top notch swing guru / teacher?

[Hombre Lefty]

hi people. I need a recommendation from some of you out there please. I've lowered my handicap by about 8 strokes this year, but i'm still too erratic to be confident to shoot really well consistently. Case in point - went on holiday in august, played a lot of golf. Shot my first ever round under par, followed it up with 5 consecutive rounds under par, capped off with a 67. Then got home, didn't play for 4 days, and haven't broken 80 since. Swing looks and feels horrible. So to cut it short, i feel like i'm on the cusp of being good, but i need a really good yet affordable swing doctor to help me make my swing reliable and iron out the remaining kinks. I dont want somebody who will completely retool me to fit his swing philosophy, i want someone who will look at how i swing and tweak it so i stay permanently in the 70s or below...

so any recommendations? I tried bruce mccaroll last year, great teacher but now he's out at bond head and pretty $$$

thanks

H L

[TourIQ]

What city / area are you from?

[guitarman]

hi people. I need a recommendation from some of you out there please. I've lowered my handicap by about 8 strokes this year, but i'm still too erratic to be confident to shoot really well consistently. Case in point - went on holiday in august, played a lot of golf. Shot my first ever round under par, followed it up with 5 consecutive rounds under par, capped off with a 67. Then got home, didn't play for 4 days, and haven't broken 80 since. Swing looks and feels horrible. So to cut it short, i feel like i'm on the cusp of being good, but i need a really good yet affordable swing doctor to help me make my swing reliable and iron out the remaining kinks. I dont want somebody who will completely retool me to fit his swing philosophy, i want someone who will look at how i swing and tweak it so i stay permanently in the 70s or below...

so any recommendations? I tried bruce mccaroll last year, great teacher but now he's out at bond head and pretty $$$

thanks

H L

Nick Starchuck at the Glen Abbey Acadamy. He didn't completely change how I was swinging. Made small adjustments that made big differences. As far as someone tweaking you so you will stay permanenetly below 70s, is that possible?

What city / area are you from?

His location says Missisauga.

[The Troll]

I tried bruce mccaroll last year, great teacher but now he's out at bond head and pretty $$$



Bruce is a very, very good teacher!

[Hombre Lefty]

Bruce is a very, very good teacher!

agree, only worry is, he's way out at bond head. king valley was far enough as it is, bond head's too much distance to go. plus, i want several lessons, not one high priced one per month and i'm not super rich...

As far as someone tweaking you so you will stay permanenetly below 70s, is that possible?

no i meant in the 70's, as in below 80. My opinion on golf is, anyone can break 100 with a little practice, anyone can break 90 with dedication and technique, and anyone can break 80 with all of the three. Breaking 70 consistently takes insane amounts of focus and talent imho. I did it 5 times in a row and i felt like i won the super bowl. And then it disappeared. I don't expect that a good teacher and lots of practice will make me break par all the time, but i do expect that i can get myself to the point where my bad games are a 79 or 80 instead of an 86 or 87 like they are now.... where i'd like to get :

now --> Best round of the year = 67, worst round = 97

future goal : Best = 65, worst = 79

i just want to drum out the wild difference between my good and bad rounds

[trunckslammer1]

now --> Best round of the year = 67, worst round = 97

future goal : Best = 65, worst = 79

i just want to drum out the wild difference between my good and bad rounds

Shooting 67 and then 97. That is extremely inconsitant. Are these 2 scores on the same course. If they are not, could you elaborate further and name the course. Sometimes the 97 is not as bad as you think because of course conditions etc.

[Hombre Lefty]

Shooting 67 and then 97. That is extremely inconsitant.

not trying to be a jerk, but wasn't that my point in the first place? That is why i need a swing doctor. My swing is not repeatable enough. When i play well i play extemely well, but as soon as im a little rusty, sore back, anything, the scores balloon.

Are these 2 scores on the same course. If they are not, could you elaborate further and name the course. Sometimes the 97 is not as bad as you think because of course conditions etc.

actually it's WORSE than you think, because the 67 was from the tips on a course in South Dakota which hosts the Nationwide tour and has a course rating of 71 and change - and it was in bad weather. The 95 was here at hockley valley which is immensely easier - and it was on a nice sunny day. I am familiar with slope and course ratings and i can tell you without a doubt that the course i got my 67 on was WAY tougher. But I knew that already just by the feel... on the good round i was bashing my drives way out there, nice straight irons, hitting my wedges super tight, great putts... on the bad day, slicing drives, inconsistent distance control, no accuracy in the short game... the complete opposite.

to be fair though the 97 was a 1 time thing, helped in large part by a 10 on a par 4. I played in a tournament last weekend and shot 43 for 6 consecutive 9's. So no blowups, just consistently mediocre - so so drive, approach shot just off the green, mediocre chip, 2 putts, bogey.

it's hard to describe, it feels so much different when the swing works, it was like god gave me the ability to play like a pro for a couple of weeks, then cruelly took it away. It feels like i no longer have any clue what i'm doing, and i can take 5 different practice swings and have all 5 feel bad but in very different ways. Now i'm supremely disappointed with rounds that last year would have been considered great outings. And call me an optimist but i feel like it's just one or 2 crucial things i've screwed up that i can fix to get back to form, that's why i need a super guru!

