The discovery of the five swing principles is a real breakthrough for golfers. Not only do they define the golf swing and the athletic movement used by all land sports, they make all the positive effects that every golfer wants on their swing to happen automatically.
I want to talk about how the Concept Golf swing principles create the swing positions that make high-quality shot-taking commonplace rather than accident. It occurs to me that I know and understand the connection between principles and positions that make for excellent, consistent shooting, but that may not be so obvious to many golfers.
Today I’m connecting the dots between one of those important positions and two of Concept Golf’s swing principles.
One of the positions necessary for an excellent ball hit is for the hands in front of the clubhead and the ball when the club hits the ball. This is a true position for all clubs all the time. Especially the wedge, the putter, the 7 iron, the driver, the 3 wood, the 1 iron, the chip shot, the pitch shot, the sand shot and any other club and any other shot you can think of.
ONLY with the hands in front of the head of the club will the ball be hit in a straight and fair way. If the clubhead gets ahead of the hands during the swing, many unpleasant results can be expected. Such as: fat shots, crooked shots, very short shots, high aimless shots, shots that no one could love.
For example, did you ever try to take that little wedge shot near the green only to have the club get dirty before hitting the ball? The resulting shot is a short dribble that causes the occasional pronunciation of golf words.
What caused that manly shot? The head of the stick came forward to your hands. That made the bottom of the arc go before the ball rather than past the ball. We could focus on what caused the bad shot or what is wrong with this swing, but we’re going to focus on the truth that will remove that ugly little hit from your quiver forever. It’s OK with you? Well. Let’s continue.
The Concept Golf swing principles are just five, but none can be ignored. Remember also that your job is to understand them, not just try to apply them specifically. Only through understanding will they seep into your being and your swing in a way that allows you to benefit the most. The only way you can achieve your hitting goals is by expressing these principles in your own unique way. That’s the only way you can have your own authentic swing, your own home swing.
Having your own authentic swing is a good thing for many reasons. Have your own swing, don’t copy someone else’s swing.
What principles are involved in having the hands in front of the clubhead at the moment of impact? Just these two, weight transfer and shoulder relaxation. And if I had to emphasize one of the two, and I will, it would be RELAXATION. (I didn’t want to raise my voice).
Usually I will demonstrate relaxation when teaching new students. The way I do this is to shoot a few shots with my shoulders relaxed to the point of ridiculousness. My arms seem to be an uncontrollable rope at best. My shoulders are so relaxed that it is not even possible to get the club behind the ball before swinging. Students usually have a lot of fun while I get ready to swing. They KNOW that there is no possibility of making any kind of reasonable shot with such relaxation.
The expression on his face after the first shot is one of total bewilderment. How the heck could you make such a good, solid, straight shot with your arms made of rubber bands?
That’s the amount of relaxation that is NECESSARY to make consistent, high-quality shots.
When your shoulders are so relaxed, how can you do a backswing?
The ONLY way is to let the legs move the body so that your arms move or sway in what we know as a backswing. This means that complete relaxation of the shoulder requires the transfer of weight to cause the swing of the arms and the stick. Otherwise, you will remain still in the steering position with your shoulders very relaxed. It is not a very effective method of making good shots.
When your shoulders are completely relaxed throughout the swing, the clubhead at the end of the club has some weight. Due to the complete relaxation of the shoulders, your arms have become followers of your body. Both effects are good. Now, with your arms following your body and the weight of the clubhead enough to make the clubhead follow your hands and arms, you will move your body all the way. At impact, your hands will be well in front of the clubhead. GOOD SHOT !!!!!!
As you can see, it is only through the relaxation of your shoulders and the necessary weight transfer from your body that you will be able to have your hands directing the clubhead on impact and enjoy the resulting solid, crisp shots.
Trying to create the “hitting hands” through muscle activity or a sense of swing control will NEVER work. I mean never. I have tried it so many times and in so many ways that I can absolutely tell you that it cannot work except through complete and reliable shoulder relaxation. The Concept Golf principles work and will cause the correct positions to be created automatically without any conscious thought on your part. That is the best possible situation.
When your shoulders are completely relaxed, your backswing will start with your legs and leave the clubhead behind the ball until the body finally pulls it into the backswing. This is exactly how the great Bobby Jones swung, and people didn’t get it then either. As you go through the ball with your legs, your arms will crawl through the ball to the end. With that incredible relaxation at the top of your backswing, you will feel your arms drop behind your body as your body moves all the way. You will love the shots you hit !!!!!!
I hope this helps you understand the positive and desired effects of the Concept Golf principles.