Old School

Found this article on another site... Have you ever read Mr.Boomer's thoughts? Used visuals as these...Do you swing in this manner?




THE SECRET TO EFFORTLESS POWER IS SPIN/TWIST

From Rick Bradshaws’ DVD – Formula to a Tour Swing/The Centrifugal Golf swing.
By Rick Bradshaw, Director of Instruction- Dent/Bradshaw School of Golf, at Heritage Isles Golf and Country Club, Tampa, Florida.
2004/2006 PGA North Florida Section Teacher of the Year

Over the years I’ve always been amazed how thin little girls could drive the ball almost as far as men. What is the root to effortless power and tremendous club head velocity It must not be the muscular arms and upper body because certainly Michelle Wie lacks that, yet drives the ball close to 300 yards with her tall elastic frame.

I like to refer to my favorite golf book On Learning Golf, old teaching mentor Percy Boomer and his chapter As a Dancer Sees It. This instruction was based on Percy teaching a well known dance instructress. During this lesson Percy’s pupil said that she visualized the golf swing as an upright pillar with a number of circles around it. Boomer stated that the pillar represented activity. He meant that the body during the swing should spin like a drill into the ground or a tornado twisting with great velocity. The dancer was concerned that the circles around the pillar were active and she wanted them passive. Boomer was trying to suggest that the hands, arms and shoulders want to act or interfere with the spinning centripetal force of the body instead of reacting to it. It is this inner spinning force that ensures that the respective outer force will swing the club head into the back of the golf ball repetitively striking it on the center of the club face. Ultimately long shots are a result when you make center face contact of the club head against the ball with greater club head velocity. YOU CAN DEFINITELY PRODUCE GREATER CLUB HEAD SPEED FROM THIS CENTRIFUGE ACTION, rather than trying to force the club head at the ball relying solely on hand eye coordination and upper body strength. Maybe, if you are a Fencing Gold Medalist or Zorro, but physics is the more efficient means of striking a golf ball. .To achieve enhanced spinning stand taller and more upright at address. This will suggest a drawing of your arms together and raise your wrists as you now have to stretch down to the golf ball. This full stretch feeling down to the ball will pull you arms together and connect or link your upper body to the power of the torso and hips twisting.

In an earlier chapter I recall Percy teaching a lady that was slightly overweight. Quoting Percy “I took up a wooden tee between my thumb and fore finger and spun it around and told her: this is golf power in its simplest and purest form.” She responded, “You don’t expect a stout old lady like me to spin do you?” He stated “Why not, you do on the dance floor.” I told her that a friend of mine once told me that the lightest partner he ever danced with was a lady that weighed over 200 pounds. From the quizzical way that she looked at me I knew I had scored a point. I held up the tee again and said to her. IF YOU TURN ON THE PIVOT YOU WILL PLAY GREAT GOLF BUT SO LONG AS YOU SLIDE YOU ARE DOOMED!

Power is definitely produced through a centrifuge, type motion or spinning of the torso while your feet remain fixed to the ground. Trying to power the ball by use of the hands, arms and shoulders alone without a turn on the backswing and twist on the through swing of the torso results in a serious loss of energy and clubhead speed. The hands do of course play an integral part in the transmitting of speed out to the club head. But they are prominently transmitters not generators of power.

A drill to help you feel and imagine the twist would be The Centrifuge Drill: Assume an address position with no club. Rest your triceps on your chest then twist your body back then re-twist through violently. Feel the blood rush out to your finger tips. Be aware of what muscles produce this twist. If you feel your feet, calves, thighs, hips and body generating this force you have performed the drill correctly. Another more subtle drill to keep your arms down and less active is standing at attention with your arms down at your side and just turn from your hips. Imagine you are turning in a torpedo tube. It is this pirouette type twist which will sling the club up and around on both sides of the swing. This, I assure you, is not a new twist on power but is the secret to effortless velocity in the golf swing. THIS IS WHY BOOMER QUOTED TURNING IN A BARREL AS A GREAT MINDS IMAGE FOR YOUR SWING!

