Brian Manzella
Administrator
There is theory in pop golf instruction these days, that the reason so many golfers have problems making ball-turf solid contact is that the great majority of these golfers are leaning their torsos grossly to the right, and have too much rightward weight shift on their backswings.
I say:
Baloney!
It is my contention that the majority of golfers who have ball-turf contact and low point problems have these problems because they have a wide open clubface and are hanging back or falling back on their right sides and flipping the clubhead past their hands in an attempt to try to square up the clubface and start the ball more to the left.
That's the majority.
Of course, there are numerous other reasons so many golfers have a contact and low point problem.
Here is a short list:
Now, the folks who have poor pivots and have contact trouble have a variety of pivot problems that contribute to these issues.
Here are my four:
I did a informal survey on my website BrianManzella.com, and we asked a few questions. We came to these conclusions:
The questions and process can be seen in this thread.
My personal belief is that there are even more "left leaning golfers at the top of the backswing with low point problems" than the survey says, and less "right leaning golfers at the top of the backswing with low point problems."
But of course, the only way to really find out is do an accurate survey on real golf course and ranges.
So, why would anyone or any group think that the great majority of golfers who can't make ball-turf solid contact, can't because they lean grossly too far to the right at the top of the backswing?
Good question.
In the last 100-plus years of golf, there have been champions who were top-of-the-backswing right leaners—like Curtis Strange, and Cary Middlecoff, and there have been top-of-the-backswing left leaners who were champions—like Bobby Jones and Johnny Miller.
There have even been golfers who have won majors both ways, Jack Nicklaus being one.
In fact, Nicklaus was a right leaner early in his career, leaned left in the middle, and won his last three majors slightly rightward leaning.
There was a time in the late 60's and early 70's, when almost everyone was taught a very upright swing and a bunch of other components that produced a generation of left leaners.
This is the wave that even caught Nicklaus and Miller in its wake. They were both taught something else in their early years and then had to search to rekindle it later in their careers.
This period lasted until the early 80's when I started teaching.
And trust me, even though a vast majority of golfers were leaning left back in 1984—double, triple, or maybe even quadruple the amount that there is now—there were no fewer golfers with solid contact and low point problems.
Of course, if you were teaching golf in 1984, you'd know that.
That left-lean period begat the rise to stardom of Jimmy Ballard, a teacher from Pell City, Alabama, who was taught a far different pivot than "that 70's swing" by former Major League Baseball and PGA Tour player Sam Byrd.
Ballard had the antidote for all the left leaning torsos—
Get behind the ball at the top of the swing!
Like lots of ideas, the specifics often get lost in the translation. Jimmy Ballard never really wanted a whole lot of right lean. He wanted a somewhat steep shoulder turn and a big move downstairs, so to speak.
Anyhoo, a lot of golfers started leaning to the right. But, take it from someone who has taught through all of these fad instruction eras, it was never a majority.
Why?
Well, taking books, videos, magazine articles, websites, and teachers out of the mix, golfers tend to watch the ball, and react to it.
If they hit it where they are looking, they keep sawing wood. If they lose balls to the left—whether by curvature or not—they tend to try to start the ball more to the right.
If they lose balls to the right—whether by curvature or not—they tend to try to start the ball more to the left.
Ah....
All those slicers.
They haven't gone anywhere, have they?
Ask anyone who lives in a house on a golf course, sitting on a lot between 150 and 250 yards from the tee, on the right side of the hole.
They know.
The vast majority of golfers hit a slice.
Not the vast majority of PGA Tour players. Not the vast majority of golfers who spend $200 an hour from lessons.
Just a simple vast majority.
What about all those teachers saying that right leaning at the top, and right shifting is the reason folks can't make ball-turf solid contact?
Well...
One reason is that they don't see a representative sample of golfers where they teach and another is the type of golfer they teach.
When you move on to the next level of the teaching profession, you get to charge more, you see a whole different group of golfers.
I sure saw more left-leaning hackers when I charged $20 an hour than I do at $200 on the road.
A second reason is that there are golfers who formulated their theories on their own games while on the PGA Tour, became teachers, and went straight to teaching millionaires, tour hopefuls and Tour players.
