A J has literally hit the nail on the head . Working the top over the bottom is an Eureka moment for me. Suddenly from flipping for 60 years I am seeing a consistency in my ball striking I have never had before . This guy is a genius and I cannot thank you enough Brendon for the videos.
My next door neighbor as a kid framed houses for a living and when I was about five years old taught me the trick for hammering nail without bending it: start the nail at an angle so the angle of the nail head matches the angle that the face of the hammer is at when it first strikes the nail as it comes down in arc, which isn’t flat to the ground but about a 20° angle /, more or less depending on how tall the nail is. I learned that TECHNIQUE is part of what allows a master carpenter to wail away with a hammer and drive a 16p nail with two or three whacks without bending it. When I started playing golf in my thirties I understood the underlying physics and aerodynamic but didn’t understand the technique on that level but with my intuition I ‘connected the dots’ between that lesson on hammering nails without bending them and hitting golf ball without the shot bending to the right or left in flight and getting lost in the woods. I realized that the golf swing needs to take into account how the club head travels during the time it is “pounding the nail” by compressing and then releasing the ball off the face and more importantly the goal of the exercise was to have the face of the club square to target line not when hitting the ball but at the moment the compressed ball is ready to release off the face. That explains why the club face need to strike the ball on a descending path on the upper inside quadrant of the ball (relative to ball-target line) when desiring to hit a dead straight shot. In a full swing with full compression/release of the golf ball the club head will swing a few degrees counter-clockwise (righthand golfer) and upward during the compression/release cycle. But one also needs to realize that dynamic changes with less than full swings in where the ball does not compress/release and dwell on the face the same way. Why don’t more golfers realize this even when taught by PGA pros? Part of the reason I suspect is that instruction starts with teaching straight line putting, then partial swing chips and pitches where there is very little compression of the ball and one does need to hit it with an already club face because it rebounds off the face immediately very little compression / rebound. This is particularly true of modern multi-layer high end balls like ProV and ProV1x which have a very thin soft urethane cover with a thin but very hard plastic layer under it then the more compressible polymer compound layer(s) in the center. The difference in the compression / rebound characteristic of the inner layer are what allows that type of ball to react differently to different amounts of swing energy. The very hard outer level compresses very little with light strikes but will yield during more powerful full swings. But one can’t take full advantage of that capability until realizing the club head must be aim to contact different parts of the ball in full and partial swings. If the aim spot on the ball is not correct for the amount of dwell (distance and arc) between the face picking up, compressing and releasing the ball the ball will not release off the face straight down the target line. Beginners tend to slice do to poor and inconsistent mechanics / technique in their swings. But every beginning golfer I have coached starts to miss to the left with straight pull or pull-hook because they are still aiming at and striking the dead center of the ball. What I do then is have them execute their new mechanically sound swing - which is now more inside-out - very slowly so then can visualize and CONSCIOUSLY understand the club head is actually swinging down into the ball in a much tighter arc and steeper angle than their previous conscious understanding of how they thought the golf swing should work - usually some variation of dropping club behind ball on target like and trying to drag it straight into the ball based on asking them before starting the lesson “Tell me how you think a golf swing works to hit the ball powerfully and straight”. Once they realize their new club path into the ball is different they are willing to accept the idea they should not be aiming for dead center of the ball, just like if one wants to pound a nail without bending it one does not want to start with the nail vertical because the face of the hammer will be at an angle like this / when first striking it. One needs to match the angle of the nail to the angle of the face of the hammer when the hammer reaches the head and in golf the point of contact on the ball needs to match the arc of the swing. Once the beginner starts to aim inside and above the horizon on the ball they begin to fly straight but it takes then about a hundred or so swings before they break the previously programmed habit of aiming for dead center with hand-eye coordination. What is helpful for reprogramming the brain when making this or any other swing change is to perform the swing mechanics very slowly, slow enough to visualize the direction of contact of club with ball. Sam Snead had a great tip for being able to visualize impact with the ball even in full swings. Practice with a tee in the ground just outside of the ball on your dominate eye’s line of sight and focus your ‘tunnel vision” on it, not the ball and don’t look up from it during impact until the shoulder turn force you do. That creates a constant sight picture and you will begin to see the club head sweep into the ball and it disappear for the first time and be able to detect how face was angled and where it struck the ball. When playing pick a bit of debris or individual blade of grass outside the ball to focus your sight picture on.
Wow your comment made for some interesting reading. I laughed out loud after reading what Sam Snead recommended, unbelievable how intelligent human beings are!
Tried this yesterday on the range just for s___ and giggles. I was quite impressed. I already took a divot, sometimes too much of a divot. My problem lately was face angle at address. I was pulling my irons left, a lot. When I saw your video about cupping the left wrist I didn’t believe it would work. Well first time on the range using that method I eliminated the left side most of the day. I can’t wait to get back to practicing that drill hitting under a tree. By the way, when AJ told that story about how he came to use the cupping method was very interesting. After the range practice I came home and watched that video 3 more times. When AJ said Ben Hogan’s secret was cupping the wrist that immediately brought me back to Hogan’s book, 5 lessons. Hogan had a terrible left miss.Glad I subscribed to your channel, keep up the hard work.
My game improved more than it ever has when I first found AJ Bonar. After quitting and taking it back up again, I didn't really go back to AJ's teaching, but all of my improvements are basically what he's teaching right here. I could have saved a few months and tons of golf swings and a bunch of bad rounds. Let's see how quickly my handicap drops after going back to AJ.
At 8:20 Is he saying because the shaft kicks forward it has the ability to go backward causing a angle of incidence & a angle of reflection as if the ball is hitting the club?
