Comments on the "Stack and Tilt" Golf Swing

In a recent issue of Golf Digest (June 2007) a "new" golf swing has been described as the hottest thing on the PGA tour, and its proponents, Andy Plummer and Mike Bennet, have been hailed as the newest golf gurus. The new swing is called the "Stack and Tilt" swing.

The author of the article indulges in a bit of exaggeration when he says "Their secret...contradicts almost everything being taught in the game today." But there are some interesting differences with the Stack and Tilt swing, and they are worth trying to understand if you want to better your golf game.

The Major Difference

The most important difference with the "Stack and Tilt" swing is the way it encourages golfers to keep their weight forward - on their front foot during the entire swing. Stack and Tilt does away with the normal "weight shift" concept during the different parts of the swing. With Stack and Tilt the golfer starts with about 60% of her weight on the front foot, and presses even more weight towards the front when taking the club back.

Some older golfers will think this looks like a "reverse pivot" where the golfer seems to be leaning towards the target at the top of the swing. Teachers of the typical modern swing have their golf students draw the club back and stack their weight over their back leg when the club hits the top of the swing. But Stack and Tilt encourages the golfer to lean towards the target while the club is taken up.

Some Subtle Differences

To the golfer who is not familiar with the subtle variations promoted by various teachers, it may be hard to spot the difference at first. For one thing with the Stack and Tilt Swing the back leg does not remain flexed as in the typical modern swing. The photos featured in the Golf Digest article (p.122) demonstrate how the back leg straightens out as it pushes back towards the target. When the club is at the top, there is almost a straight line running thru the back leg along the torso neck and head. This line is angled about 10 degrees (from vertical) towards the target.

As a result the front side of the body is "stacked" over the front foot, and the trailing side of the body is "tilted" towards the target.

Compare this with a more typical modern swing demonstrated in the photo of V.J. Singh's swing on page 43 of the same issue of Golf Digest. At the top of his swing Singh's upper body is "stacked" over his back leg, and his torso is (more or less) perpendicular to the ground - not angled towards the target as with the Stack and Tilt swing.

It's All Been Done Before

If you are familiar with the teachings of most modern golf coaches this may sound like a radical departure from golf orthodoxy. But the fact is, there have always been alternative schools of thought which questioned the simplistic "weight shift" idea. In particular, look at old photos of Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan or Sam Snead. None of these golfers make the major shift over the back leg like you see with Tiger Woods, for instance.

Or have a close look at the famous 1930s videos produced by Bobby Jones. There is no obvious shift towards the back leg. Jones remains centered over the ball throughout the swing and is more concerned with rotation around the center point than he is with the lateral weight shift characteristic of the typical modern swing.

Points of Interest

There are clearly some aspects of the Stack and Tilt swing that may help the average golfer hit the golf ball more squarely and more precisely.

The first is the lack of emphasis placed on the weight shift. For many golfers this idea is misleading and results in a lateral shift that basically turns the golf ball into a moving target. Shifting one's weight to the back also results in a "shallower" swing which increases the chances of bottoming out too early. Depending on a variety of factors this can either result in fat shots or thin ones. As an alternative, pressing into the front foot as you take the club back very definitely forces a steeper approach to the ball and should result in fewer topped shots. It also results in a lower trajectory since it de-lofts the club, and this may give you greater run on certain kinds of fairways.

The second has to do with the position of the back elbow and the flatter swing advocated by the Stack and Tilt teachers. A flatter swing is a more rotational one, and in advocating a more rotational movement the Stack and Tilt theory has something in common with other "alternative" swing concepts like the Single Plane Swing recently adopted by Tiger Woods (compliments of Hank Haney.) I'm not sure why a flatter, rounder swing is essential to the Stack and Tilt swing, but I suspect it has to do with the relative difficulty of getting the club going when you have your weight forward. In the jargon of some teachers this weight forward position is what might be called an "unathletic" one. So the idea is to maximize club head speed by taking advantage of the rotation of the torso.

The third point is the fairly advanced idea of the "pelvic thrust" which the Stack and Tilt teachers claim helps get the club approaching the ball correctly. This is probably where Stack and Tilt becomes too difficult for many average golfers. With Stack and Tilt, since one's weight and shoulder position are forward, the approach to the ball will be significantly steeper than normal. The pelvic thrust, along with the more rotational swing, helps to "shallow out" the swing. You achieve this by rapidly rotating your hips around and pushing your front hip up and towards the target. This creates the sensation of almost jumping up and striking the ball while on your toes. If you've ever seen Natalie Golbus swing a golf club you've got a fairly good idea what this looks like.

The best way to see if Stack and Tilt has anything to offer your golf game is to just give the "weight forward" idea a try. Just set up with noticeably more weight on your front foot, and then as you take the club up press more weight into your front foot. It should feel quite different from what you are used to, but it should result in fewer thin hits. Unfortunately it may also result in more pushes, especially with the longer clubs. The easiest fix is to adjust the positioning of the ball by moving it slightly forward. You may also find this swing more complicated and more physically taxing - and for most of us that will be enough to keep it on the shelf.

Italian Article Marketing Directory: http://www.articolando.com

Rick Hendershot is an avid golfer who blogs about the golf swing and exotic and not so exotic golf destinations. Read his blogs called The Weekend Golfer and Golf Around the World.
This and other unique content stack and tilt articles are available with free reprint rights.

Vota l'articolo

Not yet Rated

Clicca sulla icona XML per ricevere Recreation and Sports Via RSS!

Altri articoli - Home | English Articles | Recreation And Sports

Registrati per scrivere articoli
Scrivi Articolo
Articoli più popolari
Guida per inserimento articolo
Notifica E-zine
Articoli RSS Feeds

	Stampa l'articolo
	Aggiungi ai favoriti
	Segnala via email
	Ezine Ready

Contattaci
Directory
Ultime Notizie
Video Anni 80
Video Sigle Cartoni Animati
Video Musicali
Italian Community
Wallpapers Sfondi Immagini
Videoclip