Instruction
Ben Hogan was right, golf is a sidearm game
“What is the secret of the golf swing?” That’s one of the eternal debates in our game, and as with anything as dynamic as the golf swing, I don’t think there is ONE secret. There are similarities to be noticed among the greats of the game however, despite their variety.
That sounds like a contradiction in terms, but if you think about it, we can notice certain motions that most elite level players have in their swing. Not all, but most. GolfWRX readers know me as a teacher who places more emphasis on impact and not how to, but today I want to discuss something that most amateurs get wrong and almost all pros get right. In a very general sense, I’ll state it like this: the golf swing has two components, a vertical one and a horizontal one. Better players get both, but most amateurs get only the vertical part.
The vertical is necessary because the ball is on the ground. The horizontal is required because the ball is aside the player. The VAST majority of mistakes I see club golfers make is that they get too vertical, and not sufficiently horizontal. Golf is very clearly a sidearm game, and the great Ben Hogan may have illustrated it the best.
Most boys growing up, at least in my era, learned to play baseball pretty much before anything else. If they were fortune enough to play infield, I think they had a head start in the game of golf. In the cover image, Hogan is clearly demonstrating how an infielder might throw to first base. This almost completely mimics the motion of a golf swing. Notice I say almost. It is not entirely the same, because remember, the golf ball is on the ground. There is still some up-and-down motion required, but we deal with most of that simply by bending correctly at the hips when we address the golf ball. So to complete the analogy, I think it’s safe to say that golf is baseball with the torso tilted forward.
“It has always seemed to me that, in its general character, this motion is quite similar to the one an infielder makes when he throws to first base after scooping up a ground ball,” Ben Hogan said.
Of course, there is nothing new in this information. Many instructors have written about it, and Ben Hogan’s 5 Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf was published some 60 years ago. But I will say this: If you have a junior learning to play golf, you would be wise to START with this horizontal orientation FIRST!
I have had many of my juniors begin learning golf on side-hill lies with the golf ball well above their feet before we ever hit a ball on the ground, because once your motion gets too vertical is VERY difficult to change. So assuming you’re in the too-vertical camp, as probably 80 percent of golfers are, let’s discuss what you might do about it.
First, you have to address the motion of your rear elbow (which is the right elbow for right-handed golfers). If it gets too high or stays too far behind your rib cage, the golf club almost always transitions too steeply. Watch Hogan’s motion closely; his right elbow moves well forward in his transition, which “lays the club down,” that is, drops it into a hit position. But — and here’s the key to this motion — notice also that as Hogan pushed the elbow in front of him, he also rotates the LEAD ARM (left for him) counter-clockwise. If he had a secret, I think that was a big part of it. If you pull the elbow in and forward, you can drastically open the face, but by forearm rotation Hogan offset that problem.
The other key to this move when trying to incorporate it is to be sure your hand path stays in! It is easy to send the hand path out when you’re trying it, and that can lead to a severe case of the shanks if you’re not careful.
If you’re one who is and has been too steep, I suggest you try two things:
- Hit a LOT of balls with the ball well above your feet on a sidehill lie.
- Hit shots off a very tall tee and be sure you don’t ground the club; keep it up as high as the ball itself even with irons. This simulates the hill drill I was just describing.
Once you get the feeling of more around and less up-and-down, you’re on your way. Your attack angle will shallow, and you’ll experience much greater club face consistency from the new arc you are developing.
Final note: My own personal swing flaw for too many years has been this steep transition, and I have always been in search of “the feeling.” Like anyone else, once in a while I get the feeling and it is GREAT!
If you’re interested in my online swing analysis program, click here for more info, or contact me on Facebook.
The LPGA Tour is kicking off its 2026 season this week at Lake Nona Golf and Country Club in Orlando, and the pros are dealing with something most Florida golfers rarely face: freezing temperatures.
“It’s colder here than in the UK at the minute, which is a first,” said England’s Charley Hull during Wednesday’s media day at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions.
Even Lydia Ko, who lives at Lake Nona, seemed surprised by the cold snap. “We’re pretty much getting to below zero in celsius here, which maybe in other parts of the country they would be thankful, but when you’re in Florida it is a little bit of a surprise,” she said.