After completing my season in a very disappointing slump in power....again.... I started the search for help during my off season. I pulled out my AJ package from almost 20 years ago (tried a few times years ago but largely abandoned) but decided to try a google of AJ first. Brendon.....there you were with the main man. I watched and re-watched the you tube sessions.....a bunch of pennies dropped......some again, some seemed really new and additive. Fine motor, hand - eye, anticipate impact, use the hands, don't blame the swing, train for better results. More still body, then Lavery - push the hand-eye stuff right thru the roof. But the nay-sayers are all around, powerful voices or are they just terrified "The Truth" is going to get more traction. AJ may be correct.....maybe this is trainable......maybe relying on big muscle stuff is doomed for many of us........I am determined to try again. My putting technique is a version of some of the key AJ stuff and on a good day it is deadly. My short game is really solid on most days. Can I tap into some acceptable levels of power on the longer shots using AJ/Lavery/Brendon?.....can not wait to try. Thanks for your great work Brendon.
Exactly what I was looking for last one few months all over the internet regarding impact... It really clears up what I had been doing and what improved my shots drastically... Keep up the best work...
Thank you for AJ's videos. Can you ask him to further explain how to get the "Moment" extended to the left shoulder? I am a smaller 66 year old and need all the Moment I can muster. Is it a function of forcing the right arm straight? Having a flat left wrist? Long arms at the release point? Thank you.
Great video.Ive known many that have been very successful playing this way in the amateur game we play.Many don’t have all the time to work on the body position golf methods.This is a great way for any level to play some great golf
at first i was a little skeptical of aj because i had his videos years back and they never really helped me. but i'm finding these bbg videos with aj most interesting. thnx steve
This dudes the truth. I went to the range and started turning the face through impact and I’m why hasn’t someone said this before. Might be automatic for some but never was for me just changed my game for the better. Thanks for putting in the work you do guys.
Just a small caveat....Need caution when looking at a still frame from a video. Distortion effects from the video capture process will cause the club shaft to appear to be bent far more than it actually is.
I know, that's why I added the Tiger photo after which was shot with film. The film and the steel shaft make the effect less but the bend is still there IMO.
great info, and from the last Bonar video speed with the left arm fulcrum? goes a little bit against the New Zealand guy's research (previous video) that says a lot of speed is in the wrists at the bottom, hmmm maybe its that de-lofting and rotating at impact that we need the wrist skills for
one of the previous videos, not Bonar, BBG had a pop up about forearms and wrists that had dots that measured speed etc that showed the wrist s added a bigger speed factor than previously thought
Hats off to you for bringing us this channel! So much help for my game has come from this channel. Everyone you get on the channel is passionate about what they believe and thats the good stuff to learn from, whether it's based on solid logic or science, I DONT CARE! These are people to listen to and take what you will.. "Like a bee collecting pollen" There's just one other person (other than my coach) who has helped me really improve and you haven't featured him yet... Mr Adam Young... Have you explored his teaching much or read the practice manual? keep up the great work!
Setup isn't really important. You keep track of the clubface, or the little baseball bat, as it goes back, and you rotate it around in the downswing. If you're late with the bat, you slice, if you're early, you hook, the rest is in the middle. It's easy and you can catch on in a few swings. It will also help you with different types of pitch shots, such as open faced flop or sand shots vs more closed face lower shots that spin and check up. Your hands decide what you do with the face.
You don't. Hit up on the driver, 1-5 degrees. Look up impact curtain DST golf. That really helps more than anything, but I wouldn't buy it. Just look at the concept
I wish you did a chipping and pitching video with him. It's similar to Bobby's theory but his pitching theory is way different. I should send you the short game DVD.
AJs chipping theory is just like Bobby Lopez's...look up the short game video with Bobby Lopez and Brendon on BBG. If Brendon is lurking he can probably annotate the link for you...if he's feeling nice.
Great videos, but my question is does trackman back up these claims or are they just feels. I really like his knowledge, but wonder how has he come to his magnum opus in the times before launch monitor data ?
LMs don't take account of any torque applied to the ball, as their impact models are based on dplane theory. AJ is correct in his description of impact, at least in respect of a skilled ball-striker. A power fade can suppress spin by as much as 50% and increase ball speed. The key to removing loft and suppressing spin is the speed and efficiency of the release of the clubhead (ant-clockwise rotation around its horizontal axis). The skilled ball striker will strike low on the ball to maximize the spin rate giving more scope to suppress it.
Paul Byrne what you are saying makes me wonder if golf clubs manufacturers are now developing club's to cheat lms. Giving us great gains in distance /spin etc indoors then average results on course ?
Wow, interesting question Julian. Indeed, the clubhead design and the shaft flex dynamics can have a significant effect on spin and ball speed and the resultant ball flight which is not accounted for by any divergence between clubhead direction and clubface orientation (what lms refer to as spin loft and face to path). Many great ball strikers use this to their advantage as part of customizing their clubfitting. On the other hand, most of us who do not possess the strength and flexibility of skilled players need to be careful about using clubs that are not suited to us. I don't think the club manufacturers would develop clubs purposely to 'cheat' lms. Some lms when used indoors have to calculate spin, hence the downrange results will inevitably differ to some degree when used outdoors, but that is not true in others. Some lms give consistent results both indoors and outdoors.
Wow! I started watching this thinking AJ was off his head but the more he went through the process it just made me think "what if". Very very interesting. Would love to hear Tony's take on this info. This is gold dust B.
A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. Gross motor development does take place in early childhood but the idea that you can’t change the big muscle use of your body in the golf swing should strike you as incorrect and you’d be right. To begin with, make the major change that, IMO, is the single biggest separator between better players and high-handicappers, the one Brendan was all over when he started this website: stay behind the ball at impact. Bobby Lopez, among all the instructors he visited, put the greatest emphasis on this. Once you go “offsides” you can’t get back to the ball on any kind of right path. You must stand up-some call it the “goat f__k position”-and save it by flipping your hands. (This truth can be concealed at high speeds but it’s why your impact doesn’t sound or feel like that of a good player.)Mike Malaska showed this on a UA-cam video (not with Brendan) in a session with other instructors. Amateurs were amazed when, right after the very beginning of their weight shift to start the downswing, he stopped them and showed them where there hands were going to have to go to return to the address ( and impact) position, and they knew then that they had no chance. In short, there’s lots of body movement correction that can be taught to and learned by adults. Stay behind the ball and get the left side out of the way-that’s the secret. Ever notice how the greats almost look like their standing sideways to the ball at impact? Greatest examples: watch UA-cam of Lee Trevino and Mickey Wright. And their are dozens and dozens of UA-cam videos showing how the heads of good players actually go backward on the downswing. Watch them stay down, compress the ground, and turn their left hips out of the way: that’s the gross motor way to being good.
