With all the Latin terms available, it's hard to believe that the 'docs' still call it the 'snuffbox'. I first heard the term in 1969 when taking lessons from Melvin Hemphill at Forest Oaks CC in Columbia, South Carolina. Melvin was a 'wee left-hander' who had been at the club forever and was known as one of the best teachers in the state.
One of his early pupils was Gardner Dickinson, who was stationed at nearby Ft. Jackson during his Army days. Gardner had already started his pro tour career and study under Ben Hogan but had been drafted.
One of the things Gardner told Melvin that Ben told him -- -- was to keep that 'snuffbox' on the right side of the shaft. No great player, said he, ever had it positioned on top or to the left.
It seems that I've found my Pot-of-Gold. 10-6-B, 10-13-A, and 10-18-F. Simple, repeatable, good Loading, and it contributes to an excellent Longitudinal Pull feel. Better than Standard Wrist Action.
What Daryl is saying is...
Use the Turned (Right) Shoulder Plane and eliminate any Start Up Swivel in the Backstroke.
From there, delay the Release by keeping the Left Hand Palm Down (to the Plane) -- and the Right Hand Palm up -- through the Release Point and then Swivel into Impact.
__________________
HP, grant me the serenity to accept what I cannot change, the courage to change what I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Progress and not perfection is the goal every day!
Last edited by innercityteacher : 05-08-2012 at 03:21 PM.
The Right Wrist Alignment
Originally Posted by Millrat
Question: the subjects address position in the picture 10-6-B#1 shows the right wrist really uncocked. Is this required by the plane?
Regardless of Plane Angle, the Right Wrist is ideally held Level throughout the Stroke. The fact that the Wrist may appear Uncocked in 10-6-B #1 does not alter this Basic. It merely points to the fact that any photo in the book should be used as a check ONLY for the point under discussion and not those appearing incidentally (2-R).
And 10-6-B #1 refers only to the Turned Shoulder Plane Angle, not the Perpendicular alignment of the Right Wrist.
Study the Perpendicular Wrist Positions in 4-B-0/1/2/3. Especially study Photo 4-B-1. Level may be more "Uncocked" than you think!
__________________
HP, grant me the serenity to accept what I cannot change, the courage to change what I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Progress and not perfection is the goal every day!
Re the above : Would I be correct in thinking that to sustain the amount of lag pressure , inertia as sensed in the hands one must sustain the hands rate of acceleration? Or is there more to the story. Mass of club for instance? Anything else?
Quote:
You don't need to increase hands speed. I don't think you can either, unless you've gone very easy before the release. The release interval is the overdrive gear in the golf swing. Almost an eccentric quality to the muscle work in the upper body if the swing is still powered from ground up. Also, you've got some inertia that works with your hands - club shaft, hands, arms, pivot - all of these are up to speed already and suddenly the lag pressure increases dramatically.
I bet one of the reasons that heavier shafts gives lower ball flight is that it adds inertia to the grip end of the club...
Quote:
Can you sustain the amount of lag pressure at the #3 pp after lever extension? All the way to impact? Past impact? Past low point?
I bet the lag pressure (and therefore also, the golfers linear force) maxes when the overtaking rate is at the highest during the release interval.
I don't think you can sustain max lag pressure at impact, but that you can sustain some lag pressure. How much depends on machine alignment. More #3 accumulator means less release before impact and more impact lag pressure. More #2 release before impact means more swing speed, perhaps, but less lag pressure at impact.
It's a bit like hitting the ball in the middle of the release as opposed to hitting it at the end of the release.
Past impact: I bet you can increase swing speed again. Past low point: Dunno. The only accumulator that can still do something positive is #4 and pulling with left shoulder.
Pivot driven rope handling towards impact will generate a lot of force. Max force when hands are in front of left shoulder. The left shoulder is always pulling from a point that is ahead of the swing center. Linear force as long as the left shoulder is moving. Doesn't even matter where it is moving as long as it doesn't stall or doesn't go in reverse.
#4 is a power house if you are in balance to swing from the feet through impact and if turn hands and shoulders together through the ball. It's like a one-armed dead lift, only a lot stronger since you don't need to pick it up from the ground, but can pull from your strongest position. If you set yourself up for utilizing it to its max it will dwarf any pressure you can produce with your right side. Left leg versus right arm, basically.
