Manual de la Torre Method

[The Pearl]

A good complement to MDLT's mental approach is Fred Shoemaker's "Extraordinary Golf"

 

https://extraordinarygolf.com/fred-shoemaker/

[Feelingofgreatness]

11 hours ago, The Pearl said:

When I took my lessons with Manny years ago, once we worked on the concepts and were "just hitting" balls, we would work on "pulling the trigger" very quickly.

 

I would approach and address the ball per his method, acquire the mental picture of the target, and he would say "go".  

 

As Wade mentioned, one of the main tenants of his method is to turn the golf swing into a natural and athletic motion without any interference from the brain, just like you would do any other activity.

 

It is something you could incorporate into your practice routine. Once you start to make the transition you will really start to notice other golfers and how much time they take over the ball. You can almost feel the tension in yourself through their freezing over the ball. As you can see from the posted video above, Manny does not linger over the ball at all. 

 

While a huge benefit in the long game, the short-game can become almost automatic when the mind is free. 

 

During my 3 lessons we spent probably 75% of time with the wedge.  Something I do all the time  is to simply hit half and 3/4 wedge shots over and over and over again with no particular target.

 

Finally as JustSteve has repeated over and over again, there is no better way to practice than hitting balls with your feet together. Buckets and buckets worth.

I like freebird way of doing it with heels touching, my daughter calls it duck feet. 

 

This is 90% of my practice lately. I can hit most clubs 90-95% of my stock yardages, and almost every one is a great shot. My daughter often asks me why I don't just play like that lol. 

 

When I start to suck I lose my center and I sway back, that makes golf really hard. You can't sway and over swing with duck feet or you'll fall over. 

 

I'm happy I found freebird golf. 

[The Pearl]

Freebird is excellent.

[Wade Patton]

I finally got out the big stick. Was going to the range proper, but the raindrops stopped me.  So before the downpour set in, I teed up a few at the net and tried my new swing with the driver.  It's working! I smashed all but one right off the center of the face and I had tried just a few before I put my clubs in the car. They were good enough.

I'm ready to play again.  I know I'll make some bad shots and maybe have a bad bounce here or there, but I'm feeling like I've got this new swing working well enough to go birdie hunting again.  Maybe I'll have a real feel for it by the time the fairways green back up.

Many thanks to those who understand Manny's teachings and have discussed them here and elsewhere for others to see. I'm not exactly sure how I first heard of him.   Conversations here and elsewhere confirmed he knew his stuff and it wasn't the same old thing. It's probably time for me to go through it all again to see what I missed.

FTR: My reentry and how I got to here, since May this year: I returned to playing golf from many years without. Updated my woods (from 1980's steel to 2013 Ti), regripped old irons and putter (the regripping led to a lot of lead taping and a sw scale), started practicing. Got a net, re-read some old books, hit a lot of balls, started playing a few holes, then every weekend, hit short shots every day. Each time it was getting better, and nearly every trip had enough good/great shots or at least a birdie and enough pars that everything was going the right way. Then I had that bad outing-no fun for anybody.

That's when I resolved to dig a little deeper and THAT's how I found Manuel, I was browsing YT and had been looking at ancient guys like Bobby Jones and Sam Snead, then I lucked across a video talking of a "Simple Swing". That was the 29th of October. I watched most of the other MDLT videos and quickly started with short irons and short shots at home. Then over time I added the putter, later the mid irons, and today the driver. 

 

Without even playing a single hole over 140 yards with it (new swing) yet, I know the long shots will be there so long as I don't let old ways creep back in. I felt such (old ways) today on some little pitches, when my forearms tensed to hit at the ball, rather than though to target. I caught it after only a couple shots and quickly went back to swinging properly and hitting more consistent shots. Noticing the improper thing before it fouls your swing-is key to my transition-and why I practice as much as practical. Also practice is a lot more fun with the new ratios of good to bad and ugly shots. 🤠

Pardon my loquacity, but hey most of you know it's a good feeling when the swing feels more solid, and more shots are tight to the target line, with an easier swing and less work than ever. Cheers!
 

