Today's question comes to me all the way from England. Anne Ellis is having some trouble with her finish. Instead of swinging up to a nice, solid T-finish, she has the habit of cutting off her swing right after impact. What's worse yet is that she knows she's doing this. She's looking for any kind of help to get past this mental block, so today we're going to discuss how we can all get to the proper finish position, mentally and physically.
Dear Don,
Recently you lamented that there was a dearth of emails from females. I think part of the reason is that women view their game differently finding an assortment of challenges, whereas men tend to focus on one aspect at a time making it easier to ask for advice.
I have a major challenge that I think many women share and it is my inability to finish off a shot. I have had a Pavlovian response to each strike since I started golf. As soon as I hear the ball being struck I seem to stall my swing through. Intellectually I know that I need to complete this to get any distance, but knowing this does not help me to do it. Have you any advice on what practical thing I could do to ensure completion of my swing?
Anne Ellis
Kenilworth, England
I just first want to say thank you to Anne. Hopefully, female golfers everywhere will heed her words and send in more questions for me to answer.
I actually teach ladies the same way I teach men. It's also the way in which I teach juniors golfers too. That's because it doesn't matter who I'm coaching; the lessons remain the same. Does the ball know who is holding the club? Absolutely not, so no matter what your sex or age, the physics of the setup and swing are unchanged. Even though everyone won't swing the club the same exact way because of our body makeup, that doesn't make the parameters of the Peak Performance Golf Swing any different.
One of the most important parts of the swing is what's giving Anne her problem. She is cutting her swing off and has no follow through. That's like trying to punch someone and just as you make contact, you stop your motion. The key is that you go through the shot.
Golfers have to start understanding how important impact is in this game. I'm able to tell if someone hits a good shot based merely on the sound that it makes at impact. That's why I don't like when people practice with headphones since hearing that sound is a good way to improve your consistency because you get instant feedback.
Normally when someone has to pause at some point in the golf swing, there could be a balance issue. If you're moving in any way, shape, or form to somewhere that's going to create a problem of you maintaining your balance, you've got a problem that needs addressed.
Sometimes ladies are so flexible that they tend to overturn, even though they try to keep the wide knees with outward pressure of the PPGS. The club ends up on an incorrect path towards the target, and they end up having to stop it to make it go to the target. That causes the shoulders to get way ahead of the ball, which just throws your balance off even more and makes it that much harder to have a good impact position.
If you've got good balance, but you're still shutting your swing off after impact, there's an outside chance your clubs are too long or too heavy, so get your clubs checked by a PPGS certified fitter ONLY! I endorse the fitters on this website, so take advantage of it because they're the best!
Anne has got to try and focus on getting to a good T-finish. I know she says that she has tried, but there's no way she'll be able to improve if she doesn't start swinging up to the finish. You must make it your priority, Anne. If you first mentally aknowledge that you must get to a good finish position, you're on your way. This is where practice swings will really help you. Take some practice swings where you repeatedly swing up to your finish, recoil, and relax. Do it multiple times until you've got it down. Only step up to the ball when you've got a good feel for the swing you want to make. Once you're ready, go ahead and address the ball and swing that feel! Don't let the sound of impact stall your momentum. Keep on swinging, right on up to your T-finish!
Keep it vertical!
The Surge
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Comments
Club fitting
Hi Don,
I am a 68 year old female golfer and have followed your site for a long time. It has certainly helped my game. I recently had a club fitting by one of your certified fitter( Charlie Sampson) in Venice Fl.
What an experience this was. I don't know why it took so long for me to arrange this fitting....but maybe it was a second golf related knee injury! I was so pleased with the degree of special equipment that Charlie used to fit me in the 3 hour session. No comparison to the attempts I made previously at
the normal so called booths at the golf stores. It has been so frustrating to be told there was nothing wrong with the clubs I purchased in the past when they were TOTALLY misfits.
After watching Doc one day I decided to look up a CERTIFIED fitter on your website and arranged my
fitting. Charlie showed me how I was twisting my knee to accommodate my clubs which were way to long and stiff for my frame. I now have a custom set built for me and love them. My husband is so
impressed with my fitting and with the improvement in my game that he is worried I will beat him! He just had a fitting with Charlie and awaits his new set. If you really care about not injuring your body so you can keep enjoying the game...listen to Serge and Doc...find a certified real fitter.
