After returning from Cancun I was extremely tight. The first five balls I hit were terrible. This comes after a week in which my swing was getting much deeper. I hit a few balls with Patrick and he immediately addressed the angle of my hips. I am too flat as my left hip should be much lower than my right hip and it should feel like my hips are pointed down towards my left toe.
After working on this, Patrick is slowly getting my right elbow to fold in deeper in the backswing. If I can keep the club face outside my hands going back, I keep my right elbow in. As soon as I start to get depth on the backswing, I lift my arms and my right elbow flares out. The longer I can keep my right elbow in, the better I hit the ball.
It is very hard for me to think about the arms or hands in the swing because I forget about turning and keeping my legs stable. When I can start with the lower left obliques, set the steeper angle with my hips, keep my hands inside the club face and turn with my right elbow falling “inside” I hit the ball amazing. It even has a different sound. I still get fast and excited as I get to the top of the backswing so I need to remain patient and slow.
Patrick also started to work on the downswing. He gently pushed my left quad to make sure it stays on the target line rather than moving to the left. Remember, the right obliques and lats generate speed, not my left quad or leg. He also forces me to drive through with my right side rather than pulling through with my left shoulder. It is definitely a different feel when I actually hit the ball this way.
UPDATE: We are in late December 2020, I am over 200 lessons in and my hip angle is still something I have to work on. It is crazy how hard it is to keep the spin angle when you have a shoulder turn. Most amateurs simply lift with their arms which allows them to keep a lazy spine and but nothing like what a true scratch golfer does. Keeping the spine angle while turning with the core and shoulders is next level.
