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Ask our Pros
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You never know - you might just find the answer to improving your golf game right here!
The Dreaded Shanks
Don, I've had some issues with my shoulders (two torn rotator cuffs) and though I can hit balls and play  with no real problem, the fear of hitting the ground hard with my irons has brought on some interesting problems. The last few time I went out to hit some balls, I found myself with the case of the "dark rights" or the dreaded shank. The fear of hitting the ball that way can become a truly scary proposition, especially when, as a 10 handicap golfer, I'm used to hitting the ball fairly consistently. I want to cure this problem before it creeps into the mental side of things. Mitch Laurance
Mitch,
Got the shanks, eh Mitch? Too bad, they really suck! Never mind having to look for your ball in ugly places...and the shame and embarrassment of going to those places if other golfers see you. They are thinking, “He's got the shanks...Don't go near him...they may be contagious!”
So, I guess you want the secret to getting rid of them. This is a crazy day in that one of my regular students called me about his friend having the shanks and what could I tell him that could help his friend get rid of them. After some questions about the friend’s setup and swing, we came to the conclusion that he was not shanking but rather hitting the ball square on the clubface, maybe a little thin, but with the face wide open facing to the right. Thin blades, with an open face can sound and look like a shank, but grass on the face and not the hosel is the key that they are open face blades, not shanks. This shot is caused mostly by the body moving way ahead of the ball in the downswing, and because the hands have not released, the face is wide open at impact. We also believe the friend has the ball way too far back in his stance which is a double jeopardy problem adding to the open face blade.
So, first check to see if the grass stain is on the face or on the hosel. If it is on the face, make sure your ball position and alignment are correct. And swing wise, make sure you keep your head still and behind the ball until impact so the hands can release to square at impact as the arms straighten out approaching the ball.
Now, if they are pure shanks with the grass on the hosel, take 2 aspirins, a martini shaken not stirred, and go to the chapel on the ship and pray to the Golf Gods.
To fix and rid yourself of them try this - In all my years as a teaching professional, I have, believe it or not, have not had to fix many shanks. But every one I had to, the cure was always the same...too much leg movement in the forward swing - usually caused by the player trying to drive his legs down and through, trying to get more power and distance. Too much leg drive down and forward, moves the player closer to the ball, the arms trying to straighten as they are releasing to impact and lagging, the clubface is open and the shaft/hosel is hitting the ball causing the lateral ball flight to the right.
The answer is to keep your legs quiet, feeling that your right leg and hip do not move until the shaft and your right arm and hands reach the right leg, or even until impact, and then the right side fires toward the ball and through chasing the arms and club to the finish. This waiting to the shaft reaches the right leg or until impact keeps your head still and also with your body, behind the ball until impact. This allows the arms to straighten up and release, squaring the clubface at impact, hitting the ball straight forward.
Try this, and I am sure you'll like the results...solid, straight and long. Take care...and enjoy the cruise and now your golf.
The Surge!
Playing in the Wind
Don,
Given your 3/4 Swing Theory, can you please explain a bit about making a less than full backswing and still get enough on wind shots to negotiate the conditions?
Thanks,
Mitch
Mitch, 
Playing in the wind is tough stuff, especially when it is cold. So, before we get into discussing the swing, let's first look at our clothes requirements.
When playing in wind, it is first and foremost necessary that you dress to keep warm, especially your hands. Now, with the advent of lightweight wind breakers, we can keep warm with less layers of clothing, especially on your upper body so you can swing freely. I would recommend that on jackets and sweaters, you get them at least 1 size larger, to accommodate multi layering and still have freedom to swing. For your legs, wearing your rain pants works well for breaking the wind and keeping you warm. Your rain jacket will also work well as a wind breaker, but when it is warm, it can also let you know what taking a sauna feels like! Lastly, as for keeping your hands warm, there are golf gloves made for both hands that work well, but they are much thicker than the normal gloves. If you don't like those, then wearing a good pair of mittens between shots does the trick. If it is cold, it is a must to wear a hat to keep your head warm, as most body heat escapes through your head.
Now, for swinging in the wind you first need to remember that easy does it. You cannot let the wind, tempt you into swinging harder. That is especially true when hitting into the teeth of the wind. Swing smooth and easy, focusing on maintaining your balance especially to your finish. The key to controlling your ball is first controlling your swing. Hitting the ball solidly in all wind conditions and directions is the key to controlling your ball. Shots well hit and controlled bore into the wind and hold their line better, whether the wind is face on into you or cross ways. Even downwind, a solid boring shot will hold its line better than a mis-hit which can sort of drift or float off line. Into a cross wind, this float or drift will become a run away into the rough or woods.
