Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Dont expect miracles in the first lesson.

Too many people take a lesson once or twice a year (or even every 3,4,5 years) and expect all their swing faults too be analysed and corrected in one lesson. It’s too much information for one golfer to absorb in an hour. Muscle memory takes time and patience. Book in for a series with you golf pro and see what happens after 6 – 12 months. Spending 4,5,6 hundred on lessons over a year will do you much more than spending 75 on a lesson every other year. (providing you practise properly and use the drills your instructor will give you). Every Golf instructor wants to see his students improve, They are into serious consistant improvement rather than a band aid fix – Unforunately a long term fix isnt possible in 1 lesson.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

remember what I told you!

You have to block out advice from everyone except your coach!

you should have his mobile (cell) number. Text him or call him – he shouldn’t mind.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Ducky,
remember also that after a lesson most people don’t play their next round very well and are tempted to go back to their old ways. Stick with the new way and it will start to feel comfortable within a couple of rounds. As golf guru says don’t work on too many things at once – it just creates confusion.

Also keep the new technique thoughts for the practice range. During the competion round you want to be creating good mental pictures not thinking about where you clubface is during your backwsing!

Cheers
Tracy

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Good work Ducky sounds like it’s going well.

My FIL changed my grip and it felt so bad, i was in the no 2 bracket i knew i stank i had a baseball grip, but after alot of practice swinging and a visit to the range it feels gumby the other way.

Andrew

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Ducky: remember to stick to your pro’s plan and use all the forum stuff as background banter. He will teach you better than all you can read for sure. What you can use this place for is working out what questions to ask him when people suggest something to you.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Does your pro have an e-mail address? If so, send him one and describe the problem.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Very good alignment point there Spence. Your heels are a better reference than your toes.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Duckboy
Check your alignment also.
Lay a club at your heels when you think you are setup, then stand back and look down the line, you may be setting up too closed.
In essence you may be hitting it straight but to the right where you are aligned, when you think you are aligned straight down the fairway.

The club at the heels is good as when you flare your toes it can give a false imression of where you are actually aligned, but the heels stay the same.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Just reading the ‘list’ I would like to suggest calling #4 Automatic competence. That fits in perfectly with Clear Keys with your ego allowing you to play like an unemotional spectator and just letting it all happen.

duckboy: shanks are likely a pivot issue (article is posted on that one) as is the right side block.

Well done with your progress. Chip chip chip. Do not advance too far from that or you will find it harder to build a solid impact zone base of knowledge. ie do not rush up the food chain in a hurry to go play 18.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

My old golf coach (same guy who coached Roger Davis as a young pro) taught me grip and swing plane – no technical analysis and nothing to clog my mind. Of course we did some simple drills, usually starting at very short shots working up to a full swing. Got my handicap from 24 to 9 inside a year.

My (potential) new golf coach has armed himself with lots of technology. It will be interesting to see how my 1st lesson will go but I was impressed when he said we’ll start on the putting green as this is where I’ll save many shots a round if I can get a better roll happening.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Don’t forget it is a cycle. You only get to 4) in some respects then have to go back to 1) and start again with the rest for ever.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Remember that there are different stages of learning:

1) Unconscious incompetent – you don’t know how bad you are

2) Conscious incompetent – you know you stink and take lessons!

3) Conscious competent – you know what to do but have to keep checking you’re doing it right and in the right order.

4) unconscious competent – playing great golf without wondering how!

I like that Styles, I’ve gone from 1 to 2 and am now sitting halfway between 2 and 3. It’s good to have targets and now I’m definitely aiming for 3.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Glad it went well Duckboy. (it was me that suggested the notes though :P)

You should be practicing those fundamentals constantly – you don’t even need a golf club to practice your grip, you can keep a sawn off grip beside you – I remember at school practicing with a ruler :)

Remember that there are different stages of learning:

1) Unconscious incompetent – you don’t know how bad you are

2) Conscious incompetent – you know you stink and take lessons!

3) Conscious competent – you know what to do but have to keep checking you’re doing it right and in the right order.

4) unconscious competent – playing great golf without wondering how!

