Pre Loading Weight on Left Side at Address

[SG11118]

I preset my weight forward for a couple years with some very good results.  Some of my best career rounds were with this.  However, after doing this for a year, a swing flaw came into play that send me back to more of a conventional setup. 

 

[nlk10010]

"Preloading left" sounds a lot like Jim Venetos' approach. It might work for some folks, depending on your issue. For me the problem is over active arms and hands, so I tried it but still hit behind the ball (and to do that while staying on your left leg requires wrists with a mind of its own)!

[Joe Mama]

I have struggled with fat shots for years, and have gone through hundreds of different combinations of grips, stance and backswing, largely to no avail--until recently, and, now, 90% of my strikes with long and short irons are flush.

Here's what I do:

 1.   Two-knuckle left hand, firm. (Moderately strong grip.)
  2.  Right hand:   two middle fingers very light touch on shaft.  Thumb and index finger virtually off the shaft. Pinky hovering over left hand.
4.  Feet slightly less than shoulder width apart.
5.  Toe line open 10 degrees.  Right foot 10 degrees open relative to toe line. Left foot is 20 degrees open relative to toe line.
6.  Wrists have zero tension:  angle between shaft and forearms is almost 180 degrees, i.e., wrists are "drooped," not cocked up slightly to lift clubface.
 7.  Weight is 80% left.  (That's not a typo.). Head is angled right.
8.  Take-away is 100% by left arm push.  Two fingers of right hand serve only as support going back.
9.  Take-away direction is along the 9:30-3:30 direction (outside-in).
10.  There is no wrist cocking, only a dorsal hingeing; the hingeing is not made to happen; it occurs naturally.
11.  I try to stay on the left foot as long as possible on the backswing.
12.  Left arm goes back about 135 degrees, with the butt end of the shaft pointing toward the ball.  (The shaft makes an "L" relative to the left forearm.)
13.  Swing down along the 3:30-9:30 direction.
14.  The right hand should come off the shaft at the end of the swing, evidencing the extremely loose, two-finger right hand grip.
 

Hope this helps other high cappers.

Edited August 30, 2016 by Joe Mama

[Ernest Jones]

51 minutes ago, Joe Mama said:

I have struggled with fat shots for years, and have gone through hundreds of different combinations of grips, stance and backswing, largely to no avail--until recently, and, now, 90% of my strikes with long and short irons are flush.

Here's what I do:

 1.   Two-knuckle left hand, firm. (Moderately strong grip.)
  2.  Right hand:   two middle fingers very light touch on shaft.  Thumb and index finger virtually off the shaft. Pinky hovering over left hand.
4.  Feet slightly less than shoulder width apart.
5.  Toe line open 10 degrees.  Right foot 10 degrees open relative to toe line. Left foot is 20 degrees open relative to toe line.
6.  Wrists have zero tension:  angle between shaft and forearms is almost 180 degrees, i.e., wrists are "drooped," not cocked up slightly to lift clubface.
 7.  Weight is 80% left.  (That's not a typo.). Head is angled right.
8.  Take-away is 100% by left arm push.  Two fingers of right hand serve only as support going back.
9.  Take-away direction is along the 9:30-3:30 direction (outside-in).
10.  There is no wrist cocking, only a dorsal hingeing; the hingeing is not made to happen; it occurs naturally.
11.  I try to stay on the left foot as long as possible on the backswing.
12.  Left arm goes back about 135 degrees, with the butt end of the shaft pointing toward the ball.  (The shaft makes an "L" relative to the left forearm.)
13.  Swing down along the 3:30-9:30 direction.
14.  The right hand should come off the shaft at the end of the swing, evidencing the extremely loose, two-finger right hand grip.
 

Hope this helps other high cappers.

Whole lotta feels there. You got any video to demonstrate you're even remotely doing what you think you're doing?? 

[Hacker James]

@Joe Mama Yep. requires a bit of finesse and lots of trust. I do the same, but at top, I allow fingers to "grab" just a little, mostly for control yet retaining that loose feeling all the way through the finish. My weight distribution is more like 65/35. Rotational torso swing staying connected through the shot.

[boogielicious]

12 hours ago, Ernest Jones said:

Whole lotta feels there. You got any video to demonstrate you're even remotely doing what you think you're doing?? 

A week from now he will post a whole new list. 

