Do Not Hit Down

Thanks, Hal, very nice reply. Some people,like T mentions below whine about anything. Most haven't purchased the swing series videos and have no plans to do so, yet they expect Don to just unload all his knowledge without compensation. I, for one, appreciate the time he takes out of his busy schedule to offer these free tips "from his back porch" and like the personal feel that they give to the tip or thought of the day. Should I ever find the time, I intend to take a school in the future, hopefully within 3 years as that is my time left before I retire. I want to get as good as possible before then so I can play the game to my fullest potential. I think this will be a great way to further bond and develop my relationship with my son, Joshua. For the regulars here, we did get back the clinical results Wednesday & Joshua does indeed have Asperger's.
 I guess, I'll go ahead and make this my main comment for the video. Thank you,Surge, for today's video. I'm reminded of when Jesus would give the masses a parable and then the disciples would question him about it. "Though seeing, they do not see. Though hearing, they do not hear." It's pretty simple to all those that have purchased your series and followed along daily( or near about) what you mean by "Do Not Hit Down" on the ball. We know your style, semantics and can follow what your saying without a hitch and often find it quite humorous when you get excited and occasionally "misspeak", i.e., calling your left arm your right. It's no biggie. So in closing, Surge, thanks for the tip about not hitting down on the ball.
We're going from the BUS to the T-finish via the FUS and swinging through the ball , as if it isn't even there.
Happy golfing everyone,
Boog

"Put up or shut-up"

Good night to you Dick, I'll be up at 5am to play 9 before 8am and work from 9-7pm.
PMG

Glenn:  Just go to the top of this blog, and on the right side you will see a box to type in "key word or phrase".  Type in what you are looking for and hit the square green button below the key word box.  All posts relating to that subject will be shown.  Enjoy.  Also, buy the video series that the Surge sells ( it is a very reasonable cost).  Everything you need to know is in there.  Good luck to you.  R2 

Boog

I echo what Robert said.

You are one of my heroes.
Dick

Robert F:

   I hate to admit it, but I have been accused of being "that Old Sandbagger AMos" on a few occasions.   LOL

    Amos

I too purchased a tour striker 8 iron. Don did a segment on the tour striker and said one's hands would have to be way out in front of the ball at address. This is absolutely wrong. I have my hands in a normal address position. If we are swinging correctly our hands are slightly ahead of the club head at impact. This produces solid contact. You are not actually hitting down and yes if you swing with Don's thought of hitting up you achieve the same result. Everyone who has tried this club loves it. However it is not difficult to hit this iron correctly and the price may be a bit steep for the benefit gained unless of course one has a totally disconnected uncoordinated swing.

Steve, you and Phil Mickleson have alot in common! He never needs a fairway offf the tee. Say thanks Steve :)

Thanks gman, well said and oh so true. I have recently gone back to zealously reviewing the many purchased video lessons I have from Don. I have them all including both putting videos. It comes out I buy it because I know it is the swing for me and Surge has several decades of applied golf wisdom that always makes sense and never stops helping every time I view and practice these timeless lessons. Looking back over the past 3 years I think the grand total is less than $110.00. Last night a family dinner we had though joyful cost over $300.00 and my golf did not improve one stroke LOL! Because my timing was right a couple years ago I was able to score the Junior Blurprint video. Though it only makes up a small percentage of my vast Surge library, I feel he could charge 100.00 for it alone. The back portch and vast archives of tips? Wow he really could charge more over-all. Don't worry Surge Nation, the prices will stay reasonable because that's how Surge rolls.

Robert, thanks for the kind words, my friend.

I do yes, I will give them a look over again, now I know what to focas at this point on hopefully the left arm/wrist will quickly improve, even though I am trying to keep the palms perpendicular at this point I still am struggling, so wonder if it is a strength issue too because it is a new movement. Getting in the position in the first place is key I know that.
I am going to slightly adjust my grip, right arm position & loaded heavy right, lift the club whilst turning my shoulders and waist. Simple! Ha ha   

I have never had a hit down swing thought but it helps me to have a back swing, downswing and forward upswing post impact. Backswing and FUS just don't do it for me for some reason as I see the swing in three parts but I see why you may want to elimate the word down pre impact.
But the word down may help me trying to get the club in the slot as I am casting the club forward at the top of the backswing creating a out to in swing path.
Regards

First, Surge doesn't say not to take any divot, just not to take a big divot. The same advice as Moe Norman, whom many believe to be the best ball striker to ever live, and the same as Tom Watson, a guy who has had some small success in the game of golf.