Edited December 10, 2022 by Wade Patton
more words. less jargon.

[Wade Patton]

On 11/20/2022 at 9:04 AM, calebm12 said:

Thank you.  I been struggling to get the same feel on the driver.   

Yes it is the same as I have just experienced, but I worked with my irons exclusively until this way started feeling natural (as it is). I've even changed my putting stroke to a swing rather than a strike. Once I got up to hitting solid middle irons, I pulled my driver out and it only took a few swings to feel it. Then I teed a few and hit into the net. And it was good. Hoping to make to to the driving range today and see some ball flight with the woods and long sticks-which used to be my strong suits.

The momentum of the club head coupled with a natural-to-us and neutral grip is what aligns the the clubface so long as we don't introduce interference by attempting to exert control. This is why tension in our forearms is a signal that we're not doing it right. Sometimes I catch myself doing the old thing and it has a tendency to spoil the shot.

The part where Manny has the student hold the club against his resistance to see if the clubface turns either way (and then has them adjust until it does not)--that pressure he's applying is representative of the centrifugal forces-the physics generated by our swinging action. When we get neutral and balanced and surrender the minute control of the clubhead to the physics of the swinging motion, the face of the club naturally rotates into proper position at impact automagically. I love it.

[Wade Patton]

On 12/5/2022 at 5:40 PM, The Pearl said:

A good complement to MDLT's mental approach is Fred Shoemaker's "Extraordinary Golf"

 

https://extraordinarygolf.com/fred-shoemaker/

Fred's video on practice is wonderful. My surroundings aren't quite as spectacular, but the feeling and the energy and the joy is there. thanks.

Edited December 11, 2022 by Wade Patton
left out a "not"

[Wade Patton]

Had an absolutely wonderful 18 today. Granted it was a par3 "training course" but it has some wicked greens and pin placements. I mean I only had one birdie but it was nothing to do with the Palmer Standard '85 blades I was swinging. The blades were brilliant. The greens are just not easy. I declared today I that I need a carbon copy of #2 in my back yard if I'm ever going to learn the breaks on that wonderful, super-challenging pain-in-the-scorecard!

Still working on getting my putting properly centered and balanced, but it's coming along. I only took a nine and a five with my putter and used the nine for 15 tee-shots (it's a par-3 course).  My nine is about 46 degrees but of course I open or close it any time circumstances call for it. I hit a lot of good tee shots and one tight with both clubs. Here's the better one-with the niblick.

I hope I've risen to another level. It sure feels that way. I hope to post some decent scores in '23. I'm still practicing.

HNY y'all.

Edited December 31, 2022 by Wade Patton
added pic and relevant words

[Shilgy]

On 12/11/2022 at 10:38 AM, Wade Patton said:

Yes it is the same as I have just experienced, but I worked with my irons exclusively until this way started feeling natural (as it is). I've even changed my putting stroke to a swing rather than a strike. Once I got up to hitting solid middle irons, I pulled my driver out and it only took a few swings to feel it. Then I teed a few and hit into the net. And it was good. Hoping to make to to the driving range today and see some ball flight with the woods and long sticks-which used to be my strong suits.

The momentum of the club head coupled with a natural-to-us and neutral grip is what aligns the the clubface so long as we don't introduce interference by attempting to exert control. This is why tension in our forearms is a signal that we're not doing it right. Sometimes I catch myself doing the old thing and it has a tendency to spoil the shot.

The part where Manny has the student hold the club against his resistance to see if the clubface turns either way (and then has them adjust until it does not)--that pressure he's applying is representative of the centrifugal forces-the physics generated by our swinging action. When we get neutral and balanced and surrender the minute control of the clubhead to the physics of the swinging motion, the face of the club naturally rotates into proper position at impact automagically. I love it.