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

I find the first week to two weeks after a lesson are really important now. If alot of changes are made, make a checklist in your head and go through it before you hit each shot and very importantly, get down to the range and practice these changes. Try everyday to really ingrain the changes. Even just swinging infront of a mirror at home is good as long you are ingraining those changes. Gets a bit harder when your last lesson was bunker shots, but we can cross that bridge when we get to it. After a lesson I really try to get down there the next 3 days and practice exclusively the part of my game just done. My advice is only play a round of golf if you are happy to hit 200. In that I mean when out on the course, if you have the slightest care for your score then you will likely revert to old habits if the scoring gets worse.

However, i’m acutely aware of the need to consolidate the lessons learned and keep persisting.

That is the right attitude to have. Stay true to what you have been taught and odds on you will be a better golfer for it.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

I love that bit of advice “never rush your game”. Too many players think the cut to the chase will allow them to fill in the gaps they left behind in the plot. All that ever happens is falling into the gaping cracks.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

and another thing…...Duckboy…In my professional opinion, one lesson is good to start with, go and work on what you have been shown for a few weeks and if there is improvement, go back and see your pro again to get your next lesson. NEVER rush your game even though you wish to improve or be more consistent. Hopefully, your pro has a camera/software and will do this for you?
Best of luck (we all need luck at times)

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Learning your teachers vocab is critical. ASK what he means by any term he uses otherwise a missed meaning can lead to major train wrecks. Assume nothing.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

P>

oh, one other suggestion. Take a piece of paper and write down what the pro wants you to work on. Incidentally, he should really only be giving you one or two things at a time. If he gives you half a dozen changes at your first lesson, forget him.

This is a must. I have half page notes from each lesson I have. It’s divided into sections:

Aim of the lesson .e.g developing lag
Purpose: e.g develop power through the swing
Teacher’s comments: e.g pivot plus lag = power
Drills instructed.

There’s nothing worse than trying to remember what you talked about and second guessing yourself until the next lesson when you waste time going over something again. At least if you have notes it may flick the switch a little.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Commit to only listening to your teaching pro – your mates may suggest something, you’ve got to trust your teacher – he may be getting you to overcompensate on something so that when you go back it feels more natural.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

duckboy, it sounds like you know the right things to say – you’re saying them all here. Repeat what you’ve told us. Assure the pro that you are willing to put the hours in at the range – pros love guys who take what they say on board and come back a month later and it shows they’ve been working at it.

Realise that your scores may get worse before they get better.

Commit to only listening to your teaching pro – your mates may suggest something, you’ve got to trust your teacher – he may be getting you to overcompensate on something so that when you go back it feels more natural.

Good luck with it.

oh, one other suggestion. Take a piece of paper and write down what the pro wants you to work on. Incidentally, he should really only be giving you one or two things at a time. If he gives you half a dozen changes at your first lesson, forget him.

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

Write down a list of what you think is important and grade it from most critical to not that urgent. Be very specific about what you want and how you wish to get from A to B. If you can discuss these objectives with the pro before you get to the practise tee, then you will get alot more from the lesson, time wise. Instead of spending alot of the lesson time trying to understand each other.
Jon…

Topic: First Lesson Tomorrow. Looking for advice.

not questions, but suggestions.
Be open to what he has to say, but if you dont “click” find someone that you do with. By that I mean everyone learns in a different way and he if he only teaches in one way, cant teach in the way you learn, he isnt right for you.

If you stick with him, be honest and say what you think. Tell him what you want to achieve. Being acceptable to several lessons will help your cause.

Hopefully he will start by watching and listening, asking questions of you. From that he will learn if you learn by feel, mechanics, listening, doing or hearing. Some people learn by being told what needs to happen, ask questions and will thrive. Others need be shown, some need to see it happen.

You will hear about mechanics and feel. That is all about how you learn. You may be the kind of person that when told roll your wrist through impact and keep a flat left wrist, can do it. Or you may learn better by him giving you a suggestion you relate to (like point your knuckles to the ground), or you may need him to grab hold of your hands and manipulate them through impact.

He needs to understand you as well as a golf swing. good luck and enjoy.