Michael Breed Answers the Clubface/Swing Path Question

[Awsi Dooger]

So what's the verdict on Michael Breed's response? I saw your question on The Golf Fix. He used the term "marriage" of path and angle but the simulator example seemingly had him tilting toward face angle. Admittedly I was doing something else at the time so I didn't catch every word. When I heard the question I darted into the TV room and saw Erik's name, not surprising. :)

[iacas]

So what's the verdict on Michael Breed's response? I saw your question on The Golf Fix. He used the term "marriage" of path and angle but the simulator example seemingly had him tilting toward face angle. Admittedly I was doing something else at the time so I didn't catch every word. When I heard the question I darted into the TV room and saw Erik's name, not surprising. :)

Yeah, his teaching seems to be entirely based upon the old "swing path" method, but Dave correctly guessed that if he was asked the question directly he'd look it up and get the right answer. I haven't seen it yet (and it's not really proof, so I may move this post to another thread).

[Bullitt5339]

I watched it, and he said club face angle determines the initial direction of ball flight, and showed a couple examples.

[iacas]

FWIW, the full question as I asked it was:

I'm curious about something, Michael, and I hope you can address this in Monday's show.

I'm uploading the video. Dave guessed correctly - that he'd give the right answers. Maybe he'll think about it and it'll affect his teaching somewhat.

Reference: this thread .

[david_wedzik]

FWIW, the full question as I asked it was:

It was a very good question to ask him and I'm GLAD he got it right. I just figured he is a smart guy who would be SURE before he answered a question like that. Now, as Erik stated above, I very much hope he gives this thought and that it influences his teaching AND possibly how he answers questions on the show. Stating the fact is one thing...implementing it is another.

Dave

[iacas]

The video:

[iacas]

BTW, I got this note via a friend request on Facebook...

Emphasis added...

Hi Erik, I just saw your question on the golf fix and I think the answer was incomplete so here is a little more about ball flight. A ball will fly perfectly straight when 3 things occur; it is struck in the center of the clubface, it is struck with a square clubface, and the path of the club travels straight through impact. These factors will produce no side-spin thus allowing the ball to fly straight. The clubface is the #1 determining factor to where your ball will finish. If the face is open at impact the ball will finish to the right every time (right handed golfer). If the clubface is closed the ball will finish to the left every time. If the clubface is square the ball will finish in the middle every time! So for this example let's assume you have a square clubface at impact... If you swing from the inside ( with a square clubface) the ball will start to the right and turn back to the middle. If you swing from the outside (square face) the ball will start to the left and turn back to the middle. What Breed was explaining is not wrong... his example was about what would happen with an extremely open clubface at impact. If you hit from the inside, outside ot straight into the ball through impact with a severly open face the ball will start right and stay right...the clubface dominates. Conversly, if you swing any path with a severly closed face the ball will start left and finish left every time. In general the ball starts based on the path and finishes on the clubface. Howver, if the face is severly open or closed...the face dominates. I hope this helps you. Feel free to friend me, call me, or check out my website, www.[redacted].com Good luck with your swing!

Oh noes!!!!!! URL redacted to protect the guilty!

[kpaulhus]

lol I just saw your question on the fix right now....as Im reading this thread.

[iacas]

The guy I quoted above, I'm going to have to send him to http://thesandtrap.com/playing_tips/ball_flight_laws

[shaun]

Haha. "It's what I call deflection." Whoa, slow down. Too much jargon, Michael!

[jwolf02]

Nicely done. Glad to see he answered it correctly for the most part.

[Danattherock]

Yeah, that was cool. Watching the show today with the wife and said, "Hey, I know that guy". The wife looks at me with a funny face. Ha ha.. Too much time on the computer and watching TV. Should spend more time on the course and driving range. Ha ha.. Good question Erik.

-Dan

[jamo]

This was really cool, your're on TV man! Good thing he got it right, but he is going to have a lot of watchers questioning him now.

[Tiger Spuds]

This was really cool, your're on TV man! Good thing he got it right, but he is going to have a lot of watchers questioning him now.

Yeah, I was thinking that.Hasn't he favoured the old technique when talking about hitting draws and fades before?I'm sure I've seen some episodes where he has.So people will be wondering why he's suddenly contradicting himself?

[jamo]

Yeah, I was thinking that.Hasn't he favoured the old technique when talking about hitting draws and fades before?I'm sure I've seen some episodes where he has.So people will be wondering why he's suddenly contradicting himself?

Yup, even recently.

[david_wedzik]

Now all of this said...even though he got it right I'm not sure he will implement it in his teaching (though I hope so). During the same show, for example, he was talking about Miguel Angel Jimenez and said that he is OK coming over the top because he does so with an OPEN face. So, on the same show that he got the question RIGHT...he got it wrong in practice. The ONLY way Jimenez (or anyone else) can hit across the ball and play effectively is to hit the ball with a CLOSED face...not open. This is SO important as if you are going to hit across (and thus cut) the ball it NEEDS to start left of the target. If the face were open the ball would start right and cut from there ending up in a very bad place most of the time.

Dave

[Leftygolfer]

Very cool. Thank you for clearing this up for me not in this thread but many. Before now I always believed what Faldo believes.

[nevets88]

Nice! Do you get anything other than a reply, if that, for getting your question on Golf fix?

So how do we put this in practice on the range or the course? In situations other than not aiming your clubface at the target a la Faldo when working the ball.

If you hit it right and uncertain why, you'd now more be obliged to think your clubface was open?

Off topic. You can't have a Trackman on the course with you all the time. I doubt if an iPhone camera can pick up something like that - maybe one day - there will be an app for that?