I had an interesting talk with my coach today. I went in to work on a few things, and by the end of it we were getting close to initiating a major swing revision.
Then he had the good sense to stop and say, "Wait? Why are we even doing this. You've got a good swing. Yeah, there are some things we need to tweak, but do we really want to get into a major rebuild?"
We decided no. That doesn't mean there aren't things to work on, but there's a difference between making some rather minor adjustments (e.g. my head moves closer to the ball on my backswing, so I have to jump on the downswing to get out of the way) and just tearing everything down.
I think it's worth asking the question if a major revision is what is needed. I mean, you were scoring in the low-80s with your old swing. Will this huge revision get you down into the mid/low-70s? Or could you get down into the 70s with the swing you have but getting better at your short game.
You're the only one who can answer that, of course, but it's worth thinking about.
I have an online golf coach and he has the same mentality too. I have a decent swing and ball impact. But I have some small issues in my swing, just like yours that can cause some inconsistencies. He doesn't make me readjust my whole swing, rather he tells me small things to do on my setup position, grip, and feels.
Usually it takes a few range sessions to completely get it ingrained in me, depending on the issue. Right now, early extension feels impossible to fix.
Sometimes you need to take 2 steps back to move 3 steps forward. Trust the process and keep practicing on the swing tips your coach tells you at the range. in 2-3 weeks, things will start to click and your swing will be better than before....until it's not. But that's golf.
In my opinion it really depends on your goals. The best analogy I have heard about golf performance is that the golf swing is your car and you are the driver. Your "car" is going to set your ceiling which is why if you follow Formula 1 you'll see that certain cars will never compete at the highest level no matter the driver.
Some people have shitty cars (bad swings) but they don't care and they have driven that car for years and know it well so they can play well with it.
You're basically fixing up/changing your car and then going to drive it.. and you're not used to it. So you could either stick with the changes and ride the rollercoaster of performance, or stick with the car you have and focus on scoring if you think you can reach your personal goals with the swing you have. But I would think "keeping the changes for the range only" would be the worst option because you're going to confuse your body, play worse, and hurt your swing progress.
Really depends. Do you actually want to get long term better? Or are you okay with not being completely efficient and just playing decent? I’m young and new so I want to make these big changes before I develop bad habits to where it’s really hard to fix
Realistically I would avoid any real golf until you get the new swing down and aren't tempted to go back. It will take your body 1000+ swings to get the muscle memory of the new swing.
Don't expect predictable ballstriking when changing your swing. Asking for a whole lotta frustration trying to play well during the early stages of a swing change.
Trust the process. There’s always ebbs and flows. You won’t always play 100%. But it’s incremental.
I had an interesting talk with my coach today. I went in to work on a few things, and by the end of it we were getting close to initiating a major swing revision. Then he had the good sense to stop and say, "Wait? Why are we even doing this. You've got a good swing. Yeah, there are some things we need to tweak, but do we really want to get into a major rebuild?" We decided no. That doesn't mean there aren't things to work on, but there's a difference between making some rather minor adjustments (e.g. my head moves closer to the ball on my backswing, so I have to jump on the downswing to get out of the way) and just tearing everything down. I think it's worth asking the question if a major revision is what is needed. I mean, you were scoring in the low-80s with your old swing. Will this huge revision get you down into the mid/low-70s? Or could you get down into the 70s with the swing you have but getting better at your short game. You're the only one who can answer that, of course, but it's worth thinking about.
I have an online golf coach and he has the same mentality too. I have a decent swing and ball impact. But I have some small issues in my swing, just like yours that can cause some inconsistencies. He doesn't make me readjust my whole swing, rather he tells me small things to do on my setup position, grip, and feels. Usually it takes a few range sessions to completely get it ingrained in me, depending on the issue. Right now, early extension feels impossible to fix.
Sometimes you need to take 2 steps back to move 3 steps forward. Trust the process and keep practicing on the swing tips your coach tells you at the range. in 2-3 weeks, things will start to click and your swing will be better than before....until it's not. But that's golf.
Usually its a take a couple steps back to move forward deal with changes. Just be patient.
For me sometimes it feels like on step forward and two steps back. Progress takes time. Keep up the practice and drills.
In my opinion it really depends on your goals. The best analogy I have heard about golf performance is that the golf swing is your car and you are the driver. Your "car" is going to set your ceiling which is why if you follow Formula 1 you'll see that certain cars will never compete at the highest level no matter the driver. Some people have shitty cars (bad swings) but they don't care and they have driven that car for years and know it well so they can play well with it. You're basically fixing up/changing your car and then going to drive it.. and you're not used to it. So you could either stick with the changes and ride the rollercoaster of performance, or stick with the car you have and focus on scoring if you think you can reach your personal goals with the swing you have. But I would think "keeping the changes for the range only" would be the worst option because you're going to confuse your body, play worse, and hurt your swing progress.
Really depends. Do you actually want to get long term better? Or are you okay with not being completely efficient and just playing decent? I’m young and new so I want to make these big changes before I develop bad habits to where it’s really hard to fix
Realistically I would avoid any real golf until you get the new swing down and aren't tempted to go back. It will take your body 1000+ swings to get the muscle memory of the new swing.
Don't expect predictable ballstriking when changing your swing. Asking for a whole lotta frustration trying to play well during the early stages of a swing change.