Thank you, Christine Podger
Congratulations
Christine that is a wonderful story and it's great to hear about your progress after getting new PPGS fit clubs. Keep us posted on your game and we love hearing from the ladies out there.
good golfing to you,
Robert M.
T Finish
Surge,
Excellent points today on the importance of the T-finish. I, like Anne, have a tendency to cut off my FUS. I think in my case it's a carry over from my rotational days. My old neighbor who got me started in the game used to call me Arnie...lol. My follow through looked a lot like Arnie's, but the similarity of our games stopped right there. Old habits die hard.
If and when the weather improves I will make it a point to concentrate on a full T-finish on all my practice swings. I know I tend to get lazy with my practice swings and I'm sure that carries over once I'm standing over the shot. As you constantly remind us, it's all about the basics. Once I get my Scots/Irish brain with the program there is hope. ;0))
brains
Doesn't it usually involve the use of scotch to get a Scots/Irish brain with the program?
I'll take a bottle of 18 year
I'll take a bottle of 18 year Bushmills if you please!
:)
I just happen to have a bottle that my fiancée gave me for Christmas.
That is a fine fiancée you
That is a fine fiancée you have there! Keep her! She knows her Irish Whisky! (not Whiskey! that's the Scot's spelling!)
Lucky
She'd say it was a lucky guess. For myself, having ancestors from Scotland and Ireland (and ones who originated in Scotland and moved to Ireland after being on the losing side at the end of the 13th century), I don't mind which produces my scotch. But I did name my dog Whiskey. He's a hard licker.
Wrong sunshine
Whisky is the Scottish beastie sunshine not Whiskey ; - )
Ah crap ya! I just pulled
Ah crap ya! I just pulled out my bottle of 18 yr Jamesons and my 1874 Replica MacAllan..... Whiskey=Irish Whisky=Scottish
An easy mistake to make after a dram or three hahaha.
An easy mistake to make Brady after a dram or three hahaha.
"Here's tae us wha's like us, damn few they're a' died"
Good luck and keep on keeping on DH
Glenfiddich or nothing ; - )
Glenfiddich or nothing ; - )
LOL
DH, I think we have just taken Dick Lee's Food Network to the next level. ;0))
Hmmm
Good point, Robert. Since my alcohol intake has been reduced to an ice cold Coors light on a hot summer's day after mowing the lawn there just may be a correlation. Wait, hold it, you've made me start to think and as we all know, that's never a good thing for me to do. ;0))
T Finish
Lynn42,
Hahaha! Scots/Irish genes are our biggest asset and can be our biggest foe ; - ) Could also be your unconcious trying to hit at the ball Lynn! I used a drill while a rotational swinger to get over that. I hovered the club and prior to making a backswing, I swung the club over the top of the ball towards the target for about 18"inches and then commenced to make my normal swing. Result? Through the ball instead of at it! Now recently on one of my many whims,after setting up to the ball after GBSAPS set up.Just before initiating the BUS I focus on a spot no more than 1" to a Max of 2" in front of the ball [no head movement at all] and looking down my nose, make the swing. It is amazing what a small thing like that can achieve,ie, The best 3W's off the tee I have made in years. Long, great trajectory and carry, and dead on target. As my wife said, "Who needs a driver?"
Balance is the key as Surge emphasized again today. Had major surgery on my left ear some years ago, after having being discovered to have a perforated left ear drum [in the attic of the ear]. Noted a recent ear infection in the other ear affected my swing. So balance problems for a few days : - ( B*gger!
Watching the LPGA Thai Open yesterday, noted that Ai Miyazato the Japanese lady [who has earned over US$7Million so far], had a very PPGS looking swing on shots I saw. Interesting. Waiting patiently [well Scots/Irish patiently heh heh heh], for the restart of the WGC event. May the best man win on the day.
Now off to practice my swing and finish. Don't have too much problem with the T Finish when every thing else clicks.
Feel the swing and Swing the Feel! Absolutely. Love it. DH
Genes
DH, you may be onto something. Not sure if it's in the genes, but I do have a habit of becoming too ball focused and that may be why I have always had to fight against hitting at rather than through the ball.
Snow is mostly gone at the moment and the temp is just above freezing. Perfect weather to head to the backyard with my 8 iron and "feel" the T-finish.