I cannot wait until I can 4 Barrel on purpose!
__________________
HP, grant me the serenity to accept what I cannot change, the courage to change what I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Progress and not perfection is the goal every day!
Good question, Armourall. And a complete answer provides the opportunity toclear Major League Fog.
You have correctly and perceptively observed that the Square Plane Line (10-5-A)is listed as the Plane Line Component (#5) for the Drive Loading Basic Patternof 12-1-0. In contrast, my post recommended the Closed Plane Line (10-5-E). Themissing link is Homer's dual purpose in creating the Basic StrokePatterns of Chapter 12.
His first objective was to present the Basic Uncompensated Stroke forboth Hitting (12-1-0) and Swinging (12-2-0). The second was to permit theplayer to interchange those patterns -- both when learning them andin using them in actual play -- with a minimum of disruption totheir original Basic Pattern. To accomplish this second objective, he variedthe respective Components only as absolutely necessary to accomodate thenature of each, i.e., the Push (Drive Loading) or the Pull (DragLoading).
The Straight Plane Line of 10-5-A is the true Geometric Plane Line andas such, it is the Basic Delivery Line for both Hitting andSwinging(2-J-3). Swingers actively Trace -- point at -- this Straight Line asthe simplified alternative to Monitoring the Curved Arc of the ClubheadBlur through the Impact Point and Low Point. In Tracing the Straight Plane Lineof 10-5-A -- the On Line Procedure -- the Swinger automatically producesthe correct Visual Arc of Approach (2-J-3-A)-- the curved Path of theClubhead Blur -- through Impact.
As stated above, Hitters may use this same Basic Delivery Line. In sodoing, they likewise will produce the On Line Arc of ApproachProcedure. However, unlike Swingers, they have an additional option, and thatis the Cross Line Angle of Approach procedure. The Angle ofApproach is that Straight Line drawn between the Impact Point and Low Point(2-J-3-B and Sketch 2-C-1-#3). As long as the Clubhead passes through those twopoints, the Angle of Approach and the Arc of Approach are Geometric Equivalents.
The Closed Plane Line of 10-5-E can be erected on the Angle of Approach, and itsBaseline (by definition) will cross the Straight Plane Line of 10-5-A and pointto "Right Field." It is not practical for the Swinger to use thisalternative Plane Line to Deliver the Clubhead into Impact. This is because hesenses a Circular "Wheel Rim" Whirling Motion of his Orbiting Handsthrough the Three Stations, i.e., from the Address to the Top andthrough Impact to the Finish. This Swinging Motion is much bettersuited to the On Line (Arc of Approach) Procedure and is best produced byTracing the Straight Plane Line of 10-5-A.
The Hitter, however, does not experience the Wheel Rim sensation of theOrbiting Hands. Instead of a 'Swinging' Motion of the Hands in theBackstroke, he senses a 'Carrying' Motion. And instead of a CircularWhirling Motion through the Ball, he senses a decided Straight LineThrust (of the Driving Right Arm). And this Thrust lends itself ideallyto the Cross Line Angle of Approach Procedure.
For the Hitter, then, the two Procedures -- On Line (Arc of Approach) andCross Line (Angle of Approach) -- are interchangeable. And to satisfyHomer's second Stroke Pattern objective -- as much consistency aspossible between the two Basic Patterns (Drive and Drag) -- he listed theSquare Plane Line of 10-5-A as Component #5 for both. He also advised that theplayer should avoid customizing either until the "expert" stage wasreached. If you have not yet reached that stage, then stay with 10-5-A forHitting.
However, if you have, then per 2-J-3, the Cross Line 'Hit' ispreferred to the On Line 'Hit' and the customization of the Basic12-1-0 Pattern is warranted. The On Line 'Swing' remains the preferredProcedure for 12-2-0, whether the player has reached the expert stage or not.
