Have you bit on YouTube Videos like this that promise more distance in your drives? I have; they are hard to resist, especially since advancing age and infirmities have changed my club speed and swing.
Obsessing over Losing Distance on Every Golf Shot
As I age each golfing season finds me hitting any club a few yards shorter. While that happens with my all my clubs, including the driver, what has been particularly frustrating is the loss on my mid-irons. I’ll strike the ball well and see it flying nicely towards the flag. A brief moment of pleasure at a ball well hit and then the ball lands short of the green! After this happens many times with different clubs, it becomes clear what I used to get in carry per club no longer applies.
When short on target shots happen in a round of golf, pressure mounts to discover what facet of my golf swing has changed. Is my backswing too short, am I not finishing my swing, am I not shifting my weight? Pretty soon too many swing thoughts are affecting the quality of my swing. Now I’m not only short but mis-hitting the ball; hitting it far right, hooking to the left or topping it.
Later at home a possible solution shows up on YouTube. I try this new setup at the range and it seems to work. I take it to the course, and it no longer works. Another video gives me a different approach; I try that. Its’ success also becomes short-lived. Back to square one and I resurrect my old methods. But now what was formerly habit now requires swing thoughts. Things are worse since I started on this journey to restore at least some of what I lost. I’m a mess.
Should Senior Golfers Stop Worrying About Losing Distance?
In trying to solve the problem of lost distance, I’ve found myself pressing too much, swinging too hard, losing timing in my swing. Trying to focus on swinging easy becomes another swing thought; I’ve too many already.
I’ve worked on solving the distance problem with changing my club selection. A shot for my pitching wedge is now a 9 iron. But learning the right swing for the new distance is takes time and experience to actually recalibrate what distance I can expect from each club. It is hard getting the “old” yardage out of my head.
Maybe my problem isn’t technique; it’s mental. Stop Thinking. Don’t worry about distance. Don’t think about hitting the ball. Don’t think about setup. Make the right club selection and take a nice, easy swing. Advance the ball.
The only worthwhile thinking is Course Management. Get the distance, pick out the right club. Pay attention to how the fairway slopes, where are the hazards, and what is the wind doing. Pick out a target for your shot. Think hit it towards the target; do not think about hitting it hard or fast enough. Just take an easy swing, put the ball in play.
Old Man Pat, A Senior Golfing Role Model
That I believe is the strategy of Old Man Pat, an 84-year-old golfer with a 13 handicap, who shows up occasionally on YouTube on the Golf Mates channel. His swing is simple; he strikes ball reliably and accurate. He wastes no time on swing thoughts. Here’s a selection of Pat hitting a few shots.
Watching Old Man Pat golf reminds me that “chasing distance” takes my “eye off the ball” – – – it gets me pursuing the wrong thing. A repeatable swing that results in a straight and reliable ball flight is the goal. This applies not only to your golf swing but to club purchase and fitting.