Thought I would share this because it may apply to some. At the place I work, there is a small nine hole golf course. There is a small private area where I practice chipping and pitching. From this area I have a view of one of the tees. After observing many golfers tee off from this area, I have noticed that at least 7 out of 10 golfers never get their weight to the front foot. They almost always end up wtih the weight on their back foot and usually out of balance. As a matter of fact, everytime someone does end up with the weight on the front foot, it is usually a good shot. I know their are a lot of technical threads on this forum, but this seems to me a basic fundamental that is overlooked, yet critical to hitting solid consistent shots. Was wondering if other observe the same thing?
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An observation of other golfers
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Re: An observation of other golfers
IMO, because they didn’t learn how to hit a baseball PROPERLY.
Put a baseball on a tee-ball stand and let Joe Blow hit ten or twenty. Then let Albert Pujols do the same. Put a golf ball on a tee and let Joe Blow hit ten or twenty drivers. Then let Tiger Woods do the same.
What you’ll find out is that Joe Blow doesn’t know any more about hitting a baseball than he does about hitting a golf ball. Fortunately for Joe Blow, you can play baseball without being a very good hitter. Fortunately, baseball does not demand that you hit the ball every time you swing...... to nearly the same spot at the same distance......using 13 different bats. Fortunately, you don’t have to generate ALL the power yourself.
Fortunate, in that at least Joe can still be an average softball player after he gives up golf..
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Re: An observation of other golfers
Originally posted by kbpIMO, because they didn’t learn how to hit a baseball PROPERLY.
Put a baseball on a tee-ball stand and let Joe Blow hit ten or twenty. Then let Albert Pujols do the same. Put a golf ball on a tee and let Joe Blow hit ten or twenty drivers. Then let Tiger Woods do the same.
What you’ll find out is that Joe Blow doesn’t know any more about hitting a baseball than he does about hitting a golf ball. Fortunately for Joe Blow, you can play baseball without being a very good hitter. Fortunately, baseball does not demand that you hit the ball every time you swing...... to nearly the same spot at the same distance......using 13 different bats. Fortunately, you don’t have to generate ALL the power yourself.
Fortunate, in that at least Joe can still be an average softball player after he gives up golf..
In baseball, you can just wail away at an oncoming pitch - you don't need great mechanics, necessarily, you can just go full bore. Not exactly the best results when done in the golf swing, however.
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Re: An observation of other golfers
Originally posted by GregJWillisIt's because they all know how to play baseball...not golf.
That's make me think that a big amount of European golf amateurs would be very good baseball players. LOL.
Toni.
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Re: An observation of other golfers
I don't know much about baseball but I do like "people watching". When at the range I always break up my practice with some breaks where I get a coffee, sit down and think through how my practice is going and what I should do next. Look around at people practising and you will see all types: hackers, slashers, bashers and some fair to good golfers.
What interests me is when you get some young guys who buy a bucket of balls, hire a driver, get in a bay and try to hit them all through the back netting. Their instincts tell them to grip the club in a vice like hold, step back a few paces then run at the ball while slashing down and underneath it as fast as their arms will carry. This is followed by a loud "SWoooooooSH" "Bang" and a ball rolling along the ground for 20 yards. As they start to think about it they then stand still and hit under the ball which then crashes into the roof of the bay. I think it is at this stage that many people ingrain their OTT swing problem that they will spend many years trying to remove.
Getting back to the golfers and their poor weight transfer, most people know that this will cause problems and an ineffective hit but for some reason hold on to that false belief (quite often in the subconscious) that scooping the ball up will get height and distance. I would say that around 70% of the people that play golf suffer from this fault.
I guess it's manna from heaven for instructors though
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Re: An observation of other golfers
LOL..."guess it's manna from heaven for instructors though"
LOL..."European golf amateurs would be very good baseball players"
So what is the difference then the swing in Cricket? It is more of a vertical stroke? Like a really hard putt with a lot of wrists, right?
