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The fastest aircraft in the world... represents the human desire to push the envelope and boldly go where no man has gone before. People who push the limits often risk their lives to achieve maximum speed. In Top Gun 2, Tom Cruise destroyed his plane just because he wanted to reach Mach 10. I guess Mach 9 wasn’t “fast enough”. And, subsequently, we learned that... The fastest thing isn’t the most reliable thing. The fastest things are high maintenance because they rely on perfect timing to achieve top-level speed. If a component is off by a nanosecond, the machine breaks down, and speed suffers. That’s why companies typically sell you the "consumer grade" version of the fastest thing. In other words, you get the fastest, most reliable working version. It's too risky for them to offer the real fastest thing - so they trade a little speed for increased reliability. Tech-nerds commonly "over-clock" their computers. Overclocking pushes the hardware faster, resulting in less ‘loading time’ and more ‘doing time’. But, push your computer too hard and it crashes. All that work you just did is gone… poof. And, while operating at the safest speed is reliable, you’re not accessing the full potential of your hardware. It's like driving a Lamborghini at 55 MPH. You've got so much speed left in the tank, and the car is begging you to "floor it". The key to optimal performance is finding the balance between speed and reliability. Essentially - Go as fast as possible without crashing your PC. The same logic applies to your golf swing... Speed is important but should never cost you contact. This matters because there’s so much stuff out there on "increasing speed". It's as if the golf industry has forgotten the piece that makes speed useful – Contact. Here's what consistent contact means:
(1) You have the same low point, with the club bottoming out after the ball every time
(2) You hit the center of the clubface for maximum energy transfer
(3) You control the clubface for the straightest, most powerful strike
Hit off-center... your distance control goes all over the place. One drive lands 300, another plops 220, some fly 265. Can’t control low point... you’re throwing away shots. Recall when you hit ‘the farthest drive of your life’ but then chunked the short approach shot into the lake. Can’t control the clubface... you don’t hit your target. That 300-yard drive you blasted into the housing development on the 12th hole cost you ‘2 shots’ and an ‘insurance claim’ from that broken window. Speed is channeled through contact. Contact is the gate that allows speed in. So, if you want to increase swing speed, start with contact. Not the other way around. But how? Your shoulders tell you how efficient your swing is. If your shoulder motion stops or breaks down at any point, contact and speed are compromised. This problem may seem hard to detect, but it’s a lot simpler than you think. Have you’ve ever said...
If you ever said any of these things. Your shoulders broke down in the swing. I see so many golfers trying to fix “tempo” when they should be fixing “shoulders”. Free up your shoulders and you’ll stay down through impact. You’ll experience a swift turn through the ball. You’ll finish fully with your weight on the front side. You could say “fix the shoulders” to fix everything else. The hallmark of powerful, consistent swing is an uninhibited shoulder motion… where both shoulders are allowed to move ‘blockage free’ throughout the entire swing. In this video, I’ll walk you through my technique to do this. One swing thought that works for beginners and elite players. It’s universal because all skill levels experience shoulder breakdowns to varying degrees. If you’re a low handicap player, you experience it in the 5-yard miss or “slightly off” feeling at impact. Then, when you try to get help, everybody keeps telling you your swing ‘looks good’ but you know something’s not right (and you’re unsure what it is). This problem is a 'micro shoulder blockage'. Like trying to find a submarine, it’s undetectable until you use sonar. Mid-to-high handicap players experience more extreme breakdowns like the ones I mentioned above. I stood up at impact… got quick… etc Click here to watch the video The huge benefit to understanding this concept is that you'll know what the problem is. You’ll know how to fix 95% of your swing problems by focusing on the shoulders. The shoulders reveal so much about your swing... that I could write a 500 page book and not cover it all. I challenge you to spend the next month sitting with the thought of “shoulders”. How your shoulders are working (or not working). Contemplating “shoulders” has produced some of my biggest swing discoveries over the years. After watching this video, work on this swing thought for 3 to 5 range sessions. Then, share your experience in the comments. Let me know how it worked for you. Keep it crispy! Tom |
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Where’s the beef? This famous expression from a 1984 Wendy’s ad poked fun at other fast-food chains and their ever-shriveling burger sizes. Because, to a burger lover, the meat – the substance – the experience of enjoying a delicious mouth-watering bite hinges on the burger’s main event – the meat. Similarly, people who talk a lot but say little are just as un-filling as a burger without meat. Back when I was a kid, my Sicilian grandfather sat at the head of the table. Eight of us gathered...
For years my life was Golf Instructor by day. Guitarist by night. I taught golf while playing 100 shows a year as a touring musician. Some nights I had a 10PM show. Pack up at 2AM. In bed at 4. On the lesson tee at 8 the same morning. Brutal? Yes. Worth it? Completely. Playing guitar every night left no time to practice golf – so I needed a swing that produced crispy ball striking without maintenance. I still teach that simple swing to golfers all over the world. So you can enjoy life. So...
I used to play guitar in a local band with Robbie… and the guys regularly practiced in his garage, where he placed his drum kit right next to his golf clubs. While he was laying the groove down, I couldn’t help but notice this large plastic trash bin in the corner overflowing with training aids. Dusty, rusted relics from days of old. Things that looked like they were used for 5 minutes then discarded into the land of lost toys. Pure nostalgia. All the stuff from those cheesy golf ads in the...