After a trip to the Gauley River with the Hasentree guys and a trip to Park City to see Jodi and the boys it is time to get back to the grind. I did go to TopGolf in Salt Lake City but other than that, I didn’t even think about my golf swing. So, back to it.
To start the lesson, I was a little bit loose with my right knee and my right side was a bit tight. I am definitely more flexible as I can now get my head off the ground with my back bridge, but my lower right side was tight to start the day.
The major new added element is Patrick grabbed my right elbow and turned my body while he kept holding on to my right elbow. This is something I have known is important for awhile but have waited for Patrick to address it. When turning I like to pull with my right elbow and right side. After many, many hours of training I am now capable of turning without using my right arm at all. It goes back to the old feel that the clubface is outside my hands on the backswing. The longer I can keep my right elbow low and tucked on the takeaway, the better I hit the ball. It also makes the swing feel much longer in terms of the club.
The swing does not feel longer in terms of my arms, but it feels longer in terms of the circle of the club. As I get to the top of my backswing, I really need to make sure that I pull in with my right side. Remember my last lesson when I could feel the tendon of my right oblique. I need to keep the feel of that tendon with tension even as I get to the top of the backswing.
By keeping my right elbow passive and “inside” and turning with my left side I can get much deeper with my body. Patrick noticed that I am getting much deeper into my right side because I am sucking or pulling in with the right side while driving with the left side and not using my arms.
While hitting approach wedges, I was getting about 10-15 more yards. I used to aim at the first metal pole and it is now going way past the second metal pole at Knight’s Play. It is interesting to feel power because it is actually slower. It only took me a little over two years to figure this out.
UPDATE: It is now late April 2021 and I am still not “game ready”. I cannot believe I have been taking lessons for over two and a half years and I still can’t hit the golf ball correctly. Is it really that hard or am I an idiot? Sometimes I wonder if I should have even gone through this process. Sigh.