If you don’t have a teach for that grip check you can buy your own analyzer.   Ted Purdy played on tour and won one event.  He was taught from a very young age by an instructor that learned from Manuel.

 

 

[Wade Patton]

Yes I rigged up a way to pull the club as Manuel does in the videos right away. Some things aren't that difficult.

Today I learned that I can divorce my backswing from my forward swing. It was great. I'd just swing back and put in a long pause-or even a full stop, then swing through the ball to the target. I heard Manuel say (or I read it, possibly both) that the backswing had nothing to do with the foreswing, but I didn't FEEL it until the last few days. Today I just exaggerated it--and it just didn't matter. HNY y'all.

[Ex Blade User]

On 8/14/2021 at 8:40 PM, marte said:

Ya, bought a used like new hardcover book quite some years ago.  Got to the GRIP.  Had no idea what he was talking about, couldn't comprehend for the life of me.  Book went onto the shelf.

 

Fast forward to recent posts now.  Saw comments on the GRIP.  Thought I'd take a look at the grip part of the book again.  Nope, still don't comprehend.  Book back on shelf and goodbye MDLT method.

 

 

Cool story 

[Wade Patton]

3 hours ago, Ex Blade User said:

Cool story 

Double confused. What makes it "cool" and why dredge it up? I "got" the grip part from the videos on youtube before I even purchased his book and official videos. There's a clip on YT of Fred Shoemaker explaining grip and a few more things to a TV show guy. It's the same grip-natural and neutral.  One might look that up if he/she doesn't quite understand Manuel's explanations.

Different but similar, I went back to the '87 Clinic videos last night just for refresher--and picked up more stuff that I missed the first time.  Balance.  Balance from center.  That's how I can now stop my swing at the top and then restart it without compromising the shot.  I'm balanced.

I'm hitting hickory sticks now, so much fun and so much FUNNER with my MDLT-improved golf swing. Can't wait to get these clubs ready to go and play a short course with them.

++++

I suppose I'm the only golfer around here yet (in this thread) new to being centered and swinging the club to the target, launching the ball as it goes that way.  But if I'm not, if you've wandered in here and this makes no sense just relax and be open to a new understanding of how to move the club around.

For me it was best to see the clinic videos (all of them) before reading up in forums (here at WRX is where the longest threads are on the topic I've found). Once you've heard Manny talk about these things, a lot of the Q&A sections of these threads can be skipped over. You don't want to convert thinking of these body parts to thinking of other body parts but to learn to trust the swing. I know it's not easy to discard all the swing thoughts you've ever had--but that's what I've found to be most beneficial.

It took me months of practice to get the new setup feeling natural with all clubs, but I was hitting better shots right away.  I had a tiny grip adjustment and then had to work on getting centered to the CLUB not ball.  I learned to never take address position and then stare at the ball and shuffle through my catalog of swing keys/thoughts/ideas (that's where we inject thought into the way our body works, trying to influence it, and defeat our own purposes in doing so). Breaking that habit is crucial to ever swinging freely. 

It should be a lot easier for beginners to learn Manny's way if they they don't have their minds already polluted by excess tech and notions of body parts micro movement management as a way to play golf.  Yes it's a way, but I no longer subscribe to it. It was ever-changing. I would go to the range before playing and hit balls until I felt I had the right two or three swing thoughts for that day, then six holes in those thoughts stopped working and I'd refer back to the internal catalog of previously "good" thoughts/keys.  Those would then become injected into the process while shadows of the first ones yet lingered and six holes later it just all comes unglued.  There's none of that now. There's much more "Wow, look at that one go,"  and "Go IN THE HOLE!" exclamations much of the time and then when I miss one--I relax and forget it. I know I didn't do something properly in my setup or swing, but there's no longer a need to analyze it. I just re-focus on the simple basics and get back to hitting the sweet ones.

