bts
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Based on his words "mind on the hands and eyes on the ball", Ben Doyle is probably the guy who knows the golf swing the best. Not sure his (or others’) explanation, though.
To me, "mind on the hands" deals with "physics" and "eyes on the ball" "geometry".
A golf swing is “a body reaction to the golfer's intention of moving the golf club by the hands from one place to another”, which exhibits a “pattern of body movement” unique to each individual and type of stroke. Within each person and stroke type, that “pattern” shows variations when repeated. In other words, they look similar yet not identical, just like a person’s signature (write 10 of them down and see for yourself and recall what’s in your mind while doing it). It’s the degree of similarity in those patterns dictating the consistency. Such tremendously high demand in golf can only be achieved with extremely focused mind.
First, the mind is the intention or the nerve impulse from the brain to move the hands, which attach to the club and make it move. Do the following to see for yourself:
Have someone firmly grab the club on top of the backswing and only "think about" pulling or pushing it down like starting a downswing. Watch or check how the rest of the body reacts to that "intention", strong or weak.
BTW, this is what that TGM's term "hands controlled pivot (I’ll say “pivots”, see below)" is all about. And the term "lag" is simply the "resistance" encountering during the move. That "educated hands" has a lot to do with sensing and managing that "resistance". What left is turning the clubface around also through the hands by rotating the forearms, which is that "hinge action". The combined movement of the clubhead (supported by the “primary pivot” or the legs, torso, head, shoulder and arms) and clubface (supported by the “secondary pivot” or forearms) governed by the hands during impact determines the impact and ball response. I call it a “double-pivot system”-a small turn within a big turn.
Let me say that if you can make that "resistance" (“double torques” in the “double-pivot system”) ready for the downswing (or called "Loading"), either swing or hit, and focus on keeping overcoming that ”torques” plus the oncoming resistance encountered during impact (or called "impact deceleration") with the hands, the physical part of the golf swing is pretty much well taken care of.
Then, check again while turning that "attention" to whatever you do (or have been told to do) for making a golf swing other than the hands (or signing a signature).
Remember, you are not really making a golf swing while thinking about whatever other than "moving the club by the hands"!
Again, what do you "think" while trying to do something else? Pushing, kicking, picking up something, walking, running, jumping, ... on and on and on, hard or not.
Second, "eyes on the ball", I guess, is about targeting the mind to a specific spot on the ball the clubface (or usually the "sweet spot") would like to make contact with, so that the movement of the “double-pivot system” by the hands can be geometrically guided through-that popular term "hands-eyes coordination". See for yourself by closing or opening them on top of the swing (even a putting stroke) and hit the shot.
“Mind on the hands and eyes on the ball” works for me, too.
