Staying on plane is, perhaps, an aspect of the swing that is most puzzling to many of us. Definitive images do not readily come to mind. We often can't describe to others what staying on plane is, what it looks like, and how do we achieve it. That's the bad news. The good news is that, through my experiments at the range, I've had a breakthrough around simplifying the mystery around staying on plane. Of course, I wasn't the first. Hogan first described it through his famous graphic in his book Five Fundamentals using an imaginary pane of glass positioned around one's neck and resting on one's shoulders. The instruction? Just swing along that pane of glass. My own breakthrough takes it a small but significant step further.
At address, the club shaft, after the clubhead being placed behind the ball, will form an angle to the ground. That angle indicates the proper plane of your swing.
Let me repeat that: The angle that the club's shaft makes at address with the ground is the angle you need to consistently maintain. If you move the club back along that angle as the backswing begins, and maintain that angle to the top of your swing, you have a good chance of keeping the club on plane through impact. Study videos of most touring pros, men and women, and you will find this to be true. Of course, the angle may differ from golfer to golfer depending on the relationship of your arms to the shaft, along with how upright your stance is and how far you are standing from the ball. With the one-plane/Mo Norman type swing the angle will be a bit different than with the more common two-plane swing given that the left arm forms a straight line with the shaft, but the same principle around swing plane applies.
And a correct swing plane is essential for a more consistent swing and game. Jordan Spieth is an example of the two-plane swing, whereas Matt Fitzpatrick is more towards the one-plane. Both are fabulous ball strikers who keep their swings on plane and consistent.
Very simply, the angle that the club shaft makes with ground at address tells you exactly where and how to bring the club back on the backswing. This will put your hands in the right position at the top, and if you return the club on that same plane in the downswing, you have an excellent chance of striking the ball on the sweet spot at impact. How far it goes depends on clubhead speed, which I've covered before, but will add a caution here.
Even more important than how fast you swing the club is striking the ball on the sweet spot. We still call it "hitting it on the screws", which in days of old held a metal or plastic plate in place on the wood clubface. In fact, the immortal Bobby Jones was said to be so accurate in hitting that sweet spot on his driver that he had to replace those screws four times every year! And wee Bobby could hit it 300 yards when he needed to with a hickory shaft and a ball probably worse than range balls of today.
Thankfully, club technology has come a long way since then, but we still have to hit that sweet spot to take full advantage of that technology. Combining hitting it on the screws with a clubface that is square to the intended target, you will attain increased accuracy and distance that should put a broad smile on your face.
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Congrats to Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick for winning the revered and "designated" Heritage Classic over a very strong field. Matt is also our reigning U.S. Open Champion. Amazingly, he has documented and tracked every shot--yes, every single of his shots, including those on the range--for about as long as he's played the game. By doing so, he has honed every aspect of this demanding game, which is exactly what a touring pro, and, to a certain degree, you and I, need to do.
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When I'm not playing golf, I'm writing books and songs. Check out my latest song, called Stones, on Spotify, Apple, YouTube and other streaming venues. The singer is not me, but a fellow hired by the company who produced the demo. I think he is right on plane!
Yep. When I'm hitting it well, the swing plane is very consistent. That's right on.
I write songs too. If you want to listen to a couple, go see the music page at https://jamesrichardstewart.com.