22 replies to this topic

[neilcsd]

http://www.lakesidep...GolfSecrets.htm

I have no illusions about starting the game at 35, even though I feel I have come a tremendously long way in the last 5-ish months.  Pretty sure even if Rory and Tiger knew me, they'd not be up at night wondering how to hold me off.  However - this is a bit of a soul-crushing read.  It seems I found my calling waaaay too late.

Those of you that...know: tell me what you think.

[Guia]

There are those that have the physical, mental, focus, and work ethic to over come a late start.  They are few
and far between.

[JDorfler]

My grandfather didn't really start playing until extremely late in life. Before he past I'd bet every dime I have that he could have played the senior tour and won many events. Don't let crap like that fool you. Dedication cannot be measured.

[jdmorris1980]

Sounds like a guy making excuses for not being very good.

[Martee]

Based on golf handicaps tracked over the years, given the number of late starters to golf and those who attempt to break in on the senior tour, have to say that the author has a valid supposition.

From personal experience going on almost 60 years of playing recreational golf, I can state that some of the factors have ring truth.

Age is a factor (#1 and #2) IMO in that there is the physical aspect where the older body doesn’t do as well as the younger body.  Also there is the mental aspect, though we may become smarter as we grow older we also have the potential for baggage, preconceived ideas that can limit us.  The fitness and physical abilities will decrease with age, for most of us that golf isn’t a full time profession, the results will definitely impact our performance.  Heck look at Palmer, Player and Nicklaus, all are not the golfer they once were though they still manage to play a good game.

As for Ball Beating (#3), learning 100 plus different shots, that is probably accurate for the very top golfers (Woods, Mickelson, etc) but IMO for a golfer who wants a single digit handicap, maybe even scratch, not so much.  BUT all that said to get your handicap down you do need to be able to reasonably control the ball so that you don’t require all those shots.  Given you are not playing at the highest levels; control becomes more of keeping the ball in play and giving yourself an opportunity to score or not lose strokes to par.  How many balls you have to hit is less the issue, it is how many balls do you have to it correctly, under control?

As for his remaining points, too subjective for my taste.

In 2004 I my handicap index was between 12 to 10, going higher by the month it seemed.  I had the time so I undertook my project to either overcome my deficiencies that I blamed on age (60 plus) and health.  My journey was all over the map, form formal instruction, to re-engineering my swing method to the latest and greatest, to hours and hours on the practice tee, to going into to my golf library (600 plus books) searching for the ‘Secret’, videos, training aids, even searching the internet.  It was painful and frustrating, after 3 years I was ready to abandon my efforts, just accept I was doomed to be a bogey golfer if not worse as I aged.  But then I accidentally discovered found some success.  My handicap index today is between 9 to 6, going as low as 4 for a few brief months.  Doubt I can get it lower, probably should be happy with the 9 to 6 range.  To me this is the best I can do, I don’t spend much time practicing, probably should spend a bit more, I play, I enjoy, I post a reasonable score.

I believe most golfers should be able to post scores in the low to mid 80s on a routine basis and I don’t believe they need to invest large amounts of time practicing, but what they do invest needs to be wise time.

Plus the key for me making a break through, Playing Golf differs from to having a golf swing.

Interesting article though, hadn't read it before.

[mikpga]

neilcsd, on 25 January 2013 - 11:13 PM, said:

http://www.lakesidep...GolfSecrets.htm

I have no illusions about starting the game at 35, even though I feel I have come a tremendously long way in the last 5-ish months.  Pretty sure even if Rory and Tiger knew me, they'd not be up at night wondering how to hold me off.  However - this is a bit of a soul-crushing read.  It seems I found my calling waaaay too late.

Those of you that...know: tell me what you think.

Rubbish

[wbealsd]

Having just turned 60 and only taking up the game after turning 50, I have no illusions of getting my tour card, but I don't play golf for that.  I play golf because I enjoy it and it makes me healthier and happier than I would be if I didn't play.  I didn't even begin seriously trying to improve my game until about 5 years ago when I decided I wanted to "play golf instead of "playing AT golf".

