Thanks Casey that was a great explanation of setup position. Well Done !!!
Heading to Course now…
If practicing your golf game feels like a waste of time to you, then it is.
You need to stay engaged in your practice through drills (training motions
and feelings) or simulations (emulating on-course situations)…in either
case, you need an active, engaged mindset. Without this focus, you are
indeed wasting your time practicing…never mindlessly beat balls…when
this happens, just go play…you’ll be better off.
Sonyitv76: Although I haven’t seen your swing, generally a more lofted
driver is going to be a great idea for beginners. It will be easier to get
the ball up into the air, and also, with more loft on the clubface, this
will help reduce sidespin (straighter shots). For beginners, squaring up
the clubface at impact is one of the biggest challenges. The more loft you
have, generally the more margin for error. For example, I’m sure you hit
your 9 iron straighter than your driver! Write any time!
I recommend a slight “pre-set” or weight shift in driver setup to some
students as well. This helps with loading onto the right side more simply
in the backswing without sliding or shifting. Tee shots require a slight
upward angle of attack, and staying centered behind the ball at impact is a
requirement for good driving. That said, for most players, a 50/50 stance
is cool as long as ball position is correct and there are no major swing
issues in play. Trust your guy, he knows your game 😉
Sorry for another question this is my last one. Should the end of the grip
always stay at the Sam spot for each club. Or does it move
Hi Casey, I’ve watched all your vids and I think they’re worth more than
any lesson I’ve paid money for with my local UK pro’s! Excellent
instructions, thanks for posting them, they’ve helped me fall in love with
the game again. Best wishes from the UK
Hey Casey, one important thing to add is that sometimes players get there
hands to far in front of the ball at address, with the driver. I was doing
it too. A lot of coaches say to place the hands across from the belt
buckle. It sure helped me, now I am hitting the ball much better.
these videos combined with lessons have been priceless in improving my
game. thanks Casey, well done!
Jordan: Most every tournament golfer will agree…when you find a driver
that works, don’t mess with it! 300yds is plenty…if you’re not scoring, I
assure you an extra 30 crooked yads to satisfy your ego will not help. Keep
your driver, and take your friends’ money! If you must change, I’m thinking
you need a shaft with absolute minimal torque, and prob X flex. Try some
drivers with a touch more loft to help you hit it straighter. I’d give up a
couple yards for accuracy EVERY time. Good luck!
I last played over 5 years ago an now class myself a beginner again.I
understand what you say regarding loft.in your professional opinion were on
the club surface would you impact the ball iv watched on tv an seen them
hitting close to the stem? Iv saw your video on the height of the tee.it
would seem correct to generate more power close but I hit in the middle is
this correct? Many thanks for your reply means alot to a guy over the pond.
With the driver, the direction the ball travels is almost exclusively
determined by the angle of the clubface at impact. If you are slicing to
the right, your clubface is open (facing right) at impact. This is physics.
Over time, your swing has evolved to approach the ball from the outside-in,
leading to a shot that starts more to the left…after all, a shot starting
left is the only chance you may have to keep the ball in play! 😉 My advice
is to adjust your grip.
Good question…and I think an area that confuses a lot of people.
Obviously, as we move the ball away from the center of our stance, unless
one arm is longer than the other, our shoulders are going to fall out of
line. I suggest, rather than allowing your shoulder to open relative to the
target line (rotating slightly horizontally) that you allow your right
shoulder to sink just a bit lower than your left. This way, your shoulder
lines will still be parallel left of the target line…continued-
I’m right handed. I tried going to your website but it says the link is
invalid. (Could be user error though). Thanks for the help!
Sorry for slow response Jay Smooth…thanks for the comments. I agree with
alignment aids…easy to do, and very helpful to train yourself over time.
Everyone just assumes they are setting up squarely to the target without
checking…next time you go to a Tour event, check out how many pros are
constantly working on alignment. If they need to work on it, I’ve got to
think I need to work on it too! Good luck!
All the best!
About-Golf org/articles (need to add “.”). Generally, when you rotate your
hands around the club to the left, this promotes a slice or open clubface
at impact. Conversely, rotating right leads to a closed clubface. You may
have these guidelines reversed? It seems like your “power grip” is a big
time slice grip. The goal is to find the middle ground where club is square
at impact without compensating/rolling/flipping…relaxed through the ball.