Steve Thanks for making Aj's point for him. Your ideas of Trevinos fundamentals of using the ground and getting out of the way are great but unfortunately most golfers can't do it. You can't ask the average golfer to do things one of the greatest ball strikers can do. They might be able to marginally incorporate some body pieces but the truth remains you have reached your potential within 3 years of playing the game regardless of your "swing style ". Aj wants you to Learn to use the club face to hit golf shots. Learn club face control and golf can be enjoyable
Steve And I would debate your offside comment as well. The better players problem is moving the head backwards to much(hip slide and tilt) to create the problems you mention. They are onside as you say but possess problems of offsides players too
I concur. I really like Brendan’s interview with AJ but what he describes is contrary to all the data coming back from TrackMan. I watched this three times and am still unclear how one achieves consistency by opening and closing the clubface through impact with your hands. How can you get a consistent start line using that technique? The method that seems to make much more sense is to maintain the clubface square to the path throughout the swing.
I don't agree with AJ's focus on the hands. The smallest muscles. Pros have unbelievable hand-eye coordination. The average golfer doesn't. Far from it. However: the simple idea of the top line of the club passing the bottom line is genius. And VERY transformative. I tried it on the range and on my last outing, and it is amazing. THAT is the kind of big picture information that can dramatically improve ball striking. Thank you AJ!!
I really like the "feels" AJ Bonar gives but I do believe there are some "flaws" in his explanation of deloft...He first talks about how the best players on tour are continuously delofting at impact which gives a great horizontal force vector. He then says (after B asks why the ball wouldn't come out really low with that much deloft) that the driver shaft bends at impact which gives more loft.. If the kickpoint of the shaft causes the head to add loft, how do the top tour players still deloft at impact when the shaft is causing added loft? Also, he says the golf ball stays on the club for 2/1000ths of a second during the swing. If that's the case, I can't believe that tour players can deloft their clubhead quick enough during that 2/1000ths of a second to create enough added horizontal force to make any difference. Anyone else confused?
My idea is to try it with the intent to have the top of the club lead the bottom. It can't happen but I'll try it. Some of this stuff is not plausible to me either, but I think it all boils down to intent of the hit. If it doesn't work, Oh well.
Impact is 5/10000 second. Spin is a result of COR, not a turning clubface. How could it when impact is 5/10000 second. A putt is on the putter face, 1/1000 of a second for a 1/4 inch. AJ did get the "hands to the elbow " correct. Finger muscles extend to the elbow. IWhat we call forearm muscle are finger muscles.
I completely agree that we have lost the hands in a lot of modern golf swing instruction. It's ok to square the clubface with your hands, and not rely solely on body rotation. However, the insinuation that you can't "teach" yourself new big muscle movements is complete hogwash. You can absolutely modify and expand the capabilities of what you can do with those with training and practice.
So what are the "best players in the world" physically doing to get the top of the club faster than the bottom? And, do they even know they are doing it?
Not all teachers work for every golfer, you must seek help from a pro who speaks to a philosophy that you understand. Golf to me is feels and that’s what he teaches too. Equipment is making the feels change in golf but it still applies, I think..
You can disprove his accuracy being the bottleneck of speed nonsense by simply measuring swing speed with and without a ball to hit. I've done this, most people are even faster when accuracy is a variable.
Brendon , it’s brilliant how you interview instructors that seem to have their own ideal way to hit the ball. I like Malaska and Monte, but Tony is the one that really works for me. Who has been the most influential for you? Has one style worked for you or a mix , or have you just developed your own swing? I’d like to see you talk with Adam Bazalgette ,Eric Corgono and Clay Ballard. Very different ideas there as well.
Alex Gourki no people searching for a golf swing leads no one to get better. He and Bobby clampett are the only 2 who don’t care about swing styles. Learn to use the club as a tool(face control )how it’s designed and you will play better golf
The 15 degree down into the earth strike, and the 8 degree de-loft at impact does show why the Tour Striker should help. Man i can't hit that thing though. Has it helped anyone here? Bonar has the data to back all this up though
Not sure where this guy got his "science" that after six you can't learn any sport. I played no golf, soccer, tennis, basketball till I was older than six. Somehow I figured out how to play these sports and even a golf swing after the age of 45.
100% wrong about development. You’re not set at the age of 12 or 18 or whatever. You can and do change over time depending on what you do. You can absolutely find speed, just btw.
One comment, shafts do NOT bend forward at impact. This is a well known phenomenon due to the shutter scanning lag of cheaper/older cameras. Take a look of any swings photographed with the Konica Minolta Bizhub swing vision camera which is operating at around 6000 frames per second - no bent forward shafts at impact EVER!
Striking down with the driver and the hands ahead goes against everything that's being taught about striking the ball with a bit of upswing with the driver to get better distance.(who's right AJ or everybody else? ) AJ fails to mention that pros hit a little more down on the driver for control not distance. your audience, myself included are not pros. He comes off as a bit of a cranky know it all. I know I won't be thinking about hitting my driver with a slightly open face and closing the face to have counteracting effects to hit a straight ball and I like biomechanics and all the data, angle of attack etc., but frankly TMI. Honestly I think he made some of the gross motor skills stuff up. His "well good for you" comment about your 80 MPH pitch was the biggest backhanded compliment in recorded history. But you took it like a champ, most mortal men would have crumbled. You shook it off, stood firm and kept fighting all in the name of furthering our quest to "Be Better". I will be using "well good for you" as my official backhanded compliment of 2018. All I can say is "well good for me".