[Liko81]

On 9/3/2010 at 3:30 PM, soloredd said:

Hey guys I'm kind of curious about something. About a month ago I started to realize that if I pre-loaded weight to my left side (it feels rather drastic, about 65-35) and remained at that same weight distribution through the backswing and then moving it all through and follow through, my contact was so much better, got better ball flight, etc. I've stuck with this method and have seen a big improvements in my irons (I don't do this with the driver, a little less with my wedges). I also have been working on shortening my back swing, I used to swing a bit passed parallel.

What I'm wondering is if this is some sort of band-aid to a bigger issue or can I rely on this to be a style of swing for me? I tried Stack & Tilt about 16 months ago using the DVDs and online information so I'm guessing that I just stumbled upon a small idea of that swing and put it to my own use (albeit very hacker-ish!!)

It's a bit of a band-aid. You'd get similar results with any static weight distribution.

Essentially, what's happening is that with a weight transfer in your swing, you're swaying backward and then forward and there are small timing differences between that and your arms and upper body, which bring your path over different points on the ground and so affect your ball-striking accuracy. By keeping your weight in one place, you silence the "yips" your lower body produces during the weight shift, and so you increase the accuracy of your ball striking.

This is one reason that many coaches advocate narrowing your stance for short iron and pitching shots. Due to the loft of the club and the desire for a high launch and soft landing, pitching requires you to get that leading edge underneath the ball but still hit the ball first, making the pitch swing a game of millimeters between a good shot and a thinned or turfed one. So, a narrow stance and minimum weight transfer helps ensure the iron gets right back to where it was at address to slide under the ball.

However, for full-swing, full-distance shots, this no-sway approach comes at the cost of swing power; by not moving your hips or giving yourself more room to push off your right leg, you're giving up on most or all of the power that your lower body can produce, focusing instead on upper-body and core strength. The result will be a slower swing speed. If your distances are still acceptable for the game you play, then I say no harm done, but if you'd like 5-10 yards more from each iron when you want it, you'll need to loosen up your lower body again and get your weight transfer and hip rotation in sync with your swing.

[OneShoeMike]

All I know is that every club hits the ball further. Although, with my driver I start on left but I'm sure weight goes to right foot. The ball is raised up on a peg... so it's different.

 

[Be Still]

Hey Guys, newbie here, and late to the party on this thread.  The heading on this thread was the one that got me interested to search more.  I saw a popup on my phone about it and I tried to follow it- all good read from everyone- enjoyed it- all very interesting to me... and now I'm here.

Although,TST had a warning note that this thread was started in September 2010, more than 8 years ago!  (Yikes!)   I'm still interested in it and curious wanting to know and ask if anyone still set up on their forward side on a more serious golf swing development since this thread started?

Anyway, around the end of summer 2010, I met a guy and saw him regularly around the course, and we played a few holes a few times, but my game was way far from his- he was just too good and knew many aspects of the game and had been around the higher level circuit.  He was all about being in your left (forward side) from start to finish of the swing.  Most the topic conversations we had were big on setting up on the forward side as he leads us into it- I mean playing from your left side as your center of the swing.  But then that was just a secondary part of it all.  I learned and realized there were many huge differences or variations anyone w/coud do while preloading weight on the forward side.  Much like any swing, it can have or should I say, it has many different variations whether it is intended.  But his ideas were intriguing and before I knew it, I was tinkering with being on my left and I was learning it like a text book.

Anyway, anyway, anyway... I just thought I'd reach out and be a part of the conversation about it, and have a healthy dialogue with others who have been working on a swing similar to a preloaded weight on the forward side.

'Hope the weekend games are going well!

[AlDena]

Alright, and welcome! I also recently started putting more weight left at address and it's helped a ton. Being 63, and less flexible than I used to be, this has brought back some of the distance I've lost with my irons. 

I saw an interview a few months ago with Phil Michelson about chipping. He said there are 5 things to remember. First, was to put 80-90% of the weight on the front foot. I thought "Wow, is that even possible?" I'd bet a flamingo could do it. After explaining the first 3 things, they went back to the booth and never came back to Phil. I wonder what 4 and 5 was? 

[Be Still]

36 minutes ago, AlDena said:

Alright, and welcome! I also recently started putting more weight left at address and it's helped a ton. Being 63, and less flexible than I used to be, this has brought back some of the distance I've lost with my irons. 

I saw an interview a few months ago with Phil Michelson about chipping. He said there are 5 things to remember. First, was to put 80-90% of the weight on the front foot. I thought "Wow, is that even possible?" I'd bet a flamingo could do it. After explaining the first 3 things, they went back to the booth and never came back to Phil. I wonder what 4 and 5 was? 