If the world’s best players are adjusting their games for cold weather, recreational golfers should, too. Here’s how to play smart when the mercury drops.
Understand What Cold Does to Your Game
Before you change anything, you need to know what you’re fighting against. Cold air is denser than warm air, which means your ball won’t fly as far. Period.
Hull noticed this immediately during practice rounds at Lake Nona. She mentioned hitting a gap wedge into the 18th hole during a previous win but needing a 4-iron during Tuesday’s practice round. That’s a difference of four or five clubs for the same shot.
Action item: Expect to lose 5-10 yards on every club in your bag when temperatures dip below 50 degrees. Plan accordingly and don’t be stubborn about club selection.
Layer Up Without Restricting Your Swing
Hull admitted she wore three pairs of pants during practice. While that might be extreme for most of us, staying warm is critical to playing well in cold conditions.
Your muscles need warmth to function properly. When you’re cold, your body tightens up and your swing gets shorter and faster. Neither of those things help you hit good golf shots.
Action item: Wear multiple thin layers instead of one bulky jacket. Look for golf-specific cold weather gear that stretches with your swing. Keep hand warmers in your pockets between shots. And don’t forget a good hat because you lose significant body heat through your head.
Take More Club Than You Think You Need
This is where ego gets in the way of good scores. When it’s cold, the ball doesn’t compress as well off the clubface. Combined with denser air, you’re looking at serious distance loss.
The pros at Lake Nona are dealing with a course that measures 6,642 yards but plays much longer this week. If they’re adjusting, you should too.
Action item: Take at least one extra club on every approach shot. In temperatures below 40 degrees, consider taking two extra clubs. It’s better to fly the ball to the back of the green than to come up short in a bunker.
Adjust Your Expectations on the Greens
Cold weather affects putting in ways most golfers don’t consider. The ball is harder and doesn’t roll as smoothly. Your hands are cold, making it harder to feel the putter. And if there’s any moisture on the greens, they’ll be slower than normal.
Ko mentioned that she still sometimes reads the greens wrong at Lake Nona despite being a member for years. Cold weather makes that challenge even tougher.
Action item: Hit putts more firmly than usual. The ball needs extra speed to hold its line on cold greens. Take a few extra practice strokes to get a feel for the speed before you putt.
Embrace the Mental Challenge
Hull said something interesting about cold weather golf: “I like the mental toughness of it.”
That’s the right attitude. Everyone on the course is dealing with the same conditions. The player who stays patient and doesn’t get frustrated by the extra difficulty will come out ahead.
Action item: Lower your expectations by a few strokes. If you normally shoot 85, accept that 90 might be a good score in 40-degree weather. Focus on solid contact and smart decisions rather than perfect shots.
Warm Up Longer and Smarter
This might be the most important tip of all. Cold muscles are tight muscles, and tight muscles get injured easily.
World No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul revealed she’s been protecting a wrist injury that bothered her late last season. Cold weather makes those kinds of injuries more likely if you don’t prepare properly.
Action item: Spend at least 20 minutes warming up before your round. Start with stretching, then hit easy wedge shots before working up to your driver. Keep moving between shots on the course to maintain body heat and flexibility.
The pros at Lake Nona this week will adapt and compete at the highest level despite the cold. You can do the same at your local course by following these tips and keeping a positive attitude.
PGA Professional Brendon Elliott is an award-winning coach and golf writer. You can check out his writing work and learn more about him by visiting BEAGOLFER.golf and OneMoreRollGolf.com. Also, check out “Playing Through” now on R.org, RG.org’s partner site, each Monday.
Editor’s note: Brendon shares his nearly 30 years of experience in the game with GolfWRX readers through his ongoing tip series. He looks forward to providing valuable insights and advice to help golfers improve their game. Stay tuned for more tips!
Brooks Koepka is back on the PGA Tour, and whether you love him or hate him, the guy knows how to win when it matters. After his LIV Golf stint, the five-time major champion returns this week at the Farmers Insurance Open.
