“Let it go!” This whole time I have been extremely worried about going out and playing golf because I was thinking so very hard during every swing. My brain was basically mush thinking about the take away, holding off with the right hip, where do the elbows go, getting to the top, getting back to level with the right hip, rolling the left elbow in, blah, blah, blah. There were times where it was nearly impossible for me to even take the club back.
Today, Patrick said, let it all go and just think about the first six inches or the take away. After that, just let it go. I did this and it was so liberating. I was able to have rhythm and release. I might be swinging a little too fast and a little too hard but it feels so great. I hit about 10 shots that were simply phenomenal. My 8 iron is flying as much as 165 and going at least 150 even when I hit it fat.
Patrick explained that the reason I struggle with longer irons is my take away is just a little too fast. The longer the club, the slower we need to feel on the take away. With the club being longer, we want to take it back quicker and swing harder because we want to hit it further. Instead, we should take it back slower, especially the first six inches.
At the end of the lesson Patrick just laughed and asked if I was concerned. I told him that I was because I had way too many swing thoughts in my head. He explained that we just train with those thoughts and let them all go when we are standing over the ball. This was very reassuring as I needed the freedom to just swing the golf club.
Now, it feels as if my backswing starts very slow and speeds up which is the exact same feel with the downswing. The ultimate goal is to make certain the first part of the backswing is slow which will make the first part of the downswing slow. Remember, slow to fast. That is how we hit the golf ball well.
I also noticed that I am starting to use the leading edge to hit the golf ball. This is something I never could have done in the past.
So, now that I know there is no reason to be technical on the course, I have the freedom to go play. I am working on my driver tomorrow with Patrick and it will be Mikaila’s third lesson. Hopefully it does not rain.
I am so excited to finally have the reigns taken off and have the freedom to swing the golf club. I know there will be some bad shots but there will be some very, very good shots as well. The goal will be to evaluate the swing on my take away. If I can do this, I am going to be happy with my golf game.
UPDATE: It is now August 2020 and I am 149 lessons in and there are still days when I do not “let it go” on the full swing. I will always be analytical but I have gotten much better as my shoulder turn has gotten deeper. What I thought was a shoulder turn in April 2019 is nothing compared to what I know is a true shoulder turn in August 2020. It is crazy how much effort, energy and stretching is necessary to hit the golf ball well.
I am definitely committed and in it for the duration which makes me feel much better about my game. While there have been ups and downs, I am confident in what I am doing and what is a rotational golf swing. Some people cannot make this commitment and that is fine.
