Graduating to the second grade

[FloydPT38]

- "Gradually progressing from first to second grade with my FLW"
Or
"beginning to realize how the pivot helps the FLW."

Last part of golf season last year- I stumbled on to this site and TGM - made sense so I started to gradually incorporate a few things - The FLW was revolutionary because I had not heard this before and have been playing for 25 years- sometimes fairly decent. I had one of the OT's (occupational therapist) that I work with make me a left wrist splint so my left wrist could not break down- poor man's tac-tic but gives better feedback because there is some pain involved if you flip- if I worked too long I got a nice hand bruise. I could chip and hit small pitches but anything approaching 75% wedge just hurt too much and I couldn't really do it. So thus ended last golf season and I got into football and ……….

Weather grows warmer and young men's thoughts turn to golf. Played a few times this year- already have done better-encorporating the manzella neutral grip and Never Hook Again. And BTW-with the grip ---Did Brian come up with the idea of holding the club up so that when your wrist is flat the club is neutral/face pointing up? - Small thing but genius. Great way to quickly check.

The pivot is the key

Yesterday, I hit some balls and decided to try and use my brace for some short wedges and maybe a full SW or PW--(worked up to a 7iron but was chicken to go beyond that) Was able to use the brace with only slight contact on my wrist. In an earlier post I think Jim K said a proper pivot was the way not to flip and "That was the whole point to "Confessions of a Former Flipper." However, I couldn't get a good visualization of this - wasn't "not flipping" due more to educating my hands than my pivot? Wasn't it more with me not straightening out my right wrist at impact- how does the pivot affect this? Seems more of a hand/wrist thing. Well, maybe I needed the tactile feedback- After some really good shots using the brace and a SW or PW I noticed that I was just starting to flip again (more pressure on my brace) then when I pivoted just a bit quicker or perhaps more in sync with my arms there was no pressure-- A-HA!!!! This was very cool to have the sensation - yes I'm doing it right- good pivot- no pressure/pain- When my hands got ahead of my body or my pivot got a little lazy - I did it wrong and my hand hurt- See, we PT's are strange birds but I do have a much better grasp of how a good pivot makes the difference with a FLW.

Anyway- thanks guys for the jump in my golf knowledge - I think 2nd grade is going to be great!

Curious George

 

[Jim Kobylinski]

Good work...think of it this way:

You're driving the down in your car and take a sip of that hot coffee. You look up and see a car slowed down and you haven't! So you hit the brakes, HARD. What happens? Everything in the car moves foward and so would you if you didn't have a seat belt on.

Now how does this apply to your pivot?

The pivot is the brakes and the arms is "everything inside the car." If you drastically slow down your pivot your arms are going to come "crashing through" the impact area and that clubhead which is traveling probably faster than what you were driving, your wrist cannot stop the overtaking.

So don't hit the brakes and you won't flip so much!

 

[Damon Lucas]

For the better players with good control of their aiming point, pivot power source, and possibly their nerves, Jim's last post(I think NAT used the same example recently) can be used in reverse to create a LOT of spin!!

Basically, take the club back, and as you swing the club down using a very refined sense of your aiming point, get the hands to that point and then SLAM on the brakes of both your pivot and your hands. The club(SW or LW) should accelerate under the ball(Gary Player's strike the match concept is also applicable here) and create a boatload of spin.

Should be used in conjuction with a firm surface and appropriate ball.

Again, not for the higher handicappers or faint at heart!!!!

 

[FloydPT38]

Thanks- for both of those posts - Damon's point is kind of how I've always done a shot when I wanted a lot of spin but I didn't do the reverse which would be the main -main thing- I think it goes back to Brian and others saying that flippers keep doing it because sometimes they can hit it pretty well. But I will have a little better understanding of hitting those spin shots - thanks for the reminder.
Interesting thought regarding continuing to flip- When my timing was "on" I certainly wouldn't have listened to how one of my essentials were "off" after all- the proof is in the ball flight right? If I'm hitting it well then I must be doing everything right. - and that's why me and 50 million other golfers stay about the same.
How much recess time do we get in second grade??