The Golf Swing

1. The golf swing is slow deliberate left hip push of the club head until the left arm is aligned to the plane continued by a left arm / shoulder turn along the plane, which centrifugally powers the club-head to a deliberate (two right middle fingers lifting) cock (like a waiter with a tray) at the top of the upswing. The shoulder unwinds to hit the ball on the downswing.
2. Ensure that the correct "Hogan" posture is employed. Make sure that the right leg is locked inward to prevent swaying. The left arm and the club shaft must be like one straight line at address (from the top) but angled (alive fingers) as seen from the side.
3. The right grip must be solid and angled to anticipate the waiter-with-tray position at the top. Plant the other fingers like a glove over the left grip - ala Hogan.
4. Upswing: The upswing is an "extreme" fulcrum method that feels odd and almost unbelievable. The left arm is held straight with the club shaft and at the same time the club is balanced with the two right hand middle fingers as the fulcrum and the left hand pad as the counter weight for the club (really balanced!). Remember that the right grip must be in a strong position, so that the waiter with a tray move can be executed. Start the swing by pushing the left hip towards the club head – sliding it laterally until the left arm is aligned to the plane. Centrifugally and smoothly swing the club head up with the left arm. At the same time, the left pad pushes up the club while the right two fingers assist in the cocking. With a continuous move, cock the club with the right two middle fingers visualizing a tray being brought up along the plane by a waiter. When executed correctly, the feeling of the upper body is like a page of a book flipping back and forth - repetitively! The primary purpose is to create a full shoulder turn and a deliberate, repeating swing.
5. Downswing: While the upswing winds the shoulders like a wheel, the downswing is the reverse, the wheel unwinds and the club, club head is brought to the ball by centrifugal force. This is the Ernie Els swing but may sometimes feel like the Tiger swing. There is no active hit at all. This should make the whole golf swing automatic and repeating!
6. 14Jul2015: Do not forget the picture perfect finish. This move squares back the club face to the target.
7. The same stroke goes for putting, chipping, and pitching – shoulders winds and unwinds back to the target. The alive-grip is very important on non-full swings. In putting, do not forget the left hand cradle grip to prevent fanning the putter.
   

Basic Beliefs

There are certain things that we will believe here as true - without further questioning them:

1. Hogan's plane, the imaginary plane that extends from the neck to the ball, is the key to accuracy and repetition. Further study of this should be done by reading Hogan's books. It is just believed by the author (me) that repetition and accuracy of the golf shot can only be done by knowing of or visualizing the plane during the swing. (04Sep07 - the plane from the neck to the ball is not important. Visualizing it during the swing is a handicap to one's swing improvement.)
   
2. Rhythm is the glue that binds everything. The pieces of the golf swing is practiced consciously (a piece or group at a time) but when in actual play situation, everything is left to the rhythm. The rhythm we espouse here is the rhythm of the wrist in fly-fishing. The shoulder will wind and unwind in the same rhythm as the wrist when casting the lure in fly-fishing. (04Sep07 - Rhythm is better thought of as the twisting and untwisting continuous movement.)
   
3. The use of the big muscles promotes consistency so it will be solely be employed for all golf swing techniques to be developed. Any small muscle technique will not be used nor pursued in the search of the perfect golf swing. (04Sep07 - True then and still true now.)
   
4. Accuracy and consistency is desired above distance. Accuracy first, distance last. If distance is pursued, it will be through better equiptment and/or better physical fitness - never incorporated in the swing technique. (04Sep07 - Not really ideal - distance first is better)
   
5. Simplify, simplify, simplify. The less moves, the better. Cosistency must be the result of simplicity. (04Sep07 - Definitely true)
   

Basic Objective

We can discuss almost every technique here but if we do not even swing and look like a Pro while doing it, we would never be able to swing like a Pro. So that said, the foremost objective always is to develop a swing that looks like a Pro. With the proliferation now of cheap digital cameras, I would say owning one is a must. At the very start, we should get our swing picture taken so that we can have a baseline swing to remember. By studying the baseline swing, we ourselves can figure out what is needed. Of course, one does need not a picture most of the time to know what is wrong with our swing. Even without seeing myself on a picture, I knew my problem is not being able to create a full turn (04Sep07 - Now I can say I can make a full turn. I tried and I succeeded.). I always make the excuse that my body built is just not capable of it. This is baloney.