Golf is a personal game and a personal challenge to get better.  One has to have realistic goals and work to meet them to enjoy all golf has to offer.  I'm currently a 17.3 handicap and got setup a few weeks ago to practice indoors at home over the winter, so I don't get out of shape and can start the golf season ready to play, instead of taking weeks to regain lost conditioning and skill.  I like the challenges golf provides me and the pleasant incentive to work out regularly.  I think my goal of lowering my handicap by 5 strokes this year is reasonable and very doable.  Realistically, I'm already IN an elite group of golfers and getting better at it every year.  Having seen a lot of old friends at my 40th class reunion a couple of years ago, I'm also more vigorous and active than most of them.  I've seen some good golfers drop the game after turning 50 because they can't play as well as they used to, can't hit it as long, get more aches & pains, allow themselves to be frustrated and lose interest.  Everyone of them seems to be out of shape now, and appear to have lost a certain amount of "spark" they had when they were playing and still enjoyed the game.

If someone at my age, who started playing late, is discouraged from playing because they won't turn pro, or win club championships, then they're missing the point of playing, as far as I'm concerned.  As long as I'm happy and making improvements, as long as golf keeps challenging me in so many ways that benefit me OFF the course, then I'll play as long as I'm physically able to.

[JustTheTips]

1) Starting young is a bit of BS. The limits are that you peak physically as a golfer in the late 20s to mid30s. And it takes a lot of hours to get good at golf. Very few 18+ year old people can spend 2k+ hours/yr for 5+ years to maximize their golf protentitla.

2) You can improve visual perception and hand eye coordination. You are somewhat limited by your physiology (i.e you have a certain frame and muscle structure) but guys have played quality golf with a wide range of bodies

3) Yep. Spending time is the key to just about any activity in life.  You are not going to become a very good chef, surgeon, skier, basketball player, accountant, lawyer, or whatever doing something 4 hours a month.  When he talks about the pros that failed, do you really think that John Elway, MJ or anyone of the the guys was spending 4+ hours a day practicing pretty much every day? I doubt it. It is way too much work. They might put in a hard week or two and then take a week off to do promotional videos, travel, and other business work.

Are there short cuts in golf? Sure.  Starting off with SliceFixer (or any of a zillion other pros) as your coach and being able to talk to him every day for 6 months would be a huge short cut.  Talking to any of a dozen top putting pros (and learning aimpoint) can take 1000 hours of your development curve.  But we are talking spending 5k hours to get to a point instead of 7k.

An no handicaps don't change at tournaments. Of course they keep changing the course to neutralize the equipment.

neilcsd, on 25 January 2013 - 11:13 PM, said:

http://www.lakesidep...GolfSecrets.htm

I have no illusions about starting the game at 35, even though I feel I have come a tremendously long way in the last 5-ish months.  Pretty sure even if Rory and Tiger knew me, they'd not be up at night wondering how to hold me off.  However - this is a bit of a soul-crushing read.  It seems I found my calling waaaay too late.

Those of you that...know: tell me what you think.

[Tiemco]

The rule of starting young is very valid.  It has nothing to do with peaking physically, but has to do with the brain.  When we are young, our brains are full of synapses that will get pared away after a certain age if they aren't used.  Using those synapses before a certain age (usually around puberty) will preserve them.  If we look at a slightly different example, lets take people who play the piano.  If you want to be a concert pianist, you have to start young.  If you start after the point where you brain starts cutting out certain unused synapses, you will never reach the technical ability of someone who does.   That's not to say you can't become very good at the piano, but you won't achieve the highest level.  Another interesting thing is that people that learn to play the piano well when young but give it up for a long time, usually can pick it up relatively quickly and easily, while those that learn later in life will have trouble after a long lay off.  This phenomenon applies to many sports including golf.  Those that learn before synaptic paring  have a huge advantage over someone that doesn't.  The swing becomes automatic to those who start early, to the point of where they don't have to thing about it very much, and periods of layoff don't affect them as much.  One disadvantage is that if you start young, and have a poor technique that isn't corrected, it can be very difficult to relearn how to swing the club properly.

