Hip rotation and X-factor

[MLPx]

Hi there,

would like some input on my loading position. At the bottom of this post you will find 2 images, fig B is my usual and A is what I would like some insights. I understand that X-factor refers to the angular difference in rotation of the shoulders and hips, the bigger the X-factor, the more torque and club head speed. A quieter lower body also means a more stable base with less moving parts, hence a more consistent swing. In fig A, you can see that I have restricted my hip turn too a very minimal amount while still maintaining the same shoulder rotation as in fig B which is my normal. By the theory of the X-factor stretch, would restricting the hip turn increase torque and allow me to drive it even farther than I already do? Your thoughts are most welcome.

PS: Is not an overswing, just an awkward camera angle.

Thanks,

MLP(:

fig A

fig A

[billchao]

As I understand it, X-factor stretch is a result of a dynamic action. That is, the sliding and turning of the hips as the downswing begins. Players actually increase their X-factor at some point during the downswing. It's not something you want to pose in your backswing.

I'm generally against any restricting of the hips or tension in the swing in general.

[colin007]

The Jim Mclean X Factor is a bunch of bunk.

[newtogolf]

Originally Posted by colin007

The Jim Mclean X Factor is a bunch of bunk.

I don't know, Keegan Bradley hits the ball pretty far and McLean is his coach.  McLean like most swing coaches has very specific ideas about how a golfer should swing a club.

If you watch the pro's, it's pretty obvious there are many ways to swing a club and get good results.  Tiger has changed his swing 3-4 times and won with each different swing.  Bubba and Furyk have very non-textbook swings but they have won with them.  The SnT guys have some pro's on tour too that have had success.

The issue I have with these "swing guru's" is that they want you to swing the club according to their method rather than taking your natural swing and working with it.  Guys like Bubba and Furyk would probably lose their spot on the tour if they were forced to work with McLean.

What I like about 5SK is they take the common elements to what makes a good swing and put them together but understand there are a lot of different ways to get there.

[saevel25]

Here's the thing, the 5 keys give you distance, they understand were the power in the swing come from, and get tweak you to gain more of it if you need to.

The X-factor, yes there is a correlation. If you plot it on a graph, those with a bigger x-factor hit it farther. But your talking about 0.75 mph per degree of x-factor. Just looking at some averages out there. Here's the thing though, the hole notion about restricting your hip turn to gain x-factor is crap. Its not a good way to increase it. Here's why. Lets say you keep your hips at 30 degrees, and your body has a max X-factor of 30 degrees. that means your shoulder turn will be 60 degrees. But lets say you still have another 15 degrees of hip rotation you can have. So, under the guidance of gaining maximum x-factor, you now took out 15 degrees of leverage (rotation) in your swing.

What is X-factor, flexibility. That's it. Its part genetics, and part exercise. I can say this, for a great number of people out there, your going to reach your maximum natural x-factor before you make a full turn.

If you throw in the fact that downswing starts with the hips, your going to gain a bit in the transition, you want to error on the side of not restricting your hips, because even if you say, open your hips up more, and take 5 degrees off your x-factor, you can gain that back in transition.

So i rather see someone get a full shoulder turn, and proper turn rates with there body, to ensure maximum leverage, and contact.

[colin007]

Originally Posted by newtogolf

I don't know, Keegan Bradley hits the ball pretty far and McLean is his coach.  McLean like most swing coaches has very specific ideas about how a golfer should swing a club.

If you watch the pro's, it's pretty obvious there are many ways to swing a club and get good results.  Tiger has changed his swing 3-4 times and won with each different swing.  Bubba and Furyk have very non-textbook swings but they have won with them.  The SnT guys have some pro's on tour too that have had success.

The issue I have with these "swing guru's" is that they want you to swing the club according to their method rather than taking your natural swing and working with it.  Guys like Bubba and Furyk would probably lose their spot on the tour if they were forced to work with McLean.

What I like about 5SK is they take the common elements to what makes a good swing and put them together but understand there are a lot of different ways to get there.

keegan is also tall (like 6'4" i think) and lanky, so he has a huge swing arc, plus he hits up on the ball, and it seems like he has a perfectly optimized driver-shaft combo.  he does murder the ball off the tee though.