Maintaining the Flying Wedge

[jshots]

Today I found a possible drill for this... if you grab a few of your longer clubs and hold them in the middle and swing you will see what I mean... try to make the clubs not hit you in the shoulder

[CuppedTin]

Today I found a possible drill for this... if you grab a few of your longer clubs and hold them in the middle and swing you will see what I mean... try to make the clubs not hit you in the shoulder

Is this similar to using a broomstick?

[carpediem4300]

would imagine this is length dictacted and not object orientated, so yes

Originally Posted by CuppedTin

Is this similar to using a broomstick?

[newtogolf]

I use a similar drill where but instead place a alignment stick into the end of the grip, allows you to grip the club normally.

Originally Posted by jshots

Today I found a possible drill for this... if you grab a few of your longer clubs and hold them in the middle and swing you will see what I mean... try to make the clubs not hit you in the shoulder

[jclark]

[video]http://youtu.be/HJTe6me7LTk[/video] Ok, so maintaining the flying wedge is something in working on. I found this video on YouTube and found it informative, BUT I am confused. He shows that at impact your shoulder are open quite a bit. I was always under the assumption that your shoulders should be square to the target line at impact. Can anyone shed any light on this? Thanks!

[EverythingGolf]

The shoulders should not be open that much, he may be doing that for the drill. The right shoulder drop's down and out while the left go's back and up. I have seen 100's of DTL swings of pro's and they are pretty square to slightly open at impact.

[Jameson]

I´m going to practise this drill. I think it´s going to be really helpful for me. I strugle with my long irons and driver, maybe because of that...

[slamdunker]

I think I (sort of) understand the flying wedge, but am unsure about hand/wrist action, and release.  Are you guys saying that the hands should remain completely passive (no conscious attempt to supinate left hand/forearm? Or is this an okay thought (so long as you are not flipping, which I assume just means hitting at the ball, making your left wrist concave, etc)?

Confused about this, since I've ben told by a couple instructors that my tendency is to "hold off" my release coming through the ball, and that I should work on actively releasing/rotating left wrist/forearm (while, of course, maintaining the flying wedge with hands ahead, etc).  Something like this, from an instructor I found referenced here a couple days ago.. herman williams golf right wrist  Through impact, he advocates back of left hand turning toward ground, along with right palm (while maintaing right wrist angle). Also, it seems Jack encouraged focusing on active release, so can't be too bad!

However,  I've tried this for the past couple days (and on and off for awhile), and it just doesn't seem to work for me. Can cause big pulls and/or pull-hooks for me, and overall great inconsistency. I tried coupling the thought with a weaker right hand grip (since it tends toward a bit strong), and opening face more on backswing (since I generally tend to have it a bit closed on my backswing- my current instructor just said that that makes me a 'closed' player, and that that's okay).  Was also trying to incorporate a shorter backswing, today, by thinking of the straight right arm, which helped on the range yesterday.  Hit the ball poorly, and certainly the above thoughts are way too many to take on to the course!

Anyway, back to initial topic! It seems that others (perhaps mvmac?) are saying that we actually shouldn't be focusing on this release/supination element, and that instead the hands should remain passive, with the release just happening naturally in response to the pivot through? (one of my good friends, who is a respected head pro at a good golf course, and a TGM guy, seems to be more of this school)

So basically, based on these two seemingly contradictory ways of looking at release, along with my apparent tendency to hold off my own, have left me stifled as I try to figure out my next step in improving my swing.  Thoughts? Will post some swing shots soon (never done it before).

[wrecker]

Hello guys

Just want to give my input on the flying wedge.

After adopting a stack and tilt style swing method i learned about the flying wedge and how they advocate maintaining the wedge all the way into follow through. I found this advice so misleading and destructive to my swing, not too bad for irons as a delofted clubface and forward leaning shaft is ideal for hitting down on the golf ball. My driver swing was a completely different story...u can not hit up on a golf ball that is in a forward position whilst delofting the driver face and maintaining a forward leaning shaft created by maintaining the flying wedge. This caused my right shoulder to dip resulting in me snap hooking, drop kicking the ball off the tee.

Today after taking a lesson with my local pro it has been brought to light how misleading this information is.

Taking the backswing the right hand does bend beckwards creating the flying wedge but throughout the downswing this flying wedge needs to release gradually so that by the time your hands are down infront of you your wrist angle is back to what it was whilst setting up to the ball (releasing the flying wedge not holding on to it)....there is no other way of presenting loft to the ball on the tee if you dont release this angle.

[saevel25]

u can not hit up on a golf ball that is in a forward position whilst delofting the driver face and maintaining a forward leaning shaft created by maintaining the flying wedge.

I give you exhibit A, Zach Johnson ;)

Hitting slightly up, maintaining flying wedge

Basically the set up produces the upward angle of attack. You can maintain that flying wedge with the driver and still hit up. The reason being, Zach has a lot of spine axis tilt which allows him to do that. If you shifted his head more towards the ball and put him in a more upright spin position he would be hitting down.

[wrecker]

sorry but that flying wedge angle isnt the same as it would be at the top of his backswing the right wrist is clearly flattening thoughout and as u have posted in the follow through wedge almost completely gone :)

if u put him to the top of his backswing with that wrist angle could he hold a tray of drinks ...no i wouldnt want him to bring a drink to my table

also his club head shoulder and arm are almost straight that club head is catching up all the time proving he is releasing the flying wedge

[Suchmo]

I suspect that the OP would suggest that the extent of the flying wedge does change through the downswing, releasing somewhat, but that some of the 'wedge' is maintained after impact, ideally all the way through to the finish. My issue is that I simply cannot swing as fast or as fluently without the right wrist straightening later in the finish. While it has been suggested that maintaining the wedge to finish is a low priority, I'm now uncomfortable thinking that I am embedding a less than ideal component.

[wrecker]

That is exactly what i am getting at ...the wedge has to release nobody gets down to the ball with a driver having the same angle in right wrist at the top of the swing as at impact.

All i am saying is that this piece of advice i took literally maintaing the same angle of flying wedge now i am releasing the wedge i hit my driver so much better and get much more height

[Suchmo]

Two questions: 1. Is some of the the wedge still there through impact (e.g. right wrist at 160°)? 2. If so, do you have at least some wedge all the way through to the finish? I think I'm doing the first, but struggling to fluently achieve the second.

[iacas]

@wrecker , check out this thread…

[Suchmo]

The flying wedge is ideally maintained through to the finish. You just re-cock the club, basically.

With regards to the linked thread, would you still recommend that the right forearm flying wedge is maintained all the way to finish? In the linked thread, many (including yourself, I think) state that most top golfers release the wedge entirely after impact.

[iacas]

With regards to the linked thread, would you still recommend that the right forearm flying wedge is maintained all the way to finish? In the linked thread, many (including yourself, I think) state that most top golfers release the wedge entirely after impact.

No. Your second sentence says it… Key #3 is fleeting. It's inline for just a moment.

[wrecker]

ty Iacas for putting my mind at ease....i am quite a strong lad in my arms and i can hold the wedge completely if need be all the way through.

This is what has killed my driver swing as i would come into impact with such a delofted face.

Stack and Tilt claim there is no release but for me this is a kind of release (releasing the angle held between the back of my right hand and my forearm).