Hugh McGrory sent me a note through our Customer Service link regarding a method he used to correct a nagging slice.
"I'm 75 years old, took up golf when I was 69, and have found your PPGS method very useful. In trying to follow your method, I found that I had a small but persistent slice (not just a fade). I finally came up with the following analysis (please correct me if I'm talking nonsense). I was pre-loading right (I hit right), and setting up in this position, with the face of my club at right angles to my target line.
I finally realized that, after 'bumping' left at the top of my swing and shifting my weight to the left, by the time my club got down to the ball again, it had opened up. I began to load left at set-up, (i.e. to the position I'd be in at impact) aligning the club head at right angles to the target line. Then, while maintaining this, I switch my weight to my right. This causes the club head to close ( which looks wrong), but after beginning my takeaway from this position, by the time my club head has returned to the face of the ball at impact, it has opened again, because of the weight change to the left, such that it it is once more at right angles to the target line.
So my conclusion is - you must align your club at setup with your body as close to the impact position as possible. Whether my theory is sound or not, it seems to have corrected my slice, and I'm hitting a lot more straight balls. Any comments will be appreciated."
Well, Hugh, first off congratulations on playing and working on your game at 75. That is really a terrific accomplishment. However, I do have to say that your approach to solving your slice is only treating the effect and not the root cause of your problem. As a teacher, I always examine a student's swing looking for the cause and effect of a particular problem they are having. In many cases, I have to work backward in a series of causes and effects to get to the underlying issue. And as I've said many times in this space, most of the issues I see can be traced back to a poor setup. And I am certain that this is what is going on here.
Shifting your weight left and setting up in a way that mimics your club position at impact, before shifting your weight back to the right, is not the right way to solve your problem. If you watch today's video, you will see why I think this way and listen to a couple of things that may be causing your club face to open before impact. You might also consider purchasing our new mini-manual titled "How To Make A Peak Performance Golf Swing". It's just 26-pages long but in it I break down the entire Surge Swing into its 10 key phases and succinctly describe how to master that portion of the swing. The text is accompanied by full-color pictures that are marked up to illustrate the key points. This manual is available for sale now on this website and shipments are expected to begin August 6th.
Keep it vertical!
The Surge
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Comments
I wish more of you guys would
I wish more of you guys would put a video of your swings on U-Tube. I usually can learn something from anybody's swing and can figure out why something may work better for one person than another.
Would like to see long hitters that don't get in the SBG, especially people that don't have an upper body as long as a Yorkshire boar. Ha ha!
It seems most really good golfers have a long upper body (and I definitely don't).
I am getting much more power lately and the shaft never gets past vertical (face on view) and most of the time it doesn't even get to vertical. Some other people seem to need to get to 1 or 2 o'clock (or more) to get any power.
I hit some really long drives yesterday and kept everything in play.
(Made a lot of birdies). Part of it may be all of the swimming I have been doing lately. I have been trying to swim laps for at least 45 minutes a day in addition to walking at least 60 miles a week.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...
ÃÂ Steve, I'll try to get
ÃÂ Steve, I'll try to get that video on the tube when I get back later this evening.
Hi Surge,
Hi Surge,
Not being well informed on the baseball terminology, may I request you to explain the "Catcherôs Mitt" and to where the club has to go by theàà"take away" before lifting up the club on the toe tine.? Thanks, I am 80 yrs. old and have started playing after some serious illness.
Datta K. from Germany
Steve, don't think you would
Steve, don't think you would learn anything from my swing, have videoed it many times and at times can't believe how many PPGS rules are broken. Maybe after I visit Greg MacDonell in a couple of
weeks and sort things out,ÃÂ might give it a go. I definitely need someone to analyse, record,ÃÂ wright down, subscribe antidotesÃÂ etc etc, LOL.ÃÂ I know I'm hitting the ball better now, butÃÂ still not down to
my original H/C.ÃÂ ÃÂ ÃÂ ÃÂ ÃÂ ÃÂ ÃÂ
ÃÂ DATTA,If you click on
ÃÂ DATTA,If you click on these two video links, I believe they will offer help to understand.
