Alignment: Don't Play Golf Without It!

I don't think so. Email me and I'll tell you why. thegolfstop@att.net

Doc Griffin did a great video last fall about how to properly align all clubs at address. It's amazing how often we think we have everything lined up but we don't really.

But Doc, if he does what he's qualified to do, I'll see his face while I'm taking a whiz - not good

Billy: It's been fun, but the fun is now over. You have sleep apnea, your brain is mush, and your magic shaft is no more. Good bye and good luck on your next mission. Never forget what John Wayne said, "life is tough enough as it is - being stupid doesn't help". May peace be with you. R2

RR:

I didn't go to Stadium today - recovering from N2 applied to potential skin cancers and it was cold. BTW -- anyone and everyone who feels a tad stiff and lacking energy -- here is a tip to make you feel like Superman.

Check out to see if you have sleep apnea. I do and so does my wife. And you don't really know if you have it. You stop breathing during sleep (I stop 37 times per hour). 20 tp 25% of all MEN HAVE SLEEP APNEA and 20 million men in America and have not been diagnosed for it.

I am in the testing phase where the machine blows more and more air into your nose (uggh) and sees how much pressure you need ... the idea of a sleep apnea machine is that it pushes air into your lungs when you stop breathing. Takes a bit to get use to ....

BUT YOU WIND UP WITH A TON OF ENEGY THE NEXT MORNING.

So with this extra energy you can more more easily and that helps you lose weight.
Sleep apnea causes a buildup of lactic acid in your cells (I get rid of it anyway when I use gluconate) but the way your body deals with sleep apnea is to give you a small jolt of adreniline over and over to make you breathe. That is bad for you. Kills your kidneys over time and leads to heart attacks as well as that yucky feel where you don't even want to hit golf balls or exercise.

So maybe I will get evenlonger distance now. Have to impress Janet ... just started on curing my sleep apnea but the years are peeling away fast. Feel like 35 now.

Hence after your shot is made you may lay down a club wit no penalty.

Very interesting investigative work Bob! Since that ebay sale is about to end, I decided to copy and paste the details of the item for sale so that others may decide for themselves even after the sale ends:

HOUSE OF FORGED "HD Prototype" 59-gram (X) driver shaft

MADE-in-the-USA -

... If you want to hit drives like the best long-drivers on the planet, you need a shaft that transfers as much energy to the ball as possible (to increase the ball-speed), while lowering the ball-spin rate to produce a boring ball-flight. These brand-new "HD PROTOTYPE" standard (46") length driver (55-Series) shafts are the hottest shaft on the market. This (X)-flex = EXTRA-STIFF flex driver shaft has a translucent-pearl finish (the photos don't do it justice). It weighs 59-grams, has 3.5 torque, a mid bend-point, and a medium tip. These shafts feature MATRIX'S state-of-the-art "HD DESIGN" technology with the shaft being built on a 16-sided mandril/platform instead of the typical round platform. This unique design allows for increased flexibility/elasticity in the butt-end of the shaft, while allowing for increased strength across the shaft with a stronger strength-to-weight ration in the tip section of the shaft. This level of shaft is generally priced in the $400+ range... This shaft will launch the ball high with amazing ball-speed, and then it will propel the ball forward with very low ball-spin for a boring ball-flight and a monster drive = BALL GO FAST... BALL GO STRAIGHT... BALL GO FAR!

If you need a different flex or if you want want a lighter-or-heavier (45/65/75)-gram weight HD PROTOTYPE shaft, please check our other auctions.

HOUSE OF FORGED / LONG DRIVE TEAM long-drive shafts have dominated long-drive competition, beating all of the major shaft companies to win the 2007, 2008 & 2009 RE/MAX World Long Drive Championships, while sweeping all three championship divisions (Open, Senior, and Super Senior) in 2009... In 2010, HOF shafts won three-of-the-four Long Drivers Association (LDA) Tour events along with the major independent CABO long-drive event, and 7-of-the-9 top finishers at the RE/MAX orld Long Drive Championships were using HOUSE OF FORGED shafts....

If you aren't using these shafts... you are losing distance!

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Great video comments, Surge!

Oopppssss, what is that I see showing? Oh, it's just ignorance again! Golf Digest did a study a few years back with a 9* driver and a 13* driver hitting balls starting at 80 mph. The 13* driver out distanced the 9* driver all the way up to 95 mph at which point they were even. At 96 mph the 9* driver had a greater total distance as the 13* then launched the ball at a launch angle that caused the angle of descent to be too steep. So, Mr. Bill, stick with what you're qualified to do. I'm not sure just what that is but I can for sure say it ain't giving fitting advice!!! (especially when it's not asked for!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

RR:

You are right about being cranky. This was written by Doc and applies to your idea: "I have done something similar before but it's difficult to really properly do a set make up without having the player present (not that I don't trust you.) Come to San Diego and I will have my fitter build you a shaft that will give you 30 more yards than anything you have now. But we shouldn't do this at Stadium. The fitter already has a business there and I am not in the fitting business. I am just a user who got more distance using a better material that is 47" in length.

