Owning your own swing and physical limitations

[Innercity Mini]

Both Ben Hogan and Moe Norman were very aware of their own physical limitations- their biomechanics. Hogan was forced by a brutal car accident to learn what could ad could not physically do. Moe Norman, who displayed elements of Asperger's Syndrome, may have come to it as a result of childhood car accident in which he was dragged under the car for some distance. Perhaps this bodes well for Tiger as he faces his physical injuries!  My premise in this thread is that a person who considers bio-mechanics is a lot closer to "owning their golf swing," or making their swing a swing for life.

As a result of early high school football injuries back in the early 70's, I have had 11 hip surgeries and now a right total knee replacement.  I am 56 and very active as a teacher in an inner-city school district. I volunteer with the First Tee, am a "highly qualified" high-school golf coach for the district, and my HCP index prior to my knee going bone-on bone, and three herniated disks/torn right shoulder muscles last September was 9.6.

I had been trying to figure out Gary Edwin's "Right Sided Swing" for the last couple of years and had reached a certain level of success, but after my recent injuries last year, I was unable to have any feeling in my right hand for three months-I honestly thought golf was over for me.

I was fortunate to get some great physical therapy and an excellent Chiropractor! That led me to search golf swings and bio-mechanics and I discovered the lady below

Using her swing led me to my first hole in one last April! And when I finally had a window to play as I awaited surgery, I shot 3 rounds in the mid and low 80's carding a 41 and 38 along the way before my knee replacement. Quite a come-back given my physical obstacles!

My hope is that others will try this swing in one form or another and that we can enjoy Ms. Kiran Kanwar's insights.

[Innercity Mini]

My Swing 15 days after a new knee replacement:

The more I stare at this film the more amazed I am with  Kiran Kanwar's Minimalist Golf Swing.  Below is her description of the "what to do":

http://www.cybergolf.com/golf_news/the_minimalist_golf_swing_part_ii

How it Works - for the 'Just-do-it' type Golfer

Think of a good set-up as good "planning." Then make your backswing the perfect "investment." Finally, simply consider the downswing as a time to rake in maximum "dividends" from a sound investment!

Checkpoints for good "planning" and "investing" everything is the perfect stock (i.e., backswing!)

A mirror might help to check these positions. ("FO" or face-on means with the mirror facing the golfer and DTL or down-the-line means with the mirror placed behind the golfer, when looking down the target line).

The Minimalist Set-up

The elbows should be as close to one another as possible, with NO tension in the hands or shoulders.

The right shoulder, waist and the head should all be slightly behind (DTL) and below (FO) the left shoulder, so that the entire body feels it is slightly 'behind' the ball - leaning AWAY from the target instead of towards it.

The ball should be centered or just slightly left-of-center of a shoulder-width and square stance.

The Minimalist Backswing

The takeaway, or first part of the backswing, is made by pushing the entire left arm plus shaft in a straight line towards the right foot (towards the right heel for longer clubs).

During the takeaway, the right shoulder must remain below the left, and, when seen from the FO angle, no part of the right shoulder should be visible.

The arms then continue to the top - which is up to approximately 10 o'clock or shoulder/right-ear high along the same path, with both thumbs, especially the right thumb pointing away from the right ear. In other words, there should be no angle between the right thumb and right forearm.

There should also be no extra - that is, independent of what the arms cause - rotation of the body during any stage of the backswing.

The Minimalist Through-swing

The only downswing thought, if any, should be to simply slap the clubhead past the ball. The body - especially the nose, head, right shoulder and right leg, must face forward and not the target until well past impact, preferably with the right heel grounded until the momentum of the swing alone pulls it up.

Why it works - for the 'Explain-it-to-me-First' type Golfer

Once it is accepted as an incontrovertible truth that the club MUST arrive at the ball from an inside path and at a shallow angle, and, along with these two conditions, as fast as possible, and that NOTHING ELSE MATTERS (except a square clubface, which will happen as a result of using this swing) everything else merely follows on from these requirements (technically termed the Ball Flight Laws).

Concede gracefully to these LAWS, make sure the backswing is set up to ensure that these things cannot help but happen in the downswing, preferably without volition - and voila, instant success!

Consider the set-up plus backswing the cause for good impact, and the downswing merely the effect.

To make an efficient minimalist move, a golfer must set up for the inside path, and swing back correctly for the required weight-shift and shallow angle of approach to the ball.

The right shoulder, being set up slightly behind and below the left, establishes the golfer's body for an "inside" takeaway. The direction in which the left arm moves, with both wrists remaining as straight as possible, creates the width of backswing required for both weight-shift and a shallow angle.

The wrists remaining as straight as possible have other benefits too - one being that they keep the "inside" path of the club from becoming "behind" (or too "flat" as some term it), and it forces weight-shift as the right arm is kept at its maximum distance from the ball. Another benefit is that a square clubface is maintained at all times.

Many swing faults disappear simply by making the recommended backswing. These faults include an over-swing, a flying or chicken-wing right elbow, a reverse weight-shift and many incorrect clubface and shaft positions.

The Minimalist Golf Swing can also be called the "do-nothing" swing, for two reasons: Firstly, the less independent moves a golfer makes in the backswing (bending wrists, rotating forearms, buckling elbows and knees, and moving feet to name a few), the less movements are required to be undone, in precise sequential order in the downswing. Secondly, every time a golfer makes a good "Minimalist" swing, the feeling at impact is, "I did nothing to make that great shot" - the club did, and was allowed to do, what it was designed to!

So, golfers wishing to get better quickly, do nothing and achieve everything!

Now, with my swollen right leg, back leg,  and just getting off serious meds, I could not remember to distribute my weight evenly and only lifted my left arm up my chest instead of moving my straight left arm to my right heel then up! As a result, I slightly pulled more than a few shots coming over the top of my back knee and not my back hip! In other words, keeping my right -side in tilt throughout rescued my bad physical condition, still gave me great distance and would've allowed me to play a round and still compete!

My overall weakness probably saved me from making big pulls. Tomorrow, I'll bend both knees with equal weight, move my left arm in to my right heel then-up my chest, keep my right side in tilt !

My distances on the fly at the range-7 iron 140-150 yards as I kept my balance, PW was 110-115, 3 hybrid was 175, driver was 235-245 and 5 iron was 160-175.

Imagine a swing so simple that a guy with a brand new right knee can do so well after not touching a club for 15 days!