Having started with my short irons, then putting, it was time to get Mike to take a look at my driving. Regular golfing partners will attest to the improvement in my short iron play since my first lesson, but I've struggled to translate that into the longer end of the bag, especially driver. I know from #GolfDataLab statistics that my driving accuracy is good, but the aim of this lesson was to see if I am leaving anything "in the bag". From reading #PracticalGolf Four Foundations and #MarkBrodie Every Shot Counts, I know just how important the driver is to unlocking performance. It's been interesting to read Jon's comments about historically lacking confidence here and how he made a concerted effort to improve. I've seen the results in person and wouldn't mind some of that too!
The aim of this lesson is not to blame the club and get myself fit for yet another new driver, it's to help me become the best driver I can (or equally accept that where I am now is as good as it's going to get). Padraig Harrington is my inspiration here. He's still making gains and mixing it with the young guys at age 51, so there's hope for me.
The good: Based on 55 rounds recorded in #GolfDataLab, my driving accuracy to fairway or semi-rough has been 89.6% and my fairways hit with all clubs has been 65.5%. There's certainly not much wrong with those figures. My driving has often been described as "boring" by my regular playing partners.
The bad: Driving, when it goes wrong, has resulted in some pretty horrible scores. My destructive tendency is to sway/slide rather than rotate, which usually results in me topping the ball, invariably into a horrible position. The other bad shot is getting stuck on the trail leg and hitting a nasty high slice.
The desire: Keep the stats above and add more distance.
The findings: Having already warmed up, chatted about the fitting of my current driver and discussed why I was there, Mike got me hitting some drives, stopping after 5 or 6 to review what he had observed.
Setup: I'm standing too wide. A common fault with all my clubs, although less so with shorter irons, but this is a big contributor to all that follows.
Backswing: Reasonably good, with positive loading of the trail leg. As with my iron lesson previously, I tend to swing around my body too much, so he would like my hands to be a bit higher.
Transition: My wide stance is hindering effective weight transfer. While I am getting some load into the lead leg, it's not enough. This was also an issue with my initial iron lesson.
Sequencing/lag: A classic amateur fault, I'm releasing the club too early. I'm not full-on casting, but it could definitely be better.
Angle of attack: At almost 6 degrees, my AoA is too high and contributing to the low-face strike/topping issue. The target is closer to 3 degrees.
Speed: Averaging around 93mph. Not terrible given the issues identified above.
Strike: predominantly low and out of the toe.
The lesson plan: There is no instant fix here. It will take time and commitment on my part if I really want to improve. Mike is pretty confident that with the correct practice and dedication, we can get my driver speed consistently through 100mph and maybe even to 105mph. The first fixes are quick and the rest need effort.
Part 1: Stance. This is the most straightforward bit. I'm not extremely wide and only have to narrow by the width of my foot or just a touch more. Getting comfortable with visual markers to aid repetition will take some time.
Part 2: Backswing. This again is a reasonably easy fix. I know I can do it with irons so let's get it ingrained here too. It's visualisation again and thinking about where my hands are during the backswing. My ball trainer could help here.
Now for the hard work. The focus today was to work on raw speed and once we get some traction with that we will come back to improving strike.
Part 3: The transition. The big gain for me will come from loading then exploding from the lead leg and stopping my sway/slide. The most effective drill we found today was the "step drill". Stand with feet together and the ball outside the lead leg, then take a normal backswing and step into the ball in order to hit it. Combine this with focusing on keeping my hands high.
Initial results: I made what Mike thought were some excellent swings with the step drill but I found it hard to repeat that improved transition when switching back to my normal swing. However, we got the baseline swing speed up to 97mph and almost hit 98mph just using this drill. Mike is convinced that 100mph is easily achievable if I keep working on just this transition improvement.
Part 4: Homework
Step drill: Continue working at the range and use my #Blast Motion Sensor to measure swing speed to give a consistent measure of progress.
Speed sticks: get back to using them again too. Ensure I'm properly warmed up first. The system I've got isn't the best but it get's the job done.
Lag/sequencing: Use the "axe" or "chopping" drill which is a little hard to explain but easier when demonstrated visually. It involves holding the club with hands apart, the lead hand normal and the lag hand turned the other way, then "chopping" down or making a "pulling down" motion before stopping the club horizontally to the ground. This should encourage a later wrist release with the full swing.
Gym work: I've to supplement the swing work with some fitness work to build leg strength, specifically "explosive" work such as jumping and individual leg presses. Mike suggested getting back to the University gym and getting a program made up. I've already got the #FitForGolf app and will give that a go at home before committing to gym membership as there were occasions last winter when it was too busy to get in.
Strike/impact location: I've not to worry about this too much while trying to build speed. Impact tape or foot spray can be used to assess it. We will look to build accuracy back once we've established a new baseline speed.
Practice sessions: These have to be structured with warm up, speed session then wedges, short game. I've to treat them like a gym session and go for quality over quantity. Maybe a maximum of 5 sets of 3-5 drives with some rest between each set. It's important to ensure I've warmed up properly first and then make sure I've time (and balls) left to use shorter clubs to re-establish rythm and tempo, especially if I'm also planning to go out and play.
Next lesson: there is a lot for me to work on with the driver over the coming weeks. I'm not sure if we will have a further lesson this year or if we will leave it until the spring. There will be a follow-up for the driver to check the work above and Mike has also suggested an on-course session with a few holes over the Eden or Jubilee.
Final thoughts: This lesson has demonstrated conclusively that I can get more performance out of my driver if I'm prepared to put in the effort. If I can improve my motion and sequencing then speed and distance should follow. Working then on the quality of my strike should bring further gains.
I'm not looking to enter senior long drive competitions here, but I am looking at how to maximise what I can achieve. In theory; longer/better drives = shorter/easier second shots = more chances to shoot lower scores.
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