This Lesson Stopped Me Slicing & Hooking The Ball | Road To Scratch Ep7

Welcome back to episode 7 of the road to scratch. My official handicap is just above 2 and this year I really want to get to scratch, or as low as possible!

Shout out to my coach Chris: @forsythgolfperformance on Insta!

Hope you enjoy, Gaz!

Hello guys welcome back to the channel right I have not hit a golf ball I’m going to lie is I’m honest I haven’t hit a golf ball in about 4 weeks why because the weather is like this it is Baltic it’s been freezing Coes have been closed

Been snowing it’s been wet but look I’m stting feel a bit bad now it’s like January the what 24th we’re getting into the air I can’t not play golf any longer I’m going to have to Brave the cold and then message cuz we have a lesson a

Month you right for your lesson on Tuesday bro I was like mate here we are it is freezing but keep working got to keep working we have and I think like I said I haven’t hit a ball for about 3 4 weeks I did play with a close house not

Long ago shot like one I think one or two over actually hit it quite well think obviously let’s have a little recap so last year last year we did a lot of work towards the end of the year we’re really start started getting places didn’t we really I think was that

The that was when we started going wide yeah if you haven’t watched L put the lesson in because one of the biggest G I think biggest changing things for me was when we started going wide was it yeah so we trying to control the radius quite

The hands down that help you with your consistency right yeah we did a lot of work where it was like it was like almost straight back and stoping the hands so everyone everyone’s been saying your swing is shorter and we keep saying my swing’s not shorter it’s white that

And we’ll kind of maybe explain that in the video as well cuz I think everyone’s like oh my God your swing is so short it’s it’s not I’m just doing one thing different in my takeaway it’s made the back swing shorter wider and then obviously I’ve had a bit more

Consistency but yeah I think we’ll hit something this my first lesson literally of 2024 I think for me this year I think putting’s been good I did I did aim point at the start of last year which everyone takes a piss out you for but to

Be fair I’m not a it is so good um so that level of consistency with the swing we’ve kind of we’ve kind of got rid of the the big misses haven’t we that’s the main thing right and you get to your level now it’s all about making less

Mistakes yeah I feel like on the course obviously driver helped last year I was really good with driver but we’re not making the mistakes that we made thingy so let’s just hit a few in the freezing cold and uh yeah see where we see where we’re at like I said

More my lesson is your lesson let’s go right I’m going hit a few the pitch get warmed up um obviously Chris can watch and then we’ll hit 5 six seven or eight or whatever and then we’ll just yeah we’ll see where we’re at and I think I think again this year this year

I don’t know I’ll get a scratch but I’ll be my handicap is like 2.4 something now and that’s cuz at the end of last year I shot that level PA round um my first ever level PA round by the way ladies and gentlemen I’m actually good it

Wasn’t on camera I was actually in a competition a close house I’ve been under par a couple of times but then I’ve just messed it up we had the obviously the round Jimmy’s Channel Jimmy and that when I did that had that round so the end of last year it really

Came together so let’s see where we’re at 2024 the goal is scratch the goal is always scratch we won’t stop until we’re at scratch I will not stop until we’re there the dedication is there it’s pissing down I’m freezing I’m here feel like we need a I need a line where where

We going here middle of the red flags that’s a big fair is it the middle of the red flags p on down the bottom there that’s your target straight down the middle there I’ll tell you what it’s like I’ve never been away thanks for watching

Thanks oh I tell you what is really good as well I think there’s only one swing for now and it’s been one swing for since like September consistent so I know I can just rock up and go play golf and hit my ends pretty well and drive

Well cuz there there’s only one swing for And That Swing for is literally what it’s been since September where it’s just hands quiet Club straight back and then just that’s it and let’s talk a little about what you said at the start about the W width versus length piece

Yeah yeah this is why a lot of people have been saying my my my swing shorter this is this is what it actually is so if we talk about like I’ll summize it quite quick so gaz’s arms used to travel a lot more narrow okay so narrow meaning