ÃÂ
11/20/11 Surge
Swing In Slow Motion
http://swingsurgeon.com/DailyV...
6/1912 COMPLETE SWING SEQUENCE
COVERED
http://www.swingsurgeon.com/Da...
Thanks Surge. Sometimes we
Thanks Surge. Sometimes we just need to get back to basics and apply rule # 5.
Working with my wife and seeing her develope a good Surge swing has been rewarding. She has had a little bit of a challenge consistently finishing on her front foot and so while researching an answer from the archives for Joe (the discussion below) I came across another fairly recent video that really seems to hold the answer to helping her (or anyone) finish forward from a good pre-loaded position. it's not a new concept but worth reviewing for anyone blocking to many shots or just not finishing balanced at swings end.
This was it;
http://swingsurgeon.com/DailyV...
thanks, I will for sure try
thanks, I will for sure try that today!!!
Hey Booger, glad your playing
Hey Booger, glad your playing and have re-discovered a way to improve. Video taping really does help us see what we're doing verses what we think we're doing. It's normally just a fundamental in our set up or something relatively basic we just need reminded about, right?
Interesting you mention 1/2 swing and 3/4's, I have recently been reminded of the power of the 3/4 swing myself. My wife knows this swing well and can easily see when I'm getting too far back in the SBG and if I'm over swinging past 3/4's. She told meÃÂ I am over swinging recently and soÃÂ I really got back toÃÂ keeping it compact and 'neat'. Result? Down the middle and long. I don't knowÃÂ whyÃÂ I allow myself to forget butÃÂ again I am blown away by how far a simple swing that has no (or minimal) wrist hinge gets me the best results. for me it's all about a clean centered strike on the sweet spot while not trying to over power it. Sounds easy anyhow :)
PMG
As I was watching this tip of
As I was watching this tip of the day, it seemed as though you actually move your body to be loaded heavy right.ÃÂ I have just be putting more weight on to my right leg not moving my body.ÃÂ Is moving the body a part of loading heavy right?
Joe Tumeo
gjt193867@defnet.com
ÃÂ You would be surprised
ÃÂ You would be surprised what all I can learn from watching a swing...Any swing. I look at mechanics, not whether it follows "the rules". Some things I just throw out the window as either unattainable or unwanted but you never know when something will click.
BTW I just played a round and I am more exited about how I am hitting the ball than I have been in a long time. Killing my driver and it seems easy. I plan to play in a game Tuesday afternoon and I'm hoping the last couple of days weren't just a flash in the pan. Need to practice my wedges some though.
The only way I can have my
The only way I can have my weight on my back leg is for my body weight to be shifted back over that leg.
With my weight centered if I tried to lift my front foot I would fall over.
i purchased your swing
i purchased your swing program last year and was unable to downoad due to a fault in my computer can you tell me how i can retrieve the programe which i do not seem to open via your present site
regards Stanley Gale
I use the same idea with
I use the same idea with Simon & Garfunkle's "59th Street Bridge Song." What most people think of as "Feelin' Groovy."ÃÂ
Thanks, Surge!!!ÃÂ ÃÂ If
Thanks, Surge!!!ÃÂ ÃÂ If only I could set up right all of the time??ÃÂ ÃÂ Played today, had a 44, BUT, played last night, had a 54,,,:o(((((
When I take my time and setup right, things go right,,,last night, hurried every shot almost, tell me, how can one slow down swing???ÃÂ ÃÂ Its a darn mind thing,,,hurry, hurry,,,but,,thanks for all your help.ÃÂ When I do take my time, I can hit it pretty darn good too...for me,,
thanks,
marilyn
I'm not sure which of the
I'm not sure which of the regulars it was, but a year or so ago somebody mentioned using two scales, side by side, with one foot on each. That way they could see the relative weight distribution under each foot. If you do that and try to get 60% to 70% of your weight on the right foot, you will find that your hips and upper body have to shift to the right to do that. It's not a big shift, barely an inch, but it is there. If you look at many of the setup videos, you'll see Surge refer to it with the idea of grabbing his belt and lifting and shifting his hips an inch to the right, and letting them settle back onto that flexed right knee.
