Tathata Golf

AggieKatie2 said:

---

Tathata Golf

---

100% plan to play from golds

I played golf on and off for 30 years without ever getting a lesson. When I was playing frequently I would occasionally shoot low 80's but usually mid 80's to low 90's. I never knew how to fix my problems with hooking my longer clubs and flat out sucking when trying to chip. Golf, for me at least, is very unintuitive and it's extremely hard to get better when your stroke (off the tee or around the green) is flawed. Good eye hand coordination and timing can really make up for poor mechanics, but over 18 holes you are going to get exposed.

9 years ago I got six lessons in six weeks and it completely changed my game and my understanding of this beautiful but cruel game. The transition from my old habits to new was a little rocky, but now I'm a much better, more consistent golfer. I started breaking 80 every five rounds or so and my bad rounds were never too bad. I've re-dedicated myself to golf and of the five rounds I've played this year I've been in the 70's four times and my HC is 6.

Long story short....commit to getting lessons and playing/practicing as much as you can in a 3 month period. If you have decent athletic ability you could be in the 80's by this time next year. I really can't say enough how important it is to get lessons so you can have a much better grasp of what you need to do from tee to green. I wish I hadn't waited until age 40 to finally get them.

I would emphasize lessons and range time which will bring you along far faster than trying to play 18 every weekend. What you need is practice....and a round of golf is not where you practice, the range is. With proper guidance and feedback from lessons, the best use of your time will be at the range.

When I started as a complete newby, I took 4 lessons...1 about every 2 weeks. I hit the range at least twice a week in between to practice what I learned in the previous lesson. In the following lesson I'd get feedback and perhaps identify the next thing to work on....rinse and repeat. I then took additional lessons each month for the next 3-4 months and continued hitting the range about twice a week. I only played an actual round once a month during that time. Went from probably 115-120 to shooting in the 90's pretty consistently in what I felt was a pretty short period of time.

Range is where you practice mechanics the course is where you can practice how to play.

Don't carry all the swing thoughts and mechanics to the course....you can't play like that. Have one and at most two swing thoughts or feels. Just focus on where you want the ball to go and try to execute your "feel". Learning to play and score is just as important as learning to swing

I'd throw in a 3rd recommendation which I do a lot -> go out at twilight (more like super twilight) and combine your practice with your play. I'll play 2 balls and hit additional shots as well. It helps by allowing you a lot of repetition, but it does so in an actual course environment. It can really help you transition mechanics you've been working on at the driving range to a real round of golf.

The best time to do this tends to be that last 1-2 hours before dark. At a minimum, the front 9 is generally pretty open (especially on a Sunday evening), and if I run into some groups, I may just loop back around to an earlier hole and replay some of the same holes. If someone runs up behind me, I'll let them through right away. A super twilight green fee and a 9 hole cart is cheap, and you can get a lot of work in during a short amount of time.

Dont know if anyone mentioned this but don't just hit balls to hit balls.

Make sure you go in with something you are trying to accomplish, fix or improve. Put some structure around your range sessions. Aimlessingly hitting balls will prob be worse for you.

one tip I've seen thrown around by pros that I've never really tried is work on mechanics one day and "play a round" then next. So if you have two range sessions a week, spend the first one working on your swing and the second one going through the holes on the course you are going to play that weekend.

I would guess that works better if you play different courses every week, but the process still sounds good.

Oh my gosh, that was brutal. Shot a 122. Granted, I haven't played in 4 months but traditions was freaking tough. Putting was okay, had 38 putts total. But my penalty shots were ridiculous. Had OB's on 11 or 12 holes. Sometimes more than one. Yikes.

Upside is that my back 9 was worlds better than the front. Shot 56 on back but with 3 bogeys and 2 double bogeys.

Lots of work to do to get a consistent, replicable swing.

Edited with correct score

Here's a tip. When someone asks how your round at Traditions went, you just say you shot a 72 .....


then you played the back 9.

I know--front nine was 66. Yikes.

I've shot 66 on the front 9 on the same course I shot 73 (only round in the 70's to my name) so keep at it and everything will come together.

Ha, you are 100% correct. Not sure why I wrote 128.

Keep your head still......


...no, I'm not trying to be funny. Also, get some impact tape so that you can see where the ball is on the clubface at impact. Learn the fundamentals about ball flight laws so that when you see a particular shot shape, you know what has caused it.

I play golf with a guy that is about a 17 hdcp. He doesn't listen to me when I tell him what he's done to hit a particular shot, so I've pretty-well stopped talking to him. Recently, he was hitting a dead-straight push. He was really frustrated that he couldn't "stop coming over the top". Well, if you know the ball flight laws, then you know that he wasn't coming over the top and what he was trying to do to fix the push was actually contributing to the problem.