Sounds cool.  How recent have you been in it and how much time and efforts are you spending on it?

Anyway, Phil Mickelson has a short video out there in youtube about chips/pitches although it only has three things.  The left arm, ball position, and weight.

[Buckeyebowman]

On 8/27/2012 at 5:06 PM, Your Mama said:

Here is what works for me: Ball right of center, right eye left of ball, 70 % weight on left foot, leaning left at address. Big, open stance, with left foot 25 degrees left, right foot ten degrees left. No wrist cock, only hinge. Three quarter swing. Club face square to swing arc up and down. Right wrist arrives cupped and left wrist flat at impact effortlessly. Totally contrary to everything I believed was correct, but I'm hitting the ball better than ever.

I can appreciate this. I played pretty much this way for a few years. I had a narrow, very open stance, with the ball played back toward the right foot. I opened and closed the clubface more than YM describes, but, nothing extreme. This was for irons only, but I could bust the dog snot out of them! I didn't dare try to hit woods with this setup. 

[Be Still]

Wow that’s cool, Buckeyebowman!

You played it for some time, how did you tun across the idea?

No driver/woods?

[AlDena]

On 2/11/2019 at 3:45 PM, Noel Daof said:

Sounds cool.  How recent have you been in it and how much time and efforts are you spending on it?

Anyway, Phil Mickelson has a short video out there in youtube about chips/pitches although it only has three things.  The left arm, ball position, and weight.

Hi Noel

I've been focusing on the weight distribution since the beginning of last year. Most of my range time is about working on something specific, and I try to include this. Michelson covered those three, so I didn't missing anything. Yea!  

[Be Still]

1 hour ago, AlDena said:

Hi Noel

I've been focusing on the weight distribution since the beginning of last year. Most of my range time is about working on something specific, and I try to include this. Michelson covered those three, so I didn't missing anything. Yea!   

Yeah, I think you got all of what Phil was teaching in the video.

It's good that you apply a specific work at the range.  That's the way we all should do it, but that's if we want to learn something from a lesson or a search.

Anyway, yeah, I like being on the left on chips, pitches, mid shot... all the way to full shot except with the putter. 

I'll be 62 in a few months.  I wish I did this when I was young or right from when I started golf.  Many of the guys at my old club who I hung with plays it this way in all different levels.  One kid is at +4, my index is 10.3 and a few other... some are complete beginners.  It's amazing to play this way.

[Buckeyebowman]

On 2/12/2019 at 10:23 AM, Noel Daof said:

Wow that’s cool, Buckeyebowman!

You played it for some time, how did you tun across the idea?

No driver/woods?

Just fooling around on the range, trying different things. My stance differed from Your Mama's in several aspects. I did NOT set more weight on the left foot. I kept it pretty even between my feet. My right foot was square to the line with the left open and toed out about 20 degrees. I'd take the club back and let the left heel rise a little bit. Mind you, I was much more flexible back then. 

My first move down consisted of setting my left heel back on the ground and just allowing my arms to drop, maintaining the lag in my wrists. Then I'd get the body moving, and the arms would follow. At impact it felt like I was hitting the ball with my right hip joint! I know this sounds really weird, but I can't find a better way to describe the feel. It was like if you drew a straight line from my right hip through my hands, it would point straight at the ball. 

And no, you can't hit woods with that setup and swing! At least I couldn't! I had a much more traditional stance and setup for those.

[BombsAway]

I've played with weight on my left side, evenly distributed, and on the right side. My best ball-striking days tended to be when I started with my weight on my right side. When starting with weight on my right side, I have almost no head movement or sliding on the backswing, and maybe that's why I found that swing to be more consistent. On the downswing, there does tend to be some sliding, but it doesn't seem to translate to inconsistency. 

[brian roach]

Hi I'm new here but I can relate to this thread in a big way.

I started playing in 1973, when I was 19, my dad was a very good player, he was off 4 but he only taught me one thing, the grip, totally neutral like Hogan, Snead etc., the rest of I had to learn for myself, I remember feeling like I was totally one sided with weight distribution, all on the the left foot, with those old golf clubs you had to pretty much middle the ball to get any kind of result, to me it seemed the most simple approach and after I'd played my first season my handicap was 18.

Nobody seemed to notice that I had no weight transfer, even though sometimes my right foot would slide backwards at impact, which I recall Greg Norman doing sometimes, and in my second season I started to get good, by the September of that year my handicap was 4.