Mchatton DVD
 

Whilst i don't wish to promote other TGM instructors on this site i was keen to have the opinion of others on a something i have watched in the Greg McHatton DVD and whether it is worthwhile trying to achieve. The section i am refering to is when he delivers/throws the butt end of the club into the ground where the ball would normally be positioned. He then demonstrated what 90 percent of us do if we try it that is the club goes hurtling off behind us club head first into the ground. Having tried it i found that yep i am one of the 90 percent who does this. I take this as being important as the guy is a GSED and obviously knows what he is talking about. From what i am led to believe that if this is a true pivot controlled hands and arms swing then you can do it as he demonstrated. Should you be able to achieve it if you are a hands controlled pivot player?

I have practised it for a while. Is it something i should continue to try and achieve.

Would value your opinions.

Watch the dowel_wedges video in the gallery. It's in the Lynn Blake section.

Is this drill done with both hands on the club, or the right or left hand individually?

Greg I'm sure knows the Alignments of his hands throughout the swing.

The Pivot just transports them.

I like this kind of swing (a lot) personally.

Questions
 

Quote#1
"I take this as being important as the guy is a GSED and obviously knows what he is talking about."

I've never met Greg McHatton- basically I know nothing about the guy- could be the greatest most knowledgable teacher in the world- could be the worst- Again, I have no idea. But that's really irrelevant to the quote above- you need to make judgements based on the information not the 'designation"- probably no different than any other field in the world. Specifically in the Golfing Machine world- having a GSED doesn't mean the person "obviously knows what they are talking about". Some may - Some may not- but you need to make that decision based on the information you are given- not the "designation".

In regards to throwing the butt end of the shaft into the ball, If I understand you correctly, my guess would be that this obviously is in the context of creating solutions for those that have throwaway- or release the club too early. It may have some useful applications in correcting those problems. However, I would say that there probably is no where in a golf swing where you could let go of the club and the shaft would arrow into the ball on the ground- obviously there could be special circumstances or unigue swings but in general- you're not going to see that happen. Anotherwords, it's not some principle that is true in every swing. That said it doesn't mean that in the context of his DVD via feel or in a general way he might not be describing something that could be helpful for someone i.e. you should be able to do it if you tried- not that that's what or how the actual swing should feel or look.

Finally, If (and that's a big if) I am understanding you properly- then pivot controlled hands or hand controlled pivot would have no difference - no impact on what you are describing.

Cert Means Nothing?
 

MikeO,

Now that scares me a tad. Do you really mean that you can attain a GSED and possibly not know what you're talking about TGM wise?

Say it aint so.

CG

Mike is spot on with regards to certs...

Now on the other hand, I have visited with Gregg, spent some time hitting balls with him, breakfast etc and spoke to him a fair bit over the phone - and if there is one thing about him, he knows his TGM and his hands are educated.

However, as with all other forms of instruction (computer science, medical science, theology etc...) I would always check to see whether what I am hearing is factually valid.

Hint: Even though a person says he is using Pivot Controlled Hands, they may not be doing so in reality.

Those drills that were described before simply is Gregg teaching his students to accelerate the club lengthwise or longitudinally, i.e. Drag Loading per 10-19-C.

Arrowing the ball with the butt end of the club is something that Gregg came up with to teach the student Aiming Point per 6-E-2, Drag Loading per 10-19-C and a Straight Line Delivery Path per 10-23-A.

Delivery Path (Hands and Thrust) Versus Delivery Lines (Clubhead)
 

I have not seen the Greg McHatton video and therefore cannot speak to the referenced drill.

However, my own Gallery 'live lesson' demo (where I throw the 'javelin' at the Ball) demonstrates how to establish the precise Down Plane Delivery Path of the Hands -- the Line of Thrust from the Top to the Aiming Point.

The Clubshaft and the Clubhead have their own Inclined Plane of Motion. Both are controlled by the selected Delivery Line. That is, the player Traces the Geometric Plane Line or Covers either of its Visual Equivalents, the Angle of Approach (Hitting) or the Arc of Approach (Swinging).

Certification
 

Compda,

Spot On??? I have to admit you're losing me here (as well as is Mike O). Why in the hell do certifications exist to begin with? Is a patient supposed to be in a position to question the doctor about his qualifications? Is the college freshman supposed to inquire as to his Physics professors credentials? If the title GSED means nothing... then the cert process is messed up. The golf student doesn't have the time nor the expertise to determine the teachers qualifications.... especially when it comes to TGM. I always viewed the TGM certification as a "stamp of approval" of sorts (unlike the "PGA Member" title) when it comes to teaching. From what I understand about TGM and the testing... I find it hard to believe you could get a certification (particularly a GSED) without knowing what you're doing.

I'm not saying you can't question the teacher. But at some point the student has to trust the teacher... and the process the teacher used to attain his credentials.

I could be wrong. Sure hope I'm not.

CG

Consumer Beacons
 

Billions of dollars are spent each year on branding. To the extent that branding leads consumers to their own best interests, that money has done its job -- for company and consumer alike. But...

If quality, competition or pricing cause that brand to become suspect, then those billions are lost.

As they should be.

In the end, the marketplace rules.