Game on but come to San Diego for the fitting. BTW ... up until this post (which I won't show my fitter) I was sending him your messages and he really likes you. Don't take out your emotions on him. Let him do a job for you and see if you benefit.

You are correct on two points. The F-111 was an Air Force bird, but experiments were done to try to adapt the aircraft for navy use. The Navy rejected the F-111 and never used it on carriers or in any other capacity. As for the second point, you are correct again with your assessment that WK is upside down.

Robert:

No it is not. But lots of LDA guys use it. A House of Forged guy hits balls at Stadium and we are friends. He is the guy who told me about the LDA competition down at Salt Creek. The guy who created this shaft laughed when he saw the Jamie guy lose at mesquite ... his shaft never bent. The last shot Jamie hit was really pure but he may have had a broken clubface on that shot. But regardless ... the shaft was all wrong for his swing. My fitter saw the same thing and they both had a laugh at Jamie's error (the swing should have made him the outright winner).

Hopefully people will see shaft materials matter after a few more people get fit and they get lots more distance and accuracy just from the shaft material. Imagine where DJ would be if he was a better putter and was lots more accurate off the tee and had another 20-30 yards. 2 Majors a year is my goal for him ... I want him to beat Tiger and Jack.

Great come back on your back nine DJ. You showed some good composure after the double on 18 getting an eagle on 6 and birdy on 7 for a one under 71. Good work bringing it back and finishing well. A solid consistent day coming your way tommorow.

Robert

I hit it almost 400 yards on most of the holes I play.

I start with a driver, then a 3w, then a pitching wedge.

Yep that should just about get me 400 yards.

Oh wait, you meant with 1 shot.

Sorry, my bad
Dick

So long, Billy. R2

Mr. Bill,

Leave me alone! You have my offer! I'll bring my club, rent my own car, pay my own food bills. All you have to do is pony up the same amount of money that I'm willing to spend on a ticket. You even have an offer from me to make a $1000 wager on who wins. Me and my fitting with my driver and you're only out the $1000 which was what you were willing to bet 6 months ago. If you, your fitter, and the club he builds wins, you get a $1000 from me which means the ticket cost you nothing at all. So buddy (without two hip replacements, it's time to either put up or shut up as every sane person on this blog knows I have made you a very reasonable offer.) It could cost you nothing or just the $1000 that you talked about ponying up to begin with! I also said you could buy a Super Saver ticket to my place and we'll have a competition and should your driver win, I'll still pay you $1000. How much more simple can I make it. The only thing you have to lose is FACE and it seems you're running scared.

Can anyone else think of how I could make it any more appealing?

As Jack Hill says, as long as the club is not there indicating the line of play DURING your stroke, there is no problem. You cannot, however, as I erroneously said on a previous blog, use any other form of alignment stick during the play of a round, even if you remove it before making the stroke.

See: http://www.usga.org/Rule-Books...
and http://www.usga.org/Rule-Books...

Thanks Doc, I absolutely am okay with your suggestions. I will try out those shaft suggestions when the time comes. It seems we're not far off in swing speeds. I am going to look closely at my set make up. It'll be interesting to see if I keep a 5 iron in the bag. It generally has been my favorite club. however after all yours and Surges advice over these last 3 years, along with the reading of Tom Wishon's stuff(awesome informative) I'm sure you have been schooled by much of his wisdom too, I think I am seriously looking at maybe going with like 5,7and 9 woods.then a hybrid or two, 6-pw, gap and or lob wedge and sand. Torn on iron type still too. Need to try out varieties of blades,small to medium sized heads. That would be a change from cavity back. Course won't know until fitting and trial. Mizunos are sweet but spendy. What do you think?
I remember you said your set starts with 7 iron. Interesting.
When's your next Doctor visit video blog? Clubhead speed set make up would be an awesome subject. Seeing how most of our Surge fans are probably 50-70 years old and many can't understand why they can't hit their drivers, 3 wood and long irons the way they used to. Set make up would be a great subject for younger players too.Maybe throw in some thoughts on lite weight metal shafts verses graphite for our irons. How about it Doc?

