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: 25 September 2009
One of the most important drills I teach is the '€œButt on the Wall'€ drill. I always write it on my lesson sheets for students to practice. The reason the '€œButt on the Wall'€ drill is so... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 24 September 2009
I got a bushel full of comments about memory and positive thinking from my article about my brother, Ken. We both want to thank you. I cannot stress enough the power of the mind in the game of... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 23 September 2009
We talked about the importance of keeping your playing statistics. Sometimes it just seems tough to keep track, but once you get into the habit, it pays for the inconvenience 100 fold. Once... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 22 September 2009
I was having breakfast this morning in a restaurant with a golfer I used to play with quite often. But this Saturday was the first time in over 5 months that we played a round. This golfer... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 21 September 2009
During DJ'€™s club fitting, we found that his shafts were close but there was something better. I have always had a Surgism for the term close. '€œClose only counts in horseshoes, hand... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 20 September 2009
DJ'€™s club fitting was with Chip Usher, of Usher Golf in his club fitting studio. Yes, this is an indoor fitting session, hitting into a net and using a launch monitor. I am not totally in... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 19 September 2009
DJ, as far as I know, has not had a complete personal club fitting since back in college. Even being on the Titleist Professional Staff, they have built his clubs based on what he showed up... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 18 September 2009
Ever since I did the article about tee high to hit low, you'€™ve been asking a bunch of questions about using a tee. Several have asked par 3'€™s. I wrote about this several months ago, but... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 17 September 2009
We'€™ve all done it. Missed a real short'€tap-in'€ putt in the range of a foot or less. We'€™ve all done it, missing one when it '€œdidn'€™t really matter.'€ Like in playing for fun and... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 16 September 2009
Since Sunday afternoon, just about every golfer I have come into contact with brings up and asks me about Snedeker'€™s 4 Putt on the 72nd hole of the BMW Championship. Heck, Monday I went to... Read More