The hand path the hands would travel the same distance but because they’re narrow this appears a lot longer than this okay so all we’ve done is increase the radius between or make this radius between the B of the club and his sternum more constant and that for Gaz is a is a way

Of getting his body to turn a little bit more and to feel like his hands are nice and quiet before G would have you know it’ feel a lot going on at the bottom so very much like Tommy Fleet would we’re trying to feel like we’re taking the

Hands out of it and one thing he said there he had the same s for for ages I’m a massive advocate of if you’re consistent in your process you’re consistent in your coaching you’re consistent in your mindset he hasn’t changed too much in the last few months

And he’s starting to see a consistent outcome so all these people who change their swing thoughts search go on YouTube Every Single Day different looking for the secret and everything’s changing outside the game how do you expect the game to start to become consistent so making sure you’re professionalized and everything around

The game keeping everything consistent and then you start to see the results from there I mean that Rusty that one good strike it’s very thin thin yeah very clean good de What’s happen in here we are now on fire just to add to the mix of the rain

And the SLE we’re now got a forest fire that felt a little bit just I’m absolutely Baltic but that actually hurt my hands a little bit but how cool I am I’m taking them last three strikes all day by the way all day not bad not

Bad that’s a bit Rory I felt that I that didn’t there a little bit Yeah you it’s good that you felt that that didn’t though that was that was actually much better than the other ones cuz you actually you think although you said the ones before were good strikes there was

Very much you know you’re catching it very very clean now I’m not against shallow divots but yours is a little bit and you’ll see it here on the camera look at this so at the point of impact you want do want to screen record these

I can I’ve got a good picture oh yeah so as you come down you can see how the right foot is very much like planted on the floor there’s no movement at all watch the foot it doesn’t move doesn’t move doesn’t move doesn’t move doesn’t move doesn’t move doesn’t move doesn’t

Look at your foot oh yeah so you’re stuck on that back foot now this could be because you haven’t played for a while and you’re not moving as free as normal but what I’m seeing a little bit is at the start it looks really really good you can see your thinking you’re

Taking longer than normal to pull the trigger a lot longer than normal there’s a lot of tweaking going on is what it is that’s just cuz you haven’t practiced swinging back great you know the one you pick up on it’s still that way or perfect which what the second one was

But as you come down what I see is you’re almost turning on the back foot a little bit okay and almost giving it a little bit of right hand at the bottom so you h a couple pulls right so that imagine this if I get to the top of my

Swing I turn on the my back foot pressure doesn’t shift that way and I do this I’m more likely to add Loft pick it off the top and pull it to the left that might make sense on driver that so you’re definitely you’re not you’re not

Coming over your path would be very good but because of this rea ction to this you’re adding Loft and pulling it slightly and you’re catching it really clean I would much prefer to see a little bit more penetration a little bit more Bolter and the way you going to

Feel that is just feeling like there’s a little bit more and we’ll find a simple feeling for this a little bit more lateral and less rotary so first movement is a bit of a rotation staying on the back foot average tall player shifts 5 and 1 half Ines on the

Downswing collectively so we need to feel just a little bit more pressure so the first thing we’ll do just take a very slow practice swing okay set yourself up you got a tea in your bag H yeah all right just H and just hit that from there make a swing and just hit

That t just gently just real smooth okay so you going to do exactly same swings and then go and get that t good right so yeah so there was more lateral right and I didn’t tell you how to do it the one the one no no with this

Big one no no when people try and shift low point is using the upper Center to go get it it’s got to come from the ground some people feel it in their feet some people feel it in their knees some people feel it in the femur some in the

Hip some even in the rib don’t care just making sure that it comes from the ground and we get this sort of Separation a bit can I just feel like I just finish my swing with a heel up yeah that’s that’s a feeling that you’ve like

Before right fine so let’s just check it so we’ll do this drill so I’ll put this roughly to start with 4 in in front and you’re going to try and move that te after you’ve hit it all right yeah normal smooth swings right now look at the floor now that’s

