QuestionI am 58 years old.Broke my back and had it fused 30 years ago.I am 7 hdcp and play 12-18 rounds a year.Last year was first year ended early(June 1) due to back.I am in great shape,stretch everyday,walk at least 2 miles every day .I was thinking of trying a flatter swing and having my pings adjusted 1*flat from standard.What are your thoughts about bad back and the flatter swing idea??
Answer
Adam Scott
Joe: I think it's a good idea and the reason I do is flatter clubs tend to lower the hands which allow the wrists to hinge freer. More important is that by doing so, you'll have the tendency to bend from the hips to reach the ball. This helps tilt your spine so that your shoulders can turn under your chin in both directions. This position also promotes better balance which allows your back to turn with your shoulders. And if it's doing that, moving in unison with the arms, shoulders and legs, there is much less strain on the back as the force of impact is absorbed by the bigger muscles. To summarize, this is how you get in position for optimum balance: 1. With your knees locked, bend from the hips until your shoulders are over the balls of the feet; 2. Bend the knees just enough to unlock them; 3. Play the ball far enough away to allow the arms to hang from the shoulders; and 4. Situate the weight on the balls of the feet. If you adopt this position with all your clubs, the only change will be ball position as it moves from center forward and farther from you as the clubs get longer. Your spine angle will remain constant so that you'll only have one swing to deal with.
This will be my first attempt at attaching a file with an answer and I hope it comes through. It will demonstrate the position I'm talking about.
Good luck Joe; keep me posted as to your progress.
Fairways and Greens,
John
www.golfnutts.com