[Jon Robert]

The golf ball does not know how old you are

The golf course does not know how old you are

Can you hit 670yds in 3 shots? If you can then you are not too old.   "The USGA installed a new tee off the (formerly) 609-yard par-5 16th at Olympic Club. The hole can now be stretched to 670 yards, making it the longest par 5 on the PGA TOUR."
http://www.golf.com/...par-5-16th-hole

The only remaining issue then is accuracy. Again age does not equate to wildness. Generally youth equates to wildness.
Age more relates to being distracted by all kinds of stuff like wives, kids, payments, grand kids, pets and all the other trappings of age. A young person may think hitting that ball is the only important thing on the planet. An old person knows better.  Can you be focused when hitting a golf ball?

I’m not sure I buy the young neuron argument stuff.  There are old and fat golfers that will beat the pants off young kids. It is golf not boxing or Navy Seal training. No offence to the author of post #9 " If you want to be a concert pianist, you have to start young."  There have been autistic people who have never trained their young nothing sit down and play like a world class performer from the very first note. As a result I think that we all have "golf" in us it is just a matter of can we bring it out. That is the hard part. Young people can learn and develop all the wrong things just as easily as the right things. Age has a way of revealing which is which. You the OP hopefully have an advantage of sifting through all the crap to find the good stuff because I assume you are not going to sit down and from the very first note.....

Edited by Jon Robert, 26 January 2013 - 12:29 PM.

[Tiemco]

Jon Robert, on 26 January 2013 - 12:14 PM, said:

The golf ball does not know how old you are

The golf course does not know how old you are

Can you hit 670yds in 3 shots? If you can then you are not too old.   "The USGA installed a new tee off the (formerly) 609-yard par-5 16th at Olympic Club. The hole can now be stretched to 670 yards, making it the longest par 5 on the PGA TOUR."
http://www.golf.com/...par-5-16th-hole

The only remaining issue then is accuracy. Again age does not equate to wildness. Generally youth equates to wildness.
Age more relates to being distracted by all kinds of stuff like wives, kids, payments, grand kids, pets and all the other trappings of age. A young person may think hitting that ball is the only important thing on the planet. An old person knows better.  Can you be focused when hitting a golf ball?

I’m not sure I buy the young neuron argument stuff.  There are old and fat golfers that will beat the pants off young kids. It is golf not boxing or Navy Seal training. No offence to the author of post #9 " If you want to be a concert pianist, you have to start young."  There have been autistic people who have never trained their young nothing sit down and play like a world class performer from the very first note. As a result I think that we all have "golf" in us it is just a matter of can we bring it out. That is the hard part. Young people can learn and develop all the wrong things just as easily as the right things. Age has a way of revealing which is which. You the OP hopefully have an advantage of sifting through all the crap to find the good stuff because I assume you are not going to sit down and from the very first note.....

I will admit the piano analogy is a bit flawed since it involves a lot more than just moving your fingers, but all concert pianists started young (and had a gift for music that can't be taught).  It is true that there are savants/autistics that can play the piano very well, but even they discovered the instrument at a very young age, and the ones you hear about generally do receive instruction from an early age.  This mirrors what you see in golf, in that you find some very young kids that seem to have a knack for the game, and their talent is nutured, but even then, that is no guarantee of becoming a great tour player.  I agree that you can become a very good golfer if you start later in life, especially if you are athletic, but to be a successful tour player, especially in this day and age, I would say it's basically impossible to do so if you start in your late teens, early twenties.  That doesn't mean you can't be a scratch player, or your club champion, but to reach that top level, it's not realistic.

