MacDonald Drills and Basic Motion
 

Should the feel of the basic motion be the same as the feel in the MacDonald drill where the arms work independently of the body?

what's the MacDonald drill and is there a link to it?

MacDonald drills
 

Try this link.

http://www.lynnblakegolf.com/forum/s...ed=1#post39845


Dave

Ta v much big guy

MacDonald Mistakes
 

Because of their apparent simplicity, I have no doubt that both amateurs and professionals woefully underestimate the effectiveness of the MacDonald Exercises (drills). http://www.lynnblakegolf.com/forum/s...ed=1#post39845 Correctly performed, they have the power to transform one's game. But, there's the rub: They rarely are performed correctly, at least not at first.

Here are ten common mistakes I see -- there are more -- as students attempt them under my tutelage. I will talk to you as I talk to them:

Exercises 5 and 6 (No Club)

1. Your feet are too wide apart. Get your heels together . . . actually brushing against each other back and through. [I usually have to repeat this instruction a half dozen times or more before it finally sinks in.] And keep your hands apart . . . you're swinging your hands, not gripping a golf club.

2. Keep the motion continuous . . . don't stop after one 'swing' . . . back and through and back and through and back and through. Oops, you've got it backward: You're on your left foot when you swing back and your right when you swing through. It should be the opposite: Swing your arms back when you're on your right foot and through when you're on your left foot.

3. Your feet and knees are too wobbly . . . too much sideways motion. The 'mark time' motion should be straight ahead. The knees don't 'kick in' independently, and the ankles don't roll excessively. Later, they will be pulled in slightly as the hips rotate.

4. Let your left heel 'unload' on the backstroke. In fact, let it come up a fraction just to make sure you've got the right action. Keep the outer edge of the toe of the left shoe on the ground. [Here, I often will squat down and physically place the left foot in its proper 'top' position.]

5. Your shoulders are way too active. Feel as though you keep them facing the line. Don't let them turn toward 'the target'.

6. Swing your arms freely from the shoulder joints. Yours really aren't swinging at all. They are tied into your shoulders and you're dragging them around like this (demo).

7. Your arms and hands are swinging way too much inside . . . going back and coming through. Feel like you swing them 'parallel' to the plane line. Point both your index fingers at the target line throughout the motion. Your arms should swing more 'up' and less 'around'.

8. You're holding your right arm too straight on the backstroke. Let it bend at the elbow. And you're not fanning the elbow. Let the 'pocket' of your right elbow look upward and your hands turn to plane, like this . . . [Yoda 'hands on' correction is applied with virtually instantaneous results.]

9. Let the right arm 'go' a little at the bottom, like you're pitching a ball.

10. Keep your head still. Here, I'll help keep it steady -- [I actually reach out and stabilize the head position] -- while you 'mark time' with your feet and knees and swing freely back and forth with your arms from the shoulder joints. This is the essence of the swing, including its timing. It's just like walking, but with a sideways arm swing. See?

And so it goes . . .

:golfcart2:

What is the advised number of repetitions Yoda and How regularly should they be performed?

The True 'Natural Golf' Swing
 

There is no magic number, GP. The idea is to spend a little time each day coordinating the body, arms and hands into one efficient motion. Once done, you will have achieved the Holy Grail of Golf:

A 'natural' swing that will last a lifetime.

:salut:

Yoda showed taught me exercise 5 and 6 on the practice tee at Orange County National in front of about 50 people. The player to my right was a tour pro on the Canadian tour. I was a little abashed but played along as people watched Yoda and I working on what I am sure they thought were dance moves. Yoda is one heck of dancer, I bet!

That was almost two years ago and I now do 5 and 6 on the course when ever I feel the need. Its also a good warm up drill. It creates a feel that sets me straight. A feeling of the arms going sort of "up" independent of the body and knees. For me it is a feeling of the right hip going back and the arms going up with the shoulders held still. If you were to add a little shoulder turn you'd have the hands going not only back and up but also in, just like in a real swing. It is a good "hands to pivot" drill. Not sure if that is just what the doctor diagnosed for me or whether it is prescription for all. Hope I got it right here. Correct me if I got wrong.

In the almost-a-year since I had my lesson with Yoda, I have played my most consistent golf ever. I attribute it to monitoring my alignments and learning to swing my arms independently of my body as per MacDonald Drill No. 5 (I think). I am now trying to integrate the MacDonald drill with my Basic Motion practice, and I wanted to make sure that I was doing it correctly. When I move the club 18" in the backstroke to 18" in the forward stroke, I try to feel my arms moving independently of my body (as a swinger). I also use the drill on the course to ingrain the feel that I am swinging the club.

Id say that for a shot that short you only want to use one accumulator. That is
to say that either you are hitting and using the right arm and straightening right elbow actively and solely or swinging and using the pivot solely to extend the right arm which is passive.

Acquired motion would see some McDonald drill 5 and 6 relevance in my opinion however. The pivot and arms, though co-ordinated, would be going different ways and doing different things.