They didn't spend a whole bunch of time giving Mr. Fabershams lessons, let me assure you.
Whoever they train will also be more likely to have a unrealistic view what golfers of every level do.
But, it could be much simpler than that.
When you sell PC's, Apple's are sort of joke—to you.
And if a group of folks all say the same thing, over and over, some people will believe it to be true.
Unless you know better.
There is no doubt that some players have an overly rightward lean and shift on the backswing.
And there is no doubt that fixing that over lean will help these golfer hit the ball better and more solidly.
But, coming out and saying that THE reason for poor golf is the over right leaned and right shifted backswing is the #1 reason for poor golf and poor contact is marketing at best and ignorance or blind allegiance at worst.
And, saying that THE best way to fix folks who do over right-lean is to do it one certain way is method teaching at its worse.
For the record, I do not teach one type of pivot.
I have students who have centered at the top pivots, like Derek Sanders, the 2009 Gulf States Section PGA Professional Championship, and the 2009 Lousiana PGA Championship; slightly right leaned top-of-the-backswing pivots like Lindsay Gahm, the 2009 Kentucky High School 5A Champion, and Kevin Shields the 2009 PGA Tri State Section Apprentice Champion; as well as several students who are working toward slightly left leaning top-of-the-backswing positions.
They all can work - and throughout golf history have won every major championship.
If you have a contact and low point problem, or you have a student that does, fix the components that need fixing.
And if you have a method you are selling, that's cool too.
Just don't try to sneak one past me.
I say:
Baloney!
It is my contention that the majority of golfers who have ball-turf contact and low point problems have these problems because they have a wide open clubface and are hanging back or falling back on their right sides and flipping the clubhead past their hands in an attempt to try to square up the clubface and start the ball more to the left.
That's the majority.
Of course, there are numerous other reasons so many golfers have a contact and low point problem.
Here is a short list:
1. They swing the club too far inside-out.
2. They have clubhead throwaway.
3. They have poor pivots.
2. They have clubhead throwaway.
3. They have poor pivots.
Now, the folks who have poor pivots and have contact trouble have a variety of pivot problems that contribute to these issues.
Here are my four:
1. They have a Pure-D, old school Reverse Pivot.
2. They have roundhouse shoulders with not enough axis tilt through impact and hips that wind up too far to the right.
3. They have left shoulder "pop-up" on their first move down, adding axis tilt too soon.
4. They have so much rightward movement—both lean and shift—that they could lift their left foot off the ground and pose their top-of-the-backswing position.
So while a grossly exaggerated right leaning and right shifting backswing pivot absolutely makes the list, it is far from #1 with a bullet. 2. They have roundhouse shoulders with not enough axis tilt through impact and hips that wind up too far to the right.
3. They have left shoulder "pop-up" on their first move down, adding axis tilt too soon.
4. They have so much rightward movement—both lean and shift—that they could lift their left foot off the ground and pose their top-of-the-backswing position.
I did a informal survey on my website BrianManzella.com, and we asked a few questions. We came to these conclusions:
18% of all golfers have a torso leaning to the right at the top of their swings, some rightward weight shift, and have low point problems.
35% of all golfers have a torso leaning to the left at the top of their swings, and have low point problems.
35% of all golfers have a torso leaning to the left at the top of their swings, and have low point problems.
The questions and process can be seen in this thread.
My personal belief is that there are even more "left leaning golfers at the top of the backswing with low point problems" than the survey says, and less "right leaning golfers at the top of the backswing with low point problems."
But of course, the only way to really find out is do an accurate survey on real golf course and ranges.
So, why would anyone or any group think that the great majority of golfers who can't make ball-turf solid contact, can't because they lean grossly too far to the right at the top of the backswing?
Good question.
In the last 100-plus years of golf, there have been champions who were top-of-the-backswing right leaners—like Curtis Strange, and Cary Middlecoff, and there have been top-of-the-backswing left leaners who were champions—like Bobby Jones and Johnny Miller.
There have even been golfers who have won majors both ways, Jack Nicklaus being one.