P.S.  To my knowledge, there are no practicing concert pianists that are autistic/savants with mental disabilities.  While they might be proficient at the piano, they generally lack the ability to play the more difficult pieces with the speed, accuracy, emotion, and tonal color as someone without those handicaps.

[JustTheTips]

Hey you don't even need to practice to be good at the piano: http://todayhealth.t...-savant?lite  . More seriously I have no idea how good this guy is (i.e. is he a scratch type musician or a touring pro).

Recent research has suggest the idea of the young learning better is petty much crap.  Take learning a language. Adults learn much faster than young kids. The difference is your perception. A 7 year old with a 1000 word vocabulary might be considered fluent. A 30 year old with a 2000 word vocabuary talks like a 10 year old.  There are exceptions where somethings do seem to have a age basis.

But in general, keep it simple. You haven't practiced the right things long enough to be good. And yes the amount of practice required is more than anyone other than a teenager with very few outside requirements can do.

Tiemco, on 26 January 2013 - 01:57 PM, said:

Jon Robert, on 26 January 2013 - 12:14 PM, said:

The golf ball does not know how old you are

The golf course does not know how old you are

Can you hit 670yds in 3 shots? If you can then you are not too old.   "The USGA installed a new tee off the (formerly) 609-yard par-5 16th at Olympic Club. The hole can now be stretched to 670 yards, making it the longest par 5 on the PGA TOUR."
http://www.golf.com/...par-5-16th-hole

The only remaining issue then is accuracy. Again age does not equate to wildness. Generally youth equates to wildness.
Age more relates to being distracted by all kinds of stuff like wives, kids, payments, grand kids, pets and all the other trappings of age. A young person may think hitting that ball is the only important thing on the planet. An old person knows better.  Can you be focused when hitting a golf ball?

I’m not sure I buy the young neuron argument stuff.  There are old and fat golfers that will beat the pants off young kids. It is golf not boxing or Navy Seal training. No offence to the author of post #9 " If you want to be a concert pianist, you have to start young."  There have been autistic people who have never trained their young nothing sit down and play like a world class performer from the very first note. As a result I think that we all have "golf" in us it is just a matter of can we bring it out. That is the hard part. Young people can learn and develop all the wrong things just as easily as the right things. Age has a way of revealing which is which. You the OP hopefully have an advantage of sifting through all the crap to find the good stuff because I assume you are not going to sit down and from the very first note.....

I will admit the piano analogy is a bit flawed since it involves a lot more than just moving your fingers, but all concert pianists started young (and had a gift for music that can't be taught).  It is true that there are savants/autistics that can play the piano very well, but even they discovered the instrument at a very young age, and the ones you hear about generally do receive instruction from an early age.  This mirrors what you see in golf, in that you find some very young kids that seem to have a knack for the game, and their talent is nutured, but even then, that is no guarantee of becoming a great tour player.  I agree that you can become a very good golfer if you start later in life, especially if you are athletic, but to be a successful tour player, especially in this day and age, I would say it's basically impossible to do so if you start in your late teens, early twenties.  That doesn't mean you can't be a scratch player, or your club champion, but to reach that top level, it's not realistic.

P.S.  To my knowledge, there are no practicing concert pianists that are autistic/savants with mental disabilities.  While they might be proficient at the piano, they generally lack the ability to play the more difficult pieces with the speed, accuracy, emotion, and tonal color as someone without those handicaps.

[DaveLeeNC]

IMHO, it is unlikely that you will be as good starting golf now as you would be had you started at age 6. But that doesn't mean that you can't play some pretty darned good golf and quite possibly play better than 95% of the golfing population. The stuff on the website is probably true ON AVERAGE, but says nothing about what YOU can do starting now.

dave

[Jon Robert]

Tiemco, on 26 January 2013 - 01:57 PM, said:

Jon Robert, on 26 January 2013 - 12:14 PM, said:

The golf ball does not know how old you are

The golf course does......................................st note.....

