AJ Truth about golf-really?

[ubizmo]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

Do you mean 39 over par? As 39 on a par 3 course would be -15.

Ha! My bad--I meant 39 for 9 holes, par 29 (there were actually two par 4s), so +10. That round, played over a year ago near Dover, England, was my best round of golf ever. The next day I went back to the same course and shot 53.

[Matt10]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

i'm sorry since this is about the page before, but the thing I liked about hearing the younger brother play so well was because the younger brother didn't seem to worry about how to swing the club. AJ points this out ( while yes he does do quite a bit of talking, his points are clear enough ) hand eye coordination is a big factor in hitting the ball correctly. I think this often gets overlooked by those of us wanting to hit a ball with the swing and not the club, don't you want to hit that ball though? This is why the nail imagery is so key,because it indulges your follow through as soon as you hit the ball with your hand-eye coordination. Okay,thats my 2cents.

I hit bout 80 balls yesterday after a week off ( college preparation for Devry ) and I was pretty happy, I sticked to everything AJ told me to do. One thing I found very key though,that I had contemplating of doing for a while, was focusing on turning my hips on teh downsing and wow the results were really good. I hit these things straight, and I mean straight down the middle, got plenty of air with no effort; it just felt great and natural. Might go play the par 3 early tomorrow but Im not sure since I wanna watch Tiger but he's got an early tee time so it prob wont be on t.v right? OKay,take care guys.

[MJE77]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

MJE77 - You said you stand a fair distance from the ball - do your arms hang naturally from your shoulders?

Obviously what the pro was teaching (initially) was working quite well. Small adjustments here and there were working fine. When he started adjusting technique is where you had troubles. Correct?



The pro was doing a great job and so was the student, until the 9 hole experience.

If you are reaching now, you will gain more power with your arms hanging naturally from your shoulders. The pro was probably onto something if it was initially working, just sounds like you didn't put enough time into practicing what he was teaching. It takes Tiger months to fine tune small pieces of his game, so you can bet that to get all the little pieces to work 100% naturally you will also need to put practice time into your game. 1/2 hour at a lesson isn't near enough for your muscles to remember everything. Making a change like eliminating your reach takes quite a while (trust me!!!). No offense, but it sounds like you simply gave up too fast. You seemed to be on the path to single digit handicap land....

I'm not trying to disagree with you about getting lessons as I know that if you want to become really good they are inevitable. I'm just saying that you can't put your trust in just any old club pro. I also do think I gave up a bit quick as with anything you learn takes time. It's just that when you go from hitting the ball really crisply to not being able literally hit the ball it was extremely frustrating. It's like trying to run and you keep falling over.

The thing is, it wasn't the lessons from the pro that had gotten me hitting it ok it was from reading lessons in magazines and doing those by myself on the range. All I can remember being taught on the lessons was grip and posture on the first lesson and I kept the grip with a slight alteration (changed from interlocking my little finger of right hand to overlapping it) but changed my posture to what seemed to be the general consensus in the magazines and felt more comfortable for me. I can't remember what I did on the second lesson but I remember he taught me to shift my weight on the third lesson. I learnt to rotate my shoulders, hips, follow thru etc. etc. from magazines.

I went for the fourth lesson coz I was so addicted to golf I just needed more input and couldn't wait to improve. This time I'm going to play for a year by myself before I consider lessons.

I'm not sure how naturally my arms hang down and how far I'm reaching. I'm only 5'7 so I have to stand further away than I probably should be but I discovered that if I stand to close I slice it very badly and I daren't stand any closer. Maybe I should get my bro to film me swinging and take a look.

We're going again to the same course today so I'll let you know how he does. I'm sure that I'll get a similar score give or take a couple of shots but I bet he'll do much worse as he'll expect to do better and get frustrated when he has a bad hole.

p.s. sorry for taking the thread off topic.

[mr3856a]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

I keep saying it, and it looks like another poster is maybe thinking the same thing now - this guy is the real deal. If you apply his teachings, they will work. Period.

[gord962]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

MJE77 - can you start a new thread for this?

Thanks,

[chessbum]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

After Reading this thread, I decided I had to take the plunge and I bought the DVD's. I have had them for 3 days now and watched them twice.

Here is my honest take on the whole thing:

Overall, I am glad I bought them and also glad that I have them. I paid $100 for them and although, many will feel they are overpriced and I tend to think they are too, I am going to keep them. I like them.

AJ presents some concepts in the DVD's that to be quite honest, I have never read in any books nor seen anywhere else, including the golf channel. These are points that I think are absolutely necessary to understand in order to hit the ball correctly. In the beginning he makes a point that there are problems with trying to take your swing and mold it into a perfect swing by analyzing it. He says that people make it so difficult to hit the golf ball because of the following model that everyone hangs onto:

• There's a golf swing
• If you learn to make it perfectly
• You will hit perfect shots

I had never thought about it like that but it is absolutely true. The problem is there is NO perfect golf swing. Look at Jim Furyk, Lee Trivino, even Tiger. They are all different, way different. What feels comfortable to you is the way you swing but you really need to think about it all differently. That is what AJ's DVD's are all about. He offers a way to hit the golf ball that is easy and makes sense. He uses the idea of driving the nail into the wall. If you can do that, you can hit a golf ball, even with infirmities.

