Driver Sequence: Kenny Perry

By Kenny Perry
Edited By Peter Morrice
Photos By J.D. Cuban October 2007

You gotta love technology.

I know my clubhead speed is probably four to five miles per hour slower than it was in the early '90s, when I was one of the longest guys out here. And today I'm about 15 yards longer. It's crazy. New driver, new ball. The technology has made a huge difference.

Two things I've been working on in my swing are shortening my backswing and getting my weight to my left side through impact. It's supposed to be that the older you get, the shorter your swing gets. But mine has gotten longer and longer, and sometimes I hang back on my right side.

So Matt Killen and I have been working very hard on these things. I struggled earlier this year, but my distance and accuracy are really starting to come back, and I've been playing well lately as a result.

Special Delivery
Kenny Perry proves there's more than
one way to bomb a drive
By Matt Killen Teaching Professional with Ron Kaspriske

Since Kenny and I started working together a few years ago, I've been asked countless times about his unique takeaway and how he hits monster drives with what appears to be little effort.

Let's start with his backswing. Although it might look unorthodox, it has all the components of any great ball-striker's. The difference is the order. Most pros turn the shoulders and then hinge the wrists. But Kenny sets his wrists early and then turns his shoulders and hips later.

Kenny is extremely long off the tee, and this surprises people because his tempo is so slow and smooth and his right foot never leaves the ground through impact. So how does he generate power? He makes an excellent weight transfer to his left side on the downswing and produces a ton of clubhead speed with fast hands. Also, his slow backswing, with a near pause at the top, allows Kenny to produce a fully loaded and properly sequenced downswing. When you combine proper sequencing with tremendous hand speed, you have a recipe for power.

Kenny's also one of the best ball-strikers on tour. He's been in the top 10 in total driving (a stat that combines distance and accuracy off the tee) for the past three years. From shoulder high in the downswing to shoulder high after impact, he's perfectly on plane and maintains excellent balance. At impact, his left wrist is flat and his right wrist is slightly bent, giving him excellent control of the clubface. Another key to his accuracy is that he plays only one type of shot -- a draw.

Although his weight transfer has always been good, after knee surgery in 2006, his tendency was to keep his weight on his right side. From there, the club would drop too far inside the target line, producing huge hooks. To fix this, we've had him set up square to the ball, put more weight on his left side and keep his head still. And he has greatly improved.

Named one of the top-20 teachers under 40 by Golf Digest, Killen, 22, played with Perry's son, Justin, on the Franklin-Simpson High School golf team in Kentucky. Perry was the assistant coach. Now Killen teaches at Kenny Perry's Country Creek Golf Course. He also works with J.B. Holmes, Shaun Micheel and Paul Azinger.