Perfect Posture: May not be what you think

[mvmac]

The reason I think this is so important is because it gets the player to view the ball out of the center of their eyes, rather than the old Adam Scott set-up where the player is straining their eyes to view the ball.  With the upper back rounded it's much easier to have the shoulder turn in a circle on an incline plane.  Also with the bottom not sticking out very much, the hips can turn and the rear hip can come out of flexion

[Stretch]

Not saying I disagree with the premise, 'cause I don't, but isn't that an impact position on the left, Mike? Not really comparing apples to apples in that case.

[sean_miller]

Originally Posted by Stretch

Not saying I disagree with the premise, 'cause I don't, but isn't that an impact position on the left, Mike? Not really comparing apples to apples in that case.

Using video of these guys in their actual prime - when they were winning left and right - might be more indicative of something. Right now it just looks like once osteoporosis kicks in myh game's really gonna take off!!

[saevel25]

I think Adam Scott would be find if he had is head down more.

See how Rory's head is down more, and looking at the ball, while his back is still straight. I think he is in a more naturally comfortable position.

[saevel25]

its not like he is pulling his shoulder blades together, his shoulder are relaxed. But i agree, its not the end all to be all if you have a bit of a hunch in the back. To me, its what ever is comfortable with out hurting the outcome of your swing.

[mvmac]

That is a good pic of Rory.  Adam Scott has actually worked on this since leaving Butch.  In last month's Golf Digest when they pictured his swing sequence, he said he is working on his chin going into his chest so his shoulders can turn steeper.

[mvmac]

Originally Posted by Stretch

Not saying I disagree with the premise, 'cause I don't, but isn't that an impact position on the left, Mike? Not really comparing apples to apples in that case.

Good point, it's closer to impact than a lot of set-ups we see today.  IMO less wasted motion in order to get back there

[MiniBlueDragon]

I don't think the upper back curving is either good or bad if it allows a natural turn for the person swinging the club. For me the bigger no-no is tilting the head back at the neck at address.

If you look at all of the "correct" address positions above they all have their head in line with or in front of their spine angle. Those with "wrong" postures have their head tilted back behind the line of the spine, e.g. Tiger in the photo above. The head will naturally go to whatever position it needs to go to during the swing so even standing at address with a "wrong" position should correct itself.

In the last Adam Scott sequence you posted, in the left images his head is tilted back at address compared to his spine angle but then in a much more "natural" position at P4.

[boogielicious]

That's good news for me!  I had a spine injury in High School and have a bit of curve in my back, so I can't really straighten out to a flat back.

[Nick Clearwater]

I'd do this ;)

Worked really well for him. Beware of the line drawers.

[JetFan1983]

I injured my back in April 2009 and lost the entire golf season. I didn't hit another golf ball again until April 2010. When I changed to a rounded back set-up position, I haven't had a back problem since.

Now if only my knees would stop hurting so much. Basketball 24-7 until I was about 22 ruined those forever probably.

[Zeph]

I've become more aware of posture recently, and found that the best results come when I'm relaxed and in a stable position. No exaggerated head or butt position. The more comfortable and relaxed I am at setup, the more likely I am to make a fluid and good swing.

[The_Pharaoh]

Great post Mike. Thanks for sharing.

I agree with Zeph, a simple, relaxed posture is the way to go. Most of the golfers I see that stick their rear ends out struggle with swaying.

[bunkerputt]

Thanks Mike.  It's pretty much what I thought.

[mvmac]

My pleasure guys, this is something I wasn't aware of myself until a few years ago, just want to spread the knowledge

[Zeph]

My pleasure guys, this is something I wasn't aware of myself until a few years ago, just want to spread the knowledge

What took you so long? :-D Thanks for the post and a well laid out point. Posture hasn't been that much discussed in here, nice to see an informative thread on the subject.

[bunkerputt]

Originally Posted by mvmac

My pleasure guys, this is something I wasn't aware of myself until a few years ago, just want to spread the knowledge

You're further along in the curve than I am, then.  Here's me a year and a half ago (with a lot of back pain I might add):

... and this is me earlier this year (with stronger glutes and more flexible hips thanks to lots of training).  Shoulders are a little more open nowadays and right arm isn't so sloppy, but otherwise very similar posture to today:

It all started because some 80s shooting employee at Golfsmith told me I need to stick my butt out and look down my nose at address.  A trip to Spine Austin and a key lesson later had me wishing I could go back in time and chew him out....  or chew myself out for listening to him.  We need more people like you dispelling those myths so that golfers don't experience so much physical pain, so thanks.

[soloredd]

Great thread.

This is something I really need to work on over the winter. I was playing really good golf earlier this year and then at some point I felt like I had to work on posture - only I worked on the very wrong things. For awhile I was having lower back pain, got that sorted but I at address I'm still trying to keep a flat back and butt out.

I'm with Zeph in that it should feel comfortable. I'm just sick of all the Peter Kostis-type bruhaha over these ramrod straight backs and perfectly aligned posture positions we see every weekend. Jack was pretty damn well rounded.