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A Valuable Lesson from the Game's Greatest
Written By: Golf International on Oct 20 2006
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Many years ago at Pebble Beach, Jack Nicklaus gave a tip to an amateur friend of mine I happened to be caddying for. He told him that the key to creating your best swing with a long club was to get the left shoulder behind the ball. Simple, effective advice for every amateur golfer.

In his book Physics of Golf, Theodore Jorgensens explains that as the left shoulder then pulls away from the chin (in response to the subtle change of direction inspired by the lower body), it exerts a torque that catapults the arms down and into the hitting position. I like to think of it this way; imagine a water-skier trailing a boat, turning the left shoulder behind the ball and then reversing the momentum is like the boat making a wide sweep – creating a sling-shot that accelerates the skier. In front of a mirror, follow the lead I have set here, rehearsing a full backswing before reversing your momentum to get a sense of slinging the arms, hands and club down into this delivery position. Rhythm is the key.

It was Sam Snead who famously once said that to play good golf you have to feel as though you are dancing with the club. Unwinding from the ground up gives you that Snead-like rhythm, while pulling the left shoulder away from the right then creates the 'lag' in the arms and the club. The better your rhythm, the more 'lag' you create and the more you will retain the wrist *** that ultimately maximizes the speed you plant on the ball. Unwinding from the ground up gets you on the inside track, free to 'fire' your right side and hit hard with the right hand.

Walking with Jack in practice rounds over the years, he has always stressed to me that if the average golfer can (1) understand that to get into a position where you can unwind into the ball, you first have to turn the left shoulder fully behind it, and (2) grasp the importance of this subtle rolling of the ankles to start the downswing, then he or she will enjoy playing better golf. I'd say that's valuable information from the greatest player the game has ever seen.



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Since its launch in 1997, Golf International has forged a reputation as the standout quality title in golf publishing. The caliber of columnists, writers, players and coaches is unrivalled, while the design and layout of the magazine separates it still further from the competition. In a congested market wrought with mediocrity, Golf International appeals to committed golfers who are as serious about their game as we are about ours.

The ethos behind Golf International is simple: our aim is to entertain, inform and educate our readers with a wide range of fresh and original editorial. Peter Alliss, Ian Wooldridge, Colin Callander, Tom Cox, Paul Mahoney, Clive Agran and John Huggan are listed among our regular columnists. Other notable contributors include Paul Trow and David Davies. We are particularly proud of our association with the teaching staff of the DLGA, who, under the guidance of the world’s No.1 coach – David Leadbetter – provide some of the finest instruction you will find anywhere. Monty’s coach, Denis Pugh, is another regular contributor, as is leading European Tour coach, Peter Cowen, and one of the world’s most innovative instructors, Robert Baker. The popular Senior Tour player, Tony Johnstone, has also made Golf International his literary home.

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