EDITOR'S NOTE: Reader response to "The New Tour Swing" by teachers Andy Plummer and Mike Bennett (June 2007) rivals that of any instruction article Golf Digest has published. Many of you reported dramatic improvement after trying their Stack & Tilt Swing; others are simply intrigued by its complete assault on traditional instruction.We've received hundreds of questions about how to use the swing correctly, so we've asked Plummer and Bennett to provide another series of lessons. Here they review the swing's major pieces and explain the moves you told us you need help with. Then we give some of the game's top teachers a chance to challenge the swing's validity, with Plummer and Bennett responding. Let the buzz continue.EDITOR'S NOTE: Reader response to "The New Tour Swing" by teachers Andy Plummer and Mike Bennett (June 2007) rivals that of any instruction article Golf Digest has published. Many of you reported dramatic improvement after trying their Stack & Tilt Swing; others are simply intrigued by its complete assault on traditional instruction.We've received hundreds of questions about how to use the swing correctly, so we've asked Plummer and Bennett to provide another series of lessons. Here they review the swing's major pieces and explain the moves you told us you need help with. Then we give some of the game's top teachers a chance to challenge the swing's validity, with Plummer and Bennett responding. Let the buzz continue.
STACK & TILT BASICS
ADDRESSStack your shoulders over your hips (from the face-on view).Flare out your feet.Set more weight on your front foot, about 55/45.Tilt your chin down to the ball.
STACK & TILT BASICS
BACKSWINGTurn your shoulders in a circle, on a steep downward angle.Shift a little more weight to your front foot at the top.Tilt your spine toward the target.Straighten your right leg, flex your left.
STACK & TILT BASICS
DOWNSWINGSlide your hips forward, tilting your spine away from the target.Keep your head still.Stand up to release your hips from their forward address tilt.Turn your shoulders square at impact.
STACK & TILT BASICS
FINISHContinue to push your hips toward the target, which extends the spine.Shift 90 percent of your weight to your front foot.Keep your arms stretched out to the finish.
3 Key Moves (Other Teachers Call These 'Faults')
1. Stay on your front foot on the backswingMost golfers are taught to make a big shift to the right on the backswing (N), and then get back to the left foot in time for impact. The problem is, it's hard to do that with consistency; golfers end up swinging off the right foot. Instead, keep it simple: Set up with your weight favoring your front foot, and keep it there as you swing to the top (Y). On the downswing, shift more and more weight to your front side as you go--no weight ever goes back. At impact, you should be 80/20 on your front side. A big shift off the ball can help generate more power, but the first key to distance is hitting the ball solidly--and that's what Stack & Tilt is about.
3 Key Moves (Other Teachers Call These 'Faults')
2. Tilt the spine forward at the topAt the top of the backswing, the spine should be tilted slightly toward the target. Our students say they feel as if their head is in front of the ball on iron shots. Why does the spine tilt forward? Because your shoulders should turn in a circle, with the center staying in place. If you do that, your spine will tilt slightly toward the target at the top (above). Call it a reverse pivot, a reverse shift, whatever--that's what the spine does when you keep your head still and turn your shoulders in a circle. You can see this tilt in some of the game's best drivers, like Fred Couples, Sergio Garcia and Colin Montgomerie.
3 Key Moves (Other Teachers Call These 'Faults')
3. Slide the hips toward the targetTeachers talk about the hip turn through the shot, but they say sliding the hips forward is a forbidden move. That's absolutely wrong. The lateral hip slide on the downswing is the saving grace of the slicer. Shifting your hips as far as you can toward the target (above, right) keeps the strong rotary force of the body from pulling the club across the ball. When the club approaches from the inside, the player not only is in position to hit a draw, he has the power of the body turn supporting the swing. The hip slide also tilts the spine away from the target, which shallows the descent and sets up a solid strike.
Tips For Hitting The Driver
1. Keep the handle forward to hit a drawOne piece of advice you hear a lot for the driver is to sweep the ball off the tee. Golfers try to do this by hanging back and releasing the clubhead past their hands. This causes the swing path to veer to the left (N), with the clubhead cutting across the ball. The result is a pull or a pull-slice. For a draw, the club must approach the ball from the inside, and the way to do that is to keep the handle in front of the clubhead through impact. Set up with the handle forward (Y), and maintain that relationship by shifting continuously to your front side coming down. The club will swing in to out, causing the ball to start right and draw.
Tips For Hitting The Driver
2. Release the forward tilt of the hipsAnother popular tip that golfers take too far is: "Stay in your address posture." The human body has a limited turning capacity when the hips are tilted toward the ball, as they are at address (think of how the hip turn is restricted on the backswing). If you try to stay in that posture through impact (N), the body stops turning, which kills momentum and clubhead speed. You have to release that forward tilt by thrusting your hips upward (Y). It's a power move you see in other athletes, such as baseball hitters and long jumpers.
Tips For Hitting The Driver
3. Flex your spine away from the target on the downswingThe upward thrusting of the hips on the downswing is coupled with a forward flexing of the upper body. The top half of the spine stretches back, tilting away from the target. When the spine goes back and the hips release forward, the body has great rotational power. The arms are stretched and straightened through impact. The rear end should feel "tucked under" the lower back at the finish. This is a true release: The body releasing from the forward tilt established at address.
