Moe Norman

SOOO Simple

by

One of the most searched golf terms on the internet is “consistency” but few people know what being consistent really means.

From my perspective, consistency is synonymous with simplicity especially when it boils down to how you move your body during the golf swing. The goal of all golf swings is to achieve impact. Just ask the golf ball –   all it knows is the moment that the club makes contact. Reaching impact where the club is square with ideal speed and direction is the real goal of anyone who swings a golf club. Common sense says that if you have twenty movements to swing a club to impact and I can make the same motion with fifteen, I can certainly be more consistent. Therefore, simplifying and eliminating the movement is what consistency really means. I also believe this was Moe’s gift to golf, if you are willing to listen. Here are the ways Moe’s swing simplifies golf and can make you more consistent.

  • Same Spine Tilt, Address, Backswing, Through-swing

Unlike conventional golf, Moe established his spine tilt at address. This tilt “presets” the spine for the tilt in the backswing, downswing, and impact. By establishing this tilt at address Moe eliminated unnecessary movement of the spine. Less movement means more consistency.

  • Trail (Right) Shoulder positioned on plane

Due to his address spine tilt, Moe’s trail shoulder (Right), moves up and down as opposed to around (conventional golf). We call this “planning” the shoulder. Moe would refer to this up and down movement of the shoulder moving on the same plane as the golf club as “like a pendulum”. Moe was great at simplifying the motions into understandable concepts and feelings.

  • Trail (Right) hand non rotational

Moe’s trail hand grip was placed on the club in a “non-rotational” position. Non-rotational means from address to the backswing all the way to impact, the hand does not turn. Less rotation of the trail hand means less rotation of the clubface allowing you to more easily return the club to square at impact.

  • Lead knee flexed, trail foot on the ground.

If you study Moe at impact, you immediately notice a major difference in his position compared to most conventional golfers. Moe’s right foot is on the ground and his lead knee is flexed. This positioning of his foot and knee reflect the perfect bio-mechanics of his spine position into impact. By keeping his trail foot on the ground and his lead knee flexed, Moe kept his spine exactly in the same tilt as he started. By keeping his spine tilted, he could move his shoulders on plane as the movement of the shoulders always follow the tilt of the spine.

  • The Pivot Point and Mid-spine body/club relationship at address

The simplicity of Moe’s mechanics and the simplified movements began from Moe’s address position. Moe’s setup is a platform of geometry, kinesiology, and bio-mechanics that create what I call a club to body relationship. What exactly does this mean? If you fast-forward Moe from address to impact, you see that at address and impact there is a certain distance from the ball. To be consistent, this spacing must be maintained throughout the swing. Moe accomplishes this from proper spine tilt at the beginning of the swing and proper lower body (leg and hip) movement. The club also references the lead side of Moe’s body – we call this the pivot point. This is where the club starts and impacts and can be referenced throughout the golf swing

Todd Address Moe

Teaching vs. Unteaching

by

I have never been one to criticize the teaching of other instructors. I believe that there are swing instructors that teach sound principles of swing mechanics – but there are very few.

When teaching, I have noticed lately that I spend quite a bit of time changing things that students have adopted from other lessons in their swings. Most of these things have become bad habits which then create compensations resulting in bad swings and sometimes injury.  This is what I call “unteaching” because the art of teaching is to educate. By definition, educate is derived from the Latin word “educere” meaning to draw from within or to bring forth. I find myself erasing rather than educating.

Too often when I teach a student Moe Norman’s movement I run into what I call resistance. Resistance is when I make a suggestion and the student immediately responds with “that’s not what my other teacher said”. This type of resistance is a barrier to progress. It shows that the student is having a hard time knowing or “trusting” the teaching. Similar to putting up a road block, questioning does not allow the student to draw from within.

Anything that feels “new” will also feel awkward. These feelings must be overcome to make learning progress. Without this type of experience, learning is stifled.

Ideally, I would show the student the desired swing position and he, on his own, would develop a feel and then through repetition would “remember” his movements. A student always teaches themselves. A teacher just leads. I wish it was this easy.

So what would I say is the best learning and teaching scenario? The answer is easy. Empty your cup. This means that when you enter into instruction you must empty yourself from the “old” instruction and be completely open to any and all suggestions. I call this the “OK” zone. When the teacher asks you to do something, just say OK.

 

Single Plane Golfer Summer Issue

by

I love our magazine. I know this sounds like I’m doting about my child but in a way, I am the proud parent of the Single Plane Golfer. What makes our magazine so great?  Let me count the ways:

 

SPG_summer_2014.indd
Single Plane Golfer Summer Issue

1) You can carry it with you (anywhere) for support, advice and instruction

2) It is the only magazine specifically for your Single Plane Game

3) It give you real stories about real Single Plane Golfers – just like you

4) You can read instruction from the best Single Plane Instructors in the world

5) Top notch writing and editing from the most well known Moe Norman storyteller – Tim O’Connor

6) It covers all Seven Principles of the Single Plane Game – including Long Game, Short Game, Putting, Club Fitting, Course Management, Practice and the Mental Game.

There is so much to love about the Single Plane Golfer – it must be the greatest magazine in the world, I’m sure of it.