Paul Koppenheffer you missed ajs point. He was saying Brendan's a better athlete than most. Good for him. Go look at any gross motor chart. It's correct
Alvaro: exactly, should the amateur golfer be trying to do what the pros do. Most people probably don't generate enough clubhead speed. Pro golfers hit down for more control, most amateurs are looking for more distance. Don't forget that 1.4 degrees is an average some guys hit down, some guys hit up like Rory(plus 3 degrees up). I was just wondering what is best for the amateur golfer
I have really enjoyed all the teaching professionals who have been on Brendon's channel, this one just didn't hit the mark for me. Funny how to people can watch the same thing and perceive it so differently. All the best on and of the course
Obviously, you want an amateur to hit up on it to produce the best launching conditions if they are not hitting it well and are hitting sky balls all the time. With that said, I believe AJ shows interesting concepts here that are wildly misunderstood. And with sufficient club head speed, you don't really need to hit up on it, only if you want to murder the ball and get some extra yardage. I for one prefer a ball in the fairway than a 15 yard longer ball in the rough.
a j, you are not giving reference for the gross motor idea. what scientific, biophysical studies have shown it. this is one of rwo deal breaking flaws in your teaching. if you cannot deal with pivot, power, torque, ground force, rythm, weight pressure shift, etc, you don;t erase it from truth
Are you people kidding, no way will this make you play better, this guy has lessons from so called gurus all the time and he's still not improving ,what chance do we have lads ,don't be sucked in its bullshit.
I disagree about the development of a kid let's use Michael Jordan as an example Michael Jordan was cut from his 8th grade basketball team cuz he wasn't good enough and then we all know what happened Michael Jordan became Michael Jordan. it seems like the instructor was saying that either you have it or you don't but I believe with hard work you can get where you need to be
My lord this story just grows and grows, he was not cut from his 8th grade team, he was cut from varsity and went to play at his grade, just wasn't good enough for varsity as a freshman. lord.
Lord,oh my lord.... Chill out Stephen a smith, I made a mistake about his tryout, but the follow year he made the team, And started. So he still develop later on down the road. Nothing beats hard work Stephen aka Dick Martins.......lord
Regardless of the stories details, AJ's idea is you can train fine motor skills but not gross motor skills. So your saying M Jordan didn't make the team for a year because he had to develop gross motor skills and not fine motor skills?
AJ, you are wrong about the development and plasticity of the gross motor system. Have you ever corrected someone's posture in golf? If you have, then you have changed someone's gross motor mapping. As a doctor of physical therapy with 18 years of practice, I teach people everyday how to correct their posture, engage their core to reduce stress in their backs, reduce forward head and rounded shoulders. Those are all examples of gross motor changes to bad habits. I'm not sure where you got your Neuroscience information from, but you should triple check your sources before spouting them off. This is not your area of expertise.
He explains to us the "topspin effect" then goes on to explain how there is no such thing as the "topspin effect". WTF? Is there a point to anything he said in this video? The first 2 videos with Mr. Bonar have been a total disappointment. Hope they get better.
he qualified it by saying "airborne shots" ...of course you could hit topspin shots in golf ...hit it thin with an ascending blow ...and watch it dive 10 yds in front of you ...we've all done it
Agreed. Blind people play golf by having assistant place them in stance and aim them, relative to ball and target. No hand-eye coordination there! I think A.J.'s method is more 'focus' on the club AFTER you have some kind of decent swing. I've seen newbies try to hit a ball with no thought other than to hit the ball. God awful!!
This is bollucks, I recently played badminton and table tennis for the first time in 35 years and found i could play left handed to 80% of my ability which I couldnt before!, I would have missed every shot!This is due to playing golf for the last 7 years,it being a 2 handed sport and practicing left arm only some of the time.
And before any one says im not using big muscles 20 yrs ago i had to learn to use the footbrake with my left leg due to a knee injury, the first few times i nearly put myself through the windscreen but within 1/2 hr i could stop accurately at the lights.I can still brake left footed now!
Im referring to his before you are 6 years theory, so if you try and ride a bike after 6 you crash also Faldo didnt hit a golf ball til he was at least 11
Matt Logo really, oh I forgot you know saw you playing last week at the waste management open. Why don't you explain for us. I don't understand why people have to bash someone they don't agree with. Obviously he must have a clue he's been pretty successful as a coach.
A J has literally hit the nail on the head . Working the top over the bottom is an Eureka moment for me. Suddenly from flipping for 60 years I am seeing a consistency in my ball striking I have never had before . This guy is a genius and I cannot thank you enough Brendon for the videos.
My next door neighbor as a kid framed houses for a living and when I was about five years old taught me the trick for hammering nail without bending it: start the nail at an angle so the angle of the nail head matches the angle that the face of the hammer is at when it first strikes the nail as it comes down in arc, which isn’t flat to the ground but about a 20° angle /, more or less depending on how tall the nail is. I learned that TECHNIQUE is part of what allows a master carpenter to wail away with a hammer and drive a 16p nail with two or three whacks without bending it.
When I started playing golf in my thirties I understood the underlying physics and aerodynamic but didn’t understand the technique on that level but with my intuition I ‘connected the dots’ between that lesson on hammering nails without bending them and hitting golf ball without the shot bending to the right or left in flight and getting lost in the woods. I realized that the golf swing needs to take into account how the club head travels during the time it is “pounding the nail” by compressing and then releasing the ball off the face and more importantly the goal of the exercise was to have the face of the club square to target line not when hitting the ball but at the moment the compressed ball is ready to release off the face.
That explains why the club face need to strike the ball on a descending path on the upper inside quadrant of the ball (relative to ball-target line) when desiring to hit a dead straight shot. In a full swing with full compression/release of the golf ball the club head will swing a few degrees counter-clockwise (righthand golfer) and upward during the compression/release cycle. But one also needs to realize that dynamic changes with less than full swings in where the ball does not compress/release and dwell on the face the same way.
Why don’t more golfers realize this even when taught by PGA pros? Part of the reason I suspect is that instruction starts with teaching straight line putting, then partial swing chips and pitches where there is very little compression of the ball and one does need to hit it with an already club face because it rebounds off the face immediately very little compression / rebound.
