Learning and Applying TGM w/disabilities by a 21 hcp.

[JerryG]

Patrick. Reading your description of the lesson just makes me think how lucky you are to find such a knowledgeable teacher.
Kev and I met at a range/practice area yesterday and started out chipping using hinges. We pretty well would just chip and giggle as the ball did WHAT WE WANTED IT TO DO! The consequent shot patterns would not have hit many ducks, but we had a lot of tap-ins.
One of Kev's veteran PGA teaching pro friends swung by and they reacquainted while I chipped some more. Later, as we were finishing up on the range Kev gave him a very quick intro to TGM. I'll bet he's hunting in LBG today.
There is a bit of a difference in the way Kev and I operate on the range. I move the ball usually in directions intended. Kev crushes it in intended directions. It is fun to watch. Pretty good for a guy that had pretty well given up on golf. Now he is playing G.O.L.F. It is nice to see joy on his face again.

[KevCarter]

I had a BLAST Jerry. I would say we are just like two little kids playing with our new Christmas toys. Yoda and Homer are just like Santa Claus!

Kevin

Patrick. Reading your description of the lesson just makes me think how lucky you are to find such a knowledgeable teacher.
Kev and I met at a range/practice area yesterday and started out chipping using hinges. We pretty well would just chip and giggle as the ball did WHAT WE WANTED IT TO DO! The consequent shot patterns would not have hit many ducks, but we had a lot of tap-ins.
One of Kev's veteran PGA teaching pro friends swung by and they reacquainted while I chipped some more. Later, as we were finishing up on the range Kev gave him a very quick intro to TGM. I'll bet he's hunting in LBG today.
There is a bit of a difference in the way Kev and I operate on the range. I move the ball usually in directions intended. Kev crushes it in intended directions. It is fun to watch. Pretty good for a guy that had pretty well given up on golf. Now he is playing G.O.L.F. It is nice to see joy on his face again.

[innercityteacher]

Wait a minute! It just dawned on me that Mr. Hardy's one plane swing is in fact a HH with a funky motion, right?

Did he make up the motion just to be idiosyncratic? Stylish? Was he hoping to avoid the heartbreak of Psorriahsis or that burning sensation?

Reminds me of a Mr. K who read TGM with Moe and took all sorts of stuff from it and now tells everyone the book is not helpful. UGH!

[innercityteacher]

John Savage, last week revealed the "magic of the level handle," which amazingly enough corresponded to tracing the planeline with your shaft, which Bernie (BerntR) and the whole LBG universe has said about, uhmmm, 1,000,000 times!

OB also gave many great answers agout the RFT and shoulder stuff including "..........most likely under plane given a shoulder turn takeaway. Ideally the Shoulders in Startup turn BACK, around on a flatish plane and the Hands and arms go UP. See the Vectors and the McDonald drills too, Wild Bill Melhourne etc etc. Lynn likens this to patting your head and rubbing your stomach at the same time. Something we do all the time during the course of our normal day, reaching for things......multi levers, independent motions, scattered vectors..........but netting out with the Hands traveling towards their target.........the mug on the top shelf in your kitchen or whatever. You dont lock up and align your shoulders and arms to accomplish that. You dont even think about your shoulders really.............you just direct your hand to the target. Very Homer like isnt it? "

And Kevin has given me so many insights over time that I just literally have stacks of things I pour through several times a week. and then Jerry says things like this
, "I don't think you should worry too much yet about whether or not you are hinging Horizontally or Angled. I'm thinking straight line delivery with the heel of the right hand covering the ball. It is a lot easier to actually do, for me, if I make sure the shaft is running right up the cup in my right hand and the Right Arm On Plane. Tues and Wed. I hit it dead straight with the irons a bit of a draw with the hybrids and woods.
After taking stock of my right arm and pp's #1 and 3, I grabbed a wedge and focused on H, A, or V hinging. Then I grabbed a 7 iron and tried to pay attention to only my hands. Then a hybrid and then a driver. The clubhead goes where my hands take it. If I over cook it, I am pretty sure I turned the back of my left hand over too much."

And ED Z has exercises and drills for RFT.

And while kicking through the stacks, Yoda wrote this about all that,"

Yes, both Hitter and Swinger use Pivot Lag (Hips lead Shoulders in the Downstroke) to Load the Power Package (via the On Plane Right Shoulder Turn Thrust against Pressure Point #4).

The essential difference between the two is what is being Loaded and how. The Hitter Loads the Right Triceps to Drive the Club through Impact, and he does so by using the Hands at the Top to resist the motion of the Backstroke Turn per 7-19-1. The Swinger Loads the Left Wrist to Drag the Club through Impact, and he does so by using the Shoulder Thrust to Snap the Club onto the Lag Pressure Point per 7-19-3."


So putting this together...




I started tracing the line with basic motion and enjoyed the compression so much I wound up knocking down the base of the markers with wedges through 7 iron. I realized with the infinite planeline marked behind my ball with a club, I could trust my tracing/pivot and simply concentrate on "shoulder upplane/shoulder downplane," or, "hands upline/hands downline." My intact wedges and power package united (I'm sorry OB), I was able to swing long and strong with long clubs and the ball in the middle of my stance. Angled hinge produced straight shots with the hint of a fade or a real fade based on ball positions.

