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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: 27 November 2010
Is it worth it to get your 20-year-old clubs refitted, and what'€™s the cost? That question came in on the blog the other day. The answer is '€“ if the heads are in pretty good shape '€“ an... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 26 November 2010
Comments: 3
And happy clubs hit better shots. Yes, that's an old Surgism. You've seen guys on the PGA Tour, while waiting on the tee, get out a tee and clean the groves with fierce concentration. Why? If... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 25 November 2010
First of all, Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family from mine. And thank you to the ever growing PPGS family. I wouldn't be here without you. This was one heck of a year. I am still moved each... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 24 November 2010
As we've discussed, the perfect swing path is like a Ferris wheel. Of course, we can't swing like a Ferris wheel. But with the Peak Performance Golf Swing we can get pretty close. One of my... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 23 November 2010
Comments: 2
Don put it to me! As a club fitter and Certified PPGS teacher, I jump between your clubs and your swing. Actually, it's kind of cool. Don has done fantastic work on alignment. He is so, “... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 22 November 2010
My students don't beat balls on the lesson tee. They earn them. That may sound pretty tough, but I want my students to think about what they are doing. In order to perform the Peak... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 21 November 2010
Yup. The slice may be the most common swing problem known to golfers. We've discussed a variety of the reasons why golfers slice. It can be anything from the club itself to poor alignment. In... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 20 November 2010
You are how you are. You are what your abilities tell you you are. Wanting to “grip it and rip it” isn't for you … or any golfer. The biggest problem I think we all have is power and the lack... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 19 November 2010
Comments: 1
We received a question on the blog about problems with getting it out of the sand, especially about the wedge going too deep and getting buried. Usually this problem is cause by swing down into the... Read More
Authored by: Don Trahan
Posted on: 19 November 2010
Yesterday, I talked about the “volcano drill” for helping you with sand play. I've got another that you can follow up with. Once you get the feeling of thrown the ball or sand up to your... Read More