People will take any advice and stretch it well past the breaking point, which is the common problem with "hit down on the ball." Your average Joe Golfer goes out there and figures the problem with his ball striking is that he's clearly not sufficiently hitting down on the ball and next thing you know he's swinging like Charles Barkley trying to get to China.

The objective is to hit the ball as close as possible to the bottom of the swing arc. Period. That's where you get the greatest acceleration and the cleanest contact. Also, though, Surge wants us to focus on finishing the swing up to the T finish. We release up through impact. Yes, the club is technically still descending slightly or level for a couple inches after the ball, but the thought we as players should have is getting to the finish, not stopping in the middle to dig a new drainage ditch.

Kevin, my back and elbow both felt better today so when I got home the lab & I went outdoors. I went through my swingrite warm up and then dropped a foamer on the ground. Started my swing tune and got to my swing note and let it fly. I made sure I was skipping the rock but was hitting hooks for some reason. Trying to determine what the culprit was for those,maybe I was subconsciously steering the clubhead that way to avoid Honey, she seemed over-eager today to retrieve and was breaking from her kennel/sit position about the time I bumped. Perhaps, it's the offset in my current sticks, I think the ball position was good, nadir was just in front of the ball which was in the middle of my stance. I was also using an 8 iron. I don't think I was early with my release but will diagnose it all soon enough.I was pleasantly suprised , however, I thought the first few swings with the "rock toss" would give me some problems like chunking but it did not. I felt like I was getting into the slot well also.
 Boog

yeah, I know, I need some fresh videos of the swing,they're coming soon.

Thanks Don, alot!!!

mw

To the Miner brothers

You guys should get together and give each other a lesson.

Never mind, what is that old saying? 

Two miners don't make a major.

Dick

I would have to agree.

T:  Great minds think alike!  Being an old electrical worker, I thought about using the Uni-strut.  I was over at Home Depot on Tuesday and seen most of the parts you've mentioned.  I purchased them (cost about $15.00) and proceeded to build one and it works great.  And, like you said, it is heavy duty!   Problem solved.   Hope your weekend is great and thanks for watching out for me - I need all the help I can get!  LOL,LOL  R2  

I had been watching DJ's day on PGA shot tracker during his first nine. The telecast on Golf Channel was saying that 1 over was probably the cut. Then my wife and I went to the gym and I followed DJ on my DroidX phone and his shot by shot game. I was living and dying with every well hit/ poor hit good putt, missed putt, par saves and bogies. When he went back to even for the day with # 7 par 5 coming up I thought birdy time. A rare poor drive lead to a par. Then still even for the day but 2 over I felt he had to birdy 8 or 9 ( (his 17/18). Bogied 8 and birdied his last hole # 9. Even for the day but 2 over for the tourny. Then when I checked on line at home just now, 3 over is now the cut line! He's in by a stroke. Hopefully things will get better over the week end. Tough course on a windy day. He hung on well today.

You want I should send you my old 1 iron? It has an X steel shaft. :)

*tipping my cap to the gman*

Kevin, thanks for the in-depth analysis of your session of swing experiments. As soon as my back allows me to swing again without further aggravation I shall give do a little experimenting of my own. Like a dummy, last night as I was working my swingrite indoors I did an uh-oh and am feeling it today.I started on the low 9 setting and worked my way down to where I normally do and was about 3 swings into that setting when for some unknown reason I didn't get my weight all the way to the outside on my left foot so at the T finish I was in one wicked "reverse C". You know the feeling you get when you know the outcome before hand, that was me,lol. So today, I'm paying for it but I should be good to go about Sunday.
Thanks for the report and continued success.
Boog

Hi Kevin,

I just walked in the door, sat down and you cracked me up!

I snuck in a couple of laps at Tanglewood (par 27) this afternoon, and on the second round, posted a 30.  If I hadn't lost a ball on the eighth hole, I would have had a good chance at 28.  That follows up a 30 on Wednesday.  I'm feeling pretty good with my irons, chipping and putting going into tomorrow.  I'll be playing a tourney in Palmer, so wish me luck.

Hit'em Long and Straight,
Bob

Nor do I necessarily disagree with you. I'm just quoting the Foundations Manual.

Very good and very correct point to be made. Well done.