Very very different to every other shot you’ve made no Mark and that was so much purer right so your attack angle is going to be more down the low point would read more forwards yeah and you got a different sensation now we’re in we’re in the UK in the winter the ground

Is soft we should be taking a divot but if you look at this diot one thing I love about it is it’s long and thin there not really deep he’s not burying the club into the ground the club is attacking onto the ground but but it’s

Nice long thin liot so I love the look of like a 5B note that was awesome did you feel the difference in your hands there yeah I don’t know what I did though no you just focus on the the external factor of getting the te

Right you don’t know what you did but it was very different to every other shot so just feeling like you finish your feeling same back swing okay not bad look at the ground way different the last two shots look there’s interaction with the floor all the other shot you it there’s nothing

These ain’t you there was there was nothing you were flicking it and you can see that on the video right so now we’re starting to take some now I come down I’m just kind of like as I’m hitting it I hit it and then just push up that

Front and finish perfect perfect that’s it and remember like this time of year there’s so much less forgiveness so we have to get ball first in every element of the game short game iron play we have to shift through and get that ball first smile I said near every shot had hurt my

Hand yeah them two didn’t yeah they didn’t they didn’t even didn’t hurt a bit that was good that that’s what happens when you hit the middle of the face all right okay same feel just feel that shift not quite as good but still fine look at the ground still interacting but

That’s three in a row you some people get to get him in the comments here look at this in untiy practiceing make a nice line oh yeah come on you’re a too handicapped now I’m not I’m probably as about was seven that’s just the new hand the new handicap systems screw

All right again same feel this drill I love this drill for people one thing to be weary of can I jump in one second just for people at home if you do try this drill and you’re someone who G doesn’t but if you’re someone who comes

Over the top as a lot of people do get some no get something down get get something down here because what people do to hit this te is they start to go right I can hit the te I’ll go this way now it’s really easy to hit the

Ground up here when I do that but now I’m going to hit this so the aim of the game is to move the te without hitting this head cover so we’re still coming coming down on AR or you know from the inside but we’re shifting to hit the T

We’re not spinning the upper torso and getting the T that way you can try one with that now I want to go I want to go stand next to that fire show everyone at home no move it the whole point is it’s there for a reason all right right now just show

Every how how to do it right so focus on just moving the te missing the head cover and that will help you keep wide as well keep close to it on the back swing nice and wide oh that’s going to hurt yeah SC look at

The te’s not there right so that was a little bit of a flick I think the ball’s B too far forward him yeah find hard practice area like to set up like but this is the same as a golf course right it’s hard but this is the if you got

Access to a range like this grass range unbelievable so you didn’t destroy the te but you did move it you knocked it over you missed the head cover I have to get that foot up don’t cuz if I do this even that’s all right in it so remember when you’re getting your

Foot up it’s not finish leg you can feel it right that’s it yeah there so it’s that way when Gaz goes when he stays on this foot his upper center backs up and that’s when you feel that thinny one and clean remember when you’re getting the

Foot up and again for people I’m not asking him to go this way what we see with the best plays in the world we see more like a banking first so as they’re shifting you see how my foot’s rolling before it goes onto the toe it’s not

Going on my toe and I’m not spinning on my foot I’m Banking and then pivoting up from there so that was good interaction with the ground but you feel slightly groundy it was yeah it wasn’t forward enough so you did it but late you kind of like

This I’ll hit the ground and then I’ll go I’ll go a little earlier so when does my foot start moving up well you want to feel the pressure shift so tall players are Shi shifting forwards before they complete the top of their back swing so they’re going like this they’re

Reentering here so their foot actually comes up on the way down the foot happens as a byproduct of moving the pressure right so your feel is the foot but if you get to top of your swing for me right great little feel and I’ll swing down stop next to the ball swing

Up stop next to the ball stop right so put the club next to the ball by this point open your hips every so slightly you feel this yeah you should be more here at this point where I’m at like here put on yeah you want to be on the

