Ball Position and Coming Over The Top

Today's video covers parts of the setup and the swing. Ball position is often overlooked, especially when using the Peak Performance Golf Swing. Because we have flared feet in the setup, our ball position is based on our heels, not our toes.

Along with ball position, Jim Madonna also asked what could be causing him to come over the top. He thinks it's because he's trying to swing too hard, but it could be stemming from another part of his technique.

I hit my driver good but when I try to hit the irons it just does not work. I know it's the same swing as the wood, but I dig in the ground. I think I am coming over the top because I am trying to hit the ball hard. I get confused with where the ball should be in your stance. Should it be in the middle of your stance and just move the shaft of the club?
Thanks,
Jim Madonna

With the help of my aiming arrows, I'm going to show you exactly where your ball position should be with each club. You've got to remember that when using the PPGS, your feet are flared so the same mechanics to measure ball position can't be used. Golfers who have straight feet at setup can use their toes to determine proper ball position. Surgites must use their heels to gauge the right spot for the ball.

I'm also going to explain why Jim is most likely hitting behind the ball and digging into the ground with his irons. It's an easier fix than you might think.

Keep it vertical!

The Surge

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Comments

Downswing too Down

I've found a tempo thought recently, that helps me clip every kind of shot off the grass with minimal divot. My new swing thought helps me shift weight to the forward foot without overdoing the bump and helps to keep a steady head behind the ball at impact. I needed something that would work with every club and would ensure that the bump and start of the arm drop from the top had time to happen before the swing to the T-finish. The overall feel of my swing , now, is that the BUS is taking the same amount of time as the FUS.

"SLOW.....AND" gets me to the ring the bell position and " SLOW..2..3 " gets me to the finish. It almost feels like cheating because the balls are going straighter and longer with less effort. The best part is that every swing from a half wedge to a driver has the same feel and tempo.

Backswing too Down

Dneveritt,
Understand your explanation perfectly : - ) Just had the second lot of 20 holes in the last week. The only time I had a less than acceptable result with my woods, was when trying to rush the FUS! I will give your cadence of :"SLOW....AND.....SLOW..2..3" a whirl the next time I am swinging. Today I had several shots which were OK or So-So, but on the next shot after being reminded by my wife, critic, fan, caddy etc to just "Slow down" and the ball just went exactly where it was aimed and effortlessly so!!! Driver on song, 5W smoking, PW and Putter the same. I have SURGE, and a lot of Surgites to thank for that. Shortened Driver, 3W and 5W's to the correct length for me, has helped enormously. One happy camper. My PW, full-half and less was MAGIC today. Dropping shots on the pin was almost boring hahaha! As if it ever would be.
Thanks for the timing tip.
DH

Timing

I hope that it works for you. It helps me to keep the change of direction non-violent. It goes back to Harvey Penick's analogy of throwing a heavy pail of water. Trying to swing something heavy, with the core of the body, back and through without an even tempo could result in injury. I have a heavy training club that can only be swung with this kind of rhythm if I don't want to hurt myself.

All the best,

Dave

Timing

Hi Dave,
Started today to have a swing with some clubs on the front 'yard' driving mat. About midnight Friday night [Kiwi time] I woke up with the middle finger of my left or lead hand locked in the crimp position. Painful and couldn't budge it : - ( In the morning still the same : - ( Rubbed some Tiger Balm into the hard nodule in the palm side of the hand. Lo! and Behold! Not ten minutes later it 'un-locked'. Relief all around. after more balm etc and keeping it warm during the night, no pain and much better today. So much so I had two swing sessions with every club in the bag. Tried the suggested timing tip you mentioned and it seemed fine. Weather permitting it will get a real test on the morrow. Thanks again for the tip. I will use my 'neutral grip',short weighted swing trainer when unable to swing outdoors. Didn't use it today, will give the Duputryen's contraction prone finger another day or so, before trying the weighted one.
All the best Dave
DH in NZ

Transition, grip and finger pain

Hi DH,

I'm having very good luck with the tempo thought. It has made my swing a little more shallow at impact and eliminated the chunks and pulls that I used to hit occasionally with every club including the driver. This change has made my distances a lot more consistent with the scoring clubs. Although the miss left was eliminated there was still a little problem with some of the longer clubs missing a bit right. Thinking about a slower transition has probably slowed my hand action enough to leave the club face a little open at impact. Tweaking the grip to a few degrees stronger as I described in Saturday's blog was any easy solution to that problem. It still feels and looks like a neutral grip, but would likely produce a snap hook, with my previous steeper swing.

I can relate to your finger pain, due to an old injury catching a football the wrong way. I can't completely crimp the middle two fingers of my rear/right hand without pain. Luckily I've always been able to play with it.