Another thing, when he is describing how to hit the golf ball with the "Little homerun", that is so valuable to understand. An awesome concept and absolutely essential to hit a great golf shot. In a way, I think he is a little weak in describing how this is done. For me, using Greg Willis's RIght hand drill or Greg Norman's "The Secret" gives you that feeling and allows you to really feel what is should be like. This is the concept that the clubface must be rotating around the shaft at impact. In fact AJ states that in the 12" the club face travels at impact (6 inches before and 6 inches after) the clubface will rotate 30 degrees. Can you believe it? But it is necessary to hit the "Little home Run".

In a way, I saw myself get caught up in the process of analyzing my swing this season and it caused me so much grief, I was miserable. The more things you try, the farther down the spiral you fall trying to out guess yourself in what you are doing wrong and before long you don't have an ounce of confidence in your ability to hit the ball. Now, I really believe with a few of the concepts he offers you can make this easier. Like AJ says, it's not about "Perfection" it's about "Skill development".

The other two DVD's in the package are just bonuses. One is on the short game. He offers some fantastic ideas to use especially if you don't have tons of time to practice. I am using them already and I love the ideas. The putting DVD is probably the most dissapointing. It is just mediocre.

Many have said that he blabs too much and the only real points that are useful is in the end. I think he is really trying to illustrate his points and yes he tends to drag it out, but just like he says, sit back, relax and enjoy the show. If you want corny, wait until he serenades you at the end with his guitar. I was feeling a little nauseous at that point..haha.

There you have it. I won't send mine back, they cost me $100 and I think they are worth $50 but I am glad I have them.

Chessbum.......

[chessbum]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

Another thing to think about:

I have had the AJ Truth tapes for a week. I have been an 20 handicap for two years now. I went out today, using his training, and I shoot the best round of the season, a nice little 87.....

Chessbum....

[Matt10]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

whoa, congrats cheese. I haven't been able to go onto a big course yet, but that is great to hear. How were your shots? Any mess ups?

take care

[chessbum]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

Very few mess up shots. Every shot, I kept visualizing the nail through the golf ball and hitting that nail head. It's been a long time since I have hit the ball so solid....

Draw your own conclusions, I have already made mine....

Chessbum....

[ubizmo]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

I think it's a very good idea to have a visualization, like "hammer the nail", in mind when hitting the golf ball. Many people say "hit through the ball," but that's actually less concrete than the image of hammering a nail. After reading this thread and looking at the clips (and seeing that infomercial more times than I care to remember), I intend to take a drill and a nail and make a ball-nail of my own to carry around as a kind of reminder.

I don't think the "little home run" idea is as useful. Speaking for myself, I find it an invitation to start *manipulating* my wrists in various ways, with disastrous results.

In the video clips and informercial, AJ has a lot to say about "eye-hand coordination." But my experience, so far, leans more toward "hand-feel coordination". That is, there is nothing special that striking the ball well looks like. For one thing, the impact lasts only a fraction of a second anyway, and I can hardly see much of what's going on. I can use my eye in the setup to get things right. And I certainly use my eyes to focus on the ball, so that I know just where to swing the hammer. But my eyes don't tell me what went wrong or what went right at impact--until I look up at where the ball is going.

It's not like juggling, where I use eye-hand coordination to correct the position of my hands constantly, so they are under the balls and I can catch them.

But slowly and painstakingly I have acquired a sense of what it feels like if my backswing is on the right plane, and what it feels like if the downswing is on course, and what it feels like to hit the ball well. There are times when I hit the ball and never see it at all, perhaps because I'm hitting into the glare of the sun, but I know it went straight--or I know it didn't.

There is a swing plane that works for me. When I see it on video it looks like a natural enough motion. It doesn't *feel* natural, however. To get that swing plane I have to move the club in a way that feels actually pretty weird; if I swing in a natural-feeling way, I can hardly hit the ball at all. I've figured out (recently!) that if I'm playing 18 holes and I start getting a little tired and striking the ball badly, I'm slipping toward more "natural" movements, and if I snap myself out of it and return to the "weird" movements I've learned, I get my game back.

The point I'm getting at here is that without having learned this "feel" of the swing that works, no "hammer the nail" visualization would work for me. And the visualization won't give me the feel. Neither will any information about the rotation of the bat to make a little home run, and these things happen to fast to be seen with the eyes anyway.

I know that gadgets like the Medicus and the Swingsetter are supposed to work on the feel. I ordered Greg Norman's "secret", which is also supposed to work on the feel, but it hasn't been delivered yet. So I can't comment on any of those gadgets. But I'd like to know if AJ says anything that helps to get the feel for how to hammer that nail, reliably.

