QUIZ #1: Could you "Go Normal" with your hands in a cast?

[Brian Manzella]

There was some goofy article by Ken Venturi years ago, with him hitting short game shots with his hands in a cast (right wrist slightly bent and left wrist flat.

Let's say you put the "cast" on.

Could you "go normal"???

 

[wallacejjlbsp]

I would say NO!

 

[ms1170]

Yes. Side bend or Axis tilt and strong grip would be key.

 

[dschultz6072]

I've got my left wrist in a brace right now from tendinitis and I can hit decent shots. The pain makes me not able to do it as much but as far as mobility...I'd have to say yes you can.

 

[mgranato]

I'll riverside Ms and Ds and vote "No" also. Seems like the easiest way to ensure a handle drag would be with a right-wrist-bent-cast on. Would also seem like it'd be tough to make the coupling point work like it should.

 

[hrely]

No. Sweetspot would never turn off-plane.

 

[wulsy]

You could go normal but you wouldn't gain anything!

 

[hrely]

I've got my left wrist in a brace right now from tendinitis and I can hit decent shots. The pain makes me not able to do it as much but as far as mobility...I'd have to say yes you can.

I don't doubt you David but I can't see where the tumble rotation would come from. What does your right wrist do?

 

[Keefer]

For those of us not on the inside, what is "go normal"? And is everyone's "go normal" the same? This inside baseball talk is hard to follow. With the throwing drunks, humping goats and other confusing axioms it may be helpful to have a translator on this forum. Just a thought.

 

[hrely]

For those of us not on the inside, what is "go normal"? And is everyone's "go normal" the same? This inside baseball talk is hard to follow. With the throwing drunks, humping goats and other confusing axioms it may be helpful to have a translator on this forum. Just a thought.

Search function will take you to multiple threads on these terms.

 

[Kevin Shields]

For those of us not on the inside, what is "go normal"? And is everyone's "go normal" the same? This inside baseball talk is hard to follow. With the throwing drunks, humping goats and other confusing axioms it may be helpful to have a translator on this forum. Just a thought.

Very true, sometimes hard to keep up. Going normal is when the force exerted on the club is perpendicular to the swing . Basically into the golfer during and after impact.

 

[Brian Manzella]

Having your hands in a cast would have ZERO effect on your ability to apply force perpendicular to the swing arc.

 

[Cloran]

So a golfer could have the look of a "handle dragger," but be pulling inward with all their earthly being... and the reason they get the handle dragged look is because they are releasing the club more left and late?

Am I picturing this right?

 

[Brian Manzella]

So a golfer could have the look of a "handle dragger," but be pulling inward with all their earthly being... and the reason they get the handle dragged look is because they are releasing the club more left and late?

Am I picturing this right?

Absolutely.

In fact in many, many cases, it is EXACTLY what you want.

 

[cwdlaw223]

Brian -

There will be folks that say. "This can't be seen on video so it must not happen". "Forces aren't evidence".

 

[spktho]

Absolutely.

In fact in many, many cases, it is EXACTLY what you want.

So a golfer could have the look of a "handle dragger," but be pulling inward with all their earthly being... and the reason they get the handle dragged look is because they are releasing the club more left and late?

Am I picturing this right?

Brian -

There will be folks that say. "This can't be seen on video so it must not happen". "Forces aren't evidence".

Hitting up with forward shaft lean with the driver seems to be the best example.

 

[dschultz6072]

David Toms?

 

[Richard the Nerd]

Absolutely.

In fact in many, many cases, it is EXACTLY what you want.

Brian....could be outta the tree here...but sounds like there are at least 2 distinct ways to "go normal" (could be more?)....what are the advantages/disadvantages of the variations? How does one decide which'un to employ?

 

[Brian Manzella]

Brian....could be outta the tree here...but sounds like there are at least 2 distinct ways to "go normal" (could be more?)....what are the advantages/disadvantages of the variations? How does one decide which'un to employ?

Rich, you are correct.

You could straighten your body, your could bend your arms, you could stay bent over and straighten your legs....etc

The club doesn't know or care.

For max distance, you need all.

 

[SteveT]

Having your hands in a cast would have ZERO effect on your ability to apply force perpendicular to the swing arc.
..........................

You could straighten your body, your could bend your arms, you could stay bent over and straighten your legs....etc

The club doesn't know or care.

For max distance, you need all.

Yes, you can bend your arms inward like LD Sadlowski does, or straighten your <i>lead</i> leg going into impact like Tiger; and this applies additional force vectors to the 'normal' centripetal force along the swing radius.

However, I don't understand how one can "straighten your body" to effectively apply additional acceleration force. I can see keeping your spine straight and tilted through impact while the hips rotate open. This is where duffers fail because they block their hips approaching impact and then straighten their spinal tilt by opening their hips thus causing extreme over the top situation. You must maintain spinal tilt through impact which crunches your rear rib cage into your pelvis!! If you've got a paunch, you can't do this easily or at all.

So my question is how can you straighten your body while bending your arms and straightening your lead leg coming into impact? (Of course you must straighten the body in the final followthru but that's post-impact.)

Brian..???