What makes Koepka fascinating? He doesn’t fit the mold. His swing isn’t textbook. He doesn’t obsess over mechanics. Yet he’s won three PGA Championships and two U.S. Opens, regularly making it look easier than guys with prettier swings.
So, what can average golfers learn from someone who treats the game so differently? Quite a bit.
Stop Overthinking Every Shot
Koepka describes his approach as “reactionary” rather than mechanical. While most tour pros grind over swing thoughts, Brooks sees the target and hits it. No mental checklist.
This might be the most valuable lesson for weekend golfers who’ve watched too many YouTube swing videos.
How to actually do this:
On the range, hit five balls where you stare at the target for three seconds prior to addressing the ball. Don’t think about grip or stance. Just burn that target into your brain. You’ll be shocked at how pure you hit it when your brain focuses on where the ball is going instead of how you’re swinging.
Next time you play, give yourself a rule: Once you pull the club, you’ve got 15 seconds to hit. Koepka is one of the fastest players on tour because he doesn’t give his brain time to sabotage him.
If you feel tension in your hands at address, you’re trying to control too much. Koepka’s grip pressure is famously light. Loosen up until the club almost feels like it might slip, then add just enough pressure to hold on. That’s your swing thought: soft hands, see the target.
This approach works better under pressure. When you’re standing over that shot with water left and OB right, the last thing you need is a mental checklist. See it, feel it, hit it.
Play to Your Strengths (Even If They’re Not Pretty)
Koepka uses a strong grip that wouldn’t pass muster in some teaching circles. But he’s built his game around what works for him, elite driving distance and recovery skills. He doesn’t try to be someone he’s not.
Here’s how to build your game like Brooks:
Look at your last five rounds and figure out where you’re actually gaining strokes. Bombing it off the tee, but can’t hit greens? Lean into it. Play courses where distance matters more than precision. On tight holes, grip down on your 3-wood instead of trying to thread a driver through a keyhole you’ll miss seven times out of ten.
Koepka knows he can scramble, so he’s not afraid to miss greens. If you’re deadly from 50 to 75 yards, start leaving yourself those distances on the par 5’s instead of going for them in two every time.
Know when to take your medicine. Koepka in the trees at the PGA? He’s punching out to 100 yards, not trying to bend a 6-iron around three oaks. You’re in the rough with a flyer lie and water short? Hit your 8-iron to the middle and move on. That’s not playing scared, that’s playing smart.
Save Your Best for When It Counts
Here’s a wild stat: Koepka’s putting average in majors is often more than a full stroke better per round than in regular events. He elevates when pressure is highest.
How does an amateur tap into that gear? It’s not about trying harder, it’s about caring differently.
Here’s what actually works:
Decide which rounds matter to you. Club championship? Member-guest? That annual trip with college buddies? Circle those dates and treat them differently. Koepka doesn’t care much about regular tour events, but majors? That’s when he locks in.
Two weeks before your big round, change your practice. Stop beating balls mindlessly. Play nine holes in which every shot has consequences. Miss the fairway? Hit from the rough on the next hole too. Three-putt? Twenty push-ups. Koepka’s practice intensity ramps up before majors because he’s rehearsing pressure, not just swings.
Develop a between-shot routine that resets your brain. Koepka is famous for his blank expression after bad shots. Try this: After any shot, take three deep breaths while walking, then find something specific to notice, a tree, a cloud, someone’s shirt. That’s your reset button. By the time you reach your ball, the last shot is gone.
The Bottom Line
Brooks Koepka’s return reminds us there’s no single path to success in golf. His “substance over style” approach proves that results matter more than looking good.
You don’t need a perfect swing; you need a reliable one that holds up under pressure. You don’t need to hit every shot in the book; you need the shots you can count on. And you don’t need to play great every time; you need to play great when it matters.
Welcome back, Brooks. Thanks for the reminder that golf is ultimately about getting the ball in the hole, not winning style points.
PGA Professional Brendon Elliott is an award-winning coach and golf writer. You can check out his writing work and learn more about him by visiting BEAGOLFER.golf and OneMoreRollGolf.com. Also, check out “Playing Through” now on R.org, RG.org’s partner site, each Monday.
