Terry came up with a great question. You guys (and gals) are sensational. Terry's question was: 'Is there a key thought you have to keeping the left leg (for right handed golfers) maintaining outward pressure.' I call it 'WIDE KNEES.'
Terry,
… There is a key, but first look at why we want to have outward pressure and minimal knee movement in the first place.
I have students do a little exercise to determine and prove why we need outward pressure in the inner thighs, from the knees to the hips, and limited knee movement in the backswing. (Note: this outward pressure is only enough to keep the knees in line over the feet, which must be balanced in the center of the foot, which is flat on the ground. Too much outward pressure will cause the feet to roll outward beyond their center and will no longer be flat on the ground.) I call this knee to hip relationship the center box of the setup. The ankles to knees is the lower box, knees to hips, the center box, and the hips to shoulders is the top box. The knee/hip center box is the most important box because the hips are where the center of gravity of the body is located. And since the center box touches both other boxes, any irregular and un-necessary movement by it will immediately and dramatically affect both other boxes.
Standing in the setup position, I ask the student to look down at his left knee and watch and feel his knee and left hip as he lifts his left foot and moves his knee inward toward the ball as he is told to do in his backswing. We know that this lifting of the left foot and moving the knee inward is mainly described as necessary for helping increase the range of motion to make a full 90 degree or more shoulder turn backswing. Just about every golfer who swings a club, lifts the left foot and turns the left knee inward in his backswing to increase his hip and shoulder turn, in the belief that a big turn equals more power and longer hits.
Well, back to the experiment. I ask the student to really pay attention when he starts moving the knee inward as to how far the knee has moved from its starting position before he feels it pulling the left hip downward. Try it now. I am sure your answer will be the same as every one I have been told over the years…about 1 inch. That's right folks. One lousy inch is all the range of motion most golfers have before the left knee movement begins to pull the left hip, and thus the right hip and both legs and the rest of the body, out of position and out of balance. “One Little Inch.”
The point that has to be made here is that the body is a network of muscles and bones connected together like a train. When one body part moves, the muscles, tendons and ligaments stretch and their counter parts constrict to create motion. When the flexibility and stretchability limit is reached, the body moves. The entire body is basically diametrically opposed, which means when say the left knee moves inward, the right knee will eventually move backward. This happens because our bodies were designed to conform to the laws of physics. There is a law of physics that states: “For every action, there is an equal and opposite re-action.” CAUSE and EFFECT.
So when the left knee reaches its maximum range of independent motion, it starts pushing the hips backwards and up, changing the right knee, leg and hip. If the left knee is breaking inward and downward. it will push the right hips causing the right hip to move upward and back straightening the right leg. So, when someone is straightening the right leg in the backswing, and is attempting to stop it by trying to keep it flexed, and has no idea why they can't keep it flexed, and sometimes they must be stupid or have limited talent, the answer is not in keeping the right leg flexed, it is in keeping the left knee quiet and not moving inward more than that 1 inch. It is all about cause and effect. The left knee moving inward causes the right knee to move backward and up, straightening the effect.
The left knee can move inward a little. And that little bit has to be less than the 1 inch for maximum range of motion. The actual movement of the left knee will be a slight rotation of the knee cap inward or to the right. Keeping constant outward pressure of the knees and inner thighs, equal in both legs, will cause both knees and legs to move equally, rotating to the right. When the transition happens, the BUMP, or lateral left shift to the left leg, is almost immediate, because the lest knee has 1 inch to get back into place, over the center of the foot, to receive the weight as you swing up and stand up on a flexed left leg in the T – Finish, This is why the transition and swing up / standing up AFAP (as fast as possible), like a pop tart popping up out of a toaster, is so quick and smooth and explosive to the finish. It is all about LIMITED BODY MOTION, so the arms can be swung faster using the law of centrifugal force. It's like the hand swinging a rock on the end of a string. The faster the rock (the clubhead) swings on the end of the string, the less the hand ( the body) moves.
The key to maintaining the outward pressure in the knees is simply achieved by “RESISTING” moving the left knee in the backswing. This equal and opposite outward pressure, in both thighs and knees, stabilizes the center box, which in turn keeps the stack of boxes stable and balanced. This creates the limited turn and 3/4 backswing that is the Peak Performance Golf Swing. The wide knees look, at address, is the “TRADEMARK LOOK” of the Peak Performance Setup.
The Surge!