Video Am I better-off switching to a two-plane swing?

[luckydutch]

I picked up golf this year and so far my lessons have been about a shallower backswing and downswing to resist an over-the-top move. I’ve been reading up and since learned that’s called a one plane swing.

I’ve improved a bit but I continue to struggle with this natural tendency to go over-the-top. Oftentimes, I’ll do a good practice swing then put a ball down in front of my and then swing over-the-top. I’ve also not really been getting the carry distances I want and have lost about 20 yards per iron compared to when I first started.

I’ve had to isolate before visiting some vulnerable family and have tried to teach myself a two plane swing with the time I’ve had on my hands this weekend. If nothing else, I just wanted to see how it felt.

My one-plane swing:

https://imgur.com/a/yo7sunH

Two plane swing (attempt):

https://imgur.com/a/nUgNgwa

Few questions on this:

Have I got the general gist of the two plane swing?

Would I potentially be better-off practicing that swing instead of my old one plane swing next time I go to the range? It feels easier to resist the over the top move but potentially a bit less powerful?

One aspect of the two plane swing I find odd is the initial shallowing of the club. The momentum of the club is dropping down relative to my hands (clockwise direction) and then I use my forearms through the impact zone to rotate the club anti-clockwise to square the face. Isn’t that a massive power leakage? It feels like the momentum of the club when I ‘drop it into the slot’ is moving in the opposite direction my lower body rotation and the direction my arms are actually moving.

 

[blugold]

Neither is particularly "Two Plane". Sure looks like the club gets stuck behind you in the second video. That's no way to play golf because you're going to have to flip the club to square it up.

You're a bold man tacking full swings inside on a rug.

 

[luckydutch]

Neither is particularly "Two Plane". Sure looks like the club gets stuck behind you in the second video. That's no way to play golf because you're going to have to flip the club to square it up.

You're a bold man tacking full swings inside on a rug.

I thought that was the whole point with the two plane? You go steep in the backswing but drop the club shallow behind you in the downswing?

Edit: I get it now. The hands shallow the club by moving faster into that lower position. That actually helps a bit with my question about the momentum working against my swing.

Is this a better attempt?

https://imgur.com/a/nUgNgwa

It’s probably worth pointing out that the camera is on fish eye lense so I can see more in a smaller space so that does distort it somewhat.

 

[blugold]

I thought that was the whole point with the two plane? You go steep in the backswing but drop the club shallow behind you in the downswing?

Edit: I get it now. The hands shallow the club by moving faster into that lower position. That actually helps a bit with my question about the momentum working against my swing.

Is this a better attempt?



It’s probably worth pointing out that the camera is on fish eye lense so I can see more in a smaller space so that does distort it somewhat.

I'm far from an expert but check on that spine angle, you stand up out of it. Hips coming towards the ball.

FWIW, I would wait to get a video when you can actually swing at ball. Also, IMGUR makes it hard to watch these videos. I can't scroll forward/back.

 

[luckydutch]

I'm far from an expert but check on that spine angle, you stand up out of it. Hips coming towards the ball.

FWIW, I would wait to get a video when you can actually swing at ball. Also, IMGUR makes it hard to watch these videos. I can't scroll forward/back.

You should be able to scroll on the video if you tap it there is a bar at the bottom. It’s not very obvious though, I’ll admit.

The standing up through impact is sort of deliberate. I’ve been working on trying to push up from the ground through impact to add a bit more power. I was seeing in my videos that I was striking the ball and still having a bent lead leg. Don’t have the timing and nature of that move 100% down yet, though so I am likely doing it wrong.

Overall, would you say that two plane swing is what I should be focusing on practicing now rather than the one plane swing I had been working on until now?

I can’t easily work on both at the same time so probably need to pick one to focus on.

 

[blugold]

You should be able to scroll on the video if you tap it there is a bar at the bottom. It’s not very obvious though, I’ll admit.

The standing up through impact is sort of deliberate. I’ve been working on trying to push up from the ground through impact to add a bit more power. I was seeing in my videos that I was striking the ball and still having a bent lead leg. Don’t have the timing and nature of that move 100% down yet, though so I am likely doing it wrong.

Overall, would you say that two plane swing is what I should be focusing on practicing now rather than the one plane swing I had been working on until now?

I can’t easily work on both at the same time so probably need to pick one to focus on.

I personally like a one plane swing, but I have my own swing issues to work on.

 

[JonMA1]

I started researching and trying implement the teachings the Jim Hardy and The Plane Truth a couple of years ago. Of all the rabbit holes I've gone down in trying to learn this game, that one was the most damaging.