Editor’s note: Brendon shares his nearly 30 years of experience in the game with GolfWRX readers through his ongoing tip series. He looks forward to providing valuable insights and advice to help golfers improve their game. Stay tuned for more tips!
Blades Brown made a big impression last week in the California desert, and not just because he’s only 18. He put up numbers that would catch any weekend golfer’s attention. Most of us won’t hit 317-yard drives or find 86% of our greens in regulation, but there’s a lot to learn from how Brown managed his game at The American Express.
Here are three practical lessons from his performance that you can use on your own course this weekend.
Step 1: Give Priority to Accuracy Over Distance Off The Tee
Brown’s driving stats are impressive. He averaged almost 318 yards off the tee, ranking 12th in the field. More importantly, he hit 76.79% of his fairways, tying for fourth place in the tournament.
Think about that ratio for a second. Brown could have swung harder, chased more distance and tried to overpower the course. Instead, he played smart golf and kept his ball in play.
Your Action Item: Next time you’re on the tee box, ask yourself a simple question before pulling the driver. Do you need maximum distance here, or do you need to be in the fairway? If there’s trouble lurking or the hole doesn’t demand every yard you can muster, take something off your swing. Grip down an inch. Make a three-quarter swing. Do whatever it takes to find the short grass. Brown’s approach illustrates that fairways lead to greens, and greens lead to birdies. He made 22 of them last week, along with an eagle.
The math is simple. When you’re hitting three out of every four fairways like Brown did, you’re giving yourself legitimate looks at the green with your approach shots. That’s when scoring happens.
Step 2: Commit To Hitting More Greens
This is where Brown really separated himself. He hit 62 of 72 greens in regulation, an 86.11% clip that tied for first in the entire field. Read that again. An 18-year-old kid tied for the lead in one of the most important ball-striking statistics in professional golf.
How did he do it? By keeping his ball in the fairway (see Step 1) and giving himself clean looks with mid-irons and wedges.
Your Action Item: Start tracking your greens in regulation. You don’t need a fancy app or a statistics degree. Just mark down whether you hit the green in the regulation number of strokes. Par 3s in one shot. Par 4s in two shots. Par 5s in three shots.
Once you know your baseline, set a goal to improve it by 10%. If you’re currently hitting five greens per round, aim for six. The beauty of this approach is that it forces you to think strategically about club selection and shot shape. Brown’s strokes gained approach number was positive (0.179), meaning he was better than the field average. You don’t need to be perfect. You just need to be on the dance floor more often.
When you hit more greens, you eliminate the need for heroic short game shots. Brown only had to scramble 10 times all week, and he got up and down 70% of the time. That’s solid, but the real story is that he rarely put himself in scrambling situations to begin with.
Step 3: Minimize Mistakes And Stay Patient
Here’s the stat that jumps off the page: Brown made only three bogeys all week. Three. In four rounds of professional golf against the best players in the world.
He also made just one double bogey. That kind of clean card doesn’t happen by accident. It happens when you play within yourself, avoid the big miss and trust that pars are never bad scores.
Your Action Item: Before your next round, decide that you’re going to play boring golf. No hero shots over water. No driver on tight holes just because you can. No aggressive pins when there’s a safe side of the green.
Brown’s performance shows us that consistency beats flash every single time. He didn’t lead the field in any single strokes gained category, but he was solid across the board. That’s how you post numbers and cash checks.
Give these three steps a try. Your scorecard will thank you.
PGA Professional Brendon Elliott is an award-winning coach and golf writer. You can check out his writing work and learn more about him by visiting BEAGOLFER.golf and OneMoreRollGolf.com. Also, check out “The Starter” now on R.org, RG.org’s partner site, each Monday.
Editor’s note: Brendon shares his nearly 30 years of experience in the game with GolfWRX readers through his ongoing tip series. He looks forward to providing valuable insights and advice to help golfers improve their game. Stay tuned for more tips!
