solid strikes – Bryan Pate Golf

Arc Height

April 8, 2019March 17, 2019 Bryan Pate

Arc height is an important skill to develop in the full swing and wedge game. The reason is you can have good or poor technique but if you can control the Arc Height variable you can have a functional result. This skill combined with the low point is also valuable in the full swing.

First let’s address what arc height is. Arc Height is where the swing changes from going down on the circle to up. That point is shown below at the black line. I want to thank Adam Young Golf for the great graphics I got off his YouTube Channel. Also Click Here to go to his site and find out more info on The Strike Plan and NGL programs he offers.

In the above image the correct height will collect the ball, brush the dirt in front, and start to change direction after the ball. If that arc is lower like the lower arc above you will see that the impact where the star is moves back and the arc goes more into the ground. Below is an iron strike off the grass. The club first touches the blades of the grass at the furthest left arrow, continues down to the middle arrow, then comes above the blades of grass at the last arrow on the right. In this scenario if the circle stayed consistent and the arc was moved 2″ lower the contact would enter further back and be traveling too far under the ball resulting in a heavy shot.

Here is a visual of a club traveling too low. Put the ball on a tee to see what would happen if there was no ground under the ball. Imagine the ball is sitting on the ground and the ground is the black alignment rod. In this scenario the club has came into first contact where the red arrow is then continues down to the bottom of the tee. If there was actual ground here the club would crash into it and stop or bounce out.

Below is an image of an arc height that is too high. You can see that the leading edge of the club collided with the middle of the ball. The causes the ball to go straight forward instead of letting the loft project the ball into the air. Higher up than the equator then it will project the ball down into the ground.

Here is a good arc height and low point control added together.you can see the club clipped the tee and was at the lowest point where the red arrow is at. The club collided into the ball and was a center strike which projected the ball upwards.

Now let’s look at a wedge. If you can control how deep under the ball the club travels your low point can be at or around the ball as long as the club is not traveling down too steep and for too long. A good drill for arc height control is to place the ball on a tee and have the tee 2-5mm above the turf. The goal is to clip the tee and avoid the turf. When you can do that move the ball onto the turf and have the same depth under the ball.

Here are 3 scenarios showing how depth control works in the short game area and having a wide margin of error is beneficial. You can land the club a few inches behind the ball, at the ball, or slightly infront and have functional shots for all. The launch, contact, and spin will all be different but results acceptable.

Scenario 1 Low point at the ball and good height control. With this if you have the leading edge below the arc (too much shaft lean) the sharp edge will catch the ground and dig. Also if you have too much bounce the back of the club can hit the ground and cause the leading edge to be turned into the ground and catch the leading edge. Bounce effects how the club interacts with the turf so get fit!!

Scenario 2 Low point behind the ball and good height control. Club will slide across the ground and project the ball up.

Scenario 3 Low point is in front of the ball and good height control.

Can see the leading edge will travel below the equator in each scenario and project the ball upwards.

Arc Height Drill
Good Strike Clip
Arc Height too high, Thin Shot Clip
Arc Height too low, Fat Shot Clip
Thin/Fat are sometimes the same thing – Video
Good Low Point, matching bounce, proper shaft lean – Chipping off a tight lie video

Swing Direction Plus Launch Angle with Driver

February 25, 2019January 15, 2019 Bryan Pate

Want to cover two topics here. The first topic is Swing Direction. Here is the YouTube Video. In the above video I placed an alignment on the ball line a driver distance behind and in front matching the shaft plane. The goal is to give you the ability to get the club to travel from under the one behind and over the one in front, over the one behind and under in front, or under and under. With this you can get feedback where the club is coming from and going to. Below I am showing a swing direction that could go under and over.

Now let’s chat about swing direction and attack angle. As a golfer it is hard to have a swing that is going out to in to and an upward attack angle so as we get the swing more from under to over there is a better chance. Here is another drill to keep the swing coming from the inside and now get the attack angle under control. I placed an alignment rod on the target line at an angle that put it a grip above the ball and rolled up a towel and placed that a foot in front off the ball.

This will set up a path that the club can come from inside low and go above the ball. See the below images showing this movement. I hit some balls with this setup and it got the path right 6-8* and attack up 3-5*. Great way to maximize your driver for the most distance. With solid strikes it will produce a high launching low spinning ball. Click Here for the YouTube video.

Use these videos and drills to help get your swing shape where you want it and get that driver maximized.