The only time that I have to be careful with it, is when it comes time to shake hands at the end of the round. My friends know enough to give me a sensible hand shake and I usually warn strangers that I have some arthritis and they take it easy. A couple of weeks ago, on the final hole, I was a little excited about sinking a 20 foot put for a 79 and forgot to warn a stranger, that we were playing with about my hand. His handshake was 5 on a scale of 5 and made me scream like a little girl. My yelp scared the hell out of him and probably everyone else within a hundred yards. Hahaha!!,

Meatgrinder handshakes must be some form of over compensation. I've been injured more often by smaller guys. Last week I had the pleasure of playing, for the first time, with a legendary defensive lineman who played professionally for Edmonton. At the end of the round, I guess I was too macho or awestruck to warn him but sure enough he was a gentle giant who could deliver a sensible handshake .Hahaha!!

Hope you have a speedy recovery,

Dave

Transition, grip and finger pain

Hi Dave,
Understand the painful hand totally. On telling my Kiwi golf mate by email about it, he let me know for the first time, that he too has 'finger problems'! His fingers, he said dislocate for no apparent reason, but seem to go back without too much trouble. That brings back memories of mine when it first started : - ( I can't thank my Tiger Balm enough for settling it down so quickly. It allows me to swing a club and were it not for the weather and other business, we would have been playing today. Still tomorrow will have allowed me another 24hours work on it. A tiny jar of the balm is not expensive and may give you more relief than you can imagine. I had not been able to make a fist [or proper crimp] with my left hand for a long, long time. Now, only just over 48hours later I can grip 5 out of 5 with no pain and no after effects! : - ] It only took a tiny, tiny bit rubbed into the offending digits about 3-4 times a day and stretching the affected finger and it is MUCH better~! Give it a try, who knows? It surprised me and I was an Army Medic for nearly four decades!
Canadian Ladies Open won by a [Korean born, but brought up in NZ]Kiwi, Lydia Ko and the Barclay's won by an Aussie, A dam(n) Scott ; - ) Oh! Dear!
Good Luck with the grip and whatever you try.
Hope you don't meet too many more 'crushers'
DH Swinging again : - ]

Finger pain

Hi DH,

Thanks for the recommendation DH. I used to have some Tiger Balm but never applied it to the fingers. Will give it a try. I know that my grandfather used a lot of it. I still associate that fragrance with him. It's kind of hard to believe that I'm also a multiple grandfather now and experiencing the same kinds of ravages of time. Oh well,.. the wheel turns!

By the way, I'm ashamed to admit that I was too lazy to attend the Women's Canadian open when it was only a 15 minute drive away. Big screen HD is hard to beat for golf coverage. It reminds me of one of my aunts, who lived her whole life in Buffalo New York and never saw Niagara Falls, which was only 20 minutes away from her home.

Wonderful performance by Lydia.

Dave

Finger pain

Hi again Dave,
Your grandfather was a wise man. I had it for something else and used it on my contracting finger without thinking. Boy! am I glad I did. If someone had said to me 15yrs ago that Coconut oil and Tiger Balm were good to treat arthritic conditions and other things, I would have thought them silly. I was in fact the silly one!!! Stopped long term anti-inflammatory drugs about 7-8 years ago and wouldn't look at them again. Western medicine IMHO can be best described as an 'ambulance at the bottom of the cliff'. Ancient medicine as practiced by many nations, including China, India.....etc are in some respects more preventive. Western doctors and pharmaceutical companies refer to them as: Alternative etc. To me there is a place for both. Before I left China, I couldn't lift my hands high enough to shave or comb my hair. This due to old neck and shoulder injuries, which had flared up. 10 sessions of acupuncture and 'cupping' and I was swinging a club like a youngster again.
Just off to use a tiny bit more Tiger Balm and stretch the affected area. As for the fragrance? If you get a blocked nose or a head cold, block one nostril and take deep breaths. Only a couple through each nostril for me, clears my head and chest. Good Luck.
DH

non-violent transition

Enjoyed Surges reminder of simple ball position. Too dneveritt's comments on the heavy pail of water. Just let it start back down with an even tempo. Nice. agree with DH, it's a good timing tip.

I'm watching 'live@' on PGA.com right now. Driving me crazy because every player has been 20,30 40 feet short of the pin on the first hole. Even the third player in each group after watching the first two hit woefully short. I hate short because 100% of all short shots do not go into the hole. Even before teeing off you would think if not the player and the caddy that someone who cares and knows a player might say "Hey Sned, everyone has been 20-40 feet short of the flag on #1. must be a full iron wind." that is not cheating but simply the advantage of teeing off later in the morning or afternoon. Heck f I can watch this on PGA.com they can too even if not there in person. Now the same could be for how putts break and how other holes are playing that day. Aggrevating to see.

if you want to watch the fun...........

http://www.pgatour.com/live/?pid=Y

Shaft lean

Hi Don, I was very interested in your video today and comments about the "way in which you set up your "shaft lean" of all clubs including the driver...
I have been instructed to have my hands behind the ball position I.e. the shaft leaning slightly right.
So your comments about the way in which you hold up the club and the move to face the left hip is interesting and like your last question...I too have no real problems with woods (as most ladies)!! but have difficulty with a clean strike with irons.
Great videos. Thanks