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Jim
Aug 15, 2016 at 6:35 pm
Best biomechanics of all time. NORMAN. A spine tilt and left side turn into a right leg that ‘accepted’ his slight lateral head & tailbone moving to truly shift his weight and ‘load’ the right leg. He made the left side turn & let the ‘weight in motion’ (club head) go where it wanted. Left shoulder hit his chin & that was it. – ‘his plane’ – based on a good set up and a good left sided turn for his physique.
He was in the middle of the ‘keep your head still, one piece take away’ BS that created more bad backs & slices than any other two tips in golf history.
Tiger circa 2003 – before he bought all those new muscles compare down the line view to Norman and it’s identical.
Tiger’s unnecessarily violent ‘squatting’ and late left knee
snap into hyperextension tore his body up – just like Butch told him it would.
Norman swung hard & in the book of all crazy stats kept (other than winning majors) he is second only to Woods -with no surgeries.
Jim
Aug 15, 2016 at 10:11 pm
I have an extensive video library in my teaching computer couple hundred pros over 4000 swings including Hogan.
10,000 plus hrs of lessons taughtn hundreds of all types of students from PGA / LPGA, Hogan Tour, Nike Tour State Open winners to profoundly disabled & super senior beginners. There’s 16 swings I show everyone.
Never a single one from Ben. Probably more BS, confusion & flat out misinterpretations about this dude, what he actually did vs what he thought he was doin vs how it was even illustrated with more pronounced angles to be sure the people reading and looking at drawings ‘got it’
Barry S.
Aug 14, 2016 at 5:23 pm
A lot of instructors, so called swing experts don’t understand that Hogan had a huge over swing taking the club way past parallel in his younger days which created lots of big hooks. He knew he had to shorten his swing so he basically tied his upper arms to his body. Jack Nicklaus came out of tour and was criticized for his “flying right elbow”. Hogan wasn’t a long hitter but he learned to control the ball with his short arm swing.
Chris
Aug 15, 2016 at 3:03 pm
Ben Hogan was not a long hitter? Yeah ok, some experts estimate his swing speed in the 120 mph range ..
stephenf
Aug 12, 2016 at 8:19 am
Never understood the logic in allowing every twit to comment, but they still do.
In what way does this article have anything to do with “glorifying people in general” or “glorifying a person from long ago,” as opposed to “observing qualities that work well in anybody’s swing, and are exemplified to a large extent in Hogan’s swing”?
And anyway, if you have a problem with somebody “glorifying” one of the guys on the list of the three or four greatest players in history, and widely acknowledged as the player who had the modern golf swing mostly figured out before other people did, that’s really your problem. The burden of proof is on you, and no, your opinion isn’t as valid as anybody else’s just because you breathe air and take up space. There is such a thing as an established principle, and if you want to defeat it or disprove it, you start from zero and make a case. The usual internet mode of “I declare my opinion” is worthless here, as it is in most matters, actually.
Jay K.
Sep 4, 2016 at 11:59 am
Twits like you get to comment.
Jay K.
Sep 4, 2016 at 12:00 pm
As do twits like me.
AE
Aug 11, 2016 at 3:24 pm
Hope to see an article about people -the minority – who are more horizontal than vertical, which is my main issue.
no divots, shallow angle of attack, main miss is either a pull dead left of the target line or pull hook.
Dennis clark
Aug 14, 2016 at 12:07 pm
I doubt it, It’s so rare…most people who are flat steepen it coming down. I’d like to see your video.
Matt
Aug 28, 2016 at 2:21 pm
You should read his newest post. It’s most likely that you are shallowing the club late in the downswing, which doesn’t mean at all that you are too horizontal. Most people that are too vertical do something later in the downswing to flatten it out. I have a very shallow angle of attack and still am too vertical coming down.
Jim Losito
Aug 11, 2016 at 8:26 am
I played short stop for many years. I never threw sidearm, I came directly over the top to first base.