Converting to a Single Plane Swing

by

For the past 50 years, the popularity of golf has built an industry of golf instructors. Instructors face the challenge of teaching human beings how to hit a golf ball, chip and putt so that others can enjoy the game. Or so they think.  Over one million golfers begin playing the game each year and 1.1 million gofers quit playing each year. The game has a tendency to be difficult and those of you who have played for a few years know how a walk in the park can easily become a stroll in hell.

As one of the many instructors who spends my energies helping others play golf (I actually consider myself more of a technical swing teacher than playing teacher, I leave that to my brother) I am often faced with “converting” golfers from a Conventional swing to the Single Plane Swing. So let’s talk about the main aspects of this “Conversion.

1) Major Grip and address position changes.  

The most significant change is how you address and establish your starting position. The hands are higher (on plane), the lead hand is neutral, trail hand is stronger, the shoulders (spine) is tilted more, the legs are straight and not bent.

2) On Plane backswing

The club often feels like it goes “inside” or on a flatter plane in the Single Plane swing. This is because you are starting “on Plane’ allowing the club to take its natural path in the backing – with no manipulation in the backswing.

3) Less Shoulder Turn and torque on back

The Single plane swing requires less turn and stress on the torso, shoulders and back than the conventional swing. Minimal hip turn and minimal shoulder turn get the club on plane and leveraged which is all you need to hit a ball long and straight.

4) Impact with flexed lead knee and feet on ground.

A significant aspect of the Single Plane Swing is that the you are returning the club to the same plane that you had at address. There is no need to lift he body at impact. The feet can say on the ground and the lead knee can stay flexed and not straighten as you see in a conventional impact position.

5) Release and follow through with feet on ground and club swings through on plane

This is almost a “result” of a pure Single Plane Swing – the feet can stay on the ground as the club fully releases its power through the ball into the finish. Because the movement of the club is on plane and easier on the body, there is less movement throughout the entire Single Plane Swing.

If you read the above paragraphs, follow the bolded text. Use these reminders as your keys on the driving range to convert your conventional golf swing into a pure Single Plane Swing.

MOCAP Shows Biomechanics of Single Plane Swing

by

Nothing excites me more than analyzing the golf swing with the amazing technology available today. I recently worked with the studios in Orlando Florida to capture the motion of the Single Plane swing in 3D. I am using this analysis to study the simplicity of the motion and teach people how to make golf easier on their backs and body.

Here are a few of my favorite pics:

MOCAP Pos 2 FO Small copy
Top of Backswing
Release of Single Plane Swing
Release of Single Plane Swing

Motion capture analysis is 3 Dimensional whereby the suit I am wearing has various markers placed in triangular planes around the body. Cameras around the room (all dimensions) capture the movement of the points as they move through space. By studying the movement of the plane you can see the movement of the area of the body as it relates to other parts of the body. Amazing Stuff!

The next step is two put skin and bones onto the 3D model. Once the model is animated, we will be able to go inside the body with a camera to see how everything is working. Stay Tuned!

The Best Training I’ve Ever Seen

by

At a recent 3 Day Premier school in Palm Springs, I experienced a truly amazing transformation of a group of golfers. It was awe inspiring to watch, and as an instructor, very, very exciting to see. Permit me to elaborate.

It was on the 2nd morning of our 3-day school, and the group of students were warming up that morning by practicing our PVC drill. Our group of instructors, 5 of us in all, we walking the tee line, helping each golfer individually. After a few minutes of observation of not only the individuals, but the group in general, we noticed that the majority of the students were doing the drill incorrectly.

Now, if you’ve followed our instruction, you know our firm belief that if a drill isn’t done correctly, it’s doing more harm than good. In fact, practicing incorrectly can be fatal to your game.

We decided to stop the entire group, and circled everyone up. We reviewed each position of the PVC drill, reminded the group of valuable checkpoints at each position, had the group demonstrate correct positioning, and sent them back to the line to “try again”.

What transpired over the next 20 minutes was the best training session I have ever seen.  I saw a group of golfers who were intensely focused on each position. These golfers were moving to a position, checking it, and if the position was not correct, they fixed it immediately.  It was a truly magical moment to behold. That group improved their swings in that 20-minute session, which is what the schools are all about.

It’s training, and I mean truly training, that makes the golf school experience superior to any other form of instruction out there.

At each and every GGA school program, from the 5 day Build Your Game Camp to the 1-day Single Plane Experience, our focus as an instruction company is helping you learn to train. The fundamentals of the swing, putting, and the wedge game are simple, it’s learning how to train each of those areas – correctly – that make the golf school experience last.

If you are ready to experience exactly what your perfect golf swing feels like, then I encourage you to get to attend a GGA school sooner rather than later. If you are like most of our students, you’ve spent enough time guessing and being frustrated. It’s time to experience it, learn it, and train it under the supervision of a trained eye.

To find a school, CLICK HERE , and we look forward to helping you discover what true golf swing training really is.

Hit em’ straight!

Scott

 

LEARN

THE

SWING

Join 1M+ Subscribers to get your FREE Video Quick Start Guide that reveals how to hit the ball farther and straighter more consistently from now on…

START YOUR NEW GOLF SWING

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Person Information