As Trackman’s launch monitors and 3D swing analysis technology become more popular, I believe it will usher in a new era in the world of professional golf and golf instruction in general. Today’s trendy teaching styles will give way to a new style of swing, a style whose origins go back over 100 years!
This ‘classic’ style of swing, with much more active hips and legs and a free clubhead release, can be seen from 1900 and earlier. Nicknamed ‘The Great Triumvirate’, James Braid, John Henry Taylor and Harry Vardon won 16 British Open titles in 21 years. The trio were surprisingly dominant: one came in second all 5 times they didn’t win.
This early swing of the three featured a free-rising left heel on the backswing, with an oscillating column in each direction. The left arm was allowed to bend slightly at the elbow, for the sake of flexibility. The clubhead was thrown with a motion similar to that of a baseball. Braid reportedly woke up one day to this concept and was soon driving balls ridiculous distances for the time, perhaps as much as 375 yards!
The classic style of swing continued in the hands of Walter Hagen and Bobby Jones in the 1920s, the latter continuing to refine the style with much thought and practice. It was around this time that a teenage Mike Austin probably saw and was influenced by Jones at Eastlake Country Club.
Although there is evidence to suggest that Austin had a natural talent for golf from a young age, it was in the Eastlake period that he really began to shine. Austin, a big, strong boy, began to land more prodigious drives seemingly all the time. First, drives over a lake for 300 yards, then 350, and later in the 1930s, over 400 yards in tournaments!
An obviously gifted athlete, Mike Austin was equally studious. At present, his university education has been questioned, but nevertheless, the knowledge and understanding of his subjects were obtained in some way. Psychology, physiology, then physics and engineering: Austin mastered all his secrets and applied them to the golf swing. In 1946, when Austin earned a doctorate in kinesiology, he took the classic swing model and refined it to scientific perfection.
Mike’s raw swing slowly became more measured and precise, and with it, distance and accuracy continued to improve. Mike’s study of the human body and the physics that guide the swing and impact of the ball led to what many people call “the perfect golf swing.” Mike himself stated that his technique was “the most efficient way to hit a ball”.
The advantages of this style of swing are numerous. The body’s 12 levers move in ways that produce massive amounts of power, while simultaneously turning the clubhead around a perfect elliptical wheel toward the ball, transferring as much energy from the collision as possible. The spine is also used for leverage, to transfer weight from one foot to the other. The clubface is precisely controlled by the wrists and forearms, in the same way as many other sports movements such as tennis, racquetball and baseball.
His ability to reduce the risk of injury is another great advantage of the Austin swing. Because the joints only move as designed, within the normal range of motion, they are under significantly less stress than the modern golf swing. The lumbar spine, especially, can be at great risk from the style of golf swing one chooses. Many of today’s styles impose exponential torsional forces on the lower back, and chronic injuries to many young stars are well documented.
So I say, bring the technology! Trackman is already endorsing the benefits of Mike Austin’s “Under, Up, Out” philosophy, which shows the ball will carry and roll farther when hit up from the inside on a driver.
As the scientific community has finally begun to throw its new toys at the golf swing to unravel its mysteries, I have no doubt that the classic swing, and particularly the Austin swing, will stand up to scrutiny and usher in a new era of golf swing. teaching and swinging that will look suspiciously like 1950!