies... etc.)

b) Alignment routine: align from behind the ball (walk into the shot)

2. Setup routine:

a) Proper distance from ball established by length of club and distance of hands from body.

b) Body parts parallel to target or parrallel to spot that will shape the shot to the target depending upon knowledge of course management.

3. Finish routine:

a) Builds a repeating path for club.

b) Builds consistent timing and rhythm

c) Helps build a more effective swing that will impart more impact toward the target creating more distance.

4. After a round or practice session:

Think of only good shots and tell everyone about them.

Most players are not consistent becuase they come over the top. An over the top swing has VERY LITTLE margin for error. I have been playing for 3 years and for the first 2 1/2 I came over the top and my best was 5 rounds in a row under 90. After A complete swing overhaul I had one point where I went 30+ rounds in a row in the 80's or 70's, btw 76 today on par 73. A proper swing path has a greater margin for error and your mishits dont go as bad. Tiger woods even said that a person who has good hand eye cordination can put together a great round once in a whil but if the swing was not fundamentally sound that person would have consistency problems. MOST PEOPLE COME OVER THE TOP, THAT IS THE BIGGEST SINGLE PROBLEM IN GOLF. Two choices are available: One is that you ask questions but dont put the time or effort in to try and fix it, therefore being a high handicapper as long as you play, maybe even a mid handicapper because you just have natural ability.
Two, Go see a swing instructor, do the drills, and fix your swings.
Guys, You can ask on here all day but without a very thourough understanding of the swing you will just bounce from tip to tip and play golf with confusion and frustration, except on occasional days when the stars align.
I went with option two and in jan I was a 17.8, today 6.7 by dec 31st I should be about a 3

Quote:

Originally Posted by shootin4par Most players are not consistent becuase they come over the top. MOST PEOPLE COME OVER THE TOP, THAT IS THE BIGGEST SINGLE PROBLEM IN GOLF.

It is great to see you have remedied this problem.

While I agree with what you say, the cause of coming over the top is not mechanical, it is 're-orienting to the ball' instead of the target. The focus of the swing in an 'over the top' swing is the ball. This is the bane of all inconsistent golfers.

As golfdiva has pointed out elsewhere, maintaining a target orientation and treating the ball as just a spot on the swing path is the key to improving the swing. No one comes 'over the top' in a practice swing, only when the ball is there. If a golfer makes their real swing the same as their practice swing they will never 'come over the top'. The dual focus problem is what causes this fault and only maintenance of a 'target orientation' during the swing can really fix it. Mechanics can help if this is clearly understood.

It can be a mechanical problem when you starrt the downswing with your shoulders.

i can remember a few yrs ago Tiger was fading the ball( i think it was in a US Open). When asked about it at the end of the round, he said that was just the way he was hitting the ball that day, so he went with it. He didn't try anything else, just played the fade basically all day.

For some reason, there's more to this tempo and mechanical thing. I've had days when i play well with a short and quicker backswing and other days with a more full backswing with slower tempo, etc. There must be something different with muscles and or nerve system each day.

I have been going to the practice range before my round basically to get warmed up but also to find just what's working for that day, but my set-up is always the same. But as one gets older, it may take more time to finally get to that point when your muscles are in what i would call "the golf mode" and yesterday it didn't come til the last 2 holes, lol.

stagday, just wondering how everyone else does it and if they experience similar occurances.

Again I think you hit the spot, and golfin4par made some excellent points too, IMHO.

Yesterday at this beautiful semi-priv course in Kitty Hawk (about an hour away from where I am staying on vacation on Hatteras Island), I was playing absolutely HORRIBLY. It's unexplainable how bad I felt during that time, so much that I didn't want to continue playing that round after about the 9th hole.

I was slicing the ENTIRE time, with no end in sight, and I couldn't place a reason or definite mechanical error on it.

Some days are like this, but I still have a strong fade/slice tendency, which I am trying to overcome. It is so frustrating though, that you just want to say, "ENOUGH!" and quit. :mad: