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

 

Reverse the Loop

I recently took a few online video lessons with Hank Haney's cadre of instructors and learned some really good information. First (probably left over from my S&T days), I tended to be a little upright in my swing plane and I took the club inside, which caused a slight over-the-top move with an opening club face through impact and a nasty push-slice. Yes, I managed to get some in-to-out motion occasionally with that steeper inside swing and occasionally drew the ball as I intended, but I also hit more than my share of straight-slices, pushes, push-slices, and even pull hooks. Why the hooks? Because in addition to trying to force in-to-out motion using a steep approach, I was having to make manipulations with my hands and forearms to try to square the club face (or use a stronger grip which doesn't feel natural to me). When I didn't hit the ball fat, my divots on the target side of the ball were always DEEP…too deep, starting shallow but ending an inch or two down into the turf.

I knew about all of the positions I was told I should be in, and I would always get confused by the instructors who would contradict each other--some saying those positions happened naturally and some saying they had to be conscious thoughts. You've heard about these positions and characteristics of a good swing before (i.e., flat left wrist at impact, rolling forearms, retained lag, foreword leaning shaft, retracing the backswing plane with the downswing plane, etc.).

So, during a recent 9-hole practice round, I decided to copy some advice I heard Hank Haney give several of his famous pupils on The Haney Project who suffered from some of my identical mistakes: Learn to reverse the OTT loop--take the club back slightly OUTSIDE the line and then come UNDER the plane with the club head on the downswing. This move gets the golfer approaching more naturally from the inside on a shallower downswing plane. The feeling that I had was that my hands and right elbow were dropping towards my right hip with the hips leading (the club dropping slightly behind me and flattening); the club made a shallow arc when in the vicinity of the ball. I could feel slight tension in my grip and left forearm, as it rotated and squared the club into impact; the feeling I could best associate with this is like closing a gate with the back of my left arm. The club stayed in the middle of my body, even into the followthrough. My divots shallowed out and my contact was better. I was drawing my 3-hybrid and 4-iron and the ball was launched on line!!! And the real test? I left with the same two balls with which I started! I usually push-sliced the devil out of that 4-iron, sometimes ending up 30 yards right of my target or out of bounds. Let's not even discuss the driver, which I would usually push, push-slice, or hook into trouble. Occasionally, I would get a low draw that would put me in the fairway, but with no real distance.

In reality, what's causing the hands and elbow to drop towards the right hip is FEELING THE WEIGHT OF THE CLUB HEAD FALLING BEHIND ME, making a loop (see Jim McClean's video below on the slot swing). And all of this means that the RIGHT SHOULDER IS ACTUALLY DIPPING DOWN while the back is still turned to the ball. All of this creates a Figure-8 oval shape with the club head. Keeping a loose grip at this stage of the swing really helps to feel the weight of the club head, and this also means that the transition from backswing to downswing feels more continuous (i.e., no real pause in the motion).

I also should add another important point I got from my online lesson; the instructor noticed that I set my wrists late and suggested that I set them earlier to increase my lag. So I work to set my wrists once the club passes above my waist, and this seems to work really great along with dropping the club head and reversing the loop. Also important: 90-deg shoulder turn. Getting a full 90-deg really helps with getting an inside swing path (in a sense, it helps automate the loop).

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.

[From How to plug in a repeating swing - Nick Faldo]

Bobby Jones in his book Bobby Jones on Golf had similar advice on bringing the right elbow in close and keeping the wrists set:

If you look around on the internet long enough, you'll see this theme repeat over and over:

Start the downswing by stepping down on your left heel and letting your left hip move slightly toward the target. As your lower body starts to move, pull your hands down, keeping your right elbow close to your right hip as long as possible.

[From Take our advice: Put your golf slice in the past]

Jim McClean calls this the Slot Swing:

Here's a drill from Jeff Ritter that uses the waggle to prep the body to hit a looping swing ("…your slice will be gone forever.")

So, after that wonderful practice round, I decided to do some research on the subject and found Bradley Hughes--a retired golf professional from Australia who now teaches in South Carolina. Hank Haney's teaching differs from Hughes in so many areas, but in this one area--the reversed loop 2-plane swing--they seem to agree. And the common thread seems to be a universally admired golfing hero--Ben Hogan. Both Haney and Hughes admire Hogan and incorporate his teachings to various degrees (Hughes more so). Whereas Haney seems to gravitate towards this approach as a last ditch effort, Hughes seems to embrace it as the only way to swing.

Hogan (and many of the professional golfers preceding him and following him up until the 1990s or so) swung the golf club this old way. Even Tiger swung this way in the beginning, using the older wooden clubs with flatter lie angles. Hogan was so flat coming down that many 'experts' criticized him as being laid off. Jim Furyk receive the same criticism. But Hogan's results are undeniable, and many of the professionals who swung like him coming down were also consistent greats, including Jack Nicklaus--the greatest of all time based on results. I'm not talking about their backswings, which are irrelevant according to Hughes. Nicklaus was fairly upright on the backswing. Consider Jim Furyk's backswing--it's nearly vertical, but he loops, drops his hands and right elbow to his waist coming down, and hits a nice, shallow, powerful ball, and then ends with a high finish (no pushing the upper left into the chest on the followthrough--the so called "connected" finish). He and Sergio Garcia are two examples of the few modern professionals who still swing the old way but get criticized for it, unfortunately. If Garcia could putt better (and he's working on that), he would be one of the best EVER! In some cases (like with Garcia) it's hard to notice by looking only at the hands and right elbow (pay attention to the club head).

And low and behold, several other positive benefits happen, according to Hughes. The flat left wrist, bent right wrist, lag, forward shaft lean, head behind ball, bent knees, and so on all happen naturally when using this downswing. No artificial rolling of the arms or flipping the wrists is necessary to square the face. Hughes says to forget the backswing and grip--so many differences in those fundamentals among players that they should not be considered fundamentals. The impact area is the only true fundamental.

The cherished ball strikers of days gone by (see below) all had the common theme of retaining their knee flex....and swinging on a shallower plane into impact....which allowed the right arm to stay quieter UNTIL well after impact.

This bred the consistency of their ball striking and allowed them to play much more flawless, easier hassle free golf without having to conjure up miracle shots and have to hole 25 foot putts on every green to salvage a score.

[From BradleyHughesGolf.com | Page 8]

Still not convinced? Look at these videos and articles (there are MANY others):
Brad Redding: Reverse Your Loop
Fire Your Lower Body
Haney to Romano: Reverse the Loop!
If You Slice, Read This
How to Fix an Outside Swing in Golf
Over the Top Golf Swing
How to Fix Your Golf Slice
Learn From Sean O'Hair's Downswing Loop
10-Yard Guarantee: Right Elbow, Right Hip
Drop the Hands to Hit Inside-Out (my previous blog post on the subject)

Drop the Hands to Hit Inside-Out

My main ball flight mistake is a push-slice. Video analysis shows that I pull the club too much inside and then swing just slightly over the top on the downswing and with the club face open slightly (or even maybe opening because of the motion). It's easy to see when the blur of the club is cutting across the ball. Try it as a drill or notice your practice swing.

The easiest way to swing the club without effort is to simply let gravity do it for you with maybe a little assistance to get some "oomph!" How? From the top of the backswing, simply drop the club and arms while the back is still turned, while simultaneously rotating the left hip backwards. This will stop the over the top move and result in a nice, relaxed, languid swing. The body will naturally react to this falling motion to prevent the arms from crashing into the body; Shawn Clement is a big proponent of this, as are many other teaching professionals.

The feeling I have is that I lift my arms straight up in front of my chest while turning fully (back facing the target), get to the top, and then drop my arms and hands while my back is still turned while also immediately rotating the left hip targetwards and backwards (again, the back is still turned); from there everything just happens automatically. This creates a tremendous "X factor," where the hips are open while the shoulders are still mostly closed (an X shape is formed due to the difference between the hips and shoulders). There's no flipping of the wrists; the left forearm turns so that the back of the left hand is flat and "slapping a wall" or "closing a gate." The pivot is driving the motion as the club "falls"--closing the club face while also approaching the ball from the inside. The blur of the club face feels flatter to the ground and appears more circular (less linear), such that the blur approaches the ball from the left-rear (the inside).

Two additional important points: The grip should be slightly loose but firm enough to rotate the club. AND turning the shoulders a full 90 degrees (back to target) will allow for an easier inside move.

This move gets the right elbow in front of the right hip coming down, a key position seen in almost every professional.

Another way this feel has been described is "swinging to right field." This is a baseball analogy (that isn't exactly true) but it ingrains the feel of a proper inside-out downswing.

This reverse looping action--often called "dropping the hands into the slot"--is taught by Hank Haney and many other professionals, including Bradley Hughes. But in reality, it's a classic way of swinging that has fallen out of favor with todays upright swingers. Ben Hogan made this two-plane approach famous.

Here's Bradley Hughes on Hogan's swing:

It's easy to see from Hughes' analysis of Hogan's swing that Hogan did a lot of great things, including keeping the club and arms in front of his body all the way through. He also used his pivot to square the club face rather than relying on an artificial rolling of the forearms. Keep in mind that Hogan fought a hook, whereas most of us fight slices; therefore, an overly active lower body is a great way for hookers to straighten out their shots and even start hitting fades, which is what Hogan did using the torque of his lower body. Slicers (like me), however, need more active arms and less body (hence…drop the arms while turning the left hip back). Too much lower body motion for a slicer will only make a slice worse (Haney).

Most amateurs try to help the club toward the ball by pulling on it from the top of the swing. They are, in effect, trying to help gravity—one of the greatest forces in the world. Mother Nature doesn’t need your help. She’ll get it done—if you don’t pull on the club.

When you’re at the top of the backswing in good balance, you literally let (key word even if it’s small) your arms drop through space as you turn your hips left and get your weight onto your left heel at the completion of what’s a lateral turn.

[From Golf Tips - The Fire Drill]

Wherever your eyes are looking, your hands and the clubhead will want to go. If your eyes are looking at the back of the ball at address, then you are probably trying to square the clubface to the back of the ball at impact. Address and impact are two very different alignments in golf. Focus your eyes on the inside quadrant of the ball at address and your hands will strive to reach your new focal point. By making this small change, you will be well on your way to improving your downswing and obtaining much more manageable misses.

[From Classic Swing Golf School]

Upon reaching the top of the backswing, simply allow the arms to fall vertically. The shoulders must be relaxed and the arms must feel light. This motion is dependent upon gravity, as well as, the golfer permitting the arms to drop from the top. This will allow the club to fall in the slot. With this technique, the golfer must resist the urge to work the club out to the ball. The outward action of the clubhead results from body rotation, therefore, the arms must fall from the top of the backswing before any rotation of the body begins.

[From Classic Swing Golf School]

Butch and I [Tiger Woods] worked hard on my first move down--letting my arms fall as my weight transfers to the left, and keeping the club more in front of my chest instead of behind me. When you see me make that little drop move with an air club, it's a reminder of that first move down. The lesson for you: Start the downswing by letting your arms drop as your weight shifts targetward.

[From The lessons I've learned: And what you can learn from them - golf swing techniques; managing a career in golf | Golf Digest | Find Articles]

From the top of the swing, the arms and hands are passive, essentially in free fall. As the club lowers to waist height, the feeling is that the right elbow drops in and the left arm is extended.

[From Breaking 100-90-80: A monthly guide to the scoring basics - golf tips | Golf Digest | Find Articles]

"The farther you line up left of your target, the farther you'll hit it to the right. With that being said, you've almost got to feel like you're swinging toward right field and putting some hook spin on your ball." ~Zach Johnson, PGA Touring Pro

[From Never Slice Again - Golf.com | GOLF.com]