TGM and Power Accumulators

Spend any time at all searching the Internet about the vagaries of the golf swing and you're likely to run into forum discussions about The Golfing Machine, a complex book of golf theory by Homer Kelley. TGM has gained somewhat of a cult status among golfers--professionals and amateurs alike. Great teaching pros have taken some of its teachings and "dumbed them down" for the rest of us.

Part of what makes TGM complex is a description of the physics involved in a golf swing. But here's something that you may find useful that isn't too hard to understand. TGM talks about Power Accumulators and there are four of them. PA#1 is the bending and straightening of the right arm. PA#2 is the cocking and uncocking of the left wrist. PA#3 is the rolling of the left forearm (Hogan called this supination). And finally (the one that really increased my power and consistency and made PA#3 release easier), PA#4--the angle between upper left arm and shoulder line that's strongly associated with the pressure felt between the upper left arm against the left pectoral muscle that begins in the backswing, increases during the downswing, and releases when the upper left arm is finally launched off of the chest, which also releases the angle of PA#4.

Release the Power Accumulators in the correct sequence and degree and you can deliver a nice, powerful, repeatable shot with good direction control. You probably already use some of them to one extent or another.

One that took me a while to understand was PA#4. Some golf instructors try teach this by telling you to "stay connected," and they recommend various drills that try to instill this feeling, such as hitting with a towel, head cover, or even a bit of one's shirt held under the left arm pit. I personally don't find those drills helpful, because I don't think they convey the transfer of energy (increasing pressure) that needs to occur between that left pectoral muscle and the left arm during the downsing. The golf swing is powered from the feet, into the legs, up through the rotating torso, out to the arms, and finally through the club and into the ball.

What's helpful to me (for PA#4) is to feel that my upper left arm pulls across my chest on the backswing, creating a pressure point (this pressure point is called Pressure Point #4 or PP#4 in TGM). That pressure between the upper left arm and chest should increase on the downswing, because the turning of the chest and shoulders (due to the pivot action of the upper body) is pulling the arm tight against the chest initially (and the arm pulls the club as a result), because the club and arm are lagging. This happens while the arms are dropping. This means that the correct sequence of motion in the kinetic chain is: left hip turns and eventually pulls the left shoulder which increases pressure in the upper left arm against the chest which helps pull the club into the ball.

It's important to note that the hips should still start the downswing and the arms must still drop while the back is turned; it's easy to focus too much on that chest-arm pressure point and then spin out with the shoulders--a sort of diving motion that will cause an outside-in swing path. This will cause fades, slices, and pulls, because the path will be across the ball. The hips must rotate first and create separation between the shoulders (keeping the back to the target initially). Then when the shoulders finally rotate, in-turn, the pressure can build in PA#4 and really power the left arm through the shot.

And keeping the head back behind the ball is important to keep the proper spine angle through impact (secondary axis tilt) to avoid spinning out and diving forward with the shoulders; the right shoulder should move down-plane towards the ball, not over-plane. It might be helpful, therefore, to think of the left chest muscle rotating forward and upward as it launches the arm. For most this won't be a problem, but it's something of which to be aware. If shots suddenly start slicing or pulling, make sure that the legs start the motion first.

Now, about PA#3. I've posted before about the flat left wrist and how to maintain that while supinating the left forearm, such that the wrists DO NOT flip at impact. And I've also posted about complete extension--having both arms extended immediately after impact. Properly using PA#4 allowed me to figure out the correct release of PA#3. Keeping the grip relaxed allows the left arm to NATURALLY supinate ever so slightly to the left when the left arm is propelled off of the chest (release of PA#4); this is why so many teachers have said that "rolling the forearms" is NOT a consciously controlled action. It also makes sense on why gripping tighter can slow PA#3 and aid in fading the ball, while relaxing the grip can facilitate drawing the ball.

Finally, an explosive, dynamic motion helps to maintain the lag when striving to use PA#4 and PP#4 to drive the swing. Swing faster! Some instructors say don't swing hard (with tension) but swing fast, while some use "hard" and "fast" interchangeably. You want to release PA#4 by having the left arm EXPLODE and SNAP off the chest dynamically. Everything can stay loose while this happens, regardless of whether you believe this means swinging "faster" or "harder." Swinging faster (releasing PA#4 quickly through the ball) creates more lag and more distance. Period. It's entirely possible to swing faster and still feel "in control."

It's important to note that PA#4 is associated with a swinger's style--pulling the club through using the left side, as opposed to the hitter's style--pushing the club through with PA#1 and PP#3.

Power accumulator #4 is loaded when the left arm is pulled across the chest wall during the backswing. At the end of the backswing, the left arm should be lying across the upper chest wall and there should be a sense of pressure at pressure point #4 - the point where the left upper arm lies tightly against the left upper pectoral area...

During the downswing, the left arm moves away from the upper torso and power accumulator #4 is regarded as being completely released when there is an approximately 90 degree angle between the straight left arm and the upper torso between the shoulder sockets - which usually happens by impact (actually at the end of the followthrough when both arms are fully straight).

How to Power the Golf Swing

This power accumulator 'loads' when the golfer takes the club back and that angle turns into a 45 degree angle. Then it 'releases' once the angle goes back to 90 degrees. A favorite of 'swingers' who often load this power accumulator and then just pivot their body thru and hold onto the power accumulator for as long as they can. It's often known as 'throwing/blasting the left arm off the chest.'

3Jack Golf Blog: Understanding the Basics of TGM -- Part V

When the upper torso decelerates, the left arm can freewheel away from the chest wall towards impact at a faster speed because there is no impedance to the freewheeling movement of the left arm away from the chest wall. One can think of the left arm being passively catapulted away from the chest wall, and the distance between the hands and the right shoulder should progressively increase during the mid-late downswing...

Note that the lower lumbar spine has moved towards the target (as a result of the pelvic shift-rotation movement) and that he has acquired a significant amount of secondary axis tilt as a result of the hip squaring action. The secondary axis tilt allows the right shoulder to move downplane when the shoulders start to rotate perpendicularly around the rightwards tilted spine...

A swinger powers the golf swing via a pivot-driven swing action that causes the left arm to be catapulted off the chest wall towards impact. The freewheeling left arm/hand pulls the clubshaft towards impact, and this pull-action is called drag-loading. The right arm does not supply any push-power in a swinger's swing action. If a golfer wants to apply right arm push-power in a drive-loading manner, then he must learn how to become a hitter...

A golfer should never attempt to actively roll the left hand into impact via an active hand-wrist rollover action. Some golf instructors incorrectly teach a swing methodology where they recommend that a golfer actively roll the hands over through the impact zone - and this active hand roll-over action is called a hand crossover release action...

If a golfer can get the left arm to swing freely and fast towards impact in the downswing, then he will hit the ball a long way. Power accumulator #4 is called the master power accumulator, and it supplies most of the swing power in a left arm swinger's action.

Downswing

I heard him say to my Dad, "The kid has a nice swing. If you don't mind me saying so let me give you one tip. "Tell your son to Swing Hard! Don't worry about direction so much now. Swing hard now and worry about direction later. It's very difficult to get clubhead speed later on once you've learned a slower swing."...The key to swinging hard is in the downswing, not the backswing! Your backswing should still be as slow as you're natural tempo allows...Swinging hard and feeling comfortable with it will take time, especially if you've been swinging easy for years.

Swing Harder For A Better Golf Game

 

 

Grip: The Ultimate Fundamental

How many times have we all heard it? "A good swing starts with a good grip." There have been any number of such aphorisms uttered about the grip in golf. It has been repeated so much that we all sort of get sick of hearing it. There's a reason it's repeated so often, however. Because it's true. The grip is the ultimate fundamental in golf. Some pros teach the acronym GASP (grip--aim/alignment--setup/stance--posture) as the bedrock fundamentals around which we should build our swings.

The Grip chapter is the first one in most golf books and the first one we usually ignore. We ignore it because we think we know it already. But I can tell you from experience, the grip deserves thorough and CONTINUOUS study. It really can affect how your backswing and downswing come off. It can, when performed correctly, AUTOMATICALLY create other often touted fundamentals in your swing, such as a flat left wrist and lag. With a neutral-ish to strong grip, it's easier to shape the ball flight or hit it straight.

I'm not talking about Vardon versus Overlap or strong versus weak, necessarily. I'm talking, simply, about how you hold the club--how you put your hands and fingers on it. You would think that wouldn't be so important, but it is!! When you put your hands on correctly, you'll have a good grip--one that's neither too strong nor too weak. You'll have the Goldilocks grip: it will be JUST right.

The first thing I recommend that you do is pick up a copy of Hogan's book, Five Lessons. Read the Grip chapter. Then read it again. Study it until you could teach it yourself. Actually work on the grip as you read--try out what's being illustrated. Then look around at other reputable golf instructors--such as Hank Haney, Shawn Clement, and Herman Williams--and see the similarities to Hogan's teachings. Fundamentals are fundamentals for a reason. Yes, I know that pros use all sorts of grips and play well, but again--YOU'RE NOT A PRO. You'll have better results going with a good, fundamental grip and building a swing around it.

Hogan's LH grip.

If you're anything like me, it might be a year or so after picking up a club before you go back and give the grip serious attention. And when you do (if you're like me), you'll discover that your grip was TOO STRONG. A grip that's too strong may be better than weak, but it's still a compensating grip that can change your swing for the worse.

Having said that, it's important to note that Hogan was fighting a hook and used a weaker grip. Most pro golfers today advocate for and use a stronger grip. Tom Watson stated that you should use as strong a grip as you can without hooking the ball. Shawn Clement advocates for a stronger grip. There aren't just three grips--weak, neutral, and strong. There isn't a switch on your hands that causes you to neatly segue from one to the other. Instead, grips occupy a spectrum in terms of strength: They blend from one to the other and you must find which position suits you and your swing.

You may also discover that your "Vs" and knuckles all seemed right but that you still WERE NOT gripping the club correctly. Where you have the club sitting in the palm and fingers (different for each hand) is SO IMPORTANT.

• For the left hand (always grip with this hand first), have the club sit diagonally across the open left hand, such that the grip rests on the first phalange of the index finger and the heel pad rests on the end of the grip. Close the hand around the grip. The club should feel both in the palm slightly and in the fingers slightly. Checkpoints: Thumb/index finger are close together. Pressure in bottom 3 fingers. V points to the right. You can see two to three knuckles. The thumb is right-center of the shaft and it's a "short" thumb (the tip of the thumb is just past the index finger). If you were to loosen all fingers except for the index finger, the grip would balance perfectly against the heel pad and first phalange of the index finger (as illustrated in Hogan's book). The club shaft and club head leading edge should feel like a straight line extension of the left arm, with the club face corresponding to the back of the left hand.

• 
  For the right hand, place the middle two fingers on the club. As described by Hogan, place the club along the first phalanges of these two fingers. DO NOT place the club along the base knuckles of these fingers (i.e., more towards the palm). The right hand grip should feel far more in the fingers than the left hand grip, which help eliminate excessive right hand action that can cause flipping or excessive delofting of the club. Slide the hand down over the left and place the left thumb into the life line of the right hand. Form either a Vardon or interlocking grip with the right pinky. Checkpoints: Thumb/index finger are close together, appearing pincer-like. Pressure is only in the two middle fingers and on top of the left thumb (not in the palm of base knuckle). The V points to the right of the chin or right of the neck. The left thumb is covered. The right thumb is left-center of the shaft.
• For both grips, adjust the grip pressure by ensuring it's not too tight or too loose. A light grip pressure that can keep the club from moving in the hands is all that's needed. A looser grip will relax the arms and allow the generation of more speed and increased capacity to close the club coming through.

A more NEUTRAL grip will feel really weak if you're used to a strong grip and vice versa; but trust me...you need to learn to adjust if you want to get better.

I think that the right hand grip should preferably be neutral (and the right wrist should be *level and *vertical) - irrespective of the strength of the left hand grip. The idea of the palms facing each other across the grip should only apply to a dual neutral grip - where both the left hand grip is neutral (or weak) and the right hand grip is neutral.

Grip

So get your grip right, and stick to it. If you can't play golf with an orthodox grip, it's your swing that needs attention . . . not your grip. You can't cure a bad swing with an equally bad grip...

Note that when the arm and hand is correctly placed on the shaft the possibility of independent wrist movement (breaking or rolling of the wrist through the ball) is eliminated. The hand and arm is firm, and will remain so through the stroke...

Hence grips in which the right hand is either on top of, or under the shaft have no logical basis whatsoever! Thus, the right hand is placed on the shaft so that the palm squarely faces the target. this is the sole guiding principle for the placement of the right hand in the grip.

Golf Lessons - Lesson 2 from Golf Today

Humans definitely don’t walk around with the right palm facing up, but they will sure put it on a golf club that way if left unsupervised.

Golf Grip: How to Grip a Golf Club – Herman Williams Golf Instruction

 

Find and Keep Your Plane

Ben Hogan championed the visual analogy of what a fundamental swing plane should look like. In his famous Five Lessons book, Hogan depicted the swing plane as an imaginary, angled plane of glass extending up from the target line and sitting on his shoulders. According to Hogan, the golfer should never let the left arm pass through that plane of glass throughout the entire swing, and that plane represents the ARM plane (not the club plane). The golf swing is a series of concentric circles, and there are multiple planes--club, arm, hands, eyes, shoulder, hips, knees, etc. We will focus on the club plane in this post.

Since Hogan gave us this wisdom, many golfing gurus and instructors adapted and modified his teachings on the swing plane; some did a good job and others not so good. Hank Haney states that the swing actually travels through several planes but that they are always parallel to the original plane, and this is a better description of what Hogan was trying to convey. I've written previously on the discussion of one-plane versus two-plane swings. This post is not about that or about the countless ways that the swing plane has been taught. Quite simply, this is about what helped me develop the feel of a consistent swing plane--one that I can repeat over and over again, regardless of which club I'm using. The swing plane is important; it allows one to hit the ball in powerful, repeatable, balanced manner with the ball arriving closer to its intended target.

The best way to experience a constant swing plane is to think of a modern day laser pointer. Actually, there are now training aids you can buy that feature a laser pointer on each end of a shaft. You could make one of these yourself with some electrical tape, two small laser pointers, and an old club or wooden dowell. However, you DON'T need this training aid to understand this timeless description of the swing plane. Martin Hall has used this laser technique and many other training aids (including stationary, angled PVC pipes) to illustrate a consistent swing plane. Most PGA professionals teach some form of this view of swing plane.

Instead of spending a bunch of money, use something you can utilize while on the course--your imagination. Imagine that each end of the club shaft you're using has a laser pointer on it. Forget the club head--think of a laser pointer coming from each end of the shaft itself--from the butt-end (handle) of the club and from the part that attaches to the club head. Yes, I know the club head hits the ball, but you see...you don't need to be exact--down to the milimeter--when it comes to working on your plane. If you're close to keeping parallel lines throughout the swing and close to keeping the radius of your swing always pointing at the line, the swing plane will repeat every time, so don't worry if the laser points an inch or so inside or outside the target line. Just get it close. If it's way outside or inside (especially when your arms are below the waist) then that can be a problem.

Set up in your address position using a neutral grip and good posture fundamentals. Align yourself parallel with the target or aim line; these two lines might be the same or different depending on your desired shot shape, but let's pretend we're going to hit a straight shot with perhaps a touch of draw, so the aim line and target line are the same. Remember that the target or aim line is imagined to be infinite, running forever in both directions.

Begin your takeaway (using a shoulder turn), keeping the club-end laser pointing at the target line for as long as possible (basically the radius of your swing circle). Eventually this will become impossible due to the fact that the shoulders must eventually turn to 90 degrees. At this point, the club will be roughly parallel to the target line and horizontal to the ground.

When you can no longer point the club-end laser down the target line because of the shoulder turn (and because the club shaft is horizontal and parallel to the target line), allow the wrists to hinge to 90 degrees (creating the L-shape between the club shaft and the left arm), such that butt-end laser now points at the target line. This will occur when the hands are just below or at waist level and just outside the right thigh; the left wrist should begin flattening (assuming a neutral grip). No additional wrist hinge is required after this; merely continue turning and raising the arms naturally to keep the laser on line. An important note: Once the arms are above waist level, it's permissible for the laser to point outside the target line, provided it still traces a line parallel to the original target line, but when you're not using a laser it's the feel of matching the target line that's imporant. If the laser points significantly outside the line when the arms are below the waist you'll be too flat and laid off; too inside and you'll be too steep.

As the shoulders continue turning to 90 degrees and the arms raise to the top of the backswing, the butt-end laser continues pointing down at the target line.

At the top of the swing, the butt-end laser may no longer point at (or parallel to) the target line but point directly away from the target, such that the club shaft is parallel to the target line (similar to how the club shaft looked when it was horizontal just below waist level). Likewise, the club-end laser would point at the target.

All that's needed now is to unwind into your downswing and followthrough. The body has a natural intelligence that will seek to retrace the backswing angles into the downswing. Practiced slowly, the lasers should retrace the target line on the downswing and followthrough, creating mirror images of the takeaway and backswing, culminating with a butt-end laser pointed targerward and parallel to the target line.

As with most golf teachings, there are detractors to this line of thought. Some say the exact plane depends on the golfer's physical characteristics, and that's true to some extent--especially above the waist. Bradley Hughes argues against the "pointing always at the target line" paradigm by discussing the variety of "off-plane" backswings among professional golfers whom always arrive at impact "on-plane," using a downswing plane that flattens out, and this is something I posted on earlier when discussing the "reversed loop swing." However, I'm not a professional golfer; anything I can do to make the swing simpler and more repeatable is preferrable. Almost all pros will retrace the club shaft angle closely on the downswing, however, with physical forces creating the deviations seen.

Pointing always at the line with the club shaft may not be a perfect or ideal plane, but it IS a steady, repeatable plane, and remember that the plane need not be exact or perfect. Just close in terms of retracing the target line and keeping as many parallel relationships as possible. Keeping either end of the club shaft pointing always at the target line on both sides of the swing is one way of experiencing a consistent plane, which will definitely help your golf shots if you've been experiencing multiple planes (especially an outside-in loop).

The golfer should move his body and arms in such a way that he can trace a straight plane line (that is along the ball-target line) with his right index finger and clubshaft during the backswing and downswing and early followthrough - when the hands are below waist level. The golfer should also consider the advisability of adopting a backswing style that minimises plane shifts as the hands get above waist level, so that it is easier for the golfer to get his clubshaft back to the correct clubshaft plane in the mid-late downswing when the clubshaft moves below waist level.

How To Hit The Ball Straight

 

Focus and the Swing Equation

I don't know about you, but when my swing focus is either the ball, my shadow, my backswing arm position, or my hands, I almost always hit an errant shot. The reason is that I have incorrectly shifted my focus from a smooth swing towards my starting line to something else.

The left side of the golf swing equation includes setup/alignment, the body parts (and their properly sequenced movements), the ball, the swing plane (and resulting path of the club), and it culminates on the starting line (i.e., target). The right side of the equation contains a swing that has had the ball merely get in the way, usually with a good result--the ball traveling close to the intended target with the intended ball flight. A proper focus in golf should always be the target and intent towards that target (e.g., high, low, draw, fade, short, long, etc.).

Too much emphasis on the ball or hands programs the mind to release the club prematurely, causing fat shots, while a release well past the ball comes from proper focus. In almost every case, what happens is that the body stops moving and the arms and hands take over, either because of a focus on the hands or too much focus on the ball. The mind is unconsciously doing what you've told it do. A smooth swing through the ball towards a target is replaced with a hit at the ball. And a hit usually produces crap, even if it's not fat. The focus wasn't the target; the focus became an intermediate point in the swing--a middle part of the equation.

I hate playing midday on a sunny day, because my shadow can be so distracting. I can easily become fixated on watching how my shadow looks, seeing errors in my swing. In this case, the ball gets lost in the equation, because the eyes shift away from it. And the attention is definitely not on the target or intended ball flight; it's now on the errors I perceive in my shadow or how I appear in the swing. Glancing towards the position of the arms on the backswing is equally destructive in the same way. In this case, it's important to refocus attention. The eyes must see the ball, and the focus must be "out there." Using shadows and looking at arm positions can be great on the practice tee as a drill, but these actions have no place on the golf course.

The mind is an amazing targeting system. This is why we're told--when chipping--to focus on a landing zone on the green while we're taking practice strokes. It's also why we're told to focus on the starting line or break point of a putt instead of the cup; it's why we practice putting while looking at the breakpoint and not the cup (so that we get a good feel for the distance). If we focus on the flag when chipping, we're likely to land the ball near the pin and watch the ball roll far away or even off the green; we unconsciously program the mind to put the ball where we focus. The same magic that allows us to usually land the ball on the green where we focus is the same magic that allows us to make all sorts of errors when our focus erroneously shifts towards the wrong parts of the equation. And when it does we're usually dead in the water.

The next time you blow a shot, ask yourself what your focus was immediately before the swing. In almost all cases, I bet the right side of the equation was deemphasized in your mind in favor of the left side. You were focused on the means to and end and not the end itself.

 

 

Left Wrist: Flipping or Flattening, Facing?

You may find that some of your shots are leaking right and/or arcing really high and falling short. If you're like me, you might be slightly (and unconsciously) flipping your left wrist and/or not leading with your left wrist at impact. It's important to understand what this feels like so that you can self-correct on the course. Flipping the wrist is definitely a high-handicap mistake that takes some work to resolve. Over time I have decreased the amount of wrist flip I had, but it was still there--wreaking havoc.

The incorrect feeling is one where the left hand knuckles DECREASE their distance from the top of the left wrist at impact, creating an angle between the back of the left hand and left forearm. This move is called dorsiflexion. At the same time, the right hand knuckles increase their distance from the right forearm (loss of dorsiflexion); as a matter of fact, the right hand is the culprit in causing the left wrist to break down. Sometimes, this flip starts early in the downswing in the form of casting: the backswing angles in the right elbow and right wrist are lost early. In other words, flipping is where the left knuckles get closer to the left forearm because of an improper backwards flexion of the left wrist and an improper forward flexion of the right wrist. The correct golf impact position has these two reversed--they should flip the other way through impact, if anything!

Flipping is an unconscious move that the mind believes will help square the club face and get the ball airborne. Of course, like many unconscious moves in golf, it results in countless, unintended errors, especially topped shots, fat shots, slices, and shorter, higher ball flights. This "left knuckles bent upward" lifting motion (even slightly) adds excessive loft to the club and effectively shortens the club length at the same time, and it's often associated with its evil cousin--coming into the ball with the side of the hand instead of the back of the hand (a face opening move that causes slice spin).

I posted previously on ways to square the club face, to include a leading with a bowed left wrist position, with the back of the left hand and left wrist aimed in the direction you want to start the ball flight. I have also posted about the "knuckles down" or "revving the motorcycle throttle" release as ways to think of this squaring, flattening action. Some instructors teach using your watch as a drill (i.e., make the watch face the target), but you can have the watch face the target with a flipped wrist. Remember, the goal is a flat or slightly bowed left wrist that faces the target. Ben Hogan said succinctly that he never saw a good golfer who did not have a flat left wrist (to slightly bowed left wrist) at impact; it's simply an absolute fundamental. There are numerous ways this feeling has been taught other than those I've already mentioned, including "thumbing a ride" with the left hand, "making the wrists kiss," leading with the left wrist into impact, going palm down to palm up, and on and on.

MANY reputable golf instructors say that this flattening of the left wrist and supination is not a result of conscious control during the swing but the result of the proper mechanics of what precedes impact. They say that trying to consciously "turn the knuckles of the left hand down" at impact (or other such manipulation) may result in a few good shots, but it's also a conscious manipulation that will result in many bad shots, because we're talking about the fastest part of the swing. It's also true that flipping the wrists is an unconscious manipulation that becomes a habit that must be unlearned. So the real question is how to unlearn the flipping...not how to learn the flattening or bowing.