The absolute best shot in my last outing was where I thought about the shot the least. I was going to hit two tee shots, the first one being a chopped 5 iron (which I had tried three of the first time 'round) and the second one a running hook 9i trying to make it go the distance.  I was thinking about the 9i shot, but then picked up the 5i and and hit it first-with only one thought- half swing, easy.  And that shot flew so wonderfully--right at the flag wound up a about 12' past the hole-that I didn't even try the 9.  It's a practice course and multiple shots are the norm when no one is pushing.

If you're "on the fence" jump off and give it a few months. You can -always- go back to the other ways. Technology will always have another product you can try, another parameter to dissect, another technique to pursue.  That's great for distance golf I suppose (or for full-time golfers). I'm into shot-making golf and don't care to hunt balls half the time anymore. I guess that's why all the old geezers bump 'em down the middle-- they'd rather be playing golf in the short grass than "go find it" out in the weeds.  Have fun what ever way you swing.

 

Edited January 2, 2023 by Wade Patton
pic

[Ex Blade User]

2 hours ago, Wade Patton said:

Double confused. What makes it "cool" and why dredge it up? I "got" the grip part from the videos on youtube before I even purchased his book and official videos. There's a clip on YT of Fred Shoemaker explaining grip and a few more things to a TV show guy. It's the same grip-natural and neutral.  One might look that up if he/she doesn't quite understand Manuel's explanations.

Different but similar, I went back to the '87 Clinic videos last night just for refresher--and picked up more stuff that I missed the first time.  Balance.  Balance from center.  That's how I can now stop my swing at the top and then restart it without compromising the shot.  I'm balanced.

I'm hitting hickory sticks now, so much fun and so much FUNNER with my MDLT-improved golf swing. Can't wait to get these clubs ready to go and play a short course with them.

++++

I suppose I'm the only golfer around here yet (in this thread) new to being centered and swinging the club to the target, launching the ball as it goes that way.  But if I'm not, if you've wandered in here and this makes no sense just relax and be open to a new understanding of how to move the club around.

For me it was best to see the clinic videos (all of them) before reading up in forums (here at WRX is where the longest threads are on the topic I've found). Once you've heard Manny talk about these things, a lot of the Q&A sections of these threads can be skipped over. You don't want to convert thinking of these body parts to thinking of other body parts but to learn to trust the swing. I know it's not easy to discard all the swing thoughts you've ever had--but that's what I've found to be most beneficial.

It took me months of practice to get the new setup feeling natural with all clubs, but I was hitting better shots right away.  I had a tiny grip adjustment and then had to work on getting centered to the CLUB not ball.  I learned to never take address position and then stare at the ball and shuffle through my catalog of swing keys/thoughts/ideas (that's where we inject thought into the way our body works, trying to influence it, and defeat our own purposes in doing so). Breaking that habit is crucial to ever swinging freely. 

It should be a lot easier for beginners to learn Manny's way if they they don't have their minds already polluted by excess tech and notions of body parts micro movement management as a way to play golf.  Yes it's a way, but I no longer subscribe to it. It was ever-changing. I would go to the range before playing and hit balls until I felt I had the right two or three swing thoughts for that day, then six holes in those thoughts stopped working and I'd refer back to the internal catalog of previously "good" thoughts/keys.  Those would then become injected into the process while shadows of the first ones yet lingered and six holes later it just all comes unglued.  There's none of that now. There's much more "Wow, look at that one go,"  and "Go IN THE HOLE!" exclamations much of the time and then when I miss one--I relax and forget it. I know I didn't do something properly in my setup or swing, but there's no longer a need to analyze it. I just re-focus on the simple basics and get back to hitting the sweet ones.

The absolute best shot in my last outing was where I thought about the shot the least. I was going to hit two tee shots, the first one being a chopped 5 iron (which I had tried three of the first time 'round) and the second one a running hook 9i trying to make it go the distance.  I was thinking about the 9i shot, but then picked up the 5i and and hit it first-with only one thought- half swing, easy.  And that shot flew so wonderfully--right at the flag wound up a about 12' past the hole-that I didn't even try the 9.  It's a practice course and multiple shots are the norm when no one is pushing.