And this brings us back to Square One -- the need for the Pre-Turned Right Hip.Interestingly, both Stroke Patterns list the Delayed Hip Action (10-15-B) asthe Basic Hip Action Component (#15). Its Pre-Turned Right Hip is helpfulto players using the On Line Swing because it assures that the Hipwill be properly Cleared in the Backstroke, thus permitting the Hands toexecute the mandatory Three Dimensional Backstroke (2-F). It also offers more 'RightForearm Fanning' room in Start Up than the Standard Action of 10-15-A.
However, while the Pre-Turned Right Hip is helpful to the On LineSwinger it is essential to the Cross Line Hitter. His Closed Plane Lineproduces a Cross Line Clubhead Path and with it, a Right Hip—Right Elbowconflict. This Path (and its problematic Hip—Elbow conflict) may be preciselyidentified by observing the On Plane Right Forearm Angle of Approach inImpact Fix and the parallel Clubhead Angle of Approach through Impact.And the curious fact is that your Hands simply will not take the Club backon that Line if your Right Hip is in the way. And it is! You can tell them-- out loud if you wish -- that you will move the Hip immediately in Start Up,but they will not believe you. As Homer used to say, "The Hands just won'tbuy it." And so they just 'go around' the Hip and take the Club Off Planein the process.
So, if you're going to Cross Line Hit, you must Pre-Turn theRight Hip. And since the Pre-Turned Hip is perfectly acceptable (and even advisable)for On Line Swingers as well, Homer made it the Basic Hip Action Component for bothBasic Stroke Patterns. Why should you have to spend years learning andusing Standard Hip Action -- with On Line Swinging or On Line Hitting orboth -- only to find out that the Pre-Turned Hip of Delayed Hip Action ismandated by the more sophisticated Cross Line Hit? And then be forced to startall over again learning a new Hip Action Component and then integrating itinto your Basic Pattern? Or else forego The Joy of Cross Line Hitting.
You see, Homer knew long before you did that you would be following him downthis road, and he wanted to make your transition as easy as possible.
Pretty neat, don't you think?
__________________
Yoda
Just grabbed a metal broomstick while waiting for the Computer Club to show up and the "pre-turned right hip" does feel very smooth for Hitting and Swinging! So Cool!!!!
Thanks Whip and LBG!
__________________
HP, grant me the serenity to accept what I cannot change, the courage to change what I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Progress and not perfection is the goal every day!
Just grabbed a metal broomstick while waiting for the Computer Club to show up and the "pre-turned right hip" does feel very smooth for Hitting and Swinging! So Cool!!!!
Thanks Whip and LBG!
Cross-line and pre-turned hips adds stability and speed to Hitting and Swinging. Very easy to use Extensor Action for both and then with a stationary head both Hits and Swings jump!
Trajectory is a little flatter and distances are a bit better but I realized my ZB's are an inch shorter than my clones and stiffer. Target line is dead on in both! Left wrist is Level!
ICT
__________________
HP, grant me the serenity to accept what I cannot change, the courage to change what I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Progress and not perfection is the goal every day!
Last edited by innercityteacher : 05-09-2012 at 10:44 PM.
ZB-s = 48 (1 club short everywhere)
Clones w/senior shafts =42 (made no putts)
Love my Taylor Made hybrids and traded in my ZB's and abandoned my Ben Hogan "Sure Out," for dual purpose Mizuno 60 and 52 degree wedges.
Went to Golf Smith and tried every club imaginable except forged blades and could not hit any regular or senior shafts further than my AcER Callaway Hawkeye clones. Also, I could not hit any 3 wood further than my old Adams 2 wood, senior shaft, which I regularly shape any way I want and hit 220 or less.
My "Hit" speed on the monitor was between 60 and 65 mph. My "Swing speed was between 70 and 73.
My Hit was with a pre-turned hip, EA covering the swing plane, and a shoulder drop followed by RT triceps firing the Angle Hinge.
__________________
HP, grant me the serenity to accept what I cannot change, the courage to change what I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Progress and not perfection is the goal every day!
Last edited by innercityteacher : 05-14-2012 at 02:11 PM.
