Hip Depth Part 2: More examples and Details on How to Accomplish It

In this video I give more examples of great players who maintained or increased their hip depth during their swings.  I first noticed this phenomenon about 25 years ago when I was studying that great DTL view of Hogan in 1947.  Growing up I was an exceptionally good player (1^st Team All American in 1979) but my swing was modeled after the greats of the era, Watson, Weiskopf, Miller, Nicklaus, etc., all of whom swung relatively upright and drove their lower bodies well forward through impact while keeping their heads back in the classic (unfortunately) “reverse C” finish.  I first got a video camera and started filming my swing in 1981, and I noticed my tendency to push my legs not only forward but toward the ball, jamming my right arm and causing the club to exit well out to the right.  It was around this time that my back began to bother me, and after 3 surgeries by 1988 I knew I had to revamp my swing to one that was more rotational and less bent back at the finish.  Thus, I began to focus on Hogan’s swing, and one of the things I noticed was the way his hips actually got deeper in his backswing while he kept his head out over the ball, and finished nice and deep with a good amount of right side bend.  I found that right side bend at the finish was less stressful than lower back extension, and I was able to continue playing, eventually having a nice career as a club professional.  Today I emphasize hip depth with all my students, realizing that some will be physically unable to accomplish this like a Tour pro but thinking that at least the attempt to “early extend” less will be ultimately beneficial.