I will admit the piano analogy is a bit flawed since it involves a lot more than just moving your fingers, but all concert pianists started young (and had a gift for music that can't be taught).  It is true that there are savants/autistics that can play the piano very well, but even they discovered the instrument at a very young age, and the ones you hear about generally do receive instruction from an early age.  This mirrors what you see in golf, in that you find some very young kids that seem to have a knack for the game, and their talent is nutured, but even then, that is no guarantee of becoming a great tour player.  I agree that you can become a very good golfer if you start later in life, especially if you are athletic, but to be a successful tour player, especially in this day and age, I would say it's basically impossible to do so if you start in your late teens, early twenties.  That doesn't mean you can't be a scratch player, or your club champion, but to reach that top level, it's not realistic.

P.S.  To my knowledge, there are no practicing concert pianists that are autistic/savants with mental disabilities.  While they might be proficient at the piano, they generally lack the ability to play the more difficult pieces with the speed, accuracy, emotion, and tonal color as someone without those handicaps.

"P.S.  To my knowledge, there are no practicing concert pianists that are autistic/savants with mental disabilities.  While they might be proficient at the piano, they generally lack the ability to play the more difficult pieces with the speed, accuracy, emotion, and tonal color as someone without those handicaps."


Some people think the greatest ball striker top have ever lived (Moe Norman) was somewhat autistic.  These other issues (maybe not age related such as you cite)  kept him from "making it" on tour.  Moe practiced a great deal to get that good.  What I find most interesting/ ponder a great deal is that maybe us "normal people" are holding ourselves back.

[Jon Robert]

DaveLeeNC, on 26 January 2013 - 03:34 PM, said:

IMHO, it is unlikely that you will be as good starting golf now as you would be had you started at age 6. But that doesn't mean that you can't play some pretty darned good golf and quite possibly play better than 95% of the golfing population. The stuff on the website is probably true ON AVERAGE, but says nothing about what YOU can do starting now.

dave

People tend to walk and talk like their experiences.  A kid growing up dreaming of the US OPEN would likely have a vast library of golf memories and experiences to draw from. That would be demonstrated in every facet of their life. Friends hobby etc. I would say all the tour players fall into this category.

I would like to see someone win the US OPEN who only took up the game 2 years ago and prior to that was a nomadic goat herder in the steeps of Mongolia.  This would just help prove that it is not what some people think - only starting as kids can make it scenario. Then us who did not have the advantage of an all golf all the time childhood would be energized.

[Jim Waldron]

Hand-eye coordination is vastly over-rated, approaching myth status, except for unusual lies/some trouble shots. In fact, I would argue that the attempt to use eye-hand the way the vast majority of amateurs use it, will in fact hurt your game. It tends to make the golfer even more "ball-bound", which triggers the Three Demons - Hit, Steering and Scooping Impulses. The ball is NOT the target.

If you are having trouble making solid contact on the sweetspot, with proper angle of attack and path, it is because your overall Mechanics are poor, and very likely your Balance as well. If you have good Mechanics and rock-solid Balance, you don't need any hand-eye to hit a golf ball solidly. You can hit it as well - or at least almost as well - with your eyes closed as eyes open when those two things are really good.

Adults can learn to be great players, I work with students all the time who have taken up the game after the age of 12, often after the age of 30, who learn to become single digit players. I have worked with a player who took up golf at age 18, with no instruction and almost no range time, totally self-taught and was a plus one handicap 18 months after starting to play.

It does require a fair amount of practice time to get really good, but a lot of that should be done at home in front of a mirror, slow motion movement pattern training, far more effective use of your time than going to the range and beating balls.

[neilcsd]

Lotta great thoughts in here, thank you all.

[sblack5]

Absolute garbage article....work smart toward your goals....will over skill as with everything in life   I took up the game at 27....Im a work a holic in everything I've ever done.  Worked every day without fail on my game for the last 2 years....im a +4 cap now and still going.  