Regis
Aug 10, 2016 at 12:16 pm
Dennis. Thanks. I had to rebuild my swing after a protracted illness a few years ago. I took a lesson last week and my fundamentals were all in good shape. Still I thought something was missing and it rears its ugly head too often on the course. Coming down 17 yesterday I realized I wasn’t getting through the shot properly. I pictured the example of skipping a stone. Today your article is in my inbox . As to the detractors here , if they can take issue with the Modern Fundamentals you’re in good company
ta
Aug 10, 2016 at 11:26 am
So, this article quotes Hogan before he had to change his swing from the hook to the cut, right? Otherwise this whole sidehill lies and swinging around thing is all completely wrong. The article should have talked about how to block everything out so as to never hook, which is what Hogan did to start winning, instead of his massive pull hooks with which he struggled for the first 10 years of his career.
4pillars
Aug 10, 2016 at 8:19 am
Without 3D data and kinematic sequence this is meaningless.
In any event Golf was here first.
Better to say that baseball is easy golf played on the horizontal.
Hogan
Aug 10, 2016 at 2:05 am
Now, if you don’t mind….
Bal oney
Aug 10, 2016 at 1:20 am
WhatEV! IF this were true, why did he work so hard to fade the ball and not just play the mega-hook that he got from doing exactly this sidearm move? He could easily have figured out a different way to hit the ball than build mega-heavy clubs with ultra-flat lies and open faces. He could have just aimed dead left, with a strong left hand grip and an open stance and come over the top and played a giant slice, but instead fought to hit it with the sidearm the whole time. If he couldn’t manipulate and bend and weigh his clubs his way, he would never have been able to have his swing that he built.
So it’s not all about the sidearm move.
Sometimes the short stop is able to scoop the ball up in this way but has to flip it sidearm AND fling it quick left with a hooking motion because his body is heading towards home plate, instead of leading with his shoulders open and throwing a cutter fade.
Don’t pay any mind to this baloney article
Matt
Aug 28, 2016 at 2:24 pm
This has nothing to do with drawing or fading the ball. Look at guys like Dustin Johnson and Sergio that both have this shallowing move to start their downswing (along with damn near every player on tour) and hit fades. Just because someone is “shallowing” or “flattening” their downswing does not ever mean that they will draw it.
Jamie Jones
Aug 9, 2016 at 11:26 pm
Two words…Shawn Clement. 24 million viewers can’t be wrong.
Simplton
Aug 9, 2016 at 10:26 pm
Want to get the side arm thing down….just buy (Or build yourself one out of pc pipe) The Inside Approach, a training gimmick from about 15 years ago…hell even Jack Nicklaus endorsed it..also very good to help get rid of slice with the driver…..
Anti-Smizzle
Aug 9, 2016 at 6:22 pm
If only the ‘hardcore’ flippers had a clue!!!
Nolanski
Aug 9, 2016 at 6:00 pm
I’ve read Mr. Hogan’s book 3 times now and it’s seriously a must own book for any golfer. This video is the cherry on top though!
anyone notice
Aug 9, 2016 at 5:07 pm
The Great Hogan didn’t really lift his front heel off the ground? Wonder if Chamblee would suggest a little heel lift to Hogan?
Dennis clark
Aug 9, 2016 at 5:12 pm
Lol. BC is a riot!
Dennis clark
Aug 9, 2016 at 5:03 pm
Authors note: this is NOT an article about Hogans swing. It means to say that if you’re too steep the images and advice he offered can help you. No model swing is perfect for everyone!
Roger
Aug 9, 2016 at 5:03 pm
Great article. I would LOVE some advice on the opposite problem: I’m much too horizontal (both in backswing and downswing), and not enough vertical. I know its off topic, but would greatly appreciate any suggestions!
acemandrake
Aug 9, 2016 at 3:20 pm
Swing “through” NOT “at” or “down” (& get your body out of the way)
Feel loose & athletic
Sometimes a Smizzle
Aug 9, 2016 at 3:07 pm
I honestly prefer some of the modern swings like Bubba, young tiger woods, and jb holmes. I swing most like jb. Not a lot of hinge and lots of speed.