If you're "on the fence" jump off and give it a few months. You can -always- go back to the other ways. Technology will always have another product you can try, another parameter to dissect, another technique to pursue.  That's great for distance golf I suppose (or for full-time golfers). I'm into shot-making golf and don't care to hunt balls half the time anymore. I guess that's why all the old geezers bump 'em down the middle-- they'd rather be playing golf in the short grass than "go find it" out in the weeds.  Have fun what ever way you swing.

 

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Not a comment on you if you actually read who I replied to whose comment was not contributing just complaining. 

[Wade Patton]

On 1/2/2023 at 3:52 PM, Ex Blade User said:

Not a comment on you if you actually read who I replied to whose comment was not contributing just complaining. 

gotcha.

[BushwoodBlaster]

Has anyone used Gary Sowinski or Brett Freeman for coaching?  If so what were your experiences with them?  Any other really top teachers that teach MDLT and should be considered?

[Ex Blade User]

If you look at the very end when Byron is giving a tip, he says to take the club back with both hands, gene Sarazen even makes a point of it and Byron says yes BOTH hands wind up the shoulders and hips. Seems very MDLT to me and Byron was one of the best ball strikers in history. 

[Wade Patton]

On 1/4/2023 at 4:11 PM, BushwoodBlaster said:

Has anyone used Gary Sowinski or Brett Freeman for coaching?  If so what were your experiences with them?  Any other really top teachers that teach MDLT and should be considered?

I don't know Gary. Isn't Mr. Freeman "Freebird"?  Yes he's been mentioned lots here. I like Trish of South Florida. She does virtual lessons, as do some others I think.  I've not had any direct coaching or lessons (yet) but have spent since November of last year reworking my swing in the MDLT model. I have Manny's book, videos, and Jones' book, and have seen most every MDLT video on YT.

It took a while but because I hit balls practically every day, it has come together nicely.  If I get my setup proper (it's really easy to center the ball and not the clubhead if you're not paying close attention) and my rhythm isn't rushed, then the shot flies wonderfully.  I'm more accurate than I ever was before. 

My routine now is, after desired shot shape/club is determined, is:  Target acquisition (and near aiming point), Grip check, Centering the clubhead and aligning to near aiming point, Checking target, relaxing hands/forearms, making sure my knees aren't locked, then swinging back, with a slight hesitation on transition, and THRU to the target. 

Sounds like a lot, but the more it's repeated the more ingrained and natural it becomes. If a bad shot happens I re-examine those very basics and never think "oh my hand was here, or my elbow was there, etc." Forget it and move on. 

Henry Cotton's tire-bashing technique isn't a bad thing either. It helps the golfer learn where to let the forces in motion take over.  The worst think I can do now is stand over the ball and stare at the ball. We must look at it to hit it, but the more I stare at it the more likely my swing finds a hitch and fails to produce the desired shot.  Target focus is key.

I'm pretty excited for things to green up again and the days to get longer so I can play a little.

Edited February 19, 2023 by Wade Patton
added a space and deleted a punctuation mark.

[mocokid]

highly recommended ! She covers all of Mannys ideas.  Thanks to John Hayes yt channel.   

 

[erikro]

Bump

[dwboston]

I bought MDLT's book a few years ago, read through it once, then put it down and never went back to it.  I've struggled with my swing a lot the last 4 years after losing about 50 pounds and just losing all feel for what the club is doing in the swing.  I've taken lesson series from a few different instructors, which has helped a bit, but I've haven't been able to fix it.  My main issue is rolling the club inside and low, then lifting my arms really high and being really steep on the downswing.  I've tried a bunch of things to fix the takeaway, but always to seem to revert back to rolling it inside.  After pulling out MDLT's book again last night I think I finally understand why.

 

I re-read the backswing section of the book last night (a couple of times) and I think I understand where I've been going wrong - his explanation of both hands swinging the clubhead back over the trail shoulder, and the accompanying photo of what happens when the top hand dominates in the backswing - the club gets rolled to the inside with an open clubface. 

