I can see ya'll scratching your head, wondering what the heck a 'Secondary Spine Angle Tilt' is. And what does it have to do with Wayne's question below. It has everything to do with it, as well as all the concerns he discusses and comments he makes. It is the cause, as Wayne says, of laying the club off when he starts his downswing.
Wayne Sparinga says:
Surge,
I want to tell you that I enjoy and benefit from your daily swing messages.
I have a question on the swing. I've been practicing with my flip video and noticed when swinging long irons and driver that I have a tendency to lay the club off to the 10 to 11 o'clock position at the beginning of the down swing. At the top of the back swing the club is perfectly at 12 o'clock with lead wrist flat and elbows and hands forming an equilateral triangle. Is this something I should be concerned about? It appears my club approaches the ball from a slightly inside to out swing path. I do have to focus intently on keeping the club at 12 o'clock at the top of the backswing. If I do not concentrate on putting it there, I lay the club off to the 10 o'clock position, which feels like a more natural position. This is not a problem with short irons, 7 and up. I live in Pennsylvania and have not been able to hit balls outside, so I can't provide any ball flight information. Any help you can provide will be greatly appreciated.
The Surge says:
For starters, 'Secondary Spine Angle Tilt' is Dr. Ned Armstrong's (my physiology mentor for the past 25 years) term that he uses to describe the movement of the upper torso tilting a little backwards in the transition because of the BUMP.
The Bump is a lateral left shift of a flexed left knee and hip to start the downswing. The bump which starts the downswing (forward up swing 'FUS' as I call it) actually happens a split second before the arms, hands and club reach the top of the backswing. This is the same motion as skipping a rock or throwing a ball. The forward motion of the lower body starts toward the target while the hand and arm is still lifting upward to the top to throw the rock or ball. Let's take a look at what the Foundation Swing Manual says about the bump.
The Bump
Notes
The Peak Performance Golf Swing is one fluid motion. There is no pause or stop at the top. Before you reach the top of your back swing, your lower body, hips and legs, bump (slide or shift) left toward target, and 'runs away' from your upper body, which causes the body to bend or bow, slightly to the right – behind the ball. The bump sets into motion three automatic reactions.
1. It transfers weight from the right foot to the left.
2. It pulls the arms and club straight down in a brief free fall. Until…
3. The exact split second the weight transfer reaches the outside edge of the
left foot, the hips snap into a level left turn, further pulling down the arms
which are simultaneously exploding to and through the ball, down the line,
then up to the finish.
Face On
At this point, I feel like, and picture in my mind's eye, that I swing the club straight down, and straight up again, with my palms and club always remaining perpendicular to the ground. However, I know the 'Bump' and body bowing causes the arms and club to fall a little back'”laid off.” This happens naturally, but you must try to resist it and maintain that straight up and down feeling of the hands and club. This automatically 'sets the
angle' and 'drops the club in the slot…' What everyone works so hard to get!
1. Club looks a little laid off. Feels like palms are still perpendicular, the club is above hands at 12:00. Left is still relatively straight.
2. Body bends as the lower part of your body starts to move away from the upper part of your body.
3. The Bump causes the spine angle to tilt right and pulls your arms and club back a little so your head is behind the ball at impact.
4. Both knees are flexed and moving towards target.
Wayne, as you see in this description of the Bump, and what you see in your video of the club laying off at the start of the downswing is, in fact, a correct result of a good transition move. The critical point, as you said, is you have to focus at keeping it at 12:00 o'clock. Now you know it actually does not stay at 12, but lays off a little. The key is you must fight the lay off, using the right or bottom hand and arm to keep feeling that the club is still vertical. If you do not fight or resist the lay off of the club, the worse it will lay off. Let the club lay off and you will suffer the fate of hitting power blocks and then big pulls to duck hooks. Sergio Garcia went through this problem a few years ago.
Another big point you mentioned is that it is not a big problem with the 7 iron and up to the wedges. This is due to the longer the club, with the heads farther from the grip, the more they are affected by gravity pulling the club head down as the shaft starts to lay off. So, as the clubs get longer, the effort and energy to resist the lay off must increase to maintain the feeling of vertical and minimize the lay off.
The PPGS is swinging on the maximum vertical inclined plane for your posture. The key to remember is the maximum vertical plane is the same on both sides of the ball. The swing is on an inclined plane, and at the transition the Secondary Spine Angle Tilt causes the club to lay off. It is imperative that we must resist and fight the force of gravity pulling the club down. I will conclude with my Surgism that addresses the times in the swing, like the transition, when you have to make things happen to control the club to make a good swing and hit a good shot: 'I must swing the club'¦The club does not swing me.'
The Surge!