On the topic of hovering, I noticed the last time out when I hovered my driver my grip pressure seemed to remain constant and T-finish just happened. I think grounding the club may lead to increasing grip pressure as my FUS progresses to impact "at" rather than through the ball. Just something for my overactive brain the think about.
AT THE BALL
Hitting at the ball is the same as hitting at somebody's chin. It might sting a little but it's not a knockout punch.
A knockout punch goes through the chin as far as possible with the intention of taking the whole body to the ground. The chin just happens to get in the way.
Another terminology I don't particularly like (for anyone searching for any power) is throwing a sack of potatoes over the shoulder. It's more like throwing a sack of potatoes over a bar 10 feet over your head. No power is going to come from the arms folding too soon.
Edit:
Coincidence: I wrote this comment a few hours ago and just now got around to watching the video. I had no clue that Surge used a punch as an example in his video and I used the same example in this comment.
What are the odds of that? Hahahaha!
"At" the ball
No question that power is lost when we don't swing through the ball. It's not a problem when there is no ball sitting there. I just went out with a couple of irons and no ball and absolutely no problem getting through to a T-finish. Put a ball on the ground and something goes a bit haywire in my brain.
I don't recall who the pro is, but the story goes he was told to swing as hard or fast as possible when he was learning the game and then dial it back to insure more accuracy and control. I'll get there sooner or later.
Palmer, I think
I believe that's a line Arnold Palmer said about how his father taught him to play, "Swing hard, boy, in case you hit it."
Finishing...and Starting
My wife constantly has the same problem. She just can't seem to get past thinking the shot is over as soon as impact happens.
She also has a problem on the other side of the ball. She wants to start hitting at the ball way too soon...Sometimes before she is even half way back.
Like many people her practice swings usually look pretty good but far too often the real swing looks nothing like the practice swing.
It's a shame she can't get the full shots down because her short game is very, very good.
Of course her main problem is that she has the dreaded not-willing-to-practice DNA.
Possible solution
Steve,
Sounds like your wife has fun playing but does not like to practice. Not uncommon I guess as my Cindy is similar in that way. She is at point where she loves to play but would rather not "work" at it. She feels that we can practice enough when we play. Actually that is true as long as we don't have players waiting behind us. I often let her hit two or three balls To get a shot right and coach her as we go. Fortunately we don't get offended easily and really want to know how to improve. That often is rare in a marriage when it comes to a husband and or wife 'telling' each other what to do !
On another note, i've always admired that awesome net set up you have in your back woods yard 'driving range. Very cool. I just ordered a new 'backyard driving range'. Actually just another net. Getting the Callaway 6x7 tri-ball net.
http://www.amazon.com/Callaway-C10-NET-Tri-Ball-Hitting-Net/dp/B005THTJWE 72.00 with shipping.
My last one got ripped apart by the wind last summer. this one may be slightly sturdier I hope. One thing I'll do different this time is add some extra support ties first thing so it has a fighting chance when the high winds blow as they will.
Good news is it is about the price of 7-8 large buckets of balls so I figure it'll pay for itself either way without the trips to the range and the convenience of the backyard. Can remain in my PJ's (or less) and practice in the morning or after work. Yes my walls are tall, lol!
Any how, back to the wife thing, Cindy's gradually learning to zip it and normally has a nice full finish. Her biggest challenge has been getting to her front left foot at swings end and not on her heels and back foot. We work on that all the time. She has actually started hitting her 5 wood longer and getting it up in the air. Yesterday she was really pleased hitting it. She reached the green on an up hill 125 yard par three with a laser. Just missed the flag and settled on the back fringe about 135 from the tee. Formerly she would have used her driver on a shot like that. Now, driver is giving her a steady 150-160 with roll out too. She is thrilled because she finally is able to reach several of the greens in regulation now. I used to let her tee up her first shot (drive) from the middle of the fairway about 30-40 yards up from the "ladies" tee. I also use to let her tee it up anywhere and any time in any fairway. That really helped her build confidence. Now she hits off the normal forward tees and does quite well. I am hoping to get back east this year and get her some time with Surge.
I know much of this may not have applied to your situation Steve so keep in mind that some (or all of) my thoughts may have no bearing on your situation and with your wife. Perhaps it may serve as inspiration for some of the ladies (and husbands) that there is a progressive way to get better and it can come with a measure of persistence patients so they should hang in there.
