Hello,

Well here is a short history and hoping someone has gone through this and can give me some insight on how they did it.

At one time I had posted about my age, health etc and the fact I wanted to get a handicap low enough to play in the Oregon Championships. That was probably a little over 3 years ago.

I had fully planned on losing some weight and getting after it but arthritis came creeping in and I ended up bone on bone in my knee area. Doc said I needed a full replacement but said he wouldn't touch it unless I lost 100 pounds and maybe a little more (was at 399 at the time). The pain was extremely bad and I had some trouble walking although I could. Tried taking off the weight and at one time took off 70 pounds to only see half of it come back. Since that time I have only got out and played a few rounds of golf and been to the range a few times a year.

This last June I had a Gastric Sleeve surgery to lose weight and have since got my weight down to 268 pounds and plan on reaching my goal weight of 220 by the end of May.

Now here is the deal for me, I am 61 and will be 62 in July and I have a long way to go. With the weight I had on my swing was different every time I swung the club although every once in awhile I would still hit some decent shots. I have never been a very good golfer, back when I played quite a bit (25 years ago) I would shoot in the low 40's most of the time and the only reason for that was I could really hit that ball for distance. Never took the game as serious as I want to now but liked playing.

What I would like to know if anyone has started over with their swing etc. and rebuilt their whole game? I am afraid to take lessons right now as I still have another 48 pounds to lose and when I start to build a dependable swing I don't want to have to change a little as I keep taking off weight. My knee, now that I have lost enough to have it done, is not hurting that much so I am going to put it off until sometime down the road...surprising how losing over a hundred pounds can help that much LOL.

I plan on working on my putting as I can address the ball the same way as when I lose more weight, the other clubs are a different story. It was so bad I was hitting a lot of my irons off my back foot and sometimes beyond my back foot lol but no more.

I thought of a set of video lessons and starting at square one once my weight is off. I need the whole thing, ball placement in the stance etc. etc.. by video lessons I meen the kind with an instructor and you can see what you are doing.

Any ideas would be much appreciated as I want to get going on this but I am a bit afraid of taking lessons to soon.

Thanks for your time and any Replies,

evilstepdad

First thing I would do is get the knee taken care of. You don't know what effect that will have on your golf, and the sooner you get that done, the better.

After that, once it is healed and comfortable, start slow. Get comfortable just swinging a golf club. Half-swings with wedges, easy, smooth short irons, and just take it 1 club at a time.

Lessons might not be as bad as you think, if you can find the right teacher.

Thank You for your input. I was going to have the knee done this winter but it is feeling so good now that I am going to wait a couple of years unless it really gets to me again. It is not very often that it reminds me that it is bone on bone and I have pretty good flex in it.

Only thing that worries me about the lessons to early is making sure that when I build the swing that it will be repeatable and that when I lose the next 48 pounds that it won't change anything, although I think I am going to head up to Fidlers Green in Eugene next weekend and talk to the instructor and see what He has to say.

Again, Thanks,

evilstepdad

Getting the knee back to 100% (or as close as possible) will definitely change your swing. I play with my wife's uncle a few times a year. A couple of years ago he had full double knee replacement. It eliminated the bowed legs he had that were due to loss of cartilage. It took him a while to get back to playing where he'd been playing, because he was actually TALLER due to having straighter legs. Not saying this is exactly the case with you, but having messed up knees can cause a lot of issues.

The knee issue bothers me. Why not address that now, before you get fully into re-learning golf?

If you insist on leaving the knee for later, start with lessons on the basics. Certain things are going to be universal (grip, weight shift, shoulder turn) to almost any swing. Personally, I would not worry about whether my swing will change after additional weight loss. Building any sort of swing takes time and the sooner you start, the sooner you will actually have something with which to work.

You can also work on the short game. Weight should not significantly change certain techniques around the green.