Let’s keep talking…happy to help & good luck
i am a pretty good golfer and play low scores but where if lose shot is
from the tee with my driver i intent tohit the ball straight and the all of
a sudden it kicks abot 90degrees right when in the middle of the stans i
hit it straiight but not the real distance i hit when infront i would like
it if you give me some advice casey it would mean alot and help me improve
my game
Very true shredx81…there is a relatively wide range of personal
preference inherent in any successful golf swing. As instructors, we cannot
interfere with a person’s body type and/or limitations. If you look at the
guys on Tour, there are all sorts of ways to get it done. That said, there
are certain inarguable physical truths, or laws that define how the ball
behaves. We need to do our best to accommodate these laws and understand
true causes and effects to improve. Great comment…good luck!
Jay, I checked out your swing. My thoughts: you have lots of power/speed,
but probably need to focus on consistency and control. 2 things: 1. Less
hand action/wrist rolling in take away. Rolling on the way back means you
have to unroll on the way through…complicates things. Rehearse what I
call the 9:00 position on the way back…when shaft is parallel to ground,
should be parallel to target line, toe up (not quite vertical). Currently,
shaft is too far around your body…simple is better.
hi. I am new to golf and seem to be hitting everything ok apart from the
driver. The majority of my tee off shots seem to cut the grass and hook to
the left. Any advice that can help this would be greatly appreciated. Good
video as well. Cheers
well…you had me interested until I saw you swing….
Casey, thank you for your videos. So many golf “lesson” videos I find on
youtube are put up by people who are just trying to sell themselves. I like
the way you use simple language, it helps me to kind of “trick” my brain
into figuring out how to tell my body to do the right things. You helped me
just now to really understand why its important to move the ball forward in
your stance when hitting the driver. Cant wait to hit the range tomorrow,
now that I have something different to think about.
Evans: Aplogies for getting philosophical, but this is a question every
golfer faces…go with what works, or what may be considered “correct”.
Some of the best players in the world are unorthodox. Missing the
fundamentals may limit your potential.I’d need to see your swing to have
opinion. I’ll say the driver is the longest club, and so long as you have
athletic, balanced posture, you should be further from the ball. I say stay
balanced, square, and rip it! Good luck! (send vid if you like)
I appreciate the feedback RandomsforFuns. Let me know if you have any
questions. I’m happy to help or make a new video so everyone can benefit.
Good luck!
Awesome video! Thanks for sharing.?
Thanks Casey that was a great explanation of setup position. Well Done !!!
Heading to Course now…
If practicing your golf game feels like a waste of time to you, then it is.
You need to stay engaged in your practice through drills (training motions
and feelings) or simulations (emulating on-course situations)…in either
case, you need an active, engaged mindset. Without this focus, you are
indeed wasting your time practicing…never mindlessly beat balls…when
this happens, just go play…you’ll be better off.
Sonyitv76: Although I haven’t seen your swing, generally a more lofted
driver is going to be a great idea for beginners. It will be easier to get
the ball up into the air, and also, with more loft on the clubface, this
will help reduce sidespin (straighter shots). For beginners, squaring up
the clubface at impact is one of the biggest challenges. The more loft you
have, generally the more margin for error. For example, I’m sure you hit
your 9 iron straighter than your driver! Write any time!
I recommend a slight “pre-set” or weight shift in driver setup to some
students as well. This helps with loading onto the right side more simply
in the backswing without sliding or shifting. Tee shots require a slight
upward angle of attack, and staying centered behind the ball at impact is a
requirement for good driving. That said, for most players, a 50/50 stance
is cool as long as ball position is correct and there are no major swing
issues in play. Trust your guy, he knows your game 😉
Sorry for another question this is my last one. Should the end of the grip
always stay at the Sam spot for each club. Or does it move
Hi Casey, I’ve watched all your vids and I think they’re worth more than
any lesson I’ve paid money for with my local UK pro’s! Excellent
instructions, thanks for posting them, they’ve helped me fall in love with
the game again. Best wishes from the UK
Hey Casey, one important thing to add is that sometimes players get there
hands to far in front of the ball at address, with the driver. I was doing
it too. A lot of coaches say to place the hands across from the belt
buckle. It sure helped me, now I am hitting the ball much better.
these videos combined with lessons have been priceless in improving my
game. thanks Casey, well done!
Jordan: Most every tournament golfer will agree…when you find a driver
that works, don’t mess with it! 300yds is plenty…if you’re not scoring, I
assure you an extra 30 crooked yads to satisfy your ego will not help. Keep
your driver, and take your friends’ money! If you must change, I’m thinking
you need a shaft with absolute minimal torque, and prob X flex. Try some
drivers with a touch more loft to help you hit it straighter. I’d give up a
couple yards for accuracy EVERY time. Good luck!