The slower my swing, the more the ball seemed to jump and the sweeter the crack like sound of contact.

An older gentleman had started watching with basic motion . He was clearly looking and then really struggling to hit some very nice looking clubs. When I was done swinging and hitting my hinges at will (except HH except for chips), I interrupted the gentleman and laid a club on the planeline. I told him about tracing the line with chips and working up. I told him about the balance of the planeline balancing me. He hit a few solidly but then started to look up before contact and he had no wedges and started spraying his shots. I told him about carrying the pivot through to the left.
Then I decided less was much more and told him about LBG golf and the website.

Finally, with about 30 balls left, I started doing my version of Jerry's straight line thrusting at the aimpoint, using OB's casual RFT approach "right hand to shoulder/right thrust/right heel covers ball." As I got more comfortable, the shots flew as far as my swings with a very casual and simple stroke.

Tomorrow, I'll tee the ball and swing trying to discover a straight line back marker (shoulder up and down)as I do not trust the hit yet with its direction. I fear the left side of the force!

Thanks guys; have fun tomorrow.

ICT

I had a BLAST Jerry. I would say we are just like two little kids playing with our new Christmas toys. Yoda and Homer are just like Santa Claus!

Kevin

[JerryG]

Oh, sure. Drag my stupid responses in here.
I watched a teaching pro giving a lesson today and it was obvious there was no understanding of TGM.
Man, are we lucky to have this site and these friends.
g

[innercityteacher]

Saturday at 6:30am I had laid down an umbrella to mark my planeline. I compressed almost every ball as long as I traced the plainline back and forth. right index finger on back of club. Level hands. Pocket back and through

Par Score GIR Chp/SB/Ptch #/distance Putt #/distance

3 4 Y 0 0 3 70 ft
5 5 Y 0 0 2 10 "
4 5 N 1ptch 30 ft 2 20 "
4 5 N 1sb 20 ft 2 15 "
4 5 N 1ptch 35 ft 2 10 "
4 5 N 1chp 60 ft 2 6 "
3 5 N 2chps 60 ft 2 8 "
4 5 Y 0 0 3 30 "
4 7 N 1ptch 120 ft 3 30 "

35 46 3 6 21 235 ft

At about the 7th hole, I stopped tracing the line and started tilting my back shoulder up then down. It got really sore and I had to use a very flat tracing to get around the course hooking everything, then I combined the flat tracing with the inclined plane.

4 5 N 1sb 10 ft 1 8 ft
4 4 N 1sb 20 " 1 6 "
4 4 Y 0 4 " 2 4 "
4 7 N 2ptchs 150" 3 60"
3 4 Y 0 3 20"
4 5 N 1ptch 120" 2 30 "
4 9 N misplayed into 2 trees 3 50 "
3 4 N 1sb 40" 2 20 "
5 7 N 0 2 10 "

35 49 2 6 19 308*


I slipped back away from the flat tracing and the shoulder became sore again.

I related this all to my GSEB, John Savage, today. His response was to show me PRIMARY AIM POINT/planeline, clearing the back hip with the RIGHT FOREARM TAKEAWAY WHILE KEEPING THE CLUB IN FRONT OF THE HIP AND STERNUM ROTATION/ HORIZONTAL FANNING AND BACK SHOULDER PUSH OUT TO AIMPOINT.


When I relaxed and let my arms extend down the line, I could turn my sternum well enough to hit consistent shots with lower power.

But when I got tired or nervous, I had been tracing the planeline but pulling my sternun in so sharply and deeply that I was stuck and driving my choulder down into my ribcage with power bouncing off it and somehow still making contact with the ball


Instead, by clearing the right hip with the sternum and
( horizontally ) setting the right elbow (much like a sidearm or forward frisbee throw) so the club points at the planeline, the front hip and ribcage can be sent straight back or the right shoulder can push to the planeline straight forward or cover the planeline. LET ME EMPHASIZE HOW GREATLY HORIZONTAL THIS FEELS SETTING AND COVERING FORWARD!

Whether hitting or swinging, the motion is so compact and so linear/horizontal that the ball squeezes out low before shooting high above the battlefield. A well struck ball makes a different heavier, fuller, "angry bee" sound.

I think I'd hit about 30 sand wedges within 5 feet of the target straight in front of me when John asked me if I was bored by the action. I said "no, I had been in the twilight zone for so long, it was great to see cause and effect in operation." John pointed out that the ball could only go where the clubface was aimed! It was so much fun to do it on purpose!

John observed that I was still fighting the tendency to pull with my left arm but concentrating on RFT clearing the hip would help me hit both primary and secondary aimpoints.

Good hitting to all!

Patrick

Oh, sure. Drag my stupid responses in here.
I watched a teaching pro giving a lesson today and it was obvious there was no understanding of TGM.
Man, are we lucky to have this site and these friends.
g

[JerryG]

Way to go Patrick!

[innercityteacher]

Hi Kevin! I'm bummed over your recent injury, mucho!!!!