The only thing I've found to be true in getting better at this game is the old saying "a good player works on his strengths.....a great player works his weaknesses into strengths"

[golfpros1]

neilcsd, on 25 January 2013 - 11:13 PM, said:

http://www.lakesidep...GolfSecrets.htm

I have no illusions about starting the game at 35, even though I feel I have come a tremendously long way in the last 5-ish months.  Pretty sure even if Rory and Tiger knew me, they'd not be up at night wondering how to hold me off.  However - this is a bit of a soul-crushing read.  It seems I found my calling waaaay too late.

Those of you that...know: tell me what you think.

the site looks like it's from 1997, but the advice seems sound.  you have to be born with the talent, you have to be driven enough to practice to the point of obsession, and if you marry the two together, you'll be a good player.  there's no book, technique, method, theory, flavor of the month idea, coach, lesson, or otherwise that can do a darn thing about it.

[isaacbm]

I've been in this kind of discussion a ton of times.

I feel the author is somewhat correct in his 3 main requirements but there are always exceptions to the rules.  Just like there is a chance a person can win the lottery.

I believe that nearly anyone can get to a single digit handicap level but I think there are some people that won't, no matter how hard they try or how much they want it.  There is a certain amount of natural ability that a person needs and only then will the hard work pay off.

Another analogy is that no matter how hard you study or how hard you want it, you can't get into Harvard Law with an IQ of 70.  You just can't.

[goobers80]

Jon Robert, on 26 January 2013 - 04:06 PM, said:

Tiemco, on 26 January 2013 - 01:57 PM, said:

Jon Robert, on 26 January 2013 - 12:14 PM, said:

The golf ball does not know how old you are

The golf course does......................................st note.....

I will admit the piano analogy is a bit flawed since it involves a lot more than just moving your fingers, but all concert pianists started young (and had a gift for music that can't be taught).  It is true that there are savants/autistics that can play the piano very well, but even they discovered the instrument at a very young age, and the ones you hear about generally do receive instruction from an early age.  This mirrors what you see in golf, in that you find some very young kids that seem to have a knack for the game, and their talent is nutured, but even then, that is no guarantee of becoming a great tour player.  I agree that you can become a very good golfer if you start later in life, especially if you are athletic, but to be a successful tour player, especially in this day and age, I would say it's basically impossible to do so if you start in your late teens, early twenties.  That doesn't mean you can't be a scratch player, or your club champion, but to reach that top level, it's not realistic.

P.S.  To my knowledge, there are no practicing concert pianists that are autistic/savants with mental disabilities.  While they might be proficient at the piano, they generally lack the ability to play the more difficult pieces with the speed, accuracy, emotion, and tonal color as someone without those handicaps.

"P.S.  To my knowledge, there are no practicing concert pianists that are autistic/savants with mental disabilities.  While they might be proficient at the piano, they generally lack the ability to play the more difficult pieces with the speed, accuracy, emotion, and tonal color as someone without those handicaps."


Some people think the greatest ball striker top have ever lived (Moe Norman) was somewhat autistic.  These other issues (maybe not age related such as you cite)  kept him from "making it" on tour.  Moe practiced a great deal to get that good.  What I find most interesting/ ponder a great deal is that maybe us "normal people" are holding ourselves back.

I haves autism and personality disorders and panic and stuffs and my biggest obstacle was always social sides of golf and never actually golfing on courses.  Peoples always say i *strike* the ball great , but i woulds not know personally. I used to have terrible panic attacks and stresses from peoples watchings me and stuffs. I finds it harder working on social things than golf stuffs any day.

You *normal peoples* or *Neurotypicals* do have it easy on the *other issues* fronts.  You tee it up worrying abouts hitting bad shots . I tee it up worrying abouts not messing up socially or being made fun of and stuffs , or if anxiety issues pop up. Also typical girl things abouts feeling ugly or hoping guys do nots try to hit on me or compliment my outfits or whatevers. Somebody always wants to corner me and talk no matter where i go , and peoples always stop to watch me hit. I have gotten use to it though.

