When you swing too hard you get off balance. Sometimes fatigue causes things like the back foot not coming up on the downswing.

ALMOST DAILY JOSH.I EITHER START WITH IT AND LOSE IT OR I FIND IT ABOUT HALF WAY THROUGH.GUESS THAT'S WHY I'M A 12 HANDICAP,,,,,,,,,,,,,LOL,LOL,LOL.

Gotta love this game huh Dog?

Lately I have been playing pretty consistant, with the exception of 1 or 2 holes. My problem is mental - losing focus either due to a bad shot or just my mind wandering. Slightly off-topic (but not really), how about the "post-Birdie" holes? Mine usually happen 2 holes later.

I also have this wonderful thing called a "approach hybrid" - I have had one since 2007. I currently carry a 34 deg persimmon club from Louisville Golf (it is quite a conversation piece on the golf course since just about nobody carries a persimmon wood, let alone one that is a hybrid). It is a backup club to the 6-9 irons and comes in handy for hitting out of thick grass or fairway bunker. They are almost impossible to miss with and all you have to do is meet the ball. It originally came up when I was having trouble hitting the 7 iron (I had a Snake Eyes Q3A 34H initially and constructed the 38H in 2008). Also found out they get tremendous distance and are rather heavy. I also had unexplained occurrences of shankitis that would pop up in the middle of a round and this club would help me re-establish my rhythm and balance (have to remember the 34H is the same length as a 5 iron). There's nothing that says one has to carry the standard 1-3-5 wood, 3H, 4-PW, 56, 60 golf setup (nor do you really need 14 clubs). Even Gary Player admitted that he would have won another Masters with a 9 wood in the bag. At this point, my bare minimum setup is 1-3-7 woods, 5H, 6-PW, 54-11 and 62-07 (I've progressed to the point where I can hit a 4 or 5 iron but am a bit spoiled with the 5H) and I round out the set with the 34H and and a 2 way chipping iron (for under trees and left-handed shots). Lesson learned - don't scoff at some old guy that carries up to a 13 wood and 8-SW (I saw this in my caddie days in the 1970s). My stepmother is 77, carries a 7H and manages to beat quite a few men in the process.

Sorry about that.... got off on a tangent (got this post and another one mixed up). The "approach wedge" hybrids are about impossible to shank and are a help in re-establishing a rhythm.

I went through what I thought was a shanking issue before this season started when practicing my iron shots. I hit constant shanks in a driving simulator, hitting the right side wall, and totally missing the 18 foot screen 10 feet in front of me....how embarrassing. I even had three different golf galaxy workers watch my swing and they couldn't see what I was doing wrong. After the 6th time going back, (about to give up golf) I found out my left arm was staying bent. Whew, that was exhausting!!! I am a right handed golfer and a 7 handicapper. Anyway, when I find myself starting to lose shots I go back to the thought of keeping my left arm straight and throwing the back of my left hand towards my shot.

I feel you pain.  I had a round recently that started out great warming up on the range, but when I pulled out my driver to hit the last few shots I starting hitting a banana fade.  After a couple of adjustments I hit a few straight ones and off to the first tee.  I aimed to the left side of the fairway thinking I would slice a bit and hit the first snap hook of my life.  Next hole I hit the banana fade again.  I benched the driver and did pretty well.  After a couple of nice easy slow practice swings on the 10th (including a Dog and a brew) I figured I would pull out the big stick again, and wouldn't you know I started hitting my nice little controllable fade.

I guess if I feel like I can't hit the driver (always my iffy club), I'll just bench it until I can relax.  I'd rather lose 20 yards and be in the fairway than be tree-bashing in the woods.  A couple of nice controlled practice swings really helped me cure the mid round swing loss.

It doesn't happen on the golf course to me nor if I am at the park. It generally happens when practicing for 40 minutes or so (or hitting a bucket of golf balls) - a shank will pop up without warning on short irons and a banana fade on woods (if I am assuming a low flying left to right slice). What often triggers it is after hitting woods for some time, I pull out an 8 iron and, sure enough, the hips refuse to turn and the right foot gets stuck. I'll get the 8 iron working after a couple swings and then switch back to the woods. I'll get a banana fade for 1 or 2 swings and then it'll be normal. The worst is when the swing loss is so bad that you can't even hit a chip shot. Before, I would have to walk away. The other thing that triggers it is a club that you don't hit well normally. Another sign of its trigger is a severe pull on a pitch. I believe there are two things that cause it..... loss of balance because of excessive body motion and a muscle tightening up. The golf pros are at a loss as to why it happens.

I'm sure it has more to do with what's in-between my ears than anything else.  Rarely do I hit an awful shot with a 6 iron or less.  Sure I've chili dipped a wedge and bladed a ball 120 yards out of a bunker, but those are things I can shake off pretty quickly.  It's when my swing feels good and the ball goes nowhere near my target is when I get worried.  I tend to over think, tense up,lose balance, and it just goes on down the bag until I hit a pure whatever iron or get my head on right.  

The loss of balance is the big thing, especially if you start getting into "ripping it" When you start loosening up, sometimes you over swing (taking the BIG 90 degree backswing) and that also throws you out of balance (you shift too much to the back foot and it gets stuck on the downswing). I've pretty much eliminated it by taking a more compact backswing with a minimal weight shift going back.

When I get tired my discipline breaks down, just like Lombardi said! My routine goes out the window and along with it my swing. Then I get over arms focused and bad things happen. Working on it now!

Love this topic because yes, of course it happens. It happens with pros too. Just watch them blow up off the tee. I have found that most of mine has to do with fatigue during the round. When its 90 degrees with humidity its tough when you are walking. Another thing is slow play might have something to do with it becuase some many find that getting into a rhythm can be tougher to maintain. I know that is the case with me. I just try and go back to basics and keep stretching. I agree with some of the other threads about doing something different to take your mind off of what you normally do. Shocking the body with something other than the normal wont hurt.

Cody D

Love this topic because yes, of course it happens. It happens with pros too. Just watch them blow up off the tee. I have found that most of mine has to do with fatigue during the round. When its 90 degrees with humidity its tough when you are walking. Another thing is slow play might have something to do with it becuase some many find that getting into a rhythm can be tougher to maintain. I know that is the case with me. I just try and go back to basics and keep stretching. I agree with some of the other threads about doing something different to take your mind off of what you normally do. Shocking the body with something other than the normal wont hurt.

My biggest thing that happens during a round of golf is that I start out hitting slightly left or dead straight and somewhat of a lower trajectory with the woods and end up with a high fade slightly right toward the end. My short game usually starts out a bit slow and I may hit short or off more than I want but by the time I get to the end of the round, I am often one putting. The biggest thing I have to avoid is the tendency to take too long of a backswing or getting into "grip it and rip it" mode. If I start seeing things like banana balls with woods or starting to chunk shots, I have a "fatigue" swing ready - I take a much shorter backswing.

"Like water off a duck."  I try to just roll with it when I hit a terrible shot for no reason.  Sometimes it's fatigue sometimes is poor mechanics, but if I'm playing well, and feel like I lose my swing I'll just step back and think of the next shot as a chance to do something perfect rather than focus on technique.  

In the past when I've felt like my swing is all out of whack I would toil about it, and take a turn to negative town.  Now I just roll with it like water off a duck.  It works better for me, and I tend to find my groove again