Cause and effect

I've been thinking about my quest for excellence in the golf swing and realised that I probably played my best golf ten years ago (or at least played as well as now) before I got bogged down in a whole lot of golf theory. In saying this, I should emphasise two things: I'm actually hitting the ball further, so age is not a big factor and also I've had a huge amount of fun with golf theorising.

This realisation about my failure to progress during that timeframe has made me think about cause and effect, and the consequences of confusing the two things. These are initial thoughts only; I haven't got it worked out at all. And I'm sure there is stuff written about this issue that I haven't yet come across.

Anyway, my suspicion is that by focusing on positions in the golf swing (the mechanical, technical, video-related analysis, etc.) our attention is being drawn to the effects of the golf swing rather than the cause.

By 'cause' I am referring to the whole swinging motion, roughly equating to the entire period from set-up to completion of the follow through. On the other hand, 'effect' is the individual positions that are created during that swing - a series of 'effects' in fact.

When instructors or individuals examine, for example, where the clubhead is in relation to the hands, or where the trailing elbow sits at the top of the backswing, they are looking at an 'effect' rather than a 'cause' of and in the golf swing. As we know, it is very difficult during a golf swing to consciously control these positions; it takes time to work on any one swing element, such as the elbow position. It's not impossible of course to do this as I'll discuss, but there are barriers, especially if we are talking short-term cures, as in trying to modify something as a result of getting a 'tip'.

So why do good golfers have good swings and poor golfers (even those who have had many lessons) have poor or very inconsistent swings? I think it's mainly because those players who have been suckered into focusing on effects that are ultimately very difficult to influence or control, and are failing to look at the whole swing.

These players are stuck in a loop and I've been on that loop for a long time myself. Once I discovered the 'cause' of my slice - an outside, across the line swing plane - I was able to find a cure. For me that was a relatively simple closing of my shoulders as I set up, thereby changing my swing plane, together with a focus on rhythm. Other slicers will probably have slightly different causes to address, such as leaning back, swaying or trying to hit too hard, but the cure will often be a simple set up change and perhaps a greater emphasis on swinging freely rather than steering.

The main point is that once you have a solution or cure for a fundamental swing flaw, such as a slice, to try to take on or take up a whole series of supposed game improvement ideas or theories can be hugely detrimental. Most of these ideas are addressing effects, which are positions or moves that occur naturally as a result of the whole swing. They are not readily modified. Nor is there often a 'right' answer or cure. Contradictory advice on elements of the golf swing is rife.

There are many golfers who don't care that their golf swing is not perfect; they live with their slice. That's fine. But for those like me who seek improvement, be it straighter hitting, more consistent golf, more distance, whatever, we need to be careful and avoid the temptation to treat an effect as a cause, because trying to modify an effect and ignoring the cause is usually doomed to failure.

Lag lightbulb

I watched a video recently on Youtube posted by Clay Ballard, a very good instructor in my view, although quite technical at times by his own admission. However, his insights on the question of lag were extremely interesting.

Lag, broadly speaking, relates to the retention and late release of the wrist-to-club angle that golfers create in the backswing, usually around 90 degrees. In essence, the clubhead 'lags' behind the hands and body on the downswing. I find it difficult to describe the process and until I saw the video, I didn't really understand how lag works.

Clay pointed out that face-on vision of pro golfers supposedly achieving massive lag on the downswing (and therefore a lot of clubhead speed) is misleading. In fact, because pros tend to flatten their swings (and not cast or come over the top) a face-on view accentuates the wrist-club angle that you see. It's an optical illusion; there is very little change in the wrist-club angle - unless the club handle is allowed to slip between thumb and forefinger.

The point is there is no magic skill by which good golfers increase (significantly) the lag that is needed in a fast, full golf swing. There is, however, the crucial skill of retaining the wrist-club angle for as long as possible on the downswing - as against hitting from the top or casting, which can also be called throwing away the lag. Good players sequence their swing so that the arms and hands follow (or at least don't race ahead of the body) on the downswing. The effect is that the clubhead is still accelerating as it reaches the ball, rather than slowing down, which is what happens when players attempt to rush the downswing from the top of the backswing with the hands and arms.

