Daily Video Blog

Is Your Takeaway Ruining Your Swing Before It Starts?
Is Your Takeaway Ruining Your Swing Before It Starts?
Authored by: Brady
Posted on: 5 May 2026

You've probably been told your whole golfing life that you need to keep moving before you swing. Waggle, forward press, rock the knee — whatever it takes, just don't stand still. Surge heard that too. He just never agreed with it.

His thing was this: if you're pressing forward to start a swing that needs to go backward, how do you make that feel exactly the same every time? With every club, every lie, every round? After a while, you start to realize — you can't. That little forward move changes just enough, just often enough, to mess with your timing without you ever knowing why.

What Surge taught instead was to come to a full stop before starting the swing. Feet planted, waggle done, one last look at the target — then still. From there, a simple three-count: squeeze the grip equal in both hands, press the knees out slightly, and go. The toe of the club moves first, the arms follow, and the club finds its way back up the plane. Nothing fancy, just quiet and controlled... Read More

Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 13 March 2012
Comments: 60
With the Peak Performance Golf Swing, hitting a driver uses the same swing as hitting an iron. However, there are setup changes that are made, including ball position. Many golfers think that they... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 12 March 2012
Comments: 96
We're getting near the end of Doc's fitting series, but a few more important steps still need to be explained. Today, Doc talks about club configuration. In other words, Doc determines which clubs... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 10 March 2012
Comments: 92
In today's video, I'm going to show you how to adjust your setup whenever shaping a shot is necessary. This could happen for a variety of reasons. If there are obstacles in front of you or a pin... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 9 March 2012
Comments: 85
A question was sent in to the blog from Ken (from Middletown) asking what I thought about looking at the hole while putting instead of at the ball. Well, I know of a few pros who have tried this and... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 8 March 2012
If you have followed this blog for any length of time, you probably have heard me explain what led me to create the Peak Performance Golf Swing. If you haven't, then let me describe my motivation in... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 7 March 2012
Comments: 64
Today we have the latest installment of Doc Griffin's series on Custom Club Fitting. In this one, Doc talks covers all the important stuff on clubheads, from why size really does matter to why he... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 5 March 2012
Today I am going to cover the basics of how to hit a side-hill lie in response to a question from Tony Clark, of Reno, Nevada. "Surge: Would you please explain the stance and grip for hitting side-... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 4 March 2012
Comments: 1
In today's video I want to clear up a common problem of people confusing a chip for pitch shot. Jerry Shulman recently sent me an email in which he questions whether his problem with chipping comes... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 2 March 2012
John Barnes of Houston, Texas recently sent in this question: "Don, can you explain what is meant by the term 'fall line'? I hear it a lot on the TV broadcasts while putting." Well, John, I... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 2 March 2012
Comments: 18
I have had many people ask about the net that I have in The Back Yard Driving Range. And if, as they say, a picture is worth a thousand words then a 90-second video has to be worth even more! If you... Read More