Kelvin Miyahira and His Ideas

[kacer]

Hey all,

Don't post much here but play and work on my golf swing non stop like most of us here.  I have a couple of questions about something I agree but would like more insight on.

Is anyone familiar with Kelvin Miyahira and his ideas about the golf swing?  He really breaks it down super in-depth and uses anatomical terms but he points out differences in golf swings on tour and why he states that to truly have an "elite" swing you have to do what he calls "micro-moves."  If you haven't heard of him or would like to read more this is his blog.  I'm interested to hear what you guys think.

http://www.aroundhawaii.com/speed_training.html

[nilssoa]

Hello, I just found his articles and they really made sense to me. My swing is what he would call a stall and flip. Too much arm action and to much flip in my release. Have had a really hard time to get my sving on a proper plane. Last three rounds I've tried to implement his thoughts in my swing. Now when I try to keep the clubface square to the clubpath through the impact zone I'm improving in a big way. Somehow my intuition seems improved, out of nowhere I can work the ball in both directions on purpose. I will definitely keep trying to implement his thoughts in my swing. How about you, have you tried it since you wrote your post?

[mchepp]

Kelvin has some fresh ideas and it is worth reading his articles. He does more or less cheat by using videos with different camera angles which means the conclusions he draws from the incorrect camera angles are suspect. I wish he would be more consistent with this area of his work. If you read from the beginning he has changed his theories a few times which is fine, mostly from learning more. For me he is a bit to much get in this position because the greats did it, but no follow up on how to get there. He has designed a few training aids but few of them are capable of working when you hit the ball and they are rarely referenced in the articles. If you want more details he has the most active disciple anywhere on the internet named Jeff Martin. His site is jeffygolf something or other. He is a bit prickly, so you have been warned.

[kacer]

I believe that if you understand the movements of the body and how he describes them you will understand how you should move "like the legends." I will say this about it, he sees movement for what it is and doesn't get caught up in a bunch of golf nonsense. When you look at a golf swing like that it is very liberating and you can find the root causes of your swing right off the bat. Before reading the articles ball speed with a 6 iron was 128-131, after working on it for a few months getting lateral bend and lordosis, or what he calls the "spine engine" my ball speed has jumped up 10 mph. After reviewing my swing I can still see where I need work. My release needs work, I'm a roller, and I know exactly what I need to fix in order to change to what he calls a drive/hold release. I think everyone should take a look at his articles. I know this won't be popular here but the more lateral motion you have the better chance you have to flip it. There is evidence to prove that.

[exgolfpro66]

I know this is an old thread, but thought I would add to it.  I have been a fan of Kelvin's since I got the speed chain in 2002 or 2003.  I have taken several internet lessons with him in 2013.  I would say that the only weakness to his teaching is the fact that even though you know what moves need to be made, there is really no guideance as to how to get from where you are, to where you need to be.  But I feel his ideas are spot on.

I've recently joined Gabriel Writer's Movement Towards Improvement site.  He spend a month in Hawaii with Kelvin and has about 40+ videos of swing moves, training aids and analysis, all done with Gabriel and Kelvin.  If you are into his teaching and have $97 to spare, it is worth the money (IMO).

[billchao]

I would say that the only weakness to his teaching is the fact that even though you know what moves need to be made, there is really no guideance as to how to get from where you are, to where you need to be.

As I understand it, that's the general criticism of Kelvin. He just says "these guys do this" without actually conveying a way to do it. I guess it's informational from a purely theoretical perspective, but I like swing theory to have practical applications, for obvious reasons.

[808hacker]

>He just says "these guys do this" without actually conveying a way to do it

My son took a lesson and he did convey ways to do it. He seems to be an excellent teacher with so much knowledge. Pretty refreshing actually.

[dchoye]

8 hours ago, 808hacker said:

>He just says "these guys do this" without actually conveying a way to do it

My son took a lesson and he did convey ways to do it. He seems to be an excellent teacher with so much knowledge. Pretty refreshing actually.

I can't comment about teaching ability cause all I know of Miyahira is the all the stuff about PGA release types    I prefer the way he classify "release type " than the TGM classification . I think the stable clubface release (drive hold) vs the rolling release is a good starting point for debate 

It helps me figure out my own release type 

 

[808hacker]

IMO here's what I saw:

1: Those cameras he uses are very clear and you can see everything.

2: He has definite ideas on what is good vs bad and can spot it right away.

3: I agree with everything he said.

4: When I asked questions, I got definite answers. 

Look, I'm not saying he's correct (because I am never sure) - but I agree with what he says. He gives real answers - not vague answers like many other teachers and he shows you examples of what other really good players are doing to back up his answers.

Lets put it this way, I am really happy I took my son to him. I'm glad he's here.

[mchepp]

16 minutes ago, 808hacker said:

Lets put it this way, I am really happy I took my son to him. I'm glad he's here.

I would say that this is all that really matters. Finding someone that matches yours and/or your sons personality is a big key in the teacher/player relationship. Kelvin has young students who have had success and there is no reason your son with the right amount of work and guidance from Kelvin can't do the same. 

I also think, if you would be willing, you could show before and after pictures of your sons progress. It is always great to see someone change the picture and even better if you can provide background on the reasons for the change. This is not done to prove anything but more to show how people can change things to get better. We all benefit from this.

[808hacker]

3 of the top 5 players on my son's public high school team have taken from Kelvin. Of the 3, two have won the state title against the ILH (Private schools with all the $). These 3 players are very, very good. They all have the same things in common - they hit long and can produce under pressure. My son and I have tried our best to get a more "stable" swing. He's 6'2" and has a lot of movement. Kelvin has him much more stable and I can really see the difference so far. Can't wait for more.

One of the players was worse than my son - in one year he won some very important tournaments.

The good players (and parents) have told us to take from Kelvin but it's hard when you are already taking from someone else.

[cutchemist42]

I use the foot spray on my driver, and I was having trouble figuring out why my heel hits were turning into low hooks as I thought gear effect should push them right. His slomo video here helped me figure it out. I think my club is rolling/closing too much through impact.

 

Edited January 11, 2018 by cutchemist42

[virtuoso]

That video is extraordinarily wrong. You are hitting low hooks off the heel because the face is closed vs the path enough to more than offset the heel gear effect adding some fade. If your face was square to the path you would indeed get some fade spin, but the closed face is making up for that and then some.

[billchao]

2 hours ago, cutchemist42 said:

I use the foot spray on my driver, and I was having trouble figuring out why my heel hits were turning into low hooks as I thought gear effect should push them right. His slomo video here helped me figure it out. I think my club is rolling/closing too much through impact.

 

Watch it again. That club isn't rolling too much through impact. It closes due to the heel strike, yes, but most of it occurs after impact. Heeled shots will twist a clubhead closed rapidly and the opposite is true of toed shots.

The reason that ball is pulled even though the clubface is open is due to clubface bulge. Where that ball was struck, the face is slightly more closed. The reason that ball hooks is covered by @virtuoso here:

18 minutes ago, virtuoso said:

 You are hitting low hooks off the heel because the face is closed vs the path enough to more than offset the heel gear effect adding some fade. If your face was square to the path you would indeed get some fade spin, but the closed face is making up for that and then some.

 

[iacas]

What @billchao and @virtuoso said.

Extreme heel hits can result in some weird bad shots, but it should be obvious if you're missing the face by that much.

[virtuoso]

That club is coming extremely from the inside so the face/path differential is UUUGE.