I last played over 5 years ago an now class myself a beginner again.I
understand what you say regarding loft.in your professional opinion were on
the club surface would you impact the ball iv watched on tv an seen them
hitting close to the stem? Iv saw your video on the height of the tee.it
would seem correct to generate more power close but I hit in the middle is
this correct? Many thanks for your reply means alot to a guy over the pond.
With the driver, the direction the ball travels is almost exclusively
determined by the angle of the clubface at impact. If you are slicing to
the right, your clubface is open (facing right) at impact. This is physics.
Over time, your swing has evolved to approach the ball from the outside-in,
leading to a shot that starts more to the left…after all, a shot starting
left is the only chance you may have to keep the ball in play! 😉 My advice
is to adjust your grip.
Good question…and I think an area that confuses a lot of people.
Obviously, as we move the ball away from the center of our stance, unless
one arm is longer than the other, our shoulders are going to fall out of
line. I suggest, rather than allowing your shoulder to open relative to the
target line (rotating slightly horizontally) that you allow your right
shoulder to sink just a bit lower than your left. This way, your shoulder
lines will still be parallel left of the target line…continued-
I’m right handed. I tried going to your website but it says the link is
invalid. (Could be user error though). Thanks for the help!
Sorry for slow response Jay Smooth…thanks for the comments. I agree with
alignment aids…easy to do, and very helpful to train yourself over time.
Everyone just assumes they are setting up squarely to the target without
checking…next time you go to a Tour event, check out how many pros are
constantly working on alignment. If they need to work on it, I’ve got to
think I need to work on it too! Good luck!
All the best!
About-Golf org/articles (need to add “.”). Generally, when you rotate your
hands around the club to the left, this promotes a slice or open clubface
at impact. Conversely, rotating right leads to a closed clubface. You may
have these guidelines reversed? It seems like your “power grip” is a big
time slice grip. The goal is to find the middle ground where club is square
at impact without compensating/rolling/flipping…relaxed through the ball.
Let’s keep talking…happy to help & good luck
i am a pretty good golfer and play low scores but where if lose shot is
from the tee with my driver i intent tohit the ball straight and the all of
a sudden it kicks abot 90degrees right when in the middle of the stans i
hit it straiight but not the real distance i hit when infront i would like
it if you give me some advice casey it would mean alot and help me improve
my game
Very true shredx81…there is a relatively wide range of personal
preference inherent in any successful golf swing. As instructors, we cannot
interfere with a person’s body type and/or limitations. If you look at the
guys on Tour, there are all sorts of ways to get it done. That said, there
are certain inarguable physical truths, or laws that define how the ball
behaves. We need to do our best to accommodate these laws and understand
true causes and effects to improve. Great comment…good luck!
Jay, I checked out your swing. My thoughts: you have lots of power/speed,
but probably need to focus on consistency and control. 2 things: 1. Less
hand action/wrist rolling in take away. Rolling on the way back means you
have to unroll on the way through…complicates things. Rehearse what I
call the 9:00 position on the way back…when shaft is parallel to ground,
should be parallel to target line, toe up (not quite vertical). Currently,
shaft is too far around your body…simple is better.
hi. I am new to golf and seem to be hitting everything ok apart from the
driver. The majority of my tee off shots seem to cut the grass and hook to
the left. Any advice that can help this would be greatly appreciated. Good
video as well. Cheers
well…you had me interested until I saw you swing….
Casey, thank you for your videos. So many golf “lesson” videos I find on
youtube are put up by people who are just trying to sell themselves. I like
the way you use simple language, it helps me to kind of “trick” my brain
into figuring out how to tell my body to do the right things. You helped me
just now to really understand why its important to move the ball forward in
your stance when hitting the driver. Cant wait to hit the range tomorrow,
now that I have something different to think about.
Evans: Aplogies for getting philosophical, but this is a question every
golfer faces…go with what works, or what may be considered “correct”.
Some of the best players in the world are unorthodox. Missing the
fundamentals may limit your potential.I’d need to see your swing to have
opinion. I’ll say the driver is the longest club, and so long as you have
athletic, balanced posture, you should be further from the ball. I say stay
balanced, square, and rip it! Good luck! (send vid if you like)
I appreciate the feedback RandomsforFuns. Let me know if you have any
questions. I’m happy to help or make a new video so everyone can benefit.
Good luck!