But this is only part of the story. The real revelation for me from Clay's video lesson was his description of the impact position of good golfers. And this very much relates to lag. Good golfers are as much as 45 degrees open to the target (both hips and shoulders) at impact. This again involves an optical illusion. The shoulders might appear to be almost square, but this is only because the lead shoulder is rotated inward in holding the club. The shoulder orientation very much matches the hips. Meanwhile, the hands and club are at impact vertically aligned to the ball - although the club will be leaning slightly (and only slightly) ahead of the ball.

This is what lag is really about - the hands and club lag behind the body turn. The body turn in a way creates the lag - it doesn't happen through some forceful or magical manipulation of the hands and club. Anyone who can turn through impact and at least try not to whack the ball from the top of the backswing can create plenty of lag and plenty of clubhead speed. It's just that many amateurs try to generate clubhead speed (and lag) in the wrong way. They throw away their lag and their chances of generating good clubhead speed (which is what hits the ball far) right from the top.

In the end, I'm not sure I can do justice to this topic. It is technical, yet simple, confusing yet crystal clear to me. The lightbulb that lit up for me might just go 'pop' for others.

Is that all there is?

Recently, I investigated right-side theory, revisited Hogan's methods, considered some points from The Golfing Machine, and looked into questions about the perfect grip, not to mention a re-evaluation of connection theory. That's only in recent weeks, but after more than ten years of searching for answers on how to develop the perfect golf swing, all I can confirm is that all of the above do have something of value to say about the golf swing.

However, the conclusion that has been staring me in the face all this time, is that one has to live with one's own swing. There is no right way to make a consistent golf swing, only your way.

Often, of course, your (or my) way might never produce a touring professional standard, plus handicap golf swing - if you define good as consistent and powerful -  because achieving that level of skill will be dependant on one's age, fitness and basic hand-eye coordination skills. But getting the most out of our swings is what we can realistically achieve, with the following provisos.

There are, I believe, a few fundamentals of a decent golf swing and game that are not related to style, but that must be present if we are to be effective golfers. In no particular order they are:

1. The club must be swung in a way that takes account of the design of golf clubs. That is, the swing plane must be rounded or rotational, so that the club goes back on an inside arc and comes down to the ball on a similar inside arc. Clubs are designed to be swung on this kind of plane; trying to manipulate this plane in some way, for example, exaggerating the inside plane or allowing the plane to go significantly outside of the target line, will make the game much harder, cause inconsistent club-face contact and thus cost distance and accuracy. I would emphasise a square, balanced set up and proper alignment to help with this, but there are variations. Playing shots with the weight moving onto the front foot is another key fundamental partly related to the design of golf clubs and partly related to the following point.

2. The body, including the hands, arms, shoulders, hips, legs, chest and core muscles must work together during the stroke. Emphasising one area over another or others runs the risk of an uncoordinated, ill-timed stroke. Working on balancing all these movements, which are essentially natural (think throwing a ball of paper into a wastepaper bin) is worth doing. It's essentially about finding a rhythm and finding a rapidity or range of movement that you can handle. But, bearing in mind point 1 above about swing plane, it is important to accept that the golf swing can be a coordinated and yet natural movement; it does not need to be very pretty or graceful, because style ultimately does not matter.

3. Golf is also about imagination, creativity and, broadly speaking, course management. We need to find a way to get the ball into the hole in the fewest number of strokes. This means being good at the little shots, pitching, chipping and putting, and sensible recovery shots, as much as it means hitting the ball far and straight. Far too many golfers neglect the short game, yet it is one of the main reasons good golfers are good at scoring. Most people are not athletic enough to drive the ball 300 yards, but anyone can chip a ball close from 30 yards - if they can find a method for doing that. The principles in 1 and 2 above apply, but we need to use imagination, visualisation, calculation or whatever means we can discover to get the ball in the hole as efficiently as possible.

Is that all there is? I've just about convinced myself after many years of golf research that all I can do to play my best golf is to accept the swing I have, refine my set up or alignment a little if I must, and forget about attempting to find 'the' method or theory that will solve all. And, most importantly, I need to get to work on my short game. It may well be that, after all the searching, this is all there is.