Robert:

Everything you same may be true but I never said the F-111 used graphite. I said that GD here in San Diego experimented with graphite to lower the weight of the plane so it could fly off of aircraft carriers. I was a 4344 in the USAF from 67-71 - 4344 = Aircraft Maintenance Officer. I was in charge of the engine shop at Eglin AFB as my last assignment and we supported the F-111 there. so I am not short on aircraft engineering knowledge or history. Was in charge of maintenance control at Korat RTAFB as well.

th Jim Flood lived in San Diego back then and so was GD ... a buddy of mine made tha IA guidance system for GD's Tomahawk cruise missile that was used in the first Guldf War in Iraq - he may be in the 3D location of the human body/EEG project. The GD connection via the F-11 is exactly how Jim Flood came to introduce graphite into golf club driver shaft. The A-10's use of graphite did not cause golf shafts to become made of graphite.

As to:

"Also, not all high quality graphite shafts are built in SoCal. They actually have their origins in the fishing rod industry. In fact, Gary Loomis has been building high quality shafts for more than 15 years at his plant (now owned by Shimano) in southwest Washington. G.Loomis probably has more kowledge and experience working with high modulus graphite than any other company in the world."

Have Gary Loomis create a golf shaft for RR and Janet and my fitter will create a club for them that is 25-30 yards longer.

If we can get any independent verification from this forum (that you guys all trust) then what I would like to do is see if I can persuade the guy who created the shaft that I use (I have never met him) to create a one of a kind perfectly optimized shaft for DJ Trahan (only DJ and no one else).

Beyond that I want to have a system that runs on Android (San Diego is the center of the universe for wireless communications based on Irwin Jacobs -with support from Viterbi - translating the theory of Claude Shannon into products - last company = Qualcomm/CDMA).

So we take 3 or 5 Androids to the practice area where DJ is warming up and we send back videos of his swing so we wind up seeing in 3D in near time the same analysis Surge had done though John d'Acquisto. So we show DJ how to dial in his swing and have it under perfect control ... no guessing about alignment and we know exactly why each shot went where it went.

Fitness in turn can also be computerized to that we can show DJ how to not just hit the ball longer and straighter via Surge's swing theory but also how to hold that 100% dialed in swing feeling all day long. And when he becomes top putter then he wins 2 majors every years and at least 7 PGA tournaments.

When you know ahead of time where the ball is going to go all the terror comes out of the game of golf. Everyone says you can't beat golf. I disagree. Golf can be beaten and DJ can do it.

As much as I like and treasure your lessons Don, I would like to see a golf cap for sale with Surge logos or symbols and/or Surgisms on it. I would like to feel like a member of Surgites by wearing your hat. I'm just a hat kind of guy.

Doc:

Golf basics -- if they hit up on the ball then there will be less spin. If they ran the test based on changing angle of attack let me know.

BTW ... we are now on the same page as to you telling us all about the Rombax. It was a like trying to pull hens teeth to get you to admit that new and different materials would create better distance. All the shafts on the very latest Taylormade was selling at Stadium last week were old recycled shafts they have been selling for years. My club (has an old Taylormade R7 tour head - it was sitting in my fitter's garage for years I bet) beats anything Taylormade is selling to the public.

If the Rombax proves superior to my shaft of vice versa (the maker of my shaft has 3 more versions of improvements in the pipeline - way way out materials) you are making my point. And what if you can actually swing a 46" driver made of my material and by placing the ball at your toe and swinging up with still could be giving you more distance with a lesser material than the Rombax.

What pleases me about our exchange is that we are now focusing on hit to hit the ball longer with more accuracy as opposed to cutting off shafts. My guess is that even this Rombax material would give every member of this blog more distance - significantly more. And they should all fly to Columbia SC and switch out what they have now for a new Rombax driver. They already trust you and they know for certain that you did in deed get lots of extra yardage simply by using a new shaft in your driver (an Idea I have tried to get across for some time now).

And then after all of them get the Rombax we finally arrive at an agreement on how to pay for your ticket to San Diego for a head to head against the material I am using. And then my fitter with his material beats the Rombax driver you created by a fairly decent margin.

That suggests that everyone who had the new Rombax you created for them should place it on ebay and get as much for it as they can and then fly back to Columbia for a LONGER driver fit using the materials I am using now.

Tons of sales and you win either way.

DONE!!!

I have done something similar before but it's difficult to really properly do a set make up without having the player present. I do suggest to people looking at new sets to consider the set configuration more closely and do the test. If I have a player with a slower swing speed, below 78 mph or so with a 5 iron, I will have them hit a 5, 6, and 7 iron to compare the distances. If they are similar, then I start the set of irons at the shortest club that is hit the longest. Most times, I don't see much of a difference. I also have people hit a hybrid that is a 5 iron replacement and let them see for themselves the difference it makes in distance.