Floor right so one more time swing to top just rehears there you go and what and that’s what I would recommend a lot for people to understand impact is learn impact some people don’t know people think that you start like this and you hit a ball like this well if you look at

A tour player we see lots we see a lot of hip slide we see some rotation we see some tilting we see some lean not crazy amounts but we see some so I would just start swing up to the top get used to understanding okay wow that’s what

Impact feels like I feel I feel this here and that’s different people you know everyone I’ve asked loads and load hundreds of people and they go oh I feel it in my left hip my right knee you know so when you do that get to the

Top and then stop it impact one more time right stop it impact right that’s beautiful now put the club on the floor so measure it properly this knee can stay here that’s it now where do you feel the biggest difference here oh yeah it’s more like I’m twisted but I’m open

Obviously my left slightly more open my left foot you feel the pressure on your left foot left knee yes so now what we need to do is just do this little exercise and this is another little one for people so you do the rehearsal get to the top swing down stop at this

Position start here here and again you’re not worried about in um outcome from here you just move away to a little chippy and then move through and you try and recreate that sensation and then build it up and that’s a really classic impact drill so give that a lot of a lot of

Today is just learning how to get the body to go impact through the ball in it I’m hanging back a little bit I think yeah hanging back a little bit but remember this you’ve had a you’ve had a month off right so what’s the most important thing contact get yourself

Striking it pure again then worry about direction there’s no point hitting it straighten 50 yards so hit it properly and then start working about on on the accuracy pieces right so do that drill for me I’m going to record it so s preset what you feel so your right

Foot’s on the ground again isn’t it feel where you feel the left foot swing away and then try and recreate that just gently little chip right so did you you definitely felt more forwards there right it’s a diff it’s an uncomfortable position but look at

This so if you if you look at the preset position that’s of what we’d see a tour player that more open yeah this is it here perfect so foot’s just moving a tiny bit hips are starting to unwind shoulders are nice and square maybe fractionally open there you go so

Now look at that position I know you thinned it but look your foot’s off the ground yeah right now you didn’t try and get your foot off the ground you tried to recreate impact I think as long as I get through it I think I could I think

It happens bit naturally I’m I’m just going to make sure I get through it naturally now interestingly if you look at that ball flight if anything that was a two or three yard push right so because you’ve gone more this way getting through it your words you’ve not hit

That back foot spinner so you’re not pulling it that was much better I much prefer that okay there you go that’s that that’s the that’s the old one a bit so you aim look where the ball’s gone it’s gone at 20 yards left right and that’s

Not a that’s like you said the one you were discussing earlier it’s going to be on the left Fringe but that’s when you stay on that back foot and flip it so we need to get through even more than that didn’t shift enough now on that one

There do you know you didn’t you didn’t do your knee thing do you know like before you take a every shot you kind of go yeah you didn’t do it there and I think you CU you can see your setups just look you can’t see your left knee

Can’t see your left hip can’t see your left shoulder feet so you can look at your feet and you see everything else is pointing left right so usually you get into that position where you have an actual tendency of set over and you go and square up do so you can see here

Fundamentals we’re looking at his alignment we’re looking at his setup and we’re looking at strike we’re not I’m not getting into details around rolly phase this because he’s had a month off it doesn’t need to be too deep we just need to get him striking it get his

Confidence back up again going to Spain next week high pressure good strike slight push much prefer it though have a look so firstly if you look at the setup now we can see feet knees shoulders hips all in line yeah very different to this one look can you see

It now yeah but why then I push it yeah face is slightly open let’s have a look tiny bit tin look could have been wider couldn’t you look at this this was your first swing of the day this was the last swing of the day look at the difference

In them look at the right look at the foot look at the hips you can see how different that is already a lot of the stuff that I I like doing is not is not like oh guys go back and I want you to come in here or when

You get to here I want you to feel this if you look a lot of it that we’re doing is in my setup so my takeaway I’m going to go a little bit wider and then a lot of it at impact of just getting through the ball like that it my obviously my

