IT'S GOOD FOR YOUR GAME The power squat
This is a pro who hits it long demonstrating her power squat — gathering herself like a basketball player crouching prior to jumping for a rebound.
By T.J. Tomasi
Now that Tiger is back, we’ll have to suffer through announcer Nick Faldo and his incorrect evaluation of Tiger’s dropping down to start the downswing.
Every time Tiger hits a bad shot, Faldo attributes it to his dropping down. But when he hits a good shot, Faldo claims that he didn’t drop down as much, even though the video replay looks virtually the same.
As a swing analyst, Faldo sees what he believes. His own game should have given him a hint of how wrong he is about how to max out power in the golf swing. Faldo is 6-foot-3, and in his prime he was a very fit athlete. But for his size, because of his swing mechanics, he was a short hitter — his success came from his accuracy, and it fit with Faldo’s risk profile.
Tiger, even at 40-plus years old is still mega-long, and with his mentality, the worst thing he could do was abandon the power squat. Of course you can overdo anything and turn a good thing into a bad one. Too much water is called "drowning," but the answer isn’t to give up water — just cut back on your intake.
This power squat demonstrates how energy is transmitted from the ground, up through your core, into your arms then down the shaft into the ball.
This is a pro who hits it long demonstrating her power squat — gathering herself like a basketball player crouching prior to jumping for a rebound. She cocks her hips by squatting so she can fire her core up and through the ball during impact.
This power squat demonstrates how energy is transmitted from the ground, up thru your core, into your arms then down the shaft into the ball. It’s called the kinematic sequence, and while you can still generate force without it, to maximize power you must use the power squat.
Dr. T.J. Tomasi is a teaching professional in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Visit his website at tomasigolf.com.