I went outside and hit some balls earlier, trying out what I experimented with yesterday. What I identified to work on works really well. Instead of using my 7-iron, I went with the 8-iron and was hitting balls as far as I was hitting my 7-iron yesterday. The only problem I seem to have, and it affects everything else, is intro­ducing tension either during the forward press or the shift
right. I tend to push down with my hands as I am doing the forward press. That causes my arms and shoulder to tighten up and my upper body to dip toward the ball. I need to be aware of that and fix it before I swing. The other tension producer is slouching when I slide the two inches right to pre-load heavy right. The only way I know to describe it is that movement that Annika Sorenstam did after hitting her opening tee shot at Colonial a couple of years ago. It is sort of a sink­ing down on the right side with an excessive tilt of the spine to the right and back slightly. If I can avoid both of those tendencies or at least learn how to stop my swing as I do them, I believe I can see a drastic improvement in my golf swing.

Hal, Some people are just natural born whiners. They prefer to bitch and whine about all the free things in life, yet they're still the first in line to get all of the hand outs. Strange folks indeed and very hard to figure out or please.  Cheers

For all Surgites,

I know this has been said before, but it bears repeating. Ignore the negative comments and be civil. There are a lot of people who like to instigate intense discussions. When we have a knee-jerk reaction to that instigation, we serve only to perpetuate. I doubt that Don or DJ would react this way, so, since it is Don's site, let's comport ourselves as Don does. May peace descend upon and remain in the Surge Nation.

During this Memorial Day weekend, please remember all those who have made the ultimate sacrifice so that we can have animated discussions without fear of reprisal.

Kevin

I for one LIKE the instruction from the 19th hole.

More than a slight fade with the driver, I am battling the outside in path and just not got the dropping of the club at the top to get it in the right position pre impact. I know in my head how the swing needs to be but doing it is another matter.
Repetition and trying is the key hopefully, if I know what I should be doing I am halfway there right?,
I have studdied it that much in the last 9 months I am sure I could teach the Surge swing!Lol
Just not mastered it yet, but I will. 

After investing in the Tour Striker, which causes me to hit down on the ball, my distance and accuracy improved.  If the theory behind the Tour Striker is wrong, (hitting down on the ball) why has its use caused my stroke to improve?  Further more, why is there disagreement over the issue of hitting down.  I've heard different Pros advocate hitting down, and then some like yourself call it "Rubbish."  How does one argue with success?  I do agree, if one hits down on the ball, and hits it "fat" it does sting.

David,  Below the video discourse, in the last sentence, you will see TRY CLICKING HERE, highlighted in blue. Give that a try. Also, just below the video, to the left of the video enlargement icon, you will see a UTUBE ICON, just click on that to watch the Utube version. There are a few videos between 5/28 and 5/30, in which the last sentence of the discourse has a click here with the HERE IN GREEN to click for the Utube version. I think the new posts since 1 June, will be around for a while. If that does not work for you, you can still view ALL of the VIDEOS at this host utube site. Good luck.
http://www.youtube.com/user/sw...

Steve,
I think there was a golfer (I'm thinking it was Lee Trevino, who got struck by lightning?) that "only God can hit a 1 iron."     :)

look  when i got 2 hole in ones  within 5 days on different courses  , after  i was told by a pro to pick a spot in front of the ball   and  make sure you just schim the grass that way the club is comming down to the ball at a decending angle . i have been doing that and hitting the ball criisp and straight  and found out my 7 iron now travels easy 150 yds  whereas before i would get oly about 130 yds max    being a 86 yr old  golfer evry body tells me they would like to play like me when they are 86  jpkandra sr

Not bad for 9 mos.!  I'm no expert by any means and have only been working on the Surge swing a few months myself (played quite a bit before that, though). In your comments, you noted that you have a bit of a wrist flip on the BUS.  Hard to confirm that from the lighting but, based on where you are at the top I think it's safe to say that you've got a bit more rotation than you want for the Surge swing (a battle I fight myself almost CONSTANTLY) and it's putting you into the SBG.  I've found that a reminder that Don & DJ used in the videos helps me a bit --- "It's a little bit of turn and a lot of lift." 

BTW -- I find that running video of my swing side by side with the ones from Don & DJ really helps me pick up and fix my issues. 

Keep it vertical,
Keith

Amos is no fool. If the odds are against you, sandbag a little. ;-)

Ian,  LAZY, REALLY!  How much are you paying for these daily videos. Don takes the time out of his busy schedule, to give you FREE daily video tips, each and every busy day of his valuable time, and YOU are such a selfish little *#+*, that you call him lazy for doing it, FOR FREE. In reality, if you were not so lazy and cheap, you could learn how to navigate this site, the Utube site, and find numerous video lessons from Don on the course. Or, you could buy his actual lesson videos and manual with his on course instructions, which you desire.  Here's a novel thought, do something to help yourself, or just move on to another site.