Over Under Video Video: https://youtu.be/f5sIiQz5Eiw

Driver Attack Angle Video: https://youtu.be/0v_oHpB_i2c

Elbow Plane Line

February 11, 2019February 11, 2019 Bryan Pate

Let’s talk about the Elbow Plane Line (Click for YouTube Video). This line is not the fix all line but is a good reference point. If you are looking for exact you will need to line up your camera in the correct spot where the camera is hand height and perpendicular to the target line. I use it as a good enough line because my preference is to film at chest high just in front of the toe line.

Let’s take a look how I add the line. You can see in the above photo how I take the swing to impact then draw a line up form the hosel and out the back of the shaft. The reason for impact shaft line is the shaft rises from setup and the dynamic movements of the swing. When taken back to setup the line roughly goes through the right elbow (7iron pictured). I tend to have low hands at setup and always working on getting them higher and when focusing on it feel like they are on this line. Looks like I need to work on some setup pieces.

This is a general reference line that we can use to see if the club from the top is working towards the line or away form the line. Below photo I added a dot to where the club head was at the top of the swing then where it went to in transition. The left photo moved towards the line and down where the right moved away and across the ball.

Here they are at at P6 or shaft parallel. Left going down the line and right staying above.

Here is just after impact you can see the club stay on the line on the left and the right where it came from above it went left and under the line.

A club that is traveling more along the line will usually have a stronger impact than one that is working too much form under or above. Those clubs will be producing more of a glancing blow.

For the direct link to the YouTube channel click below:

Rotate to Balance

February 4, 2019February 4, 2019 Bryan Pate

Balance is key in golf. Turn on the tv and you will not see players moving all over the place, falling forward, back, and around at the finish. The reason for this is it keeps the swing direction and impact more predictable. If you are falling back that can move the swing direction more left and land the club too far behind the ball. Click Here for the YouTube clip on this blog.

Here is a good drill I learned from Martin Chuck at the TourStriker Academy located at the Raven in Phoenix, AZ. Place your club across your thigh and put some pressure into both legs. Keep this pressure constant into the finish. See the above photo for the start and finish.

In the below are to finishes for comparison. The left photo we see often with the golfer finishing with too much pressure on their trail foot. This keeps the center over the ball and the low point back too far. What we want to see if on the right. The golfer is standing on their left foot, 95% of their pressure is on the target side of the ball line, and there is just enough pressure on the back foot so they don’t fall over. Can also see that the back of the rear is on the ball line. This is a good check point to hold and assess where you are, how it feels, and how it looks.

Start small and grow your swing. For the YouTube video direct link click below:

Shanks vs Strikes

January 28, 2019January 8, 2019 Bryan Pate

What creates a shank? To put it simple it is when the sweet spot gets too far past the ball line or target line. This can be done a few ways. One is a club that gets too steep on the downswing, works outside the ball line, and cuts sharply across. Another is more of a better player problem when the sweet spot comes from too far in to out and the sweet spot is working across the ball line too much. Where a third option is having a good swing direction but the sweet spot is just too far away from the player resulting in a hosel strike.

Lets take a look at the first scenario where the club gets outside the ball line too early and works across. This is what we see most often and comes form a player that has a club traveling too steep and an open club face on the way down. The player is trying to square up an open face or get a playable ball flight by swinging left. This way the face that is open to the path that produces slices will start the ball left of the target and move into play somewhere. The featured image above shows a club head in blue that is outside the ball line 1′ away from impact. If that club head does not move quickly left to find the club face or toe of the club there is the hosel waiting for some action.

Typically, but not all the time, players that pull their club inside too fast and open the face on takeaway get the club into a positions at lead arm parallel that is too shallow. From there in order to get the club head on the ball and the face closed they move the club head form the top out into the ball. This gets us into a position that the player has limited options to hit a functional shot. Below is a screen shot of a club going back too far to the inside and open (left) and coming down too far out in front of the grip (right). Click on the image for the 1 minute YouTube clip on this pattern.

Now let’s take a look at a good player that does the opposite. They take the club back more around the hands, this guy takes it slightly outside, and the club face is looking more towards the ball. The club head has not been rolled behind and open. If they were hitting a chip shot it would be easy to get the club back on the ball from this position without a lot of manipulation. On the down swing (right) the club head is coming down slightly behind the hands and you can see it is further away form the ball line and more toe down. From here the club can enter into the ball on more of a shallow angle closer to the white line than steeper on the yellow line. Click the image for a 1 minute YouTube clip on how this club comes into the target line, collects a ball, and leaves the ball line.

To see the difference of the in and over (blue club) and up and back (yellow club) click this image for a 1 minute video comparison.

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