Please recover quickly! I intend to see you golfing ( well for a change :> ) by August!

Patrick

[KevCarter]

Hi Kevin! I'm bummed over your recent injury, mucho!!!!

Please recover quickly! I intend to see you golfing ( well for a change :> ) by August!

Patrick

LOL

Thanks Buddy. The next 6 weeks I need to learn everything I can about The Magic of the LEFT Forearm.

Kevin

[innercityteacher]

Kevin, as you know, John Savage is my GSEB. I believe he, you, and any well-trained TGM instructor could teach a person to golf from any side!

As a right hander never fully trained in any golf system. I was really excited three years ago, when I was able to save up for an eight lesson package from Golf-Tec. It was over $800 but I thought that the video taping and computer analysis would allow me to keep my gathered insights and the years of better golf would defray the overall expense.


Was I disappointed! I was taught to set-up in certain positions and shown pro golfers who were in those positions. I was placed
in a series of positions by my instructor without any unifying theme.

It was very confusing. Each position was butressed by a series of traditional golf exercises that sought to put the body in a "correct" position. But without any logical overview, I was very frustrated and felt ripped off.

At the fifth Golf-Tec lesson. I was taught to point my left thumb up as my hand cleared my hip. At the driving range, it seemed like the "X" factor came alive and I was able to hit my shots crisply. The following Saturday I shot an 85.

I was very excited, and then it stopped working! During the last 4 lessons, where I was offered discounts for more packages of 8 lessons, frequently, I couldn't get the stroke back! And the instructor seemed unable to explain why or where it went! I was pissed!

Fast forward to yesterday and today. On the front 9, I concentrated on using an angle hinge but my ball position was too far in front and I was off plane mucho. I was rolling my shoulder, swinging, but sprayed the ball all over. Then I compounded the problem by tring to hit perfect pitches and chips to sucker pins. On three holes, I turned possible pars and easy bogies into one double and two trips! I shot a 48.

On holes 6-9, I started thrusting (Jerry) and using the horizontal hinge with a small, horizontal feeling, RFT (Kevin, OB). Four over on the last 4 holes.

On our back 9, I lost my chip ball position. I turned two pars into a trip and dbl being within 10 feet of the fringe (+ 5)! Got the position, logically, from thinking about the plane. On holes 12-17, I had 5 makable birdie chips or birdie putts, including our number 1 an 2 hcp holes. I was par for those six holes including a birdie on the # 1 hcp! I dbld the last hole to shoot 42 on a par 35. (I was so jazzed about shooting MY FIRST 40 EVER that I stood up on a simple 120 yard 9 iron and shanked it wide of the green. )

Telling John all this, today, he smiled. "Let's see your horizontal hinge." He then explained to me that though my positions were much better, and I was more consistent, I was still double cocking my wrists, dumping my hands and power too early and never getting to straight arms at impact!

(JOHN SAID) I had simply adjusted to my weaknesses! My small RFT and straight right arm thrust let me get away with murder by keeping my flying wedges stable at impact as I thrusted through. I was driving the ball as far as my club champ on several holes using the Noodles I got on sale since Kevin has not sent me any TITLEISTS!!!!!


(JOHN DEMONSTRATED AND SAID) THE STERNUM STAYS ALIGNED WITH ADDRESS WEDGES (W/WOUT BLUE CHEESE)! I AM NOT ALIGNED GOING BACK UP-PLANE BECAUSE I'M TAKING THE CLUB AWAY WITH MY HANDS OFF PLANE. SO, I HAVE TO THRUST TO IMPACT FIX BECAUSE SWINGING OFF PLANE IS ALL I COULD DO OTHERWISE.


LEAVE THE HANDS ALONE! LOOK AT YOUR UNFLAT WRIST! TOO MANY CRINKLES! # 1 PPT MUST BE AFT OF THE SHAFT! STOP DOUBLE COCKING! LOOK, LOOK, LOOK! USE A MIRROR! PUSH THE BACK SHOULDER BACK! WHEN COMING DOWN IT IS LINEAR THEN ANGULAR BUT BECAUSE YOU'RE OFF-PLANE, YOU CANNOT CONSISTENTLY COME TO YOUR FRONT TOE AIMPOINT! ON-PLANE PUSH BACK THEN ON-PLANE PUSH FORWARD OR LEAD WITH THE FRONT SHOULDER OR STERNUM TO ACCENTUATE THE LINEAR ACTION AS COUNTERBALANCE OR COMPENSATION TO THE DISABLED FRONT HIP!!!!

By the time we were finished, I had gained 10 yards of carry and almost 10 yards of roll with my clubs. When John left, I hit another bucket of chips through drivers. A younger man practicing with his elderly father commented on how I was hitting the 250 yard fence on a roll with my wood and on the fly with my driver. (There were actually slight fades and draws but I diDn't want to explain.) I recommended John to them explaining my artificial hip, metal rod, gout and psorriahsis. the elderly gentleman had just had his hip and knee replaced!

And so it goes!

LOL

Thanks Buddy. The next 6 weeks I need to learn everything I can about The Magic of the LEFT Forearm.

Kevin