I know, I know... it's been awhile. Truth is, I haven't been playing much golf. And when I have played, it hasn't been very good. [My last round was at The Links at Union Vale in LaGrangeville, NY. I actually played fine, but a disastrous 9 on the par-4 11th hole derailed an otherwise decent round.]
The same problem I commented on in my last post has continued -- all my misses are left, and most of them are pull-hooks. While I was in New York my brother shot some video of my swing. I think there are still a lot of good features, but let's take a look at some of the problems.
Here I am at the top of the swing with the driver:
On the plus side, I've made a good, full turn, and my weight is where I want it on my back heel. But my shaft angle and club head is way over-the-line (inside the target line), and the club is completely shut. In order to get the club back on plane for contact I'll have to come at an outside-in angle (which will lead to a pull), and the closed club face will cause the hook.
Compare that shot to Adam Scott* below:
Rotationally, we're in a fairly similar position, though he tends to stand up at the top of the swing and I tend to squat a bit. But you can see his shaft angle is exactly in line with the target, and the club head is much more neutral (though still slightly shut).
When I was a scrawny 17-year-old, I figured out how to hit a 300 yard drive -- take the club way inside to generate a ton of rotational torque, swing your weight way back on the take away and hard forward on the downswing, and rip it as hard as you can. Needless to say, I was not a very consistent golfer. I have learned over the years how to rotate with a more consistent, compact swing... but I still struggle with my take-away. Look how far inside I am (again compared to Adam Scott):
You can see without any other images that the natural arc of each of our swings will lead to the positions you see at the top.
Needless to say, there will probably be some bumps in the road if I try to make a big change and get my takeaway more upright, so that may be a project for the offseason. But at a minimum I have to limit my early rotation so that I can get into a better position at the top... starting now. I know that I can do that -- just check out my video from 2 years ago; even though I take the club inside at the start, my position is much more on plane at the top.
I know what my problem is, and I know how to correct it. The only question is if I can do it.
[Here's the full video from last week:]
* CREDIT: Adam Scott images taken from golfdigest.com.