Impact Fix: Difference Between Good & Lucky
BY PAUL SMITH
Fig 1
Impact Fix - Alignments
Fig 2
Fig 3
Fig 4
The Impact Fix is a feel for impact alignments, fixed in the mind and body before the swing starts. The rest of the swing feels are then fitted around it to make it easier and safer. We also have feels for the grip, stance, waggle, forward press and start up to finish, the total motion feel. If that seems complicated, that’s because it is. However, it becomes easy with time and practice as the mystery is taken out of it.
From the Face-On view (Fig 1) the left arm and the club are in line. From the Down the Line view (Fig 2), the right forearm and the shaft are in line.
Extensor action, a gentle pressure down, not towards the ball, is applied to the left arm to make the swing stable and heavy. Then stand away as far as you can with the balance point a little towards the heels.
Important details like clubface alignment and position can be included. The clubface should be slightly open for Swingers to allow for their faster slightly hook-producing clubface closing motion and square to slightly closed for Hitters to allow for their slower-rolling small slice-producing motion. If the clubhead is aligned with the sweet spot on the ball then lowered to the ground, you will notice it falls a little toward you and the ball now rests more towards the toe with the club soled.
Once the Impact Address is part of the total motion it is “fixed” in your mind, you are welcome to return to your normal hands at mid-body address position (Standard Address Fig 3 and 4) or a hybrid of the two address’s (Adjusted Address). Or you may stay in the Impact Fix Address and start your motion from there.
WHY GO TO SO MUCH TROUBLE?
Because impact is all that matters. The difference between good players and bad is the location of the hands at impact. Since this is the only location that determines success in the swing, it is worth making a study of the characteristics.
Done well, Impact Fix gives you a 90% chance of success. Your handicap, within five shots is predictable by your hands’ position at impact. The forward clubshaft lean is mandatory.
If the Number One alignment – the left arm and shaft – is bent power is lost because the club cannot be supported by pressure from the hands and arms and is now both slowing down and rising, meaning you will hit the ground or the top of the ball.
If the Number Two alignment, the right forearm and shaft is bent, once again power and precision are lost. The best engineering is available with the right forearm being in line with the shaft (Down the Line View).
How do we go about achieving this wonderful piece of golfing magic?
Naturally if you try to implement this tomorrow on the golf course, you may hurt yourself. Make it a project over six months or six years without neglecting your normal programme for R&D. This will have major implications for your golfing and family life, so make sure the business is in your name.
START SMALL
Start in front of a mirror noticing the change necessary to get from Impact Fix back somewhere to through the ball. Start at 30 cms. And work out from there. Yes, it is the first we have felt that and there is no way we can use that in a golf swing, for now.
So we start with small shots in the yard at home. Look at pictures of good players to notice things not seen before.
Like anything new it feels different because it is different and NOT because it is wrong. Notice how quickly solid shots come when starting from impact fix. Later, start with any address position. Note however, that when moving back and forth between impact fix and standard address the hands are still mid-body.
Notice how close the ball seems. That is how close it has to be to be hit. Any farther away means throwing the power away behind the ball, not through it.
Notice the angle of approach of the shaft from half-way down. That will be a new one for 90% of us, a much flatter approach, usually two to eight inches flatter. But now everything can turn through together.
Notice there is a different Impact Fix for different shots. Notice that starting from impact fix how hard it is to turn the usual amount on the backswing. Some raise their heads to get around this but that leaves an opening for total failure on the project. It is better to stay down with a shorter swing. Why go back to an inferior routine? It will not be strange for long and all that your friends see is the ball flight.
Slowly introduce the Impact Fix into the pre-shot routine in practice, then on the course perhaps after giving up on scoring efforts. Halt the project at any time but get back onto it as soon as possible.
Impact Fix will make the difference. Starting the downswing to achieve correct impact is the most difficult move in sports without Impact Fix. It shows us the station that we must pass through. With Impact Fix in mind, anyone can learn do it.
About the Author: Paul Smith
Paul Smith holds a Master Craftsman's rank certified by the Golf Clubmakers Association in the USA and is one of only 220 Authorised Instructors of The Golfing Machine (Bachelors in Golf Stroke Engineering). Clients get a first class education session whether it be fixing a swing fault or building clubs from scratch to suit a player's ability.
Read all of Paul's articles »
__________________
HP, grant me the serenity to accept what I cannot change, the courage to change what I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Progress and not perfection is the goal every day!
