As an amateur golfer who loves to work on his game, I find it a challenge to when my balls travel varying distances. There are days when I am crushing the ball where what would normally be a 7 iron, for example, I am hitting a comfortable 8 iron. That is a change of 10 to 15 yards for reasons unknown. I cannot explain why my ball is travelling farther, but it is and I need to embrace that change even for a day. After the round, I try to figure out why I was hitting my ball better on that day than others. Guess what, I do not have the slightest idea why!
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Hitting The Wall
“Hitting the wall In endurance sports such as cycling and running, hitting the wall or the bonk describes a condition caused by the depletion of glycogen stores in the liver and muscles, which manifests itself by sudden fatigue and loss of energy. Milder instances can be remedied by brief rest and the ingestion of food or drinks containing carbohydrates. The condition can usually be avoided by ensuring that glycogen levels are high when the exercise begins, maintaining glucose levels during exercise by eating or drinking carbohydrate-rich substances, or by reducing exercise intensity.”
I bet you were thinking of the 17th hole at St. Andrews Old Course! It is a famous site that provides once in a life time shots for amateurs and pros alike. Only the brave will venture a heroic shot off the wall; giving credence to the saying “Where there is no risk; there is no reward!” Regardless, this is still not what I am talking about.
Hitting the wall is a golf drill with many variations. There are three specific drills I like and recommend. I will be using all three as spring approaches with the intent to increase my power off the tee.
For Beginner Golfers
The first is a great wall drill for beginners from Hitting It Solid by Troy Vayanos. This drill uses a wall or a chair. Troy’s drill works on posture. He states that “the most common reason golfers don’t hit solid golf shots is because they lose their posture on the downswing.” He provides a simple step by step process to fix this common error. I will use it in the beginning of my golf season to remind my body the proper position when addressing the ball.
The next drill comes from the National Golf Academy. It is for intermediate golfers who have the general mechanics of the golf swing down, but want more power. This particular drill is very good for players like myself who would like an extra 10-15 yards or more off the tee. This is definitely a drill I will use before the season starts.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIfU8qXzHPM
The last wall drill comes from David Leadbetter. This drill is for the advanced player who wants to fine tune or improve their overall swing. This particular drill is might be difficult and requires an understanding of swing mechanics. Having said that, anyone can use it with varying degrees of success. Again, I plan to use this drill in the off season as I wait for the 3 feet of snow to melt!
Hitting the wall can deal with the physical nature of a sport. However, in this case it means using three outstanding drills by the beginner, intermediate and advanced golfer to improve their game. Know which drill is best for you might be a challenge; I recommend you try all three and let me know which you like the best!
I am a grateful golfer! 53 days until golf season!
The Grateful Golfer 