Making A Swing Change - Learning From Tiger

Lee36328 wrote:

Just came back from the range. The swing keys that worked last time seemed to stop working. Had to revisit some of the recent few swing keys until I assembled a set that finally worked - sorta like a restaurant's menu, but instead of soup of the day we got swing key of the day.

This used to puzzle me until I realized, my body's tendency each time is different from the last. So today for instance, because i rested a couple of days, the right side was too strong and I kept hitting baby hooks. Had to deliberately force the left side to power up before the right balance was achieved.

I bet tomorrow, the left side will be too flexible and I'll hit pushes, until I balance the two sides again. Sigh!

And right on cue, the following day after I wrote that, the hook and push started balancing out, and the dispersion got smaller.

Another I noticed when taking a swing change to the course, I have room in my mind for two things.

First is feel. This is how the movement as a whole feels to the body.

Second is swing thought. And I find having ONE and only one swing thought works best for me.

Feel will improve over the first few holes as I warm up, get used to my body's state for the day, and get used to the course.

Swing thought is based on what last worked at the range before the game. And adjusted after reading the first few ball flights of the day at the course. A small hook will required a different swing thought compared to a slight push, for instance.

By mid round, I am usually in a groove, and feel and swing thought are well-balanced.

By the end of the round, depending on the weather/humidity/heat, I may be getting tired, and the ball flight starts to stray. The feel starts to feel 'loose.' I consciously slow down a touch to get the feel back, and re-calibrate the swing thought to match.

Common mistakes to avoid:
- choosing half-club to short, requiring a 'perfect maximum swing.' When you put too much demand on the swing, the delicate balance is lost and the result is usually poor. Far better to take 1 extra club length and swing easy and in balance
- thinking you can swing the same maximum distance at the last few holes. When you start, you may hit 100m with the SW. By 18th hole, take the AW or PW to hit 100m.
- too many full-bore practice swings. Our energy level is finite. Each practice swing consumes energy. Pacing ourselves is very important.