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This is the comment Femgolf1 is referring to:
~ I will try in words but a video is in order on this one…
The reason I said “not good” is that the club does not come from anywhere into the ball. It is not redirected with the hands to be on some arbitrary path or plane on the backswing… or taken away to the inside so it can return in to out. These kinds of thoughts are what have most golfers struggling. If you think the club comes from some direction into the ball, you’ll use your hands, arms or hips to get it to a place in the backswing, that will allow it to return how you were told it should be coming from. This disconnects the arms from the body and loses the athletic connection. You would not see a football quarterback take his arm inside behind himself. He just turns his shoulders back a little the unwinds from ground up. If you are truly using the large muscles, in this case the shoulders, to carry the arms and club up to the top of the backswing… and then all the way to the finish, the arms and club stay essentially in front of the body both directions. What I mean is, as the shoulders turn away 90 degrees, your arms are still in front of your chest extended away from the body, they are not across your chest and behind you. The real key is to not let the arms or hands get evolved. Use the shoulders to push the arms and club to the top and then the athletic unwinding to bring them back down keeping them in front of the body all the way to the finish. The width of this entire trip is very narrow. I will put this on my list for a new video this spring to show you …Ross ~Ross Jun 29, 2020
What I’m referring to in this comment is NOT the width of the arc the arms make as the elbow bends a little, it is the the width of the distance the arms/club will move with relation to the ball. In other words, the arms/club will be moved more lateral by the shoulders on the backswing vs. the arms moving themselves across the chest and behind the golfer. In the photo below the width I’m referring to will be between the arrows roughly. Every golfer is different. Now you know the “width” I’m referring to.
Ross Jul 15, 2020
It is difficult to actually hold the club head to the finish. The club head wants to release after impact and does on a full swing. The idea is … in trying to hold the club head to the finish, it makes the body continue rotating and (more importantly) helps teach the golfer to stop “throwing” the club head into the ball ahead of impact. There is a a difference.Ross Jul 02, 2020
One: is moving off the ball during the backswing. That means, after you’ve setup, during the backswing you’re allowing your body to slide, or drift towards the back foot, then on the downswing, you don’t get back to the ball in time to make contact. One solution: Keep at least 60% of your weight on the front foot during the backswing, so you’ll not slide. Then you’ll be able to make better contact.Two: Releasing, Flipping or using your hands to throw the club head at the ball hoping to get more distance. If this happens too soon, you’ll throw the club face into the ground. One solution: Learn to use your shoulders to move your arms/club during the backswing, without hinging at all (ideally) or very much. Then, let the body’s rotation bring the arms back down through impact, maintaining the shaft inline with the front arm, and a flat or even bowed out front wrist. You’ll have to learn to do this without using the hands to throw the club head. You’ll hit the ball more solid when you learn this. You’ll get power and accuracy by accelerating faster when you know how to do it correctly.
I would like to add one thing Alan, if you wanted to practice the start of the swing using your shoulders only… just the start, then practicing on your knees may be beneficial, because you can’t turn your hips very far or sway, but I’ve never tried this. You might pull a muscle of two if you’re not careful. I’m not suggesting trying this, just a thought.
Ross
No. My method uses the body’s turn… the body rotation to move the ball. Hitting balls from your knees cause all the problems my method takes away.
Ross Jul 24, 2020
The reason this would work, is because when your stance opens (a little) that brings the club head over closer to the ball.Ross Jul 24, 2020
No, I do mean the “back” knee in the post you’re referring to. Yes, you are correct that at least 60% of your weight should be setup and stay on the front foot during the backswing*, but to help maintain and keep 60% on the front foot, the “back” knee is braced slightly inward to help “hold” you in that position as the shoulders wind up. You should also feel a lot of pressure on the “instep” of the “back” foot. This keeps the lower body anchored to create torque as the shoulders wind up. A common critical error is to slide or drift towards the back foot and allow your weight to move on top of the back foot or even to the outside of the back foot during the backswing… NOT GOOD. You will be stuck with the majority of weight on the back foot and it will prevent you from being able to unwind athletically and you will have to flip to save the shot. It can also cause the ball to go left or hook (for a right hander)
* The weight on the front foot will actually increase on the downswing as you rotate to face the target.
Ross Aug 01, 2020
Well… I started one a few years back, but got distracted. I love to do so many things. Lately, my wife and I have been playing music and singing… and we love cooking. I just never got back to it. I keep thinking most of what I have to say is either in one of the Lesson Videos or on the Blog or the Forums. Always great to hear from you Dan. ?Ross Aug 08, 2020
Nothing is “terrible” if it is repeatable and effective. Ideally, through impact, the front wrist will be flat, to bowed out, and the back wrist will be bent-in or cupped-in (using your word), to help hold the shape through impact.Ross Aug 01, 2020
(To answer Femgolf1 question above)… Your “front” arm or “left” for a right hander should be straight at setup… stay straight (if possible) throughout the backswing and back down into impact position. Many golfers bend their front arm slightly at the top of the backswing, then straighten it back out before impact. This is okay, but is just one more variable to worry about. A flat to bowed-out front wrist throughout the backswing into impact, is also the most reliable position (I believe). I think cupping the front wrist at setup, or at the top of the backswing, to be the cause of many problems, because it will need to be flat or bowed out by impact… it is too unreliable (and has no benefit).Ross Jul 30, 2020
If you read a comment about left upper arm attached… it was made by someone else and I may have commented on it. I don’t teach that. I do mention keeping your elbows towards each other, forming a kind of Template that the shoulders can move. As far as the shaft in line goes… starting with the shaft in line with the front arm, helps return it back to impact, where it is crucial that it be “in line with the front arm” for a solid golf shot. Sometimes for different shots you’ll want to continue past impact with the shaft still in line with the front arm, but in most cases, after impact the shaft will line up with the back arm and eventually (when the wrists hinge at the finish of a full swing) the shaft is not in line with either arm.Ross Aug 15, 2020
“They” used to say… like a dollar bill. Ideally very thin, if you get everything working correctly. When you achieve an Athletic setup (centered and balanced), you should be able to swing every time and just barely brush the ground. When you get the ball in the correct position for “your” swing and the club you’re using, you should be meeting the ball at or just before the bottom of the swing arc. Play around with ball positions. You might have the ball too far back and when you make contact, your club head is still descending and continues its path downward, gouging out a thick divot. Sometimes, golfers drop their chest* on the downswing causing the club head to dig deeper than they originally had setup.* Many times this is due to the fact that they raised up on the backswing, so (for every action – opposite and = or more reaction), they drop their chest on the downswing causing radius issues with their swing.