This is particularly true of modern multi-layer high end balls like ProV and ProV1x which have a very thin soft urethane cover with a thin but very hard plastic layer under it then the more compressible polymer compound layer(s) in the center. The difference in the compression / rebound characteristic of the inner layer are what allows that type of ball to react differently to different amounts of swing energy. The very hard outer level compresses very little with light strikes but will yield during more powerful full swings.
But one can’t take full advantage of that capability until realizing the club head must be aim to contact different parts of the ball in full and partial swings. If the aim spot on the ball is not correct for the amount of dwell (distance and arc) between the face picking up, compressing and releasing the ball the ball will not release off the face straight down the target line.
Beginners tend to slice do to poor and inconsistent mechanics / technique in their swings. But every beginning golfer I have coached starts to miss to the left with straight pull or pull-hook because they are still aiming at and striking the dead center of the ball. What I do then is have them execute their new mechanically sound swing - which is now more inside-out - very slowly so then can visualize and CONSCIOUSLY understand the club head is actually swinging down into the ball in a much tighter arc and steeper angle than their previous conscious understanding of how they thought the golf swing should work - usually some variation of dropping club behind ball on target like and trying to drag it straight into the ball based on asking them before starting the lesson “Tell me how you think a golf swing works to hit the ball powerfully and straight”.
Once they realize their new club path into the ball is different they are willing to accept the idea they should not be aiming for dead center of the ball, just like if one wants to pound a nail without bending it one does not want to start with the nail vertical because the face of the hammer will be at an angle like this / when first striking it. One needs to match the angle of the nail to the angle of the face of the hammer when the hammer reaches the head and in golf the point of contact on the ball needs to match the arc of the swing.
Once the beginner starts to aim inside and above the horizon on the ball they begin to fly straight but it takes then about a hundred or so swings before they break the previously programmed habit of aiming for dead center with hand-eye coordination. What is helpful for reprogramming the brain when making this or any other swing change is to perform the swing mechanics very slowly, slow enough to visualize the direction of contact of club with ball.
Sam Snead had a great tip for being able to visualize impact with the ball even in full swings. Practice with a tee in the ground just outside of the ball on your dominate eye’s line of sight and focus your ‘tunnel vision” on it, not the ball and don’t look up from it during impact until the shoulder turn force you do. That creates a constant sight picture and you will begin to see the club head sweep into the ball and it disappear for the first time and be able to detect how face was angled and where it struck the ball. When playing pick a bit of debris or individual blade of grass outside the ball to focus your sight picture on.
Wow your comment made for some interesting reading. I laughed out loud after reading what Sam Snead recommended, unbelievable how intelligent human beings are!
Tried this yesterday on the range just for s___ and giggles. I was quite impressed. I already took a divot, sometimes too much of a divot. My problem lately was face angle at address. I was pulling my irons left, a lot. When I saw your video about cupping the left wrist I didn’t believe it would work. Well first time on the range using that method I eliminated the left side most of the day. I can’t wait to get back to practicing that drill hitting under a tree. By the way, when AJ told that story about how he came to use the cupping method was very interesting. After the range practice I came home and watched that video 3 more times. When AJ said Ben Hogan’s secret was cupping the wrist that immediately brought me back to Hogan’s book, 5 lessons. Hogan had a terrible left miss.Glad I subscribed to your channel, keep up the hard work.
My game improved more than it ever has when I first found AJ Bonar. After quitting and taking it back up again, I didn't really go back to AJ's teaching, but all of my improvements are basically what he's teaching right here. I could have saved a few months and tons of golf swings and a bunch of bad rounds. Let's see how quickly my handicap drops after going back to AJ.
At 8:20 Is he saying because the shaft kicks forward it has the ability to go backward causing a angle of incidence & a angle of reflection as if the ball is hitting the club?
Great video definitely going to help my golf swing I’ve been struggling to understand this concept and this just made sense
That was some fascinating info, iv never looked at it that way. The phrase "creating backspin with a topspin move" really intrigues me.
The explanation on driver impact is a gem, best ever. Tried it and I believe it works for me.
After completing my season in a very disappointing slump in power....again.... I started the search for help during my off season. I pulled out my AJ package from almost 20 years ago (tried a few times years ago but largely abandoned) but decided to try a google of AJ first. Brendon.....there you were with the main man. I watched and re-watched the you tube sessions.....a bunch of pennies dropped......some again, some seemed really new and additive. Fine motor, hand - eye, anticipate impact, use the hands, don't blame the swing, train for better results. More still body, then Lavery - push the hand-eye stuff right thru the roof. But the nay-sayers are all around, powerful voices or are they just terrified "The Truth" is going to get more traction. AJ may be correct.....maybe this is trainable......maybe relying on big muscle stuff is doomed for many of us........I am determined to try again. My putting technique is a version of some of the key AJ stuff and on a good day it is deadly. My short game is really solid on most days. Can I tap into some acceptable levels of power on the longer shots using AJ/Lavery/Brendon?.....can not wait to try. Thanks for your great work Brendon.
Exactly what I was looking for last one few months all over the internet regarding impact... It really clears up what I had been doing and what improved my shots drastically... Keep up the best work...
I never was able to relate his method a number of years ago!
AJ, is the true Yoda " of the golf swing.
Thank you for AJ's videos. Can you ask him to further explain how to get the "Moment" extended to the left shoulder? I am a smaller 66 year old and need all the Moment I can muster. Is it a function of forcing the right arm straight? Having a flat left wrist? Long arms at the release point? Thank you.
Great video.Ive known many that have been very successful playing this way in the amateur game we play.Many don’t have all the time to work on the body position golf methods.This is a great way for any level to play some great golf
Watch in 4K!
How?
That was really great B! I wasn't 100% focused so I'm going to have to watch this a couple more times to let it sink in:)
at first i was a little skeptical of aj because i had his videos years back and they never really helped me. but i'm finding these bbg videos with aj most interesting. thnx steve
How can that top move faster when the club is all one piece and the bottom is swinging on a longer arc than the top?
