Secret of a good golf swing revealed
Friday 7 November 2008
Professor Robin Sharp from the University of Surrey may have cracked the code to the perfect golf swing according to research published today in the journal Proceedings A of the Royal Society. Professor Sharp found that contrary to popular belief the wrists are not critical to the perfect, long-distance golf swing but rather that how and when the power develops is key to achieving distance.
Professor Sharp's analysis is based on a computer model in which a golfer uses three points of rotation: the shoulders relative to the spine, the arms relative to the shoulders and the wrists relative to the arms. According to previous studies either the torque (power in rotation) was applied at its maximum from the backswing or it increased during the swing to reach its maximum at the point of impact.
Using his computer model, Professor Sharp analysed the swing styles of golf greats Bernard Hunt, Geoffrey Hunt, and Guy Wolstenholme, whose swings were measured with high-speed photography in 1968. The model showed that their drive distance could have been improved by increasing the torque quickly to the maximum value, and then maintaining it throughout the rest of the swing.
In the expert swings studied, Professor Sharp concluded that control of the arms and not the wrists is key to achieving maximum club-head speed at impact with the ball.
The study also found that dramatic differences in performance between large and small players should not be expected on the basis of size alone. Instead, Professor Sharp suggests that strength and inertial variations seem more likely than size to account for long and short hitting.
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