@luckydutch, if you're currently taking lessons, perhaps putting a little trust in what that instructor is teaching you may be beneficial. If you feel what he's having you work on is not helping or even hurting, there's nothing wrong with finding another.

It's tough to know how long to stay committed to a single way of learning.

On one hand, most golfers don't excel at the pace you seem to be hoping for. There's something to be said for patience and giving an instructor time to help. Nothing wrong with experimenting with different swing thoughts, but it can be taken so far as to be counterproductive.

On the other hand, staying committed long-term to a method that doesn't fit is not good either and could possibly ingrain poor habits that'll be hard to break.

Good luck with whatever plan you choose to follow.

 

[luckydutch]

I started researching and trying implement the teachings the Jim Hardy and The Plane Truth a couple of years ago. Of all the rabbit holes I've gone down in trying to learn this game, that one was the most damaging.

@luckydutch, if you're currently taking lessons, perhaps putting a little trust in what that instructor is teaching you may be beneficial. If you feel what he's having you work on is not helping or even hurting, there's nothing wrong with finding another.

It's tough to know how long to stay committed to a single way of learning.

On one hand, most golfers don't excel at the pace you seem to be hoping for. There's something to be said for patience and giving an instructor time to help. Nothing wrong with experimenting with different swing thoughts, but it can be taken so far as to be counterproductive.

On the other hand, staying committed long-term to a method that doesn't fit is not good either and could possibly ingrain poor habits that'll be hard to break.

Good luck with whatever plan you choose to follow.

It’s not that I think my instructor isn’t helping. It’s more that I don’t get out of the city to see him as much as I’d like and I think when I do he just tries to work with what I’ve got and make improvements rather than wholesale changes.

I’m not the most patient person and can be pretty obsessive when it comes to learning new things. That’s why I’m experimenting beyond just the few things we’ve covered in the lessons.

I’m sure if I rocked up to my next lesson asking to work on a two plane swing he’d help me with it. I’m just trying to work out whether that’s the best thing for me or not.

If does seem like it might be easier to avoid that over the top move with it and that OTT has been plaguing my swing since I started. Last 3 lessons have been focused on tips to try to tame it but I struggle to replicate the good swings consistently.

 

[JonMA1]

It’s not that I think my instructor isn’t helping. It’s more that I don’t get out of the city to see him as much as I’d like and I think when I do he just tries to work with what I’ve got and make improvements rather than wholesale changes.

I’m not the most patient person and can be pretty obsessive when it comes to learning new things. That’s why I’m experimenting beyond just the few things we’ve covered in the lessons.

I’m sure if I rocked up to my next lesson asking to work on a two plane swing he’d help me with it. I’m just trying to work out whether that’s the best thing for me or not.

If does seem like it might be easier to avoid that over the top move with it and that OTT has been plaguing my swing since I started. Last 3 lessons have been focused on tips to try to tame it but I struggle to replicate the good swings consistently.

I completely understand the desire to improve quickly. I tend to be a little more patient than I was my first few years now that I know improvement isn't going to come overnight.

 

[Arlo]

It’s not that I think my instructor isn’t helping. It’s more that I don’t get out of the city to see him as much as I’d like and I think when I do he just tries to work with what I’ve got and make improvements rather than wholesale changes.

I’m not the most patient person and can be pretty obsessive when it comes to learning new things. That’s why I’m experimenting beyond just the few things we’ve covered in the lessons.

I’m sure if I rocked up to my next lesson asking to work on a two plane swing he’d help me with it. I’m just trying to work out whether that’s the best thing for me or not.

If does seem like it might be easier to avoid that over the top move with it and that OTT has been plaguing my swing since I started. Last 3 lessons have been focused on tips to try to tame it but I struggle to replicate the good swings consistently.

OTT is caused by your right trap muscle from the top of BS.
There is a reason good golf swings start with a relaxed trail arm and shoulder. Whether they realize the reason, It is to keep the trap muscle from being activated.
At address, it appears both arms are straight and overly tense... normal for a beginning golfer trying to get into all the right positions.
Suggest you place your right foot back further away from target line than the left foot, relax your right hand, right arm and right trap muscle.
Rotating the right hand clockwise in BS and keeping it rotated clockwise through impact, will negate the right trap from engaging. (they are mutally exclusive). With your body (foot position) oriented to impact the inside quadrant of the ball, even a slight OTT DS will impact the inside of the ball or at worst, the back of the ball. good luck