The D Plane in Golf
D Plane in very simple terms is the correct ball flight laws in a 3D explanation. I say correct because often they’re referred to as new. They’re not new to me, in that the PGA (UK) was teaching these ball flight laws when I embarked upon the PGA diploma 12 years ago.
They were in fact touched upon in the book Search for the Perfect Swing, first published in 1968, the term D plane was popularised by Theodore Jorgensen in the book The Physics of Golf. This is not to say I wasn’t taught off the incorrect ball flight laws when I first started to play!
In brief:
The Clubs direction; The club is traveling in a swing plane (a circle around the golfer), at the same time the club is traveling inline, in to out, out to in (from a horizontal perspective) the club is also traveling level, upward or downward (from a vertical perspective).
The Clubs orientation; The club has loft and is therefore pointing upward, then there’s the lie angle which can be upright or flat and the face position open, closed or square.
At impact the ball is on the face for 1/2000 of a second, one assumes a centred strike to negate the account of the gear effect on spin axis.
Assuming a centred strike the balls starting direction is 85% face.
The D Plane demonstrated in pictures:
The above is a great illustration as it shows how the golfer is able to hit a draw with an ‘open’ club face and below is an example of a lesson where we’ve talked about the exit of the club, note the position of the face in the picture on the right, this golfer hit a push draw.
For further D Plane information see the below links:
http://johngrahamgolf.com/blog/d-plane-golf/
http://3jack.blogspot.com/2009/01/d-plane-and-ball-flight-laws.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSGV1E0c-yw&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uepMzddHpas&feature=player_embedded#!
Sam Quirke
PGA Head Professional
The Stack and Tilt Golf Swing – fundamentals.
The Stack and Tilt Golf Swing – fundamentals.
Allow me to begin by asking you a question, what are the fundamentals of golf?
I would expect you to answer with grip, stance, posture, alignment, ball position etc. These are the answers I most often hear, and why wouldn’t I this has been drilled into golfers for years. I’m going to raise a few eyebrows now and put it to you that these are in fact variables and not fundamentals. Once you’ve finished choking on your tea and for that I apologise please continue reading.
When we look to the worlds greatest golfers i.e. PGA Tour how often do you see the same ‘fundamental’ `I’d argue not very often at all. Do the tour golfers past and present have the same grips? No, some are strong some are weak. Do the tour golfers have the same stance and posture? No. Do the tour golfers aim in the same place, absolutely not! In one grouping to have the ball finish in the same place there could be potentially 80 yards in distance between the two points the golfers where aiming.
So my next question would be how would you define fundamental? Dictionary.com states a basic principle, rule, law, or the like, that serves as the groundwork of a system. If this is the case would the above ‘fundamentals’ be correct?
Stack and Tilt prescribes the following fundamentals and importantly in this order:
The golfer must be able to hit the ground in the same place each time.
Have enough power to play the golf course.
Control the curvature.
As one works his way through the handicaps from a beginning golfer with no handicap to tour professional one can see how these fundamentals apply. Does the beginning golfer hit the ground in the same spot each time? If you were to line up 29 players in handicap order form 0 to 28 on a grass range and asked them to hit 100 balls from a line, as you moved from one side of the range to the other you’d be able to see the variety in dispersion of divots (in relation to the line) become tighter as the golfers ability increased. This pattern is then true of distance, as you moved down the line you’d see the ball going progressively further as the ability increased. Lastly the better the golfers ability the more predicable a pattern they would hit as the ability improved i.e. handicap decreased.
The last fundamental controlling the curve is not necessarily to be able to work the ball in all directions but in fact to hit the ball in a predictable pattern or cone whether it be fade or draw bias. When golfers talk to me about wanting to improve there golf, I hear the phrase inconsistent so often. We all want to hit the ball far, to be able to achieve this we must be hitting the ground in the same place consistently and now we want to be able to predict with some regularity where the ball is going to go and on what trajectory / shape i.e. be consistent!
At first glance this may appear to be asking a lot, I disagree, once order an order of pieces to work on has been established, always keeping in mind the fundamentals the golfer may work through the appropriate parts and see positive change quickly.
Sam Quirke
PGA Head Professional
Authorised Stack and Tilt instructor
www.stackandtiltgolfswing.com/instructors/
Effective Practice
If you’re reading this, it’s more than likely you have a certain level of interest in golf. Either that or you did a search for ‘golf’ because you were looking for a car. I fear the former far more likely however.
The title of this brief article is effective practice, now in order for this to apply first the player must practice. I recently conducted a short game clinic with 8 attending, I might add fairly seasoned club golfers, of which none had practised their bunker shots in the last 6 months!!! Now you’ve finished smirking, when did you last practise yours?
When practising, what are you trying to achieve? Is it measured? Is it effective?
All too often the answer to these questions carries a negative connotation and the inevitable excuse, too many to list, on the whole though I regularly hear the same ones. Unfortunately for the golfer because I’ve heard the same ones I’ll have an answer.
Do you use training aids? Do you practise with someone? Do you use video? No? No? No? I thought as much. The golfers who I coach whom have improved the fastest, usually use at least one of the above. What this actually means…….you are measuring your practice, there is some sort of a reference point or target to achieve. No sales based business has ever been successful without targets. Why are you any different?
Are you practising or rehearsing? In recent times when I ‘hit the range’ I’ll take a couple of clubs, a camera and most definitely at least one alignment stick (the mark of one serious about practice, and they look cool). My point being if I’m going to work on my swing I don’t need a bag of clubs. What I do need is some good swing thoughts and pieces to work on to improve my swing, all in an effort to play better golf and thus increase my enjoyment of the game!
The focus should be on making good swings in order to propel the ball rather than trying to propel the ball!?! Exaggerate the changes, in ten years of coaching I can recall two people that have overdone a swing improvement. So if your coach has told you to for example tuck your right elbow in, superglue it to your ribcage! It’s probably wise at this juncture in this litigious society to point out I am not being literal, I am however exaggerating. See what I did there?
Next time you venture to the range, make your practice effective.
Sam Quirke
PGA Head Professional
