Sometimes there are little subtleties in our game that we don't even realize because they aren't something we ever stop to think about. For instance, do you know how far away your clubhead is from the ball during your address position?
JH Smith sent in a comment suggesting that in my videos, I have the ball up to 4 inches away from the ball. He wanted to know if this was accurate and what the proper distance should be. I wouldn't say that my clubhead is that far back behind the ball, but it raises an interesting topic.
Don
I have been following you since the 2010 Masters Special. I am very satisfied, but I have a question about the driver setup position of the clubhead in relation to the ball. I watch the "Don Swings Through the Bag" video almost every day, the one with the down the line view and the face view. It is a great video. I watched another one by a fellow named Ron Bernard. In his video, he advocates centering the body (his sternum) four inches behind the ball and addresses the ball with the face of the driver about four inches behind the ball. Then, he keeps his left cheek behind this point during the driver swing to promote an upward path at impact.
The next time I watched your video, I was amazed to notice that you position the face of the club well back of the ball on your driver too. I had never noticed this before even having watched the video literally hundreds of times. I know you want to try to hit the driver with an ascending swing. Is it a key to the PPGS driver setup to set the face well behind the ball as shown in your video? Would this setup contribute to a left bias to the ball flight? I think the fact that I fail to make this move contributes to the pull-hook problem that I think is coming from the occasional shoulders left mistake I have from time to time.
I am including the link to Bernard’s you tube for reference purposes.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnopJFvTa3Q
JH Smith
Even with the driver, I don't believe the clubhead is behind the ball much more than an inch or so. If you get too close to the ball, you run the risk of making preemptive contact. Too far away and you'll have trouble returning the club to the correct impact position.
My thought on this topic is that the ball should only be about an inch or so away from your clubhead. The next time you take some swings, check and see the relation between your ball and clubhead. It might give you some instant feedback in an area of your game that you weren't even thinking about.
Good luck and keep it vertical!
The Surge
If you can't view the YouTube video above try CLICKING HERE. You must allow popups from this site for the link to work.
Comments
Greg Norman and PPGS
I was just reading an article about Greg Norman in the January 2014 issue of Golf Magazine and ran across some comments by him that I thought might be of interest to Surgites. Norman talks about keeping the triangle formed by his shoulders and grip in front of his body throughout the swing, says it has been one of his main swing tips for over 35 years. The accompanying pictures of his swing sequence appear to be pretty close to the PPGS with the exception that he takes the club all the way to parallel in the backswing. I should say he "took" because he later notes that he is not able to do that anymore, not as flexible as he once was. He says, "My body can't take the stress of rotating anymore." He says his flexibility allowed him to over-rotate but that led to "so many stress fractures in my spine that I ended up needing surgery." He adds: "Golf places severe pressure on your joints, so you either have to take excellent care of your body or find a swing that isn't so taxing." Don's swing fits that bill and has made me able to practice and play with far less pain. I just wanted to share this with Surge Nation and pass on my thanks to Don.
Randy F
Greg Norman and PPGS
Thank you Randy for your comment which captures the dominant concept behind the PPGS specifically and Swing Surgeon Golf management in general. Greg Norman, as are many tour players, are exceptional athletes capable of precise body control and typically increased ranges of motion. The research is very clear that the majority of injuries suffered by tour players are a result of repetitive motion. Performing the same motion over and over, even if performed with relative precision causes injury. Amateurs are more inconsistent in their swing leading to injury as a result of poor swing mechanics. In his article "The lumbar spine and low back pain in golf: a literature review of swing biomechanics and injury prevention" published in "The Spine Journal 8 (2008) 778–788" George S. Gluck, MD describes injury etiology thusly. "Although swing style may be an underlying problem, injury mechanisms can differ. Professionals practice constantly and develop a consistent swing, but have problems because of overuse. Amateurs do not play as frequently and often injure themselves predominantly by repeating a flawed swing with multiple inconsistencies". This scenario sets up the perfect storm of golf related injury. We have potentially un fit amateurs trying to mimic a rotational swing that utilizes extreme ranges of motion. Most amateurs will not possess the athletic ability to effectively and safely complete the swing. Perhaps worse, and consistent with the scientific literature, amateurs are attempting extreme movements with a wide and inconsistent bio mechanical range. Mix dangerous ranges of motion with multiple swing inconsistencies and injury possibilities skyrocket.
Another great point by Randy is this quote by Norman; "Golf places severe pressure on your joints, so you either have to take excellent care of your body or find a swing that isn't so taxing." My point here is that many golf pros and possibly many amateurs as well do take care of themselves physically and injury continues to persist. I understand that I am preaching to the choir to some extent so please share this information with others who are suffering pain or performance issues. Soon the Swing Surgeon Fitness and Health site will be up and this is the type of information, including all aspects of fitness and health specifically related to golf, that will be available.