Robert tells us below that he is having good results with the PPGS. His driving has improved as well as overall he is swinging and hitting the ball better. But he reveals he is in a quandary about having firm forearms and hands and at the same time keeping his right (back shoulder) soft in the through swing and not come over the top approaching impact. Let's look at what Robert says about his challenge between his hands and shoulders, and swing path. I know I have the solution to conquer his challenge.
Robert Meade says:
Surge, I think I'm getting the picture of how important the forward -up swing to a T -finish is. You have mentioned in other articles and videos that a good through and up can actually do much to help our backswings improve. My results, especially on my drives have improved with equal use of both hands as you recommend. However something that has been an occasional challenge, is keeping my right shoulder soft in the through swing while having firm forearms and hands at the same time. Any suggestions on this Surge? Right hand grip firm yet right shoulder soft and not over-powering. Any time my right shoulder kicks in with too much muscle as I come back through I know what ball flight will result before I look up. Yep, slice right and shorter. I know on those swings I have also come over the top with some outside -in too. I use secrete #5 and say so what do it right but a few swings later there it is. Again I'll focus on set up and make sure I have the B A D correct (right arm lower) with the F A D as you teach. Again, any suggestions or perhaps you may chose to make it a follow up blog on how deal with that shoulder verses hand(s) conundrum.
Thanks, Robert
The Surge says:
I will start with the #1 Surgism that deals with setup, but this time add a new twist including referencing muscles. 'The setup determines the motion. How your body moves is determined by the position in which you place it and activate your muscles to make the desired motion.'
Robert, I am sure your setup is quite correct, especially when you say you focus on having the FAD (forward arm dominant) setup position of the arms, with the forward arm higher than the back. The problem of the right (back) shoulder tensing up is the clue to me that your problem may be muscle activation in the setup. You are firming up your hands and forearms, which is good, but you may be over activating them too far up the arm.
When you grip the club and squeeze up to activate the hand and forearm muscles, they must be activated to only just below the elbow. Extend both your arms out like shaking hands. Now squeeze your hands like gripping a club a number of times and look at the inside lower forearm muscles activate with a squeeze and relax with letting go. Notice that the forearm muscles activate and they do not reach the elbow. Also notice that your shoulders remain soft, relaxed, droopy and down.
Now squeeze tighter and let the muscle activation go past your elbows and reach up into your biceps. You will notice your elbows straighten quite a bit but can still have a little flex. Apply too much pressure and they start to straighten and lock up. But the big issue here is as soon as muscle activation reaches your biceps, what do you feel happening to your shoulders? They are pulled upward and inward and begin to tighten, as do your neck muscles.
Let's do one last test to feel how muscle activation changes your setup and thus your swing. Stand erect with both hands hanging down at your side. Now, just hunch your shoulders up toward your ears. You should feel that your neck muscles tighten, which means your shoulders movement is now quite restricted. Now, try to lift your arms up, with the neck and shoulders still tight, like you would in a backswing and forward swing. It is difficult to lift them much past waist high. But as you get stuck lifting them, relax both shoulders letting them droop and fall back down. Notice how instantly your arms are able to smoothly and swiftly sweep upwards.
The point of these tests is to show how proper setup can be affected and in fact de-activated with improper MUSCLE ACTIVATION. Your setup key, when activating your firm forearms, is that only the forearms must activate. Firmness cannot reach the elbow and certainly not reach the shoulders. The shoulders should be soft and relaxed, down and droopy, tilted from front higher to back lower. The back shoulder must always feel extra down, droopy and relaxed and stay that way to the top of the backswing.
There is also another problem or two or three to look at here as you refer to your shoulders activating in the forward swing. One can have perfect hand and forearm muscle tone at address and to the top of the backswing and then have a problem arise in the transition. You describe this when you comment 'Anytime my right shoulder kicks in with too much muscle as I come back through, I know what ball flight will result before I look up'¦Slice'¦right and short.'
What happens here is your right shoulder is tensing up to start the transition. Why? One likely scenario is plain and simple: you're trying to hit the ball too hard, which kicks in the back shoulder, tightening the muscles. A second scenario is turning your torso too far and deep getting into the Sacred Burial Ground (SBG.) If you are deep and behind your toe line in the SBG, you have to get the arms out and back in front of you so they can swing the club down the toe line for an on-on-and-on square impact. The Surgism for getting out of the SBG is 'what goes around'¦comes around. What goes straight back and up comes straight back down.' The third problem causing right shoulder muscle activation to also happen (and likely be more intense getting out of the SBG) is when deep is also accompanied by too long a backswing, past the PPGS ¾ length.
The setup key is activating the firm grip and forearms only to below the elbow, making sure the shoulders are titled front to back, soft and droopy. The swing thought key is to be sure you make a limited turn, only to the toe line, and lift straight up to the light club 12:00 0'closk position. As we know what goes straight up comes straight down. A 'light' club at the top does not need back shoulder muscle activation to get it going. All you have to do is let it drop and swing it up to the top to the T 'Finish.
The Surge!