Fig 1
Left Hand Finger Grip
(Photo: iseekgolf.com)
Fig 2
Fig 3
Fig 4
Fig 5
Fig 6
Fig 7
Fig 8
Fig 9
Baseball and golf seem a world apart yet the baseball grip is a means to clamp the club in a basic manner, which can work just fine for some and better for others. In this brief look at what the grip does I would suggest grabbing a club away from furniture and finding some room to swing around without a ball.
There are some basics to the baseball grip that are paramount to remember. You must use a left hand finger grip with the shaft running from near the index finger top joint down into the base of the little finger so that when the hand is closed over the grip, that the shaft is held securely in the fingers at one end and the butt end is firmly squeezed under the heel pad of the left hand as shown in Figures 1 and 2.
The right hand wraps around the shaft below the left hand in more of a palm grip. This palm grip allows the right forearm to line up with the shaft. Here we now have in place some basic structural engineering properties. Now all the effort, or force, that is thrust by the right arm will be most efficiently pushs against the back of the shaft on plane with the right forearm, as per Figure 3, rather than having a finger grip angle which causes power leakage as per Figure 4.
So put the two hands together with those ideas in mind. In effect by using a baseball grip a player is spreading the hands over a wider part of the grip itself, that is with no interlocking or overlaying parts of the hands. By taking this type of grip the right hand increases its support of the clubhead loading through the impact zone, yet it dampens the clubheads acceleration.
With a club gripped as a baseball bat, take a few swings with your eyes closed. They can gentle small swings and then build up into longer swings. Feel the feedback from the club in your hands, particularly how strong the bottom hand feels swinging as per Fig 5, 6 and 7.
What you should notice is that with the exaggerated motion that the left wrist cock really does not happen much at all and how powerful relative to the left side the right arm has to be to propel the club around. In essence you have now felt the mechanics of a relatively low speed but high thrust motion. The trust is all right armed. You are Drive Loading the shaft. Another visual example I often give is of an ice hockey player making a slap shot. It is a short sharp slap at the ball, all bottom hand power.
With a normal baseball grip, the same mechanics can be employed though now you can see how a bit of wrist cock comes back into the motion. So overall a baseball grip can be a good starting point for those who wish to Hit the ball rather than swing at it, just to gain the sensations of how the right arm can power a golf hit. It is particularly useful for beginners, juniors and ladies the baseball grip is more natural than having to remember uncomfortable or weird looking overlaps or interlocks.
To finish off this little visit to baseball, I have also dropped into the mix here an over swing with the exaggerated baseball grip in Fig 8 and 9. The over swing shows how, with split hands, the left hand grip fails and makes you feel a major bob motion (head rising an lowering) if you go too far. It is a good thing to know what a bob feels like at a basic point of learning.
About the Author: Paul Smith
Paul Smith holds a Master Craftsman's rank certified by the Golf Clubmakers Association in the USA and is one of only 220 Authorised Instructors of The Golfing Machine (Bachelors in Golf Stroke Engineering). Clients get a first class education session whether it be fixing a swing fault or building clubs from scratch to suit a player's ability.
__________________
HP, grant me the serenity to accept what I cannot change, the courage to change what I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Progress and not perfection is the goal every day!
The idea of dragging or thrusting PP # 3 to the inside aft quadrant of the ball is really starting to take hold despite a bad front nine last week with clubs I could not control. With a pre-turned right hip and right -forearm takeaway, I feel like I have all day to either Swing or Hit the ball as I wish.
On Saturday, I was on our third hole of our "Red" front nine, a downhil, uphill 420 yard par 4. I had slowly pulled PP # 3 to the ball with my driver and played a high draw to the middle of the fairway below, and had about a 175 yard uphill shot to a back right flag with a sand bunker fronting 2/3 of the left side of the green.
I was feeling froggy so I took dead aim at the pin with the ball on a hanging hook lie. I knew the angled Hinge would help fight the hook so I kept my head down and lashed that ball with my 19 degree hybrid, down and through!
The ball split the pin and was 10 feet short under the hole. My birdie putt split the hole but was 2" short! UGHHH! Still, a slow pull of PP # 3 to impact with a bent right wrist is a lovely thing!
