Left Side Snap

Left Side Snap Golf Swing – by Michael Cortson © 2010

            All golfers have one thing in common.  They all want to hit the ball farther.   The laws of motion govern how far the ball will go.  I have studied the “golf swing”, if you will, for over 20 years.  I have been fortunate enough to have been a PGA Tour Player Manager and had the opportunity to observe the world’s finest players up close.  I also had the privilege of working with John Schlee who was Ben Hogan’s only pupil.  John passed onto me what he specifically called “The Secret”.  I have already published that information in my book “The Secret to a Great Golf Swing” and also demonstrated it in my DVD “On Target Power”.  I didn’t stop there.  I have continued to experiment and study.  My understanding of the “swing” and how to create maximum club head speed have led to this paper.

            With a swing we are trying to create force.  The formula for force is mass times acceleration equals force, ma = f.  Mass is the only constant in this formula; i.e. the club head.  The only variable then is acceleration.  So the issue is, how do we create more acceleration?  More importantly, how do we create maximum acceleration with the club face square at impact?

            John told me that in his first lesson the very first thing Hogan asked him; “John, show me your impact position.”  John was perplexed at such a question but it was coming from the foremost authority so he tried to get into what he thought was his “impact position”.   This makes total sense.  We are trying to achieve square contact at maximum velocity.  We need a full understanding of just how one creates this velocity.

            There are two forces at work in a swing.  1) The linear motion of the club head and 2) The centripetal or pulling force exerted on that club head.  That’s right, pulling force.  A simple demonstration is the rock on a string example.  You could use a yoyo.  When you twirl the rock or yoyo on a string how do you increase the speed of the projectile?  You pull harder on the string.  The hard you pull the faster it goes.  You have to maintain your balance for the projectile to keep moving smoothly.  What happens if you let go of the string?  The projectile flies straight away.  That is the linear motion I mentioned above.

            Can you twirl a projectile faster with a long string or a short string?  You can twirl a short one faster, of course.  So speed will actually increase with a shorter string or radius for this circular motion.  This revelation dispels the widely touted “wider arc creates more speed”.  A short string pulled hard creates speed.  I am not going to chop my clubs down.  I am going to use my clubs as designed while applying these principles I have outlined above.

            At impact I want to have my body in a position where I can apply the most pull as possible to generate the most speed I can.  This means pulling the string harder.  So what position would I have to be in at impact?  First I had to determine where was the center of the radius?  I’d read over and over that the center of the swing was the spine and even more specifically, the 7^th cervical vertebrae.  Wrong!  The center of this swing radius is the tip of the left shoulder (for right-handers).  That is where the arm and club shaft rotate around.  This revelation changed everything.

            I realized that since the tip of the left shoulder is the center all of the pulling force had to be applied at that point to create maximum centripetal force.  This force coupled with the linear force of the club head creates the fictional force we call centrifugal force which is not a force but a byproduct.   This pulling force has to go up.  That’s right up and away from the ball.  To create that pulling force I focus on driving my left shoulder up.  The faster I pull the shoulder upwards the fast the club head will swing.

            I began my experiment by jerking my left shoulder up while holding a 5 iron comfortably at address.  I had to use my entire body to get my shoulder to pull the club.  What I immediately noticed was when I made this upward motion my hips turned to the left as my left arm fell against my stomach.  I had my left side straightened and all of my weight over my left foot. I also noticed that my club face opened up with the heel of the club now leading dramatically.  I thought to myself that I would have to somehow twist the club face shut in order to compensate for this.  Then it occurred to me why not get into that impact position with my left arm fully extended, my hips turned with all of my weight over my left foot and simply adjusted the club face to be square to my target line and then taking my grip on the handle.  I did that.  Without changing my grip I relaxed back into my address position and noticed my club face closed.  I figured that the club face would square itself up if I simply snapped myself back into the impact position.  It did.  I just stepped into the impact position and back to the address over and over without taking any back swing.  I observed the club face squaring up without any manipulation of my hands or arms.

            I began making short swings and to my amazement I generated a great amount of speed with this simple body motion.  Note that I was not trying to hit the ball with my hands and arms.  Quite the contrary, I was trying not to hit at all and simply rely on the physics I described above to create the power.  It worked.  The only time I faltered was when I tried to do something active with my hands and arms. 

            I started my swing from my new impact position and swung the club head back and then snapped back into the impact position which was indeed quite easy to do.  Hogan called that muscle memory.  Whatever you call it, it bloody works.  The more comfortable I got with this new method the more I became aware of just how to apply this new force in the same manner I learn to twirl that rock on a string.  If I deviated from the method the swing broke down.  It took a little getting used to but the results are dead straight a long shots.  Balanced force in motion using physics.  There are no piano throwing muscles in the golf swing; that is for sure. 

