John Whitmore
You’re finally going to learn about the actual swing motion. About time, isn’t it?
Just a caveat before we begin. Golfers who have the resources to play three or four times per week, will have better flexibility and timing than those who are restricted to playing once a week or less. They can often compensate for flaws in technique; a luxury the casual player cannot afford.
The once a week golfer has to rely on proper technique to achieve consistent results.
The final concept is the relationship between the hands, arms and torso. Your hands and arms must remain in front of your body as long as possible throughout the swing. The farther your hands and arms move away from the center of your body, the more reliance on perfect timing to make solid contact consistently.
So what does this mean for the average golfer?
The hands, arms and body must move together as a single unit; start together, stop together. The length of your backswing will be governed by your flexibility; your ability to turn your back to the target. When your torso stops turning, the hands and arms must stop. For some golfers, this will feel like a three-quarter backswing.
Imagine a large rubber band connecting your hands with your sternum. As you turn back and forward, the elastic stretches but always remains taut.
Your hands and arms never travel behind your body. Initially, you may sacrifice a little distance in favor of consistently solid contact. (Although an improvement in ball flight may actually result in more distance with less effort. What a concept!)
Once again, you are responsible for discovering how far your hands and arms can swing away from your body before you notice a decline in results.
Now you know the three essential technical elements. Can you see how the tenet form follows function is a critical element for unlocking your innate swing?
Keep these principles in Mind. They will help you filter the incessant flow of information as relevant to your unique style and worth adopting, or to file as simply noteworthy points of interest.
The Fewer Moving Parts - The More Consistent The Motion
The practical application of this principle is to allow your body to react to the motion of the club. Focus on swinging the club with a pendulum motion and allow your body to flow with it.
Any golfer who scores above ninety consistently, attempts to control the motion of the club by using deliberate body positions – the robot syndrome. Visualize the pendulum motion of the club and allow your body to respond naturally.
The epitome of this principle, when taken to its literal extreme, is the unique style of Moe Norman. The wide stance, locked knees (at address) and extended arms and wrists, prevent any extraneous body motion from interfering with the motion of the club as it traces a perfect pendulum back and forth in line with target.
Once you adopt the notion that the club directs the body, any swing can be analyzed in terms of body motion that either allows the club to swing towards the target (scratch players) or prevents the club from swinging with a natural pendulum motion (mid to high handicap players).
Your Swing Is a Work In Progress
No matter how much you practice or how many lessons you take, your golf swing will always be a work in progress. There are simply too many variables to ever reach the level of perfection where any golfer can proudly exclaim, “Ah ha, I’ve got it!”
In most sports, the player only needs one implement – a baseball bat, a hockey stick or a tennis racket. The golfer has to wield fourteen different tools.
Every other sport is played in a controlled environment. A baseball diamond, squash court, hockey rink and football field have relatively stable conditions. A golfer has to negotiate uphill, downhill and sidehill lies, swirling winds and the added pressure of being paired with complete strangers.
A brilliant round one day may be followed by a humbling experience the next. Attempting to dissect the round in order to discover a rational explanation is an exercise in futility.
Relish the good rounds and store them vividly in your memory. Just because you played poorly one day, doesn’t mean your swing requires major reconstructive surgery.
Learn to control your expectations.
Your innate swing is always there, on standby, waiting for you to activate it. The secret is constantly refining the cues that flip the switch to turn off your analytical mind and open the door to your subconscious.