Let’s Rediscover The Cornerstone of Classic Ball Striking

 

“Reverse every natural instinct and do the opposite of what you are inclined to do, and you will probably come very close to having a perfect golf swing.” – Ben Hogan

For instance, the hands are the source of motion for the body.

 

This counter-intuitive notion is the core underpinning for the classic golf swing;

from the days of Harry Vardon (who won a record 6 British Opens circa 1900) and his predecessors dating back to the origins of golf,

  • Click HERE to see [no-audio] circa 1900 footage of Vardon’s cornerstone move to that makes the hands the source of motion for the body; from 1:42 mark to 2:20 mark.

> to Ben Hogan (the undisputed King of ball striking), and

> to many of today’s phenoms including Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau.

 

The hands move the body in 2 ways,

1) by pushing one hand against the other, and

2) by the body’s reflexive reactions to the hands’ dynamic movements [as they react to the free momentum of the club head as defined below].

Pushing together versus pulling apart

> by pushing the lead hand against a resisting trail hand as shown in the picture above [taken from a recent Peter Croker webinar], Bryson DeChambeau pushes the body into rotation;

  • Versus the innate yet misguided inclination [or, “instinct” per Hogan’s quote above] to pull the club head back with the trail hand which disconnects the hands from each other,
  • and disconnects the body from the hands…
  • this early disconnection will require the golfer to make compensations during the golf swing in order to resync the hands and the body [which is tricky business].

> the trail hand pushing against a resisting lead hand into and through impact pushes the body open;

  • Versus an effort to pull the body open as taught in today’s mainstream instruction so as to use an aggressive body rotation to catapult and whip the hands at the ball…
  • If the body is the source of motion for the hands in this way, then the body and hands will automatically be out of sync…
  • which, again, will require hair trigger compensations in order to resync the hands and the hips.

> The classic pushing together of the hands connects and inherently coordinates the hands’ actions with the body’s movements to result in timing-free ball striking.

 

Golf as a reflex sport

Though the ball is stationary, golf is best played when we look at it as a reflex sport like, say, table tennis;

> another example of the counterintuitiveness that Ben Hogan’s above quote references.

 

The classic take back technique described above will disassociate the club head from the handle;

> that leads to a slinging club head that has its own free momentum.

> when the hands reflexively react to the free momentum of the club head at various phases of the golf swing,

> the body will react to the hands’ reactions to the club head.

 

In this way the hands and body are inherently connected and coordinated throughout the swing;

> to create a swing that is reflexive, even instinctive, and therefore is timing-free and thought-free…

> and is therefore far more consistent and dependable than the mainstream-taught swing that inherently disconnects the hands from the body and requires the golfer to train in intricately timed compensating movements needed to resync the hands and hips;

  • A feat that practically only highly trained, fine athletes who start at a young enough age in the sweet spot of human development can achieve.

 

I point this out because most golf instructors are fine athletes who learned how to play golf at a very early age with certain compensating movements that become very difficult to learn as adults.

The step-by-step approach Mr. Croker and I take to ball striking and playing golf can most definitely be learned at any age by students of average athletic ability;

> I’m living proof of this fact having achieved certified status in executing and teaching the Croker Golf System and being listed among Pete’s approved Coaches at age 59.

 

My profile here is a message of hope to golfers who are seeking to become accomplished at ball striking and playing and enjoying golf to the fullest;

> if you find your game has plateaued, or even slid backwards due to trial and error experimentation that never results in sustainable results on the golf course,

  • There is reason to have hope that you can break through the golf swing’s illusions and well-meaning but misguided tenets of mainstream golf instruction by watching my exclusive videos and reading my articles here on My Golfing Store.

I am grateful for the opportunity to reach any golfer seeking improvement and I always do my best to provide intriguing yet practical knowledge.

Visit my site here at https://myinstinctivegolf.com/

 

Signing off for now – Ted Williams, Certified Instructor – Croker Golf System

Comments…questions…ideas for future articles and videos…email me at TWilliams@MyGolfingStore.com