I am sure you know that people worship at the altar of Hogans swing, so why kick the hornets nest Smizzle?
ooffa
Aug 9, 2016 at 4:57 pm
Kolfpro must be Hogan’s mother. Very supportive of her little boy. Why couldn’t you buy a color camera for your boy so we would not have to look at black and white photos of that goofy swing.
stepehenf
Aug 12, 2016 at 8:10 am
“Prefer” them for what? Early retirement? Inconsistency? Underachievement?
Sometimes a Smizzle
Aug 12, 2016 at 9:57 pm
still working on that 58 ???? Got to crack par first. I have almost shot par a few times on 9 holes. If i ever do it, i will finally move back a set of tees. I average 305 off the tee and 1.9 putrs per hole. I hope to crack par this season at least once.
kolfpro
Aug 9, 2016 at 2:29 pm
OK with that statement you are now officially and imbecile!
Jim
Aug 16, 2016 at 11:06 pm
HA! hahahahahahahahaaaaahahaha!
thank you…:)
Marty Mosse
Aug 9, 2016 at 1:43 pm
Hogan had one of the worst looking swings ever. It’s clear he had the work ethic of a dead Ethiopian
kolfpro
Aug 9, 2016 at 2:32 pm
You are an imbecile, also!
Homer
Aug 9, 2016 at 6:25 pm
There’s always one uneducated plank!
Blake Barrilleaux
Aug 20, 2016 at 2:26 pm
Dude, I was laughing hard at that one.
forgedforever
Aug 9, 2016 at 1:07 pm
This makes a lot of sense to me, especially when I see Mr. Clark’s estimation that 80 percent of golfers are in the “too steep camp.” I learn visually, and it is easy to see golfers having problems because their swings are too steep. I have always felt that I need to have a shallower angle of attack myself. Another thing that caught my attention in the article was the recommendation that those of us who are too steep practice hitting from sidehill lies with the ball above our feet. I am always more comfortable hitting this shot that when the ball is below my feet. Now I know why! Thanks for the information!
mr b
Aug 9, 2016 at 11:38 am
great article. this echos other instructors lessons to “lead with the right elbow.” The forearm rotation is definately key here so you don’t leave the clubface wide open. would like to see some more videos here to give more visual explanations…
JW
Aug 9, 2016 at 11:38 am
Dennis, does rotating the lead arm counter-clockwise accomplish anything else besides offsetting the trail elbow action? For example, is proper rotation of the lead arm a prerequisite for proper rotation of the lead shoulder? And/or will it help someone who has a hand path that works too vertically?
dennis clark
Aug 9, 2016 at 6:16 pm
it counteracts the opening of the face if one “lags” by pulling on the handle. If you just do a horizontal tug the face will be open, so rotate the lead forearm to square the face.
juststeve
Aug 9, 2016 at 11:13 am
Is Ben Hogan really a universal model applicable to everyone, particularly the recreational golfer who spend far more time earning a living than practicing golf, and whose main problem is slicing the ball, not hooking the ball?
Loz
Aug 9, 2016 at 12:24 pm
Especially as his body was a bit freakish, so I saw mentioned in a video recently. Very long reach for a fairly small man. For most of us it’s not physically possible to get into many of his swing positions due to not having the same body dimensions.
Justin
Aug 9, 2016 at 2:44 pm
Too vertical often equates to an over the top move, which translates into a pull or a slice every time. Until you can eliminate coming over the top, you should never watch an instructional video that tries to teach you something else. To me, coming over the top is the ONE THING you cannot do if you want to have fun playing golf. The vast majority of amateurs have an over the top move and it’s much harder to eliminate than it seems and this is because of the “vertical” focus. Baseball players often make fairly good golfers because a true golf swing is only slightly more vertical than a baseball swing.
Dennis clark
Aug 9, 2016 at 4:59 pm
You can get too steep from inside too. But working on more around from inside covers it all.
Dennis clark
Aug 9, 2016 at 8:21 pm
No he’s only a model for those too steep. Like the article says. There is no universal model.
Loz
Aug 9, 2016 at 10:22 am
I’m 6′ 4″ and have always been a good long iron player and generally poor wedge player. I typically hit better shots from a side hill lie as you mention. Trackman Maestro (Joseph Mayo, I think) did a great video about throwing a frisbee which might be worth taking a look at.