Which makes me think about the different swing-transition of Euros and US styles from their "nationally-accepted-toddler-sport-of-choice". I should understand a cricket stroke and compare to the baseball. I am always fighting the reverse pivot flaw here in the US and that is where the Walking Drill was born. I should probably have some version of the "anti-cricket" swing seeing that probably 51% on this forum are non-US.Last edited by GregJWillis; 03-04-2008, 05:10 PM.
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Re: An observation of other golfers
Originally posted by GregJWillis
Which makes me think about the different swing-transition of Euros and US styles from their "nationally-accepted-toddler-sport-of-choice". I should understand a cricket stroke and compare to the baseball. I am always fighting the reverse pivot flaw here in the US and that is where the Walking Drill was born. I should probably have some version of the "anti-cricket" swing seeing that probably 51% on this forum are non-US.
The act of hitting the cricket ball is called a shot or stroke. Batting involves knowledge and skill in several different types of shot. Good batsmen usually also have what is called "balance", which more or less involves stability of the body with syncronized movements of the shoulders and feet. There are a variety of shots a batsman can play:
Block A purely defensive shot designed to interpose the bat in front of the wicket so as to stop the ball from hitting the wicket. This shot has no strength behind it, usually played with a light or "soft" bottom-hand grip and merely stops the ball moving towards the wicket. Also known as a forward defensive or backward defensive, depending on whether the batsman plays the shot from the front foot or the back foot. Cut A cross-batted shot played at a ball wide on the off side, slapping the ball as it passes the batsman so that it is hit in the region square or backward of square on the off side. Also the upper cut, deliberately cutting the ball over the slips (or over the gully region), and Chinese cut, accidentally cutting the ball with the inside edge so it escapes to the leg side.
Drive A shot played by swinging the bat in a vertical arc through the line of the ball, hitting it in front of the batsman. Depending on the direction the ball travels, a drive can be either a cover drive, off drive, or on drive. Also square drive, which is less common and involves opening the "face" of the bat with the bottom hand to guide the ball square on the off side. Drives can be played both off the front and the back foot, but back-foot drives are harder to force through the line of the ball. Sachin Tendulkar of India is well-known for his signature straight drive, which is similar to an on drive but is played straighter down the ground, past the bowler. Hook An aggressive, cross-batted shot played at a bouncer aimed at or near the batsman's head. The batsman must step inside the line of the ball and swing his bat around his head, hooking the ball around behind square leg, usually in the air and sometimes for six runs. It is a dangerous shot to attempt, but can be very productive. Leg glance A delicate shot played at a ball aimed slightly on the leg side, using the bat to flick the ball as it passes the batsman, deflecting towards the square leg or fine leg area. Involves deflecting the bat-face towards the leg side at the last moment, head and body moving inside the line of the ball. This shot is played 'off the hip' and is sometimes called the hip glance. Paddle Sweep A type of sweep shot (see "sweep" below) directed to the fine leg area. The paddle sweep is a cross-batted shot played on one knee, usually at a slow ball on or wide of leg stump. Involves bringing the bat "down on top of the ball" in order to play it away to fine leg. Pull A cross-batted shot played to a ball bouncing around waist height by swinging the bat in a horizontal arc in front of the body, pulling it around to the leg side. It is different from a hook shot because it involves swinging the bat down onto the ball so as to keep it along the ground. Sweep A cross-batted shot played to a low bouncing ball, usually from a slow bowler, by kneeling on one knee, bringing the head down on the ball as in a forward defensive stroke, and swinging the bat around in a horizontal arc near the pitch, sweeping it around to the leg side. Reverse Sweep A cross-batted sweep shot played to a low bouncing ball, by kneeling on one knee and swinging the bat around in a horizontal arc close to the pitch, but reversing the blade of the bat half-way through the swing and sweeping the ball around to the off side from the leg side. The reverse sweep is a potentially valuable shot to play because it effectively defeats the field positions, but it is considered an unorthodox shot by cricket purists. It was first regularly played in the 1970s by the Pakistani batsman Mushtaq Mohammed. Two cricketers who are considered to have played the reverse sweep very well (it has been described as their signature shot by some) were Andy Flower of Zimbabwe and Javed Miandad of Pakistan. The reverse sweep requires good timing and coordination in turning the blade over and also requires considerable arm-power in driving the ball to the off side. It has been known to backfire, for instance in the case of Mike Gatting of England against Allan Border of Australia in the 1987 World Cup, when Gatting, attempting a reverse sweep off a fairly non-aggressive first delivery off Border, edged the ball with the top edge of his reversed bat straight to wicket-keeper Gregory Dyer. This subsequently proved to be a very expensive wicket for England, whose run rate dropped sharply and caused them to lose the 1987 World Cup Finals. Also:
Scoop A shot played with the bat held parallel to the pitch in front of the batsman, with the toe of the bat pointing towards the bowler. The batsman attempts to flick the ball over the wicket-keeper's head. The most famous exponent of the scoop shot is former Zimbabwean international Douglas Marillier. Slog A powerful shot, usually hit to the leg side in the air in an attempt to score a six, often without too much concern for proper technique. The classic example of a slog is known as a cow shot, a massive swing across the line of a ball of good or full length, attempting to hit it over the area roughly between mid-wicket and long-on, known as cow corner. Slogs must be timed perfectly, as the batsman is swinging across the line of the ball rather than through it and it is very easy to hit the ball straight up, get a leading edge or to miss completely. It is generally safer for a batsman's wicket to hit the ball straight over the bowler's head than towards cow corner, but it is often harder to generate the same amount of power from a shot played straight than from a swing to leg. Slog sweep A cow shot played from the kneeling position used to sweep. Slog sweeps are usually directed over square-leg rather than cow corner. It is almost exclusively used against reasonably full-pitched balls from slow bowlers, as only then does the batsman have time to sight the length and adopt the aggressive kneeling position required for the slog sweep.
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Re: An observation of other golfers
One of things I have often noticed especially with the older gentlemen on the golf course is their innate ability to hit straight shots with half swings, Its frustrating when they give you a thrashing with their short swings and 24 handicaps but I now use this type of shot both in my practice routine at the range and when the need arises out on the course. I loose approx a third in distance with a waist high back swing and full follow through. Im sure there is a debate as to why so many golfers struggle with their swing when they go over this point in the back swing but will leave that for another time.
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Re: An observation of other golfers
Originally posted by msklar92Thought I would share this because it may apply to some. At the place I work, there is a small nine hole golf course. There is a small private area where I practice chipping and pitching. From this area I have a view of one of the tees. After observing many golfers tee off from this area, I have noticed that at least 7 out of 10 golfers never get their weight to the front foot. They almost always end up wtih the weight on their back foot and usually out of balance.
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Re: An observation of other golfers
Originally posted by usmaleOne of things I have often noticed especially with the older gentlemen on the golf course is their innate ability to hit straight shots with half swings, Its frustrating when they give you a thrashing with their short swings and 24 handicaps but I now use this type of shot both in my practice routine at the range and when the need arises out on the course. I loose approx a third in distance with a waist high back swing and full follow through. Im sure there is a debate as to why so many golfers struggle with their swing when they go over this point in the back swing but will leave that for another time.
I play often with a senior Scottish gentleman that has an 8 handicap and plays to it, what he lacks with driver distance he makes up with accuracy, bullet-proof approach shots and flicky wrist putting that nails the putt every time. he also plays 190+ yard par threes with his driver and hits the green every time.
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Re: An observation of other golfers
Originally posted by shootin4parbecause the majority of golfers try to keep their head still while they swing. When your head stays still your weight wont shift
IMO, hitting behind the ball is mostly due to a back weight shift with no subsequent forward weight shift or a reverse pivot weight shift. Raising up the spine angle and then lunging at the ball is also another culprit.
The reason, IMO, is because most people do not learn the proper body movements first, and as a result they develop an upper body swing that they fight forever. It’s perfectly natural. A lot of instructors almost ignore proper footwork and leg work until a ways down the line. And if you’re the average self taught beginner, forget it, no chance to understand the lower body !!!! ( notable exceptions here in this forum, of course)
I think if I were going to teach an average adult male to play golf, after the grip I would focus A LOT on the lower body.
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Re: An observation of other golfers
Originally posted by kbpNot in my observation.
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