Feel is just getting through it and getting that right foot up but none of it’s like Club here this that we do a lot of stuff in setup and then little tiny feels rather than trying to make it a lot simpler I feel like that’s why me

And Chris work well together cuz so many coaches just try and confuse the hell out of you we have like simple tiny simple feels in it yeah simple put on on his Target line now I’m not saying you’re swinging straight because it’s not but your intention is

Straight so G is try and straight and swing straight the body’s obviously acting a r so it’s going to send the arms in and send them in but this is now a straight line I’m a massive advocate of this so when you’re going back now

You can aim at the but of the club on the front one yeah yeah and then swing nice and wide down the one behind you and then shift sh look straight there a mud on my face so I’ve I’ve actually been coming a bit inside hav’t so it’s more of a like

Often this is what I say to people I work with some people established players I like going wide though but I just it just sneaks back in yeah so same I work on the same thing yeah with my best players all of the time Tendencies

Don’t go in 1 2 3 4 Five Lessons one year sometimes 8 nine I’ve worked with some players 14 years same stuff just understand it more and we can manage it a lot a lot better A lot better so gaz’s stuff is nothing you’re going to see

Some of this similar stuff in different videos but my job is to drip feed the information in the right order to Gaz so he knows what to focus on at this moment rather than focus on 50 things at one time that we spoke about over the last 2

And a half years and this one is very keeping it wide and shifting so low Point control and path two things that we even spoke about in the last video consistency wise this is what we said with Chris earlier if I don’t take a divot right and it isn’t perfect and I

Might thin it not thin it but I might catch it a little bit the ball still goes straightish it’s all right I can still make a car from them swings I was doing at the start don’t get us wrong to get even better I need be hitting it

Like that but the good thing is with what we’re doing with a takeaway even I get stuck in that back foot and catch it a little bit thin you’ll see the videos I I overdraw it a little bit it’s on The Fringe get up and down for par still two

Put so the thing is for me and like you see in the videos now the color when we went last time the consistency is is there there’s no big misses these are all pepper really look down there to zoom in I know it’s seems mad but these

All start been hit and look you see all the balls they’re all between their red flags that’s that’s a green there and we’re 140 out I’m I’m getting you’re two put P yeah so even though we’re we’re trying to be like nitpicky and I’m trying to be the literally scratch

Golfer or the best that can possibly be it’s these little bits that you really need to learn but I think we’ll leave it there good lesson hope you enjoyed it like I said wide takeaway try and get all the way down the line and I’ll show

You this as well so this what I do I was we had the first of a lesson we had a track man and the track man was in the line and you said try and hit the track man you can’t cuz obviously you can’t go you can’t everyone comes in with golf

And that’s where my swing my swing used to be in here up like Chris said I swing up here if I try and get my club to hit that club it’s impossible literally my left arm says straighter and that’s to me at full stretch look at

That looks like a three4 swing it’s not if you stopped there for a second look that’s my full swing this is gas feeling wire but what we look at take this hand off slightly we see right about roughly 90° in the bend of it so he’s still

Bending his arm he’s still lifting the arm put this one back on this arm in reality if you take your body rotation out now just go back to normal look what his left arm’s done it’s just simply lifted so the arms are a lifting wide component and the body is the horizontal

Component and that’s what honestly if you want to try one thing put a club down and just try and get the club to hit the end of the club it’s impossible but it’ll make you wider it’ll make you stretch and that’s my that’s my full swing full I can’t turn any further and

It also makes it easier to come back down on the line cuz if it goes up here and bends then it goes that way and that’s when you start slicing it and what have you noticed to your Club head speed as well since you’ve shortened your swing apparently yeah I’ve shorten

My swing and I’m swinging further and faster so yeah good lesson um a lot of videos coming up we’ll do a few more bits with Chris and then we’ll be in laala for some matches and the gaz’s golf trip to laala which I can’t wait for and then there’s another one in

March to Portugal cats um and then yeah thanks for watching see you soon