 

I've been letting the top hand dominate the takeaway, with the bottom hand just along for the ride, leading to the toe opening quickly and rolling the club.  If I use both hands equally in the takeaway and then just feel like I'm putting the hands on top of the trail shoulder, it's in a pretty good position.  Using both hands equally also maintains connection with the shoulders/upper arms and everything feels like it gets to the top simultaneously.  Everything I've tried previously has felt like a conscious manipulation or a contrived position, which breaks down under pressure.  I'm not stupid enough to say it's fixed, but I feel better about this now - it feels like something I can do.  I didn't fully appreciate/understand the simple, specific language he used in the book the first time through, but I have a better understanding of where he was coming from now.

 

 

[DaveLeeNC]

FWIW, I went down the MDLT road a short while back - its simplicity was the appeal. I am not sure where my swing was when I started but I ended up with an all arms swing with a crappy (almost non-existent) turn. Maybe I was kind of there before I started - not sure. Certainly some years back I had something resembling a decent turn. 

 

Just something to think about. As I said I am not positive about what role the MDLT swing approach had in that, but I SUSPECT that it was significant. 

 

dave 

[Feelingofgreatness]

2 hours ago, DaveLeeNC said:

FWIW, I went down the MDLT road a short while back - its simplicity was the appeal. I am not sure where my swing was when I started but I ended up with an all arms swing with a crappy (almost non-existent) turn. Maybe I was kind of there before I started - not sure. Certainly some years back I had something resembling a decent turn. 

 

Just something to think about. As I said I am not positive about what role the MDLT swing approach had in that, but I SUSPECT that it was significant. 

 

dave 

The forward swing 'starts' with the arms, then the body reacts. It's not an arm swing. Most people badly misinterpret that. 

[DaveLeeNC]

37 minutes ago, Feelingofgreatness said:

The forward swing 'starts' with the arms, then the body reacts. It's not an arm swing. Most people badly misinterpret that. 

 

I understand (and understood) that point. In my case it was game over by the end of the backswing. I tried to let my body follow my arms. For whatever reason, I did NOT end up with a decent turn. Maybe this is because my body is stupid. Or maybe it is because that is where I was when I started MDLT and there was nothing to overcome a built-in bad habit. 

 

Regardless, the reality is that the MDLT approach (for me) basically supported the BS error that I was making (i.e., very incorrect hip action and wrist c0ck). 

 

I have no doubt that a qualified MDLT teacher  would have addressed this pretty quickly. As a self taught student the outcome was different.

 

dave

[Feelingofgreatness]

36 minutes ago, DaveLeeNC said:

 

I understand (and understood) that point. In my case it was game over by the end of the backswing. I tried to let my body follow my arms. For whatever reason, I did NOT end up with a decent turn. Maybe this is because my body is stupid. Or maybe it is because that is where I was when I started MDLT and there was nothing to overcome a built-in bad habit. 

 

Regardless, the reality is that the MDLT approach (for me) basically supported the BS error that I was making (i.e., very incorrect hip action and wrist c0ck). 

 

I have no doubt that a qualified MDLT teacher  would have addressed this pretty quickly. As a self taught student the outcome was different.

 

dave

Feet together drill and you'll feel it. 

You can't hit the ball with only arms doing the feet together drill. 

[Shilgy]

1 hour ago, DaveLeeNC said:

 

I understand (and understood) that point. In my case it was game over by the end of the backswing. I tried to let my body follow my arms. For whatever reason, I did NOT end up with a decent turn. Maybe this is because my body is stupid. Or maybe it is because that is where I was when I started MDLT and there was nothing to overcome a built-in bad habit. 

 

Regardless, the reality is that the MDLT approach (for me) basically supported the BS error that I was making (i.e., very incorrect hip action and wrist c0ck). 

 

I have no doubt that a qualified MDLT teacher  would have addressed this pretty quickly. As a self taught student the outcome was different.

