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| The
Body Experience .
I have been in search of learning this game as a coach for
25 plus years and used video since 1993. Visually it is
difficult to measure rotation, even with high speed digital
video. There is also a huge misunderstanding of how much
the upper torso and lower body should rotate during a full
golf shot at the top of the backswing. Have you even considered
how much rotation the hips should have at impact, or the
sequence of rotation back and through? This instruction
piece will clear up some myths and misconceptions of the
body in this one dimension of rotation.
First
at address, the body should be aligned parallel to the intended
target, feet, knees, hips, arms, shoulders and eyes. As
if you’re on the inside of a railroad track and the
ball and club are on the outside track. Note, I have measured
hundreds of good players with my K-Vest system and have
never seen one closed at address. Most are slightly open
a few degrees or square at address. This first picture with
the help of some fiberglass rods denotes a square address
position of Trey.
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If
at address the hips and shoulders via the fiberglass rods
are at 0 or square, at the top of the backswing the shoulders
should rotate 70 to 80 degrees closed and the hips 30 to 40.
With the proper width of stance and foot flare and a fiberglass
rod laid between the trailing foot heel and leading foot toe,
it measures 35 degrees (see picture below).
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a fiberglass rod though your belt loops and cross your arms
holding another, lay one as shown in the picture through
the stance and train. Make sure the sequence of backswing
is shoulders and then hips, get curious on how much you
can turn your upper torso without the hip rod moving at
all, then blend the hips in the movement. If the stretch
of upper versus lower is 35 degrees that is ideal. There
is a shortened stretch cycle that is powerful; the muscle
has major chemical and elastic energy stored. You can overstretch
muscle, and/or turn the upper and lower together creating
no stretch at all.
The last picture
is of impact; the hips have turned open 35 degrees and the
shoulders 15. Again laying the fiberglass rod through the
feet the other way will give you the visual of what 35 degrees
actually is. The downswing sequence is hips and then shoulders,
in fact, I want to see an increase of 10 degrees of separation
of the hips in the initial change of direction. Meaning
that 35 degree of so-called x factor increases to 45 in
the start of the downswing. At impact only 20 degrees separate
the hips and shoulders.
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Can you disassociate your upper body and lower? With a few
fiberglass rods and a clear understanding of rotation, a few
minutes a day of body work will go a long way.
Great Golf, Neil Wilkins |
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