I've had at least two teaching pros introduce me to that drill, and it sure helps me and anyone else I've ever explained it to.... now if I could only learn to keep my head down...
Ed Reeder <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Burgess,
I thought I'd report my experience with this drill. The bottom line is that drills, like golf swings, can vary by individual. What works for one might not work for another.
I tried the "ring the bell" drill just before I had a lesson and it seemed to help. My instructor is curious by nature and is always looking for new ways to help his students. I explained your drill and he said "lets see what the camera says". So he took "before and after" pictures, my normal swing and the drill swing.
MY swing issue is that I tend to turn my shoulders flat (more level with the horizon than 90* from spine angle) and this causes my hands to be too far away from my body at impact, plus the out to in move.
FOR ME the "ring the bell" had a minor effect on my shoulder turn. It FELT major, but in fact wasn't.
WHAT DID work was another drill, an isometric one. While holding a club I got into an exaggerated "downswing a waist high" position. Hands were waist high to the side and slightly in front of body, with the club butt pointing slightly behind the ball and on the plane line (line that goes through target and ball). I then held the hands in that position for 10 seconds while trying to turn (not slide) my right hip forward as hard as I could. (Let me tell you, this will wear you out more than you can imagine).
The intent was to capture the feeling of the right hip and body core (not arms and shoulders)
delivering the close-to-the-body club to the ball. After doing the exercise twice I was to hit some balls, concentrating on replicating the feeling I got from the exercise.
This had a DRAMATIC effect on my swing! Much, much more on plane.
He also had a second isometric drill that is for impact and part of the follow through. With a club in your hand assume an "impact" position. The club will be held against some object, a few inches below the handle. You turn your right hip toward the target as hard as you can, pivoting around your left hip. You are resisting the turn with your arms and hands holding the club against the object. Again, this is held for 10 seconds and you are trying to get the feel of the right hip turning around the left hip.
The first drill is easy to use on the course for a reinforcement of the feeling you want to get in your swing.
What is interesting is that I was on the range with some of his other students and they were practicing similar, but different, isometric exercises. Each one was tailored to the individual's problems. For example, one of them had the shaft very flat in the first exercise and another had the shaft very upright. In their normal swings the first student had the club too upright and the second too flat - so the drill was designed to exaggerate the needed correction.
As I said, drills are very individualistic. Maybe these will work for some of you, maybe they wont.
/Ed
Burgess Howell wrote:At 03:51 PM 5/6/2006, Jen wrote:
I've been fighting an out to in swing path...
This is absolutely my bogeyman. If anything is going to screw up my swing, it's the old 'over the top' move.
My drill is pretty simple. First, I force myself to start the takeaway by *pushing* with the left shoulder (assuming you're a righty). Then, I make a normal turn, and, from the top, my first move is to drop my right elbow straight down. From there it's damned near impossible to take it outside-in.
My dad calls this 'ringing the bell' (like pulling the rope on a church bell), but my swing thought is "put the elbow in the hip pocket."
BTW, Sam Snead's 'waltzing' trick will help this, too. Hum 'The Blue Danube" and swing in time to it. It helps you slow down your takeaway, make a full turn, and swing in rhythm. Over the top swings seem highly correlated with a rushed tempo.
Good luck in smiting the beast.
Burgess