Club selection is key especially hitting dead into the wind. Golfers figure out club selection based on how many clubs more or less they need for the speed of the wind. So, you hear golfers say, this is a 2 or 3 club wind. Always take more club, so you can swing smoother, as hitting it hard, can cause the ball to up shoot, especially with lofted irons; because, if your ball up shoots, what goes straight up comes straight down. Into crosswinds, I feel, it is always best to try and use or ride (go with) the wind, especially if distance is the priority. If accuracy is the priority, I like to work the ball (provided you have the skill to shape shots on command) into or against the wind, especially on shots to the green. So, I guess we can say that for downwind shots we hit it high and into face on and cross winds we will hit it lower. Sometimes, I will hit it lower even downwind when I feel controlling direction is more important than distance. This usually happens when the wind is swirling around, and if it changes direction when your ball is at its maximum arc, apogee, and gets hit with a direction change, who knows where the ball may go, so lower and boring is better.
Now for the swing points, let's start with setup. Many players believe that you need to widen your stance for better balance in extreme wind. I personally don't do that as I fell a wider stance alters my swing timing especially in getting to a balanced finish. What I do, is I feel the wind hitting my body and sense how it will be affecting my balance throughout the swing and adjust my muscle tone to firm up (especially my legs) and sort of brace me against the wind blowing me out of balance. Since the Surge swing is a limited turn, 3/4 swing based on less body and more arms swing, this braced body, more arms swing is just doing it to the max. Lastly, this may sound crazy, but trying to setup and swing in a lull or slow down of the wind also works.
Swinging in the wind, maintaining balance is best done by making a shorter more compact swing, which is right in line with the Surge swing. Because we are using less swing, we need more club  to make up for it. Another swing key I do, especially when I want to hit it lower is to hit knock down shots. Knock down shots stay lower, and bore through the wind like a bullet. The best way to hit this shot is to cut your follow through off around waist to chest high. The setup for this shot is to play the ball in its proper position for the club used....NOT BACK....in your stance as is the usual protocol. I have found that playing the ball back, tends to cause the upper to move forward and left too early causing a pull. If you have played a lot of golf in the wind, it is ridiculous how many shots are pulled left when trying to hit it extra low. Playing the ball from your usual position for the club being used, will likely help you remain still and balanced with your upper body, so you will hit it more solid. Start it on your aiming line and you will be able to cut off your follow through which is the key to keeping your ball flight down.
Well, Mitch, I am sure these points will help you in playing in the wind. Being able to play well in the wind and controlling your ball gives one a superior advantage when the wind is blowing, especially at 2 clubs or more. I grew up on a course in Massachusetts, directly on the ocean, and played in wind just about every day. I feel that any time the winds blows when I play in a tournament I have a distinct advantage over 90 percent or more of the field, because history has shown me, that most golfers at all levels are blown away (pun intended). Any golfer wanting to improve his/her game needs to master playing in the wind because just like rain, you know the wind will blow!!!
Lastly, I recommend you check out the golf tips section of TwoMinuteGolfPro.com and reading the numerous articles on playing in the different wind conditions where I cover them individually and at greater length in setup and swing technique.
Take care, and in closing, hit it solid, low and boring. For he who controls his golf ball in the wind has a fighting chance!
The Surge!
100 YARDS IN
Hey Don,
Thanks again for helping on my game. Generally hitting ball more solidly. Not scoring and very poor wedge shots inside of 100 - need to practice that. Any suggestions?
Jonathan "knees" Yee
Jonathan,
Glad to hear your ball striking is better...but since the wedge game inside 100 yards is not up to par... here is a few thoughts to work on.
Any wedge shots that are not full shots need to have a few changes in address/setup that will help produce a reduced swing length and motion.
1st...to reduce swing length and motion..."narrow up your stance." Since we always want a balanced swing, a narrower stance will help cause a shorter/less motion swing, because it cannot support a full swing.
2nd. "choke down on the grip"...shortening the shaft is the same as shortening the string in the rock and string principle. A shorter string, swings the rock slower.  So, a shorter club cannot swing as fast and you also have more control of it.
