About one decade ago, the man that has changed the way the world views and plays golf walked on to the first tee at his first professional event. Tiger Woods had already played a few PGA Tour events, namely the Los Angeles Open.
I was working at Riviera C.C. when the 17-year-old was preparing for his debut and this was before the big changes that we would later see in equipment. We had seen some huge changes in the golf balls, club heads and shafts. Although when you think about it, there has always been changes that have been occurring.
What I am making reference to is the huge ball-flight trajectory change. We see PGA Tour Stars that can hit the ball over eight-story buildings in a single bound and not with their lob wedge -- it's with the driver.
When that young, skinny kid of 6'1" came to Riviera, he looked like just another wannabe. He was a real gentleman and mature beyond his years, a very nice kid. Then he stepped out on the first tee. That's when he became a complete assassin, he had a killer instinct and a presence we all well know about now.
He could also tear the balata cover off the ball. Tiger never needed any equipment changes to hit the ball like a superhero. America has watched this skinny kid grow into a gladiator. The junior golfers 10 years ago had more than a role model to follow. They had someone that was always searching for perfection and finding it. He was fine-tuning the instrument which God gave him and his pilgrimage has never wavered. The effect that this man has is now just starting to surface with the Q-school qualifiers. It is just the tip of the iceberg. Guys like J.B. Holmes and Bubba Watson are just the beginning. Even short hitters are getting longer with some added strength with their workout programs and yoga stretching.
However, Tiger still stands alone and because he is the one that continues to push the envelope. He has made swing changes that have become the motions of a perfect model swing. The swing motions that Tiger makes are copied by the best players out on tour today and by every serious junior golfer in the world.
To give you an example of this, Paul Azinger was talking during a broadcast last year about playing a practice round with Vijay Singh. He said that he tries to play withVijay a few times a year because it helps him with his rhythm. He said that on one hole, Vijay asked what he was working on. Zinger told him.
Then Vijay said, "You know Paul, every time I play with you you're working on something different. I've been working on this one thing for about the last 10 years and I'm just now starting to get good at it."
I find that interesting, for several reasons. First, I would like to tell you what it is Vijay has been so driven to be so good at. It's his pivot, or as he likes to refer to it, "firing the hips."
My preference in the description of this motion is to refer to the top of the left and right leg. The femur bones, the biggest bones in your body, these two bones are the reason the hips can get fired or simply leaned and then pushed up and out of the way.
To see the motion done to perfection watch Tiger. His pivot is the best in the game. Both of the top of the legs move a little bit lateral and then the left leg straightens, pushing all his lower body weight toward the outside of his left heel. That's Tiger's pivot, which is until everyone else realized how good it can make you.
It is very clear that the longest hitters all make a very similar motion when they are firing on all cylinders. Is Vijay Singh copying Tiger Woods? I do find it ironic that Tiger was just getting on tour about the same time Vijay started to work on, "firing his hips."
One of the other trends that I will mention in this piece is another Tiger move. Have you noticed how much he likes to lay the club off at the top? He has been doing it for quite some time. If you look around at some of the best ball strikers on the tour today you will notice that they are all starting to lay it off. Sergio Garcia has been laying it off for awhile now and since he started to cast the club instead of down load it or hold on to his angles, he has become one of the truly blessed drivers of the ball.
Holmes is an absolutely fantastic example of laying the club way off with no holding of angles. He casts the club with the exact same pivot as Tiger Woods. I noticed that Robert Allenby won three tournaments in a row in Australia this past winter. They showed some of the highlights recently and every full swing that I saw there was a laid off club at the top.
The reason behind the club needing to be laid off, rather than the myth of pointing down the line, is when it's laid off you can sling the club out in front of you with less wasted motion in your hand, wrists and arms. The club will just move in one direction, not two.
That one motion being out away from your body never has to fall into the slot -- which has always been a baffling mystery to most of the students that I have had the pleasure of instructing. By the way, if you get a chance, watch how much Vijay is laying the club off. If you would like to view any of the swing motions that I have discussed go to 7mythsofgolf.com.