ICT
__________________
HP, grant me the serenity to accept what I cannot change, the courage to change what I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Progress and not perfection is the goal every day!
I was afraid when I wrote that "the Hitter starts out pulling, too"that the action would be misinterpeted and, like Job of the Old Testament,"my fears have come to pass."
The Golf Stroke is always a Left Arm Stroke as long as the Left Shoulderserves as the Center of the Clubhead Arc. In that sense, both Hitters andSwingers must 'Pull' from the Top (8-6) of the Stroke. However, the Swinger'slong Backstroke typically goes to the End (10-21-C), and then he Pullsthe Club down like it was a piece of string trailing behind him. Then,having cranked up the Gyroscope of the orbiting Clubhead, he 'hangs on' asCentrifugal Force Powers the Club through Impact. The Hitter'sBackstroke, on the other hand, typically ends at the Top (10-21-A) whenhis Right Elbow has become completely Bent. Then, after the initial Downstroke ShoulderAcceleration (8-7), he accelerates the Club by Pushing against theClubshaft as if it was an Axe Handle.
At the Top then, the Hitter resists the Inertia of the moving Club (whichwants to continue On Plane Up, Back and In). This resistance to the ClubheadInertia causes the Lag Pressure to Load against the No. 3 Pressure Point and iscalled Drive Loading (10-19-A). Once the Right Shoulder has provided theinitial Downstroke Acceleration (2-M-4), the Hitter begins his Right Arm Pushing,Driving Motion through Impact. The Swinger, on the other hand, with hislonger End Backstroke, allows the Club to come to rest against the firstknuckle of the Right Hand. He then Loads the Lag Pressure against thatPoint by Pulling the Club down lengthwise -- Drag Loading (10-19-C).
At the Top then, the Hitter has not changed in the slightest his ImpactFix alignments, i.e., Left Wrist Flat and Right Wrist Bent. Therefore, theClubshaft has maintained its position against the No. 3 Pressure Point, and theShaft is still pointing skyward. The Swinger, on the other hand, Turns(4-C-2) his Left Hand against the Plane in the Backstroke (Standard Left WristAction of 10-18-A). He typically goes to parallel (and perhaps beyond),and this has caused the Clubshaft to Load down against the first knuckle of theRight Hand. This Action gives the Swinger the Feel of having Rotated the LeftWrist and Lag Pressure Point one-quarter Turn in the Backstroke.
The Hitter, on the other hand, feels no such Rotation. Instead, he sensesHomer's "Hitter's Guiding Principle:"
"At the Top, you should feel that absolutely nothing has changed inyour Impact Fix Wrist alignments and that you are in perfect postion to Slapthe Ball with the palm of your Right Hand."
The Swinger, having Rotated his Left Wrist in the Backstroke, then maintainsthat position through the Start Down, Downstroke and Release. This is the Swinger's'Left Hand Karate Chop' to the Ball. The Action of this Left Hand 'PalmDown' to the Plane' surface actually overrides the 'natural action' ofthe Hitter's constant On Plane Rolling from the Top (caused by theTurning of the Body and the Swinging of the Arms and Hands). The Swinger'sRotation must ultimately be reversed -- this is the function of the Swivel-- in order to restore the Impact Fix alignments.
The Hitter needs no such Swivel because his Left Hand has been Closing from thetime it left the Top in Start Down. From Release, he simply Drives his RightArm through Impact in a Straight Line Motion.
If you are thinking that there is a lot more going on with Swinging thanwith Hitting, you are right. If you are thinking that Hitting, oncemastered, can be the superior alternative, you may be right there, too.It's all about personal preference. I, for one, feel more far more incontrol and am decidedly more accurate Hitting. The reason is that youare never out of your Impact Fix Alignments. And as for Homer:
"You'll all become Hitting Nuts."
Regarding Ernie Els, I have personally never seen him Hit. He Loads to Swing,and then he does.
__________________
Yoda
__________________
HP, grant me the serenity to accept what I cannot change, the courage to change what I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Progress and not perfection is the goal every day!
Last edited by innercityteacher : 05-15-2012 at 06:59 AM.
Linear Mode