Once again, I am choosing to answer myself, just because I can. Instead of trying just to make perfect swings, I decided to experiment with individual changes. I went through about 150 balls in the process. Please pardon the length of this post, but I thought some of you might find it interesting.

1) Position of hands at address - I experimented with my hands in three positions and hit 10 balls in each. The first position was hands centered on my body. This put them about 1 inch in front of the ball. The second was forward with the left arm and the club shaft in a straight line to the ball. Position three was a combination of the first two - address the ball with the hands in the middle and initiate (trigger) the swing with a forward press to straighten the left wrist. For position 1, I had a tendency to compensate and try to straighten the wrist at TOBS. This caused a fairly large laying-off and an over-the-top move, resulting in 8 of 10 balls being pulled 20 yards left and the other 2 were 30 yard slices. Position 2 seemed to cause me to raise my hands up to initiate the swing. This in turn caused my wrists to be loose through out the swing with minimal control. I sprayed the ball all over the place - short, left, right, long, everywhere but on target. Finally, in position 3, the slight forward press (with emphasis on slight), preset my wrist angle, set the firmness of my wrists and allowed for a smooth turn away from address, all the way to TOBS. 9 of 10 balls were on the target line and in a 15-foot circle, just short of the target.

2) Pre-loaded heavy right. This is something I have had a great problem figuring out, so I decided to get technical. I brought my bathroom scale outside and got a block of wood from the workshop that was the same thickness. I weighed myself (190) and figured 60% (114). I put the block of wood under my left foot and the scale under my right. I took my stance and shifted my weight to the right until the scale read 114. I then hit 10 balls that way, resetting between each shot, of course. Maintaining the 114 as close as possible made the bump occur quite naturally and all 10 balls went target high (+/- 3 ft) with a spread of 9 yards from left to right. I then increased the heavy right to about 70% (135) and repeated the experiment. The additional preloading to the right caused me to lunge at the ball. 8 of 10 balls were weak banana slices with a significant loss of distance. Being so far right to start, I would sway outside my right foot and could not get back. The final test in this group was with my weight at 50% (95). With these shots, 7 of 10 were also over the top, but because I would be falling forward, I was hitting pulls and pull hooks.

3) Transition at TOBS. This part was not quite as scientific, but more mental and feel. I hit the first 10 balls, trying to think of absolutely nothing. I managed that on 7 of 10 shots. The problem was that I had no control over the tension level in my swing. 0 of 10 shots were bad. Once again, I sprayed them all over the place, to a far greater extent than in previous tries. For the second 10 shots, I concentrated on Surge's "Ring the Bell" tip. On all 10 shots, I sort of got stuck at the TOBS and jerked the club down, but not straight down. This jerk caused me to immediately spin out to the left and hit 10 exceedingly bad banana slices. For the third set, my transition thought, which occurred during the BUS, was "skip the stone." All 10 shots were straight (+/- 5 yards) and 5-10 yards past the target.

4) Combination of 1 and 2. I used the forward press with the 60% heavy right. 8 of 10 shots were on target (10-ft circle). One was long (5-yd) left (5-yd), and the 10th was 10 yards short.

5) Combination of 1 and 3 - forward press with skipping the stone and weight at 50%. I tended to reverse tilt on the take-away and hit 8 of 10 shots fat - 2-6 inches behind the ball. On the other two, I completely lost my balance, getting out on my toes and hitting the dreaded shanks.

6) Combination of 2 and 3 - 60% heavy right with skipping the stone and hands neutral. 9 of 10 shots were dead straight and 4 of 10 hit the target (my mail box). With these shots, I was able to stay far more relaxed throughout the shots than in the other experiments.

7) 60% heavy right, forward press, skipping the stone. 6 of 10 shots hit the mailbox. The other 4 were within 10 feet.

8) Same as #7, except increasing the TOBS from 12 o'clock to 1 o'clock as view from face on. All shots went 10-12 yards over the target. Deviation was 3 yards right to 8 yards left. The slightly longer backswing seemed to encourage a slight draw.

9) Same as #7, except increasing the TOBS to 2 o'clock as view from face on. I past the point of diminishing returns - distance control and direction control both went out the window. 10 of 10 shots were well away from the target. Balance was extremely hard to maintain.

I guess I now know what I need to work on.

Kevin
 

Well said Boogm and Hal.  I totally agree!