This dudes the truth. I went to the range and started turning the face through impact and I’m why hasn’t someone said this before. Might be automatic for some but never was for me just changed my game for the better. Thanks for putting in the work you do guys.
Turning the face through impact??
@@swisstrader ..yes, close that gate, who left that gate open, close that gate
Can't wait for the face rotation questions, i bought AJs dvds back in the day, took a hell of a lot of timing IMO, BUT I JUST LIKE THE GUY
Just a small caveat....Need caution when looking at a still frame from a video. Distortion effects from the video capture process will cause the club shaft to appear to be bent far more than it actually is.
I know, that's why I added the Tiger photo after which was shot with film. The film and the steel shaft make the effect less but the bend is still there IMO.
great info, and from the last Bonar video speed with the left arm fulcrum? goes a little bit against the New Zealand guy's research (previous video) that says a lot of speed is in the wrists at the bottom, hmmm maybe its that de-lofting and rotating at impact that we need the wrist skills for
"New Zealand guy" ??
one of the previous videos, not Bonar, BBG had a pop up about forearms and wrists that had dots that measured speed etc that showed the wrist s added a bigger speed factor than previously thought
Skip to 5:50 to get to the point.
Hats off to you for bringing us this channel! So much help for my game has come from this channel. Everyone you get on the channel is passionate about what they believe and thats the good stuff to learn from, whether it's based on solid logic or science, I DONT CARE! These are people to listen to and take what you will.. "Like a bee collecting pollen"
There's just one other person (other than my coach) who has helped me really improve and you haven't featured him yet... Mr Adam Young... Have you explored his teaching much or read the practice manual?
keep up the great work!
Do you push the shaft forward during set up, or is it de-loft at the moment of impact? Sounds so hard to do lol.
Setup isn't really important. You keep track of the clubface, or the little baseball bat, as it goes back, and you rotate it around in the downswing. If you're late with the bat, you slice, if you're early, you hook, the rest is in the middle. It's easy and you can catch on in a few swings. It will also help you with different types of pitch shots, such as open faced flop or sand shots vs more closed face lower shots that spin and check up. Your hands decide what you do with the face.
Interesting, how do make the topline of face move quicker than the bottom?
Matthew Golden By closing the toe of the golf club
You don't. Hit up on the driver, 1-5 degrees. Look up impact curtain DST golf. That really helps more than anything, but I wouldn't buy it. Just look at the concept
What is the reason for putting the top over the bottom?
Shaft lean
I wish you did a chipping and pitching video with him. It's similar to Bobby's theory but his pitching theory is way different. I should send you the short game DVD.
i'm interested. I saw his first video but didn't know a short game video existed. Any hints?
AJs chipping theory is just like Bobby Lopez's...look up the short game video with Bobby Lopez and Brendon on BBG. If Brendon is lurking he can probably annotate the link for you...if he's feeling nice.
Great videos, but my question is does trackman back up these claims or are they just feels. I really like his knowledge, but wonder how has he come to his magnum opus in the times before launch monitor data ?
He told me worked for taylor made when they where develping the R5 driver and they had all the equipment.
R5 that's long time ago taylormade might of had lots more developments since then
LMs don't take account of any torque applied to the ball, as their impact models are based on dplane theory. AJ is correct in his description of impact, at least in respect of a skilled ball-striker. A power fade can suppress spin by as much as 50% and increase ball speed. The key to removing loft and suppressing spin is the speed and efficiency of the release of the clubhead (ant-clockwise rotation around its horizontal axis). The skilled ball striker will strike low on the ball to maximize the spin rate giving more scope to suppress it.
Paul Byrne what you are saying makes me wonder if golf clubs manufacturers are now developing club's to cheat lms. Giving us great gains in distance /spin etc indoors then average results on course ?
Wow, interesting question Julian. Indeed, the clubhead design and the shaft flex dynamics can have a significant effect on spin and ball speed and the resultant ball flight which is not accounted for by any divergence between clubhead direction and clubface orientation (what lms refer to as spin loft and face to path). Many great ball strikers use this to their advantage as part of customizing their clubfitting. On the other hand, most of us who do not possess the strength and flexibility of skilled players need to be careful about using clubs that are not suited to us.
I don't think the club manufacturers would develop clubs purposely to 'cheat' lms. Some lms when used indoors have to calculate spin, hence the downrange results will inevitably differ to some degree when used outdoors, but that is not true in others. Some lms give consistent results both indoors and outdoors.
Wow! I started watching this thinking AJ was off his head but the more he went through the process it just made me think "what if". Very very interesting. Would love to hear Tony's take on this info. This is gold dust B.
I'll ask
I'm looking forward to hearing Tony's reply on this.
AJ is the genius of all time
No he is not. HOMER KELLEY the author of THE GOLFING MACHINE is the greatest golf teacher of all time.
An open and closed case thanks.
I have a CD of AJ Boner from a few years back Where he does. A card trick and plays a guitar my favourite EVER He is awesome Bill 🇨🇦
Me too! Couldnt find anything on him for years! His method revolutionized my game, I am soo glad to see him back on!
A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. Gross motor development does take place in early childhood but the idea that you can’t change the big muscle use of your body in the golf swing should strike you as incorrect and you’d be right. To begin with, make the major change that, IMO, is the single biggest separator between better players and high-handicappers, the one Brendan was all over when he started this website: stay behind the ball at impact. Bobby Lopez, among all the instructors he visited, put the greatest emphasis on this. Once you go “offsides” you can’t get back to the ball on any kind of right path. You must stand up-some call it the “goat f__k position”-and save it by flipping your hands. (This truth can be concealed at high speeds but it’s why your impact doesn’t sound or feel like that of a good player.)Mike Malaska showed this on a UA-cam video (not with Brendan) in a session with other instructors. Amateurs were amazed when, right after the very beginning of their weight shift to start the downswing, he stopped them and showed them where there hands were going to have to go to return to the address ( and impact) position, and they knew then that they had no chance. In short, there’s lots of body movement correction that can be taught to and learned by adults. Stay behind the ball and get the left side out of the way-that’s the secret. Ever notice how the greats almost look like their standing sideways to the ball at impact? Greatest examples: watch UA-cam of Lee Trevino and Mickey Wright. And their are dozens and dozens of UA-cam videos showing how the heads of good players actually go backward on the downswing. Watch them stay down, compress the ground, and turn their left hips out of the way: that’s the gross motor way to being good.