            One thing I did realize was the left wrist position as shown to me by John Schlee happens automatically when I start from this new impact position.  I don’t even have to think about it.  You will find that you do not need a long back swing to achieve maximum force.  You will realize that this left side snap as I call it is the power source.  You will also find that your arms will stay close to your body making it easy for your core to turn more quickly.  This is the application of conservation of angular momentum just as the ice skater used to spin faster.  The turn toward the target using this method happens as a result of the left shoulder moving upward.  The left shoulder goes up and the hips follow.  The club head, like the rock, just whips through.

            I intend to detail these findings in a video soon.  If you have any questions feel free to email me at mike@mikecortson.com .

Hit ‘em straight!

Be patient

Be patient.  I am working on an explosive swing move.  Once I can explain it simply I'll be posting it here.  Stay tuned.

Mike
www.mikecortson.com

Hogan's first lesson with Schlee

Hogan and Schlee

Easy swing

What John Schlee taught me.

Jamie Sadlowski - centripetal force at the max

In the 3rd from the last photo take notice of the "chicken wing".  This move shortens the radius and is a pulling of the handle upwards (parametric acceleration) which gets him his extraordinary club head speed.

Bubba Watson - centripetal force

Effortless power in a golf swing

If you have a rock on the end of a string you know when you twirl it there is a tug on the string. The rock's inertia is linear which you can find out easily if you let go of the string. The pull you feel when you twirl the rock is centripetal force. Centrifugal force is not really a force but the product of the linear inertia of the rock and the pulling force (centripetal). Parametric acceleration is the increase in the pulling force. The faster the more centripetal force thereby increasing the moment of inertia (more rock speed). The pulling actually works similar to shortening the radius of the swing which is another way of increasing the moment of inertia. This stuff is simple. There is no throwing, Conservation of angular momentum kicks in because of the angle created between the arms and the club shaft. With the wrists set properly through the hitting area (Hogan's bloody secret!@!) as the hands reach the bottom of the swing they are slowing down and the club head's inertia is multiplied via COAM. As the hands get closer to your body your body will turn faster on its own, just like the skater. That helps whip the club through. If you think you can help that by trying to throw with your right hand you are wrong. Physics tells us all that will do is slow things down and wreck the timing. Pouring on the power is coordination not effort (work). The golf ball doesn't know any of this and you don't need to either. Easy game. http://benhogan.ws

Centripetal force increased parametric acceleration

Hogan using centripetal force for power

Directing energy in a golf swing

The "square setup"

This is a shot of Tiger Woods setup for a tee shot.  The long ball hitters in baseball and golf are pull hitters.  So much for all that square setup talk.  Give this setup a try.  Immediately you'll notice that your right hip is out of your way to make lots of room for your hands to come through.

Mike

http://benhogan.ws

http://mikecortson.com

Keeping the club square

HAMSTER WHEEL GOLF SWING THOUGHT

Imagine that your club head was one of the rungs on this hamster wheel.  Ideally, you would spin the wheel backwards and then forwards hitting the ball absolutely square.  Even if you were to tilt the wheel the swing (rotation of the wheel) you would deliver the club face square at impact.  If we were to twist the rung (club head) breaking it loose from one side or the other as the wheel spun you immediately realize the problem that creates for hitting a ball straight.  I teach using what John Schlee taught me to be “Hogan’s secret”.  Using this simple method I can keep my club head as close to being one of these rungs throughout my swing.  It is how I allow my hands and wrists to work naturally makes this simple “hamster wheel swing” work. 

Hogan's wide open set up.

Take a close look at Hogan's club face position at set up here.  Notice how wide open it is as is his stance.  He is apparently hitting a cut shot.  This photo is from an old Life Magazine article and is no doubt staged for the photographer.  Typical of Hogan; he ain't showing you nuthin' 'cept what he wants to show.  My good friend Bruce Crampton played quite often with Hogan back when he lived in Dallas.  Bruce said Hogan wouldn't tell you a thing.  He was out to beat everyone and there was no way he was giving vital tips.

Hogan's club head motion

Take another look at Hogan's grip pictured in the previous post.  magine that the club head is a knife blade with the point of it being the toe of the club.  Hogan's hands are in a perfect position to make a stabbing motion through the ball.  Visualize using your right hand to stick the knife point into an imaginary bullseye down the target line.  This is done by using your entire body to make a powerful stab not just a little poke.

Hogan's grip

Here is an interesting look at Ben Hogan's grip taken from his photo layout in Life Mag 1955.  The red line points out a most significant position indeed.

