When I teach golf schools, during which we teach the long game and all aspects of the short game, I always get a reawakening to the reality of the similarities that exist for both. The reality is that for most golfers, their short game setup and swings are a reflection of their long game. This simply means that the good and the bad of their putting, chipping, pitching and sand games setup and swings have the same qualities as their long game setup and swings.
If they have bad alignment in their long game, it is there in their short game. Bad posture in the long swing setup is present the same way in the short game. Take away move and swing features in the long swing are the same in the short game. I guess we can simply say that how one sets up and swings for long swings carries over to all the short shots. After all, we are what we are.
When I was the Director of Instruction for Sea Pines Resort, our main golf school was the one day golf academy. We maxed out at 20 students, kept a 4 to 1 teacher to student ratio of head and assistant instructors and broke up the class into two groups. I always taught the long game and my head instructors always taught the short game which included, first and foremost, putting, chipping, pitching and sand play. Lunch was the halfway point of the day after which the groups switched instructors and programs.
My head instructors and I always had a special meeting before we sat down with our students for lunch. We met to discuss the setup and swing characteristics of each player in our group. This quick meeting was our way of giving each other a heads up of what we were going to see in the setup and swing characteristics of every student with our new group in the afternoon session. It was absolutely uncanny how many golfers are exactly what they are in setup and swing for both their long and short game, both in good features and bad. This means that setup adjustments and swing corrections usually apply to both the long and short game.
So, if you take a lesson to fix your driver or iron play, whatever setup and swing advice you receive will likely apply to all aspects of your game. Aim your clubface or body right or left with your driver and you are likely aiming the same with your irons, pitching, chipping and putting. Move your knees and legs too much with your driver, and it is a good bet you are doing it with everything else. Ball position too much forward or back in your stance with your driver and your ball will likely be in the same place for all your other shots. Over swing with your driver and likely your backswing is too long with all your other clubs.
This past golf school was a reaffirmation of this to me in this concept of 'we are what we are' with all the students. Just about every setup and swing issue we saw in their long game was present in all parts of their short game. The good was good all the way through and the mediocre to bad was also present all the way through. The good news about this is that what is corrected applies to all your golf game.
My Surgism for impact states, 'The ball does not know what club you are holding and swinging.' The laws apply the same to all the clubs and all swings.
So, if you are working on your setup and swing, whatever changes or adjustments you make that helps improve one part, very likely can and should be checked into and applied to all parts. The physics of the club hitting the ball and the physiology of the body swinging applies to all clubs and all shots, from the driver to the putter. So too does the setup. As we all know, 'The setup determines the swing.'
The Surge!