If you go with a major name brand set, realize that the builder can not do much with what can be done with the set as Mizuno or whoever will be the one building the set since we can't buy just heads. The OEMs will not build to a specific frequency or MOI and they will only build in 1/2" increments of length with I don't feel is always the best. You shaft choices are also limited.

All you have to do hit the ball is get aligned correctly. Who believes that?

Dick Lee:

Did youiu REALLY mean "moral officer" ? or maybe "morale officer" ? If the former, we may have to drum you out of the Redneck corps.

Keep hitting them STRAIGHT and LONG

Amos

I kinda like "We Cut Strokes"

I'd buy three or four hats if they were available.

Hit'em Long and Straight,

Bob

Good bye, Billy. R2

Re: I know the rules state that you can't leave the club on the toe line during the swing, any thoughts? It's no different from taking the pro with you on the course for a playing lesson. Lay the club on your toeline. In competition (even if it's a $5 Nassau); certainly, one may not use "a point of reference"; e.g., touching the green to show where one should aim; dragging your club adjacent to the ball for an alignment reference line to the target; having someone stand behind you as an alignment reference during the swing (notice on the LPGA how the caddie stands behind the golfer for alignment and then moves out of the way when the pro is ready to hit); etc.

While attending a golf expo, I had the chance to get my swing sequence on film. It's grainy, but I noticed 2 things right off the bat. My alignment was off and I had the ball too far forward. http://i17.photobucket.com/alb...
Any other comments? Thanks! Ed

Gee, they're in San Diego. That's would seem to be a big coincidence, wouldn't it? :)

Wrong Patriot Golf. Lonnie is located in Minnesota and Lonny wouldn't have anything to do with you know who.

Make sure your clubs aren't too long for you. If the length is correct you are either losing your correct spine angle or swinging at too steep an angle.

Thanks for the feedback. I was using a 6-iron that they had in a bag and hit it pretty straight and solid. @T, you are right, my head did drift back a bit. I also sometimes get caught behind on the bump and chunk the ground an inch or 3 behind the ball, but not this time. I'm not sure when the final picture happened. I'm pretty sure I finished with my hands near my ear and recoiled, but I may have slowed down after striking the ball. I'll have to look into that. Thanks!

I use regular in my woods and hybrid, a ladies shaft in my irons, and I use a light weight stiff steel in my wedges. But, just what does that tell you as flex means nothing. You might thing the ladies shaft in my irons is a bit off. So, this is where nomenclatures and flex are misleading as I build to a frequency that is exact for me. The ladies shafts are 50 grams and I like the soft feel and weight but they would not freq out to a ladies at all. So, there you have it for what it's worth.

Surge,You talk about just skimming the grass and not taking a large divot. What determines the divot size? I am using your swing and yet I still will chunk the ball or losse distance because of the divot. What do you reccomend I check or practice drill to skim the grass.

Roger

Doc,

Thanks for the analysis. I am trying to find someone close to here to take my clubs to. I think the closest one is in Nashville, about 3 hours away.

Kevin

Doc

Have you noticed that if you or Surge say orange, he says green. If you say green, he yells orange.

My daddy would have already whipped that boy.
Dick

Gman

Like the name. I would try typing something like "shoulders not aligned" in the search box at the top of the blog. You should be able to watch some daily videos about that.

I am sorry I can not help more than that. T, Bob, Robert, Roy, Steve, or one of the other lads who are a lot more versed on our swing than I will be along shortly and they can probably offer you some ideas. My real job on this blog is the assigned wise guy and unit moral officer. I am still learning the Surge Swing myself. It is nice to have someone ask me a golf question. Good thing I have not posted a video yet. The only question then would be "Why?"

Dick

Phillip: See my post to your inquiry earilier today. If you have any other questions, please let me know. Thanks for asking. R2

BTW, "rock stars" don't stay at Holiday Inns either. We stay in hotels with suites. LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL

Doc:

The best graphite shafts are designed in San Diego. (Not necessarily made here). And I bet there is a link between San Diego and Fuji if you actually believe that they are #1 -- #1 to me is the shaft that delivers the best distance and accuracy)

The iPhone and iPad get assembled at Foxconn in China but I don't think the Chinese manufacturing people add all that much value added -- that comes from Apple. Foxconn people commit suicide fairly regularly ... I don't hear of such reports at Apple.

Yes I noticed that too. I didn't get that bit copied and pasted for everyone, so thanks for mentioning that. Oops!

Nice no-putt sandy eagle on 6, DJ! Let that put some fire back in you.

Lonny is in Minnesota and would not work with you know who.

ME TOO