I don't think the symposium could have gone much better. There were a few logistical things that could have been better (mostly my fault), but the panelists, the other Manzella teachers, and all the attendees seemed eager to share and learn throughout the two days. It's one thing to have a golf swing seminar and have a golf instructor tell the audience how he fixes a slice or a shank. It's another ballgame when you have brilliant people in the room to tell you definitely WHY balls slice and shank - and then subsequently hear how to fix them.
What we did the last two days is an aquired taste for most regular teachers. What the attendees showed is that no matter their knowledge base, they were will willing to learn more. They were willing to say - hey, maybe I had that wrong in my head - I now see this issue from a more scientific point of view and I can now fix the the problem more readily.
No doubt there were instructors who took a pass on this symposium because they were fearful that they might have to make changes in their approach or they might have to go back to their students and say "I had this wrong". We understand - it's not easy. But we feel that the reward is worth the risk. Not everything we discussed for two and a half days will stand the test of time on the lesson tee, but I'm fairly confident that with the 6 panelists in the room, everyone exposed to their words will benefit for years.
Some thoughts:
I have a much better understanding of how TrackMan measures spin rate and spin axis. It's not the easiest concept to understand, but once it is explained, off center hits and the resulting ball flight are much less of a mystery. Hint - right hand rule.
A force normal to the clubhead path may be better described as a force normal to the hand path - at least it makes a little more sense to my brain.
3D versus 2D debate fascinates me - the panelists all handled this question with class and explained their positions very well. I think those who attended the symposium will have a much better understanding of why researchers make the choices they make.
Rob Neal and Sasho Mackenzie's explanation of kinematic sequence graphs and what they tell us (and what they don't tell us). Hint:Look at the x and y axis and READ what is being mesasured before you blast an entire industry.
I appreciate Aaron Zick's model and his desire for everyone to understand what is potentially at their fingertips with respect to distal end speed - a fast clubhead.
I firmly believe that Paul Wood may have more answers than anyone with respect to club loads and ball loads. Why wouldn't he - he's super smart and he has the latest and greatest tools which can answer questions with extreme clarity like:
1. Is Trackman accurate
2. What is the club doing? - "hey, george - can you pull out that 700 hertz 16 camera system and put markers all over the club and tell me what it's doing in 3D space? - thanks!"
3. Slippage
Thanks to everyone who made this get together a great one. I would like to thank our host and friend, Michael Jacobs, on a job well done. Most of all, I would like to thank Brian for keeping his passion for being the best teacher he can be and dragging a few guys with him. The critics and the debates seem silly as we keep learning more and more about how to help people shoot lower scores.
Go Tigers and Go Saints.
