Mandrin,
I got involved with TGM back in the late 80's. I met three TGM AIs, Jim Surber, Chuck Evans, and Ben Waugh, at a Henry-Griffitts PGA clubfitting seminar. My partner at the time, PGA pro Tim Odegard, met them too and they talked him into becoming an AI. He loved the stuff and quickly progressed to an AI. They all sort of ganged up on me to become one too, so I gave it a shot. I was introduced to Ben Doyle and George Kelnhofer who seemed to be the pre-eminent GSEDs of the day. I did not understand much of anything they said, I could not understand the book either, and I therefore resisted the way they told me to read and study it. I also struggled mightily with the pivot driven, snap loaded, bent back right wristed, narrowed pulley width golf swing they were trying to teach me to perform. When I tried to answer their 500 question open book test, I knew I was in over my head. I couldn't understand many of the questions or figure out many of the answers even when they told me what paragraph to look in. When I did find many answers, I wrote them in but wasn't sure why they answered the particular question that I didn't understand in the first place. I decided to quit, but got talked in to going to Myrtle Beach to see another GSED, Tom Tomosello, before I did.
I was quite doubtful that any other GSED could help me, but within the first five minutes of working with Tomosello on the range I was completely shocked that he even belonged to the same organization that Doyle or Kelnhofer did. He didn't use TGM terminology and he abrubtly told me to throw the clubhead from the top of my swing right into the ground to the right of my right heel. I thought he was crazy or maybe trying to pull a practical joke on me. But he insisted. I asked him how I was supposed to do it and he told me to uncock my right forearm and both hands to throw the clubhead right into the ground. I did it and the club hit the ground about 6 inches behind the golf ball. I was surprised it got that close to the ball because I wasn't trying to throw it anywhere near the ball. He told me to do it again but leave my body completely out of it. Just the forearm and the hands uncocking from the top. Now I knew he must be pulling my leg. But again I tried with the new information to leave the body out of it. I still hit the ground before the ball but it was closer and more of a scrape than a thud. A skinny but straight skull resulted. He told me to do it agin the same way and lead with the heel of the club the whole way down toward that weird place on the ground. I remember telling him this went against everything I'd ever heard with TGM or PGA. This is casting! He was adamant though. I did it again leading with the heel and my swing hit that next ball better than I'd ever hit a ball before and with the greatest ease and freedom I've ever felt. I was dumbfounded. I can't remember another time in my life except in fear that I experienced that many chills along my spine, goosebumps all over, and raised hairs on my neck. From that point on I listened to every word that man said and tried to carry out his instructions as precisely as I possibly could.
I took his curriculum and became a GSEM with his and Sally Kelley's help. I still had to turn in a test but they out and out gave me the answers. Tomosello taught me a different way to read the book that made sense and he only told me to study three particular paragraphs.
He also showed me the way he helped Jodie Mudd, Sally Little, Lee Elder, Peter Croker, AJ Bonar, and others.
It was Tomosello who told me Homer liked Cochran and Stobbs' work, and he showed me the page where face took precedent over path. I quickly learned what he called Homer's right forearm karate chop from the top and how to keep my legs, thighs, hips, and stomach out of the shot. I especially learned a very difficult to describe seemingly simutaneous and interrelated forearm and both wrist uncocking maneuver that allowed me to throw the clubhead without clubhead throwaway. He said Tommy Armour had it right but just couldn't explain it. I can't explain it that well either and I don't know that Homer Kelley explained it very well either.
Anyway I soon found out that Tomosello was not very popular with the vast majority of the TGM crowd. I went to summts where Doyle, Jacobs, Manzella, Daniels et al seemed to convince everyone but me that "the pivot does all the work" in the best swings and to use your core. I argued meekly in Tomosello and Kelley's behalf and eventually gave up. Then Zick came along and said his research showed that superior swings may very well result when the angle between the clubshaft and left arm is thrown out due to a direct muscular force. I remember one summit crowd went pretty quiet after that.
He never said exactly the source of that thrust but I think Kelley and Tomosello would say that you can throw that angle out via right triceps force or the muscles of both forearms.
I do not plan on writing in this or any other forum on TGM anymore. There's always too much drama and controversy. I've been a GSEM for 18 years now and I don't know what the hell a strong single action grip means or strong double action for that matter. If Homer Kelley taught Tomosello what Tomosello taught me though then I will be grateful to him to my dying day. I will also hold my Tomosello translation of three particular paragraphs dear to my soul. Thanks and I'd love to respond to any other questions from you privately if you'd like.
