Downswing is initiated before backswing is complete; feel it with the subtle move of the left knee reversing to the target unwinding the coil from the ground up Settle, squat : this is a key moment of containment in your downswing. Having reversed the momentum your core is quiet for a split second before the hips rotate through impact Fully released finish: hips and torso facing the target, knees kissing, balance fully maintained SEE, EEL, DO Good golf instruction is like good entertainment it has to grip your imagination and provide the opportunity to attach feelings and sensations to specific skillls and movements. Which is where Nick Bradley comes in with a second helping of visually inspired lessons to help you turn your game around ILLUSTRATIONS BY LEE J ROUSE THE KINETIC CHAIN UNDERSTAND THE DYNAMICS OF A NATURAL, BODY- CONTROLLED FLOW OF MOTION One of the fundamental if not the fundamental lessons that I learned as a young ambitious pro during my apprenticeship with David Leadbetter in Florida was the overriding importance of a good body action in terms of creating and repeating a solid golf swing. The pivot motion the winding and unwinding of the body is at the very heart of a repeatable, efficient action, and the illustrations here will help you to understand its dynamic. And the first point to make is that this is a flow of energy from the start of the movement to the finish. Think of the way a fisherman casts a fly...the graceful flow as he first gathers the rod with a smooth backswing, creating that essential lag in the arms as his body reverses the direction of travel, and then releases the weight of the cast with acceleration that has been naturally created by this kinetic flow of motion. The first image here (A), shows how the downswing should begin before the backswing is complete. To use the casting analogy, the tip of the fishing rod is still going back as the fisherman starts forward. You can see here the tassels on my left leg show the left knee is moving forward in response to the weight shift toward the target; it's a great image to think about as the first move down: Get those tassels going early. The next image (B) is the rest of the body's response to that initial move. All the tassels are now flowing with speed and direction. The last image (C) is a fully rotated finish. My right knee has fired into my left leg (more on that specific dynamic in a moment), my belt line is horizontal; and my chest is facing left of the target. Try this drill with your arms behind your back, and you'll feel the correct flow of energy. With repetition, you will strengthen the very heart of your golf swing, and enjoy creating more effortless speed which is the tour players secret. 114 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM SEPT/OCT 2015 SEPT/OCT 2015 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM 115
reaches t that th THREE POINTS IMPROVE JUDGEMENT, VISUALISATION I carry out most of my teaching in Florida, and while the general perception among most of you will be that we are blessed with perfect year-round golfing conditions, let me tell you, we get more than our share of wind. In fact the gusts that we experience in Florida can be as brutal as any links in the UK or Ireland. So which shot gets battered around most by an unforgiving crosswind? Which shot would you say is the most underestimated in terms of how a side wind can hurt it? Which shot do you think you are most likely to look at and think, How did that end up so wide of the hole? Well, you may be surprised to learn that it s the shorter shots that are most vulnerable pitches from inside 100 yards can bethis visualisation technique to factor in the conditions and make the necessary allowances. Don t give your playing partners the opportunity to call your shots a Clarke UNDERSTAND HOW TO RELEASE THE RIGHT ARM STRAIGHTEN FOR IMPACT The right arm can be a nemesis for both the good player and the weekend slicer. For the hooker and pusher of the ball, the right arm gets stuck behind the body turn on the way down causing it to approach the ball from a path that is too far from the inside. For the slicer, the right arm becomes tight and immobile during the downswing and as the body unwinds left so does the trailing (and out of sync) right arm. In both cases the right arm needs to release better. As you can see from the image, to promote this essential release to the swing, you must visualise that the right arm is at its maximum length as the club meets the ball. That isn t to say the right wrist has fully released but certainly the arm should have felt that it s done so. Imagine you were holding a blade with the intention of slicing the ball in two pieces rehearse that a few times to get the sensation I am talking about feels a bit different, eh? Liken this to a bow and arrow...once you have stretched the bow back what do you then it it do? You release it fully. You wouldn't draw back the arrow, release the bow and then suddenly restrict it from catapulting the arrow forwards. Your swing works in exactly the same way...draw it back...let it go. 116 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM SEPT/OCT 2015 SEPT/OCT 2015 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM 117
reaches th SQUARE STROKE IS THE ACE IN THE HOLE Simple drill for consistency This is a visual drill I have used with many tour professionals but it probably worked best the week Justin Rose won at Valderamma to capture the 2007 European Tour Order of Merit. Its so simple yet so effective. Much of golf is founded on the ability to sense or create the correct resistance with the strike of the ball. For example, there is a different strike rate and pressure when you hit a driver as opposed to a putter. One is faster and harder, the other softer and slower; I hope you can at least see that. So rather than using a deck of cards as I have done in my book, you can use a wide matchbox or even a symmetrical small block of wood. Very simply you need to practise your stroke until you can move the block or the matchbox in a perfectly straight line when you can do this you know that the putter face is square at impact. The deck of cards you see here are merely to illustrate the effect of an unstable (i.e. not square) putter-face through the ball. The knock-on effect that will really serve you well is the resistance to a square strike you will habitually develop your hands will know what square is through repetition. Stack this deck in your favour by teaching your hands that its ok to be square. BUNKER BALLISTICS Imagine gliding the sand iron through on a pair