I believe Hank Haney has the right approach to this problem. Instead of thinking of wrapping the ball inside a release by supinating the left forearm (which requires exquisite timing) to square the club face, simply concentrate on firming or bowing the left wrist at impact (which helps limit or halt the flipping motion) and making the back of the left hand face the intended target line at impact. After that, the release (or supination) will take care of itself. I prefer to think of leading with the left wrist. Shawn Clement states that trying to keep the club head low to the ground through and just past impact (like a chip) will stop the flipping motion and automatically apply a flat left wrist.

The inverse of the flat left wrist is the hinged right wrist, which should be cupped (or hinged backwards) during impact (see keeping the box). Straightening the right wrist happens during the release, when the ball is on its way. All of this is split-second stuff, which is what makes golf so hard. When the right wrist does straighten (and it should), the question is what should the left wrist do in response. The instinctive thing to do is the error--allow the wrist to cup or flip. The proper thing to do is allow the wrist to rotate backward (supinate), such that the "watch faces behind you ." If anything, the left wrist should bow through impact--not flip--becaue of the right wrist bending backswards more when impacting the ball and then the ground!

All this means one can think of proper fundamental simply by focusing on the left wrist or the right wrist, as they are analogous to one another during the golf swing.

You can produce (or purchase) training aids to help instill the correct feeling. A ruler (or similar rigid, flat object) placed under your watch can inform you if you're flipping; now the watch-facing-target-and-then-behind-you drill makes more sense. Michael Breed has uses the hanger drill to teach this feeling. But you can also simply take some practice swings where you're trying it both ways to learn what correct and incorrect feels like. This will help you ingrain the correct feeling and to realize when the incorrect feeling creeps back in.

The back of your left hand, assuming you've got a decent grip, will show you where the clubface is through impact. The common mistake a high-handicapper makes is swinging through the shot with the back of the left hand -- and the clubface -- pointed up. When the side of the hand leads the way like that, you'll hit weak slices.

Get back to square: Golf Digest | Hank Haney

Back to "impact," the more you turn your hand so that the palm is facing away from you, the better you square the clubface. If the palm is facing toward you, you'll leave the clubface open. The feeling you need is one of turning your hand almost to the point of palm upward. That's a hook swing, but not a bad feeling to have if you've been slicing.

7 Deadly Slices: How do you slice? Let us count the ways and find your cure | Golf Digest | Hank Haney

In addition, the left wrist should be flat or bowed through impact. In the April 1956 issue of Golf Digest, Hogan wrote, "I've noticed one thing that all good golfers do and all bad golfers do not. The good ones have their left wrist leading at impact. It seems a small thing, but I've found it to be universally true. At impact the left wrist of a good player is slightly convex, while that of a poor player is generally concave."

This is all easier said than done. Proper supination with a flat or bowed left wrist is an advanced concept and one that it very difficult for the average golfer to learn. The vast majority of golfers instinctively flip their left wrists forward through impact believing that such an action will produce the optimal results: maximum distance and trajectory. Unfortunately, this couldn't be any farther from the truth. As with most things in golf, intuition must be thrown out the window. Instead, think of rotating your left wrist without breaking it.

Grouchy Golf Blog | Supinate The Wrist: The Key to a Solid Swing

Supination is the single most difficult thing to do. As Hogan said, the palm of the left hand must rotate to face up through impact. The left hand must also drive through without breaking down and allowing the right hand to take over.

Tiger's Impact Position: How to Achieve It

 

Set Wrists Earlier: Make the "L" at 9 o'clock

I recently found that I can hit some fairly decent shots with a half swing (i.e., from the 9 o'clock backswing to the 3 o'clock throughswing). I also found that my arms relaxed more on the backswing, because I had to set the wrists EARLIER to get the club in the "L" shape at the 9 o'clock position at chest height. Doing this allowed me to hit my approach wedge MUCH farther and cleaner than my old, full approach wedge swing. This got me asking why.

