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Friday, May 11, 2018

Keith Lyford's Three Critical Golf Shots

You'll want to take a look at this article by PGA teaching pro Keith Lyford over at golftipsmag.com. It has all kinds of info about the differences between different types of shots -- info that you may not have heard before

I want to focus on some of his new info about pitching.

Flat-footed pitching

This is new info that Lyford says wasn't available even a year or so back. First of all, thanks to force plate technology, we know not only that the pros set up with about 60% of their weight on their lead leg, but they keep it there during the backswing.

Now I bet a number of you had guessed that, even if you didn't know the exact percentage. Keeping your weight forward for pretty much the entire pitching motion is something many instructors have taught for a long time, even without high tech confirmation.

But here's something that's really new to most instructors, and it's something rarely even considered until the figures from the new tech came in. Are you ready for this? Here's the quote from the article:
The pitch shot’s kinematic sequence is different from the full swing. On a full swing, the lower body starts the down-swing. But for pitches, the upper body starts the downswing sequence. That’s why you see Tour Pros hitting pitch shots with a more flat-footed swing—without a lot of weight shift, compared to their full swing.
Let that sink in: Full swings are more leg-oriented but pitches are more arm-oriented. If you're having trouble hitting your pitch shots consistently, there's a really good chance you're using your legs too much. According to the new force plate info, during your pitch shots you shouldn't be using your legs much at all! 

Don't misunderstand. You don't want to lock your legs rigidly in place when you pitch. You're going to use your legs a bit; you're standing on them, after all, so that can't be helped. But you want to keep your legs fairly quiet. Don't try to drive your legs when you hit your pitch shots.

That one little bit of new info may save some of you a lot of shots going forward.

2 comments:

  1. Like the lifeline putter grip and the driver toe at address. Martin Hall mentioned the latter on the premiere of School of Golf

    ReplyDelete
  2. https://www.golftipsmag.com/instruction/short-game/short-game-techniques-and-drills/

    ReplyDelete