of skis... I carry out most of my teaching in Florida, and while the general perception among most of you will be that we are blessed with perfect year-round golfing conditions, let me tell you, we get more than our share of wind. In fact the gusts that we experience in Florida can be as brutal as any links in the UK or Ireland. So which shot gets battered around most by an unforgiving crosswind? Which shot would you say is the most underestimated in terms of how a side wind can hurt it? Which shot do you think you are most likely to look at and think, How did that end up so wide of the hole? Well, you may be surprised to learn that it s the shorter shots that are most vulnerable pitches from inside 100 yards can be buffeted sideways as the ball falls out of the air. And the reason for this is very simple: typically a ball travelling this far simply doesn t have the forward velocity to penetrate the wind. And the higher it flies, the more it is at its mercy. I use the imageand make the necessary allowances. Don t give your playing partners the opportunity to call your shots a Clarke Gable. Whats that? you ask. Gone with the Wind! 118 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM SEPT/OCT 2015
THINK KISSING KNEES FOR THAT TEXTBOOK FINISH Allowing your right knee to fire in to achieve what I call kissing knees at the finish promotes several key goals in an efficient golf swing. Using this sequence of imagery, allowing the hips to re-rotate in the downswing frees up the right knee to work towards its left-sided counterpart into the follow-through position. This kissing knees feeling will further promote the correct weight to shift to the lead foot in the downswing. Another benefit is that for anyone who tends to deliver the low point of their swing arc too far behind the ball (resulting in drop kicks and thins), firing the right knee into the finish will shift that low point forward of the ball, increasing the chances of making the desired ball-turf contact with the irons. So allow that right knee to fire trough the impact area, kiss the left knee, and get your weight working the way it should to arrive at the finish with the majority of your weight on the left foot, balance on the toe of the right SPIN THE COVER THE SATISFYING ART OF PITCHING No, not the dreaded spinning spectrum you see on your Mac when you re about to lose an important file...though we ve all been there. This is simply a visual to use when it comes to striking your pitch shots with a style and conviction that generates backspin, enable you to control trajectory and dance the ball around the flag. I remember Nick Faldo talking about the way he would imagine there was a small piece of sandpaper on the face of his wedges, and how he would then imagine ripping the paper under the ball with his wedge shots to generate spin. That s a great idea to go out and try. This one will also help you: imagine you are setting up to oe of thos multi-colored beach balls, and that you are going to impart a spin to get the strike it in such a way that it is going to set spinning the moment it leaves the clubface. Covering the ball with your chest/upper body, weight moving onto the forward foot THE LOW STINGER STAY IN THE SHOT doesn t matter if I consult with a PGA Tour player, top amateur or passionate club golfer when it comes to pitching technique and the visualisation skills required to get the ball close to the hole, there is one basic premise you have to understand: trajectory is king. All of the great short game exponents have the ability to control the trajectory of their approach or scoring shots and they develop their repertoire in terms of matching a certain spin and ball flight with ground conditions, contours of the green and pin location. You need to do the same. As a metaphor for a green let s use a dartboard to demonstrate a simple truth about great pitching. If you throw a dart at the board in the fairly high trajectory, typically, it will lose its forward momentum and pitch at the bottom somewhere around the number three (front of the green). Conversely, if in the next throw you send the dart off with more speed and on a more level flight, it s likely it will find its way above the bull s-eye and higher up the board (back of the green). It s interes reaches the peak of it s flight it loses forward momentum and will drift with the wind most significantly so in the closing stages of its flight 120 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM SEPT/OCT 2015 SEPT/OCT 2015 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM 121
Through the hoops: matching trajectory to locate a given pin position is key to a smart pitching strategy. The shaft plane on exit reflects your intentions with the shot: so that s a Nick Bradley lives in North Carolina, USA. He has coached winners on every major tour in the world and was part of Paul McGinley s advisory team during the 2014 Ryder Cup. To inquire about private two-day game consultancy programmes, please contact Nick on his website: www.nickbradleygolf.com 94 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM JULY/AUGUST 2015 JULY/AUGUST 2015 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM 95
RIDING THE WIND GRAB YOUR SKATEBOARD! There are times on links golf where you meet the perfect storm: downwind, wide open fairway, firm fast turf and a driver in your hands. In this situation you should have some fun and to do so let rip at a high-flying drive whose sole purpose is to ride the wind for as long, hard and far as it can. Take a look at this image; it gives you all the right feelings to assign the proper launch angle into the back of the ball. In essence here are the keys that create the links launcher : 1. Tee the ball up so at least half the ball is above the face of the club 2. Drop the right side of the body lower than the left. You should allow the right arm to soften and bend a little 3. Sense your weight is pressured slightly more onto the back foot 4. Lastly, look where I am directing my eyesight. It s up! So pre-determine this high launch by anticipating its trajectory (you will also gain the sensation you are looking under the shot more) One of the best sights in golf is to see the white ball launch high into a dark cloud with the sun behind. I hope you get the chance to do this this year; if you do, savour it. reaches the peak of it s flight it loses forward momentum and will drift with the wind most significantly so in the closing stages of its flight 96 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM JULY/AUGUST 2015 JULY/AUGUST 2015 GOLFINTERNATIONALMAG.COM 97