My tendency has always been to set the wrists late and, sometimes, past 90 degrees, near the top of the swing, and this means the club stays "heavy" well into the backswing, which means it's harder to keep the club on plane (the arms remain more tense as a compensation). Every adjustment to the swing (as Hank Haney says) is "action and reaction": When you make a particular change it can have effects beyond that particular change. In other words, changes to your usual setup or backswing can affect what follows, and vice versa.

In this case, working to set the wrists earlier (at 9 o'clock and at no more than 90 degrees) makes the club lighter going up, because it's balanced when in a vertical position (when the club is straight up and down, its weight on the hands and arms is negated). This makes it easier to keep the club on plane into the backswing and it relieves tension in the arms. And since the body works to make the throughswing a mirror image of the backswing ("L" shape to reversed "L" shape), it helps keep the club on plane coming down and assists with timing and dynamics.

So another benefit is that hitting half shots can be great for reestablishing your rhythm and timing.

Some professionals either set the wrists late, set them beyond 90 degrees, or both. But if you're like me, you're not a pro. You don't have the skills, talent, and timing of a professional golfer. I think any amateur would have more consistent results setting the wrists earlier (no later than the time the hands reach chest height) and only to 90 degrees (the "L" shape).

This line of thinking mirrors the Ernie Els lesson I've posted on earlier about "keeping the box" (another way of looking at the "L" shape). Even though Ernie DEFINITELY sets his wrists early as I'm advocating here (he sets by waist height even with the driver), he was primarily referring to keeping that shape on the downswing--a step critical for power and hitting inside-out. Again, some pros can set the wrists late and keep that box or L-shape coming back down, because they've spent the time honing that skill to maximize distance. I think most of us would do better to copy the backswing motion of Ernie Els, Ian Poulter, or Nick Faldo by setting the wrists early. Most professionals these days set their wrists, at least, by the time their left arm is horizontal to the ground (a mid-backswing set); professionals of bygone eras typically set their wrists late, near the top (a move often associated "float loading" the wrists at the top).

Setting the wrists to 90 degrees earlier doesn't negate a float load feeling in the wrists at the top. You should still let the weight of the club fully cock the wrists at the top to get maximum power.

Like most theories in golf, there are detractors and protractors (i.e., authorities for and against) this line of thinking. Some instructors advocate setting even earlier--right off the ball. You need to try it for yourself to see if it works for you; if you're suddenly hitting the ball better by setting your wrists earlier, who's going to tell you you're wrong for doing it?

My preference is to set the wrists early to 90 degrees when the club is around waist height. The left arm rolls very slightly also (see video below), such that the club is parallel to the target line during the takeaway and the wrists already have their maximum set. Stopping the arms and club at chest height will result in a half swing, which might be all you need for your wedge approaches. From that point onward, any continued movement (from a half swing) is all shoulder movement to the top. The wrists don't need to set or bend any further, as you might see with players like John Daly or Bubba Watson; remember that they're pros--you aren't. Going beyond 90-degrees in a float-loading type of backswing requires impeccable timing and skill to harness the extra power and lag while maintaining consistency.

For the better part of 20 years, ever since the reconstruction of my swing in the mid-1980s, I have focused on this halfway-back position via what's become known as an 'early wrist set'. It's quite simple: I look for my wrists to be fully hinged and the club 'set' up on a good plane by the time my left arm is at horizontal.

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The beauty of working on this halfway-back position is that all the details of a technically sound swing are encapsulated within it: you have a full wrist hinge, the club is swinging up on plane, and you maintain good body angles. Completing your shoulder turn gets you to the top, whereupon unwinding the body invites the hands and arms into the perfect hitting position.

How to plug in a repeating swing - Nick Faldo

One way I help myself get into a better position is to hinge my wrists early in the backswing. I do it as soon as I take the club back, rather than waiting until I'm nearly at the top of the swing like many golfers do. The early hinge gives me a nice feeling that the clubshaft is pointing where it should at the top. It's one less thing to worry about when I have to put it in the fairway.

Ian Poulter: Steal My Feel: Golf Digest