Mentality
My wife enjoys playing but she has very little desire to practice or train to get better. That's not just in golf but in everything. Pretty much the complete opposite from me. I guess it's because she grew up in a family that didn't play sports and there wasn't much difference in winning and losing and I grew up in a family where we were expected to give it everything we had, on and off the field to be as good as we could be.
Nothing wrong with either and her way is certainly a more peaceful existence. LOL
For some strange reason she hit the ball better today than she ever has, and had a complete back swing and a very nice finish. Where that came from I haven't a clue, especially since it was the most miserable weather conditions we have ever played in (and that's saying something).
I touched on the subject a few days ago with Simply Golf but I have done a lot of experimenting with my R9 driver lately and I think I finally figured out the root of my problems. Over the last few years I have tried almost every possible combination of adjustments. Some of them even gave me a degree of success but never got the results I feel like I am capable of. Different lengths, head wieghts, and draw or fade bias only seemed like looking for that needle in a haystack.
Finally I focused only on the shaft performance, and nothing else, and it really feels like I hit the jackpot. With the head set either open or closed to any degree it feels like I am wrestling with a cobra during the entire swing. With the club head at "Neutral" there is none of that feeling and the shaft performs perfectly. Even though I would prefer the face to be open the shaft simply doesn't perform well enough at that setting to allow it (so neutral it is from now on).
I shot a very comfortable 1 under today in the most miserable conditions possible and Mike shot 3 under.
So I guess the moral of the story is that when the weather is so bad that you feel like a fool for being out there it may be worth it to stick it out anyway. Haha!
P.S. Weathermen are ignorant fools. It was supposed to be partly sunny, 54 degrees, and 3 mph winds.
Shafted
Weather people tend to be dramatic and ignorant. And animated. And wrong.
Please.....weather people....If ya really don't know, please say so.
And if I have hurt someone's feelings...then I deeply, sincerely say that I have hurt someone's feelings. Yawn.
Ironically, Mr. Smith, I may just re-tweak my R9 doohickeys back to original neutral settings. Then go let 'er rip. I mean really, what's the worst that can happen ? Once again, less may be more.
R9
The problem is that it's hard to say for sure where the optimum shaft position is. Could be Neutral, Right, Left, or the positions in between.
It would be a stroke of luck if the optimum shaft position just happened to match up with the optimum club face position. What's even worse is that maybe none of the settings happen to be the right shaft position.
Funny that you never hear the club manufacturers mention that drawback to their adjustable drivers. I heard one guy say that he "would never play a club that wasn't spined and flowed". Then he said he had an R11 (I hope he doesn't adjust it).
A club fitter could get it right but only if it was never adjusted from that setting.
T Finish
I have really struggled with the T finish. I keep pushing the ball off to the right. But last month in Florida I discovered a fix that might help others. Don says to swing the arms with some force. If I swing my arms hard, the momentum carries me up to a T finish with no conscious thought! Suddenly I can hit a straight ball! You might concentrate on a strong swing through the ball and quit worrying about a T finish for a while. Life is good!
Force
I agree with you about the force, IMHO I think males are naturally aggressive beings and apply both physical and mental aggression at the ball, ie we are still dominantly neanderthals, we want to smash it. I think Anne needs to change her attitude and apply more agression. I know that when juniors are being coached at an early age, they are told to develop a swing first and the adjustments come later, if Anne wants more finish she needs more aggression. ANNE MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU, lol.
Rare mixture
Power and common sense rarely collide...But when they do it's a beautiful thing. LOL
Most of the time it turns out like Tiger did against Howell today on one of the par 3s. He just had to try the 186 yard 9 iron because Howell hit the 8.
Who cares if you are 15 yards short if you "showed" him who was boss?
(All tongue in cheek). LOL
Bits and Pieces of PPGS
I receive a newsletter from the PGA.com each week. On the one I received today, I noted this:
TIP OF THE WEEK
"A proper stance is crucial when it comes to hitting a solid golf shot. Make sure your feet are shoulder-width apart. If your stance is too wide or too narrow, it will inhibit your swing."
— PGA Professional Sean Dougherty
Seems that a lot of PGA Professionals are slowly coming on board with Surge's teachings. I hope they don't take as long as Surge took to put it all together. All they need to do is get the PPGS manuals and videos.
