Henry Picard – one of very few Ben Hogan admired and learned from in his early days. From this short material presented above, we can easily see how similar was the kinetics of Picard’s pelvis area motion to that of the best ballstriker of all times. Picard was known for his generosity to other players, and Sam Snead credited Picard with convincing him to turn pro. Picard also offered to bankroll Ben Hogan when Hogan was struggling, then got Hogan into the field at the first tournament Hogan would win. He also helped Hogan eliminate his hook, and Hogan dedicated his book “Ben Hogan’s Power Golf,” to Picard. From Wikipedia: Henry Gilford Picard (November 28, 1906 — April 30, 1997) was an American professional golfer. Picard was born in Plymouth, Massachusetts, and learned to play while caddying at the Plymouth Country Club. He was a leading player on the PGA Tour in the 1930s and won two major championships, the 1938 Masters Tournament and the 1939 PGA Championship. Picard (”Pick” to friends) played on both the 1935 and 1937 Ryder Cup teams winning both singles matches and one of two doubles. Picard was pro at CC of Charleston, Charleston, South Carolina, 1925–34; Hershey Country Club, Hershey, Pennsylvania, 1934–41; then moving to Twin Hills G & CC, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Other professional positions include CC of Harrisburg, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Canterbury GC, Cleveland, Ohio; and Seminole GC, Palm Beach, Florida. Picard retired in 1973. He died in Charleston …
In golf, could it be that those who know how to educate – equip themselves with tools that aid oneself full circle? An example of this is the use of the Swing Doctor – a teaching aid that works full circle, all golf clubs.
Wild Bill Mehlhorn – one of very few Ben Hogan admired and learned from in his early days. From this short material presented above, we can easily see that such things as the trigger compression, sequential swinging from the ground up or the diagonal stance was being present in Mehlhorn’s motion. From Wikipedia: William Earl Mehlhorn (December 2, 1898 — April 5, 1989) was an American golfer who played on the PGA Tour in its early days, and was at his best in the 1920s. He was from Texas. He often wore cowboy hats on the course and was nicknamed “Wild Bill”. He won 20 times on the PGA Tour, but did not win a major championship. Only a handful of golfers have won more often on the PGA Tour without claiming a major. He finished 14 times in the top-10 at majors. His best finish was runner-up to Walter Hagen at the 1925 PGA Championship. He played on the 1927 Ryder Cup team. His game was undermined by problems with putting: the yips. Welcome to: biokineticgolfswing.blogspot.com
In teaching Golfsimplified I believe firmly in keeping it simple. The simplest swing thory is “two turns and a swish”. One of the central issues to help you apply that theory in the full golf swing is ‘core rotation’. Although you hear a lot about ’shoulder turn’, your hips should be involved too. Turning your hips will help you achieve a better arc, plane, and increasing the club head speed. Your shoulders should turn, but I prefer the word of rotate; your shoulders should rotate twice as much as your hips. So allow your hips to turn both back and through. Think of rotating your hips in a barrel, which is an old picture thought, quoted from icon Mr Ben Hogan. That picture and thought will never go out of fashion. Taking that picture thought a step farther, rotate your belt in a level or horizontal plane. Watch the accompanying video clip to see how the hips should rotate back and through on a level plane. This motion helps the club swing on an inside to inside arc, with a big plus to make room and freedom through the hitting area. Another bonus is that hip turn will take some strain off of a stiff or inflexible back. Experiment with this in your swing and you will will start to feel a smoother, less restricted hitting action through the ball. This will also help you ‘transfer your weight’ which is always controlled by your core rotation. Just a word of caution; before you start a vigorous practice session, warm up and stretch out your hamstrings, back, and hip flexors …
This is a novel shot of Ben Hogan teeing off with his driver during practice. Hogan always had a gallery. The back view give some new insight on how he moved. Well after his auto accident, this was shot in the late 60’s. I am not sure if this was a PGA Tour event. Since its a driver, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson should take a good look as it might help improve their ‘hit fairways’ percentages. Since Hogan was so accurate with ALL his clubs he owned the US Open with its tight fairways.