My favorite quote for power and consistency is “FOR THE TOP NOTCHER MAY FEEL HIS BODY AS A STEEL BAR TURNING BETWEEN HIS TWO FEET, WITH ALL THE TIME THE BONES OF HIS BIG TOES OPPOSING THE MOVEMENTS OF THE CLUBHEAD-THE EXTREMES OF THE SWING”

THE TAKEAWAY OR CARRY BACK AS PERCY BOOMER CALLED IT IS THE GOLF SWING IN EMBRYO.
The feet and legs have an extremely important role in initiating power. As you address the ball, standing more upright with a slight bend from the waist, stretch your arms down to the ball. This full stretch of your arms, will pull your upper arms together taut, forming a triangle. Be aware that the force of the club head pulling when you swing will pull on your arms raising your wrists into a fairly straight line from your body’s swing center out to the club head because your hands and arms are attached to you shoulders. The club shaft plane will point up through your stomach just above your belt. It is imperative that you establish your taut, full stretch, connected feel of impact at address. This will not only suggest the impact feeling, but ensure you initiate the take away with a pivot or turn because your arms are pulled together. Your knees must maintain a slight flex at address as well as into the loading of your back swing. Do not straighten your right knee as you turn back! DO NOT PICK OR TAKE THE CLUB AWAY WITH THE HANDS LEAVING YOUR BODY BEHIND!

The take away is initiated from the ground up as a turn into the resistance of your right foot, flexed right knee, leg (calf and thigh), and hip. If you keep the right knee flexed you will not sway. This turn or twist feeling and technique, initiated delicately from your left foot into this right foot resistance, will transfer your weight enough to load energy to maximum efficiency. The efficiency is to create enough centripetal force (A rotating force that keeps an object turning in a circle) to act upon the club head being taken back. This turn back is slow and concise. It is a twist back of your thighs and hips into your right foot. The moment your body weight hits the resistance of your right foot energy starts to move up your legs into your torso. Picture your self as an architect’s compass that draws circles. Your legs are the sharp end that stabilizes the compass and your arms and golf club represent the pencil end that draws arcs. The top of the compass that you use to twist is your force center. The force center is the part of your body that the pulling force turns out through your arms to the club head.

THE FORCE CENTER IS LOCATED AT THE POINT IN YOUR BODY WHERE THE UPWARD FLOW OF FORCE ENDS AND OUTWARD FORCE BEGINS. Percy boomer stated that it was located somewhere in the pit of your back. To feel this yourself try the centrifuge drill again, turning and twisting, or spinning, and see if you can locate in your torso where the flow of power stops flowing up and starts moving out of your shoulders arms and hands. F=MV2/R is the formula to centripetal force. The tighter you spin the inner circle or force, the faster, more constant and on arc the responding outer circle. IT’S LAW!
POSTURE- An opposing force in the golf swing Posture is the position the body assumes in its endeavor to create an inner force through rotation opposing an outer force.
CENTERED ON WRIST ACTION.
WHEN AND HOW DO THE WRISTS, HANDS AND FINGERS ACT OR REACT DURING THE GOLF SWING!

Percy Boomer stated that the parts of the body above the waist must remain passive in the swing. Boomers definition of passive was “TO ABSTAIN FROM ACTING WHEN THEY MIGHT ACT”. This suggests that the upper half of your body must do nothing as you swing but in deeper analysis of Boomers goals he wanted a reaction not an action. Boomer also stated that passive meant to pass along the power or flow of force created by the pivot. If you grip the club in the fingers lightly so you can feel the weight of the club head the pressure is correct. As you initiate the golf swing buy a pivot, turn or twist from the feet, thighs and hips, your club will be carried back low. Your body turn back will end soon as you hit the resistance of your right foot and flexed right knee, and hip. This is called a hip brace and is responsible for the clubs momentum acting upon your wrists as long as your arms are still connected and resting on your chest. The momentum of the club head then takes over and swings up on the backswing resting against your hands, most notably your index finger of your right hand and back three fingers of your left. There should be virtually no slack at the top of the back swing with potential energy stored ready for its release out to the club head. As you twist your torso back through to the target unleashing tremendous velocity and energy into kinetic energy allow the club to free wheel with no thought of hitting at the golf ball. Just maintain the arms full stretch feeling you felt at address and hope Isaac Newton was right. Your thought and slogan as Boomers was turn on the back swing and the twist through impact. Think Turn and Twist, while keeping your arms braced, straight and wide against the sides of your chest throughout the swing to maintain a wide constant swing arch while creating power from spin like a centrifuge.

Thanks. I copy-pasted that on my golf archives as I do need more power/distance.

hi
the only thing wrong with the clip shown is the loft as shown on the club they use is nil loft in the clip and give a false line pointing into the ground. if you add the loft of the club face then you will find the angle does not point down to the ground but up.
try hitting a ball with a putter at full swing and the putters have about 3 or 4 degrees loft and you will strike the ball into the ground and even if you play the ball forward you past the mid point you want get any lift.
cheers
bill

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another huge problem is that people look at the swing in 2-d, you can't do that, it is a 3-d swing. that video teacehs me nothing and if anything is is very misleading