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Some passing thoughts on Hogan and his "secret"

Some passing thoughts

After the debilitating effects of my stroke I lost most of my strength.  In 2004, after having to relearn to walk, talk, read, write, zip a zipper, button a button and everything else I was released from my end of life hospice program in a nursing home.  I hobbled back into my life or at least what was left of it.  I still have severe neuritis in both legs and feet, severe back pain due to arthritis and residual paralysis in my upper right side which affords me little to no real power any longer.  The stroke hit me on the left side of my brain so the major residuals are to my right side. 

I then decided to see if I could swing a golf club.  That winter of 2004-05 I had a sand wedge and a foam ball to practice with in my little apartment.  I could not and still can’t even begin to approach swing a club to parallel.  It hurts far too much to do that.  As a result of my stroke my right arm hangs from the shoulder and I don’t have a natural arm swing anymore.  My left arm still swings when I walk but the right arm just hangs there like a sausage hanging in a butcher shop.  So with these problems it would seem playing anything but putt putt would be the extent of my golf.  Well that is not the case.

I met John Schlee over 20 years ago by sheer chance at a driving range.  I had just taken up the game and was horrible.  I had bought books and videos and went over the material just as if I was studying for the California Bar Exam again.  (I’m a lawyer).  My love for golf led me to become a PGA Tour Player Manager for Bruce Crampton and others.  As a result, I have had the privilege of meeting and studying the great players up close and personal.

Schlee took pity on me.  I detail what he taught me in my book “The Secret to a Great Golf Swing” and demonstrate it in my DVD “On Target Power”.  Even with my limited range of motion and pain I can hit the ball dead straight with a reasonable amount of distance.  At 58 and in my condition I will not be winning any long drive contests.  But, play to about a 2 handicap actually handicapped. 

I know for a fact that this mysterious golf swing is just that a SWING.  If it were a HIT I wouldn’t get the ball out of my shadow.  I learned the biomechanics necessary to swing a club fast and in balance while capitalizing on conservation of angular momentum.  The mechanics are simple; almost too simple.  I have had students come here from all over the country and the common comment they have is, “IT CAN”T BE THIS EASY!”  I just say, “Why not?”  Riding a bicycle is far more complicated than swinging a club yet no one seems to have a problem riding.  How may bicycle riding lessons have you had?  If I asked you to tell me each little detail of what you had to do with your body to get a bike rolling with you on it pedaling away do you think you could do that?  Do you think I would learn how to ride a bike from your description?

Hogan had a definite way he used his hands and arms that few understand.  All of the “experts” are looking in the wrong place.  It is comical if not just sad to see.  Hogan’s secret is like the arrow in the FEDEX logo; once you see it you can’t help but see it all the time.

Wrist action

I get many inquiries regarding wrist action.  In the numerous books and videos that I have scrutinized over the years golf instruction is all over the place when it comes to what to do with your wrists.  I would say nearly everyone who first comes to me for instruction has this all important move completely backwards.  Hogan once said if you disregard your natural inclination of what to do to swing a club and do just the opposite you would be well on your way to a great golf swing.  Most amateurs cock their wrist the opposite way that they should be by picking the club up on the back swing in an effort to get the club to parallel.  They flail away at the driving range hammering balls all over the park with no idea why they can't hit the ball with any accuracy or power.  When I worked with John Schlee the very first thing he asked me to do was show him my impact position.  Of course I had no clue what that was and he guided me into the position.  I started my swing from that position holding my wrist position solid from start to finish.  I hit the ball pure and straight.  This was the exact starting point John had when he started working with Hogan.  Hogan felt that if you knew what you were supposed to feel like at impact your "muscle memory" would find its way back to that position.  He was right.  So what about wrist action?  I would say find that impact position feel with your left wrist bowed out to the target and your right wrist bent backwards.  Get your hands in that position right from the start of your back swing and hold them there through impact.  You'll find that you will no longer be throwing the club at that ball and you'll have to use your body, as you should, to apply the power.


My Video, On Target Power 

Hitting "around" a firm left side

I have read hundreds of golf instruction books dating back from the mid 1800s to the present. Heck, I've written two myself. My video library, I'll stack it up against any one out there. I have tried every conceivable swing method and I am open to any new ideas that come down the pike.

In the 60s through the 90s players swung to the famous reverse "C" position. This made more doctors and chiropractors happy than you can shake a stick at I'm sure. The purpose of that move was to increase centripetal force in hopes of adding power. If timed right you could hit the ball a long way. The down side was if you were the least bit late you hit a wild slice or push. If you flipped your hands in hopes of saving the shot it only made things worse.

