BioSwing / Smart2Move lesson - Drumoig

Drumoig Golf Centre, between St Andrews and Dundee

Post my lesson with Freddie Lawrence at the Centre of Golf Excellence in St Andrews (link), I have been keen to understand more about the biomechanics of my golf swing, particularly ground force reaction. I already knew that Drumoig Golf Centre had "force plates", so I went along for a chat with Jordan Brown to find out more.

I talked to Jordan about my lesson with Sportsbox AI and how I wanted to learn more about the biomechanics of my golf swing. I liked what he told me about "BioSwing" coaching and booked a lesson. You can learn more about BioSwing here. Essentially, rather than trying to fit the golfer into a "perfect" swing, the BioSwing system works with your natural biomechanics to get the most out of your body. There is another interesting video here about ground reaction forces and the Smart2Move system.

The session

Jordan started by taking some static body measurements to assess my profile within the BioSwing matrix. My wingspan is greater than my height, placing me into their middle to slightly upright swing category. He also had me do some hip mobility assessments to assess my overall flexibility. Watching me hit a few warm-up shots, Jordan categorised me as a "front post" player, implying that I get most power from my lead leg. This is something I was aware of from previous lessons and has also led me to investigate the "Stack and Tilt" swing method. I'll write more about that another time, but as a teaser, I found several commonalities with the lesson today.

Moving on to the plates is where it started to get interesting (for me anyway!). The biggest issue with my golf swing has always been my transition and how I use (or don't use) my lower body. Despite having good hip mobility, I'm just not using them effectively in my swing. With no physical impediment inhibiting a full turn, it must be a technique or mental issue that's causing this. My worst swings exhibit either poor balance (falling forward) or getting stuck on the trail leg (and hitting thin). The force plates immediately confirmed my issues.

By the way, that’s not me in the picture. I can only wish to have such a full head of hair!

While my setup is good and I have a smooth rhythm and tempo, I have too much weight on my toes through the swing and don't generate enough vertical force. My upper body is working well, but the coordination with my lower body is poor. This is contributing to a recurring pain/strain in my latissimus dorsi muscle as my upper body fights with my lower body. To reduce that strain, I need to improve my lower body rotation and sequencing. Secondly, if I want to maximise my potential power through the swing, then I also need to generate more vertical force off my lead leg. So far, so predictable.

So, what did we work on to improve this?

Jordan took time to explain the force information from the plates before we began some experimentation. My upper body rotation and timing are good. My weight transfer from lead to trail and back again is good, but it's in the wrong part of my feet, which causes my balance issues. My vertical force and timing/sequencing are poor.

Jordan wants me to try to explode upwards, like jumping, but without leaving the ground. Doing static vertical jumps on the plates demonstrated the improvement we are trying to achieve, with the yellow force line moving much higher. But I struggle with it conceptually. How do you rotate on the lead foot whilst pushing off it at the same time? We did some exercises without a club to try and embed the feeling, but I still found it difficult to achieve. It's going to take a lot of reps! I've subsequently watched a couple of videos from Smart2Move and Padraig Harrington where they try to describe the feeling of turning and pushing. It's not easy!

My balance issue stems from having too much weight on my toes through the swing. To improve this, I need to load into the trail heel on the backswing and then transfer back to the ball of the lead foot on the downswing/follow-through. I want to visualise my belt buckle finishing left of my target to promote a full pelvis rotation. I've proven there are no physical impediments, so this is likely a mental issue again. Jordan suggested trying to imagine my right glute pushing against a wall on the backswing and then my left glute pushing it post-transition. This is also going to take a lot of reps.

Would I recommend a Bioswing/Smart2Move lesson?

For a geek like me, definitely yes. For everyone else, also yes! Why? Primarily because the information provided makes it easy to understand what is going on within your swing and where your power leakages are. Also, Jordan isn't trying to rebuild your swing to match some perfect model, he's working with the swing you've got to try and get the most out of it. Having tried (and failed) to rebuild my swing to a model, I like that approach. I've come away with things to work on, but nothing drastic or overly demanding, and I saw immediate benefits from implementing them.

The definitive guide to Stack and Tilt

As I mentioned above, I see some similarities between the work I've done here and the reading I've been doing recently on Stack and Tilt. As a "front post" golfer, stack and tilt is a concept that should fit me well. I think the two concepts complement each other well and I've seen some real improvements in ball striking since implementing S&T and the rotational work from Jordan.

I think Stack and Tilt has too much of a negative perception in the golfing community, but I can see elements of the method in many of todays top professional players. I plan to keep working on this and look for a dedicated Stack and Tilt coach to help bring the reading to life. It's not easy to teach yourself from a book!

If any of my readers can recommend a Stack and Tilt coach, either locally in Scotland or via the Skillest App etc, then please get in touch through the comments section or email me directly.

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