Ball flight laws

DannyDuberstein said:

---

Does he ask for your input and then ignore it?

---

Yes

oldflyer said:

---

Keep your head still......


...no, I'm not trying to be funny. Also, get some impact tape so that you can see where the ball is on the clubface at impact. Learn the fundamentals about ball flight laws so that when you see a particular shot shape, you know what has caused it.

I play golf with a guy that is about a 17 hdcp. He doesn't listen to me when I tell him what he's done to hit a particular shot, so I've pretty-well stopped talking to him. Recently, he was hitting a dead-straight push. He was really frustrated that he couldn't "stop coming over the top". Well, if you know the ball flight laws, then you know that he wasn't coming over the top and what he was trying to do to fix the push was actually contributing to the problem.

Ball flight laws

---

Learn the Ball Flight Laws! Learn them better than your ABCs.

To improve on your own you must understand them.

Also keep your head down and play smart. A lot of strokes are saved chipping out or trouble, hitting the shorter club off the tee and laying up on the par 5 or long par 4. That is the difference between <100 and 100+.

EKG1996 said:

---

Traditions is a very difficult course so a 100 there is the equilavent of a lower score at most other courses.

---

I love the course, but I have had a hard time breaking 100 the 3 times I have played it. I'm an 11-12 HC, but I typically have a trouble hole and then it seems to carry on to the others moreso than most other courses. It's intimidating to even look at on some holes after you've had a blow up hole. Also, the amount I am usually drinking with my friends doesn't usually help on the last handful of holes.

My 8th grade son shot 82 at Traditions from the golds last Saturday. He had 2 doubles so he was flirting with 79. It's not fun getting trounced by a middle schooler.

jja79 said:

---

My 8th grade son shot 82 at Traditions from the golds last Saturday. He had 2 doubles so he was flirting with 79. It's not fun getting trounced by a middle schooler.

---

Yeah, but pretty badass when it's your son! Gotta be very proud, that's amazing.

Traditions is either the best day ever on the golf course or a complete nightmare depending on how you're hitting it.

It is pretty awesome watching my son develop as a player. He's 8th grade and carries his driver 270-280, pitching wedge he hits 135-140. He and I are not playing the same game.

OP my son is an example of what practice and good instruction can do for you.

Jja - that's great to hear. Sounds like your son is a beast.

I actually had my first lesson today with bill slade at Traditions. He was awesome, and I am super excited to start practicing what he taught me.

We're out of town Traditions members so we're only there a couple of times a month but I've really enjoyed getting to know Bill. You're in good hands and I'm sure he'll improve your game.

My son works with our home club pro but he loves testing himself at Traditions.

That is my game at 30!

I don't think the red, black, and blue clubfaces really demonstrate the two distinct coordinate systems (swing path is measured relative to the target but club face is measured relative to the swing path) very well. At impact if your clubface looks like the blue one relative to the target, your ball is going to start left regardless of your swing path. I think this one lays it out a little better:



To hit what I'd call a draw (G in my picture: starts right of the target and works left toward the target), I actually think to myself to make sure my clubface is OPEN at impact to keep from yanking it left -- I guess I just naturally align myself according to the target and think in reference to that. It's certainly backwards from when I started playing and had people tell me to close the clubface at impact.

I understand what your graphic is getting at, but back when I was just starting and didn't really understand how ball flight works it would've confused me.

agsalaska said:

---

Remember practice doesn't always translate to improvement. It just reinforces whatever you are doing right or wrong.

---

This is absolute truth! You need to develop solid swing mechanics and fundamentals. One of the best Coach's I have ever had asked me this simple question. It was, "If you hit the ball 15yards to right every time, what kind of golfer would you be?" My wrong answer "A fade player." Correct answer "The greatest golfer on the planet!"

bagger05 said:

---

I understand what your graphic is getting at, but back when I was just starting and didn't really understand how ball flight works it would've confused me.

---

I could see that. I liked it because it was the most compact yet inclusive I have seen. You are right it is probably not the best for someone learning the laws.

bagger05 said:

---

I don't think the red, black, and blue clubfaces really demonstrate the two distinct coordinate systems (swing path is measured relative to the target but club face is measured relative to the swing path) very well. At impact if your clubface looks like the blue one relative to the target, your ball is going to start left regardless of your swing path. I think this one lays it out a little better:



To hit what I'd call a draw (G in my picture: starts right of the target and works left toward the target), I actually think to myself to make sure my clubface is OPEN at impact to keep from yanking it left -- I guess I just naturally align myself according to the target and think in reference to that. It's certainly backwards from when I started playing and had people tell me to close the clubface at impact.

I understand what your graphic is getting at, but back when I was just starting and didn't really understand how ball flight works it would've confused me.

---