Lastly, if you want to hit the ball in lower, you can place a little more weight on your left leg. To hit it higher, stay neutral to maybe lean a little more on the right foot. Ball position is centered, unless if you want real low, you can move it back a little. Move it forward for more height.
Remember...shorter shots are hit best with shorter arm and club/string and from a narrower stance.
Give these a try and let me know how they work.
The Surge!
BACK PROBLEMS WITH THE "BIG TURN"
Don,
I have recently gone to a strong rotational swing, straight leg and back setup. I was hitting the ball well but I now have a ruptured disc and another which is almost gone. I have been down for eight weeks. I guess I am looking for hope. After I get this back fixed, either rehab or surgery, do you think your swing would be one of the least damaging to the spine? Any suggestions? I am recently retired and golf next to God and family is my passion ... I am looking for something to hang on for the future.
Frank Laird
Mr. Laird,
The Surge Peak Performance Swing is mainly noted for two things: it's easy to learn and maintain, and it's body/back friendly.
I have helped thousands of golfers with back problems. Many had quit because the pain and poor scores were not worth it. In just the first lesson, most said their backs started feeling better and, as a bonus, they were hitting it better. All my students improve immediately from the first lesson. I even have one student who quit playing because of back pain with a big turn swing, who says that when he's working or driving and his back starts to tighten up, he often goes to the course and hits some balls to stretch and loosen his back up. So, what used to be his malady is now his remedy with the 3/4 limited turn swing.
The body is not designed to rotate, and thus the big rotational swing is the major cause of back, hip, neck, knee and ankle injury in the golf swing today. And the greatest stress is now more from the rotating finish, with the right shoulder pointing at the target, rather then the backswing big turn. Adding the straight legs and back setup really compounded the stress. There are a number of Australian professionals using this straight leg swing method, and I fear they will all suffer back problems, as well as a swing that will not last.
The knees and ankles are flex joints and are designed to be flexed when in motion. Straightening them just turns up the stress meter on your back — immeasurably and dangerously. You will see that I get the same results of immobilizing (reducing lower body and torso movement) with my wide knees/ride a skinny horse principle. The knees in the setup are in line over the ankles. The key is that in the backswing, we resist the legs moving, especially the left. This quiet knees/legs principle provides balance and stability by reducing body movement and rotation. There is only 70 degrees of shoulder turn, but most importantly this builds/creates torque, by loading the leg muscles — not your back.
The reason for doing this is twofold. First, the downswing, or as I now call it the Forward Upswing (FUS) is started by the lower body. The legs are the spring for the transition, so we load the legs not th back. You want to build resistance and load in the spring by using the wide knees with outward pressure started in a dynamically balanced setup.
Second, it is a physiological fact that the back, specifically the lower back, cannot take the stress of the big 90 degree (or more)rotational backswing. The big shoulder turn is the cause of the back stress and disc problems afflicting so many golfers of all ages and all skills. On my lesson tee, I have seen way too many golfers of all ages, even teenagers and playeras young as 12, making huge turns and complaining of back pain.
Finally, the back cannot store energy with these big turns, but resisting legs can. The point here is that the legs are a big muscle group. They can take the stress of the load and they can store energy without creating stress, strain and back pain. It is efficient, powerful and the least stressful way to swing a club ... and with only a 70 degree shoulder/torso turn.
I hope this answers your questions, and wish you a speedy recovery, so you can try the Surge Swing and practice and play without pain.
The Surge!
DEGREES OF SUCCESS
Hi, Surge.
The videos are great! I am hoping to save wear and tear on my back by using your method. One question: my clubs have standard lies. Should I look into getting them adjusted more upright by one or two degrees?
Thanks,
Bill Knox
Mr. Knox,
Glad to hear that the videos are really helping you, and I am confident that they will help/reduce the wear and tear on your back.
Regarding your lie angle question. Just because you are swinging more vertical/upright does not necessarily mean that you have to bump your lie angles more vertical/upright. Lie angle is determined by the length of your arms versus the height of your torso as to returning the club to impact so that the leading edge of the club hits the ground soled flat. That is, not heel or toe up, which changes the launch angle and direction of the ball flight.
For example, I am 5'9" and have an arm length of 35 inches which is usually the length associated with someone well over 6 feet. My son, D.J., is 6'4" and also has a 35" sleeve. For his height and arm length, his clubs are standard lie.  Whereas, with my long arms, relative to my shorter torso, my clubs are set 3 degrees flat. And, with my upright/vertical swing my clubs at impact are soled properly. That is, the leading edge is flat to the ground.
