Why did Hogan's backswing get flatter after 1953?

[golferdude54]

I noticed all the videos of Hogan swinging post 1953, his left arm seems to get flatter and below his right shoulder in his backswing, why is that? If we're gonna idolize Hogan's backswing plane then shouldn't we base it on his prime from 1946-1953 rather than 1954-70?

 

Case in point, the "Keep Em On The Fairway" Life film featuring Hogan DTL swinging either a driver or 3-wood, he's clearly covering the right shoulder with his left arm instead of being below it. Another piece of evidence is the Carl Welty video of him in the same year at Tamerisk CC hitting a 4-wood DTL with the ball even being above his feet which should encourage a flat backswing but again, his left arm covers his right shoulder at the top of the backswing.

 

So why do so many Hogan swing aficionado's advocate left arm below right shoulder at the top of the backswing when that's clearly not the case?

Edited May 18, 2022 by golferdude54

[Seth_Ward]

Well the flatter swing stays more on plane and more importantly requires a smaller transition. Where as the higher the hands go the more they have to drop in transition. 
 

With the hands below the shoulders you’re basically coming straight down into the ball. There is very little extra coordination required. Many people tend to start the swing with the arms when they have to do a larger transition. 
 

[moehogan]

I’m not sure he got flatter … but his swing definitely got shorter. Any swing with shaft parallel at P4 and a correct camera angle will have his left arm covering his right shoulder. Partial shots will not. Below are two full swings from the 1965 Shell match against Snead:

 

 

[Robert L.]

On 5/22/2022 at 9:51 PM, moehogan said:

I’m not sure he got flatter … but his swing definitely got shorter. Any swing with shaft parallel at P4 and a correct camera angle will have his left arm covering his right shoulder. Partial shots will not. Below are two full swings from the 1965 Shell match against Snead:

 

 

 

In the Five Lessons book (Lesson 3, p.79) Hogan says, "As golf faults go it is not too injurious if your club and arms travel on a plane a little flatter than the ideal one. HOWEVER, YOU ARE HEADED FOR DISASTER IF YOU THRUST YOUR ARMS UP ABOVE THE PLANE SO THAT THEY WOULD SHATTER THE PLANE OF GLASS." Looking at the pictures of Hogan's backswing above he is definitely below the plane of glass. This is one thing I strive to do in my own backswing. Consequently by keeping my upper right arm close to my body in my backswing my transition is quick and I'm able to return the club into the back of the ball more often than not. Now being a high handicapper I'm not always returning the club to the ball in a solid manner, but I do hit my fair share of good shots.

[Captain Hook11]

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Edited July 22, 2022 by Captain Hook11

[SwagGolf6112]

As he got older and less flexible he intentionally swung shorter and flatter(not much but just a hair flatter).

 

The flatter and shorter he swung it the easier it is for him to "engage" the secret coming into the hit. Cheers!

 

[virtuoso]

Would you mind demonstrating how he "engaged" the secret.

[Pepperturbo]

Hogan was known for his flat swing until after the accident when his swing began to change.  Flatter swing provides better impact, and works better with the clubs in Hogans day.  Over or under never matter to me, and I used his Hogan Five book and two others to self-learn golf.  My low is 2, currently at 70yrs old, hovering 3-4.

 

Hogan hit wood well, but he was proud of his iron play, which were flat; flat lies made learning golf more difficult.  After the advent of CAD, all clubs from OEMs suddenly became more upright, which allowed more people to play golf.

Edited August 10, 2022 by Pepperturbo