 

dave

With the MDLT swing the body doesn’t do nothing. It reacts to the swinging of the arms.  He uses the example of soldiers marching in formation.  You have the leader in front and everyone else follows-but watching them they all move together. 
 Same with the golf swing.  The body is supposed to move and if you need to think about it a bit that’s fine.  But don’t force body movement it reacts to the swinging of the club to support the movement.

[tm3]

12 hours ago, DaveLeeNC said:

 

 

Regardless, the reality is that the MDLT approach (for me) basically supported the BS error that I was making (i.e., very incorrect hip action and wrist c0ck). 

 

 

My guess (and it's a WAG as I'm not an instructor) is that the issue may be that you are trying to "hit the ball."  I would wager that if you threw a club down the fairway by taking it back over your trail shoulder and then forward, there is no way that it would be "all arms" -- your body would react and support the arm swing that you were using to throw the club ...... just as the book says to swing the club towards the target (not use the club to hit the ball).

[DaveLeeNC]

30 minutes ago, tm3 said:

My guess (and it's a WAG as I'm not an instructor) is that the issue may be that you are trying to "hit the ball."  I would wager that if you threw a club down the fairway by taking it back over your trail shoulder and then forward, there is no way that it would be "all arms" -- your body would react and support the arm swing that you were using to throw the club ...... just as the book says to swing the club towards the target (not use the club to hit the ball).

In my case it was game over at the top of the BS. No way was I going to get to the ball efficiently from there (I don't care what you threw where). My guess is that this incorrect movement was ingrained when I started MDLT. There was a time (decade or more back) where I had a decent turn. But this has been really hard for me to overcome so I think it was there before I started. I was not following MDLT that long.

 

It probably showed up back in the 2019 time frame when multiple arthritis based (my DOB is 1949) issues popped up (and their associated pain driven compensations). Fortunately some serious exercise work has helped in this regard and it is less of an issue than before (far different from not an issue).

 

What really appealed to me in MDLT was 'just take this midset to the golf swing and do it.' No more making unnatural (to me) moves. MDLT just did not get me there.  

 

dave

 

ps. Interesting story. My #1 issue was spinal stenosis where nerve-bone interaction was causing significant hip pain. I was doing lots of crunches to address this and it was suggested that I switch to planks (more effective) and I did. Going into that my left shoulder arthritis was like #5 on the list of things that hurt during the day. 1 week of planks turned me into a shoulder replacement candidate (which I have mitigated so far by shoulder exercises selected by my orthopedic doctor rather than by PT). Honestly I never thought that my shoulder would ever be more than a mild irritant. 

[tm3]

Wow that is a shame, physical issues certainly can throw a wrench into the mix.

 

I hope you get it all squared away.

[fried121]

Curious what this group thinks about Dan Martin and his training aid called the pro:  

 

 

Would this seem to mesh with MDLT’s teachings?

 

[Nels55]

23 hours ago, DaveLeeNC said:

FWIW, I went down the MDLT road a short while back - its simplicity was the appeal. I am not sure where my swing was when I started but I ended up with an all arms swing with a crappy (almost non-existent) turn. Maybe I was kind of there before I started - not sure. Certainly some years back I had something resembling a decent turn. 

 

Just something to think about. As I said I am not positive about what role the MDLT swing approach had in that, but I SUSPECT that it was significant. 

 

dave 

Same here with multiple efforts to do MDLT and also Earnest Jones, Frankel Brothers and Ron Sisson.  I have MDLT book and videos.  That stuff simply does not work for me.  I do much better with a body oriented swing. 

[tm3]

18 hours ago, fried121 said:

Curious what this group thinks about Dan Martin and his training aid called the pro:  

 

 

Would this seem to mesh with MDLT’s teachings?

 

IMO, what he says from about the 4min mark is right in line with MDLT.

 

His swing trainer is similar to the Swing EZ, the Dr. Kwon rope, etc.