the "secret" of golf

There is a "Secret" to playing great golf. All golf professionals know it and do it.

What is this "Secret" John? 

There is only one word that sums it up "IMPACT"

What are these three "Secrets"? If you knew, how would they effect your game?

These Three "Secrets" are what the worlds best players do. Every player MUST know these "Secrets" and implement them from the shortest chip to the longest drive if they are to have a powerful, repeating golf stroke.

The problem with the majority of golfers is that they don't know what to do. Oh their friends, well wishers at best, tell them that they are "bending their left arm", "raising up through the shot", "coming over the top" and host of other swing faults. 

But these are the same people that shoot the same scores you do! What could they possibly tell you that would improve your game?

The information you are about to receive is not theory or conjecture and your golf game will forever change...for the better!

Secret #1: A Flat Left Wrist

Because the golf stroke involves a golf club, a left arm, and a wrist in between, it is called a "Lever System". The Left Wrist acts as a "hinge pin" much like the old time "Flail" used to beat wheat. This "hinge pin" can rotate, cock or uncock but must NEVER Bend!

Golfers however routinely bend the Left Wrist causing the clubhead to reach the ball before the hands do. This causes a "quitting" motion, adds loft to the clubface, points the face to the left of target, makes the clubhead swing upward disrupting the downward motion that ALL good golf shots MUST have. Good players DELOFT the clubface at Impact. Poor players ADD loft to the clubface costing them distance, direction, and trajectory.

A 5 iron, for example, has approximately 8 degrees for "forward lean" when soled properly. At Impact with good players the "lean" is approximately 15 degrees. This turns the 5 iron into a 4 iron. Poor players reach Impact with a "backward" leaning Clubshaft thereby ADDING loft and turning the 5 iron into a 6-7 iron!

Secret #2: A Straight Plane Line

You only have two choices when it comes to the swing Plane, you are either on or you're off. There is no middle ground!

What exactly is the swing Plane? The Plane is the angle of the Clubshaft as it sets at address - period! It is NOT Hogan's plane of glass as many would have you to believe.

There are only Three Planes available;

1. Horizontal - The Floor
2. Vertical - The Wall
3. Inclined somewhere in between

As golfers you and I use the Inclined Plane to swing the club back up and in, down out and forward, up back and in making the Golf Stroke three dimensional.

The Clubshaft, actually the sweetspot of the club, may travel to any other Plane angle during the swing as long as it DOES NOT cross the base of the Plane.

Here is a simple way you can know if you are on Plane or not. Whichever end of the club is nearest to the ground MUST also point at the base of the Plane from horizon to horizon. If neither end is nearer then the Clubshaft MUST be horizontal to the ground and parallel to the base of Plane.

So we must have a straight Plane (Base) Line, we can not have a bent Plane Line. We can't stand one way and try and put it on another Plane Line. Our Base Line must be straight so we can drive it down on Plane.

Secret #3: A Lagging Clubhead

What is Lag? We’ve all heard this term, but few know what it means.  Lag can be defined as “trailing” or “following” of the clubhead  behind the hands. 

When the clubhead passes the hands coming into Impact there is no "Lag". Without "Lag" the golf ball cannot be compressed, we cannot hit downward, and we have a tremendous power loss. Clubhead Lag promotes a steady and even acceleration giving us a dependable way to control distance.

Look at any picture of your favorite player/s at Impact. The Left Arm and Clubshaft are in ONE LINE! Never two lines. This means that the player is utilizing "Lag". When a ball is struck with "Lag" it explodes off the clubface! Without this "Lag" the sound turns into one of mush, a soft Impact instead of a driving Impact.

So we have a Clubhead Lag Pressure Point (Pressure Point #3) which is the right forefinger and this is always directing the club to the inside back quadrant of the ball.

If you follow this outline, learn these Three "Secrets" you will be hitting the ball with more compression than you ever thought possible.

For example, a Driver striking a golf ball with a 2 degree "backward" leaning Clubshaft at 100 mph with 9.5 degrees of loft produces a launch angle of 6.4 degrees and a carry distance of 230 yards.

By changing Impact to a 2 degree forward leaning Clubshaft the player produces a launch angle of 10.4 degrees and a carry of 251 yards. A 21 yard increase without buying a new Driver and simply having Clubhead Lag!

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One thing is a certainty - Address Position and Impact Position are completely different in every way.

We are all told to just try to get back to our original address position at impact, and we will hit it great. Nothing could be further from the truth.  This will lead you to "Impact Misery".

The golf swing is a dynamic motion where the impact is entirely different from your address position. 

The clubface, the shaft, and the body are all in a different position at impact than they were at address. Unfortunately, most amateurs are arm swingers and never get this feeling of a dynamic impact position. 

There is a certain amount of rotational movement in a good golf swing, which we call the body pivot or turn. There is also a certain amount of lateral (toward the target) movement in the golf swing that creates this difference in the address position and the impact position.

Believe it or not, the ball doesn’t care if you swing like Jim Furyk or Lee Trevino as long as three things are created: (1) Clubhead Speed, (2) A Square Clubface at Separation Point and (3) Centre of Clubface at Impact.

So, what is the difference between the Address Position and Impact Position? 

At impact, everything is more forward (toward the target) than it was at address. 

For example, the grip end of the club and the hands are some three to five inches forward of where they started. 

The hips are also forward from where they started. In addition to this, they are rotated open some 40 degrees. 

The shoulders at impact have tilted downward slightly, and are open about 20-30 degrees. 

The right elbow is close to the side, and the left arm is in a straight line from the left shoulder socket downward. 

The head is the only part of the body that is not forward of where it started. 

It either stays in place at impact or goes down and backward slightly in response to the forward driving legs.

Unfortunately, most golfing public in general do not have enough forward motion in their swings. They tend to use the arms and wrists and leave out the body movement. 

Look at a baseball player and how he steps toward the pitcher when he swings the bat. The golf swing is no different, except we don’t use a step.

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