In fact, Nicklaus was a right leaner early in his career, leaned left in the middle, and won his last three majors slightly rightward leaning.
There was a time in the late 60's and early 70's, when almost everyone was taught a very upright swing and a bunch of other components that produced a generation of left leaners.
This is the wave that even caught Nicklaus and Miller in its wake. They were both taught something else in their early years and then had to search to rekindle it later in their careers.
This period lasted until the early 80's when I started teaching.
And trust me, even though a vast majority of golfers were leaning left back in 1984—double, triple, or maybe even quadruple the amount that there is now—there were no fewer golfers with solid contact and low point problems.
Of course, if you were teaching golf in 1984, you'd know that.
That left-lean period begat the rise to stardom of Jimmy Ballard, a teacher from Pell City, Alabama, who was taught a far different pivot than "that 70's swing" by former Major League Baseball and PGA Tour player Sam Byrd.
Ballard had the antidote for all the left leaning torsos—
Get behind the ball at the top of the swing!
Like lots of ideas, the specifics often get lost in the translation. Jimmy Ballard never really wanted a whole lot of right lean. He wanted a somewhat steep shoulder turn and a big move downstairs, so to speak.
Anyhoo, a lot of golfers started leaning to the right. But, take it from someone who has taught through all of these fad instruction eras, it was never a majority.
Why?
Well, taking books, videos, magazine articles, websites, and teachers out of the mix, golfers tend to watch the ball, and react to it.
If they hit it where they are looking, they keep sawing wood. If they lose balls to the left—whether by curvature or not—they tend to try to start the ball more to the right.
If they lose balls to the right—whether by curvature or not—they tend to try to start the ball more to the left.
Ah....
All those slicers.
They haven't gone anywhere, have they?
Ask anyone who lives in a house on a golf course, sitting on a lot between 150 and 250 yards from the tee, on the right side of the hole.
They know.
The vast majority of golfers hit a slice.
Not the vast majority of PGA Tour players. Not the vast majority of golfers who spend $200 an hour from lessons.
Just a simple vast majority.
What about all those teachers saying that right leaning at the top, and right shifting is the reason folks can't make ball-turf solid contact?
Well...
One reason is that they don't see a representative sample of golfers where they teach and another is the type of golfer they teach.
When you move on to the next level of the teaching profession, you get to charge more, you see a whole different group of golfers.
I sure saw more left-leaning hackers when I charged $20 an hour than I do at $200 on the road.
A second reason is that there are golfers who formulated their theories on their own games while on the PGA Tour, became teachers, and went straight to teaching millionaires, tour hopefuls and Tour players.
They didn't spend a whole bunch of time giving Mr. Fabershams lessons, let me assure you.
Whoever they train will also be more likely to have a unrealistic view what golfers of every level do.
But, it could be much simpler than that.
When you sell PC's, Apple's are sort of joke—to you.
And if a group of folks all say the same thing, over and over, some people will believe it to be true.
Unless you know better.
There is no doubt that some players have an overly rightward lean and shift on the backswing.
And there is no doubt that fixing that over lean will help these golfer hit the ball better and more solidly.
But, coming out and saying that THE reason for poor golf is the over right leaned and right shifted backswing is the #1 reason for poor golf and poor contact is marketing at best and ignorance or blind allegiance at worst.
And, saying that THE best way to fix folks who do over right-lean is to do it one certain way is method teaching at its worse.
For the record, I do not teach one type of pivot.
I have students who have centered at the top pivots, like Derek Sanders, the 2009 Gulf States Section PGA Professional Championship, and the 2009 Lousiana PGA Championship; slightly right leaned top-of-the-backswing pivots like Lindsay Gahm, the 2009 Kentucky High School 5A Champion, and Kevin Shields the 2009 PGA Tri State Section Apprentice Champion; as well as several students who are working toward slightly left leaning top-of-the-backswing positions.
They all can work - and throughout golf history have won every major championship.
If you have a contact and low point problem, or you have a student that does, fix the components that need fixing.
And if you have a method you are selling, that's cool too.
Just don't try to sneak one past me.