[Frank101]

if your making 10's on 4's and shotting 97's...are you sure your not confusing your 67 with a nine hole score? :hush:

I didn't shoot a 97 with serious shank problems it just sounds very weird for me.

[TourIQ]

now --> Best round of the year = 67, worst round = 97

future goal : Best = 65, worst = 79

i just want to drum out the wild difference between my good and bad roundsIf you want to drum out the wild difference may I suggest your goal be stated as being tighter than a 14 stroke spread :rofl: but 14 is better than 30 :eek:

[trunckslammer1]

The best way I think is to have a "swing doctor" play a round with you and see where you need help. Obviously you must have good fundamentals to shot 67. If you shot 97 with a 10 and other high numbers, then the Equitable Stroke Control (ESC) will only count double bogey towards your score and that might be more reflective of your handicap.
I have never shot 67 but even on my bad days, when my GIR is like 10%, I still get up and down about 75% of the time. My scores do hover around my index unless I am just playing around with my daughter where I do not bother with the scores and just trying new shots around the green.
Good luck on finding a good teacher and keep us posted on your progress. IT will be interesting to see how a good Swing guru will do to your game.

[Golftime]

You might try pinpointing how you prepared for the good rounds. Was there a particular pre swing thought that you used? After the layoff were you trying too hard to shoot well? That can take you out of your rhythm and produce bad results.
You also mentioned a sore back. Are you compensating for pain somehow.
You need to develop consistency in your approach.
AS someone else mentioned even when their full shot game is off they keep their scores down witha a good short game. DO you need to work on that?
So many questions.
There was also a recommendation to take a playing lesson. I would highly recommend that. I teach part time and I know from experience that playing lessons are extremely valuable.
Good luck.

[Hombre Lefty]

if your making 10's on 4's and shotting 97's...are you sure your not confusing your 67 with a nine hole score? :hush:

I didn't shoot a 97 with serious shank problems it just sounds very weird for me.

actually if i'm honest i would have to say that half of the blowup at least is mental (as in once my confidence deserts me i'm toast), i used to be the same way at basketball, shoot the lights out one night, stink it up the next. But in basketball, i got myself to the point where i could still be a valuable member of the team even if my shooting left me, by hustling and playing defense. I want to get to that point in golf, where my swing is reliable enough that even if my swing is bad, i can grind my way to an under-80 score. When i got my 97, a lot of it was : driver into the bush, 3 off the tee, then par the hole from there for a double bogey. Doesn't take much more than a bogey a hole to be well over 90...

I know i have a bad temperament for golf. when i play well i feel like i can do no wrong and i tend to play even better. but when i start hitting crappy shots i beat myself up and start with the negative thoughts, and i think that's like a spiral that turns the 85 into a 95 if you know what i mean...

the under par rounds were an aberation im sure also.... nobody could reasonably expect things to go that well as they did for me those rounds... but my long term hope is that it's a preview of what i COULD play like in the future. Last year my normal score was low 90's, and i shot a 79. Couldn't get back to it for the longest time, but eventually made it so that i could consistently shoot low 80's. let's hope the low round this year is similarly a preview of what's to come.

UPDATE : played thundering waters yesterday, and shot my first under 40 9 hole score in 3 weeks (40 on front, 39 on back), so maybe a bit of light at the end of the tunnel...

H L

[swingeasyguy]

Dear beaten up lefty:

I'm a full time teaching pro in Woodbridge, and consider myself a very reasonably priced teacher. So my first question is: was the 67 a fluke? Please be honest. Many great players have never broken 70 on a challenging course. I played on the Great Lakes for 2 years and played with many who shot 67 one round and blew up to 80 the next but got back to at least mid 70's country pretty regularly. If you're an 8 cap, then sorry but the 67 was an anomaly, and you're normal number should be around 81-3. Of course you'll shoot the odd high and low score. You acknowledge mental challenges in your game (temperment) and as many reader stated correctly, if you have a solid short game and fundamentals, you should rarely shoot high numbers.
I would look at your basic setup (which is 80% of what I teach, esecially to players breaking 92). I never create swings, my philosophy is built around you having textbook fundamentals, the swing is yours, I don't care what it looks like as long as your swing plane is reasonable. Perfect fundamentals will REALLY help your mental game, promise!
Anyone who comes to my golf range (Harry Putter) always gets a swing assessment at no charge. So feel free to call me.
Good luck,
David Goodman