What part of this blog asked you to share your undeniable, way too deep understanding of a driver. What is your current Remax world long drive ranking?

Or if you are taking an excerpt from Dan’s book, please give credit where credit is due. Although, Dan would never write with such condescending tone.

With a stronger-grip-position at setup, the clubface will tend to be more closed at the start of the release, so that less turning of the arms and hands are needed to turn the clubface from open to square during the release. For a weak-grip-position, the arms, and the hands may have to turn up to 90 degrees to close the opened clubface to square at impact during the release. With a stronger-grip-position, the clubface may already be partially more closed (less opened) at the start of the release, so that much less than a 90 degree turn is needed during the release. For example, is the clubface is already 30 degrees closed at the start of the release due to the stronger-grip-position, on a 60 degrees turn rather than a 90 degrees turn is needed to square the clubface at impact. Less turning of the arms, and hands during the release contributes to increase accuracy, and more significantly to increased consistency.

Less turning of the arms and hands during the release tends to increase the ability to lag deeper into the downswing. A deep lag contributes to a more consistent inside-out clubhead swing path.

Less arms and hands turning also contributes to contacting the ball nearer the sweet spot of the clubface, as there are less movements during the release.

With easier and more consistent squaring of the clubface during the release, with more consistent inside-out clubhead swing path from increased lag, and with more accurate and consistent contact nearer the sweet spot of the clubface, more clubhead speed can be generated as both the downswing, and the release can be performed faster with increased lag providing better wrist cock for the hit.

While a stronger-grip-position provides an easier release, as less turning of the hands and the arms are needed during the release, does a weak-grip-position makes the release harder to perform? Hogan switched to a weak-grip-position (the v’s of thumb and forefinger pointing up to the chin with no knuckles showing) during the later part of his career. In his second 5-lessons book, he described extensive hands and arms strengthening exercises like squeezing balls, twisting towels, long sessions of back-and-forth practice mini release swings without a ball, and tossing a medicine ball. This seem to imply the weak-grip-position to be harder to perform, as a lot of special exercises are needed to strengthen the hands and arms. Miller being tall can use the weak-grip-position more naturally, but he too advocates on Youtube a special exercise of some kind of “giant-sized-waggle” where he demonstrates addressing the ball, and taking a fairly full backswing, and then swinging (waggling) the clubhead back down to the address position without actually hitting the ball, so that he has the hands taking various turned orientations to either slightly close, open or square the clubface angle for producing various draws, fades, or straight shots. It is seldom seem these types of unusual hand and arm exercises given by strong-grip-position players. In general, the implication is that a weak-grip-position is harder to perform consistently, while a stronger-grip position is easier to perform consistently to square the clubface at impact, to better clubhead inside-out swing path by increasing lag, to increase hitting nearer the sweet spot of the clubface with less turning motion during the release, and to increase distance by increasing swing speed as an easier swing is easier to perform faster, and by hitting the more often on the sweet spot of the clubface.

There are four basic shot trajectories for the driver:

(1) Straight (with variations of high, low, medium height, straight-fade, and straight-draws)

(2) Right (for right handers with variations of straight-push, straight-slice, pushed-slice, pulled-slice, rarely push-hooks, and the fade)

(3) Left ( for right handers with variations of straight-pull, hook, pulled-hook, duck-hook, and the draw)

(4) Mishits (topping, fat, toed, heeled, whiffed)

It is simple, as there are only four basic trajectories, while it is complicated as there are many variations. Other than having the basically straight trajectory, it is important to identify precisely the precise variation of the problem (ie. straight-push, straight-pull, pulled-slice, fade, hook, duck-hook, etc.) as the fixes can differ significantly.

Technically, the factors effecting shot trajectories, and their variations are clubface angle at impact, clubhead swing paths (in, out, down, up, lever,) and center contact. Clubhead speed can be made a separate issue to be not considered in trajectory analysis.

Performance wise, these technical factors are managed by tradition golfing techniques of grip positioning (strong, weak,) setup positions (stance with feet closed, squared, or opened,) weight distribution, stance distance from ball, ball positioning (in front of leading heel for driver, center of stance for mid-irons usually, and toward rear foot for wedges usually other than sand-wedge), posture at setup (rear shoulder lower than leading shoulder, head tilt towards rear shoulder at setup, or not, leading arm straight, rear arm slightly bend usually at setup,) waggling path if used, backswing path of arms, downswing initiation with lower body, maintaining “lag” during first part of the downswing, proper release in the “hitting zone” (hands and arms rotate toward target during the release as the hands are open at the end of the “lag”, and the hands are squared at impact,) hand positions at impact (hands ahead and in front of ball for irons and fairway woods, hands even with the ball for the driver,) and finally the followthrough (visualizing the clubhead being swung down low out along the target line with the visualized clubhead face square or slightly closed can be used.)

The last paragraph described the full driver swing from setup to follow through in a very brief summary, so that it is somewhat involved. Slow motion picture sequences can illustrate the phases of the full swing by the body to control the four basic technical parameters of clubface angle, clubhead swing path, center impact on the clubface, and clubhead speed.

Only two of the four technical parameters need to be worked on by the advanced player usually, as an advanced player should have little problems in making contact with the ball at the center of the clubface. Clubhead speed can be treated as a separate issue from directional control, and there are simple techniques to hit long “effortlessly,” one such technique is described in my book, and it is mentioned in several past comments on this website.

Clubface angle is squared during the final part of the release phase of the downswing. In order to maintain an inside-to-out downswing path, the “lag” is maintained “deep” into the downswing to just before impact. The “lag” is having the wrists remaining cocked, and the back (top) of the leading hand, and the palm of the rear hand facing toward the target line away from the target. The longer the “lag” is maintained before impact, the better the inside-out swing path can be generated during the downswing. The top champions can maintain their “lag” until the hands have swung down to just a foot or even less to the ball just before impact before they “release” the hands and arms to rotate the hands and arms to square at impact.

At the start of the release (end of the lag,) the back of the leading hand, and the palm of the rear hand face 90 degrees (a quarter turn) away from the target direction. By impact a very short time later, the hands and forearm have turned 90 degrees toward the target at the moment of impact. This turning happens in a very short time, as the top players maintain their lag very deep into the downswing before releasing and turning the hands and arms (turning done in conjunction the the turning of the shoulders and hips.)

A deep lag, and the proper release ensure first a good inside-out clubhead downswing path, and second a good squared face at impact. This may be the most important secret to great golf shots.

If I could help you I would, but then I probably wouldn’t have shot a 46-36 myself earlier this week. If it wasn’t so confusing we probably would have moved on to another sport. At least I know now what I can look forward to in another 50+ years
see you out there after my weekend at Emerald Valley,
Dan