I posted earlier about Ben Hogan's "turning point" as it was taught to me by John Schlee. You have to make a lateral move to get your tailbone over your left heel. If you imagine yourself as a door and the hinge runs from your left heel up your spine you just turn your body around that hinge right on through the ball. Couple this along with Hogan's hand action which he stumbled upon you'll be amazed as he was that day he found his "secret".

Hit 'em straight!

Mike
www.benhogan.ws

Ben Hogan - how he applied his "three right hands!"

Reverse Views - Ben Hogan & Steve Elkington

REVERSE VIEWS

These photos of Ben Hogan and Steve Elkington dramatically show the amount of lateral shift.  I reversed the photos as these mirror images make it easier for a right hand player to emulate.  Both players get their centers of gravity over their left heel setting the body in a position like a door hinge around which they can swing. 

Copyright 2010 Mike Cortson  www.mikecortson.com 

Ben Hogan's "turning point"

Turning Point

Ben Hogan’s turning point (white line below) consisted of him laterally moving his tailbone over his left heel on the downswing.  What this did was place his center of gravity over his left foot which set his body in a perfect place where he could then turn hard toward the target.  That weight shift, as I describe in my video “On Target Power” ,   is basically just stepping from your right side to your left and then turning your belt buckle to the target.  You are a literally dragging the club through.  I feel as if the back of my left hand is slapping the back of the ball.  Note that the left shoulder joint is the top of the turning point leading the way through the shot.

New song - A Soldier Never Truly Dies

A Soldier Never Truly Dies

Ben Hogan swing and cupped left wrist

Too Many Angles

Too Many Angles

The butt end of the club has its own slot during the golf swing. My findings agree with Jimmy Ballard i.e. If you create an angle on the backswing you will have to compensate for it on the downswing in order to get the clubface square at impact. I don’t advocate a rotation of the forearms on the backswing as that motion will create a 90 degree angle leaving the toe of the club pointed skyward as the club shaft is parallel with the target line. In modern teaching once you have the club in this position you simply lift the club over your shoulder as you turn your back to the target.

The problem with this is that at the top of your swing your clubface is 90 degrees open and worse yet, if you’ve cupped your left wrist you’ve opened the clubface even more. All of these things have to be accounted for in the split-second of the downswing. If you throw the clubhead from the top (casting) you have complicated the problem even more by having the clubhead cross the target line leaving you trapped to only be able to deliver the clubhead to the ball from outside to inside the target line. So no wonder you slice.

Even if you don’t throw the club to the outside and simply drop your hands to your side you are still plagued with the clubface being wide open because of the forearm roll and left wrist cupping you've applied on the backswing. So now in that nanosecond you have left you have to violently roll your forearms to account for the angle you created at the start of your backswing and also flip your wrists in hopes of even hitting the ball at all. All of this activity is like trying to choreograph a flock of turkeys on Thanksgiving Day.

So what causes this insanity? It comes from a misunderstanding of how to cock your wrists properly. It has been taught incorrectly forever. Take your left hand and hold it out in front of you palm open and thumb pointed up. Now cock your wrist. Do it very slowly and you will notice that the only way you can accomplish this wrist cock is to rotate your forearm to the right as the back of your left hand becomes visible. There’s the problem. Some call that pronating which is a misuse of the term. The back of your left hand is pointed in the same direction as your clubface. So if you cock your wrist as you are traditionally taught you can readily see that your clubface is opened very wide on the back swing. If you can’t get it closed at impact the clubface is pointed way right (open) and worse yet it has increased your loft dramatically. The high right shot is inevitable.

You are then taught to correct for this to strengthen your grip turning the back of your left hand even more open and getting your right hand now under the shaft in hopes of making it easier to close the clubface. This only creates even more angles and problems. So no wonder golfers suffer so.

Instead of going through all of this wouldn’t it make more sense to be able to use your body as it was built? Learn to create angle that sets up “the angle” which produces the set up to achieve maximum power from the conservation of angular momentum without getting the club opened up that only the most agile and skilled individuals can even come close to repeating it. Simple is better. If you can swing simple and not sacrifice power – even better! The swing I teach is just that. I got it from John Schlee who got it from the master, Ben Hogan. Hogan was one of those skilled and agile people, no doubt. However, you can’t see in his pictures what it was he was feeling and thereby trying to accomplish.

Once I realized how all of this fell together simply, as Hogan did it, did it become repeatable for me. Hogan deliberately disguised what he was doing to keep his edge over his opponents. Schlee showed me this simple “secret” and he said “It’s not in any of the books. If you don’t know what to look for you’ll never find it.” Hogan has been heard to say the same thing. Fewer angles in the wrong places and an angle in the right place makes all the difference.