Flared Feet Discovery

We have somewhat of a compliment and a statement from Inner Circle member “Golfmonkey. I certainly hope you don't call yourself the golf monkey because you're playing golf too much in the woods.

Golfmonkey has this to say: “I have played golf on and off for years.18 months ago I had a hip replacement and returned to golf after a long layoff. I have had lessons over the years but consistency has always my problem. One day 78 next day 88.I tried this and that fix with various lessons, etc. I began going from bad to worst. I finally subscribed to the PPGS as it seemed a natural physiological approach.

“The turning point came watching the Don Show and your talk about the front foot flare. The light suddenly came on. Could it be that simple? Just position my front foot like my tennis or throwing action. I always felt that one should flare out the front foot although modern teaching says parallel. Well after your show I began flaring the front foot 45 degrees and instantly my shot making improved. My fairways in regulation tripled and my greens in regulation improved dramatically. My driving is longer and straighter. The foot position allows me now to keep by swing up and down the tree. I couldn't believe the answer was so simple.

“Thank you for showing a simple man the simple solution. Simple is best.”

I guess that's why they call it the “KISS system.” I think what is critical here for Golfmonkey to improve is that he had hip replacement surgery. Anytime you have any type of surgery that works on your hips or your knees, it's more important to get your body in a proper setup to allow it to physiologically to‚  move correctly.

One of the things that's really great about the flared feet, especially the forward foot. I have had a lot of lessons with men who played football, basketball or other sports and have had injured knees and surgery. We flare the foot even more in those situations to allow more external rotation which, when the knee externally rotates, it stays more level, it's more fluid, it's more flowing and it's a lot less stress.

Knees and ankles are flex joints. They are designed to be in dynamic motion flexed. So when the front foot is flared the weight can roll over to the outside edge of the foot and the knee stays flexed. That reduces tension, stress and strain. A straight knee is always accompanied by a flat foot. That means the ankle hasn't rolled, the knee hasn't stayed flexed and that creates tension, they're locking up. When the ankle and knee can't move fluently it then puts the stress on the lower back.

That's why it's critical for the knees to stay flexed. The best way to do that is to have the knees over the ankles, apply outward pressure, and we achieve that best by having both feet being flared. That allows the knees to rotate externally and to stay flex and level. The more level they stay the more correctly they're going to move with freedom, flow and without stress and strain.

The Surge!