Another area of note
Kevin,
you are certainly right that many teachers and players alike are gradually seeing the wisdom of doing things in a more body friendly way. Coincidence that many mimic Surges teachings? Maybe but not likely. One more recent example is Kenny Perry who because of torquing his front knee for too many years (think Tiger Woods) has discovered that if he flares the front foot more it relieves much of the pain and has allowed him to continue playing.
T-Finish
Don,
I love your teachings but wish you could be more concise and brief. There are many free tips offered by others on the internet but it seems to take you 10 minutes to say what others can say in 1-2 minutes. It would help if you wouldn't repeat (word for word) the questions which are submitted. We are all smart enough to read these questions ourselves. I hope this is regarded as constructive criticism.
JB
Constructive?
Maybe those other instructors don't go into the detail of different scenarios that could be causing a problem. Maybe they don't care enough to give a shout out in their video to the person that wrote in the question. In this video in particular Surge went out of his way, and spent an extra bit of time, addressing the ladies that might be reading the blog.
It's clear that several people don't like a video longer than a few minutes but the rest of us like them just fine the way they are. In addition to that (and most important) Surge should do his videos any way he chooses.
A tip for the impatient:
As the video starts click ahead on the time line to about 1 1/2 minutes and you can avoid listening to the reading of the question and the intro.
JB
Take this as a constructive criticism mate please. You have choices in life. You say that you love Surge's teachings.Hmm! Not enough to be patient with his homespun style evidently. Stop watching perhaps? No, then how about fast forwarding to the end of the opening introduction after having read it?
You must have a VERY Busy schedule JB to be so critical of a few minutes of what could be game changing tips from Surge. For the record, the one on the Ultimate Target & Alignment Test alone, I watched it 3 times already and may yet again.
Impatience is one of the game killers in this fascinating but frustrating sport. Perhaps you should do yourself a favour and have a wee dram and take a look at yourself.We never see ourselves as others see us. Good luck with your impatience issues. Hit them long and straight DH
Rare Mixture
Steve:
Total agreement here. It is a Rare thing indeed. Many males are over aggressive and impressed with the "I can hit an 8 iron xxxx yards" -- personally, I am more impressed with accuracy.
Several of my golfing companions get into trouble because of overaggressive attitudes -- "kill the ball" "it's going long -- somewhere" etc. They usually play from the woods or the adjoining fairway -- and pull or push the approach shot enough to be in greenside bunker or rough.
Meanwhile, in general, I have "dew-bopped" it down middle, hit something near the green, chip on and one or two putt. Keeps me at least competitive with them -- and frequently "winning" -- either the hole or the match.
keep hitting them STRAIGHT and LONG
Amos
T/Finish
Hi Ann
This is Director of Instruction Europe
I have had a number of Pupils come to the schools in Europe that have a similar problem
Two things to try
1. Go to a full finish then swing back and forward
2. Pretend there is someone taking a photo of your finish and you have to look good
I have some schools in Spain in March and have a few spaces
Hope this helps
Malcom
T FINISH
I believe I have the same problem as Anne has. I do not always swing up to a good T finish and tend to cut off my follow through. Its only when I really focus before the shot that I need to have a good follow through does it happen. Of course adding another swing thought screws me up in other aspects of my swing. I also have a problem that I cannot seem to get good height on my swings (other than driver). While not all are worm burners I usually only get about maybe 10-12 feet off the ground. Could this be a result of not having a good follow through too?? This low trajectory often leads to balls hitting the green and going through it rather than hitting and stopping like I would get from a higher trajectory. Does anyone have any hints/tips for this that I can work on. It should be noted that my clubs were fitted by Doc so its the indian and not the arrows.
P.S. Good post by Christine and her fitting by Charlie. He is great to work with.
P.P.S. Don or TOM....are you going to have the Spring Tournament again this year at Old South during the Heritage at HH?
ret I have spoken to Don and
ret I have spoken to Don and it looks like the HH tourney during the Heritage will not be able to be held this year. Don has to many other events happening this spring to be able to do HH.
He is thinking maybe this fall sometime, may or may not be at Old South. By mid summer he will let us know
Hal
Thanks for the info Hal.
Thanks for the info Hal.