please rip my swing apart.

[chipingguru]

Big forearms and stronmg but also great flexibility. Bet you could wallup it with a swingers action and not have to change the top position.

How about taking advantage of all that force and doing the ole swing the butt end behind the ball and uncock and roll the left wrist through impact with rythm? Might solve the pivot problem on its own, especially getting the magic number 4 going.

Caveat: not an expert!

[Mike O]

Mac,
First I believe that 12 Piece was meaning left arm instead of right arm. I could be wrong - however, I think he was thinking from a right handed person perspective.

Secondly,
Your lead shoulder (right shoulder) I don't really see as an issue as far as it's height. Let's just say it's not your biggest problem.

Here is the quick internet version:
1) The head down "forever" needs to go.
2) The video quality is not that good - is your left hand coming off at the top of the swing?
3) Not sure I like the trail hand grip
4) No pivot through impact - allows hands to move through first and the clubface to close (shots go right) - you've offset that with the trail wrist scooping through - shouldn't be facing that much skyward after impact (however that makes the ball go more left offsetting the pivot stopping that creates the right shot. So you get a straight shot - sometimes.

Better downward blow - hits the ball more left - lagging clubhead hits the ball more left - better rotation of the pivot helps the ball go right and the proper motion through and after impact eliminates the palm up trail hand after impact and allows the ball go right. All that adds up to a better movement and straight shots.

[macgolf]

Guys thanks so much for the comments.

Mike O I think your right on with everything. Yes my left hand does come off sometimes at the top. sorry for the video but this is indoors and light is an issue with theses cameras. The" no pivot" through impact I agree but I was "told" that I was spinning my hips through impact so I have been trying to quiet lower body. I had a lot of axis tilt at impact and I was told this was due to my hips spinning fast. The trail hand scoop I HATE,,thats what I feel more than anything...so annoying. Im gonna get that pivot back and see what it looks like.

Thanks again.

[Mike O]

Guys thanks so much for the comments.

Mike O I think your right on with everything. Yes my left hand does come off sometimes at the top. sorry for the video but this is indoors and light is an issue with theses cameras. The" no pivot" through impact I agree but I was "told" that I was spinning my hips through impact so I have been trying to quiet lower body. I had a lot of axis tilt at impact and I was told this was due to my hips spinning fast. The trail hand scoop I HATE,,thats what I feel more than anything...so annoying. Im gonna get that pivot back and see what it looks like.

Thanks again.

Mac,
What's the club you are swinging in the video?

Below I've made a grid of the golf ball with the numbers representing the back of the ball - I've labeled the three columns based on where you feel you want to direct your force or feel the impact in your effort to strike the ball, The columns represent - either on the inside, the Center or the outside portion. Then the rows are labeled - from top to bottom of the ball. With whatever club you were using in this video - tell me where you feel like your clubface comes into the ball when you are hitting that club.

I couldn't get the grid to show up the way I wanted - just realize the intent was three columns and 5 rows - equal distance apart representing the back half of the golf ball from top to bottom.

Inside Center Outside
1 2 3 Top of ball
4 5 6 1/2 between top and equator
7 8 9 equator
10 11 12 1/2 between equator and bottom
13 14 15 bottom of ball

[macgolf]

HI,
If I understand the grid right I would say more between 10 11 or even 13 14. It seems like my eye goes to the back portion of the ball (for me left backside)That iron is a 7

[Mike O]

Mac,
STEP #1
There's a lot of items and relationships to cover. However, the intent or where you feel you direct the force in relation to the ball is a fundamental aspect of the movement - and the real cause for a few of your mechanical issues. While we'd need to cover many aspects - they are all related - however the neurological level is probably the best beginning point. It's a major factor in why you start releasing early, why the "right" hand scoops through impact and beyond.

Let me assume that you were using an 8 iron in the video. The sense that you should have for a contact point on the ball with the clubface should be #5 on my grid. That's not where the face actually contacts the ball - that's where you feel as if the face contacts the ball.

Here's why - you don't sense the clubface - hold the club and close your eyes - you don't feel loft - you are sensing the longitudinal center of gravity of the club - the center of mass in the length wise direction of the club. That's a straight line. If you hang a club from the grip end - then the shaft won't hang straight down because the clubface is offset. However, if you hang a weighted string from the grip - it will show you the "longitudinal center of gravity" of that club. Where that touches and passes through the face is the "sweetspot". You are sensing that straight line.

To simulate that straight line - you could use a dowel or flip your club around and grip it with the grip end down at the ball. Now, if you are going to simulate impact and hit the ball before lowpoint - with the shaft i.e. the longitudinal center of gravity leaning forward - you'll see that the contact point feel is above the equator.

Your issue is that you are trying to contact your feel of the club - that straight line longitudinal center of gravity - below the equator - requiring a shaft that is leaning away from the target. That effort shows up in the video - A) 1/2 down the early release, B) the shallow clubhead approach, C) the "right hand" flipping through.

They are other issues to cover in your movement - this is the first one that you have to understand and have. The feel of the ball compressed between the longitudinal center of gravity and the ground - which in most of our minds translates to the ball being compressed between the clubface and the ground - that's the "feel". Obviously, since you can't feel loft - the actual impact point IS below the equator since the club has loft on it, creating backsping and ball flight - however the important criteria is the procedural effort of sensing the longitudinal center of gravity hitting the ball before low point - thereby leaning forward and thereby providing the sense that you are contacting the ball above the equator with a descending blow.

In summary - step one is to not have your idea of the face contacting the ball below the equator - you need to have the thought of the face contacting the ball above the equator - short the shaft the more above the equator. Let's start there and see if that makes sense to you.

[macgolf]

Thanks Mike
I understand completely. I will try this tomorrow and play around with it. Im very technical so the more technical the better Thank you for taking out your time to type all that. You guys are great and it is appreciated. I ll give you an update.

[12 piece bucket]

Mac,
First I believe that 12 Piece was meaning left arm instead of right arm. I could be wrong - however, I think he was thinking from a right handed person perspective.

Secondly,
Your lead shoulder (right shoulder) I don't really see as an issue as far as it's height. Let's just say it's not your biggest problem.

Here is the quick internet version:
1) The head down "forever" needs to go.
2) The video quality is not that good - is your left hand coming off at the top of the swing?
3) Not sure I like the trail hand grip
4) No pivot through impact - allows hands to move through first and the clubface to close (shots go right) - you've offset that with the trail wrist scooping through - shouldn't be facing that much skyward after impact (however that makes the ball go more left offsetting the pivot stopping that creates the right shot. So you get a straight shot - sometimes.

Better downward blow - hits the ball more left - lagging clubhead hits the ball more left - better rotation of the pivot helps the ball go right and the proper motion through and after impact eliminates the palm up trail hand after impact and allows the ball go right. All that adds up to a better movement and straight shots.

Dingdong is correct . . . . I was typing right handed . . . sorry . . . .

[Yoda]

Dingdong is correct . . . . I was typing right handed . . . sorry . . . .

Sure would be a lot easier if we would do this thread in right-handed terms. That convention has been the policy of this site since inception. There is much potential for error -- and a lot of 'lead hand' and 'trail arm' nonsense on the way -- if we don't. Ideally, thoughtful posts would then translate across all Forums.

On the other hand, this is macgolf's thread, and it is all about his own left-handed golf stroke.

So, what say you, macgolf? In this thread only . . .

Do we translate Right or Left?

I'm cool either way.

[macgolf]

I can understand right handed, been dealing with it my whole life. It doesn't bother me at all if you guys speak in righty terms that is why when I made the post, I spoke in righty terms. Maybe that was a mistake