Righty or Lefty?

Question
I'm 17 years old and started to play golf early last summer.  I have been on the up and down roller coaster of golf since then and have been going to a teacher near me.  He was astonished at how "great" my swing was in the little amount of time I have been playing.  He says it's great but it doesn't really show when I hit balls.  I am a lefty and started playing golf as a righty, mainly because I thought it would be cheaper (I also play guitar and righties are cheaper than lefties) to buy clubs and such.  My teacher knows this and every once in a while mentions that I'm fighting my lefty instincts.  Lately, I haven't been able to hit the ball worth squat and he says it's because I'm not releasing properly.  I also don't maintain my balance very well and tend to fall forward (where the ball originally was) at the end of each swing.  My plan was to go out on the golf team this year anyway but I'm trying to decide whether I should just start over and learn lefty.  Will this help me a lot more?  When I swing lefty now it seems very uncomfortable because I'm so used to righty.  But I'm wondering if, after I hit a couple buckets, everything will fall into place.  The only reason I'm so hesitant is the fact that I would have to buy new clubs.  Is this a good idea since I'm so "young in my golf career?"  Do you think it will be easier and help me more in the long run?  I practice a lot for someone who isn't even on the team but my friends hit so much better than me without practice..(They've been playing the same amount of time.)  Everyone tells me practice practice practice but the more I practice, the more I get worse.  Thanks
-A very frustrated golfer

Answer
Cameron:  You said something in your question that is the key to your golf swing whether righty or lefty and that is balance.  Consider there are more than 200 muscles working to hit a golf ball and the club (driver) travels in the neighborhood of 40', balance becomes very important to be able to return the club to the ball in a consistent manner.  

Before changing to lefty, put yourself in better balance and see if that doesn't produce better golf shots.  The best way to do that is to copy the pros that make a hugh amount of money playing this game.  You don't see them losing their balance often.  That's because they're set up to swing in balance so that when they DO begin their swing, they aren't fighting to maintain balance while hitting the ball.

Set-ups among the pros vary slightly but have a few similarities you need to adopt to become a better swinger of the club.  Those are:
1. Bend from the hips so that your shoulders are slightly
  in front of your toes.
2. Flex your knees just enough to unlock them.
3. Stand far enough from the ball to allow your arms to
  hang loosely and straight down from your shoulders.
4. Rock forward towards the ball so that you end up on the
  balls of your feet.

I recommend standing in front of a mirror so that you can learn what this position looks like and be able to find it on the golf course.  

You can see what I'm talking about by going to http://golfnutts.com/profile.html  And by all means, stick with it until you can make swings without falling down or losing your balance.  If you can't make a swing in balance it will be because one of the 4 things listed above is out of kilter and needs adjusting.

Cameron I wish you luck with the team and would enjoy hearing how you make out.

Fairways and Greens,

John
www.golfnutts.com