|
Graves_Golf_Academy
Administrator
15 Posts |
 Posted - 01/18/2006 : 22:14:39
|
Under Construction
Making swing changes
Why do changes feel bad, wrong or different? The answer may be in your head or in a monkeys head.
Studies in a Book called "The Brain" show that the programs in the brain are stored as ACTS in the subconcious. Removal of parts of the brains of monkeys proved that even if they removed the motor cortex, the part of the brain that controls movements, the monkey could still perform tasks that it had previously learned. This information is important for anyone trying to change their golfswing. What this is saying is that when you send the signal to the brain to hit a golf ball, the brain subconciously runs the program of performing that ACT. When the brain runs that program, you really have no control. That is why when you interrupt it by a concious thought, you hit it poorly.
If your current program produces poor results, you must find a way to reprogram the brain. That is what I did when i met Moe...I reprogrammed myself. It does not take time if you spend your time re-programming your brain with correct new movement. The real problem with doing this is one silly little ball. The ball sends us into subconcious program mode. The split second you go to hit the ball the program runs and there you go performing the already programmed motion. That is why a practice swing is so smooth and a swing is funky.
SO here is my suggestion this winter for all of you who want to be MUCH better by next spring. Right now you need to learn the exact perfect motion without a ball. Video tape it or DO WHATEVER IT TAKES to get it PERFECT. SLOW MOTION< FAST MOTION, whatever it takes to move the club perfectly. LEverage bag, holding the positions etc. Now, once you have it perfect, make a plan to practice that EXACT motion 20 to 100 times per day witout a ball. The goal is to re-program and make sure you are perfect. Video tape as much as you can to make sure you are perfect as that will be your feedback. Pretty soon we will put a ball in there and see if you can run the "new" program with a ball.
Swing Mastery:
Most people think the swing is some complicated series of motions requiring a piece by piece breakdown and learning process that their "muscles" must remember. The truth that it is similar to riding a bike. Once you learn the fundamental motion, you can't forget it.
It starts with the grip and proper hand movement. Once you learn the grip and proper hand movement, you have already learned how to square the face, produce speed and put the club on the proper path. Not it is a matter of moving the arms further to make more speed and a longer swing.
The difficulty comes from people not learning Straight Line Motion before they start to hit balls. Most people just start hitting balls....bad grips....bad arm and hand movement. Then they never learn the simple straight line hand movement.
Good News is all you have to do is spend a little time learning basic hand and arm movement. But, you are going to have to take a step backward for a short time to make a HUGE leap forward. Another thing that people have a difficult time with.
THe motion is explained in the DVD and Tapes in the section about hand movement, directly after the grip section. If you can do this and hit short shots until you can master the proper motion hitting the ball...it can make all of the difference
Three Games:
Basically you are playing three games. Long game (power game), short game (chipping / short wedges) and Putting. These games are mechanically different if you look at what you are trying to achieve. The Power game is about speed, controlling spin and maximizing speed of clubhead and letting the different clubs control the distance. The Wedge game / finesse game is about distance control through speed control and the chipping game is the same. Putting as we all know is about rolling the ball on line and speed control since the ball is on the ground. It should be the easiest part of golf but there is many variables on the ground. IN any case, you must treat these three games separately and I recommend keeping journals on your technique for these three separate games. For exapmle my power game is based on Moe Norman's golf swing, Single plane, clubface square etc, correct ball position, grip and setup etc.(Ideal Mechanics to produce speed) My wedge game is all about creativity, chip and runs, flop shots etc. I think of myself as more creative with this part of my game, where the rules are out of the window except for a few things about technique when it comes to chipping an running the ball. Putting, I use the long putter. I do that becasue I believe it is the easiest way to roll the ball at the line. There is only one thing in common for all of these three games for me...I keep it as simple as possible...SIMPLE. Make a folder. Keep a Journal of what works. Keep stats on progress and your rounds. Make a plan.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Why can't I play better or be more consistent on the course?
Good Golf Practice does not make Good Golf PLAYING on the course. PLAYING on the course makes Good Golf PLAYING. In other words, practice is only good for building the tools for becoming a better player. IT ONLY BUILDS THE TOOLS. You must learn to use those tools on the course and THAT takes practice too.
When I coached the University of Oklahoma golf team, I recognized that there were basically two types of players...those who practiced and those who PLAYED. The practicers had the best swings and looked the best on the range and on the greens. If you were to place a bet, you would bet on the practicers because they "looked" better. But the PLAYERS were the ones that I wanted at the tournaments. The guys that played learned to match the FEELINGS of their swings with the golf course. They could take their games to the course. The practicers couldn't. That is because the only way you become good on the golf course is by being there. You must play to be good at playing.
My suggestion is to start playing golf and stop practicing. If you have the tools, just go PLAY. And if you want to work on your swing (tools) later, do that but don't expect to play well.
Try this, plan on playing 5 rounds in a row without practicing. You will find out that the 3rd, 4th and 5th rounds are much better than the 1st. This shows you that you are getting a better feel for the game.
One final note. When I played competitively and I had a long lay off, I would play a few "knock the rust off rounds". These rounds, i just expected to play poorly. Yet, I would just keep a count of the number of good holes. So, round 1 I would say I played 8 good holes. Then round 2 maybe 10 good holes. Pretty soon after about 4 or 5 rounds I was in PLAYING mode. I could go entire rounds without any major bad holes. That is when I wanted to play 3 or 4 tournaments in a row because I was PLAYING not worrying about my swing.
Todd
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Practicing on the Range and playing golf are not the same. As a matter of fact, I would consider them completly different with only one thing in common...a golf club.
It doesn't necessarily have to be this way, you can learn how to practice like you play or play like you practice. But few ever do this. Do you go to the range and switch clubs between each shot and give yourself side hill lies...chip and putt? Of course not. So the range is used to build swing mechanics and most likely THINK about your swing. Then...you get to the course and you are somewhat lost because you don't know what to think about.
If you want to play your best golf now start playing and stop practicing. Play a round of golf, keeping score, every day for the next 14 days. I promise your 14th day will be a better round of golf than the 1st. This is because you develop a 'scoring' mentality not a "swing" mentality.
So often we practice, practice, pracitce and then go try to score our best. We end up disappointed because we don't score very well. That is because YOU CAN NOT PRACTICE SCORING. SCORING is only practiced by trying to SCORE.
This is where the "mental" game comes in. It is mental because you have not differentiated between practice and playing / scoring. It is a mind set. When you begin to score your best you will feel as though you understand your shot and your capabilities. When you stand over a difficult shot you see your options not the trouble.
You "feel" what is possible not "guess" that you can do it. The target becomes the major focus and you begin to negotiate the ball's flight and landing area. You see things through a different view...why? Because you are playing enough to see the things that you have never seen by practicing.
One quick example. Right now take 10 seconds and observe everything blue in the room.. Now close your eyes.....
Now tell me everything that you saw that was.......
Red
You see, you only observe what you focus your attention on. When you focus your attention on scoring..you will score.
Todd
|
Todd Graves, Tim Graves, Scott Renfrow, Brent Reid |
|
Mental Aspect - FAQ
Topic Locked
