New Tyre ?

This post is my attempt for us to get a bit of a meaty debate going while the weather is keeping us in.

I once heard a Teaching Pro say to someone after looking at their swing:
"Do you want me to fix the puncture or would you like a new tyre?"

The question is: What would you prefer and why?

I've gone the new tire route. Granted, I've only been golfing a short while so I don't have decades of ingrained patterns to fight.

20 years from now? Give me the puncture fix.

Until recently I'd have said the "puncture", that is give me a pro that will work with what's in front of him to make it better bit by bit.

However I went to Spain before Christmas for 3 days; first round tee to green possibly the best I've ever played, next two days a complete disaster - so much so that I haven't picked up my clubs since.

Brought home to me that my game, such as it is, is all about mood, confidence, and timing; and when the timing deserts me the fundamentals aren't there. So now I'd say the new tyre, or possibly even a new bike but tbh I'm not sure I can be arsed any more I am so frigging depressed with the way it went - which isn't helped by the damned weather!

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The main idea in golf as in life I suppose, is to learn to accept what cannot be altered and to keep on doing ones own reasoned and resolute best whether the prospect be bleak or rosy. Bobby Jones

as for me, forget the tyre, and the puncture, I'm more concerned about the bloke riding the bike than the bike itself.

The bike is serviceable and the bloke needs to keep his attitudes toward road law, other road users and the roads he rides on in some sort of perspective...

Hope that makes sense, given the analogy path we're on...

Hi Scraggs,

Not sure I followed that one. Do you mean that the best results are from a mental attitude rather than the building or fixing of a swing?

I'm pretty sure that's what he's on about.

He makes a fair point - you don't think about pedalling, you think about where you want to go.

However, I think he missed the exercise; which was overhaul or band aid?

Whether intentional or not, I tool Scragg's post as a well meant, well aimed and well deserved kick up the bdbl backside. I've retrieved my clubs from the Oxfam shop and am off to the range tomorrow to start again. Thanks Craig.

I am not really sold on the concept that if your golf swing is creating poor ball contact then working on your mental approach will fix it. If ball contact is good then sure, the right mental approach is required to maximise results.

The original question was relating to a flawed golf swing and what was the best option a coach could use to fix it.

Brian

As you say we are in danger of drifting away from the OP, but since no-ones really risen to the discussion, then perhaps a comment on "mental" would be in order?

I think it was Martin Levac (come back Martin, I for one miss your posts) who said that (to paraphrase) the best way to gain confidence on the first tee would be to throw away all the Rotella, Gallwey books and practice until your skill levels gave you real inner confidence.

Then, your point I think, your mental approach might give you the edge over a similarly skilled player.

Now, back to the OP, to get to the required skill level, do we need a puncture repair kit, or a new inner tube?

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The main idea in golf as in life I suppose, is to learn to accept what cannot be altered and to keep on doing ones own reasoned and resolute best whether the prospect be bleak or rosy. Bobby Jones

Again, I think it's up to the individual golfer. A young golfer can often get away going the new tire route - or someone like Tiger who has to take time off for medical leave and can overhaul his swing anyway. But for Joe Average Hacker, I think the quick fix is all they're generally committed to. "Give me a bandaid to beat my friends this weekend, doc." But to reach the next level takes reps. There are some funky, funky swings out there - but they're dead-nuts repeatable. Moe Norman is considered the most prolific ball striker in history - far from a conventional swing. But he swung the same way, time and again, until he knew how the ball would react. Repetitions can give you that confidence as you start seeing the same ball flight over and over and over.

I on the other hand have chosen the overhaul route - learning a system that focuses on body movement versus club positioning. It doesn't require me to hit a ton of balls. I still need to put in reps, but since I'm drilling body position I can do the bulk of the work without a club in my hand. I'll still need to hit balls to work out a ballflight, but the bulk of the work can be done without it. For a guy who spends 5 months snowed under, it's my kind of swing model.

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True Length Technology Fitter - www.truelengthtechnology.com
It's live! - www.ShipShapeClubs.com
PCS Class 'A' Clubfitter

A new highlight: Golfing the home course on Christmas Day.

I say it too often: If it's golf club shaped, you can play with it.

For the record, I'm a club doctor, not a swing doctor.

New tyre every time. For me I want to be the best I can possibly be - to that end I'd a full overhaul in order to make sure I am doing everything right. This will surely help you progress your game further - it may well be a few steps back initially but will ultimately deliver better results. A short term fix will simply be that, will fix the current problem but not really progress your game very far.

In relation to the conversation about mental attitude, in my opinion this really only comes into play once you have got the fundamental skills in place. There is no point having the greatest mental attitude if you don't really understand how to swing a club in the first place.

as mine is usually a 'slow' puncture ill go for the repair

quicker and cheaper

Tyre Fitting Update #1

Spent an hour yesterday with the pro working on changing my overly strong grip into something more neutral.

In the past I've scored reasonably well with a very strong grip as long as the timing of my subconscious club-head manipulation worked. As per my initial post in this thread the degree to which it worked always varied, and sometimes I had disastrous rounds.

I don't think I'll go out on the course for a while until this becomes more ingrained to reduce the chances of slipping back into old comfort zones.

Doubtless other changes will be required as my swing reacts to a "correct" grip; I assume I developed a strong grip over the years to compensate, for swing flaws that I should have fixed instead, so this could be a slow process - I'll keep you informed.

__________________
The main idea in golf as in life I suppose, is to learn to accept what cannot be altered and to keep on doing ones own reasoned and resolute best whether the prospect be bleak or rosy. Bobby Jones