Steve Thanks for making Aj's point for him. Your ideas of Trevinos fundamentals of using the ground and getting out of the way are great but unfortunately most golfers can't do it. You can't ask the average golfer to do things one of the greatest ball strikers can do. They might be able to marginally incorporate some body pieces but the truth remains you have reached your potential within 3 years of playing the game regardless of your "swing style ". Aj wants you to Learn to use the club face to hit golf shots. Learn club face control and golf can be enjoyable
Steve And I would debate your offside comment as well. The better players problem is moving the head backwards to much(hip slide and tilt) to create the problems you mention. They are onside as you say but possess problems of offsides players too
Steve: awesome point, thought Bobby Lopez was very helpful with his offsides videos. Simple and effective.
Love the video. 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, Romans 10:9-10, John 3:14-17❤
when pros use a Trackman, they get an upward angle of attack with the driver. Doesn't that go against what he is saying here?
I concur. I really like Brendan’s interview with AJ but what he describes is contrary to all the data coming back from TrackMan. I watched this three times and am still unclear how one achieves consistency by opening and closing the clubface through impact with your hands. How can you get a consistent start line using that technique? The method that seems to make much more sense is to maintain the clubface square to the path throughout the swing.
I don't agree with AJ's focus on the hands. The smallest muscles. Pros have unbelievable hand-eye coordination. The average golfer doesn't. Far from it. However: the simple idea of the top line of the club passing the bottom line is genius. And VERY transformative. I tried it on the range and on my last outing, and it is amazing. THAT is the kind of big picture information that can dramatically improve ball striking. Thank you AJ!!
How is the de-lofting of the driver possible when hitting up the golf ball??
He says same way you hit a topspin shot in ping pong. Swing from low to high with the face turning down.
The handle is working up and in
At 8:41 the shaft bend is an illusion. Most video cameras distort the reality of movement. One more reason why I am so skeptical of A.J. instruction.
I really like the "feels" AJ Bonar gives but I do believe there are some "flaws" in his explanation of deloft...He first talks about how the best players on tour are continuously delofting at impact which gives a great horizontal force vector. He then says (after B asks why the ball wouldn't come out really low with that much deloft) that the driver shaft bends at impact which gives more loft.. If the kickpoint of the shaft causes the head to add loft, how do the top tour players still deloft at impact when the shaft is causing added loft?
Also, he says the golf ball stays on the club for 2/1000ths of a second during the swing. If that's the case, I can't believe that tour players can deloft their clubhead quick enough during that 2/1000ths of a second to create enough added horizontal force to make any difference. Anyone else confused?
My idea is to try it with the intent to have the top of the club lead the bottom. It can't happen but I'll try it. Some of this stuff is not plausible to me either, but I think it all boils down to intent of the hit. If it doesn't work, Oh well.
Impact is 5/10000 second. Spin is a result of COR, not a turning clubface. How could it when impact is 5/10000 second.
A putt is on the putter face, 1/1000 of a second for a 1/4 inch.
AJ did get the "hands to the elbow " correct. Finger muscles extend to the elbow.
IWhat we call forearm muscle are finger muscles.
The club bend that we see in pictures isn’t what it really is….it’s frame rate.
this is class no bullshit
Bryson put this stuff to bed! Gained lots of speed
I completely agree that we have lost the hands in a lot of modern golf swing instruction. It's ok to square the clubface with your hands, and not rely solely on body rotation. However, the insinuation that you can't "teach" yourself new big muscle movements is complete hogwash. You can absolutely modify and expand the capabilities of what you can do with those with training and practice.
So what are the "best players in the world" physically doing to get the top of the club faster than the bottom?
And, do they even know they are doing it?
Don’t get buzzed before watching this because your head might spin!
Not all teachers work for every golfer, you must seek help from a pro who speaks to a philosophy that you understand. Golf to me is feels and that’s what he teaches too. Equipment is making the feels change in golf but it still applies, I think..
You can disprove his accuracy being the bottleneck of speed nonsense by simply measuring swing speed with and without a ball to hit. I've done this, most people are even faster when accuracy is a variable.
Brendon , it’s brilliant how you interview instructors that seem to have their own ideal way to hit the ball. I like Malaska and Monte, but Tony is the one that really works for me. Who has been the most influential for you? Has one style worked for you or a mix , or have you just developed your own swing?
I’d like to see you talk with Adam Bazalgette ,Eric Corgono and Clay Ballard. Very different ideas there as well.
Question for u What would I ask Eric Corgono? Might meet up with him this winter
@@BEBETTERGOLF ask him does he have a swing philosophy ? and why is there so much contradiction in golf swing teaching ?
...don'tcha wish everything was as simple as a golf swing
14 mins?? 🥵
and this is exactly why handicaps haven't gone down
Alex Gourki no people searching for a golf swing leads no one to get better. He and Bobby clampett are the only 2 who don’t care about swing styles. Learn to use the club as a tool(face control )how it’s designed and you will play better golf
The 15 degree down into the earth strike, and the 8 degree de-loft at impact does show why the Tour Striker should help. Man i can't hit that thing though. Has it helped anyone here?
Bonar has the data to back all this up though
Derek Gzaskow I use the tour strikers all the time. I have SW, 7 and 5
Not sure where this guy got his "science" that after six you can't learn any sport. I played no golf, soccer, tennis, basketball till I was older than six. Somehow I figured out how to play these sports and even a golf swing after the age of 45.
100% wrong about development. You’re not set at the age of 12 or 18 or whatever. You can and do change over time depending on what you do.
You can absolutely find speed, just btw.