I decided to nots let that stuff stop me anymore from trying to make it in golf (playing first and teaching second).  I finds golf itself pretty easy overall . My body is nots always coordinated , but i practice *big picture* things in golf. I have to practice social things and golf things.

Peoples will always try to keep you down , from their own jealousy or failures , but also a lot of peoples who are supportive and believes in you. Which is new things i have learned.

So , i thinks any of that article is *crap* . Peoples have much in them if they stop obsessing over all the pointless things in their lives. And nots let a set-back or failure stop them from going on.

Edited by goobers80, 28 January 2013 - 04:06 AM.

[Jarri]

I started playing golf in Sep 2009, so about 3 years and a few months ago.

I am turning 33 this April, so a late starter like yourself.

My current hcp is 2.3...

I guess you are getting the drift.

Whether you can get down quickly or not depends solely on whether you find the right answers or not...

There is just SOOOOOOO much of BULL........ teaching coming at you from all angles... from local pros to the elite (falsely though) Hank Haneys of the golfing world...

And what one teacher would say is the right thing to do, the other will tell you is the biggest mistake in your swing...

Just yesterday, SKY crew was commenting on how Tiger uses the ground so well by pushing into it which results in both his heels coming off the ground post impact... a few minutes later the US commentators were commenting how this is the last mistake remaining in Tiger's swing and is all because of his head dipping at the begining of the downswing and how this causes him to miss BIG time right.

Some of the comments so frequently made on TV that are SOOOO MISLEADING

- shoulder turn to 90°... they keep taking about it in every slow-mo

- Hip thrust to the left to start the down swing...

- One piece takeaway

- Loading the right side

- belt facing the target at the finish of the follow through

- Before all the crazy comments about swinging out to the right field and NOW the popular swing left

I can go on and on about it.

Disclaimer: all of the above are all good points, but without proper explanation they can lead to the such big swing flaws that you can be left on the wrong side of 20 hcp for life.

I'll give an example so that people don't start tearing me apart.

Take for example 90° shoulder turn they keep showing and talking about every slow-mo.

It's an imperative for long distance and good ball striking, YES... but what's they forget to mention is that this 90° turn should NOT be assisted by hip rotation at all. Your chest winds backwards but your lower back and hips RESIST. That's how you get the COIL and shoulder tilt in the backswing... VITAL.

What this 90° talk gets people doing is, just turn all the way from knees to shoulder. Result Flat shoulder, standing up, coming out of spine... YES they achieve the 90° turn and back towards the target, but they kill the entire backswing in the process.

Edited by Jarri, 28 January 2013 - 05:44 AM.

[240clutch]

I skimmed through most of the article, but what I've read so far I think there is some truths to the article.

Think about the many retired professional athletes, ex NFL, NHL, MLB, NBA etc... these people are very passionate in what ever they do. They know that getting good takes a lot of practice to be good and most of them began doing what they did at a young age. They most likely practiced their skill a lot, this is the innate talent that propels them to succeed, the talent is their strong drive, desire, combined with athletic ability(excellent visual perception, the hand eye coordination, mental focus, physical condition) for greatness in what ever they get into.

So as for examples in players like Jordan and Elway retired from their professions, they found golf as a good substitute to continue the thrill from training and competiting. Think of all the cerebral athletes that are decent golfers, many NFL QBs play decent golf. Its not a coincidence, its because they have an innate talent, and are able to transfer it into another skill through how they approach learning. With past successes, its much easier for them to pursue new things and be good at them, they are less discouraged by initial failure in golf because they beleive they are capable of better, thats why they play and practice until they figure it out, where as others might give up and accept their current short comings.

There's that 10,000 hours rule to support the time factor too.