[WhyDoIStink]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

I just watched the tapes (dloaded from bit torrent) and am anxious to see how badly I am going to mess up my swing. It seems that ever since I discovered this site I am being bombarded with swing thoughts and my game has really sunk.

What the heck, it's not as if I was shooting 70's anyways, so what do I have to lose?

Anyways, I will report my findings.

[MJE77]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

I think you have to pick somebody who you trust to give you instruction and then stick with them. Coz everybody has all these contradictory bits of instruction and you can't listen to them all. I think that you should see an instant improvement too when you are given instruction.

[ubizmo]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

I think you have to pick somebody who you trust to give you instruction and then stick with them. Coz everybody has all these contradictory bits of instruction and you can't listen to them all. I think that you should see an instant improvement too when you are given instruction.

For what it's worth, I did not see any instant improvement from getting instruction. I have improved a bit this summer, but it has been more a result of trying to apply things I've learned from this forum and other sources. I've tried many "adjustments" to my swing, and some have helped, others not. The "hammer the nail" swing thought hasn't been terribly helpful. The swing thought that has been most helpful to me has been simply to keep my swing path big and wide, so I visualize Hogan's big wide ellipse swing path. When my swing starts to "contract" in any way, the result is not good. Videotaping my swing has been very helpful for this.

In terms of more mechanical things in the setup, there has been discussion on this forum of Hogan's "secret move," i.e., cocking the right knee in a bit toward the ball. This, in conjunction with GolfOne's suggestion of the "reverse K" position--tilting the spine away from the target slightly (two-plane swing here)--has been very helpful. In fact, cocking the right knee and getting the reverse K feel like a single adjustment to me. Remembering all these things, especially when on the course, can be a challenge, but that makes it interesting. I try to have a "checklist" mentality during the setup, and then when I'm in what I think is the right position, I forget about all that and just go for that big wide ellipse swing path, and I'm more likely to strike the ball well.

I think the most counterproductive bit of swing advice (not from AJ though) is "swing down on the ball" with the irons. I understand what this means, but it implies a different swing, and if I think about that I'm likely to contract the swing path and it's a train wreck. The truth, as I see it, is that by changing the ball position and using a different club, the club should swing down on the ball without any conscious adjustment of the swing. So I try to trust the club to take care of that.

I have found that AJ's comments about the little home run and the remote control tend to make me very conscious of what my wrists are doing, and the more I try to control my wrists, the worse I get.

I think each person is different, in terms of what things to try to control and what things to "let happen." I was watching "Golf Academy" last night and the instructor there was emphasizing club face orientation, saying that if you get that right the swing path will take care of itself. I find the opposite to be true: If I get the swing path right, the club face does the right thing. But I think that's just a result of my personal tendency to contract my swing. Other golfers will have other tendencies. So I imagine AJ's suggestions will be exactly what some need, while others will find they aren't especially helpful.

[WhyDoIStink]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

Ubizmo, I couldn't agree with you more --every golfer has his own niche.

I just got back from the range and tried it and, to my surprise, I actually hit some pretty crisp and accurate shots (and some ugly ones).

What I liked about it:

1. Pretty much one swing thought, hit a mini-homerun. I wasn't thinking about hips, shoulders, swing paths, etc.. just to make the little homerun. Also, I found myself saying, "I didn't get around on that one" when I would slice, etc.. so there is some instant feedback to what I'm doing wrong.

2. Many of the mechanics which I have ingrained still apply, although they were not the primary concern. So I can swing with my natural golf swing and get imediate results.

3. Distance improved slightly with my normal swing (80%). I normally don't hit my 9i 137 yds, but I was today.

4. The timing aspect. This falls into two categories (a) what I like and b) what I don't like. I did find that the timing of the homerun was forgivin-- if it was close to square I would either hit a slight fade or slight draw.

What I didn't like:

1. I couldn't hit my driver.. seemed like I was always late with the homerun swing.

2. The timing aspect again. This is the part I need to work on for consistancy. I am not even sure if I didn't like this aspect, but something keeps me typing under this heading. Perhaps it is that I have never had to time the release with my regular non A.J swing, it would just happen naturally (with unpredicatable results).

Overall, I think it is worth a shot. I have never had such positive results after hitting just one bucket with a new technique --until now. I think there is something here worth investigating.

The Ultimate Test: (or maybe not)
I am playing this afternoon at a local course, and I will try it. My best score there was a 94 so I have a benchmark to compare against. I don't know if it is a fair one considering I have only practised the swing today, but it's a start. I will post my results.

P.S. Sorry for the long post.

[chessbum]

Re: AJ Truth about golf-really?

Dear "WhydoISTink"

Don't to forget to mention that you also stole the tapes if you downloaded them from Bit Torrents.

If everyone stole the tapes, there wouldn't be any tapes.

You really showed what you are made of dude....

Chessbum....