It was another interesting day at PKU as we did some downswing work. Patrick is pleased with my broadness in my back on the backswing but I get lazy and allow the low to fall more horizontally. I need to keep the club vertical with the firmness of my left wrist and the hinge. Instead of the club getting heavy and causing my left forearm to do the work I need to allow my left hand to keep the hinge angle in the wrist which makes the club light and the shaft angle is more vertical.
It is important for me to remember that the shaft angle feels vertical but it is not because of the bending of the hips and the spine angle. Patrick then worked on getting me to and through impact. He really wants me to be skinny and get my right side through impact much more, which is my homework. He wants me to feel it more in the lower right obliques, the right glutes and the right side. When I do this, he basically punches me in the stomach just after impact to keep me skinny and not allow me to get fat. By doing this, my upper body (upper thoracic) moves forward and my stomach stays skinny and back. It also keeps my right shoulder and right hip lower as my core and upper body turn to finish the swing.
So, the goal is to keep the right side soft and allow the upper thoracic to turn. When doing so, my shoulders should feel flatter but the shaft plane will feel steep with the firmness and hinge of the left wrist. The “power” of the grip and the arms should be felt more in the left arm and not at all in the right arm. From there, I need a full shoulder turn and then allow the downswing to develop.
I went out and played 9 holes and hit the ball quite well. I hit some of the best iron shots of my life; once again. It can be difficult to keep the left wrist hinged while allowing my right side to be soft. I want to either have the entire body be soft or firm. It will take some getting used to my right side being soft, the flattening on my shoulders but keeping my left wrist firm and hinged with a more vertical shaft angle at the top.