One comment, shafts do NOT bend forward at impact. This is a well known phenomenon due to the shutter scanning lag of cheaper/older cameras. Take a look of any swings photographed with the Konica Minolta Bizhub swing vision camera which is operating at around 6000 frames per second - no bent forward shafts at impact EVER!
Shafts absolutely can bend forward on the downswing.
You’re both right. Ideally...It bends back at the beginning of the downswing, then forward, then straightens out for impact.
Striking down with the driver and the hands ahead goes against everything that's being taught about striking the ball with a bit of upswing with the driver to get better distance.(who's right AJ or everybody else? ) AJ fails to mention that pros hit a little more down on the driver for control not distance. your audience, myself included are not pros. He comes off as a bit of a cranky know it all. I know I won't be thinking about hitting my driver with a slightly open face and closing the face to have counteracting effects to hit a straight ball and I like biomechanics and all the data, angle of attack etc., but frankly TMI. Honestly I think he made some of the gross motor skills stuff up. His "well good for you" comment about your 80 MPH pitch was the biggest backhanded compliment in recorded history. But you took it like a champ, most mortal men would have crumbled. You shook it off, stood firm and kept fighting all in the name of furthering our quest to "Be Better". I will be using "well good for you" as my official backhanded compliment of 2018. All I can say is "well good for me".
Paul Koppenheffer you missed ajs point. He was saying Brendan's a better athlete than most. Good for him. Go look at any gross motor chart. It's correct
According to TrackMan, the average angle of attack with the driver on tour is 1.4º down. Just saying.
Alvaro: exactly, should the amateur golfer be trying to do what the pros do. Most people probably don't generate enough clubhead speed. Pro golfers hit down for more control, most amateurs are looking for more distance. Don't forget that 1.4 degrees is an average some guys hit down, some guys hit up like Rory(plus 3 degrees up). I was just wondering what is best for the amateur golfer
I have really enjoyed all the teaching professionals who have been on Brendon's channel, this one just didn't hit the mark for me. Funny how to people can watch the same thing and perceive it so differently. All the best on and of the course
Obviously, you want an amateur to hit up on it to produce the best launching conditions if they are not hitting it well and are hitting sky balls all the time. With that said, I believe AJ shows interesting concepts here that are wildly misunderstood. And with sufficient club head speed, you don't really need to hit up on it, only if you want to murder the ball and get some extra yardage. I for one prefer a ball in the fairway than a 15 yard longer ball in the rough.
a j, you are not giving reference for the gross motor idea. what scientific, biophysical studies have shown it. this is one of rwo deal breaking flaws in your teaching. if you cannot deal with pivot, power, torque, ground force, rythm, weight pressure shift, etc, you don;t erase it from truth
looks like your going down a rabbit hole here.
M'mmm .....
My thoughts exactly
*JURY'S OUT*
Are you people kidding, no way will this make you play better, this guy has lessons from so called gurus all the time and he's still not improving ,what chance do we have lads ,don't be sucked in its bullshit.
I disagree about the development of a kid let's use Michael Jordan as an example Michael Jordan was cut from his 8th grade basketball team cuz he wasn't good enough and then we all know what happened Michael Jordan became Michael Jordan. it seems like the instructor was saying that either you have it or you don't but I believe with hard work you can get where you need to be
My lord this story just grows and grows, he was not cut from his 8th grade team, he was cut from varsity and went to play at his grade, just wasn't good enough for varsity as a freshman. lord.
And he wasn't cut he tried out for varsity and didn't make it, that story is such bullshit.
Lord,oh my lord.... Chill out Stephen a smith, I made a mistake about his tryout, but the follow year he made the team, And started. So he still develop later on down the road. Nothing beats hard work Stephen aka Dick Martins.......lord
Regardless of the stories details, AJ's idea is you can train fine motor skills but not gross motor skills. So your saying M Jordan didn't make the team for a year because he had to develop gross motor skills and not fine motor skills?
AJ, you are wrong about the development and plasticity of the gross motor system. Have you ever corrected someone's posture in golf? If you have, then you have changed someone's gross motor mapping. As a doctor of physical therapy with 18 years of practice, I teach people everyday how to correct their posture, engage their core to reduce stress in their backs, reduce forward head and rounded shoulders. Those are all examples of gross motor changes to bad habits. I'm not sure where you got your Neuroscience information from, but you should triple check your sources before spouting them off. This is not your area of expertise.
He explains to us the "topspin effect" then goes on to explain how there is no such thing as the "topspin effect". WTF? Is there a point to anything he said in this video? The first 2 videos with Mr. Bonar have been a total disappointment. Hope they get better.
he qualified it by saying "airborne shots" ...of course you could hit topspin shots in golf ...hit it thin with an ascending blow ...and watch it dive 10 yds in front of you ...we've all done it
Pseudo science.
Agreed. Blind people play golf by having assistant place them in stance and aim them, relative to ball and target. No hand-eye coordination there! I think A.J.'s method is more 'focus' on the club AFTER you have some kind of decent swing. I've seen newbies try to hit a ball with no thought other than to hit the ball. God awful!!
This is bollucks, I recently played badminton and table tennis for the first time in 35 years and found i could play left handed to 80% of my ability which I couldnt before!, I would have missed every shot!This is due to playing golf for the last 7 years,it being a 2 handed sport and practicing left arm only some of the time.
And before any one says im not using big muscles 20 yrs ago i had to learn to use the footbrake with my left leg due to a knee injury, the first few times i nearly put myself through the windscreen but within 1/2 hr i could stop accurately at the lights.I can still brake left footed now!
Im referring to his before you are 6 years theory, so if you try and ride a bike after 6 you crash also Faldo didnt hit a golf ball til he was at least 11
This guys a joke
Please explain why Mr. Logo.
Matt Logo really, oh I forgot you know saw you playing last week at the waste management open. Why don't you explain for us. I don't understand why people have to bash someone they don't agree with. Obviously he must have a clue he's been pretty successful as a coach.
Matt Logo the joke is on you, sir.
Ummm no...he's actually right on with master instructors. All master instructors talk about the golf swing this way.