As usual, my game was a mess. So he offered me a little help.
When Art gives you some advice, you had better listen. A strong stomach also helps, because Art is not the most gentle teacher. When Art asks you to do something, he expects you to do it, right then.
I told Art, “I think I’ve got it.” “No, you thick-headed Irishman, you don’t,” art roared back.
I stammered a bit, “but. …”
“No buts here, you idiot,” he yelled. “When I say you’re not shifting your weight, you’re not shifting your weight. Right?”
If you pay attention to what Art says, you will be rewarded. He knows his business. When Art tells me something, I try to remember it. It usually helps me improve my game.
Then, the other day, I received my monthly golf magazine, Golf Digest, which is almost an encyclopedia of teaching methods. There was an article entitled “The Anatomy of Power,” about how we can get more distance.
According to this article, there are seven muscle groups that are the prime movers of the golf swing. All we have to do is make our muscles smarter and we’ll be more successful. The article says, for instance, that as the left side adductor is pulling the body forward, the right lattissimus dorsi is balancing the body so you don’t fall forward.
Yes! Now I am getting it.
My glutes fire at the top of the backswing, and as the body makes the transition from backswing to downswing, the left adductor helps shift the weight.
Let’s see if I have that right. The rain in Spain falls mainly in the plains. Opps, wrong picture.
Then, from the waist up, the abdominal latissimus dorsi and oblique muscles fire to uncoil the body.
Now we getting somewhere.
And unbeknownst to us, at the same time, the thigh muscles, known as the quadriceps, are working hard to stabilize the knees and pelvis. Then, if the pectorals, hamstrings and rotator cuff act in balanced, sequential weight shift, we will surely gain some yardage.
Whew! This is exhausting to write about, much less accomplish. But it is written in the bible of the game, Golf Digest.
After reading and trying to digest all the information, I picked up the phone and called Art in Florida.
“Art, Stan. Help. I need help.”