Marilyn, Here's a little tip
Marilyn, Here's a little tip that may be of help and seems to work for me. When I get to feeling as though I'm rushing my swing I try this to slow me back down. Upon reaching my ball, checking the yardage and pulling my club and has I come up behind the ball(pre-shot routine) I start singing a little tune to myself.
I like a modified version of Bobby McFerrin's "Dont worry, be happy"ÃÂ to which I substitute the word hurry for worry. It has a nice soothing rhythm and tempo and it seems to keep me from getting to quick in my routine and shot.
ÃÂ Hope this helps in some way,Ma'am, and may all your 54s drop back to 44s soon.
If you have Surge's video
If you have Surge's video program for the fundamentals of the swing, he has a great visual demonstration (with an imaginary catcher and everything). You really, really want to study the actual fundamentals to get this swing, and not just follow these dailies Those videos and the Foundations Manual really do have all the answers. We (and I'm definitely including myself here) just get used to having the answers fed to us and forget to go back and ingrain them from the source material.
Surgites, did I get this
Surgites, did I get this right, ie the hands stay in the same position as if the body
weight was centred, only the hips move to the right to establish the PLHR?ÃÂ
Essentially, yes, though it's
Essentially, yes, though it's the hips and upper body to an extent. Remember that the shift to the back leg is only an inch or so. If your hands were pointed at your belt buckle to begin with, they'd be pointed at the edge of your left pocket when you're settled into PLHR.
Surge, thanks for today's
Surge, thanks for today's timely video.Has I was playing this past week I noticed a significant loss of distance off the tee box and more than my customary 5 yard cut as well.You know that that, "Hey thanks,Surge, I'm hitting straighter than ever but all my irons seem to be going the same distance too." posting we get here on the blog once a month.I suffered a bout of that as well.
ÃÂ Twas a mystery to me until earlier this afternoon when I decided to review a small video clip that Leisa (my wife) shot as Josh and I were getting in some range time and I saw it with my own eyes. I had thought I had grooved my swing pretty well until I noticed I had crossed over into the SBG. I was just headed in here to go back over the manual and videos and find where my fault lie when it came to me. What should have been my 3/4 limited turn back swing was now roughly a 1/2 limited turn back swing.My elbow had forgotten how to fly, I didn't notice it because it wasn't glued to my chest/torso in the classic sense, it was just hanging there in failure to launch mode.So with the elbow down, I was laid off into the SBG, with a shorter swing arc to boot.
ÃÂ I'm looking forward to getting that remedied in short order and getting my distance back into the range I'm accustomed to. I'm just really,really happy that I was able self-diagnosis the problem before I went to tinkering with my swing and lost all the ground I've gained in the last two years.
ÃÂ Hit 'em straight (and longer), Booger
Here you go Joe
Here you go Joe
http://swingsurgeon.com/DailyV...
your welcome :)
BTW,ÃÂ Please ultilize the search tab ('Search Posts' see it?)ÃÂ found at the right. It has hundreds and hundreds of outstanding archived daily lessons available any time day or night on every aspect of the set up and swing. Though they don't replace the video lessons and manual that every serious Surgite should buy and have they can to a great degree answer and clarify any and all questions golf. We don't mind getting the same questions over and over but there is much we can find by utilizing the archived lessons. I found the great one for you above by simply putting in - PLHR. there are literally over a dozen more answering your current question alone.
Please have a look. There is enough reading and viewing there to give you hours and hoursÃÂ of valuable golf knowledge and tips.
PMG