So, since you have changed your swing to a more upright plane does not necessarily mean your lie angles must also be upright, as is seen by mine being flat. If your lie angles are too upright, your divits will be digging in the heel. If they are too flat, your clubhead will dig in the toe. And, if your divots are clean and level from heel to toe, your lie angle is likely correct.
I recommend that you visit your PGA Professional or local club fitter and have them check your lie angles of all your irons as they apply to your new upright swing.
Hope this answers your question,
Don Trahan, PGA, The Surge!
BEND THOSE KNEES
Dear Don
We just saw a clinic or some such program on the Golf Channel UK. We get it via satellite here in Spain.It appeared that you want the knees to far apart — bowed outward if possible. What would you suggest for an old man with bow legs and bad knees? I really cannot push the knees further sideways and stay in any balance.
I swing approximately as you suggest and the results are not bad for a 77 year old. H'cap about 10 now but slowly still rising. My grip is stronger than you suggest but this may be hold over from old days as is my occasional real inside swing causing hooks of truly outstanding proportions.
If all holds up well, I will visit your school the next time I am back in the states.
Bruce
Bruce,
I have studied physiology for almost 20 years now with my mentor, Dr. Ned Armstrong, an orthopedic Surgeon in Atlanta, Georgia. We strive in the setup to be dynamically balanced. That is having a setup that will produce a swing that is in dynamic balance also.
Regarding the knees. Even though I teach a limited turn swing with a max of 3/4 length backswing, this little turn still needs to be done in balance and with limited stress. The knees, even with a limited turn, should have a little external rotation, as the torso turns and the knees stay flexed. We achieve this dynamic balance, angle retention of the torso and knee flex, by having what I call a narrow stance (shoulder wide max) with wide knees which are directly over the ankles and thus ankle to knee is straight up/perpendicular to the ground. Lastly, we also exert a slight outward pressure of the knees creating a little stretch in your upper and inner thighs. The reason for this outward pressure is to help resist moving the knees in the backswing, which is the key to keeping the knees and torso level and balanced.
The final checkpoint for the width of the knees directly over the ankles is that when we exert the outward! pressure your feet MUST remain flat. That is the feet must not roll outward to the outside edge of your sole which would have your weight now getting outside your feet/base and thus not in balance.
Lastly, being bow legged I believe should make the wide knees (riding a skinny horse as I label it) relatively easy to do. And, with bad knees, this setup should be less stressful on your knees. I can only surmise your balance problems with the wide knees is that you got them too wide and had your weight roll to the outside of your feet. I have had students with knee replacement and one with both knees and hips replaced that couldn't really swing until we got the feet flaired 30 degrees or more and got him into the wide knees with outward pressure.
I hope this answers your question. I am confident that with the wide knees over the ankles, with the weight centered on your feet, you will be in balance and have a powerful swing with little to no stress on your knees.
Don Trahan, PGA
LOCATING THE CATCHER'S MITT
Don,
Can you tell me if the "catchers mitt" is behind the target line or the aiming line? THANKS!
— Jay
Jay,
You're referring to the position I want you to take the club back to when you start the back swing and the first position I want you to go to after impact when you start the forward swing.
The catcher's mitt is just around 1 or 2 inches inside the aiming line, which is also called the target line. Some people think it is behind the toe line. This is not correct. If it was, you would be pulling the club to the inside too fast and getting yourself too deep behind the toe line, the place I like to call "the graveyard."
As you know, with the limited turn backswing of only 70 degrees, once the left arm and club reach the toe line, there is no more turn....JUST ALL ARM LIFT...up the tree, standing the club up 90 degrees vertical to the ground to the 12:00 o'clock, light position.  The important point to stress here about the takeaway is that the arms are lifting the club into the mitt in a smooth, circular arch or circle.
The best way to experience this is with a drill I call "skipping a rock on a lake." When you throw the rock under handed, watch and feel the roundness and even steepness of the lift in your right arm. There is no pushing it away "low and slow." It is pulled away and it's all lift and with no exaggerated effort to stretch or over extend it's natural width. Over-stretching causes muscle imbalance and pulls the spine downward and to the right, destroying dynamic balance. That smooth rounded lift is the exact move and feeling you want for your takeaway into the mitt and up the tree. Hope this clears up any confusion.
The Surge!
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